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[Xprimentyl]

Killed Moonlight Butterfly and am now camped in front of a hydra.

I know I'm supposed to be headed to Blighttown but I'm not too keen about it. Hopefully it's not as bad as Demon's Souls' Valley of Defilement.

Blighttown isn't that bad. It's not fun, and going in blind will be a bit confusing, but once you have the lay of the land and the blow dart enemies perma-killed, it's basically more of an inconvenience than anything. Take plenty of blooming purple moss clumps!!

 

[meiam]

Blighttown isn't that bad. It's not fun, and going in blind will be a bit confusing, but once you have the lay of the land and the blow dart enemies perma-killed, it's basically more of an inconvenience than anything. Take plenty of blooming purple moss clumps!!

Plus on release you'd get like maybe 10 FPS for most of it, but now its much better (I hope).

 

[Xprimentyl]

Plus on release you'd get like maybe 10 FPS for most of it, but now its much better (I hope).

Ah, that's true. FPS was an issue apparently, but never one I personally had to deal with in my first go around or in the remaster several years later.

 

[Drathnoxis]

Reached the Credits of Blue Prince. It's everything Yahtzee said it was. Unique, fun to piece together, and held back a bit by random chance. I've had a lot of fun, and worked out a lot of the games hidden puzzles, and while I still have a number to solve I'm a little reluctant because I know that my progress is going to be entirely down to whether the game gives me the rooms and items I need to solve the puzzles in one run. And it's not a high chance. Somewhere around Day 5 I found a key to a safety deposit box, luckily I had just made a coat room that lets you store an item for use on a later run so I stuck it in there until I could find the room it goes to. Turns out you need it for the Vault which has a low chance of being drawn. You know how many days it took until I got both the vault and the coat room/key in one run? Something like 15! The next day I found a key for a different safety deposit box... For context I reached the credits around day 25, and a day can take between half an hour to an hour. And that's only one instance of the RNG getting in my way, I could list a dozen easy.

So do I want to solve the remaining puzzles? Yes, I definitely do. Do I want to spend another 40 hours waiting for the RNG to serve me up with the right conditions to do so? No, I really don't. Hopefully a future update will address this. Also, this is just me but I'm not altogether interested in the hidden lore about your family, it's just not doing anything for me. I'm interested in the documents as far as they relate to hints toward puzzles, but as a story it's not terribly interesting.

 

[Johnny Novgorod]

Killed the Hydra in Darkroot Basin but that only cleared the way to two areas where I got curb stomped by Ents and by Wargs, depending whether I went left or right. So back the way I came.

Also tried exiting through Drake Valley and got curb stomped some more. No dice.

Then I went all the way back to Firelink Shrine and flew back to Undead Asylum, only to get curb stomped by the Stray Demon.

So I'm back at the Blighttown entrance, and between the poison goons and the ramshackle platforms my Valley of Defilement PTSD is flaring up. What's that about permakilling the blow dart dudes, is that something I have to flag or activate or do they simply not respawn?

 

[NerfedFalcon]

Killed the Hydra in Darkroot Basin but that only cleared the way to two areas where I got curb stomped by Ents and by Wargs, depending whether I went left or right. So back the way I came.

Also tried exiting through Drake Valley and got curb stomped some more. No dice.

Then I went all the way back to Firelink Shrine and flew back to Undead Asylum, only to get curb stomped by the Stray Demon.

So I'm back at the Blighttown entrance, and between the poison goons and the ramshackle platforms my Valley of Defilement PTSD is flaring up. What's that about permakilling the blow dart dudes, is that something I have to flag or activate or do they simply not respawn?

It doesn't have to be right away, but if you go around the side of the lake where the Hydra was, you'll find a golden crystal golem. Defeating it unlocks an NPC who sells utility sorceries; if you have at least 14 Int it might be worth checking out, but if you're not doing sorcery, don't worry about it. Talking to Dusk is also a required step to access the DLC area later on.

As for the blowpipe guys in Blighttown, they just don't respawn after you kill them once. You'll need to keep a close eye out for them, though, they can be a little tricky to spot before they stick you with the Toxic status. If you found any armor that boosts poison resistance, that'll give you an extra little edge.

If they're still getting you down even with that, look for the Spider Shield in the Depths; that'll increase your poison resistance even further, and its other stats aren't too bad, at least within Blighttown where poison's everywhere.

 

[NerfedFalcon]

FF7 Remake: End of Chapter 4, and as we come into Chapter 5 we finally have a full three-member party together, which is where the game's (massive) combat space really begins to fully open up. Not a lot happens in the plot for a few chapters other than some decent character moments, though, so I probably won't be posting many updates until I hit the end of 7/start of 8.

The last time I played I got up to about the midpoint of 8, so that's how I know what's going to happen. I'm also vaguely aware of the shape of the rest of the chapters, if nothing else because I've played the original game.

 

[Xprimentyl]

So I'm back at the Blighttown entrance, and between the poison goons and the ramshackle platforms my Valley of Defilement PTSD is flaring up. What's that about permakilling the blow dart dudes, is that something I have to flag or activate or do they simply not respawn?

Everything @NerfedFalcon said above. Prioritize the blow dart guys, and Blighttown becomes merely inconvenient. Stock up on blooming purple moss clumps (they can be farmed from the "Ents" in the area just before where you killed the Moonlight Butterfly,) raise your shield, and charge every blow dart guy you find. There's only like 6-8 of them, I think.

Oh, and for the farming for moss clumps, did you by chance find the hidden bonfire in that area? To the left of the big, sealed door there's an illusory wall; smack it and you'll have a very convenient bonfire to farm from.

 

[Old_Hunter_77]

Welp, looks like a hot rainy week. Week! Gonna be indoors, so it's gaming time.
Re-subbed to GamePass and installed:

- South of Midnight
- Clair: Obscure: Expedition: 33
- Blue Prince

Gonna start with Midnight because it seems the shortest.
I'm curious of I'll stick with Claire since it's turn-based
I have no faith I'll stick with Blue Prince because I'm a dummy who cries at puzzles but I do wanna see what all the hype is about

 

[Drathnoxis]

Welp, looks like a hot rainy week. Week! Gonna be indoors, so it's gaming time.
Re-subbed to GamePass and installed:

- South of Midnight
- Clair: Obscure: Expedition: 33
- Blue Prince

Gonna start with Midnight because it seems the shortest.
I'm curious of I'll stick with Claire since it's turn-based
I have no faith I'll stick with Blue Prince because I'm a dummy who cries at puzzles but I do wanna see what all the hype is about

FYI for Blue Prince you need to take notes. The game does tell you this in a note, and it's very true. Have a notebook.

 

[BrawlMan]

Gonna start with Midnight because it seems the shortest.

Enjoy! So far I heard nothing but good things about the game.

 

[Old_Hunter_77]

FYI for Blue Prince you need to take notes. The game does tell you this in a note, and it's very true. Have a notebook.

That's one of the big obstacles for me in games like these. I really just like settling into my couch with a controller in my hand. But I also have been meaning to push myself into puzzle games so we'll see how that goes.

 

[Old_Hunter_77]

Enjoy! So far I heard nothing but good things about the game.

I've heard a big negative about the combat being boring which is why I didn't buy it.
The phrase "gamepass" game gets tossed around for stuff like this and I'll find out if it's merited.

 

[BrawlMan]

I've heard a big negative about the combat being boring which is why I didn't buy it.
The phrase "gamepass" game gets tossed around for stuff like this and I'll find out if it's merited.

The combat is nothing special, but pretty basic. I haven't played the game myself, but for what I see, i've encountered way worse combat from Ninja Theory games. Yet people had no problem praising most of those.

 

[Xprimentyl]

Started Fe, an esoteric platformer that manages to be both beautiful and cute. Calm and peaceful so far; stress levels are down.

 

[Johnny Novgorod]

So I spent way more time than I needed to in Blighttown because I didnt't realize the big cobwebbed thing in the distance wasn't just part of the scenery, but the entrance to the big tiddy spidertaur boss fight. She was kinda easy (two tries). Really all of Blighttown wasn't half bad compared to Valley of Defilement. From memory that place was way bigger and considerably more unforgiving, with its huge swathes of poison shallows and all the ways the game would trick you into falling to your death. Blighttown is also surprisingly "generous" with its two bonfires.

I kinda miss the Demon's Souls style of progression where you'd go through these circular gauntlets that, without realizing it, would take you back to the beginning with a shortcut while also opening the way ahead. Areas in Dark Souls are connected in amuch more labyrinthine way, but the structure within each area itself is usually pretty linear.

@Xprimentyl @NerfedFalcon What's something good to do before heading to Sen's Fortress? I haven't cleared all of Darkroot Garden/Basin yet (made it to the Ents/Wargs after the Hydra; couldn't find the Golem). There's Demon's Ruins, Valley of Drakes, New Londo and Undead Asylum (where I think I did everything but beat Stray Demon).

 

[The Rogue Wolf]

I've been playing Stray for a little while. Definitely an exploration-rich game, which isn't always my cup of tea, but I'm absolutely enthralled by this world and its story. (And by the cat. The cat is adorable, and when it fell into a culvert and hurt its leg, I definitely did not say "KITTY NO" in a totally masculine voice.) Unfortunately the cat managed to fall through the map and cost me ten minutes of progress so I'm taking a little break.

 

[NerfedFalcon]

@NerfedFalcon What's something good to do before heading to Sen's Fortress? I haven't cleared all of Darkroot Garden/Basin yet (made it to the Ents/Wargs after the Hydra; couldn't find the Golem). There's Demon's Ruins, Valley of Drakes, New Londo and Undead Asylum (where I think I did everything but beat Stray Demon).

Darkroot Garden/Basin: To find the gold golem, from Havel's tower, go left around the lake where the Hydra was; there should be a line of shallow water all the way around the left side, IIRC. There's also an actual boss in Darkroot Garden, but you don't need to fight them right away.

Valley of Drakes: There are a couple of items you can pick up here, but likely nothing that'll change the way you proceed for the rest of the game. Most of what's here is elevators connecting New Londo Ruins, Blighttown and Darkroot Basin.

New Londo Ruins: Most of the good stuff in this area isn't accessible yet.

Undead Asylum: Defeating the Stray Demon gets you a Titanite Slab. You probably won't need that for a while, though. There's also a key item here that unlocks another optional area later on, but going into it at the first opportunity might leave you in a bad spot; I'd not recommend going back for it until after you get the Lordvessel at least.

 

[Worgen]

I've been playing Stray for a little while. Definitely an exploration-rich game, which isn't always my cup of tea, but I'm absolutely enthralled by this world and its story. (And by the cat. The cat is adorable, and when it fell into a culvert and hurt its leg, I definitely did not say "KITTY NO" in a totally masculine voice.) Unfortunately the cat managed to fall through the map and cost me ten minutes of progress so I'm taking a little break.

My SO tried to play that game but at that part she just couldn't take it anymore, she hates hurt animals, especially cats since cats are awesome.

 

[Drathnoxis]

So I spent way more time than I needed to in Blighttown because I didnt't realize the big cobwebbed thing in the distance wasn't just part of the scenery, but the entrance to the big tiddy spidertaur boss fight. She was kinda easy (two tries). Really all of Blighttown wasn't half bad compared to Valley of Defilement. From memory that place was way bigger and considerably more unforgiving, with its huge swathes of poison shallows and all the ways the game would trick you into falling to your death. Blighttown is also surprisingly "generous" with its two bonfires.

I kinda miss the Demon's Souls style of progression where you'd go through these circular gauntlets that, without realizing it, would take you back to the beginning with a shortcut while also opening the way ahead. Areas in Dark Souls are connected in amuch more labyrinthine way, but the structure within each area itself is usually pretty linear.

@Xprimentyl @NerfedFalcon What's something good to do before heading to Sen's Fortress? I haven't cleared all of Darkroot Garden/Basin yet (made it to the Ents/Wargs after the Hydra; couldn't find the Golem). There's Demon's Ruins, Valley of Drakes, New Londo and Undead Asylum (where I think I did everything but beat Stray Demon).

Yeah, I'd just carry on through Sen's Fortress. You need to go back to Darkroot Garden, New Londo, and Demon's Ruins later anyway so there isn't really a point getting to deep into them yet.

Also the golem in Darkroot basin won't appear until you leave the area and come back after killing the hydra.