Your video game hot take(s) thread

Old_Hunter_77

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If any game is an argument for platform exclusivity it's Astrobot. Half of its appeal is in how it uses the Dualsense controller. And sure, you can use a Dualsense with PC, but not XBox or Switch.

The kind of exclusivity that is b.s. is existing franchise, like Hellblade and you know they're gonna do it with Elder Scrolls.
 
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BrawlMan

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The kind of exclusivity that is b.s. is existing franchise, like Hellblade and you know they're gonna do it with Elder Scrolls.
Microsoft bought Ninja Theory, so exclusivity was inevitable for them and Hellblade. Same deal with Elder Scrolls, but I honestly couldn't give a fuck about that franchise. MS ain't even consistent with exclusivity considering the next Doom game will be multiplatform and Hi-Fi Rush is on PS5 one year after being on Series X and PC.
 

Drathnoxis

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I know I've mentioned this before, but it's simply tragic that we never got an ending (or even a middle) to D4: Dark Dreams Don't Die. I rewatch SGFs playthrough of it about once a year and I think it could easily have been Swery's best story. It just has so much style, mystery, and quirky humour. You have an ex narc that can travel back into the past using specific objects only while in the bathroom his wife was murdered in, and also it might have something to do with a mysterious drug that makes you into a god (or maybe makes you spontaneously combust), and he also lives with a girl dressed like a cat, or who maybe is a cat, and a huge surgeon with a knife and fork pops up every now again and talks very slowly. The characters were great, the action scenes were great, the voice acting was great, the gameplay... looks kind of sucky, but come on! It's all just so bizarre and intriguing, and darn it, I want to know how it ends!
 
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I get where Writing on Games is coming from, but I am never touching Dragon's Dogma 2, because of its systems. I find Deadly Premonition boring and too janky for my tastes. I can handle jank, but I have my own limits. I don't need all games to be perfect either, but I do expect some level of quality or jank that is mostly harmless.

 

Old_Hunter_77

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I get where Writing on Games is coming from, but I am never touching Dragon's Dogma 2, because of its systems. I find Deadly Premonition boring and too janky for my tastes. I can handle jank, but I have my own limits. I don't need all games to be perfect either, but I do expect some level of quality or jank that is mostly harmless.

Yeah it's the difference between games and other entertainment- time.

Wife and I watched a good-bad movie recently. It was silly and she really didn't like it. I liked it because of/despite it's weaknesses. But that's because it's less than 2 hours, the same amount of time as a modern video game intro/tutorial, or Steam's refund policy. It takes more to actually determine anything about a game and by that point you've sunk so much time. No way I'm going to go into a game at this point knowing it has significant jank or gameplay weaknesses.
 
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Old_Hunter_77

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Related to above: stealth sucks.

It's almost never implemented well. Crouch, get caught, start over... argh.

I never played the Thief games and I did like Dishonored so don't come at me with those exceptions. Hot takes are better with generalizations- which, in this case, I propose is true- stealth sucks.
 
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Xprimentyl

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Related to above: stealth sucks.

It's almost never implemented well. Crouch, get caught, start over... argh.

I never played the Thief games and I did like Dishonored so don't come at me with those exceptions. Hot takes are better with generalizations- which, in this case, I propose is true- stealth sucks.
Did you ever play any of the Splinter Cells? I personally hold it as the gold standard when it comes to stealth. It's perfect. That said, I generally haven't much appreciated stealth in other titles where it's used mostly as a gimmick slowing the pace of an otherwise more "eventful" game.
 
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Old_Hunter_77

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Did you ever play any of the Splinter Cells? I personally hold it as the gold standard when it comes to stealth. It's perfect. That said, I generally haven't much appreciated stealth in other titles where it's used mostly as a gimmick slowing the pace of an otherwise more "eventful" game.
No and I should have included that with Thief as a beloved franchise that includes stealth.
 

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It's almost never implemented well. Crouch, get caught, start over... argh.
Silver lining: Most games stop doing to insta-fail states with stealth around the early to mid 2010s. I'm whatever when it comes to stealth, but I generally prefer when a game is built around stealth and not just thrown in there for the sake of it. It was really bad during the 5th and 6th generation of consoles when Metal Gear and Splinter Cell got popular.
 
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Related to above: stealth sucks.

It's almost never implemented well. Crouch, get caught, start over... argh.

I never played the Thief games and I did like Dishonored so don't come at me with those exceptions. Hot takes are better with generalizations- which, in this case, I propose is true- stealth sucks.

MGSV is the most fun I’ve had with stealth. The sandbox gameplay, gear selection and Fulton drops make it feel so dynamic, and getting spotted isn’t the end of the world, because aside from just running/riding/driving away you also have the tools to deal with that too.
 
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Xprimentyl

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No and I should have included that with Thief as a beloved franchise that includes stealth.
Unless you're just diametrically and fundamentally opposed to stealth on the whole, I suggest you try Splinter Cell. It does stealth incredibly well given it's 100% the point of the game. Chaos Theory is *chef's kiss*, but Blacklist is a close second with the added benefit of being the only one in the series the encourages playing the game more action-oriented should you so chose.
 

Worgen

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Whatever, just wash your hands.
Well... ok. But the "Tales of..." series is considered one of the better ones. So is the consensus wrong?
Is the tales series considered one of the better ones? I really like JRPGs but I've only played one tales game and got really sick of it half way through, still beat it, but it was a slog, much more then something like FF, Breath of Fire or Persona. Didn't help that the tales game I played (gamecube if you were wondering) was super anime twee. Like, it embodied the idea of anime to someone who doesn't like anime.
 

Kyrian007

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Is the tales series considered one of the better ones? I really like JRPGs but I've only played one tales game and got really sick of it half way through, still beat it, but it was a slog, much more then something like FF, Breath of Fire or Persona. Didn't help that the tales game I played (gamecube if you were wondering) was super anime twee. Like, it embodied the idea of anime to someone who doesn't like anime.
I agree. I'd guess your example was Symphonia? And contrary to Old_Hunter's point, I think I might have liked Symphonia a lot better if it was entirely turn-based combat rather than the odd "minigame" that combat turned out to be in that game. But yes, I'm not sure Tales games are considered particularly good by anyone but die-hard Tales fans.
 
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Old_Hunter_77

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Unless you're just diametrically and fundamentally opposed to stealth on the whole, I suggest you try Splinter Cell. It does stealth incredibly well given it's 100% the point of the game. Chaos Theory is *chef's kiss*, but Blacklist is a close second with the added benefit of being the only one in the series the encourages playing the game more action-oriented should you so chose.
Eh, I'm just not really interested in going back to old games. I just accept that I missed large swaths of gaming as I had large gaps in my life with little to no gaming. It's ok. Wikipedia tells me the last Splinter Cell game was 2013, so my hot take stands as it's related to games of the present time.
What's really funny is that part of my thinking about stealth is the reception to Star Wars: Outlaws, where apparently stealth is important but not good. Kind of funny that Splinter Cell and Outlaws are both Ubisoft. And in between is Assassin's Creed with "stealth" but that's a whole other thing that we've covered and other threads....

I'm also reacting to my aborted attempt to play Little Nightmares 2.

Ok here's an addendum to the take: stealth sucks in modern high-graphical-fidelity 3D games. Having to navigate a character in a 3D world with large fields of view but using "realistic" indicators is near-impossible to convey with the same clear logic that intuitive video games offer. There is also a conflict of immersion- trying to be "real" with the graphics but also giving you immersion breaking fail states.
Games that have stealth like this but are still good are despite all this not because of it, like The Last of Us.
 
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Worgen

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Whatever, just wash your hands.
I agree. I'd guess your example was Symphonia? And contrary to Old_Hunter's point, I think I might have liked Symphonia a lot better if it was entirely turn-based combat rather than the odd "minigame" that combat turned out to be in that game. But yes, I'm not sure Tales games are considered particularly good by anyone but die-hard Tales fans.
Yeah, it was Symphonia. I think what attracted me to it was that it was the first game I can think of that really got that anime look in 3d, even if it was chibi. But then the plot and characters didn't do it for me at all. I also just remembered that I tried Tales of Bersaria, which I assume is technically part of the tales series, and it didn't really do it for me either.
 

Casual Shinji

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Related to above: stealth sucks.

It's almost never implemented well. Crouch, get caught, start over... argh.

I never played the Thief games and I did like Dishonored so don't come at me with those exceptions. Hot takes are better with generalizations- which, in this case, I propose is true- stealth sucks.
Whether or not it's good stealth I couldn't give two shits, but both Last of Us games have the most satisfying stealth I've ever played in a game. No alert phases, no game-over on being spotted, no feeling like a weak little duckling once you're discovered. Going for loud kills can even aid you in stealth. Say you kill someone from a far with a rifle, the shot will reveal your position, but quickly relocate 10 yeards or so and enemies still won't know where you are, only where the shot came from. This can help draw out foes that otherwise would've been patrolling outside of your vision.
 
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Old_Hunter_77

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Prediction: PS5 Pro will sell enough units to surprise people. It's a boutique item for folks with the money to spend and either have not yet gotten any PS5 or can afford the upgrade to match their 8k TV's. Its critical announcement is from people who already have PS5's, so of course they (and me) will not get one, but it's not for us.
 

BrawlMan

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Prediction: PS5 Pro will sell enough units to surprise people. It's a boutique item for folks with the money to spend and either have not yet gotten any PS5 or can afford the upgrade to match their 8k TV's. Its critical announcement is from people who already have PS5's, so of course they (and me) will not get one, but it's not for us.
I doubt it, considering how much trouble the PS3 had selling when it first launched for $599 US DOLLARS. The original PS5 is cheaper. No one who hasn't gotten a PS5 is going to spend $200 more for less in return. I have work buddies who don't have a PS5, but wants to get one, that said "fuck that shit!" when it came to the Pro's $700 pricing.

The dislike ratio for the trailer is at 186K and counting while likes are still at 54K. Make sure the YouTube dislike is installed on your browser(s) in order to see.

 
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Ezekiel

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I wanted video game car chases to feel like Bullit and Ronin. The weight of the car, the physics, maneuvering traffic instead of going top speed, pedestrians, beautiful vehicular destruction. A game JUST about the chases, that controls more like a sim racer, with support for the same peripherals. What I got instead are plain arcade mechanics and empty streets in every game. The circuits of racing games bore me. Takes too long to learn them.