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2021 VIDEO GAME CATCH ALL THREAD


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I finished the base game of Immortals: Fenyx Rising. I enjoyed it. I didn't *love* it, but I think it got overlooked. It has a tighter open world than the recent AC games and some of the movement and combat options just made it feel more "fun" than a lot of open world games. Fidgety physics aside, I enjoyed most of the puzzle variety as well. Definitely BOTW-inspired. It was a breezy 60 hours or so. Then, I started the first DLC and I just feel like saying fuck this game entirely. It ramps the difficulty up by 1000. Not in combat. That was never too terribly difficult. But the sort of strings of movements, required to be done pixel perfect in a super limited window have been driving me bonkers.

I must have tried one section of a vault today for over an hour before finally giving up because I was smash a controller angry. To wit, there's an area with a pressure plate that needs to be held down to start a moving platform. You then need to ride that platform, while avoiding a bunch of lasers. There's another pressure plate on that platform. You need to stand on it to open a gate. You then need to toss a statue of Fenyx (there's a mechanic that allows you to clone yourself, place that statue on the ground somewhere and switch back and forth with it at the press of a button) through said gate so that you can proceed. All of that is happening in a poison cloud that saps your health continually. Oh yeah...that first pressure plate? There's a laser sweeping over it slowly. Anything you put on it to weigh it down gets destroyed, so that moving platform will just stop and start to recede at some point. Trying to juggle all of that at once is maybe more than I can handle. I may just drop this for now and move on. 

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1 hour ago, Shane said:

I finished the base game of Immortals: Fenyx Rising. I enjoyed it. I didn't *love* it, but I think it got overlooked. It has a tighter open world than the recent AC games and some of the movement and combat options just made it feel more "fun" than a lot of open world games. Fidgety physics aside, I enjoyed most of the puzzle variety as well. Definitely BOTW-inspired. It was a breezy 60 hours or so. Then, I started the first DLC and I just feel like saying fuck this game entirely. It ramps the difficulty up by 1000. Not in combat. That was never too terribly difficult. But the sort of strings of movements, required to be done pixel perfect in a super limited window have been driving me bonkers.

I must have tried one section of a vault today for over an hour before finally giving up because I was smash a controller angry. To wit, there's an area with a pressure plate that needs to be held down to start a moving platform. You then need to ride that platform, while avoiding a bunch of lasers. There's another pressure plate on that platform. You need to stand on it to open a gate. You then need to toss a statue of Fenyx (there's a mechanic that allows you to clone yourself, place that statue on the ground somewhere and switch back and forth with it at the press of a button) through said gate so that you can proceed. All of that is happening in a poison cloud that saps your health continually. Oh yeah...that first pressure plate? There's a laser sweeping over it slowly. Anything you put on it to weigh it down gets destroyed, so that moving platform will just stop and start to recede at some point. Trying to juggle all of that at once is maybe more than I can handle. I may just drop this for now and move on. 

Yup, I had the same reaction.  The base game of Fenyx is fun, even if it's a BOTW derivation.  Plus the dialogue is funny, especially if you're somewhat familiar with Greek mythology.  I will also give Ubisoft props for using the proper Greek spelling of Herakles.

The DLC though?  Absolutely hate it and gave up on it.  Most of the trials are just stupid, inane platforming runs that are just trying to see how good your reflexes are.

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2 hours ago, Shane said:

I finished the base game of Immortals: Fenyx Rising. I enjoyed it. I didn't *love* it, but I think it got overlooked. It has a tighter open world than the recent AC games and some of the movement and combat options just made it feel more "fun" than a lot of open world games. Fidgety physics aside, I enjoyed most of the puzzle variety as well. Definitely BOTW-inspired. It was a breezy 60 hours or so. Then, I started the first DLC and I just feel like saying fuck this game entirely. It ramps the difficulty up by 1000. Not in combat. That was never too terribly difficult. But the sort of strings of movements, required to be done pixel perfect in a super limited window have been driving me bonkers.

I must have tried one section of a vault today for over an hour before finally giving up because I was smash a controller angry. To wit, there's an area with a pressure plate that needs to be held down to start a moving platform. You then need to ride that platform, while avoiding a bunch of lasers. There's another pressure plate on that platform. You need to stand on it to open a gate. You then need to toss a statue of Fenyx (there's a mechanic that allows you to clone yourself, place that statue on the ground somewhere and switch back and forth with it at the press of a button) through said gate so that you can proceed. All of that is happening in a poison cloud that saps your health continually. Oh yeah...that first pressure plate? There's a laser sweeping over it slowly. Anything you put on it to weigh it down gets destroyed, so that moving platform will just stop and start to recede at some point. Trying to juggle all of that at once is maybe more than I can handle. I may just drop this for now and move on. 

This would be my favorite game of the current generation...but my save file corrupted and I was able to play for a while and we had the power go out and I lost about 10 hours of progress.  I haven't played the DLC, but my save file corrupted while I was in the most challenging vault in the main game.  It was a bunch of those pressure plates where you have to jump over a laser going one way and landing on the other side before as it reverses course.  It was a pain in the ass, and I wasn't doing it again.

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I finally finished God of War last night and it was a little anticlimactic because I had some stuff to do and had saved right as I got to the last area, not knowing it. So I booted it up, got ready for the next bunch of stuff to do, and after a cinematic the credits rolled ? that aside, great game and great ending and I look forward to cleaning it up and probably getting the Platinum. Not sure what to start next, maybe finally getting to Ratchet & Clank 2016?

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Ratchet & Clank is a great game, made even better by the 60fps update for the PS5. The final boss battle is a MOTHERFUCKER, though. It's basically a one-two punch of boss battles, with the first being hard but manageable, and then the second one is just torture. For me anyway. But I really enjoyed that game, and it's really beautiful too.

I thought I would go for the platinum in God of War too, but then I tried my first Valkyrie fight and I nope'd right out of that idea quite fast. I had the same thought with The Last of Us Part II, and started a NG+ Grounded save, and hooooly fuck is that difficult. Can't even fight any zombies without a gun, and ammo is so scare that it's not even worth doing. I can't imagine later parts of this game and how hard it'll be.

Terminator Resistance PS5 upgrade came out today, I'm installing that right now. I'm really excited to try it. The PS4 version was decent enough, especially for a team that small to make a game based on a huge IP like Terminator. Apparently this upgrade puts an entirely new coat of paint on the game so we'll see how this plays out.

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Fuck the From Software Game.  I say "Game" because, let's face it, they're all the exact same game, reskinned and repackaged so fools will spend more money on them.  But, fuck it nevertheless.  They may as well be platformers, what with "master this or else" obstacles as they are. 

On a more positive note, I decided the used PS3 I bought should actually see some action, and, after ejecting the From Software Game into orbit, I landed upon The Last of Us.  It's...something?  I mean, I'm really early on, but the mechanics thus far are pretty basic stealth/cover shooter stuff.  I was kind of reminded of Second Sight, a little-played Xbox/PC game that had a little more run-and-gun to it.   I suppose once I'm more than 14% into the game, it will get more interesting, but it hasn't grabbed me yet.  Certainly better than the last thing I gave any real PS3 time to, which was Video Game Saltpeter--errr, I mean, Heavy Rain.

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I probably quit The Last of Us Part I exactly where you're at, or around there. It just didn't grab me, for whatever reason. Gameplay didn't feel good, either.

But the second part is one of my favorite games I've ever played, no lie. Everything feels really smooth, and it's gorgeous. And the story is pretty interesting too.

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I got my first "Platinum" in forever (Has anyone ever settled on what the equivalent term is when you do it on the XBox?) by finishing up Lego Marvel Superheroes

Well technically I still have one more achievement to do but that just requires me to switch back to my Xbox One since I need to play the game for 5 seconds in Co-Op mode and I don't have a second controller for Series X yet

Since I need to fill time for like 3 weeks before the Mass Effect re-release I am poking around Game Pass.

Started with Tetris Effect because I don't think I can handle the emotions of either Night in the Woods or What Remains of Edith Finch at the moment

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Has anyone here bought the Xbox Series S?  Curious to see what other people think about it?

I've had a Series X since launch week, but I recently acquired a Series S and decided to try it out (basically, a coworker bought the wrong model for her grandson, couldn't return it, and I got involved to help her sell it and track down the Series X.  On impulse, i decided to buy the Series S from her myself and give it a spin).

I'm liking it far more than I thought I would.  It has some definite limitations that narrow down the audience for it, but nothing that impacts me personally too much.  My general impression is that it's a nifty piece of tech at at outstanding price and you get a lot of value for your $300.  It's biggest flaw is that it's smallish storage space, but I think an SSD expansion card is a must regardless of which next gen system you buy (for that matter, a memory card is practically a necessity for the Switch).  The SSD expansion card I previously bought for the Series X + the 2 TB Seagate USB drive I already owned and will use to store backwards compatible games give me plenty of storage space.

I expected to try it out then put on the shelf with the rest of my console collection, but i think I might keep it in service until I have a reason to need Series X's horsepower.  At a minimum, it makes more sense than buying a One X in 2021.  Since they stopped making the One X and PS4 Pro, prices for those have gone through the roof.  A new One X on eBay will probably run you about $600. or more.  I'd expect a used One X to cost you more than the Series S, so....

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5 hours ago, Contentious C said:

Fuck the From Software Game.  I say "Game" because, let's face it, they're all the exact same game, reskinned and repackaged so fools will spend more money on them.  But, fuck it nevertheless.  They may as well be platformers, what with "master this or else" obstacles as they are. 

On a more positive note, I decided the used PS3 I bought should actually see some action, and, after ejecting the From Software Game into orbit, I landed upon The Last of Us.  It's...something?  I mean, I'm really early on, but the mechanics thus far are pretty basic stealth/cover shooter stuff.  I was kind of reminded of Second Sight, a little-played Xbox/PC game that had a little more run-and-gun to it.   I suppose once I'm more than 14% into the game, it will get more interesting, but it hasn't grabbed me yet.  Certainly better than the last thing I gave any real PS3 time to, which was Video Game Saltpeter--errr, I mean, Heavy Rain.

The Last of Us is not good for the first few hours and the ps3 performance is not good. It opens up and becomes great though. And the ps4 version is a giant upgrade. 

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The Last Of Us Remastered is worth playing on the easiest difficulty just for the story - no need to invest any more time or effort into it unless you're a trophy hunter or sadist. 

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After I gave up on the game, I just watched a super cut on YouTube of cutscenes and relevant gameplay to get me caught up for Part 2. That worked just fine for me. ?

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I'm about halfway through now, to the cutscene just before the nighttime getaway, and...it's still a game.  The gameplay is just super generic and clearly something they didn't want to put any amount of effort into.  It's just, "Here are weapons you've seen in 57 other shooter games, they do the same things, the level design is basic and it gets harder because we throw more shit at you the next time."  The rest is really good, but I mostly find myself thinking, "Would this have been better if it had just been a TV show or a movie all along?"  I think maybe yes, especially when it's something this linear.  Then again, I'm a guy with 3000 hours combined in Fallout 4 & Skyrim, so maybe I should shut the fuck up about generic gameplay mechanics.

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On 5/1/2021 at 9:17 PM, Contentious C said:

Fuck the From Software Game.  I say "Game" because, let's face it, they're all the exact same game, reskinned and repackaged so fools will spend more money on them...

It's odd how quite a lot of companies seem to enjoy making the same game over and over. Like arguably The Last of Us 1+2 are basically Uncharted (Grim edition). Arguably Deus Ex, Just Cause and Sleeping Dogs are the same game reskinned and adapted to the setting. Arguably Bully and Red Dead Redemption are just GTA Pushbike and Horse edition.

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On 5/1/2021 at 6:24 PM, Tromatagon said:

Returnal fucking rules.

I'm only a couple hours in but I'm enjoying it so far. I've never really played a rogue like or lite before but the setting and tone have already got me engaged. The controls are next level.

 

Months after I bought it, and sucked at it, I also restarted Mortal Shell with the PS5 upgrade and am actually making headway now. I mentioned my bad experience with it here before. I've always been terrible at these kinds of games but it's finally clicking. One day I might seriously try Bloodborne again.

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15 minutes ago, AxB said:

It's odd how quite a lot of companies seem to enjoy making the same game over and over. Like arguably The Last of Us 1+2 are basically Uncharted (Grim edition). Arguably Deus Ex, Just Cause and Sleeping Dogs are the same game reskinned and adapted to the setting. Arguably Bully and Red Dead Redemption are just GTA Pushbike and Horse edition.

I wish Uncharted 4 was like Last Of Us Part 2. I liked U4 just fine, but I don't really see the similarities if I'm being honest.

7 minutes ago, StevieNippz said:

Months after I bought it, and sucked at it, I also restarted Mortal Shell with the PS5 upgrade and am actually making headway now. I mentioned my bad experience with it here before. I've always been terrible at these kinds of games but it's finally clicking. One day I might seriously try Bloodborne again.

I almost bought this game based off seeing a Rotting Christ pack on the PlayStation Store.

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1 hour ago, AxB said:

It's odd how quite a lot of companies seem to enjoy making the same game over and over. 

Reuse the same engine + assets, spend less time playtesting and reworking new mechanics, give your team something they already know how to do, give the market something you already know it likes. It's the money.

And this is amplified in the AAA sphere, where one fuckup could = minus-a-billion. Every developer prays daily that they land on a formula they can churn out year-to-year with little variation, it's the second best possible business model behind lucking out and making a Fortnite or GTA Online.

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On 4/29/2021 at 4:42 PM, Shane said:

I finished the base game of Immortals: Fenyx Rising. I enjoyed it. I didn't *love* it, but I think it got overlooked. It has a tighter open world than the recent AC games and some of the movement and combat options just made it feel more "fun" than a lot of open world games. Fidgety physics aside, I enjoyed most of the puzzle variety as well. Definitely BOTW-inspired. It was a breezy 60 hours or so. Then, I started the first DLC and I just feel like saying fuck this game entirely. It ramps the difficulty up by 1000. Not in combat. That was never too terribly difficult. But the sort of strings of movements, required to be done pixel perfect in a super limited window have been driving me bonkers.

I must have tried one section of a vault today for over an hour before finally giving up because I was smash a controller angry. To wit, there's an area with a pressure plate that needs to be held down to start a moving platform. You then need to ride that platform, while avoiding a bunch of lasers. There's another pressure plate on that platform. You need to stand on it to open a gate. You then need to toss a statue of Fenyx (there's a mechanic that allows you to clone yourself, place that statue on the ground somewhere and switch back and forth with it at the press of a button) through said gate so that you can proceed. All of that is happening in a poison cloud that saps your health continually. Oh yeah...that first pressure plate? There's a laser sweeping over it slowly. Anything you put on it to weigh it down gets destroyed, so that moving platform will just stop and start to recede at some point. Trying to juggle all of that at once is maybe more than I can handle. I may just drop this for now and move on. 

I'm pretty much into the end game phase of this one. I beat Lygrion and am at the part where it pretty much says "if you go through this portal you're in until the end."

It's an alright game, but I'm not sure if it's one I'd go back to. I bought it when I got my refund from Cyberpunk and they were having a 40% off sale so I got the game and the season pass for what you'd usually pay for just the game.

I was hoping to beat it before Mass Effect: Legendary Edition dropped. I'm not totally sure if I'm gonna get there or not.

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Really going back and forth on buying Returnal. There's a lot of cool looking games coming out in the next month or so and I just bought MLB: The Show, but Returnal does look cool. The one thing putting me off is that I've heard some sections are 90 minutes or so with no saves. I get that it's a rogue like, but that's fucking punishing. It makes the game more of a time suck/investment than it should be.

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24 minutes ago, Craig H said:

Really going back and forth on buying Returnal. There's a lot of cool looking games coming out in the next month or so and I just bought MLB: The Show, but Returnal does look cool. The one thing putting me off is that I've heard some sections are 90 minutes or so with no saves. I get that it's a rogue like, but that's fucking punishing. It makes the game more of a time suck/investment than it should be.

I spent almost two hours in the same section this morning.  Generally, "levels" take 1-2 hours.

On the whole, I think it's an exceptional game.

 

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On 5/1/2021 at 6:27 PM, Eoae said:

Has anyone here bought the Xbox Series S?  Curious to see what other people think about it?

I've had a Series X since launch week, but I recently acquired a Series S and decided to try it out (basically, a coworker bought the wrong model for her grandson, couldn't return it, and I got involved to help her sell it and track down the Series X.  On impulse, i decided to buy the Series S from her myself and give it a spin).

I'm liking it far more than I thought I would.  It has some definite limitations that narrow down the audience for it, but nothing that impacts me personally too much.  My general impression is that it's a nifty piece of tech at at outstanding price and you get a lot of value for your $300.  It's biggest flaw is that it's smallish storage space, but I think an SSD expansion card is a must regardless of which next gen system you buy (for that matter, a memory card is practically a necessity for the Switch).  The SSD expansion card I previously bought for the Series X + the 2 TB Seagate USB drive I already owned and will use to store backwards compatible games give me plenty of storage space.

I expected to try it out then put on the shelf with the rest of my console collection, but i think I might keep it in service until I have a reason to need Series X's horsepower.  At a minimum, it makes more sense than buying a One X in 2021.  Since they stopped making the One X and PS4 Pro, prices for those have gone through the roof.  A new One X on eBay will probably run you about $600. or more.  I'd expect a used One X to cost you more than the Series S, so....

I own one and I like it a lot. For me the big perk is its portability (which the PS5 is not) since I bring it to work to play and it fits in my laptop bag. But I mostly use the XBox for GamePass and I use my PS5 for games I want to be as pretty as possible and that I may buy a physical edition of. I do need to get an expansion though as I am already having to remove games which isn't really ideal.

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