What are you plebs playing? (three-day-weekend edition)

[Fragamemnon]

I would normally let Panda make this thread, but he failed his fortitude save vs. Scotch and I bet he almost LOST IT in Professor Prole's vehicle this morning, barely staving off the overwhelming nausea and compulsion to create a spectacular technicolor yawn all over the forward console of the car.

I have Friday off this week because of some wacked-out hours I worked helping some noobs in Hong Kong. Here's how I intend to spend my weekend:



Still playing this almost three months after release. Working my way up the 1v1 ranked ladder, which, while cutthroat, isn't the grandmaster APM uber allies experience that it would be in a game like Warcraft 3. I had a 18 game win streak snapped yesterday, which was dissapointing, but I am still winning way more than I lose. Hoping to one day crack into the top 100 players, just to say that I played an RTS online and didn't suck at it.



This game is so incredibly rewarding and the amount of top-shelf user-created content for the game is simply staggering given that users can't create maps or plane models. I am using a user-created dynamic career campaign generator and it's just fantastic. Also playing through a few user made campaigns-one playing a german CAS pilot in North Africa, one playing a Russian torpedo bomber pilot, and another playing a US dive bomber pilot in the Pacific. The campaigns are nice because in general I don't have to do much dogfighting, which is good because I'm still working my way up to being competent at that.

I really need a new HOTAS and some rudder pedals and have the purchases approved by Mrs. Fragamemnon since she just a got a 10 megapixel Coolpix for when she doesn't feel like lugging her 20D around. I just need to pick out which ones I want, and that's proving to be sort of difficult since I'm not going to abuse them continuously, I just want a set for civilian and combat flight sims that might get used once or twice a week for three hour or so intervals.



Just got this yesterday, going through the newbie intro guides and movies on the SubSim.com forums, which are really nice if sorta creepy in that old man rivetcounter sense. I am really hoping I can get to the point where I can play this game with full-on hardcore manual calculations using an actual in-hand stopwatch, as I find the notion of using fancy maths to obliterate things with high explosives extremely stimulating. In the meantime, submarine games are just awesome and there's nothing like dropping a couple of merchant ships and then slinking off under the thermal layer on silent running, while leaving the game panned to the surface view to watch the ship go up in flames and then sink.

Did I mention the game is FUCKING GORGEOUS?   





Yeah, this game isn't as good as BF2, but that's ok. Rail guns, EMP grenades, non-animu mecha walkers, good infantry anti-armor tools (I play engineer OF COURSE) and fun maps make for a fun game. Again, not as good as BF2 but the futuristic candy makes it somewhat sweeter in my book, not to mention all the cool shit to unlock.



The more I play this game, the more I appreicate the design decisions that were made that I once thought were sort of weak when compared with the towering legends of the subgenre (Master of Orion, Master of Orion 2). I don't really miss the manual combat, and the espionage does work pretty well  and is more streamlined in Dark Avatar, unlike what some other people have commented on. The real gem of this game is the way that the game has just enough automation, smart AI, and diplomacy that the endgame isn't the nightmare drawn out horror that most games of this genre have. The game is still more fun in the early and midgame, but the endgame is still pretty good and doesn't have to last too long-finishing a game in 250-300 turns is very possible, even with 4-5 opponents.

I'm hoping to go out and score a copy of MS Flight Sim X Deluxe Edition this weekend. The new service pack they released yesterday has HUGE optimzations (including quality support for up to 32 CPU cores) and I really want to play around with the mission-based portion of the game, which sounds really cool from the reviews.

So what is the 'bore playing this weekend?

[demi]

This game is really fun. I like how the levels are really short, it allows for quicker progression and gives me more of a reason to jump on it each night and do a carving of 5 or so levels of the 53 or so the game has. I'm doing Easy and working my way up, because the game wants you to do this so you can gather more weapons and health to tackle the higher difficulties. I just wish thisgame had online, it's all I ask. It could look like a PS1 game on X360, I just want online co-op. This game just screams it. As it is the game is pretty great from a technical point, all these bugs and robots and spaceships that are gigantic just crawling around, shooting and blowing up the giant buildings, which crumble right in front of you. Most of these things just disappear eventually rather than sit there, but it's still a sight to see. I'm gonna take this to a friends and play it on their HDTV to see what I'm missing. And hopefully persuade one of them to try co-op with me.


That's about it really, I don't have anything else I'm really jumping into.

[Himu]

Liking this game a lot. Should have gotten it sooner. While a more traditional take than the original game, it's still completely non conventional. The game features great dungeons and puzzles, an amazing battle system, and a potentially great story (I like the characters and character interaction in this a lot). My biggest complaints are the obtuse menu system and the overly convoluted skill system. Other than that, it's a damn fine rpg that does the original justice. Tri-Ace ftw!



God Hand is a great game. It is everything I wanted from Okami but didn't get: trademark Capcom difficulty that forces you to learn how to play the game, no fluff, no hand holding or tutorials, and awesome mechanics. I'm glad Clover didn't disappoint on this one. One of the best things about God Hand is that it treats players like they have skills and unlike Okami, it doesn't insult the players intelligence. There are tutorials but they're not forced, and even then they rarely pop up. The game doesn't tell you about all the game mechanics in game, so it has that old school sense of excitement. You'll be messing around and find something and be like "Wow, I didn't know you could do that!" The "tank" controls initially take time to get used to (all 2 minutes), but once you get past that hurdle it offers an amazingly deep and fun combat system. The game is just plain fun and wacky. There are two characters you fight early on who are total homosexuals and it's quite hilarious. Funniest game in a while. There's nothing better than an attack called the "ball buster" where the main character gives enemies a swift kick in the balls.



This one I play in spurts as I've been in an arcade gameplay mood lately. It's got some nice ideas. It blends beat em up gameplay with shmup gameplay and it's oddly entertaining. Doing better in levels nets you cash, which you use to buy weapons and skills. It's a fun game. Nothing revolutionary, but if you like shmups or beat em ups, it's worth checking out since we haven't gotten a game worthwhile in either of those genres in a while. At least in America.



I am still waiting on Taito Legends 2. Why it is taking forever to get released state side, I don't know.

[Beezy]

All fun games imo.

[MrAngryFace]

There's some kind of banging going on at work today too ugh. Anyway my list:


(almost finished with this one, then its on to the next)


Not the prettiest, but still an awesome baseball game. I also love the running commentary.


My "saturday" game. Ill play more of it this Saturday

[TVC15]

The beta plays soooooo much better than Halo 2.



It killed my GPU. . .but I'll come back for more once I buy a new one.



The new content is awesome.  I think it was kind of ingenius to give out god mode in a patch several months after release.

Maybe some to see how it compares to Halo.

[MrAngryFace]

I thought Resistance was stupid hard in the first 30 minutes and I honestly hate the Sixaxis for FPS games. Get MLB 07 THE SHOWWWWWWw

Oh, and the latest crackdown download rocks? I guess the GRAW 2 download is lame total

[Vizzys]

God Of war 2 (near the end I think)
Mother 3 ( about 21 hours in )
Halo 3 beta

Next on my list if, I have the money is Odin sphere.

[TVC15]

I thought Resistance was stupid hard in the first 30 minutes and I honestly hate the Sixaxis for FPS games. Get MLB 07 THE SHOWWWWWWw

Oh, and the latest crackdown download rocks? I guess the GRAW 2 download is lame total

Yes, there were 2 bits of content released for Crackdown.  

Agents will have free access to improved mission time trials, an option to repopulate gangs and kingpins after they have beaten the game, a vehicle impound garage, and the long-awaited Keys to the City — a comprehensive cheat mode including new “super agent” abilities and the option to create ramps, vehicles and explosives anywhere in Pacific City, at any point in the game.

For 800 Microsoft® Points, Agents can also access the full “Crackdown” armory, which includes three unique vehicles, four new devastating weapons, co-op game types, an Agent “cloaking device” and an added dynamic street-racing mode.

The better of the two bits of content is FREE. . .although the racing mode is really really cool.

[MrAngryFace]

I just hate the shoulder buttons on the sixaxis and the positioning of the analog sticks.

Spoiled by Xbox pads for FPS

[tiesto]

Halo 3 Beta - played a few games last nite

God Hand - somewhere in chapter 3

The Red Star - got it last nite, played a few chapters of it. I really like it, the graphics look better than a budget game should look, even though it could have done with an extra coat of polish (i.e. maybe have some comic style storyboards to tell the story, reduce the load times, cut down the reliance on weapon powering up)

FF6 Advance - just have to finish off DeathGaze, and then head into Kefka's Tower

Gurumin - gonna finally start this next week

Half Life 2 - beat Ravenholm and am up to the level where you ride in the go-kart type thing. Controlling it is annoying as hell, though I applaud the game for constantly throwing new vehicles/gameplay styles at me.

[MrAngryFace]

I always get to Ravenholm and stop lol

[Himu]

Half Life 2 - beat Ravenholm and am up to the level where you ride in the go-kart type thing. Controlling it is annoying as hell, though I applaud the game for constantly throwing new vehicles/gameplay styles at me.

I forgot about this one. I am kinda replaying it on Xbox. I hate that goddamn prison and the chapter Entanglement.

That's where I'm at.

Regarding The Red Star, one of my problems with the game is that the levels are too damn long. For a shmup like game, they just lack that arcadey feel where you can finish them off in just a few minutes, making you want to play them over and over.

[Mr. Gundam]

My wife is in Chicago this weekend, so I'll be doing a lot of gaming, hopefully.

God of War II (PS2)
MLB 07 The Show (PS3)
Calling all Cars! (PS3)
Gundam Musou (PS3)
Oddworld: Stranger's Wrath (Xbox)

[G The Resurrected]

got a great deal from a coworker on some games today so i'm gonna be busy after i work this week.

GodHand
Okami
Lumines Plus
Vice City Stories

im addicted to these match 3 games
Chuzzle
Craddle of Rome
Jewel Quest 2

then i got pokemans that im playing every once in a while


next week i'll pick up

redstar
odin sphere (if i can find it)
puzzle quest

if my coworker can hold out and not sell some games ill get these for 35 bucks

FF12
GoW2
Yakuza

taking advantage of naive gamers gotta love it.

[Van Cruncheon]

.hack GU 2 (PS2)
MLB 07 The Show (PS3)
Pinball FX (360)

[The Sceneman]

Still slogging through FFIII and XII 

Loving God Hand right now, and I just picked up Timsplitters Future Perfect which is awesome

[Saint Cornelius]

[MrAngryFace]

Whats your take on Armored Core 4?

[Mr. Gundam]

(Image removed from quote.)

Watching some of the new Folks Soul/Folklore videos from Gamer's Day, I'm starting to get a PD vibe. It's almost as if they took that system and applied it to a single player action RPG.

[Saint Cornelius]

Whats your take on Armored Core 4?

It's still sitting in the Gamefly envelope. 

Watching some of the new Folks Soul/Folklore videos from Gamer's Day, I'm starting to get a PD vibe. It's almost as if they took that system and applied it to a single player action RPG.

Eh, I guess that's kinda cool but the heart of the game lies in the multiplayer battles.

I'm happier than a pig in shit that they finally made the game backwards compatible. There are a few flaws, but it's mostly FUCK AWESOME!!!

[Mr. Gundam]

Eh, I guess that's kinda cool but the heart of the game lies in the multiplayer battles.

Oh, I agree. Multiplayer Phantom Dust is where all the cool kids hang out.

[Scurvy Stan]

I'm playing rise of nations and cheating like a motherfucker. Nuke on cursor bitchfaces!

[G The Resurrected]

HOW THE HELL DO YOU PLAY LUMINES? I suck so bad a It  :'(

[Powerslave]

Super mario allstars
Sly Raccoon

[Eduardo24]

I am just playing Oblivion.

[hyp]

and a little H3 beta...