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Comment on Assassins Creed Shadows and stealth in ~games
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Comment on What games have you been playing, and what's your opinion on them? in ~games
CaptainMcAnus (edited )LinkI've been playing quite a bit of Monster Hunter, but after getting my fill it inspired me boot up Dragons Dogma 2 again. I loved it the first time I played through, but I felt like it was lacking...I've been playing quite a bit of Monster Hunter, but after getting my fill it inspired me boot up Dragons Dogma 2 again. I loved it the first time I played through, but I felt like it was lacking on the story front, even more so than the first game.
The first Dragons Dogma has one of my favorite cosmology's in games - spoilers of course - It's cyclical nature of a tired god giving up their power to a worthy successor. However, if the successor fails their trials they become the herald for the next one, the Dragon. It also has a bottomless pit call The Everfall and it's just something that has to be experienced, it's a fantastic concept. It's much more involved than what I said too, a YouTuber called "Your Favorite Son" has a great long form video on the game detailing all of its bizarre ins and outs, and I recommend it.
The game was just lacking that oomph to tell that story as well as it could have. I was hoping DD2 would have been the opportunity to expand on that and investigate its cycle a bit more, but it ended up being more confusing than the first and more unclear - leaving a lot for theory crafting, but not much to latch on to.
Where DD2 shines however, and why I love it so much, is its gameplay. It's just so much fun to play, the combat is stellar and the world is interesting to explore, even if it's a little too packed with enemies. It's a game where shenanigans ensue in almost every fight, and watching your pawn learn and copy your fight tactics will never get old.
Yesterday I threw a goblin at another goblin, and my pawn had a comment about me doing that. A few encounters later, I find myself battling some more goblins. I'm stabbing one as you do, and from offscreen comes another goblin flying through the air and nails the one I was fighting. My pawn learned from me to hit a motherfucker with another motherfucker. It caught me so off guard and left me chuckling about for the next few minutes.
The game is just chock full of little moments that remind you that you're playing a game that wants you to have fun. It will sometimes cheat you, but it lets you cheat it right back in very unexpected ways. It doesn't hold your hand, and because of that you can truly use its sandbox in very unexpected ways.
I recommend it greatly (the first one too) and I sincerely hope it gets an expansion to help clean up some of its rougher edges.
I'll reiterate what the post above said, however, I will say that expert stealth feels a little overtuned currently for rooftop spotting. It's something that can be patched out, it's just worth noting, it feels like vertical vision cones aren't treated like peripheral cones, even if they are.
That being said, it's the best stealth the series has had and its so nice to see people recognizing that as a lifelong fan of the genre.