What are you playing?

[demi]

Will wait for HK to be PS+ or GWG

[Maiden Voyage]

I put in something like 12 hours into HK. It was very bland and the level design was horrendous. I don't get why it was hyped up so much.

[Svejk]

I feel like you probably just need to get further.

Like I started HK and got through 2 areas and then shelved it for almost two months. Then I picked it up and got a few more abilities and it clicked.

Did you get to City of Tears? I feel like with Dark Souls 1 and Anor Londo that’s where it starts to pick up.

But how much further?  A game should click with about 5-6 hours of playtime, no?     I made it past the first hornet fight.  Is there an actual story to this game?  Cuz if there is, I never saw it.  As far as I could tell, you're just a bug with a nail for a sword...  with occasional other bugs saying random things that don't provide any incentive to venture further. 
 

[HardcoreRetro]

Onimusha Warlords.

Yep, it's still good.

[naff]

I feel like you probably just need to get further.

Like I started HK and got through 2 areas and then shelved it for almost two months. Then I picked it up and got a few more abilities and it clicked.

Did you get to City of Tears? I feel like with Dark Souls 1 and Anor Londo that’s where it starts to pick up.

But how much further?  A game should click with about 5-6 hours of playtime, no?     I made it past the first hornet fight.  Is there an actual story to this game?  Cuz if there is, I never saw it.  As far as I could tell, you're just a bug with a nail for a sword...  with occasional other bugs saying random things that don't provide any incentive to venture further. 
 

Nah, 30 hours then it really opens up!

HK was my first Switch purchase. Was flipping between that and Shovel Knight: TT. I dug the feel of HK, but I then started BotW and got lost in that. Monster Boy also looks great!

Funny I've had BotW on Wii U for ages (friend gave me all his old review copies of Wii U stuff when Switch came out) and just didn't get around to playing it, I found the intro pretty dull and didn't have the urge to play despite knowing it was such a universally acclaimed S tier experience etc. Now, yeah, I get it. I definitely find the shrines more of a chore than I'd like tho, especially the atrocious motion control puzzles. So bad. Wish there were a few proper dungeons. And I would prefer if there was some way, even if prohibitively difficult / expensive, to repair weapons you really liked (haven't tried the Octorok trick yet), but I generally dig that design decision to stop you getting too attached to OP equipment and find more creative & efficient ways to clear groups of enemies instead of just running in and going face. Small issues compared to how much I dig everything else though, sp much love put into simply exploring. There's always a fun sidequest, fascinating area or a random event popping up to give me something else to do. The first *mindblown* moment was diverting en route to Kokoriko after the first stable, exploring, jetting past enemies and activating towers with the base 3 hearts and an extra stamina portion. Ended up flying into Gerudo desert, escaped after exporing a bit and getting heat stroke, then some merfolk bish hailed me to go see Prince Sidon, so i gave that a crack and got through Van Ruta before heading back to see Impa. Went through the story in a more linear fashion after that, but it hasn't let me down yet.

[Bebpo]

I feel like you probably just need to get further.

Like I started HK and got through 2 areas and then shelved it for almost two months. Then I picked it up and got a few more abilities and it clicked.

Did you get to City of Tears? I feel like with Dark Souls 1 and Anor Londo that’s where it starts to pick up.

But how much further?  A game should click with about 5-6 hours of playtime, no?     I made it past the first hornet fight.  Is there an actual story to this game?  Cuz if there is, I never saw it.  As far as I could tell, you're just a bug with a nail for a sword...  with occasional other bugs saying random things that don't provide any incentive to venture further. 
 

Hmmmmmmmmm, do you like Dark Souls stories?

Like I'd say Hollow Knight has more story than any other metroidvania I can think of. But the story is told in the same way the Soulsborne games are, you have to piece it together from dialogues, item descriptions, environment story telling. I don't think the story is as good as any of the Soulsborne games, but it's solid and I like the way it's told. These games are about dead doomed kingdoms and the mystery is piecing together the story of what happened to these kingdoms and how they fell and all the characters that lived in them and their stories. They're depressingly delicious.

Gameplay-wise the magic system is pretty much on par with any of the Igavania's and you get a good amount of combat/movement abilities. Lots of really good boss fights that are like Igavania x DMC3. World map is pretty incredible as you start to see how it all fits together. It's probably the largest map in any metroidvania game made.

But yeah, I can see it not being for everyone. You should be at City of Tears by 5-8 hours in (and it's a 20-30 hour game) and if you're not interested by the time you beat like Soul Sanctum or so it's probably not for you.

[tiesto]

Will there be a physical of HK? I saw the limited edition at Best Buy but it seemed like it only had a download code.

[Joe Molotov]

Will there be a physical of HK? I saw the limited edition at Best Buy but it seemed like it only had a download code.

Seems like no. There was supposed to be a physical release but it was cancelled.

[Svejk]

I feel like you probably just need to get further.

Like I started HK and got through 2 areas and then shelved it for almost two months. Then I picked it up and got a few more abilities and it clicked.

Did you get to City of Tears? I feel like with Dark Souls 1 and Anor Londo that’s where it starts to pick up.

But how much further?  A game should click with about 5-6 hours of playtime, no?     I made it past the first hornet fight.  Is there an actual story to this game?  Cuz if there is, I never saw it.  As far as I could tell, you're just a bug with a nail for a sword...  with occasional other bugs saying random things that don't provide any incentive to venture further. 
 

Hmmmmmmmmm, do you like Dark Souls stories?

Like I'd say Hollow Knight has more story than any other metroidvania I can think of. But the story is told in the same way the Soulsborne games are, you have to piece it together from dialogues, item descriptions, environment story telling. I don't think the story is as good as any of the Soulsborne games, but it's solid and I like the way it's told. These games are about dead doomed kingdoms and the mystery is piecing together the story of what happened to these kingdoms and how they fell and all the characters that lived in them and their stories. They're depressingly delicious.

Gameplay-wise the magic system is pretty much on par with any of the Igavania's and you get a good amount of combat/movement abilities. Lots of really good boss fights that are like Igavania x DMC3. World map is pretty incredible as you start to see how it all fits together. It's probably the largest map in any metroidvania game made.

But yeah, I can see it not being for everyone. You should be at City of Tears by 5-8 hours in (and it's a 20-30 hour game) and if you're not interested by the time you beat like Soul Sanctum or so it's probably not for you.

See.. worded like that (almost like the back of gamebox), makes it seem more inviting...  I simply jumped in by word of mouth/hype.  Peeps saying it's as good as SotN, that's a pretty bold statement.  Setting my expectations that high, jumping in, it seemed to fall short off the bat, but I'm still willing to give it more a try at a later time. 
As for the Soulsborne stories, I've only played through about half of DS2 and a quarter of DS3, so I can't really comment on that.  The stress/anger I get from those games when losing 2 hours worth of souls collecting makes me constantly question if those games are worth my time... Guess that's a different story.

[Himu]

Onimusha Warlords.

Yep, it's still good.

Hoping they do a remaster 2.

[Bebpo]

The stress/anger I get from those games when losing 2 hours worth of souls collecting makes me constantly question if those games are worth my time... Guess that's a different story.

I'm not particularly great at videogames (would classify myself as average) and I got through HK without losing any souls once. Then again I've probably only lost souls a few times in the Soulsborne games. Generally it's more just about playing carefully than skills.

Also HK has a cheat where you can instantly call your shade up to the town and whack them to get your souls back in exchange for a rancid egg which you get tons of. I used it like once but it's helpful if you die in a tough spot.

Onimusha Warlords.

Yep, it's still good.

Hoping they do a remaster 2.

I'm not buying an Onimusha ports until they port #4. Best gameplay of the series easy (not counting busted US version where they buffed every enemy HP to make it a grind), though #2 has the coolest lead.

[demi]

Was the US version of DoD changed? No wonder it was a terrible game.

Actually it would still be crap with original health. 2 > DOD

[Bebpo]

Yeah, they fucked 4 hard in the US. Was after they were fucking around with DMC3 and on a mission to appeal to HARDCORE WESTERNERS 

[Bebpo]

Also, yeah I'd probably go 2 > 4 > 1 > 3 myself. Still liked 3 just for the Reno, but 3's pretty weak game sadly.

[demi]

Onimusha tactics > DOD

[Bebpo]

Eh, I can't hate on tactics games. Too bad it's essentially a dead genre in the modern era.

I'm actually surprised how few indie srpgs there are. There's a few here and there but like there's 100s of indie jrpgs like earthbound or ffvi but comparatively almost no indie rpgs like Tactics Ogre/FFT or Front Mission or Wild Arms XF or whatever. There's definitely an audience there, I wonder if they're just tough games to make from a design perspective? I'd play the shit out of a 15-20 hour indie TO ripoff.

[Himu]

4 is good?! What?!

[Bebpo]

It’s kinda ugly, but JP version has great gameplay.

[porkbun]

Picked up Battlefront II for $5 and played a bit of the single player stuff.  It's fun but it makes my PS4 sound like a jet engine.  Also got the Wipeout Omega Collection in the same PSN sale for $5.  It's Wipeout, it's good.

Been going through GTAIII on a tablet during my commute.  Still one of the GOAT open world games IMO.

[Svejk]

Felt so damn good to delete Battlefront II off my PS4.    Played through the decent campaign, kids and I hated the multiplayer, no reason it should continue to take up 1/10 of my HDD.

[Himu]

HOLY FUCK CUPHEAD WAS MADE FOR ME IN MIND

GAME OF THE GENERATION

[MMaRsu]

I am playing Apex Legends

My new favorite Battle Royale game

Finally I can say goodbye to PUBG 

[Nintex]

Too bad it doesn't work on your Phenom.

[MMaRsu]

yeah gonna have to upgrade soon

two wins on xbox tho

[The Sceneman]

Beat the main game in Celeste last night.

Wow! One of the best vidya game stories ever. Will defo stay with me. It dealt with mature concepts in a layered, nuanced, and most importantly, non-tacky way. Game journos were actually right with this one.

Thematic spoilers:

spoiler (click to show/hide)

As someone who has battled with depression most of their life, this game really nailed some great concepts of mindfulness. The core metaphor of climbing a mountain is simple enough for kids to understand, yet theres a lot more to it than that. I loved the story of the "other part" of Madeline. The message that this other, dark part of you can exist, and it can be ok - you can be aware of it, and work with it, learn from it, and because of it you can achieve greater things. I don't think I'd be as driven to succeed as I am now if I didn't endure my all of my hardships and self-doubt. Man I'm tearing up while I'm typing this, lol. But yeah, Celeste has actually helped me frame certain aspects of my life in a new way, which is amazing.

[close]

[The Sceneman]

HOLY FUCK CUPHEAD WAS MADE FOR ME IN MIND

GAME OF THE GENERATION

I need to buy this game

[Himu]

Bought it a while ago and wanted to try it yesterday and it's great. Got 25% through the game in a sitting! Didn't take long to do either but it's all so great.

[Bebpo]

Beat the main game in Celeste last night.

Wow! One of the best vidya game stories ever. Will defo stay with me. It dealt with mature concepts in a layered, nuanced, and most importantly, non-tacky way. Game journos were actually right with this one.

Thematic spoilers:

spoiler (click to show/hide)

As someone who has battled with depression most of their life, this game really nailed some great concepts of mindfulness. The core metaphor of climbing a mountain is simple enough for kids to understand, yet theres a lot more to it than that. I loved the story of the "other part" of Madeline. The message that this other, dark part of you can exist, and it can be ok - you can be aware of it, and work with it, learn from it, and because of it you can achieve greater things. I don't think I'd be as driven to succeed as I am now if I didn't endure my all of my hardships and self-doubt. Man I'm tearing up while I'm typing this, lol. But yeah, Celeste has actually helped me frame certain aspects of my life in a new way, which is amazing.

[close]

That's awesome about your spoiler bit. Yeah I really liked the story side even if it was short.

Did you mess with the b-sides?

[bork]

Story mode in Fate/Extella Link is done.  I did two of the extra battle stages during my first play through, so I'd say it probably took around 12 hours total not counting those to go through all 27 stages, and the third route's boss fight was a little longer with a better ending.  Now onto the extra battle mode which appears to be just as long!  Seeing level recommendations for some of the latter stages at 100+, holy shit.  Am currently at around level 44 so maybe it won't be a grind.

[HardcoreRetro]

Bought it a while ago and wanted to try it yesterday and it's great. Got 25% through the game in a sitting! Didn't take long to do either but it's all so great.

People compare it to Contra, but it's actually a modern Treasure game. Straight up boss rush game. Even got parrying like Alien Soldier.

[Himu]

Bought it a while ago and wanted to try it yesterday and it's great. Got 25% through the game in a sitting! Didn't take long to do either but it's all so great.

People compare it to Contra, but it's actually a modern Treasure game. Straight up boss rush game. Even got parrying like Alien Soldier.

Pretty much. One stage is pretty much seven force.

[porkbun]

HOLY FUCK CUPHEAD WAS MADE FOR ME IN MIND

GAME OF THE GENERATION

B b b b but it's based on an animation style that could be accused in modern times of depicting racist stereotypes, even when taking into account who was drawing the characters, their attitudes towards minorities, and the prevailing attitude of the studio that released it and the audience that watched it!!!!

 

[Himu]

I haven’t seen anything racist in cuphead. Do they think the devil is racist or are they really thinking it’s racist because of the art style? Are they stupid?

[Great Rumbler]

Been playing Tokyo Xanadu ex+, and it's even more of a Persona game than Trails of Cold Steel. Not that I'm complaining. It doesn't have the narrative depth of Cold Steel or the impressive production values of Persona, but I actually like that about it. Makes for a bit more laid back experience, no sprawling geopolitical storyline to follow and no worrying over min/maxing what I'm doing at any given time.

[Himu]

>revive Xanadu
>shit on it

[Great Rumbler]

It's a good game.

[Himu]

I read the kotaku article on cuphead.

Jfc

“All the garbage” in this case means the deep-seated racism and reactionary politics which surrounded early American animation. Art doesn’t arise out of nothing, from no one and from nowhere. People create it. The dream of being able look to the past and extricate what we find free from baggage is understandable, but as Cole shows, can have the unintended consequence of compounding the sin. Where characters of color were originally depicted with racist imagery, they now risk not getting depicted at all.

Black people not depicted? Neither are white people. Every character in Cuphead is anthropomorphic.

The style isn’t inherently racist. It was the content that was. This is like accusing painting of being racist just because the same technique was used to paint minstrel posters. Or that film is racist because it was used to make Birth of a Nation.

Art doesn’t arise out of nothing, but the technique is clearly established and are the fundamentals of the medium. Why should animators throw out the technique to appease you?

This is baffling logic and as a black animator I find it more than insulting.

[porkbun]

I read the kotaku article on cuphead.

Jfc

“All the garbage” in this case means the deep-seated racism and reactionary politics which surrounded early American animation. Art doesn’t arise out of nothing, from no one and from nowhere. People create it. The dream of being able look to the past and extricate what we find free from baggage is understandable, but as Cole shows, can have the unintended consequence of compounding the sin. Where characters of color were originally depicted with racist imagery, they now risk not getting depicted at all.

Black people not depicted? Neither are white people. Every character in Cuphead is anthropomorphic.

The style isn’t inherently racist. It was the content that was. This is like accusing painting of being racist just because the same technique was used to paint minstrel posters. Or that film is racist because it was used to make Birth of a Nation.

Art doesn’t arise out of nothing, but the technique is clearly established and are the fundamentals of the medium. Why should animators throw out the technique to appease you?

This is baffling logic and as a black animator I find it more than insulting.

Don't question how upper middle-class white people are trying to make you safe from problematic depictions of yourself.  How dare you.

 

[Himu]

The most absurd logical leap is when he quotes some writer that the old cartoons dredge up bad memories. If they grew up in America 99% that turns out to be bullshit. The cartoons they cite were banned. Cartoon Network for instance would air regular blocks of hours of old cartoons. ABC would air Looney Tunes for three full hours on Saturday morning before the education programming mandate came about. I would watch them whenever because I was a fiend for toons and they aired not a single one of those offensive cartoons. Those racist toons are the ones you have to seek out and in no way take up the cultural imagination of that era now. So bad memories? What bad memories? When most people think of that era they think of this.



Which is as innocent as all possible.

So the conclusion that the style is intrinsically racist and tied to the medium is big, fat lie. Were there offensive, dehumanizing works made then? Absolutely. But to pretend that it’s the first thing people think of is just straight up Ducktales.

[Himu]

Sceneman, BUY CUPHEAD

[Don Rumata]

Division 2 Beta

No comfy snow, no buy.

[The Sceneman]

Beat the main game in Celeste last night.

Wow! One of the best vidya game stories ever. Will defo stay with me. It dealt with mature concepts in a layered, nuanced, and most importantly, non-tacky way. Game journos were actually right with this one.

Thematic spoilers:

spoiler (click to show/hide)

As someone who has battled with depression most of their life, this game really nailed some great concepts of mindfulness. The core metaphor of climbing a mountain is simple enough for kids to understand, yet theres a lot more to it than that. I loved the story of the "other part" of Madeline. The message that this other, dark part of you can exist, and it can be ok - you can be aware of it, and work with it, learn from it, and because of it you can achieve greater things. I don't think I'd be as driven to succeed as I am now if I didn't endure my all of my hardships and self-doubt. Man I'm tearing up while I'm typing this, lol. But yeah, Celeste has actually helped me frame certain aspects of my life in a new way, which is amazing.

[close]

That's awesome about your spoiler bit. Yeah I really liked the story side even if it was short.

Did you mess with the b-sides?

Yeah I finished the first 2 B-Sides while playing through the main game. They're tough and frustrating! The last screen in B-Side 2 made me almost pull my hair out. I'll do 'em all as I'm glutton for punishment (and I like collecting achievements)

[Bebpo]

Yup. I did the first 3 and I could probably do more but it's a bit too hard/frustrating for me so bailed out at that point. I still gotta watch at least a youtube run of the mountain core stage to see what the ending of it's like.

[Coax]

Sceneman, BUY CUPHEAD

The recent AGDQ speedrun of this was eye-opening to me. He beat this boss in ~50 seconds and most bosses way faster than I thought was possible. From memory this was achieved by effectively bypassing the cooldown timer between shots of one of the weapons by switching between them rapidly (see the bottom-left).

I gave up about half way through the game so I should probably be taking more notes. Git gud, Coax

[bork]

Division 2 Beta

Played this for a bit and am just not seeing what's so hot here- it's like playing Uncharted battles with no real stealth and hiding spot options, over and over again.  Does it get better?

[Himu]

Sceneman, BUY CUPHEAD

The recent AGDQ speedrun of this was eye-opening to me. He beat this boss in ~50 seconds and most bosses way faster than I thought was possible. From memory this was achieved by effectively bypassing the cooldown timer between shots of one of the weapons by switching between them rapidly (see the bottom-left).

I figured that would be op.

In the video you see me occasionally flipping between weapons on the fly while idle as I wait. I’m pretty sure that’s what he’s doing? Doing that you basically are cancelling your recovery from the shot and doubling the shot. I’ll try it out. I figured it would help but I hadn’t bothered applying it yet.

[paprikastaude]

Bought it a while ago and wanted to try it yesterday and it's great. Got 25% through the game in a sitting! Didn't take long to do either but it's all so great.

People compare it to Contra, but it's actually a modern Treasure game. Straight up boss rush game. Even got parrying like Alien Soldier.

also the transformations of several bosses are more like crazy japanese parodius things than anything from a cartoon.

[Don Rumata]

Division 2 Beta

Played this for a bit and am just not seeing what's so hot here- it's like playing Uncharted battles with no real stealth and hiding spot options, over and over again.  Does it get better?

I don't know about Division 2, but Division 1 was only worth it/fun if you were playing with friends.
It's one of those games where you get to see the numbers go up while you spend time with friends, and if you like the tacticool aesthetic, then it can be enjoyable.
I can't imagine playing it with random strangers, let alone by yourself.

[demi]

The recent AGDQ speedrun of this was eye-opening to me. He beat this boss in ~50 seconds and most bosses way faster than I thought was possible. From memory this was achieved by effectively bypassing the cooldown timer between shots of one of the weapons by switching between them rapidly (see the bottom-left).

I gave up about half way through the game so I should probably be taking more notes. Git gud, Coax

Yes, the game was stupid broken if you used certain weapons and just keep swapping between them. I think it was patched, so not sure what is current strats.

I really wish this game had online. I need to sit down to Cuphead one day, I picked it up because it looks so gorgeous.

[paprikastaude]

Devil May Cry 5 demo - dat RE engine and OST doing work.

[benjipwns]

where's the map in the Division 2 beta at? is it down by The Mall?

wondering if it's worth downloading just to look around in

okay, so maybe i just want to go by the various buildings and see

alright alright you got me, i want to go by the trash can outside the Department of Education where i saw a homeless man get a jar of "mayonnaise (?)" out of it, open it up, sniff it, shrug and put it in his coat

[BisMarckie]

i saw a homeless man get a jar of "mayonnaise (?)" out of it, open it up, sniff it, shrug and put it in his coat

[benjipwns]

DC has the best mentally ill watching on the East Coast, it's practically San Francisco tier

[chronovore]

I've been playing through LEGO DC Villains. It's okay. I mean they've pretty much been making the same game for like 16 years now, but this certainly feels like a step down from the Batman ones and Marvel Super Heroes 1.

When are they going to stop fucking around and do a DC/Marvel LEGO game

Thinking about the licensing issues alone with that is going to give me a stroke.

[Crash Dummy]

Devil May Cry 5 demo - dat RE engine and OST doing work.

same, taking a break from witcher 3 and have been replaying this demo whenever i can

[Bebpo]

AC Origins - Made my way to and through Letopolis and took out The Scarab. Was pretty good story and the quests were cool too. When it flashed back to Aya bits was prepared to want to get back to Bayek but the Black Flag sea combat stuff in the Aegen Sea was funny and looked nice. Heading to Giza and the Pyramids now for the next target. Still digging this entry. ~23 hours in/lvl.25 now.

Only thing I don't like at this point is because of the leveling system, your gear quickly gets outdated and then your super awesome gold tier loot bow that has been one-shotting stealth kills doesn't do one-shot damage anymore and alerts everyone so that's no good. Upgrade costs to bring weapons up to your level are pretty expensive and despite doing like everything 100% so far I don't have much money. Not sure how you're supposed to make money in the game. End up just using whatever weapons I pick up lately that are closer to my level because the extra damage goes a long way for stuff like bows.

[Bebpo]

I do think the AC games can be a little more nuanced though.

Start a quest - “my husband’s sick and he won’t be able to make money and pay his taxes”
Bayek- “I’ll see what I can do”

New quest objective “Go murder the tax collector”

Sometimes this stuff feels like we’re back in 1992 of game design.

[HardcoreRetro]

Be happy you aren't playing Odyssey, where the writing is even worse.

[MMaRsu]

Been playing Apex Legends all week, havent touched any other games 

[chronovore]

I've been playing through LEGO DC Villains. It's okay. I mean they've pretty much been making the same game for like 16 years now, but this certainly feels like a step down from the Batman ones and Marvel Super Heroes 1.

When are they going to stop fucking around and do a DC/Marvel LEGO game

Thinking about the licensing issues alone with that is going to give me a stroke.

They've mixed multiple licenses for games and movies in the past, Marvel and DC have worked together multiple times in the past, the makers of the games have the license to both...I don't think it'd be that big of an issue.

I'm not familiar with which games they worked on that had both DC and Marvel licenses simultaneously. I've seen the comics where Superman and Spider-Man team up, etc. but those all pre-date Disney purchasing Marvel, IIRC. Lego licenses the properties to make toys, and it's possible they included video games as part of that. But Traveler's Tales doesn't hold the power in that relationship.