toxicitizen

Because of the moon thing? Can't you just change your iPad's clock to get around that? There's also a room in the game where you can cheat your way through that part. Allows you to change the moon's position or something. I don't remember how to open it but it wasn't exactly obvious, I had to look it up online.

Thief. Well that only took me two and a half months... I finally took the time to fire it up and play through the last mission just now. At some point, I was going to write a long post defending it against the shitty reviews it got. But somewhere around the third time I got completely side-tracked from it by another game, I kinda realized it was missing something at its core. I still think it's a good game, though. Probably the worst of the series (definitely worse than 1 and 2 but I never got around to playing Deadly Shadows). But it's still a Thief game and a competent one at that. And, despite its flaws (and holy shit it has some major ones), that alone makes it better than most of what's out there for me. Its main problem is the story. It's complete nonsensical dogshit. Compared to the first two games, that's a major disappointment right there. I mean, fuck, they had their work cut out for them. The Trickster, the Hammerites, The Pagans, the fucking Keepers! All the factions and major players of the old games were infinitely more interesting than whatever this nonsense was supposed to be. I get that they probably wanted to do their own thing but come on, if you're gonna call it Thief then at least keep something. But the gameplay is still great. There's some seriously questionable design decisions that were made (context-sensitive jumping and rope arrows, I'm looking at you) but it still works. Then again, most of the story missions go for a more scripted action-y vibe. Which isn't necessarily a bad thing in small doses but, to put it into perspective, the most fun I had with the game was exploring the city and doing side-missions. And most of the side-missions consist of little more than 1) find room then 2) steal all the things, so that's not to say they're incredible. That being said, the client jobs were definitely the highlight of the experience. There's unfortunately only half a dozen of them (7 if you get the Bank Heist DLC). They're a bit on the short side but they're not bogged down by the shitty story and focus solely on actual thievery. The Bank Heist DLC was probably my favorite by far, even ignoring nostalgia. It's significantly better designed than pretty much every other level in the entire game and breaking into that vault was incredibly fun and satisfying. Overall, it's massively disappointing for an hardcore Thief fan like me but there's still a solid game to be enjoyed there. Just don't play it for the story.

I don't think there's a standard format but most of those I own are mp3s only, including Bastion's. The only one I can think of that also included FLACs was Frozen Synapse.

Paid for entirely through the sale of Steam cards. Took about 2 and half weeks of idling for drops, most of it done while I was studying for finals. I expected I would have to pay the difference out of pocket but I actually ended up making a little over 30 bucks. It's a bit of a bummer that there's no pre-order discount or any kind of saving from getting the Soundtrack bundle but, after Bastion, I'm confident both will be excellent so whatever. Speaking of Bastion, now I kinda want to give it another playthrough before this comes out.

Both from the current Humble Store sale. Pixeljunk Eden was an impulse purchase but it was only 2,50$ and the last one I was still missing on PC. I really hope they bring the rest of the series to Steam at some point. Some of them I never got around to grabbing on PS3. As for Metro, I've been on the lookout for a deal for over a month now. I'm pretty sure I already own it through PS+ but it's not really something I wanna play on console. Really glad I held off considering the Complete Edition they just released. Now I don't need to grab the Season Pass or Ranger Mode separately.

Well, what's your sin level? Unless it's sinner or wretch, then I don't think you need to worry about paying it off yet. It should still be "-" while you only have 0-9 points of sin, and it seems there's no clear penalties at that point. According to the wiki, killing NPCs = 1 sin point and so does invading and killing a player with the cracked red eye orb. Can't remember where I read about Navlaan not counting, though. Nothing else is mentioned. And it seems having the option to pay the guy isn't a reliable way to check your sin level, so maybe he's been scamming you? lol I'm reading some conflicting info online so I guess it hasn't been completely figured out yet...

I am also guilty of pulling that lever the first time. Then again in NG+, because I'm a fucking idiot and misunderstood how that specific NPC worked. So I essentially screwed myself out of a couple spells I needed to get from him until the next NG cycle, which pissed me off. I killed him that time because I couldn't be bothered to deal with the, um, "consequences" again but I've yet to be invaded by any bluebros so I think my sin level is still fairly low. I haven't bothered paying it off. I think only the price depends on your soul level and at this point it would cost me like 250K per sin point, so fuck that lol. edit: Actually, I think I remember reading somewhere that killing that specific NPC after you pulled the lever doesn't count towards sin. I wonder where I got mine, then, because that asshole in the chapel clearly implies that I've got some. Maybe my time as a Bellbro?

1) How are you SL 167 and still in NG?!? You must be so overpowered lol. 2) How are you getting so much sin that you need to farm to get rid of it? Killing NPCs? 3) Not sure if that's what you meant but if you were hoping to get rid of it by going to NG+, I hate to break this to you but, unlike the original, sin doesn't reset. It carries over.

82 hours later, completed up to NG++ and 100% achievement completion. I think I can finally play something else now. I... I'm free!

Yeah, my friend was telling me about Deja Vu the other night. It sounded completely retarded. Maybe they half-assed it intentionally as a way to criticize console-exclusive DLC? Yeah, I don't really believe it either...

Oh right, I also grabbed that yesterday. I was initially holding off for a bundle that includes everything but it doesn't look like that's happening any time soon. Threw a few more bucks in for the Deluxe Editon but I probably won't be getting Dragonfall until after I've played the base campaign.

I think Tom Francis said workshop integration is coming. Seems like a natural fit given the level editor, yeah. I couldn't be bothered to look around the web for community-made levels but I'd definitely try some if it was as simple as browsing them directly through Steam.

Do you have an example of what you mean? When you say really high quality sprite, I'm thinking more of something along the lines of Arc System Works' games. Maybe not the best example but still quite a bit more detailed and high resolution than the average sprite-based game. Probably out of reach for the most indie studios, I think. For indies, when I say good pixel art I'm thinking of something a bit more like this Not as detailed but it has a decent visual style, the animations are fluid and smooth and it looks good enough for what it is.

Ubisoft really should license their UbiArt framework. Would be a waste to keep it in-house. @Ethan: That really depends on the amount of time and money they have available. Increasing the amount of detail that significantly isn't trivial, especially when taking into account all aspects of the game (animations, backgrounds, etc..).

The thing is, like you said, this is Ubisoft. They have significantly more resources than your average indie. For a lot of indies, pixel art isn't necessarily always a stylistic choice. It's just much faster and cheaper to make.

PC/Steam. I was tempted to sell all the cards I've been farming recently to pay for it but I didn't feel like listing them on the marketplace right now, so I just paid for it out of pocket. Think I'll save the cards for Killer is Dead.

I guess something about the way you insisted on it made it sound like a bigger dealbreaker than it actually is? I dunno, that was just one part of my replies, really. I'm more interested in discussing Dark Souls specifically, tbh. And, it's not like I don't entirely get what you're saying about the repetition. I guess it's just a bit hard to really recall exactly how it felt when I was just starting. But, like Mr. GOH said, a lot of people don't get hooked until quite a few hours in. And when that happens, repeating those sections stops being an issue. At this point, all I can really suggest is try to stick with it? If something really annoys you or you get desperately stuck, don't hesitate to look stuff up on the wikis. The way the game wants you to figure things out for yourself is great, but it can also be a double-edged sword at times, making it more frustrating than it needs to be. For the bonfire right before the fog gate thing, I'd argue that goes against the spirit of the game. Some people actually complain that the bonfires are too close together in Dark Souls II. And not all fog gates lead to a boss fight so sometimes it's a bit of a gamble crossing them. As for repeating things that are easy, well, that's not always going to be the case. There will be places where fighting the enemies on your way back to the boss will be much more dangerous. On the other hand, there's also going to be some where there will be so few enemies that it won't even be worth engaging them so you'll just run right past them. Don't assume that this section is necessarily representative of the entire game, the areas are quite varied.

Maybe not a hard limit but it definitely sounds like there is one and it's pretty low. Which is fine, I suppose. I mean, it's not like I'm trying to tell you how to play games. Just seems weird to me to have as a general rule to apply to all games across the board. If any game caused me to not want to retry a section beyond a handful of time, it's usually because I just don't like it all that much. Happens most often with games that are in a genre that's outside my comfort zone or one that I'm not normally a huge fan of, like a racing game or an RTS. I don't know, I find the combat fun enough that I don't mind plowing through them again. It's certainly more satisfying here than shooting waves of enemies in any given shooter would be. This early, I'd probably even make it to the boss and not even enter the fog gate, maybe do a few more runs at it and spend more souls. Having more HP never hurt anyone. I'm not sure how spending less than 5 mins killing a few enemies is busy work, though. The boss is seriously very close to that bonfire. If they're not much of a challenge like you say then you should be able to clear them very quickly. Or shit, you can just run right past them. That's what I tend to do when I just want to retry a boss without clearing the area again. Often because I have a large number of souls in the boss room that I don't want to lose. Most enemies won't chase you very far.

Dark Souls II. Well, shit. Didn't expect to beat this one so quickly, certainly not in less than a week. Clock was at a little under 50 hours when I beat the final boss last night, which is 10 less than the original took me. That's not to say it's shorter, though. In fact, I think it actually has more content. It probably took me less because, for the first time in the Souls series, I actually embraced co-op. There were just so many summon signs in the first few days that I couldn't help myself and summoned help for the first boss I truly got stuck on. From that point on, I prioritized enjoying my first playthrough as much as possible over obstinately trying to solo all the bosses. Not as much of a challenge but there's always New Game Plus for that. As a result, I never really got stuck for too long. I also put my own summon sign down quite often. Was a lot more fun than I expected to just wail on those fuckers in groups of 2 or 3 and see their health bars go down that much faster! Overall, it's a Souls game so it's better than most of what's out there. That being said, I think it's just not as good as the first one. At first, I really disliked some of the changes. The nerf to the Estus Flask and the health penalties associated with death, in particular. They made the first 10 or so hours very brutal and, at times, kinda frustrating. But ultimately, about a third of the way through I got into the groove of things and they stopped bothering me as much. Still not a fan but they're not as big of a deal as I initially thought. The one major aspect where I feel the game is inferior is the overall level design. The fact that you can now warp between bonfires from the very start means they didn't need to get creative with interconnected levels and clever shortcuts. That was a really cool aspect of the original and I'm sad to see it gone. The first time you kick down that ladder to the Undead Burg bonfire or find the elevator from the Undead Church to Firelink Shrine are just so very satisfying. Now all the areas are just kinda lined up and lead into one another. The world feels a lot bigger as a result but is not quite as memorable.

*sigh* Once again, I break my physical-only rule for console. Damn you and your Steam-like deals, Sony! I was going to wait until after I get around to playing Tales of Xillia (grabbed that one a couple months ago) but it was 10 bucks after PS+ discount. Even if I'd waited, I'd never get a physical copy for that price. I guess Sony are really starting to get digital distribution. When your price is so good I can no longer argue against buying digitally, you're doing it right. This is like the third time they get me.

I guess I just don't get why you need to put an arbitrary limit on your number of retries. If a game is good, then I'm going to want to keep playing regardless. My enjoyment of a game isn't directly dependent on my success at it. Honestly, it kinda sounds like you like the idea of a challenge but dislike actually being challenged. Really? It's a fairly short section. You really need to change your outlook on the game if you're going to enjoy it at all. It's really not about clearing an area once and being done with it. How are you going to figure out what to do differently unless you actually go back and try again? This game is all about discovery and experimentation. If actually making your way to the Minotaur boss isn't trivial, then you shouldn't be too surprised to fail to beat it. I mean, it's called Prepare To Die Edition, ffs. I did say the difficulty is exaggerated but still, that should be your first clue that this still isn't your average game. If you think you're going to just waltz in there and get it all on your first try, then lol. It's the antithesis of the modern game that constantly holds your hand. None of that "Press X here to awesome" nonsense. The game wants you to fend for yourself. It's not going to give you all the information, it wants you to figure it out on your own. That being said, there is something I can suggest but I'm not sure how viable it would actually be in DS1 considering the smaller player activity. In DS2, a good approach is to make it to a boss gate and put your summon sign down. When other players summon you, there's no downside for you to failing against the boss, you just get sent back right where you were. Allows you to practice the boss with no penalty. See what I just said. This isn't your average game and you should adjust your expectations accordingly or you're going to have a bad time. Don't go into it with your usual mindset towards difficulty, it's a different beast. You only just started playing, of course the first real boss is going to kick your ass. You're still learning how to play the game.

NG+ is pretty great if you really want to challenge your ninja skills. It's not just start over with all your abilities, the difficulty increases quite a bit. A lot of things become line of sight based, so you won't see what's in adjacent rooms unless you peek. And if the guard is just outside your cone of vision then you're not going to know he's there. I loved it.

A quick note, though. I wouldn't recommend getting the master key as a starting gift. It's really useful for an experienced player who knows what he's doing but terrible for a beginner. Locked doors are pretty much the only thing guiding you early on and keeping you from entering dangerous areas too soon. Being able to go anywhere will most likely cause you to end up somewhere way too difficult and you'll just end up getting frustrated because you won't realize you shouldn't be there at all yet. That's what happened to me when the game first came out on PS3.

That's... exactly what the Souls series is like? I mean, like I said, if you keep retrying half a dozen times and still die, it's not the game, it's you. You're doing something wrong. Boss was almost dead but you died when he got a "lucky" hit on you while you were dodging? Nope, your timing was off. It's literally almost 100% execution challenge, which you said is what you enjoy. If your attacks are dealing little to no damage, upgrade your weapon. But otherwise it's all skills. Well you don't really have to learn any new skills beyond the first few hours. Once you know how to time your dodge, to keep an eye on your stamina bar and learn overall necessary playing habits (e.g. always save enough stamina to roll away unless you know for a fact you can get the kill, etc..), then you're set for the game. It's mostly about sizing up the boss, reading its pattern and finding that weak spot and the right window to exploit it. Well I don't know what you did but there's a bit of a trick to this one that you can exploit to gain an edge. Maybe you found it but here it is if you want to know.

So you like a challenge... so long as you can succeed right away? I think we're working on completely different definitions of "challenge" here... I'd argue what you're describing isn't much of a challenge. Oh, that much was clear. Maybe I came off more defensive than intended, sorry. I was just trying to point out where you were mistaken in your perception of the game and provide some perspective. Honestly, I do feel like everyone should at least give it a shot, even if I'm aware it's ultimately not going to be for everyone. Reason is if you do get into it, it's going to be one hell of an experience. Glad you're giving it a try. Don't hesitate to ask if you've got questions or want some advice or whatever.