What are you currently playing?

[NerfedFalcon]

This is the first time I've heard of Tower of Druaga. An arcade game where you need to take notes is kind of an odd design. I'm not surprised it flopped on re-release, games that don't spell everything out for the player or give much guidance do pretty poorly for a modern audience. Most people don't have the patience to take notes and experiment. It's not that you need other people, it's just that you need to have patience.

I mean, there's that, and then there's how Tower of Druaga works, where each floor has a treasure chest that only appears if you do a specific thing, which you're not told what that thing is even after you did it. And the chests contain items, some of which are mandatory to complete the game, and some of which are cursed and will actively prevent you from completing the game. And sometimes, if you didn't get an item from a previous floor, then you'll get a cursed item instead of the item you need to beat the game, which you're not actually told when it happens. Also, some actions will cause you to be teleported to a previous floor; theoretically so that you can obtain an item that you need and didn't get, but in practice if you get teleported back, it either won't be far enough down to actually get that item, or you'll be stripped of another item you needed in the process.

And since you're not even told what the items actually do when you pick them up, you may not even know that you have a cursed item or one of an insufficient quality until you find yourself softlocked right near the end. And I do mean right near the end, as even on each of the last two floors, it's possible to get teleported back and softlocked if you don't do exactly the right thing (which you aren't even given hints at what that is.)

Sure, the game is not super-long to beat in a single sitting, so restarting doesn't lose you much progress, but without a guide or a lot of friends to discuss your findings with and theorize about chest triggers and item effects, patience, note-taking and experimentation will only get you so far. And if you think I'm wrong, then by all means, prove it:


I don't believe this version provides any in-game guidance. It's based on the Famicom port but the mechanics are AFAIK the same.

 

[Worgen]

I don't believe this version provides any in-game guidance. It's based on the Famicom port but the mechanics are AFAIK the same.

Does that have the nes version of Dragon Spirit?

 

[Drathnoxis]

And if you think I'm wrong, then by all means, prove it:

A random challenge about a game I care nothing about to satisfy a forum user from the other side of the world... Honestly, I'm tempted. But how would I prove that I'm not looking at a guide?

 

[NerfedFalcon]

A random challenge about a game I care nothing about to satisfy a forum user from the other side of the world... Honestly, I'm tempted. But how would I prove that I'm not looking at a guide?

I admit that part was probably excessive in hindsight, but I wanted to make my point as clear as possible that there's 'encouraging experimentation and community' and then there's outright player-hostile design. And the line between the two is often razor-thin; nonetheless, Druaga is so far across it that it makes the Usurpation ending of DS3 look clear and obvious.

Well, in the age of code dumping, it's not like any secret stays secret for long, no matter how hard you hide it.

 

[BrawlMan]

I did 4 runs of Devil's Dare, and completed it with the original core roster. I don't care about the two unlockable characters right now. I played some MW2R (2009), and I like Ranger missions more than the Task 141 missions, but they're no slouch either mostly.

 

[thebobmaster]

Finally started Robocop: Rogue City. It has an achievement/trophy for shooting an enemy in the balls. 10/10, GOTY.

 

[Old_Hunter_77]

I just did that thing in Lies of P that I would do in the Soulsborne games- get stuck beating my head against a boss, rage quit, come back the next day and beat it on the first try.

I think the reason I subject myself to this kind of toxic gaming relationship with these games is because I have a healthy happily boring actual human relationship with my wife and I stopped excessive drinking, drugs, and gambling a long time ago so I need to channel my self-destructive energies somewhere.

 

[BrawlMan]

I just did that thing in Lies of P that I would do in the Soulsborne games- get stuck beating my head against a boss, rage quit, come back the next day and beat it on the first try.

I think the reason I subject myself to this kind of toxic gaming relationship with these games is because I have a healthy happily boring actual human relationship with my wife and I stopped excessive drinking, drugs, and gambling a long time ago so I need to channel my self-destructive energies somewhere.

Whatever works for you. Just do what you did. Either play something else, less difficult or come back to that same game at a later time. I'm dropping doing my specialist difficulty run for infinite warfare. There are some parts where it takes forever for enemies or ships to die, and I really don't have the patience for it.

 

[Chimpzy]

Mouthwashing

Two words. Fuck Jimmy

 

[Ezekiel]

Finished Tomb Raider II for the second time.

Only 30 of 48 treasures. In my first playthrough I collected 32.

Spoiler

I rate it 4/5 for lovely level design and precise mechanics, better than almost any modern studio games, but I think the new abilities (crouching, hanging), reduced number of enemies and weird, expansive (frustratingly so at times, but not without a sense of reward) levels make Tomb Raider III more interesting.

Still only in level 9 in The Last Revelation, but it's safe to give my order of I > III > II as the best of the series now, because, even without suffering from the automation and removal of actual platforming that the sixth and seventh console generations brought, I don't appreciate Last Revelation's bigger breasts on scrawnier body and especially playing as a child. (It's been so long since I made any progress that I had to check what Lara Croft's age is supposed to be after the intro. She is older than in Tomb Raider III, but looks less mature.) She didn't need "character development," didn't need to be deeper. You don't give James Bond, Howard's Conan the Barbarian or Indiana Jones a childhood, family or recurring love interests, you don't have them lamenting events from previous stories, and the same applies to Lara Croft.

This series had incredible potential for escapist adventure. The character and what you do are appealing enough that I could let my imagination run wild trying to think of what could have been. I really believe it could have been one of the ultimate video games.

 

[NerfedFalcon]

Finished Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii.

I definitely could go on a rant about how the game spends basically an entire chapter drip-feeding you new mechanics while also leaving you to roam around without having them all unlocked yet, or about the loss of Re-Guard from the previous games, or how the ship combat starts out too easy to really enjoy for a pretty long time, or about how the word 兄弟 is inconsistently translated despite having only one meaning that isn't even an obscure word or long phrase in English at all. But honestly, I don't feel like it. Fact is, when it comes down to it, this game reminded me why I've been a fan of this series for so long. Great stories, kickass ass-kicking with a few new touches each time, and how well-realized the worlds are, cramming so much content into so small a city.

I don't know if this is a good pick for anyone as their first game, especially when Yakuza 0 exists, but I had a great time playing this, and I can definitely see myself coming back for the platinum trophy at some point in the future. As for what I'm going to be playing when I'm not doing my Runescape clan's special event, at the moment I'm actually in the middle of replaying Deltarune to track down a bunch of secrets I didn't get last time, but once that's finished, I plan to finally spin up Sonic Adventure 2.

(With some mods to ensure that playing it on PC doesn't suck.)

 

[jojithepainter]

This series had incredible potential for escapist adventure. The character and what you do are appealing enough that I could let my imagination run wild trying to think of what could have been. I really believe it could have been one of the ultimate video games.

Incredible, incredible potential. I've been saying this for years. To my surprise, not many people agreed with me, or not to a full extent. It felt great reading this, very well-written (not just because I agree with the last part)

 

[Ezekiel]

After beating Psychonauts early last month and the sequel this month, I started Brutal Legend from the same developer today, or tried to. Opening was actually rather funny and charming. But as soon as the rock concert cutscene ended, it crashed. Started the game again, went to Display settings, instant crash. Tried again, another instant crash. Bleh. Not in the mood.

 

[Bedinsis]

Playing through Guild of Dungeoneering Ultimate Edition. I played it a fair bit a few years ago until I got stuck on a dungeon where my guys died en masse. This time I actually figured out how the gear affected what cards you got which made it a whole lot more easy. I have defeated all 1-star and 2-star dungeons; only the 3-stars remain.

Snowitch and Yodeller are my favourite dungeoneer classes.

 

[thebobmaster]

After beating Psychonauts early last month and the sequel this month, I started Brutal Legend from the same developer today, or tried to. Opening was actually rather funny and charming. But as soon as the rock concert cutscene ended, it crashed. Started the game again, went to Display settings, instant crash. Tried again, another instant crash. Bleh. Not in the mood.

Just as a heads-up if you do get it working, the first 30 minutes of so of gameplay are completely different from the rest of the game. It basically starts out as a third-person action-adventure like Psychonauts or so, but it's really more of an RTS for the most part. A well done one, but it's something to be aware of.

 

[BrawlMan]

Just as a heads-up if you do get it working, the first 30 minutes of so of gameplay are completely different from the rest of the game. It basically starts out as a third-person action-adventure like Psychonauts or so, but it's really more of an RTS for the most part. A well done one, but it's something to be aware of.

I remember that. I know one dude was kinda disappointed. He still plowed through, but I don't think he ever played the game again.

 

[Johnny Novgorod]

Beat Moonscars. It ended up being a very B+ 2D Soulslike hoist by its art style, but fumbles all things exploration/platforming, and ends up being very repetitive despite a tight combat system.

About 4.5 hours in (so halfway through) you've seen and done pretty much everything the game has to offer. The roguelite stuff and death penalties are neat gimmicks but have very little practical impact on gameplay. The two currencies are worthless and had little need to fiddle around with the skill tree or the relic loadout. My starting getup carried me through the final boss.

It's an even worse Metroidvania since the one unlock is a super dash that only works in very specific contexts and feels like a glorified key.

Oh and the writing does not live up to the creepy oil painting/Death Metal aesthetic. Blasphemous it is not.

 

[Worgen]

I have like 5 games I need to beat. Age of mythology chinese campaign, Ender Magnolia, 40k Mechanicas, Touhou Hero of Ice Fairy, and a 7th run through Hedon Bloodrite. But all those are on the back burner while I play more and more Killing Floor 3.

 

[Silvanus]

Playing Dark Devotion, which is an extremely flawed game with a bit of an identity crisis.

It is mostly a 2-D explorative action game. It has some of the hallmarks of a metroidvania: a complex interweaving map, secret rooms etc. But you cannot jump (despite rooms having a lot of awkward verticality), and once you head through a door, you cannot return to the previous room. If you want to take a different route, you'll need to port back to base and begin again. I think they're trying to borrow the format from the roguelite genre, in which you play numerous distinct 'runs' and make different decisions each time. But the rooms aren't randomised; locking you out of exploration is ultimately pointless and frustrating.

Another loan from roguelites is the 'blessing' & 'curse' system. You'll pick up various beneficial blessings and malevolent curses as you enter new rooms or interact with things, and these are mostly randomised. But some of them are just fucking annoying, like dropping your items when you dodge-roll. They've tried to make a hybrid of the two genres but haven't quite succeeded. Wouldn't recommend in its current state.

Also been playing Little Kitty Big City. Which is very fun to control and play around in the little sandbox... but is currently much too small a game. You could be done in a couple of hours. Apparently a free update is on its way, with more areas and stuff to do, so I'll wait for that.

 

[Old_Hunter_77]

Well... I think that's enough Lies of P for me lol

It's not that it's bad, on the contrary it's very good, but I think I had my fun with it.
I think I'm like half-way in? I beat this boss fight that's of course really two boss fights back to back. It's the King of Puppets that then turns into Melania from Elden Ring and it's like... ugh.
I beat it finally by summoning an NPC to distract it while I threw consumables at it. Cheese, whatever... lame.
The next area is kind of cool at first but then there's just a gauntlet of poison and repeated enemy types with little variation. I looked up what the next areas are an apparently it's a poison swamp and that thing where the first area is now worse, and then more crazy double bosses with spam combos and I'm just not here for that anymore. I feel like I got to experience the best parts so I'm good.

Similarly I'm backing out of my desire to play Breath of the Wild because it's $60 USD and I can't justify that for a game I'm only lightly interested in trying again after I didn't like it the first time.
I'm glad I got the Switch 2 but I'm not glad to be reminded of Nintendo's scrooge-like pricing after spending the last year with Steam and GamePass.

I think my next game will be Donkey Kong Bananas- yes, the pricing complaints still apply, but at least it's a new game and I know I'll finish it.