IsildursBane's recent activity
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Comment on Far Cry 5 | When gameplay and story fundamentally oppose each other in ~games
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Comment on Far Cry 5 | When gameplay and story fundamentally oppose each other in ~games
IsildursBane (edited )LinkSo I have tons of thoughts on this game, and so feel this is the best place to share. I agree with your general premise that the game has a ton of potential, but also just falls completely flat,...So I have tons of thoughts on this game, and so feel this is the best place to share. I agree with your general premise that the game has a ton of potential, but also just falls completely flat, and the story takes some of that blame.
It is worth first talking about my initial experience with this game. Before playing Far Cry 5, I had played 3&4 several times each. I took a university class back in the fall of 2019 called Bible and Pop Culture (my degree was a Bachelor of Theology, specifically Christian Theology). The class took a critical approach of how the Bible has been used in various pieces of media and for the final project each person in the class picked a piece of media of their own choice and did a presentation and paper. I was considering finally getting around to doing Far Cry 5, as it was on my steam wishlist for a year or two at this point. However, looking at system requirements, my computer was barely able to play it so I did my second choice instead, Bioshock Infinite (which I never finished before at that point). So I wrote an academic paper dissecting the theological doctrine of Bioshock Infinite (it is steampunk mormonism).
About a year ago I finally picked up Far Cry 5, and started playing through it. Throughout my playthrough I was looking at it through the lens of that class, and comparing it to Bioshock Infinite. I very quickly learned that the game lacked much for substance, and was very grateful for my choice in the class. I could very quickly tell that they were using the cult background but were trying to also not offend (compared to Infinite, which had a since deleted scene that lead to a developer quitting, and numerous steam refunds on release). So, despite the weakness of the overall story and setting I continued through like you, enjoying the gameplay and scenery while ignoring the weak story. Then the ending came, and it is such a weak ending that leaves you feeling dissatisfied. I would probably overlook the weakness of the general story, if it felt like the ending did something. Especially when you factor in that the final battle is you reviving all your old teammates, and you don't really get to do any fighting since the teammates you revive overpower the ones you have not switched over yet. The final confrontation with Joseph is both poor from a narrative and gameplay perspective, and it leaves you frustrated at the game (even more frustrating than the long unskippable credits of FC3).
I do disagree with your general stance that the gameplay is a polished experience, as I do find there are two major weakpoints.
- Weapon selection is quite poor. Previous games would prevent certain attachments for certain weapons or limit the amount of attachments. This made the signature weapons interesting, as it normally allowed attachment combinations that you couldn't get on the normal gun. However, allowing all attachments for all guns made it so that there was less tradeoffs on guns, and also less gun progression. Also, half the guns you could buy was a slight aesthetic tweak of other guns, with almost no stat change.
- Resistance Points are so poorly weighted. Especially with the forced encounters, it felt like you were doing the final boss fight for a region when only having completed a third of the region.
Edit: I forgot to mention that your point about Faith being an unwilling participant and not the first of her name is something that was a bit more developed than you mentioned. However, I do agree that they did not explore that concept enough. If you spend more time in her region (which is hard due to how fast resistance points accumulate), other NPCs leave the bread trail that Faith had been replaced at least once before. I do agree that it would have been more interesting if they really explored that concept, but like a lot of things in this game they do not commit to anything (except for a bad ending, they really committed to that).
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Comment on Tildes Minecraft Weekly in ~games
IsildursBane (edited )LinkPlaced the schematic for one side of the multi item storage system. Screenshot showing placement of schematic. @Noox this will give you a rough idea of where my build will be. The technical...Placed the schematic for one side of the multi item storage system. Screenshot showing placement of schematic.
@Noox this will give you a rough idea of where my build will be. The technical portions are within the borders of my claim, although the aesthetic exterior might need to extend a few blocks out, but unsure as I have not planned that build out yet
Edit: I miscounted chunks, so there is actually seven more slices on the north side. For context, S2 comm storage was 24 slices per side, totalling 48 categories in multi-item sorters. This season I have currently planned out 35 slices per side, totalling 70 categories in multi-item sorters. I am considering that once it is built and categories planned out, I might tear down a few slices on the south side. However, I am definitely planning on going bigger this season for two reasons. The first is to have it support more players (since it is being built when the server is more active). The second is this season I want comm. storage to have the capacity to handle storing farm outputs
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Comment on Tildes Minecraft Weekly in ~games
IsildursBane Link ParentIf it makes you feel better, some of us who are doing complex redstone are merely just copying designs found onlineIf it makes you feel better, some of us who are doing complex redstone are merely just copying designs found online
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Comment on Tildes Minecraft Weekly in ~games
IsildursBane Link ParentI love the cable car line ideaI love the cable car line idea
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Comment on Tildes Minecraft Weekly in ~games
IsildursBane Link ParentAnother solution for storage for farms is to do the design I am building for bulk storage in comm storage. It works great because it fills up a barrel of loose items, so useful if you only need a...Another solution for storage for farms is to do the design I am building for bulk storage in comm storage. It works great because it fills up a barrel of loose items, so useful if you only need a few stacks. Once that barrel is full, it starts shulker loading inputs. It is also a relatively easy design to implement
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Comment on Tildes Minecraft Weekly in ~games
IsildursBane Link ParentUnder the industrial district makes more sense for feeding supplies to the crafters. Whereas having it be at comm. storage would be more convenient for picking up components when doing a project....Under the industrial district makes more sense for feeding supplies to the crafters. Whereas having it be at comm. storage would be more convenient for picking up components when doing a project. I think both locations are valid. If I do manage on doing the future goal of having supplies automatically transported to comm. storage from the industrial district later down the line, I do think that having the crafters at the industrial district would be ideal.
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Comment on Tildes Minecraft Weekly in ~games
IsildursBane Link ParentFor a redstone component factory, if you want we could make plans to incorporate that into community storage. It might work well as a side wing. Although, I think a shulker farm would be useful...For a redstone component factory, if you want we could make plans to incorporate that into community storage. It might work well as a side wing. Although, I think a shulker farm would be useful before redstone components. Also, if you need any dispensers for farms, I do have a temporary dispenser crafter that you could use
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Comment on Lord of the Rings Extended Editions returning to theaters with a 4D twist in ~movies
IsildursBane Link ParentYeah, after your comment I read up on it and it seems like they messed up just the FOTR bluraysYeah, after your comment I read up on it and it seems like they messed up just the FOTR blurays
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Comment on Tildes Minecraft Weekly in ~games
IsildursBane (edited )LinkSo I have made quite the progress on community storage v2. Except for the initial priming of the shulker boxes, setting filters, and placing the water stream, half of bulk storage is built. It may...So I have made quite the progress on community storage v2. Except for the initial priming of the shulker boxes, setting filters, and placing the water stream, half of bulk storage is built. It may seem excessively large at the moment, but I want to have space for more farm outputs this season in bulk storage.
I also made a basic dispenser autocrafting system. If you need a large quantity of dispensers let me know (and maybe provide materials, so that I do not have to visit the various farms needed to collect resources).
Edit: I did the math and bulk storage will be able to handle 84 items. Last season bulk storage handled 18 (but there was the limitation of a glitch in my design which lead to only 18, despite having 36 slices). And we only used 16/18 slots last season
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Comment on Lord of the Rings Extended Editions returning to theaters with a 4D twist in ~movies
IsildursBane Link ParentI had not heard of the green issue beforehand, but I thought the colour was pretty good. I was not taking a critical look at the colour work, but I probably would have noticed if it was...I had not heard of the green issue beforehand, but I thought the colour was pretty good. I was not taking a critical look at the colour work, but I probably would have noticed if it was significantly off
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Comment on Lord of the Rings Extended Editions returning to theaters with a 4D twist in ~movies
IsildursBane Link ParentThe regular versionThe regular version
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Comment on Lord of the Rings Extended Editions returning to theaters with a 4D twist in ~movies
IsildursBane LinkI watched Fellowship of the Ring last night in theatres, have tickets for Two Towers tonight, and Return of the King for next Sunday. It was a really fun experience, and for those who are on the...I watched Fellowship of the Ring last night in theatres, have tickets for Two Towers tonight, and Return of the King for next Sunday. It was a really fun experience, and for those who are on the fence about getting tickets, I highly recommend doing it.
One of the things that I felt the big screen was really good at showing was all the beautiful lighting work that they did on Galadriel. It is common in movies for there to be a single spotlight meant to show up in an actor's eyes, to make them pop. However, for Galadriel they did a fancier lighting setup with lots of small lights, creating the look of the stars in her eyes that is described in the book.
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Comment on Tildes Minecraft Weekly in ~games
IsildursBane Link ParentI would argue against switching to creative mode for the reason that the server is survival (or survival+). I think switching into creative for a task like this sets a bad precedent for our world....I would argue against switching to creative mode for the reason that the server is survival (or survival+). I think switching into creative for a task like this sets a bad precedent for our world. Especially considering that breaking bedrock is not a time intensive process for the small section that we need to break.
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Comment on Tildes Minecraft Weekly in ~games
IsildursBane Link ParentI am so out of the loop on what farms got built. I do realize now that we already have oneI am so out of the loop on what farms got built. I do realize now that we already have one
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Comment on Tildes Minecraft Weekly in ~games
IsildursBane (edited )LinkI have made a dispenser autocrafter. If anyone needs a large amount of dispensers let me know and I can provide them Edit: I did put a few stacks in comm. storage. However, I am getting low on...I have made a dispenser autocrafter. If anyone needs a large amount of dispensers let me know and I can provide them
Edit: I did put a few stacks in comm. storage. However, I am getting low on cobblestone so stopped the crafter temporarily. Something to consider is creating a TNT based cobble gen, for crafting redstone components
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Comment on What programming/technical projects have you been working on? in ~comp
IsildursBane LinkSo had my Proxmox server fail again this week so was doing work on that. The boot drive had issues and got corrupted, and I was unable to restore it. So I ended up doing a clean install of...So had my Proxmox server fail again this week so was doing work on that. The boot drive had issues and got corrupted, and I was unable to restore it. So I ended up doing a clean install of proxmox, which might have been necessary anyways since I was running a few versions behind. Luckily storage for my NAS vm was on a separate drive, so had no data loss there.
Looking into it, it seems likely that my boot drive is failing and should be replaced soon. Unfortunately, SSD drives have also been hit with the chip shortage, and to get a reputable SSD manufacturer I am looking at $100 CAD for a 500GB SSD, so will try and put it off for a bit to see if SSD prices stabilize a bit.
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Comment on Looking for audio recording advice in ~hobbies
IsildursBane Link ParentI do know that it is effective for there to be an air gap between the soft surface and the hard surface. I was doing live sound at a venue once that made their own acoustic panels with fabric,...I do know that it is effective for there to be an air gap between the soft surface and the hard surface. I was doing live sound at a venue once that made their own acoustic panels with fabric, 2x4s, and rockwool insulation. Each panel had the depth to fit two sheets of insulation in them. However, when they were testing during assembly, they found one sheet worked better, and to leave a gap between the wall and insulation.
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Comment on Tildes Minecraft Weekly in ~games
IsildursBane Link Parentgate is a fantastic idea.gate is a fantastic idea.
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Comment on Tildes Minecraft Weekly in ~games
IsildursBane Link ParentThought I would provide a map on where comm storage v2 will end up being. Here is a bluemap screenshot. The red square is roughly where storage v2 will end up being. The green line is how I expect...Thought I would provide a map on where comm storage v2 will end up being. Here is a bluemap screenshot. The red square is roughly where storage v2 will end up being. The green line is how I expect roads to be altered in the area, although subject to change. The cyan filled square is all my feeder farms to help build, and I plan on tearing that area down and restoring to wilderness (or maybe scenic garden?).
If you are wondering why I built V1 in a different spot than V2 the answer is simple, so that V1 can stay operational while I am building V2. Last season when I did the storage overhaul, I had to tear down the previous iteration first, which meant I did not have any access to the resources in comm storage during the overhaul
I agree that by chance I ended up making the better choice. There is just so much to discuss with Infinite. I remember during that playthrough taking notes of every scripture referenced and then doing a comparison of where they are referencing the most (if I recall correctly, there is limited references to the Gospels and lots of Old Testament references, but this was also a bit over six years ago when I wrote that paper). Infinite has such a robust baptism theology (and one that is orthodox), and all the major story beats are linked to a baptism. In comparison, FC5 does not really explore the cult's theology. If I were to have picked that game, I probably would have done a lot of work with comparing the cult to cold war era theology and also the Christian right in the states (reminder that this would have been in 2019, and also from a Canadian perspective).
Yeah, I had not really thought about that aspect of the game, but after watching your analysis it is a very concerning narrative that the story proposes. It works in FC4 as you stated, but not in FC5. I think also FC4 made it more morally ambiguous as Pagan is a flawed leader, but neither Anita or Sabal is blameless either (my first playthrough I found myself flip flopping between those two). Whereas in FC5, the cult is clearly bad, and you want to help everyone.
I do agree that the guns support different playstyles, but I just wanted more variety than what they were given. The guns were just enough that I wanted more, and the game failed to deliver. I guess you could say that about FC5 in general "just enough that that I wanted more and failed to deliver that."
I don't view myself as a true completionist, but maybe I do weigh to far into that direction to not appreciate the pacing they went for. However, I felt in my first playthrough that there was always more to do (more outposts to liberate) that I never got around to before beating the region, and my motivation after defeating the region was gone.
I never really analyzed which region felt got the most attention, but I do agree that John's felt the most full. I think it has more prepper stashes as well. Aesthetically I just did not enjoy Henbane River that much, but I do feel that narratively it has the most going for it. I feel like John and Jacob were just plainly evil, whereas there was somewhere to go with Faith.