| Welcome to The Secret Project. All your IP are belong to us. Click this to register, but you're probably an user anyway because we do have any friends. If you're already an member please log in to your account to access all of our features: |
| What are you playing? | |
|---|---|
| Topic Started: Feb 20 2011, 11:04 PM (24,750 Views) | |
| Granskjegg | Oct 28 2013, 11:20 PM Post #526 |
![]()
Eg e husfar.
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]()
|
Hey, guess what! I completed a game! :D It has actually been a really long time since I finished a game...hot damn. The last game that wasn't an indie game I completed must have been Arkham Asylum...no, wait, GTA IV. So yeah, it's been a while. Next on my list is probably The Stanley Parable. I want to finish it before BF4 comes out...because y'know, I'll be playing that shit all day |
![]() |
|
| Bigcalv2002 | Oct 29 2013, 04:20 AM Post #527 |
|
Da resident crazy canuck!!
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]()
|
Batman Arkham Origins, its epic stuff!! |
![]() |
|
| Romanticide | Oct 29 2013, 04:50 AM Post #528 |
|
Cult Leader
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]()
|
I was going to post a review of Dual Destinies, but it'd probably be too full of comparisons to previous games in the series to make a good review. So yeah. No spoilers obv. The biggest difference between Dual Destinies and previous games in the series is that everything is streamlined. Investigations are especially simplified, but this is in large part due to a cursor that tells you what objects you can and cannot examine, and whether or not you have examined said objects. This might seem small, but it saves some time at the very least and it's helpful. It should have been in the series since Apollo Justice, if not the start (though this series started on GBA so idk). Trials are simpler in many ways: There are no three day trials in this game, which translates to less evidence to sift through, penalties are always a consistent 20% of your life bar (as compared to some 100% penalties in the first three), there are occasions where an inaccurate guess results in no penalty at all, and there's a "consult" option when you get three penalties in a row, which will point you to the contradictory statement. (You still have to find and present the right evidence.) Some might call this "dumbing it down". I call it "wanting to expand the fanbase" or "streamlining the game". These are niche games, and wanting to bring more people into the audience isn't a bad thing. That said, the cases *are* simpler, but not so simple that they aren't enjoyable. There are still many completely absurd leaps of logic that the game expects you to make... Some are harder than others, though. I normally don't like characters who are defined by one character trait (see: Digital Devil Saga), which this series possesses in abundance. It's still the case here, yet I like many of the characters in the series, and this game is no exception. Most of these characters' one trait is turned up to 11 and this is basically a universe of hamminess, so I guess it makes sense. In the case of this game's main characters, they all have good backstories that much of the game's plot is derived from, and the emotional moments don't feel forced or awkward. (well, to me; YMMV) As for the cases themselves, the 4th and 5th case are essentially one big case that's amongst the best in the series. I would recommend playing these two as if you were playing one case if possible; the plot twist at the end of the 4th case is jaw-dropping. I'd only put 3-5 (Bridge to the Turnabout) above them. The first case is a tutorial case that's harder than any tutorial in the series, though not really great. It sets up the plot, though. The third is a great case that develops Juniper Woods' character and has an awesome early twist that I never would have expected in many video games. The second is the weakest, but it isn't godawful. It just seems meh in a game with three awesome cases. The presentation is great. The 3D effect looks really good, the graphics are more crisp than in past games, the new character appearances are legit, and the music is probably the best in the series. When something dramatic happens, the camera pans around the courtroom and you can hear what's being said in the gallery, which is awesome. There are also plenty of short anime-style scenes, which are generally used to show big moments in a character's life or a murder. All things considered, this is probably my new favorite game in the series. Used to be Trials and Tribulations (which is the majority opinion), but this game does so many things so well, has three amazing cases, and easily the best assistant in the series, along with other newcomers who are enjoyable. |
![]() |
|
| Snowman | Nov 4 2013, 12:05 AM Post #529 |
![]()
Berserker
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]()
|
Played some CSGO with friends this weekend and convinced one of them that we should try competitive sometime soon. Competitive is a scary word, but when we're bad, we'll get placed with other bad teams and I think we can improve that way more than we can in casual where it's just random people and there are too many of them. I think we know the popular maps well enough now and as a group we're skilled in a variety of not-shotgun weapons so we'll be mostly okay I think. I just think competitive's 5v5 will be more fun than casual 10v10 (or whatever v whatever when it's not full). |
![]() |
|
| Granskjegg | Nov 4 2013, 01:51 AM Post #530 |
![]()
Eg e husfar.
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]()
|
I've obviously been playing loads of Battlefield 4 since it launched on Thursday. I've had an absolute blast playing with my clan members (which I'll most likely be fully initiated into tomorrow (been on a trial period for the past three weeks) on our own server actually. The launch of BF4 hasn't been buttery smooth, there have been quite a bit of stability issues regarding the servers, but DICE have already rolled out like 5 server side patches in an attempt to fix them. It has been getting much better, though, although server crashes (which causes you to lose any progress you've made during that round to get lost, ouch!). Every single element of BF4 is an improvement over BF3, the maps, the gunplay, the customisation, the class balance, the graphics...simply everything. If you're curious about BF4 or want a new and really, really, really great FPS game to play, I highly recommend that you pick it up, it's a fantastic experience. |
![]() |
|
| Romanticide | Nov 15 2013, 11:34 AM Post #531 |
|
Cult Leader
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]()
|
Pokemon Y, obviously. Now that I can actually go online and do things with people, there's a point to raising a team and all that good stuffs. Haven't started on that though; I'd rather get my Pokedex as complete as possible before I move on to things like catching a box of Dittos and breeding my teams. That said, the grind gets boring (there are only so many times you can run through Le Wow before killing yourself), so I took a break and played some not-Pokemon things. First up was Dear Esther. Idk, I mostly picked it because I had heard it's an extremely short game and I needed to sit down and just complete something. It's one of those "games as art" deals, and I'd say its closest analogues are Journey and To the Moon. It's not as maddeningly vague as Journey (though it's by no means straightforward) nor is it as emotional/good as To the Moon. It's not a *bad* story, but the thing that was missing for me was any sort of reason to care about these characters. Okay, a tragedy happened in the main character's life, but I care about this... Why? I guess the ambiguity is intentional, but I'm not good at caring about characters in any media unless I'm given a reason to care, generally via development of said characters. That said, it's worth experiencing if you can find it under $5 (sup Humble Store, I see your $2 deal), if only for the music, which is amazing. The island the game takes place on is pretty too, but you've probably seen more impressive graphics in other titles. The game is good, but I find it hard to recommend at its full price because it's only two hours long at best and obviously has little to no replayability. Second, Mirror's Edge. Yup, another really short game. I figure I'm around halfway through it after three hours. People say Faith is a strong female character and all that, and I guess I can't argue the point (she isn't damseled, she has agency, she has no need of a male), but I also do not care about her. Her story is probably the most common character story in video games and her personality is that of a brick. As for the actual story, it's executed really well and has no unnecessary filler, but it just hasn't grabbed me at all. Kind of disappointing, considering I like the premise. I love the artstyle. The game is obviously not graphically impressive, but DICE turned that weakness into a strength with an extremely clean artstyle. The comic parts look decent too. The game itself is an absolute joy to play. I can't remember the last time I had so much fun playing a platformer. The parkour concept was original at the time, the game mechanics work well, and the stages are designed so that you'll actually need all the mechanics you learned. Combat works well enough for what little it's asked to do, too. EDIT: Just finished. My thoughts haven't changed. I liked the game, but I'm going to find it very hard to throw my $60 at a sequel if it's this short. Because, y'know, EA is dumb enough to charge $60 for new titles on Origin. $25-30 and I'd consider it, but that won't happen day one. |
![]() |
|
| Snowman | Nov 16 2013, 09:52 PM Post #532 |
![]()
Berserker
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]()
|
Was gonna start Metal Gear 2, but then a friend and I decided that we want to co-op Torchlight II, so I thought I should continue Torchlight I. Idk. I enjoy playing it, but all you really do is kill stuff and get better equipment. The story is pretty bland. Gameplay gets exciting in boss fights, but repetitive when you're just walking around. They usually mix up the types and numbers of enemies pretty often, though. And most floors of the main dungeon are randomized, and they're pretty good IMO. IIRC, only floors with main quest bosses aren't randomized. Some of those have simple puzzle-type things that open hidden doors too, which is cool. Anyway, I think the Borderlands players here would like it. Lots of loot to get. Just get Torchlight II, though, so we can play together. |
![]() |
|
| Romanticide | Nov 21 2013, 08:43 PM Post #533 |
|
Cult Leader
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]()
|
Played/beat Thomas Was Alone last night. I'll freely admit this is because it was mentioned in Tropes vs. Women. I'm also playing shorter games as of late, which also factored in. So I guess I'll start with Anita's assertion that Claire (the blue square) is an example of writing a female character without invoking her "Ms. Male", aka distaff counterpart, trope. On its surface this is technically true, but that isn't enough to write a good character. The character is still one-dimensional (as they all are in the game), worried about being "a superhero" to the exclusion of all else. We don't play platformers expecting super deep characters, so I guess this isn't a surprise. I was expecting a decent female character, but what I got was one that avoided a trope. Ah well. On to, you know, the game. I loved the narrative style. It used the same style as Bastion, eschewing cutscenes for in-game narration. Granted, this probably works better when your story is bare-bones and your characters are fairly one-dimensional, but I'd love to see a more ambitious game than either of those try the style. As simple as the narrative was, I enjoyed it well enough because the writing style was rather whimsical throughout. As for the gameplay, it was great. As you might expect, the game starts super easy, but when it introduces concepts like gravity and switching abilities at will, the puzzles get a fair bit more complex and creative. There's one level where you don't really do much "platforming", as such: you abuse the fact that Thomas falls one way and James falls another way to cross a level you otherwise couldn't traverse. Probably my favorite level in the game because it's a concept I'd never have expected to see. Graphics are lol. The artstyle is really simple, being entirely two-dimensional and having fewer curves than Paris Hilton. But this is good in its own way. It ensures that the other aspects of the game have to carry the title, and they do. That said, the artstyle works for the game. The music is gorgeous. I don't know if I have the soundtrack, but if I do I'd gladly listen to it. I got all 35 achievements in around 4 hours, without grinding to get any of them. The game isn't that long and I doubt it has much replayability if you can get all the achievements the first time around unless you liked it, but as you can guess I did and I'll play it again sometime. I'll start the DLC case of Dual Destinies in a bit. You defend an orca charged with murder. This is an awesome premise and I hope to hell they didn't screw it up. (doubt it tho) |
![]() |
|
| MrMarill | Nov 26 2013, 12:07 PM Post #534 |
![]()
DAT STORY TIEM
![]()
|
So I've been playing Link Between Worlds since it came out and while I would normally do a review, I feel that my nostalgia would make me far too biased on the game to give a legitimate score. I absolutely loved this game. I think they hit all the nostalgia buttons really well but I was mainly impressed with how smooth everything felt. The game even runs at 60fps in 3D which is another very impressive effect. A big change to the gameplay is the addition of levels; i.e. the ability to go up and down without changing floors or having an obvious transition with very few manipulations of it like in LttP's Misery Mire. The game's dungeons have a habit of showing you the outside and looking down on everything and it's breathtaking. The engine is a lot more defined than LttP's. Sword arcs are long, you have more precision in movement and you pretty much always feel in control. The ice mechanics are still a total fucking nightmare but mish. I felt that this game has some very strong dungeons throughout. Minor spoiler in the number of dungeons: there's a whopping 12 dungeons in the game not counting the opening sequence. Each and every one feels like its own and they all have good gimmicks and you'll be silently thinking "aaaah, now that's clever" more often than not. There are only two weak dungeons in the whole game, I felt, both of which feature in Lorule. Speaking of Lorule, I'm not sure what to think of it, exactly. Basically, the world is cut up so you can only access points in Lorule by going to that section in Hyrule and then shifting dimensions. It's an odd setup but not all too bad. I would have heavily appreciated a Mirror like in LttP to just swap back rather than having to go and find a convenient transfer point. A big emphasis in this game was on the item system and I know I complained in the chat about me going in the wrong order but, alas, it turns out I was completely incorrect. There was another thing I was meant to have used to enter that dungeon that I had access to and had forgotten. That said, the game rewards exploration pretty well; I got all four Bottles and tonnes of Pieces of Heart for my work; but there are still issues with finding something new and not having the item required for it which is somewhat illogical considering the system. And oh GOD is it frustrating to rent out a pile of shit, die towards the end of the dungeon and lose everything. I don't think I prefer this system over the classic one we had but it's a nice change of pace. The biggest issue of the game is that it is simply too short. I mean I did a shit tonne of exploring to get basically everything available in the game and I still finished the entire game within four days and I'd guess I had a playtime of 10 to 15 hours, if that. It's very disappointing considering the strength of the dungeons that some of them just end as soon as I feel the "gimmick" is finally starting. In one unacceptable case the dungeon is literally two large rooms and then smaller things connecting them. As soon as you work it out, it can take less than three minutes to complete. There's quite a bit of replayability in the form of sidequests and great minigames but the two main things are Treacherous Tower and Hero Mode. The Tower makes you do 50 rounds in a row against constant baddies and that shit gets HARD at the later rounds. That said, I was able to beat it in two tries as I had max Blue Potions and all that, but it's still a nice gesture for the more hardcore. Hero Mode is something I haven't got round to doing yet but the idea of a six heart Hero Mode run is beyond terrifying. That shit in Treacherous Tower doesn't bear thinking about. I would wholeheartedly recommend picking up this game based off its gameplay rather than the nostalgia. Sure, it hits all my nostalgia buttons, but it has some of the best dungeons and bosses in the series along with a really unique way of looking at exploration for the Zelda series. The soundtrack is superb and the storyline's good. A great ending to a great 3DS year. |
![]() |
|
| Romanticide | Nov 28 2013, 07:01 AM Post #535 |
|
Cult Leader
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]()
|
I saw Gone Home was on sale for 50% off earlier today. I know it's currently 75% off but since I'm targeting only two games in this sale (this and DXHR: The Director's Cut) I don't even care about the extra $5. Between this and The Last Story, there's some hope for video game romances. At its heart, the story is a romance between Katie's (the main character) younger sister Sam and a girl named Lonnie that she meets at school. I don't feel this is a spoiler; it's pretty obvious almost from the start. As you move through the story, you discover how Sam meets Lonnie, how they become friends, and end up as lovers. Given that this is a game set in 1995, you can guess some of the events that happen in this story. I won't spoil them obviously. I liked both Sam and Lonnie, so the story worked quite well for me. The only thing I don't like story-wise is that the plots with Katie and Sam's parents are left unresolved. While I have a good idea what happened with those two, it'd have been nice to see a definite statement. This is pretty much a 3D adventure game. Works quite well since this game is about the story and characters, not winning or whatever else. There are a ton of things that you can interact with. While 95% of them don't move the plot forward, it shows attention to detail, which helps with immersion. It also helps that much of the story is told through the items you find, moving to very short journal entries when you find something significant to the plot. The soundtrack is pretty interesting, though if you're not into punk, more specifically the riot grrl side of the genre, you will probably hate it. Given the themes of the game, the soundtrack works quite well. I don't have anything against it but I doubt it's something I'd buy, either. All said, I enjoyed the game. I probably wouldn't recommend it at its going price because $20 for two hours of gameplay is just a bad deal, but during this flash sale? Sure. Even at $10, as it will be for the remainder of the Autumn sale, it's not that bad a deal. Edited by Romanticide, Nov 28 2013, 07:03 AM.
|
![]() |
|
| LifeAgainstDeath | Nov 28 2013, 06:51 PM Post #536 |
![]()
Sexual Orientation: Not Picky
![]()
|
This post may be a bit spoiler-y, so if you haven't played Gone Home, read at your own risk. There was one particular journal entry where I realized this game was worth it. Ro can probably guess which one, but just in case: (maybe not a spoiler, but hidden text just in case) "A Very Long Phase". As Sam finished reading that one to me, that was it, I was in tears for the rest of the game. That's what Gone Home did best: Sam was more than just a video game character I cared about; it felt like I was caring for my own sibling. The game made me feel like I was Katie, having the same fears and worries I would imagine she must have.
I was really hoping for more from their stories, the uncle's story too. Sam's is the main focus, yes, but it would've been nice if more attention was given to the others, especially the uncle's. As for the unresolved endings, I didn't mind since the game left enough to draw our own conclusions. I'm optimistic about what happens to the parents. Their endings wouldn't be perfect, of course, but I hope the steps they've taken to deal with their problems work out. Sam's ending is left open too, and unfortunately, I can't say the same about hers. Sure, what we actually hear about feels hopeful, but then what happens after? Given the reality of her situation, it can't be a happy ending (for now, at least). Anyways, I agree with Ro: definitely recommend it but only while it's on sale. $20 is just too much for such a short experience, no matter how powerful that experience was. Also, Fullbright seems like an amazing developer, and I can't wait to see what they make next. Edited by LifeAgainstDeath, Nov 28 2013, 09:18 PM.
|
![]() |
|
| Snowman | Dec 1 2013, 04:13 PM Post #537 |
![]()
Berserker
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]()
|
Do we play board games? I played this one called Arkham Horror. This is Lovecraft's Arkham, not the Batman one (but Batman's was named after Lovecraft's). It's a Call of Cthulhu game. Apparently there are a lot of those. The players control investigators in the town of Arkham while an Ancient One slumbers. Meanwhile, gates/portals to other planes open up in the town. When this happens, monsters spawn out of them, and you add a token to the Ancient One's "doom track". When this track becomes full (usually 10-13 tokens), it awakens and you have to fight it. It's very unlikely that you'll defeat it. So the best way to win the game is by sealing six gates or closing all of them. Sealing them has a greater cost, but ensures that no more gates open at that location. Closing them just closes them, but they can reappear. Players have both "stamina" and "sanity". If you lose all your stamina, you lose half your stuff and "respawn" at St. Mary's Hospital. If you lose all your sanity, you lose half your stuff and "respawn" at Arkham Asylum. You can get spells and weapons and skills and stuff to help you kill the monsters and stuff. It took us several hours to finish our first game, but that was because we were still learning. It is still supposed to take 2-4 hours, though. There were some things we realized we were doing incorrectly like halfway through the game, so we fixed them then, but eh. We won (it's a co-op game), but we didn't do everything correctly. We will next time. But playing this inspired my friend to say he'd try to get D&D set up for next weekend even though he had us make our characters a year ago. So that should be fun too.
Edited by Snowman, Dec 1 2013, 04:14 PM.
|
![]() |
|
| Olinea | Dec 1 2013, 07:12 PM Post #538 |
|
No finesse
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]()
|
Yeah, my friend's brother works at the company that produces it (he says he helped produce the expansion for it, but not the base game) so I went over on Wednesday to play that as well (because I think it got released Wednesday?) I thought it'd be super complex, and I suppose it kinda was, but it was pretty easy to get the hang of after a while. My game got cut short though because after about 3-4 cycles around the board some guy got really eager to kill monsters and made a dark pact, then the reckoning came and he was forced to kill another player. Since it was midnight and I had to wake up at 8:00 for Thanksgiving I just said "yeah kill me" and the following cycle conveniently caused my friend to lose his last sanity point so I got driven home. Game is fun but I feel it's more for the really hardcore board gamer. Most other people would look at all of the pieces and junk and say "uhhh let's play Scrabble" |
![]() |
|
| Snowman | Dec 1 2013, 10:06 PM Post #539 |
![]()
Berserker
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]()
|
Yeah, it's definitely not a casual game or anything like that. I'd probably only play it with the three other people I played it with yesterday. Can't think of any other friends who would be interested/patient enough for it. We're tired of Scrabble and Risk and that kinda stuff, though. Would like to try a wargame that's more complicated than Risk, but a lot of the ones I've seen are either for two players only or are huge boxes with a ton of stuff so they cost a ton of money. |
![]() |
|
| MrMarill | Dec 1 2013, 10:37 PM Post #540 |
![]()
DAT STORY TIEM
![]()
|
I've always really wanted to do some board games like that but nobody seemed really interested and most of my friends are more interested in TCGs. Speaking of which, I found this card game on Reddit earlier and it looks really fun to play. I like how there are no booster packs so it's not pay to win. Hope it gets its money. |
![]() |
|
| 1 user reading this topic (1 Guest and 0 Anonymous) | |
| Go to Next Page | |
| « Previous Topic · Entertainment · Next Topic » |






![]](http://z4.ifrm.com/static/1/pip_r.png)








8:14 AM Jul 11