Video Games: A (Sonic 3D) Blast From The Past

[KiDisaster]

8 minutes ago, Rhom said:

 

Today's Star Wars news makes the future of single player look very messy.

 

God damn, Scoops is quick. 

It really is a shame, though the "single player is dying" drum's been getting banged on for years. I'm just glad the indie game scene is continuing to thrive and grow. That's where the real gold is nowadays anyway. 

[The Anti-Targ]

4 hours ago, Rhom said:

 

Today's Star Wars news makes the future of single player look very messy.

 

 

4 hours ago, KiDisaster said:

God damn, Scoops is quick. 

It really is a shame, though the "single player is dying" drum's been getting banged on for years. I'm just glad the indie game scene is continuing to thrive and grow. That's where the real gold is nowadays anyway. 

I'm not sure I agree with that conclusion. IMO it all comes down to game length vs price. I think it's probably true that you are not going to get many single player, once and done AAA budget games that come in at under 10 hours. No one wants to pay AAA price for just 10 hours of gaming with little to no replayability. But I think there is plenty of room for 15-20 hour single player games at full price. And I think there is plenty of scope for <10 hr games, made on a smaller budget selling for $25-40. Gaming hardware, even consoles now, are powerful enough to make a decent looking game on a modest budget that can turn a profit with realistic sales expectations at sub-$60 prices.

A Star Wars game MUST be state of the art visually, not because gamers demand it, but because publishers think that gamers will demand it. Therefore Star Wars games need to have high budgets, therefore they need to sell at $60, therefore they need to offer many hours of gameplay. And multiplayer is the cheapest way to deliver a lot of hours. And of course they'll be putting microtransactions and loot boxes in there for ongoing revenue.

I do need to do my bit to keep single player alive and buy Uncharted Lost Legacy pretty soon. And Mass Effect Andromeda. But I just got Child of Light as a PSN+ game of the month and feel like I should play that.

[Jace, Extat]

2 hours ago, The Anti-Targ said:

 

I'm not sure I agree with that conclusion. IMO it all comes down to game length vs price. I think it's probably true that you are not going to get many single player, once and done AAA budget games that come in at under 10 hours. No one wants to pay AAA price for just 10 hours of gaming with little to no replayability. But I think there is plenty of room for 15-20 hour single player games at full price. And I think there is plenty of scope for <10 hr games, made on a smaller budget selling for $25-40. Gaming hardware, even consoles now, are powerful enough to make a decent looking game on a modest budget that can turn a profit with realistic sales expectations at sub-$60 prices.

A Star Wars game MUST be state of the art visually, not because gamers demand it, but because publishers think that gamers will demand it. Therefore Star Wars games need to have high budgets, therefore they need to sell at $60, therefore they need to offer many hours of gameplay. And multiplayer is the cheapest way to deliver a lot of hours. And of course they'll be putting microtransactions and loot boxes in there for ongoing revenue.

I do need to do my bit to keep single player alive and buy Uncharted Lost Legacy pretty soon. And Mass Effect Andromeda. But I just got Child of Light as a PSN+ game of the month and feel like I should play that.

No, ME Andromeda is a goddamn travesty 

[The Drunkard]

I returned to my Ostrogoth campaign in Attila. My ally Macedonia, at their peak, controlled about 11 regions in and around Greece (including Constantinople) but they were now getting obliterated by Attila. I sailed three armies up from Africa to assist, but by the time they were ready, Macedonia only controlled Thracia and the southern tip of Greece. 

I ended up fighting 2 hunnic armies (including Attila's) on this battle map in Dardania that I hadn't seen before. The entire map was on a slant, with a very long, forested hill in the centre, a clearing in front of it, and then another line of trees in front of that. I lured most of their army into the clearing with some cavalry, and then had my infantry charge down the forested hill and partially envelop the huns while they were disorganised, while my archers and hurlers on the top of the hill could fire directly into the clearing. The hunnic cavalry that tried to flank rode straight into groups of spearmen I had hidden on the hill's edges, and were promptly routed. The rest of my cavalry, which was sitting on the other side of the hill, could then ride around and pick off routed units and stragglers with ease. Attila was 'wounded' for the second time, meaning he could only die once more before the huns were defeated. 

Simultaneously I was fighting the remnants of the Sassanids in Persia. They turned on me while I was fighting in Spain, so I made common cause with the ERE and invaded Persia, liberating dead factions as I went in order to destabilise that entire area. One of my weaker armies (approximately 1/3 was made of mercenaries hired out of desperation) was attacked by two Sassanid armies, approaching at 90 degree angles from one another. The first army came at me across a mostly-flat plain, while the second had to attack up quite a steep slant. I threw the entirety of my infantry and 1/2 of my cavalry at the first Sassanid army, hoping to quickly overwhelm them, while the rest of my cavalry just annoyed the second army and tried to keep them tied down at the base of the slant. I lost a large number of soldiers but was able to rout the first army and reform at the top of the slant just as the second army was reaching it, but even with their greater numbers they couldn't beat my units in an uphill battle. I won, though I took enough losses that I decided to pull out of Persia, but all the Sassanid-opposed factions I had liberated continued my work. 

Meanwhile Attila was killed for a third and final time in an ignominious battle against a two-region faction in Dacia, so there go the Huns. 

[briantw]

Team Fortress 2 getting a long-awaited update this week.

Also, a new video!

 

[Rhom]

6 hours ago, Pony Queen Jace said:

No, ME Andromeda is a goddamn travesty 

I disagree. Gameplay wise, it has been my favorite game of the year by far.  It has its flaws without a doubt, but the game really is enjoyable.

That being said, the time to support the game with a purchase has already passed.

ME: Andromeda now free for users of EA Access

[The Anti-Targ]

18 hours ago, Pony Queen Jace said:

No, ME Andromeda is a goddamn travesty 

I think if I pretend the game is simply called "Andromeda" it should be OK as a thing by itself not connected to Mass Effect. I know some people who enjoyed it for what it was.

 

11 hours ago, Rhom said:

I disagree. Gameplay wise, it has been my favorite game of the year by far.  It has its flaws without a doubt, but the game really is enjoyable.

That being said, the time to support the game with a purchase has already passed.

ME: Andromeda now free for users of EA Access

I don't have EA Access. But it seems being free on my PC but not free on PS4 kind of tips the scales towards the platform I'll be getting it on, and probably makes it worth diving in to EA Access finally.

[Jace, Extat]

2 hours ago, The Anti-Targ said:

I think if I pretend the game is simply called "Andromeda" it should be OK as a thing by itself not connected to Mass Effect. I know some people who enjoyed it for what it was.

 

Suit yourself. I thought it was a horrid story, unenjoyable visuals, and unacceptable writing. I.E. not even a Bioware game.

It's garbage.

[Jace, Extat]

On 10/18/2017 at 2:47 AM, The Drunkard said:

I returned to my Ostrogoth campaign in Attila. My ally Macedonia, at their peak, controlled about 11 regions in and around Greece (including Constantinople) but they were now getting obliterated by Attila. I sailed three armies up from Africa to assist, but by the time they were ready, Macedonia only controlled Thracia and the southern tip of Greece. 

I ended up fighting 2 hunnic armies (including Attila's) on this battle map in Dardania that I hadn't seen before. The entire map was on a slant, with a very long, forested hill in the centre, a clearing in front of it, and then another line of trees in front of that. I lured most of their army into the clearing with some cavalry, and then had my infantry charge down the forested hill and partially envelop the huns while they were disorganised, while my archers and hurlers on the top of the hill could fire directly into the clearing. The hunnic cavalry that tried to flank rode straight into groups of spearmen I had hidden on the hill's edges, and were promptly routed. The rest of my cavalry, which was sitting on the other side of the hill, could then ride around and pick off routed units and stragglers with ease. Attila was 'wounded' for the second time, meaning he could only die once more before the huns were defeated. 

Simultaneously I was fighting the remnants of the Sassanids in Persia. They turned on me while I was fighting in Spain, so I made common cause with the ERE and invaded Persia, liberating dead factions as I went in order to destabilise that entire area. One of my weaker armies (approximately 1/3 was made of mercenaries hired out of desperation) was attacked by two Sassanid armies, approaching at 90 degree angles from one another. The first army came at me across a mostly-flat plain, while the second had to attack up quite a steep slant. I threw the entirety of my infantry and 1/2 of my cavalry at the first Sassanid army, hoping to quickly overwhelm them, while the rest of my cavalry just annoyed the second army and tried to keep them tied down at the base of the slant. I lost a large number of soldiers but was able to rout the first army and reform at the top of the slant just as the second army was reaching it, but even with their greater numbers they couldn't beat my units in an uphill battle. I won, though I took enough losses that I decided to pull out of Persia, but all the Sassanid-opposed factions I had liberated continued my work. 

Meanwhile Attila was killed for a third and final time in an ignominious battle against a two-region faction in Dacia, so there go the Huns. 

DAMN! How do you get so far in games? The abominable load times eventually cause me to quit in frustration.

Speaking of which, I'm downloading Shogun 2. Never played it before, but I'm coming around on the whole 'guns' thing. And I'd love to stomp out a totalitarian regime if that's an option.

[Corvinus85]

For all those who own both Warhammer I and II, Oct. 26 is when the new free LC will be launched combining the maps and factions.

This will be one of the biggest maps in any TW game, with 295 settlements. Some parts of the map for Warhammer II had to be shrunk, mainly the oceans were reduced in size, in order to make armies move across water faster.

[Jace, Extat]

I'm sitting here in Shogun 2 trying to hold on to two tiny settlements with christian guns. Fucking tough.

[The Drunkard]

4 hours ago, Pony Queen Jace said:

DAMN! How do you get so far in games? The abominable load times eventually cause me to quit in frustration.

Speaking of which, I'm downloading Shogun 2. Never played it before, but I'm coming around on the whole 'guns' thing. And I'd love to stomp out a totalitarian regime if that's an option.

I don't know, I've never had very long load times in Attila. The only game that's annoyed me was Med 2 and the time it took for the AI to complete their turns. 

Speaking of, I loved the guns and cannons in Med 2. I don't know if it's the same in Shogun, but I liked that the technological development in Med 2 lead to different styles of warfare, and not just better versions of what I already have. 

[Jace, Extat]

1 hour ago, The Drunkard said:

I don't know, I've never had very long load times in Attila. The only game that's annoyed me was Med 2 and the time it took for the AI to complete their turns. 

Speaking of, I loved the guns and cannons in Med 2. I don't know if it's the same in Shogun, but I liked that the technological development in Med 2 lead to different styles of warfare, and not just better versions of what I already have. 

I have a fantasy of standing on the walls of Constantinople facing the Ottoman Sultan, trying to preserve the Roman Empire against cannonade.

[GallowKnight]

Holy Shit! The original Mafia game is available on GOG.

[Raja]

A shot in the dark here, but is anyone playing PUBG? Would love to get a few squad/ duo games going if anyone is playing. 

[Werthead]

8 hours ago, GallowKnight said:

Holy Shit! The original Mafia game is available on GOG.

One of my favourite games of all time. The story gets really hardcore and intense in a way you're not expecting. Far superior game to the two sequels.

Watch out for the race mission. It's fecking tough, even after they nerfed it in the patch.

I picked up Fallout 3 with all the DLC in the GoG mega-sale after I discovered I couldn't get my existing version working any more after GFWL died (the GFWL version can be downloaded but not the DLC, and it's difficult to get working with Windows 10). The GoG version is all patched up and ready to go.

Also picked up The Witcher 3 with all the DLC when it got cut down to £10 in the Steam sale.

[GallowKnight]

On 2017-10-20 at 10:23 PM, Werthead said:

One of my favourite games of all time. The story gets really hardcore and intense in a way you're not expecting. Far superior game to the two sequels.

Watch out for the race mission. It's fecking tough, even after they nerfed it in the patch.

Yeah, I haven't played it in 15 or so years, but I don't think I ever managed to get past the race.

[Werthead]

2 hours ago, GallowKnight said:

Yeah, I haven't played it in 15 or so years, but I don't I ever managed to get past the race.

They did radically decrease the difficulty in the first patch, and then lessed it further by adding an optional three-level difficulty thing for it. On the easiest difficulty it's quite doable.

Part of the problem is that Mafia used the same engine as a racing game and someone had the bright idea of using the racing AI from the game, which meant that, in the middle of a game which is a bit more arcadey when it comes to the driving realism and AI, the game suddenly turns into this insane ultra-hardcore racing sim and then goes back to normal afterwards.

ETA: They got the music back! That was fast.

I would say it's really worth playing after that point as it's a really clever game. It has one of my favourite-ever moments in gaming:

 

There's a mission where you're in a church and inadvertently blunder right into the middle of a funeral for a guy you killed a few days earlier, complete with his friends there who can ID you. The result is a massive, guns-blazing, free-for-all massacre. When you emerge, having killed the other "bad" guys, feeling rather victorious, the priest unloads on you in a massive rant about the life you lead, the violence you've done, the innocent people who've gotten caught in the crossfire, the lives destroyed and how the "fun" violence has devastated the stability of the city. This was a really startling thing for the game to do, especially in the same year as the moral-free 

GTA: Vice City, which had no such qualms, and was a really interesting moment of writing that informed how the rest of the game fell out.

[Jace, Extat]

Playing Empire Total War.

Took Prussia in 1705, started a massive naval effort. By 1710 Austria has gone to war with the Poland-Lithuanian union. Austria conquered up to Gdansk before I jumped in, conquering all the way to Vienna before arranging peace with the hapsburgs.

By then those fucking Venetians declared war on me as I conquered to the medditerannian coast so I had to take Venice. But then I sold Venice to the hapsburgs for tech and sold Croatia to the Spanish because I could. 

Now I have buffers between me and the ottoman turks but those fucking poles have invaded!

So while establishing a colony on Madagascar and 2 in the Caribbean I underwent a revolution that has resulted in a constitutional monarchy.

As I subdue the poles, Austria strikes at the newly made Hungarian state and I prepare to sell eastern Europe to the highest bidder.

The future is Teutonic 

[Toth]

13 minutes ago, Pony Queen Jace said:

Playing Empire Total War.

Took Prussia in 1705, started a massive naval effort. By 1710 Austria has gone to war with the Poland-Lithuanian union. Austria conquered up to Gdansk before I jumped in, conquering all the way to Vienna before arranging peace with the hapsburgs.

By then those fucking Venetians declared war on me as I conquered to the medditerannian coast so I had to take Venice. But then I sold Venice to the hapsburgs for tech and sold Croatia to the Spanish because I could. 

Now I have buffers between me and the ottoman turks but those fucking poles have invaded!

So while establishing a colony on Madagascar and 2 in the Caribbean I underwent a revolution that has resulted in a constitutional monarchy.

As I subdue the poles, Austria strikes at the newly made Hungarian state and I prepare to sell eastern Europe to the highest bidder.

The future is Teutonic 

Reminds me of my only Empire campaign that I actually managed to finish. It ended with Prussia (me) and Austria deviding the world between each other, with only the Brits and their 13 colonies as well as Sweden sitting in awe at the sidelines. As far as I remember Prussia owned Germany, Poland, parts of Russia, France, Spain, all of their colonies in the americas and the entirety of India, while Austria owned large swathes of Russia, Italy and the entire fucking Ottoman Empire. Of course when 1800 came near, a ridiculously short (two or three turns) war broke out, that involved ridiculously amassed battles, though I only cared about getting this last city I still needed for the victory conditions.

It was also the only campaign where I had a pretty neat 'historical accuracy' mod installed that made muskets being as ineffective over long range as they were historically. I copied the British tactic of bringing my lines to the halt barely in firing range, but without firing myself, waiting for the enemy to waste their first volley without hitting shit and then make a short dash towards them to unload buckets of lead directly in their faces. That was pretty neat.