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Cyber Rat
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Among Trees

 

It's in pre-alpha at the moment, and as goes with these things, who knows if it'll ever get into a state of full release. That being said, I'm really enjoying what's available so far. It's a very (very) laid back survival game with a similar sort of aesthetic to Firewatch. It's not overly challenging, which is what I'm looking for out of these games. There's no overly complicated crafting system, I don't need to get a PHD to get my head around the cooking system and there's not much in the way of combat. 

 

3-4 hours in so far and I'm having a real neat time with it. Now the question is, do I continue to enjoy myself, or step away from the game and eagerly await a full release in a few years?

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  • 1 month later...

13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim

 

I got done with the prologue(...?)/tutorial missions. How to describe this game... it is in essence a visual novel intermingled with a SRPG. The visual novel and battle segments can be in real time but can be paused (as in choosing an action) so you can decide what to do. Visual novel segments can/should be repeatedly played so you get unlock more information about X, Y and Z.  Replayability also goes for the battles for better ranks and/or sub-objectives. Playing on it's equivalent to hard, you can be in for quite desperate battles due to just how fast you can be melted.

 

Story wise... I'm still piecing it all together but to talk about it just spoils things. The above about how the game goes also provides hints but it is what it is in order to describe what you are getting yourself into. I have come across people who played this when it was Japanese only and they are all tight lipped since they all believe this game is to be experienced. What little I have played makes me agree. Play this game! My unproductive ass is quite enamored by this game. It starts out quite typical but quickly turns into a roller coaster.

 

But if I may get something out my system AND TO BE SURE, don't go looking at this spoiler (for the general feel and theme) if you haven't at least gotten through the tutorials:

Spoiler

It may be a really good thing that I'm comparing this game to a GOAT movie.

 

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After finishing Paper Mario last night I jumped into Super Mario 3D All-Stars, specifically Mario 64. It pains me to say it, but that game is really starting to show its age, more than just graphically. Mario's controls have always been a little clunky, he often wants to turn in a circle when you intend to make him pivot in place, that kind of thing, but for some reason now I'm feeling less forgiving of it (I'm assuming because I've played more newer platformers that don't have the problems). It's still fun, but it doesn't feel like the masterpiece I remember it being.

 

I don't mean that to say it's not an amazing accomplishment for the time though. They created a fully 3D platformer, and got it almost perfect on the first try. That's fucking impressive, and the fact that 24 years later I'm saying it doesn't live up to modern platformers does not diminish that accomplishment at all.

 

Regarding the "remaster", I wish they'd gone a little farther. Despite my complaints about the controls above, I wouldn't have wanted them to change them because then it just wouldn't have been the same game. I do wish though that they'd gone through the game's assets and replaced them with higher quality models and textures, and expanded the aspect ratio to full 16:9.

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I'm glad you said it. I've also been playing Mario 64 and while it's still enjoyable for the most part, I could not divorce myself from the thought the controls were just plain bad by today's standards. Not only are the controls bad, but so is the camera. Just switch from 64 to Sunshine and the difference in feel is impossible not to notice. In fact, I'd go one further and say that people saying it's the best Mario game of all time must be wearing nostalgia goggles. Mario games both older and newer hold up much better today than Mario 64 does. I do acknowledge that it was a landmark accomplishment for the time and it is still a good game, but it sure isn't a timeless one.

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Yeah, I got the wing cap, and that is just such a joy to fly with that I was thinking "okay, maybe I was too hard on it." But then I just died due to the camera moving while I was walking along a narrow walkway, and unlike modern games your controls don't keep the same orientation when the camera moves (this is one change I do wish they would have made in the remaster). So definitely a huge milestone and an amazing accomplishment, but definitely also an old game that doesn't have the quality of life improvements developed in the meantime.

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Honestly I don't even like the wing cap. It feels like you're trying to just barely keep a lead weight aloft with some balloons on strings. I get what they were going for with the swooping and diving, but it doesn't always work and doesn't feel nearly as smooth as the cape from Super Mario World. The cap powerup is already timed so I don't know why you have to be constantly sinking on top of that. The camera still manages to be a problem too. I think a big part of it is that the N64 controller's stick was not actually an analog stick despite what everyone says. It was a digital stick with much more restricted movement options. Now that I'm trying to play it with a true analog stick all that extra feedback is either getting ignored or overcorrected by a game that was programmed around a much simpler stick.

Edited by Mister Jack
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Hades 

I'm not usually one for the hyper-difficult, run based games that seem to dominate the release calendar nowadays, but Hades is a little bit different. 15 hours or so in, and I'm finding that whilst the progression is slow, its super satisfying. I wish the game was a tiny bit more willing to dish out gear after a good run (seriously, I feel like 40 minutes of absolutely bossing it should be worth more than 1 item that goes towards something else that makes your build slightly better), but aside from that very minor thing I'm still having so much fun with it. 

 

Warzone

Season 6. I shoot people. I have fun whilst doing so. Yeah, I said that. 

 

Super Mario Bros 35

Started this one today. It's basically Tetris99 but built around a Mario Bros level. You compete against 34 other players. It's less about 'winning' and more about 'surviving' each Mario Bros stage as they're presented to you. You're on a timer, so you do eventually have to finish the level, but that doesn't become a factor until you get down to the final few players. Those players are also working against the clock (and other players) to get through their levels. Each time you complete a level you add time to your own run, each time you dispatch an enemy on that run it's sent over to an opponents screen. So yeah, it's Mario Bros but competitive. And best of all, it's absolutely free if you're a Nintendo Switch Online subscriber. 

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I think I've given up on Hades. There's just not quite enough progression for me between runs, or the runs take too long given how little progression there is between them, or something about that balance feels off to me. It makes me sad, because I've loved every other Supergiant game, and was really looking forward to this, and I know I can like roguelites because I fucking loved Rogue Legacy.

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28 minutes ago, TheMightyEthan said:

I think I've given up on Hades. There's just not quite enough progression for me between runs, or the runs take too long given how little progression there is between them, or something about that balance feels off to me. It makes me sad, because I've loved every other Supergiant game, and was really looking forward to this, and I know I can like roguelites because I fucking loved Rogue Legacy.

 

I can see that. I've unlocked all the weapons, and I'm basically an all-powerful son of a bitch thanks to my mirror, but trying to get over the top of proving rather difficult. Especially given that you only earn the good stuff after you've beaten the game on normal. I want to unlock other things, but those don't come in until you've beaten the final boss. And the final boss is at the end of a run with 4 other bosses who are all insanely difficult to beat on their own.

 

In short: I gotta git gud.

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If you feel progression is slow in Hades, have you considered God Mode?

 

My friend has started using it after having cleared the game a couple of times but still feeling like progression was too slow . I'd have to double-check in the menu, but I think it gives you an extra 1% damage resistance after each death.

 

I'm yet to try it because I've only done 15 runs but maybe I'll consider it if I start to get bored.

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God, Mario Sunshine is so much better than 64. Mario actually controls reasonably, the levels are better designed, it's just flat more fun. Also, they nailed it with the art style, running in 1080p it looks almost as good as a real Switch game.

 

Also, I tried to dive into Assassin's Creed: Odyssey again a couple days ago to do the DLC I bought, and damn I'd forgotten how grindy that game is. I'm nowhere near the level I need to be to finish the base game content, and I don't want to have to do a bunch of side shit to get there, so I bounced. It's bad game design if even on easy you can't mainline the main story because you'll be underleveled*. But then this morning it occurred to me that I'm on PC, maybe there's a mod, and sure enough there's a tweak mod that lets you set the XP multiplier to whatever you want, so I should be able to get up to level quite quickly. ?

 

*I know this is standard practice in JRPGs, and classic style WRPGs to a lesser extent, but at least there you know to expect it. When I start an action RPG I don't expect to have to grind, and I don't have time for it.

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Now I hardly claim to have played every JRPG ever made, but at least in this console generation I've found grinding to be much less of a problem in JRPGs than it used to be, at least in the ones I've seen. I won't say it never becomes an issue because I'm sure there are still examples I'm not aware of, but by and large I only find myself having to resort to grinding if I'm doing endgame content or one particularly poorly designed boss. It's nothing like it was back in the 8 and 16 bit days when grinding was pretty much mandatory and it damn sure isn't like these western games that try to sell you XP boosters. For the most part it feels like they've figured out how much they need to guide you along the main path when it comes to exp gains. Of course, if you're the type to run away from every battle then that's another story.

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I'm already playing on easy, and googling doesn't turn up anything specifically about XP boost mode or anything (other than the paid ones, which fuck that). How much side stuff were you doing? Because if I ever tried to do more than a few story missions in a row I quickly found my player level being outstripped by the mission level, and being forced to go do side activities to level up to be able to progress.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Dead Space 2

 

I wanted to play something horror-themed for Halloween, and even though I loved the original Dead Space I never was able to get into the sequel, so I thought I'd give it another shot. I think the problem was I was too familiar with the aliens since I'd just played the first one, and familiarity interferes with horror, but now it's been years so I'm hoping that effect has worn off. I only played for about half an hour so far, but it seems to be just what I wanted.

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Took a break from Genshin Impact to play some Nitroplus Blasterz, the fighting game featuring characters from different Nitroplus series. 

 

Spoiler

Apparently Al and Saber recognize Saya's true form, with Al calling her a "lesser demon". Also, the timeline where Saya and Funimori win seems to be the canon one for their world.

 

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On 10/17/2020 at 2:57 AM, TheMightyEthan said:

Dead Space 2

 

Have you played Dead Space 3 coop? It was one of the best gaming experiences ever. Genuinely disturbing.

 

I'm currently playing Legends of Tsushima. So. Much. Fun! Would like to try story mode if anyone is up for doing them I have a Hunter and Ronin available for hacking and/or slashing.

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