What are you currently playing?
- Thread starter Nick Calandra
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It's more lost in badly implementing it. Quiet's design instantly had people expecting the worst, as this is usually the case in games with female characters like this. And then the game pretty much proved them correct. Quiet wasn't lost in cultural translation, she was made sexy for the sake of it. Which is fine. But to then have a character who has no interest in being seductive at all being put in poses where you can watch her have a sexy shower and point her butt in your face when she's on the chopper with you, is productive only to the horny male demographic. It adds nothing to the story or the character, and only really detracts from it, whether this is positively or negatively.
There was also no reason for the Beauty and the Beast squad in MGS4 to be hot models who then crawled to you and sat on you after you defeated them, even allowing you to take pictures of them as they posed. And that in contrast to them having horribly traumatic pasts. Yeah, nice one there Kojima.
Kojima has always wanted hot girls in his games, but with the advancement of technology he became more and more lazy about it. Honestly, just having Quiet be fully naked without her trying to be sexy in any way, and just having her walk and move in a crude, militaristic manner, would've actually been interesting. But we all know that's not why Kojima wanted her in the game - if we're gonna have a hot girl in our game we better makes sure she does her little dance, even if it's out of character.
Been playing a bit of Thumper. It's ok, but I find it a bit too fast and I think there's supposed to be some sort of sound cue as to what is coming up, but I can't really make it out most of the time amid the general noise of what I'm currently doing.
Anyway, something I noticed is that the person who has the #1 spot on the leaderboards for 5/9 levels doesn't have a platinum trophy for S-ranking all the levels. In fact, they don't even have the trophy for finishing the last level at all. I find that curious.
Anyway, something I noticed is that the person who has the #1 spot on the leaderboards for 5/9 levels doesn't have a platinum trophy for S-ranking all the levels. In fact, they don't even have the trophy for finishing the last level at all. I find that curious.
Finally got started with God of War Ragnarok after the disc decided to behave itself and actually install the game.
First impressions are straight up not good.
One of the biggest releases of last year should not be reminding me of Final Fantasy XIII and The Last of Us Part 2, but here we are. I don't know if the game's going to open up later in some form, but if all the environments keep beign this goddamn linear I might not even finish this game. A lot of the time it's been literal hallways one after the other. The environments at times remind me of early to mid 00's first person shooters where they have these huge vistas and seemingly expansive environments, and then you're just forced down a corridor. That's the FFXIII part.
The TLoU2 part comes when the game feels like it's constantly shoving its budget in your face, and damn you if you try to look at something else, or walk somewhere the game doesn't want you to at a particular moment. Massively indulgent is what it is, where the devs just feel like they had carte blanche to do whatever they fuck they wanted. And to my understanding this isn't going to get better.
I'm maybe 3-4 hours in, and I keep catching myself thinking "am I watching a TV show or playing a game?" because the gameplay to cutscene ratio so far has been incredibly unfavorable. That, and the not-technically-cutscenes, aka "push forward to continue", are also rampant. When the game started with what felt like a 2-minute still shot of Kratos just sitting and fiddling with some sticks (fiddlesticks!) the feeling of the game screaming "LOOK THIS IS A SERIOUS AND IMPORTANT GAME ABOUT SERIOUS AND IMPORTANT THINGS" was palpable.
Additionally every gripe I had with GOW 2018 is still present and then some. The combat feels very clunky, and borderline unfair with how slowly the camera turns, but enemies keep circling around you. It's impossible to gauge distance to enemies that are behind you, so you just duck out of the way blindly. Having been playing Sekiro a lot recently I guess I'm going to have to (try to) readjust from my highly aggressive, damage exchange-heavy playstyle to something more cautious, which just isn't my jam. It feels every time I have to try to heal mid-combat Kratos feels as agile as an 18-wheeler, and playing initially on Give Me No Mercy usually just led to my death. People often talk about how the Souls combat system breaks down when fighting groups, but this feels even worse in that regard.
First impressions are straight up not good.
One of the biggest releases of last year should not be reminding me of Final Fantasy XIII and The Last of Us Part 2, but here we are. I don't know if the game's going to open up later in some form, but if all the environments keep beign this goddamn linear I might not even finish this game. A lot of the time it's been literal hallways one after the other. The environments at times remind me of early to mid 00's first person shooters where they have these huge vistas and seemingly expansive environments, and then you're just forced down a corridor. That's the FFXIII part.
The TLoU2 part comes when the game feels like it's constantly shoving its budget in your face, and damn you if you try to look at something else, or walk somewhere the game doesn't want you to at a particular moment. Massively indulgent is what it is, where the devs just feel like they had carte blanche to do whatever they fuck they wanted. And to my understanding this isn't going to get better.
I'm maybe 3-4 hours in, and I keep catching myself thinking "am I watching a TV show or playing a game?" because the gameplay to cutscene ratio so far has been incredibly unfavorable. That, and the not-technically-cutscenes, aka "push forward to continue", are also rampant. When the game started with what felt like a 2-minute still shot of Kratos just sitting and fiddling with some sticks (fiddlesticks!) the feeling of the game screaming "LOOK THIS IS A SERIOUS AND IMPORTANT GAME ABOUT SERIOUS AND IMPORTANT THINGS" was palpable.
Additionally every gripe I had with GOW 2018 is still present and then some. The combat feels very clunky, and borderline unfair with how slowly the camera turns, but enemies keep circling around you. It's impossible to gauge distance to enemies that are behind you, so you just duck out of the way blindly. Having been playing Sekiro a lot recently I guess I'm going to have to (try to) readjust from my highly aggressive, damage exchange-heavy playstyle to something more cautious, which just isn't my jam. It feels every time I have to try to heal mid-combat Kratos feels as agile as an 18-wheeler, and playing initially on Give Me No Mercy usually just led to my death. People often talk about how the Souls combat system breaks down when fighting groups, but this feels even worse in that regard.
Kojima’s always done this though, so fans of the series have basically come to expect it in some capacity. Not sure about Death Stranding but it wouldn’t surprise me there either.
His games have also always had a dissonance between heavy handed themes and outlandish gameplay stylings, in-game/4th wall humor, and often crude. It’s a big part of why MGS is considered “fun” and grew so popular, whereas Splinter Cell which focuses on 100% seriousness is largely forgettable.
Sure, but that still means Quiet's whole thing is just superficial pandering that adds nothing to her character or the story. And that Kojima's claim that people would look differently at Quiet and feel bad regarding their preconceptions once they actually played the game was a bunch of baloney. I think the initial reaction to Quiet was precisely because it was Kojima, and we know how he operates with these kinds of characters.
The least sexualized female character he's ever created was the Boss and even she couldn't escape zipping down her jump suit to show some boob valley. Though in that particular case I don't mind much, since in that scene the character is supposed to emotionally bare herself anyway, and show some vulnerability. Even Meryl's whole feminity contrasting with her want of being a soldier has something to offer, a little blunt maybe, but it's there. Quiet though, you could take out all ingame moments of her wiggling her ass crack in your face and it wouldn't impact her character arc or presence in the story whatsoever.
Absent
And twice is the only way to live.
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Just had a bit of Superhot nostalgia so reinstalled it. Didn't manage to import my old saves, doesn't matter. It's still sweet as ever.
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I made the mistake of playing the VR version first. After that the normal game just isn't as good.
Trying stranger of paradise cause I got it for cheap. I'm assuming the game is intentionally going for campy/so bad it good story, because otherwise it's incredibly awful.
Gameplay really is Nioh, I was hoping the RPG side would make it more palatable, which it sorta do, but not enough. Still got loot explosion, still really suck, you go trough one short mission and have to go trough literally 200+ piece of gear, but no, thankfully the dev realize its awful and setup a system to automatically trash the bad gear, which just raise the question of why they didn't change the system to not have all that trash in the first place?! Worse of all, it means exploration is never rewarding, since you just get a couple more piece of trash when you do explore. Anyway for now I'm not even looking at the gear and just using whatever has the highest number, who care about tiny +0.9% bonus anyway, and letting the game decide what the ai companion wear, cause w/e.
Otherwise, like Nioh there's just too many system that it really doesn't need. Why is there two version of blocking (in addition to a couple of class having they're own special block)? Half the classes overlap with each other's way too much. The ai companion go from being just pointless decoration to trivializing some encounter, depending on your level, which is just annoying in either cases. But the base gameplay is really fun, the various weapon really feel unique and the class system means you're forced to constantly change how you play, which keeps things from getting stale.
Gameplay really is Nioh, I was hoping the RPG side would make it more palatable, which it sorta do, but not enough. Still got loot explosion, still really suck, you go trough one short mission and have to go trough literally 200+ piece of gear, but no, thankfully the dev realize its awful and setup a system to automatically trash the bad gear, which just raise the question of why they didn't change the system to not have all that trash in the first place?! Worse of all, it means exploration is never rewarding, since you just get a couple more piece of trash when you do explore. Anyway for now I'm not even looking at the gear and just using whatever has the highest number, who care about tiny +0.9% bonus anyway, and letting the game decide what the ai companion wear, cause w/e.
Otherwise, like Nioh there's just too many system that it really doesn't need. Why is there two version of blocking (in addition to a couple of class having they're own special block)? Half the classes overlap with each other's way too much. The ai companion go from being just pointless decoration to trivializing some encounter, depending on your level, which is just annoying in either cases. But the base gameplay is really fun, the various weapon really feel unique and the class system means you're forced to constantly change how you play, which keeps things from getting stale.
More Resident Evil 4. Now on Pro NG+ with the rocket launcher and it's a breeze. Got to the castle in under an hour, which seems so fast looking back to my initial 20 hour playthrough, but then there're maniacs out there speedrunning NG under 90 minutes. Jesus.
I've been using as many skips as I can without glitching the game. The rocket launcher kills anything in one hit thankfully, including bosses. Also shot the church bell. Killed the dude that summons the dogs. Shooting locks and weights from creative angles to bypass small sections at the farm, the castle and the battlements. Breaking the clock sequence as Ashley. And the biggest skip so far, which I can't believe works, is using J.J. in the island wharf as a shield from the laser turret guarding the gates.
I've been using as many skips as I can without glitching the game. The rocket launcher kills anything in one hit thankfully, including bosses. Also shot the church bell. Killed the dude that summons the dogs. Shooting locks and weights from creative angles to bypass small sections at the farm, the castle and the battlements. Breaking the clock sequence as Ashley. And the biggest skip so far, which I can't believe works, is using J.J. in the island wharf as a shield from the laser turret guarding the gates.
I genuinely think Kojima believed it when he said audiences would “feel ashamed of your words and deeds” regarding Quiet’s design. It has a duality to it like his games themselves. Where on one hand he admitted himself it was something great for cosplayers (and being exploited through capitalism), while on the other within the game lore she’s corrupted with vocal parasites and used as a tool to do another man’s bidding. However she still has free will to choose otherwise, and ultimately fulfills her persona of being…”Quiet”.
Perhaps her arc would’ve been more engaging if she were able to speak freely, but it would’ve also ended up losing all its meaning and impact in the game as it is. Another part of why these games’ themes are lost in translation is people, especially in social media and game journalism, are often content to let the most trivial, superficial aspects like T&A fan service override whatever else might be happening underneath it all.
Made it to the end of Leon A in RE2 Remake. Now for Claire B.
I did try Leon B when I first got the game on PS4, but I didn't get that far into it. Hopefully this time I'll actually make it to the end.
I did try Leon B when I first got the game on PS4, but I didn't get that far into it. Hopefully this time I'll actually make it to the end.
As much as I can like and respect Kojima for moving the medium forward, Quiet is just glorified fan-service for the most part, and Kojima was/still is hiding behind it. Not to say she didn't have tragedy to her in-universe, but Kojima could have pulled it off better and more effective either being more open about it, or dropping the heavy fan-service altogether. I do know in Death Stranding there is not much fan-service, so he might have finally let his fan-service go for the most part, as I highly doubt he'll get back to that style in Death Stranding II.
Got the first non-joke ending on Nier: Automata. I wonder why they even bother to roll the credits if they are then going to put a big message on the screen that says "THIS ISN'T THE END, PLEASE KEEP PLAYING!" Kind of an awkward way of handling things. I'm warming on the game a bit, and have even enjoyed a sidequest or two so far. The combat does indeed suck and I just end up holding down the lock on and fire buttons and mashing attack. I dodge from time to time but getting hit doesn't matter because of the truly massive stockpile of cheap health items. The RPG elements just pretty much ruin the combat entirely because if the level gap is too big, combat doesn't exactly become a challenge it just takes forever. The game would be better if it wasn't an RPG, straight up. Make the last boss there look like a total chump too because he went down way easier than some random level 50 sidequest enemies that took 10+ minutes to whittle down. I don't know what the point of all the different weapons are either. They all have similar stats and the starting katanas have attack speed up buffs, which should mean increased dps.
2B's dress is still the most awkward thing in the game. Especially when the entire front of her skirt gets torn off at the end of the boss battle and you get an even clearer view of her panties than you normally do. It's just unnecessary and embarrassing, like you know the only reason it's there is because director was jerking off to this. If combat is your main purpose in life and you are going to be flipping and jumping all over the place, just put on a pair of pants. Also, not really sure why roughly 98% of all androids are female. Or why they have emotions. Or why they have eyes but always wear blindfolds (what even happened to them in the final battle, one second they are wearing them, and then they aren't). Or why they can cry.
2B's dress is still the most awkward thing in the game. Especially when the entire front of her skirt gets torn off at the end of the boss battle and you get an even clearer view of her panties than you normally do. It's just unnecessary and embarrassing, like you know the only reason it's there is because director was jerking off to this. If combat is your main purpose in life and you are going to be flipping and jumping all over the place, just put on a pair of pants. Also, not really sure why roughly 98% of all androids are female. Or why they have emotions. Or why they have eyes but always wear blindfolds (what even happened to them in the final battle, one second they are wearing them, and then they aren't). Or why they can cry.
Because they knew at least some players were going to stop after the first ending if they did. This ties back to Taro's older titles on the PS2, Drakengard 1 & 2. And of course, the original Nier. There were players that stopped after the first ending or did want to bother with the rest. Ot didn't due the lack of interests, or just being playing confused. I can't exactly blame them on the lack of interest, because a lot of his older games do not play well and are slog to get through. Especially Drakengard 1.
They are see-through blindfolds used to analyze data and record combat.
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Completed and platinum-ed both Salt and Sanctuary and Salt and Sacrifice over the last month, as well as NG+ on Sanctuary.
Now playing Sackboy's big adventure, because I need something a bit more chill/easy/colourful after the punishing metroidvania soulslike stuff.
Now playing Sackboy's big adventure, because I need something a bit more chill/easy/colourful after the punishing metroidvania soulslike stuff.
I'd do drakengard 1/2 over either of the nier, they were essentially dynasty warrior clone, except you could roast people from the air with a giant fucking dragon. Plus the drakengard didn't have side quest seemingly designed just to waste as much time as possible from the player in some artsy statement (being generous there). Better weapon variety to keep things somewhat varied too, and alternate character to control.
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You can do side quests on your second run and they are way easier then wacking on a tough enemy forever.
The second game I kind of get, but the first game I rather not touch. The combat is way too slow and that includes the aerial combat as well. When your game play boils down to Dynasty Warriors, but somehow worse and barely more interesting, then I'm not invested. I would still play Nier Automata over the old DRGD games. A majority of the side quests are optional, and you're not forced to do them. Second, Platinum at least made the combat above decent and fun.
Beware Knitted Knight Trial #16.
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Incidentally, I have also been playing Sackboy's Big Adventure these past couple of days.
It's a fun and cozy game to casually play, I would describe it as basically Little Big Planet 4 but without the level editor ( which is a bit of a shame ). It's a wee bit short and I'd have been peeved if I had bought it at launch for PS4 or PS5 with its ludicrous prices, but as I haven't I'm quite pleased with it overal.
However, as with Little Big Planet, the game can be rather buggy when playing online with other people. Maybe I'm just unlucky with hosts that I connect to, but suddenly getting teleported back a couple of meters happened to me a few times, when traveling particularly fast I often found myself desyncing with my hosts ( when on slides or platforms ) and all sorts of good old fun. Another annoying holdover from LBP is that players can bump into eachother, and more annoyingly when a rolling buddy rolls into you you're automatically placed on top of them, taking away your movement lest you jump off which can be rather annoying when it happens without advance warning.
Also, although the game is a great casual play, when trying for precise play I have found myself butting heads with the physics based movement system. This became especially apparent when trying Knitted Knight Trial #16, scew that particular challenge.
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