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Finished Shu. I lost a lot of good will for that game when the final level asked me to ace a 6 minute uninterrupted chase sequence with zero wiggle room for mistakes while juggling the 10 special abilities & associated obstacles that have been spread throughout the game. Which isn't terrible per se but it brings out the worst aspects of wonky design - like Shu stutter-stepping on inclines, and some terribly suspect hitboxes that mean you tend to die spontaneously upon seeing a spike, or get caught on the corners of platforms.
Now I'm back to my old haunts playing another Metroidvania called Rebel Transmute. It's like a slightly less esoteric version of Axiom Verge, which is to say, essentially Metroid. It even cribs the daughter-seeks-mom plotline from Axiom Verge 2: Verge Harder.
I imagine the biggest turn-off for most people will be the puny range of your blaster, which might as well be a melee weapon. That and the corpse run thing of losing your currency when you die. The latest patch lets you trade off a heart container instead. I'm not sure how less health would make a corpse run easier but the game's not that hard so it's not really an issue.
Having just beaten the first boss, gotten my first ability and unlocked the way back to the respawn point/shop I think I got a good feel for the game and quite enjoy it.
Do think it's weird how you unlock most trophies within the first hour. Like 65% done in 50 minutes. Not a criticism, just something that stood out as weirdly off.
Now I'm back to my old haunts playing another Metroidvania called Rebel Transmute. It's like a slightly less esoteric version of Axiom Verge, which is to say, essentially Metroid. It even cribs the daughter-seeks-mom plotline from Axiom Verge 2: Verge Harder.
I imagine the biggest turn-off for most people will be the puny range of your blaster, which might as well be a melee weapon. That and the corpse run thing of losing your currency when you die. The latest patch lets you trade off a heart container instead. I'm not sure how less health would make a corpse run easier but the game's not that hard so it's not really an issue.
Having just beaten the first boss, gotten my first ability and unlocked the way back to the respawn point/shop I think I got a good feel for the game and quite enjoy it.
Do think it's weird how you unlock most trophies within the first hour. Like 65% done in 50 minutes. Not a criticism, just something that stood out as weirdly off.
I finished Vladik Brutal. It is, on the whole, a slavish redux of Half-Life, but it does a much better job than so many other games that have tried. Things like signposting with lights and environmental cues, atmosphere, and enemies having distinctive looks and silhouettes are all well-done; the weapons are beefy and sound great, which each one filling a specific role- there wasn't a single weapon that I leaned on too much or left untouched. There's a few weak spots along the way, such as battles against an attack helicopter that absolutely spams machine guns and rockets, the final battle throwing far too many enemy troops in your path, and a driving section that goes maybe a little too long- but they're offset by some setpieces that give a serious feel of being in a warzone, and some areas that are visually really impressive.
Final verdict: Not bad at all for twelve bucks, if you don't mind slavjank, some rough translations and a few annoying sequences.
Final verdict: Not bad at all for twelve bucks, if you don't mind slavjank, some rough translations and a few annoying sequences.
- Apr 1, 2009
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I beat Hexen on Titan difficulty. Hexen was always one of my white whales, its a cool game but I really don't like all the switch hunting and traps and such, playing exclusively as the warrior certainly made things... interesting. Starting as the warrior was really hard, it also felt like I found each of the warriors weapons last, which sucked since he really needed a ranged attack. Having to just toss flechetts at enemies since closing with them means damage isn't the easiest. After getting the hammer the game was pretty manageable. Sword was good too, ate a bunch of mana but a nice spread and really nice power, one swipe would usually kill 3 or 4 or 5 enemies. Final area (grave yard) was a pain in the butt with respawning wraiths and such, but final boss was easy, much easier then fighting your clones.
Started on the expansion for Hexen too Death Kings of the Dark Citidel, I actually might be near the end. This time I'm playing as the Mage, the start of it is pretty rough and would have been a huge pain in the ass for the warrior, so many large groups of ranged enemies and it would be awhile till he got the hammer. Its certainly harder then the base game, tends to respawn enemies more and more kinds, usually right in your butt so unless your moving you will get hit. Lots of swamp monsters also, lots of those centaurs that shoot shield shots at you, lots of dragons, 4 real boss dragons... kinda hard and annoying. So far no new weapons which is a shame, but I shall overcome. Oh, the mages weapons certainly got buffed, the ice shard is much better now, feels stronger, a close ranged shot can usually one shot most things, it also shoots through frozen targets, the autoaim tends to like to still shoot at frozen targets, but baby steps. Lightning is pretty close to how it was, as long as it doesn't knock an enemy against a wall it tends to one shot most enemies. Super weapon feels... worse, like I thought it kinda bounced between targets, but now it seems to just go roughly in a straight line, doing a lot of damage but still just a straight line.
Started on the expansion for Hexen too Death Kings of the Dark Citidel, I actually might be near the end. This time I'm playing as the Mage, the start of it is pretty rough and would have been a huge pain in the ass for the warrior, so many large groups of ranged enemies and it would be awhile till he got the hammer. Its certainly harder then the base game, tends to respawn enemies more and more kinds, usually right in your butt so unless your moving you will get hit. Lots of swamp monsters also, lots of those centaurs that shoot shield shots at you, lots of dragons, 4 real boss dragons... kinda hard and annoying. So far no new weapons which is a shame, but I shall overcome. Oh, the mages weapons certainly got buffed, the ice shard is much better now, feels stronger, a close ranged shot can usually one shot most things, it also shoots through frozen targets, the autoaim tends to like to still shoot at frozen targets, but baby steps. Lightning is pretty close to how it was, as long as it doesn't knock an enemy against a wall it tends to one shot most enemies. Super weapon feels... worse, like I thought it kinda bounced between targets, but now it seems to just go roughly in a straight line, doing a lot of damage but still just a straight line.
Ravenswatch
Part of the fated subgenre am calling "games trying to be Hades but can't be as good as Hades cos Hades is larger than life however still good enough to not write off cos ain't fair to judge everything against Hades" - still workshopping that for brevity tbh though. They released a new character, or... characters? Romeo and Juliet. Separate characters unfortunately as was hoping for an Ice Climbers type situation, but nope. Thus my stubbornness for single player is called out and mocked as move descriptions tease their tantalising possibilities of exciting power ups if only the other half of this toxic relationship were around. They're still not useless alone at least, more of an experimental bonus. Would be interested in hearing from people who have been able to co-op it though. It's a cute idea, it's not you, it's just me.
(Juliet has the gun, Juliet is the recommended one)
Part of the fated subgenre am calling "games trying to be Hades but can't be as good as Hades cos Hades is larger than life however still good enough to not write off cos ain't fair to judge everything against Hades" - still workshopping that for brevity tbh though. They released a new character, or... characters? Romeo and Juliet. Separate characters unfortunately as was hoping for an Ice Climbers type situation, but nope. Thus my stubbornness for single player is called out and mocked as move descriptions tease their tantalising possibilities of exciting power ups if only the other half of this toxic relationship were around. They're still not useless alone at least, more of an experimental bonus. Would be interested in hearing from people who have been able to co-op it though. It's a cute idea, it's not you, it's just me.
(Juliet has the gun, Juliet is the recommended one)
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- Apr 1, 2009
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Raven's watch is much closer to a normal dungeon crawler action rpg with some roguelike elements then something like Hades.
Double Dragon II (Game Boy) - I tried Hard, and it's not that much different from Normal mode. Enemies and bosses get slightly more health, but otherwise do about the same amount of damage. I managed to 1CC and get a score of 244, 200. The game does have challenge, but it is one of the easiest DD games in the franchise.
Didn't play them personally but played with a group and some of them tried romeo/juliet, iirc one of them was actually useful without the other one, but mostly because they could do a lot of group heal, so wouldn't make much sense solo either way. Otherwise they had to coordinate a lot for some combo attack.
I mostly remember wukong being stupid OP and every other character just being kinda there compared to them tbh.
On my side I've been playing citizen sleeper 2. It's pretty good but not as good as the first one. The biggest issue of the first one was that it was too easy to ignore all the mechanic because you were doing good enough that they didn't matter, and then the game just became a visual novel, a good one with very nice arts, but lacking much interesting in gameplay.
The sequel essentially has the same issue but in a very bizarre twist, the tutorial area has by far the hardest sequence in the game, where you can very easily end up in a downward spiral with just a few bad rolls. But once your past it, its a breeze and I never once struggle against the four different mechanic supposedly pressuring you. Although its not as bad as the first one, where the game centered around your character needing some really rare drug and the game presenting you some morally dubious way to get it, but you could so easily live without ever using it that it just didn't work.
But the game setting doesn't really work with the kind of story its trying to tell and the story focus a lot on a bad guy whose very one note.
I decided to get Samurai Warriors 5. I got the game for free via trading in Arms and DKC Returns (3DS). I don't mind playing these types of games every now and then. I do prefer the SW entries or Hyrule Warriors spin-offs. Due to either having an even more arcade nature, ranking system, and speedier combat. I will give Omega Force credit for changing up the art style, and abandoning the semi-photo realism these mainline games are known for. One thing I've noticed about this entry, is that each character gets 4 skill moves, which are all on cool down. To make up for this, you can combo into any of them, changing the pace of the combat even faster. With each character having their own unique skill attack. This game does have some DMC type elements in terms of combat, but nothing super deep. Aside from managing the field, and knowing when to switch characters.
I don't get why hardcore fans dislike this game so much. Some parts I get, but I am glad they went with a smaller roster, and there is a major focus on the Oda Clan's younger years. Makes the game unique and stand out. The general audience seems to agree with me, as it's the best selling game in the SW line up of games. So far, I am barely into Nobunaga's second chapter, but I am invested in the game's story.
I don't get why hardcore fans dislike this game so much. Some parts I get, but I am glad they went with a smaller roster, and there is a major focus on the Oda Clan's younger years. Makes the game unique and stand out. The general audience seems to agree with me, as it's the best selling game in the SW line up of games. So far, I am barely into Nobunaga's second chapter, but I am invested in the game's story.
Wasted so much time in the 2D maze level "Pathways from Nowhere" before giving up, leaving the level and realizing that it's (probably) optional. I mostly don't care for big mazes in games. That's not what something like the catacombs in Dark Souls or the tunnel city in Demon's Souls or most dungeons in Zelda are. A maze is less intelligent and more annoying. I wouldn't put a big maze in my game unless maybe the character could drop items to mark where they've been.
Reassessing Rebel Transmute from "Metroid clone" to "Hollow Knight wearing Metroid's skin".
So you have what's essentially a melee attack (your shots don't travel long beyond what's immediately in front of you) that produces recoil when it connects with an enemy; attacks generate Soul or whatever it's called and you can use that to heal or cast special attacks. You also get a similar, functionally identical deck of abilities like a mid-air dash and a pogo skill. Oh and a charm system that lets you equip passives and buffs and basic navigational perks at save points. And corpse runs, and death tolls.
This is bog standard stuff by now but the game has a very suspect way of copying the look and behavior of several enemies, down to their environments, and doesn't even bother redressing stuff like the fast travel system. There's no copyright on fast travel but there's nary an effort here into making it look at least visually distinct from HK's Last Stag. There's also a few bosses that look like biomechanical versions of HK creepy crawlies.
The economy is broken. There's practically nothing to spend your money on, and the threat of losing it is moot. Sucks because so many rewards are just either money or stuff you can trade for money.
So you have what's essentially a melee attack (your shots don't travel long beyond what's immediately in front of you) that produces recoil when it connects with an enemy; attacks generate Soul or whatever it's called and you can use that to heal or cast special attacks. You also get a similar, functionally identical deck of abilities like a mid-air dash and a pogo skill. Oh and a charm system that lets you equip passives and buffs and basic navigational perks at save points. And corpse runs, and death tolls.
This is bog standard stuff by now but the game has a very suspect way of copying the look and behavior of several enemies, down to their environments, and doesn't even bother redressing stuff like the fast travel system. There's no copyright on fast travel but there's nary an effort here into making it look at least visually distinct from HK's Last Stag. There's also a few bosses that look like biomechanical versions of HK creepy crawlies.
The economy is broken. There's practically nothing to spend your money on, and the threat of losing it is moot. Sucks because so many rewards are just either money or stuff you can trade for money.
Well, look on the bright side: if Silksong comes out this year, nobody'll ever have to think about Rebel Transmute anymore.
I'm somewhat amused that despite all the nazi shit in this game, they left out the SS symbol in that poster.Wow, Return to Castle Wolfenstein sucks.
That's Dutch.
Did you type it into Google Translate to figure out what it said and found out that way?
German is my native language. Every German can recognize Dutch. I also learned it for a few months when I lived in Belgium seventeen years ago, but forgot almost everything.
It's also a doctored picture of a real-life poster. Here's the original:
"Nederlanders" up top means "Dutchmen". The "Soldat" is the German word for "Soldier", which in Dutch would be "Soldaat". This would be odd since A: during the Nazi occupation we didn't have a proper army and B: it's not likely the Germans would allow large numbers of soldiers from foreign territories into their own militaries. Then there's the fact that they erased the SS logo from the text and the side of the helmet (but not from the soldier's lapel lmao). In some areas in Europe this is a legal requirement because of what the SS logo stands for.
Now, this means that the devs went out of their way to doctor a real-life propaganda poster and added it to the game... except the language it's in does not match the area it's in. That's an advanced level of fuckup.
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Started the new Donkey Kong, and it's basically Mario Odyssey but with more of a playground/sandbox feel.
The main appeal here is that you can basically smash everything you see. The game invites you to spend endless hours just smashing and there's currency under everything. Actually making progress is trivial, a real babbie game, with the challenging parts in optional areas (again, like Odyssey).
The best description I've seen is that it's a "toy" and that is the case. I'm just pushing buttons and getting fun and silly noises and cartoons as a reward. It's cathartic and stupid.
The main appeal here is that you can basically smash everything you see. The game invites you to spend endless hours just smashing and there's currency under everything. Actually making progress is trivial, a real babbie game, with the challenging parts in optional areas (again, like Odyssey).
The best description I've seen is that it's a "toy" and that is the case. I'm just pushing buttons and getting fun and silly noises and cartoons as a reward. It's cathartic and stupid.
- Apr 1, 2009
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That makes no sense. Most platformers (especially one's by Nintendo) expand on their scope and level design. Not reduce or sometimes not bother at all.
I have now completed Robocop: Rogue City. Very solid game, you can tell that the devs truly love Robocop and didn't want to just make a money grab. I do think the final boss came out of nowhere and felt unnecessary, and was also a bit too easy if you bothered upgrading your gun, but that's a minor thing.