Dear VG Diary~

What are you playing. Hands out of your pockets!

Re: Dear VG Diary~

Postby Doodle Dee. Snickers » Mon Feb 26, 2018 12:50 am

Update: Working on Stellaris' new update, Endless Space 2, and a game called All Walls Must Fall that caught my eye. I'm doing Trails of Cold Steel on my weekends since it is a veeeeeeeeeeeeeeeery long JRPG. I have to admit, I'm still kinda both liking and disappointed in it. If it ends strong, I miiiiight pick up the sequel just because I'm fond of this particular universe, but Trails in the Sky was about a million times better. TOCS is still good, just not as stellar as its more rudimentary prequel trilogy. Actually, I've only finished 1.5 of the three Trails in the Sky games, but I'm very tempted to give up TOCS and go to...erm...TITS instead and do a full playthrough of all three of them. Although I may continue on with TOCS in case it brings it home.

Also, cuz I'm weirdly feeling like writing something bleak and miserable, I'm tempted to start up Bloodborne for another crack, and maybe Nier:Automata as well.
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Re: Dear VG Diary~

Postby KleinerKiller » Wed Feb 28, 2018 11:32 am

Finally got the Shadow of the Colossus remaster for the PS4 that just came out. I've enjoyed many online playthroughs of the original game but never actually been able to play it myself, and I figured a version with slightly refined controls and gorgeous visuals would be the best way to do that.

Toppled the first two Colossi in the space of about forty minutes from startup, marveling at the grandeur and tragedy of the whole thing, then spent another thirty minutes circling the nearest shrine and trying to lodge a few arrows in that white-tailed lizard prick for a paltry increase to my grip gauge. So by all accounts, I'm getting the authentic experience.
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Re: Dear VG Diary~

Postby Marcuse » Fri Mar 02, 2018 9:01 pm

Here I am after two reasonably complete playthroughs of Dragon Age Inquisition and I can safely say that I'm mildly entertained and mostly disappointed. The combat is such a chore. They only give you eight ability slots to use, but there's way more abilities to get than that, and often to get necessary passives you have to waste points getting active powers you can't use. The boss combat is borked, in that they only ever focus on whaling on the boss forever to kill them. There's never a point where you can't just DPS your way to a win, but they hand the bigger dragons a truckload of HP which avails them not at all because they still can't cope with you stood under them hitting them any time.

The plot and story is also very weird. You're placed at the head of a ridiculously meteoric rise to power and influence literally from nothing, but it never quite feels like you earn it. You never truly fight the boss except for at the very end of the game, and frankly Corypheus is a shit villain. He's an ancient Tevinter magister turned into a darkspawn who thinks he can become a God, but he never once gets close to it. He fails all the time and dies. It's annoying because some of the sub-villains (like Calpurnia) are interesting and get some flesh on their bones. But nothing you do matters anyway, so what's the point.

You know how in some games (like Neverwinter Nights: Hordes of the Underdark, or *ahem* Dragon Age Origins) you have to build up an army out of disparate elements and the majority of the questing is recruiting them to your banner? Yeah that doesn't really happen here. If you complete the quest to gain the support of Orlais by siding with one or the other faction, all that really does is change a couple of lines of dialogue and one dispatch mission. If you side with the mages, you get a cool quest (the best experience I had in the game was the In Hushed Whispers time travel stuff) but it doesn't mean the templars are your enemy. The Red Templars are you enemy just as often if you recruit the damn templars. It makes no sense.

The party characters can be interesting. I especially enjoyed the ambient dialogue between Iron Bull and Sera, which was fun and gave some life to the walking ablative armour I brought along. The main NPCs did suffer a little from being obvious face-grabs from real people, where the rest of the NPCs were not, especially since the animations did not remotely look like real people. This is where the people who made Andromeda's facial animations got their start methinks. I enjoyed the ability to actually react to a couple of the companion quests in a material fashion and how the tarot cards (which were fucking incredible) changed if you did certain things for them.

Then I saw that Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance was on sale for a measly £4 and snapped it up. Game is dumbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbb but fun to play casually.
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Re: Dear VG Diary~

Postby Doodle Dee. Snickers » Mon Mar 05, 2018 4:04 am

Starting up another playthrough of Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Sky (this will be a loooong playthrough, I really wanna get engrossed in it) and I've also gotten brave and decided to start another playthrough of Bloodborne. I don't know if it's because I've played up to the bridge of the first town already, but I'm dominating this so far. I'm sure that'll end fast, but I actually found a new route through the town I didn't find the first time. I went through the square before and up to the bridge with the werewolves and Mr. Hyde, but I found the route hidden behind the boxes and still haven't explored all of it (though for real, that house where it's super dark inside, you can't lock onto anyone, and they're stabbing you is bullshit). I think the reason I'm better now is because I'm using a heavier weapon than last time, so my method of being super patient and knowing when I'm quick enough to interrupt them is actually killing them now instead of the faster build of last go round. I still haven't even gotten to wake up the doll yet, but I'm getting there.
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Re: Dear VG Diary~

Postby Doodle Dee. Snickers » Mon Mar 12, 2018 12:00 am

Guess I'll double post. I booted up Bloodborne a second time, and this time I beat Father Gasceoine (sp?) and the Cleric Beast, then carved my way on through and explored EVERYWHERE until I got to Old Yarnham. I actually got pretty far through that until I got killed trying to fight that asshole on a Victorian chaingun on the top of a tower. By then it'd been a couple hours and I was like "Yeah, I'm looking to play something slower, back to another RPG."

That said, it took me a bit to figure out the Cleric Beast. With the good father, I realized pretty quickly that the best way to fight him was just to go long form with my weapon and just give him a lot of room--get a stab in--then get back out. With the Cleric Beast, I tried the same thing and just kept running out of heals before he ran out of life. Then I tried something different and just got within his guard with the small form weapon and hacked away at him, and was surprised when that worked a lot better. Instead of waiting him out like Father G, I just let him spaz a bit and once he'd done a big chain attack, got in there where I knew I'd only be eating one or two attacks at a time, then Riverdanced around his legs while I took shots.

But I was kinda pissed when it turned out he's just guarding a dead end and is just there for sport.

So this game's pretty deep, is what I'm saying, and I think after one fight I've decided that Machinegun Asshole requires you to use your pistol a bunch, though I'm not 100% sure. My only experience with this series (I guess it's not strictly Dark Souls, but it is a spiritual successor) was when I tried out Dark Souls 2 for a few hours, then thought it was the kind of game I can't enjoy and turned it off. But this one's a lot better, and I think it's because I came to a revelation that the best way to play this game is to take it extremely slow.
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Re: Dear VG Diary~

Postby Absentia » Sun Mar 18, 2018 9:43 pm

Got Into The Breach on Friday and it's about all I've been doing for the last two days. I'm a huge fan of FTL and I'm not sure I like ITB quite as much, but it's still excellent. Apparently you have to get every single achievement to unlock the last squad so I guess I'm going to be squishing bugs for awhile.
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Re: Dear VG Diary~

Postby Doodle Dee. Snickers » Thu Mar 22, 2018 9:11 pm

Still working on Bloodborne, I'm something like a third or half of the way through it. I'm still irritated by this game's opaque story--I've often been critical of these games' tendency of refusing to tell their story--but I'm still having fun with it (though of From Software, I still preferred Armored Core over these). I do like the whole bait and switch with Iosefka's Clinic and the church. The guy at the church is super weird and creepy while Iosefka is really kind and nice sounding, and she's the one who butchers the survivors you send her while the other guy keeps them safe. A cool switch.

However, as for the story, I still don't really fundamentally know what's going on. There's a Hunt, but is that like...something everyone gets together for? Does it have something to do with the moon? Is this an Erlking or similar situation, where spirits or the Wild Hunt comes and you either hide, join it, or get run down? Why are some of the monsters being burned by people who are also sometimes monsters? What are hunters relative to this world where other people seem to be hunting but aren't hunters? Why are a bunch of the hunters attacking me while some are friendly? I wish these games would ever explain something every once in a while. You can talk to some hunters occasionally who will fill in some of the factions, but I still don't fundamentally understand what this is all about.

Other than that, I'm working on Pokemon Sun, as well. I'm also trying to do a playthrough of Empire: Total War on hard where I play someone other than Austria or the Maratha Confederacy, the only one I can win with on hard so far.

*UPDATE* Just beat the witch, and now I'm hype. This is actually my second playthrough, I played up to the witch last time and then decided to start again so I could do the survivor bit right. I've actually been using the torch a lot more in this playthrough, and I've had the beginner axe since I started. And you know what? I'm kicking ass. I've beat every boss so far in one go (including the witch, which took me a little while to figure out as I was fighting her [it took me a while to realize that a) the witch was that weird red ball that kept popping up in the corners and that b) of the two of them one was a clone that the real one kept summoning again and again]) except for the blood soaked beast, who I finally found a strategy for by backing him into a corner and wailing on him, since he has that irritating habit of hitting you and then immediately jumping way out of range. I still haven't used the beast mechanic, I used a beast pellet once and it didn't seem to do anything that I noticed, so I've just been going through the game as normal and it seems to be working for me.

So I'm starting to really warm to the mechanics of this game, even if I'm still down on the story aspect. Anybody else gotten up to this point yet?
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Re: Dear VG Diary~

Postby Doodle Dee. Snickers » Sat Mar 31, 2018 9:45 pm

Man, it's like everyone forgot about this thread.

Still making my way through Bloodborne nice and slow. I'm most of the way through the base game and all the way through the DLC, and only have three or four left, I think. So far, the hardest one hasn't even technically been a boss, which was the Bloody Crow of Cainhurst. It took me about six or seven tries to figure out how to beat him. I thought it was pretty cool that if you do Eileen's questline, she gets out alive (presumably) though she goes into retirement. As for actual bosses, the only one I needed another player's help with was Maria and the Oprhan of Kos (though he scampered out of there when the Orphan was at like...5% health, I guess to fuck with me?). The Shadow of Yarnham, the one dude who just runs around summoning skeletons, and the Celestial Emissary were the easiest. The hardest actual bosses have been Ludwig, Maria, Orphan of Kos, and the Daughter of the Cosmos. I've only gone through the first chalice dungeon and don't plan to do the rest, since I despise procedurally generated dungeon. It always feels like I'm playing the same map over and over again. Once I finish, I plan to go through it again while using a skill/arcane build instead.

As for Pokemon Sun, I'm kinda "Ehhhhhhhhhhhhhh". It would help if it didn't feel like you only get all the scrub Pokemon nobody likes for the first half of the game, with the exception of Eevee or Pichu. In comparison to X/Y or the next gen Ruby/Sapphire, in which the game was over the moment I caught a Ralts and maxed it out on training (I literally went through both Elite Fours and Champions using Gardevoir alone), this game is far more difficult. Also, it's kinda weird that there are frame rate drops when there are too many Pokemon on the field. I like the psuedo-Pokemon Snap element, since my dream game is an over-the-shoulder, open-world, level restricted Pokemon game with Pokemon Snap worked in at each area, but I wish there was actual rewards around it rather than it just being a side thing you can do. They could get rid of that dumbass Disney's Castle place in exchange.
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Re: Dear VG Diary~

Postby Marcuse » Sun Apr 01, 2018 11:20 am

I bought Sonic CD for my son because he's a fan of old Mega Drive/Genesis games. I hated it. You know what Sonic needs? Super tight levels that prevent you going fast, backtracking on short-ass levels and a time travel mechanic that requires searching. Never mind that the levels aren't really designed for backtracking so if you miss a past sign (you can lose them by going fast for not quite the length of time needed to activate it) then you can't get the good future ending. Also if you miss one then you're fucked for that playthrough. I read that its development began after Sonic 1 was released but was in development hell for so long that Sonic 2 had come out and superseded it in nearly every respect by then. I agree. Soundtracks were cool though, because they were on CD so could have vocals and stuff.
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Re: Dear VG Diary~

Postby A Combustible Lemon » Mon Apr 02, 2018 8:23 am

how do the backtracking and momentum complaints not fit Sonic 1?
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Re: Dear VG Diary~

Postby Marcuse » Mon Apr 02, 2018 10:31 am

A Combustible Lemon wrote:how do the backtracking and momentum complaints not fit Sonic 1?


Sonic 1 isn't as super fast as the later 2D games, but you never have to backtrack per se. The levels sometimes turn around but you don't have to turn around and erase your progress in order to search the beginning of a level to find one thing to smash. The levels in Sonic 1 are very planned out and you're obviously supposed to play them in a certain way, but I always found that that was a single line from start to finish and all that was required was to finish the level.

Re momentum, while Sonic 1 isn't fast, it doesn't advertise being fast either. Some areas are designed for you to go fast and you can, while other areas aren't. Sonic CD makes a mechanic that requires you to go fast then makes that as frustrating as possible to achieve outside of some small areas designed to trigger the time travel. Often you're left to run headlong into hazards or run blindly and memorise the layout of certain areas to jump at exactly the right time to keep running for 5 seconds.
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Re: Dear VG Diary~

Postby Doodle Dee. Snickers » Thu Apr 05, 2018 4:09 am

Going back through Bloodborne on NG+ to get that platinum trophy, and I have to say...I'm rather surprised NG+ has been this easy. Maybe it's just because I know where everyone is and how to beat them, but Christ. Though I've had player help on most the bosses (I'm just interested in the trophies, now, not trying to solo the more difficult bosses), I have yet to die to a one of them through Rom, and this includes Amygdala, Paarl, and Logarius. Even the Bloody Crow of Cainhurst, who rocked my ass about twenty times in the first game, I easily just took him out in one go and moved right along. This gives me hope that this will be a lot quicker than my first playthrough, especially since getting the platinum trophy will require me to go through the chalice dungeons I hate doing.

Also, I think I've given up on Pokemon Sun. I'm just really not into that game. A lot of good ideas, but it's just a shame it seems to want you to have all the shitty Pokemon so far.

*EDIT* And, predictably, though I kicked the shit out of the Celestial Emissary, too, Ebrietas kicked my ass up and down the Altar of Woe. It took like...seven tries with her.
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Re: Dear VG Diary~

Postby iMURDAu » Sat Apr 07, 2018 3:44 pm

I picked up Steamworld Dig 2 while it was on sale. I'm liking it but not loving it like I did the first one. I'm a couple hours in and it still seems linear. Obvious secrets are obvious, I hope it gets more open and mysterious later on.

Junior has me back in Monster Hunter 4U multiplayer. We're finally up to HR6. I'm intimidated by some of the quests. Here kill 3 monsters you've never fought before. Or how about 4 but you've fought one of them previously so yeah?
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Re: Dear VG Diary~

Postby Marcuse » Thu Apr 12, 2018 8:05 pm

I bought Ass Creed Liberation for a stupidly small sum because it was cheap. Man does that game ever look like a Vita port even despite its "HD" label. I'm in two minds about the game right now, having played through a few story missions and not really done a ton yet.

Things I like are the protagonist, and her persona system. I suppose it was only a matter of time before Ubisoft made a game starring a lady of colour in a colonial setting having taken the direction it did with Ass Creed 3. Thing is, I rather like it. Maybe because the story is so janky and disjointed (more on that later) it doesn't dwell on her identity so much, and throws you right into the killing. But, another thing I like is that it gives you options that don't involve mass murder all the time. One of my biggest gripes about Ass Creed 3 was that it often had weird stealth that meant you ended up getting spotted and having to murder literally a whole fort's worth of people before you were done. Connor was already an unlikable protagonist, and having him be a bloodthirsty killer too made it worse. Aveline by contrast feels a lot more like a spy, able to "charm" guards or hide from them way more effectively. That's a function of the "persona" system, which allows you to not run around in a highly noticeable assassin gear, but in either a "lady" costume or the "slave" costume. Yes, they went there. What it amounts to is being able to actually blend in with the crowd, actually avoid guards by subterfuge, and not have to stab your way in and out of every situation.

On the other hand. Man, that story. It just drops you in with no preamble whatsoever. There's no real world backstory here, just straight into the animus and go. Which would be cool if the story made any sense, had any really interesting support characters, or had dialogue worth a damn. On top of this, it's technically shaky too. In the very first fight I was in, the kill animation was conducted on empty air while the soldier fell over a few meters to my right. I feel like liberation has some interesting ideas, and a worthy cause (you really can't not root for Aveline really) which it doesn't yet overplay. It is however plagued by poor writing and technical troubles.
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Re: Dear VG Diary~

Postby Doodle Dee. Snickers » Mon Apr 16, 2018 3:04 am

Still working on my final playthrough of Bloodborne. I would've been through it by now, but I've been between apartments and work, so I go to work at 6 am, get home at 6 pm, have to write 2k words, and generally don't get time for Bloodborne. Still, I'm up to Rom, I'm just super underleveled, so I need to do some grinding. Probably on the Shadows of Yarnham. I literally just have to play through the game, no sidequesting required, because getting the last ending is the only achievement I'm missing.

Especially been slow because I've picked up Sunless Sea, again. I wanted to check in on some other Lovecraftian game, if a much more whimsical and funny one. I really wanna try out Sunless Skies, but apparently it's still in an Early Access state that's a little hollow so far. At least the economy is better, supposedly, so you don't spend the first two hundred hours of the game hunting obscure items for quests and grinding up echoes for good ships.
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