What have you been playing, and what do you think of it?
Hey ~ers, I'd like to keep a weekly discussion going on this topic (every Wednesday or so?). Let me know if this isn't something you want to see in the future, I always liked these, but maybe not everyone does? Last one got a lot of interesting posts, let's see how it goes this time!
I've been playing Grim Dawn quite a bit lately. I've kickstarted it back in the day, but never got around to really playing it after the early access period. I was burned out on Diablo clones at the time: Torchlight 2, Victor Vran, Van Helsing, etc. I think the break did me good, as playing it fresh is quite enjoyable. There's a good variety of classes and builds, fun abilities, and tons of gear number crunching (playing thunder smashing shaman now). Just the way I like it! I'm hoping to snag one of the DLCs once I reach a high enough level and play with my friends on one of the unlocked hardcore difficulties.
I picked up Zelda: Breath of the Wild over the weekend. Haven’t gotten very far yet (literally I’ve completed just two shrines) but so far it’s enjoyable. I’m not sure that I actually have the free time to dive deep into this game like I would’ve a few years ago... I’m a little intimidated by it!
I'm halfway through (maybe a bit more) and about 50 hours in. You don't actually need that much free time to play it, since you can save anywhere and it's easy to pick up and continue what you were doing. I stopped playing for two or three months because I wanted to play other games, and picked it up again about two days ago with no issues. I think part of it is because, after a few hours, the game opens up and lets you set your own goals. While you transverse the map, there's always something that catches your attention and sidetracks you, and that makes the world feel pretty alive. It's also not that hard. It's like as hard as you want it to be. If you want to play it safe in battle there are many options (food, potions, armor, extra hearts) which are pretty rewarding to find (or make), since the game does a good job convincing you that you did it by yourself. I usually like to take risks (more attack rather than defense, more stamina than hearts) and it's just as viable.
Have fun!
FTL is a spectacular rogue-like game that's extremely difficult and makes you feel like Picard
Hearthstone is a bit too far into its lifespan to be an easy entry. Gwent is primed as a good starting game right now, and Valve's Artifact is around the corner.
I think Hearthstone is a great game to play casually. I couldn't care less about the competitive stuff (hell, I barely even play against other people), so it's a great game for me. It's all about what you're looking for in a game
Definitely agree that Gwent is easier to get in to than Hearthstone, but it's only available for Windows at the moment, unfortunately.
Grim Dawn was awesome! I played that more than I did Diablo 3.
I'm currently playing Assassin's Creed 4 Black Sails. Its actually my first Assassin's Creed ever. I picked it up because Sea of Thieves left me wanting to do more pirate-y stuff. I'm enjoying it well enough so far. I haven't quite gotten the hang of stealth kills. To be honest, I was hoping the combat / stealth mechanic would be a little more like Shadow of Mordor. IMO that is the ultimate stalk and murder simulator. Its so satisfying. The animator really poured some hate into those executions. And brutalize...
I've been pretty curious about Grim Dawn recently! I was looking up if there were any modern equivalents of Champions of Norrath and that was the first one on a few lists.
Can you tell me if it is? Context: do you remember those old hack and slash games in the PS2 era like Baldur's Gate Dark Alliance or Champions of Norrath, where it's a top-down local co-op ARPG with relatively simple mechanics and gameplay but a deep item grind?
They seem to have been one of those subgenres of the era that's been cannibalized by other more streamlined genres (RIP lock-on third person shooters) but I've been hankering for them recently. Shame DIablo 3 on PC doesn't have good controller support like the console versions.
I beat Champions of Norrath on PS2 ages ago! I've forgotten all about it. I would say Grim Dawn is closer to Diablo3 because of the skill trees. I don't really remember skill trees in Champions. Or maybe I just picked a boring character.
You'll be happy to know that I played all my 60 hours (I know I'm a lightweight) of Grim Dawn on PC exclusively with an Xbox 360 wireless controller. No issues there. Controls are simple, gameplay is smooth like Diablo3 is on console (which I have also played a similar number of hours). As far as I know, there is only online co-op for Grim Dawn, no couch co-op.
Side note:
Apparently there was an update to controller support last year. It looks even better now then when I played it!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c0xX7BQ9dvA
Heads up! The Steam Summer Sale started (in the US) today and GD is $7.50.
Good lookin' out! Thanks!
I've been playing Pillars of Eternity II and I'm really loving it. They reworked a couple of things (like how spellcasters have per encounter spells instead of per rest) that improved the game over the first. I highly recommend it if you're a fan of the isometric style RPG games
I really wanted to like the first one, but it's such a slog. I've even put it on the lowest difficulty, but I can't bring myself to go through the motions. On the bright side, the second game will be on some kind of sale by the time I get to it.
I understand the slog. I loved the game but it took me three times restarting the game after I finished the first two Acts. It's very story intense and I had to constantly look up what each faction and god were all about and what they were trying to accomplish. At the end of the game, I felt accomplished and the story ended up fitting together nicely.
PoE II explains itself much better and the story is less confusing since they're more up front with telling the player what they need. I also feel as though II is a bt quicker-paced but the combat is generally easier. Enough so that the hardcore players have been complaining about beefing up the hardest difficulties
I haven’t played either PoE game but I loved Fallout: New Vegas so much I keep holding onto hope Bethesda will let Obsidian take another crack at the franchise.
I like II more, for sure. There were a couple of changes I'm not into (Wizard spellbooks function differently) but for the most part, II outshines I in almost every way. They even have an intro option to catch youup to speed on what happened in I
Assassin's Creed: Origins: I've never been much of an AC person but this is the first one I can say I've truly enjoyed. The game is drop dead gorgeous, and the gameplay is satisfying. The world is excellent to explore and play around in. It's probably the best example of Ubisoft's streamlining approach in recent years.
God of War: I wasn't a fan of the originals. Boring gameplay with spectacular visuals. But this new one... oh boy. An excellent game in every way. Visceral, meaty combat on top of a true mythological journey, stellar writing (in a God of War game?!), and a Metroidvania-like exploration style.
I've also been playing AC : Origins and while I agree it's probably the best one since Black Flag I still think the game suffers from the classic Ubisoft padding with all the towers and collectibles to find. But also as usual with Ubisoft the world crafting is amazing, the recreation of 40 BCE Egypt is breathtaking with stunning cities and deserts.
I also really like what they did with the fighting which makes it way more rewarding and fun than wait for an enemy to attack and then parry, the level system is interesting but still needs to be refined, it's especially infuriating when the game decides that an enemy is too high level for you so you simply can't damage it which is pretty BS as far as difficulty goes.
I definitely agree that they've made significant improvements to gameplay, and that the environment is probably the most well "developed" since AC2 and Brotherhood.
That said, it seems like the writing has taken a hit in Ubi titles over the last few years (maybe I'm just looking at previous titles through rose colored glasses). Usually a game with sub-par gameplay will hold me through with a compelling story, but this was the inverse. I enjoyed the gameplay immensely, but I couldn't for the life of me begin to care about the characters.
God of War is real art. A real, honest story, told through gameplay. It's everything a single-player adventure game should be.
I've been playing a bunch of Dota 2's new event gamemode: "Underhollow", a 3v3v3v3v3v3v3v3 "battle royale with cheese" in which players compete to be the last team standing and explore a randomized cave network for extra points.
I loved the longer, more story-driven, four player gamemode from last year ("Siltbreaker") but the shorter Underhollow matches means it's much less of a time investment before you realize that you itemized terribly, and it's easier to find a match if you don't have a full party.
The community seems to have taken to it better than they did to Siltbreaker, and the queues are pretty short. I've really enjoyed it so far.
I've never managed to get into Dota, would this new mode be fun for a new player? Or will I get shit on by teammates like the first time I try any MOBA?
Fair warning: while Dota 2 is free, Underhollow is part of the 2018 "Battle Pass" which is about $10. The pass also includes a bunch of other miscellaneous things like cosmetics, another game mode with random extra rules, and lots of extra opportunities to spend more money.
You would likely be a bit lost as to which items to buy, and there's a lot of fiddly mechanics to Dota that won't be well tutorialized in this mode.
That said, players do seem more relaxed than normal, and rounds are really short (especially if you're not doing well) so it's easy to try things out.
A few rules of thumb: go for AOE/crowd control abilities since there's a lot of clusters of enemies, move quickly through rooms to gain an XP lead (clear the room for the chest that spawns, but avoid wasting time shopping or deciding where to go), and try to move inwards quickly since the rewards are greater and there'll be fewer teams. Don't hesitate to sell any items you find that you don't have room for or don't match your hero.
Some good fairly straightforward heroes/items to try out:
Take a point in your Q, then prioritize Q and E.
Take a point in W, prioritize W and E
Start with the buzzsaw and then prioritize that and reactive armor, not sure which is which.
Also, you spawn with an "escape potion" and some healing salves. The escape potion turns you invisible and lets you escape from a bad fight; don't hesitate to use the salves (or to buy an extra one later if you need it), but try to save the escape potion for fights with other teams.
If you kill another player, try to grab their escape potions and use the spares for scouting or surprising an enemy team.
I've been playing Rim World quite a bit. I was looking for something casual that I could just zone out to a bit, that was a sim / rogue-like / rpg. It's great. I'm only on my first play-through, but the replayability is endless. There is a pretty large mod community, the base building is great, the mechanics are pretty deep, the pacing is whatever you want it to be. I'll be playing this game for a while. There is a ton of untapped potential in the game that the modding community could have a field day with.
Yo, I've been playing Shadowrun Returns, and I've been having fun. I know it's not the fan favorite or anything close to it, but it's so cool
That's a great game! And if anyone reading this is interested, its FREE today in the HumbleBundle Store! https://www.humblebundle.com/store/shadowrun-returns-deluxe
Make sure to play Dragonfall and Hong Kong after. Returns is good, but Dragonfall is a masterpiece.
I recently dove back into competitive overwatch for this season. It's so much fun! I finished my skill placements at platinum and have been enjoying the challenge. So much fun!
Also, been working my way through the Horizon Zero Dawn expansion: Frozen Wilds (I know, I'm way late). It's so good!
Frozen Wilds is really fun! I liked that it scaled to whatever level you're at and the robots are challenging even with end-game weapons/armor. Recently finished and unlocked NG+, might start that on Ultra Hard :)
Destiny 2 pee vee pee, because I don't have much else to play in that space rn
Hollow Knight because it finally came out on switch
Started playing Detroit: Become Human because I finally had time! Recently rented it at a redbox figuring that it would be a nice way to kill a weekend, but it turns out that it requires a lot of time. The decision trees are massive, the voice acting, and the cinematics are absolutely perfect. I hadn't bought this on release because of how mild the reviews were (there are other games on my backlog as well).
When I finally played it, I was surprised by how toned down the story insanity was (which is generally something David Cage does in almost all his games), and the writing was decent! What really blew me away were the emotions that the Androids exhibited. The mocap for this game was also awesome. It had such a great pull as a cinematic experience that even my fiance got into it and watched my entire run. She'll be playing it next so I guess I won't be returning the game and instead I'll be keeping it as a purchase.
I fully recommend this game to anyone on the fence simply due to David Cage's name, or because of the reviews. I'm also surprised that this game got such a low review score as well. It's absolutely one of the most quality game titles I've played this year outside of God of War.
The mocap was freaking great.
I'd probably recommend renting it, though. Replaying it is a must--replaying it 2 years later, not so much.
I've been replaying Cave Story on the 3DS. The translation isn't quite as fun as the fan version from 15 years ago, but it's a great game through and through.
I also finally picked Pokemon Ultra Moon back up (never played any other Gen VII games) and restarted it. Not too far into it, and I've been told it gets better, but jeeze do the first few hours slap you on rails with no detours. I'm really not enjoying it as a result, but I'm trying to get through the intro in hope of the joy of Pokemon I remember.
I have a hard time understanding what people find so great about Cave Story. I always feel like they're talking about some other game.
I dunno what to say, I like metroidvanias and think its weapon progression system is interesting. To some extent, I may like it more than I should for it being my intro to indie games 10 years ago, but I really think that's it's a well made game.
I'd say that the simplicity of a 2D platformer allows it to look visually appealing and have pretty rapid gameplay at certain parts. The developer did a good job on the audio as well, both the music and sound effects. Also the story/characters are pretty engaging (but I would recommend a walkthrough if you want to get the final ending as some of the steps are counter intuitive).
Still heavily addicted to R6 Siege, I have about 5-6 friends who love playing so we get to do a full ranked queue. I can't get enough of that heart pounding last second action.
Been playing For Honor since I saw the E3 marching fire update. It's the only thing I'm legitimately hyped about, and For Honor runs smoothly and is pretty balanced right now. I'm enjoying it an incredible amount.
PUBG basically solely since it came out March last year. Less and less nowadays.
Luckily for you every game nowadays is a BR so you can easily find another one when you get tired of PUBG!
Good luck finding one that looks like a finished product though.
Oh no, we can't have that. That goes against the Battle Royale Development Guidelines. A BR shouldn't ever be finished. If it ever is finished, it must look/play like it's not.
I've been playing Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker on my PSP
It doesn't feel as polished as the other games from the series due to being portable, but it's actually a pretty good game and I've been enjoying it a lot
The only thing I don't like is that the combat part. It feels clunky and whenever I get to a boss my reaction is "not again"
Sims4.
Lord heysuess Ive been sucked in.
My morning at work consists of cc shopping.
Recently for me it's been:
I haven't gotten very far in Hollow Knight yet, but so far the atmosphere has been awesome. I was holding out for the Switch release for a while, and I'm glad I did- it's great for playing during commute.
Blazblue Cross Tag Battle came out recently and i’ve been playing that every night when I get home. It’s the first time i’ve gotten into an anime fighter at launch - any fighter at launch to be honest - and it’s been really exciting learning the game alongside the playerbase. I wish I had more time but I’ve been getting better at my current team, Noel and Gordeau, and because of the way that the game uses lobbies to matchmake people it’s cool to recognise different people and get a sense of how people are improving in the game. I’m no where within the top percentile of players but the way that the game is designed makes it really rewarding for getting better at the different systems.
Just finished Horizon Zero Dawn and I'm cruising my way through a few old PS3 titles for a replay; Tomb Raider, Red Dead Redemption, Batman Arkham Asylum.
I have been playing Stellaris for the last month or so, and I really enjoy it. It's a space strategy game made by Paradox, where you can create your own space empire.
I've been messing around with WH40K Inquisitor: Martyr. It's alright. Cool single-player campaign if you're into WH. Not seeing a reason why you'd choose it over Diablo or PoE if you're just looking for an ARPG, though.
Been playing lots of S.T.A.L.K.E.R Call of Pripyat recently. Something about those games is so atmospheric and immersive. I get spooked so often but I don't mind because it's truly a one of a kind game
One of my personal favorite series. Eastern Europeans know how to paint a bleak apocalypse and make it compelling.
Are you playing it with any mods? There's a bunch of them out there to enhance the base game, or to turn it into something completely different.
I'm doing a vanilla run of it first. I wanna experience the raw, unchanged gameplay so mods will feel better. I've already gotten through SoC and I might do Clear Sky. I've heard very divisive things about it
I oscillate between World of Tanks and Surviving Mars.
WoT is fun and silly and quick.
Surviving Mars is tricky to get used to, but I can generally build a useful colony, so I'm working my way through different modes.
I downloaded the Prey (2017) demo late last fall, played that for about 20 hours, bought the game, and then lost interest after about nine hours due to how difficult it was for me on normal. I'm used to playing FPSes on normal difficulty, and I was worried the game was going to keep getting harder. Just picked it up again today and changed the difficulty to easy, and wished I had done so earlier. I'm not particularly good about thinking ahead in fights, so I found it much less stressful when my planning ahead is more focused on resource conservation than survival.
Starcraft 2. I'm still playing through the protoss campaign, and then I'll start working my way up through the ranks. My brother has played it a lot more than me, and he's way better, but I'm really getting in it now. When I was younger I just played the campaigns in these Blizzard RTSes: Warcraft 3, the first Starcraft, you know. I just kinda played them casually, but now that I'm getting better at the game, and learning how to play more efficiently, I see what has given these games such a cult following. It's like real-time chess. I'm pretty sure that playing a few 1v1s is actually making me manage my time better. Construct additional pylons, my dudes.
I recently picked up Infinifactory. I heard about it a while ago then saw it was on sale on GOG. Really fun, but the gui is lacking (using a 10 slot hotbar when there are about 13 block pairs/tools to use, not that you have to use all of them on a level typically). I love the puzzle style and the leader-boards add some replay-ability.
I started playing Thief Gold a few days ago. So far I've only gotten to Cragscleft Prison... I'm easily creeped out by "things in the dark," so I sorta cheated and looked up what kinds of creepy things would actually be in the mine. While it turns out it's just zombies, it was still pretty creepy to me when I encountered one of 'em. In general, while I like horror movies quite a lot I'm just not into horror games. In a horror movie the character will go to investigate a noise, but in a horror game you have to make that decision. So I always end up cowering in a corner or something, not moving or making any progress. Not that Thief is a horror game, but many of the reactions I have when attempting to play horror games I also had when trying to go through Cragscleft. Well actually, I've barely started the level since I got pretty creeped out just after entering the mine. Anyway, I'm really liking the stealth mechanics so far, but I've noticed some parts of the game mechanics and AI that are kinda clunky. For example, if your detection level (I guess that's what it's called) is the lowest possible, a person won't notice you even if they walk right in front of you. I guess it's supposed to be so dark that I'm completely hidden, but even on default gamma settings (which I would expect to be suitable for the intended experience) it just doesn't appear dark enough for that. Also, it's kind of unrealistic how guards don't notice or react in any way when I put out a torch right behind them with water arrows. Or regarding the AI, when the passive NPCs run after spotting me they run in a linear path that can easily be blocked allowing you to knock them out or kill them without much effort, especially if there's a doorway that you can block. But these things haven't really made the game any less enjoyable, so it doesn't matter much, but they were very noticeable. Overall fun experience so far.