Faiblesse Des Sens Posted September 25, 2013 Report Share Posted September 25, 2013 For Americans the 80s is considered to be a hugely different time in culture. Like was pointed out it could have just been called GTA: 80s as that's where a lot of the inspiration came from and not Miami specifically. Miami just made the most sense to host the 80s satire with things like Scarface and Miami Vice being inspirations. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toxicitizen Posted September 25, 2013 Report Share Posted September 25, 2013 But when you say something vague like the "feel" of it, it really sounds like you're talking about the 80s theme more than anything else. I mean, what was so great about the map? The aesthetics of the architecture could be attributed in part to being based on Miami, I guess. But other than that? Vice City is probably my favorite of the entire series but I feel like the city itself was kinda shit compared to GTAIV's Liberty City. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Faiblesse Des Sens Posted September 25, 2013 Report Share Posted September 25, 2013 You mean you don't love a mostly flat map? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheMightyEthan Posted September 25, 2013 Report Share Posted September 25, 2013 But when you say something vague like the "feel" of it, it really sounds like you're talking about the 80s theme more than anything else. I know that's super vague, I wish I could articulate better but it's been 10 years. The map definitely is not what I'm talking about though. I guess more than anything it just seemed the vibe just seemed more "fun" to me (and I don't mean the gameplay). GTA 3 and especially 4 are so dreary (though I loved them), and San Andreas and V have their own thing, but Vice City has that frivolous fun aspect to the culture and everything that isn't in the other games. I understand that part of how they accomplished that was through the 80's setting, but I feel that there are other ways you could get that same kind of "fun" feel in a tropical city without having to have it set in the 80's. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thursday Next Posted September 26, 2013 Report Share Posted September 26, 2013 @TME I was watching a friend play Saints Row III the other day and (super hero stuff aside) it was very much what I loved about Vice City with regard to the blue skies, birght colours and stuff, the atmosphere was more gamey and light hearted compared to the drear of GTA IV (and to a lesser extent San Andreas). I also found the rags to riches story pleasing to play. Maybe that's part of the 80's feel. Not just Scarface but a lot of 80's films had that vibe, Secret of my Success for example, that idea of turning up in a new city with nothing but the clothes on your back and some ambition and turning that into being the big fish in that pond. San Andreas lost a lot of that feeling, you still had the territory war stuff, but it was about being the top killer, you'd kill everyone in the area and that was it, Vice City had you taking over businesses so that everywhere you went there would be someone who knew and respected "Mr. V". In GTAIV it was even worse, you pretty much start as a package boy and employee of your cousin and don't go anywhere from there, no matter how much cash you amass. Not played 5 and to be honest I've no desire to based on a lot of what I'm hearing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheMightyEthan Posted September 26, 2013 Report Share Posted September 26, 2013 The heists alone in GTAV are worth it. The first and last heists are two of the greatest things I've ever done in a game. And yeah, I liked SR3 a hell of a lot, and SR4 should be arriving at my house today (yay!), but those games are so far divorced from reality that they don't scratch the same itch as GTA does. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toxicitizen Posted October 1, 2013 Report Share Posted October 1, 2013 Alright, so I have something like 8 hours on Splinter Cell Blacklist. Here are my impressions so far. First off, the elephant in the room: Sam's voice. It's not bugging me as much as I thought it would but I still can't really get over it. Every time Sam says something, I kinda want to scream "You're not Sam!" at the screen. But other than that, I have to say it's actually fucking fantastic. People weren't kidding when they said it was a return to form for the series, the gameplay is glorious. It keeps the good elements of Conviction (and arguably some of the bad) but it actually puts Splinter Cell back on top of them. Sam moves fast but to properly ghost you really need to slow down and be mindful of your surroundings. It's pretty damn great. I decided to play on realistic right away and it shows. I ghost and go for non-lethal whenever possible but I also tend to play recklessly, so it's kind of challenging. The whole Mass Effect thing, though... I'm not sure it really works. I'm 8 hours in but I'm not very far into the story. I did the intro level and the first campaign mission but the last 5-6 hours have been spent doing side-missions and upgrading my gear. And every single time I go back to the Paladin there's this countdown on the big screen that reads "Next Blacklist attack in ____" and it doesn't tick down because I'm not advancing the story. That's kind of immersion-breaking. The side-missions are pretty cool, though. Most can be played solo or coop and the maps are designed with that in mind, with extra paths that can be accessed or unlocked if you have a partner (think dual-lock doors or really high ledges). There's one type that's objective-based, another that just has you taking out all the hostiles in an area and there's a wave-based horde mode kinda deal (that one kinda sucks...). There's a fourth type but that one's coop only so I haven't tried it yet. So yeah, can't really speak as to the story yet but as far as the gameplay goes there's a lot to love for a long-time fan of the series like me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheFlyingGerbil Posted October 3, 2013 Report Share Posted October 3, 2013 I updated my Wii U today so thought I may as well give Super Mario Bros. Wii U another go. It is exactly as frustrating as I remember it. I've just finished the tower in the Layer Cake Desert and I've only got 12 lives and already given up on getting the three big coins on each level - pretty lame, if I do say so myself. I think the most annoying thing is that you can't exit a level and the absolutely bonkers saving system which is barely more advanced than using passwords. Quick Save may be handy if you have to stop playing but is no use for retrying levels. I don't think I've really enjoyed a Mario game since Galaxy and this ones putting me of trying 3D World as that seems more along the lines of these new games than the 64/sunshine/galaxy line. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Strangelove Posted October 3, 2013 Report Share Posted October 3, 2013 It doesnt have a traditional save system because assholes would just keep restarting from the previous level each time they lost a life. Might as well not even have a life system at all at that point. Also, if youre not doing very well then you might as well skip out on getting all 3 star coins in each level. They only unlock more difficult stages. Stages that even exceptional Mario players would have a tough time with. Are you not very good at Mario games in general or what? This Mario game has the tightest controls out of all the NEW games and the general difficulty is somewhere int he middle. Its not easy, but its not difficult either. If it matters, 3D Land is 3D, its not a 2D platformer. Maybe thats more your thing. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TCP Posted October 3, 2013 Report Share Posted October 3, 2013 It doesnt have a traditional save system because assholes would just keep restarting from the previous level each time they lost a life. Might as well not even have a life system at all at that point. THIS. YES! Rayman Origins and Legends don't have lives and those games are way better platformers than Mario. Mario games haven't required quarters being pumped into them in 30 years, so why are we still stuck on this whole "lives" thing? Super Mario Bros didn't have saving, it might have had 8 worlds but it was designed with shortcuts in mind so you could beat the thing in a single sitting if you knew what you were doing, and it was shortly after the arcade era where lives were, in a lot of instances, ways for getting more quarters in the game, but even then lives were acceptable because it added to the challenge of the a single play through in a sitting experience. This isn't the case for the New Super Mario games, these are long games with longer levels and 8+ worlds to grind through.... so why can't the challenge exist in the level design and not arbitrary difficulties added by the developer? 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheMightyEthan Posted October 3, 2013 Report Share Posted October 3, 2013 I played through every single level of NSMBU and I was never once in danger of losing all my lives. And I'm not like super good at platformers or anything either. There were some hard parts that I had to retry a bunch of times, but extra lives were plentiful enough that it was never an issue as far as getting a game over goes. Was this really a problem for people? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TCP Posted October 3, 2013 Report Share Posted October 3, 2013 (edited) Not for me, cause I'm fucking legit like that, but Mario games aren't always attracting the best gamers, and even some hardcore gamers can suck at platformers. I think most of the frustration is with what Strangelove was describing, the fact that lives exist means saving is kind of a pain in the ass. Rayman Legends is ideal, I play through each level, maybe I die a few times, I finish that level, turn the system off, no worries. Lives just don't need to be there anymore, they serve no purpose. Edited October 3, 2013 by The Cowboy Poet Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Strangelove Posted October 3, 2013 Report Share Posted October 3, 2013 Actually NSMBWU has a shortcuts. Theres one int he second world to jump to the 5th or 6th world. And seriously, Im not fantastic either at Mario, but none of the new games are too hard. Only time those games are hard is when you want to get all 3 star coins. Those are tricky. or when you unlock extra worlds that are specifically built to be challenging. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toxicitizen Posted October 3, 2013 Report Share Posted October 3, 2013 I hadn't really thought about it but now that you mention it Cowboy, the last platformer I played that had lives in it was Sonic Generations and they were an annoyance more than anything else. I'd end up in situations where I wasn't paying attention to how many I had left, miss a collectible and kill myself to restart at the checkpoint. Then the game would go "That was your last life! Start the stage over, faggot!". It was annoying as all hell. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheFlyingGerbil Posted October 3, 2013 Report Share Posted October 3, 2013 It doesnt have a traditional save system because assholes would just keep restarting from the previous level each time they lost a life. [...] And I'm not like super good at platformers or anything either.[...] Was this really a problem for people? *cryinganddrinking* Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Strangelove Posted October 4, 2013 Report Share Posted October 4, 2013 Dont worry. It's ok. Dont watch this video. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hot Heart Posted October 4, 2013 Report Share Posted October 4, 2013 What the ever-loving fuuuuuu... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheMightyEthan Posted October 4, 2013 Report Share Posted October 4, 2013 Except for a few weird choices (like adding SSAO) it's fucking gorgeous. Haven't gotten the new sail yet so I can't say how that affects the game. Also, as a side note: FDS, I've been making an effort to put things on imgur instead of just hotlinking them. I hope you appreciate it. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CorgiShinobi Posted October 4, 2013 Report Share Posted October 4, 2013 Speaking of... Does anyone want the Hyrule Historia digital book? I've had the actual book since Day One, and the digital Hyrule Historia is software only for the Wii U. So even if I was into e-readers, or whatever, this thing stays on the Wii U. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheMightyEthan Posted October 7, 2013 Report Share Posted October 7, 2013 Still working on Wind Waker, but also last night I started playing Rayman Origins on Vita while waiting for my parents' plane to land. The demo hadn't hooked me, but I downloaded it again for free from PS+, and on about the third or fourth level, the first one with lots of fast water sliding, it clicked. Goddamn this game is great. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TCP Posted October 7, 2013 Report Share Posted October 7, 2013 Yeah Rayman Origins is great. Legends is even greater! Both of them are best on the Vita IMHO. The Fast Sail (Quick Sail?) is great, not only does it move faster but you save time having to change wind directions, you can just move around and the wind changes with you. How far are you in the game? I just got to the Youknowwhat Castle with the statue of the hero of youknowwhat and obtained the youknowwhatsword. Is it spoilers for a game from 2001? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheMightyEthan Posted October 7, 2013 Report Share Posted October 7, 2013 I'm just a little bit father than that, currently in the middle of the dreaded Scavenger Hunt of Doom. Agreed that the quick sail is fantastic. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VSigma100 Posted October 7, 2013 Report Share Posted October 7, 2013 I'm playing all sorts of stuff right now. Shenmue II, Wolfenstein, Dragon Ball Z Budokai, just playing all sorts of stuff across the board. Having fun with it too! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Little Pirate Posted October 8, 2013 Report Share Posted October 8, 2013 My favorite holiday forces me to play spooky games. I went ahead and got all the Splatterhouses because I never actually played them. Once my next paycheck comes in I'll be getting Amnesia: A Machine for Pigs. 2spooky4u 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NeoStarr Posted October 11, 2013 Report Share Posted October 11, 2013 I need a scary game to play this halloween, but I can't stand those hide-and-seek games like Amnesia, Slenderman, and that one with the green camera. I should pick up Slaughterhouse. I've only played the original but it was pretty cool. I wonder if I can pull myself away from GTAO long enough to do that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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