Video Games Megathread Number A Billion

[Max the Mostly Mediocre]

And stay the fuck away from mounted guns.

[Muttering Bill]

If it's the mode I have read about, you're dropped in with a bunch of players into a city, all in innocuous disguises. You have a contract to kill someone, and another player has a contract to kill you. That's the basic set-up.

I didn't check out the video's linked, but yeah, that's the general idea.

The full game will have 6 MP modes, but there are 2 modes available for the beta: Wanted and Alliance. Alliance was just unlocked sometime overnight, so I haven't played it yet.

Wanted it pretty simple. 6-8 players, everybody gets assigned another player to take out. You can only kill your target - so you can't just run around killing other people to be a dick. You have to try to take out your guy without them seeing you while at the same time avoiding your own pursuer. The better you do, the more people that will be chasing you (up to 4) - so you also sometimes have to race other players to your target. If you're doing poorly, then it sends fewer people at you, with stretches that nobody is looking for you.

You can also defend yourself if you spot someone who'se after you, and act fast enough.

The game encourages using stealth with large point bonuses. And has a level system very similar to COD (or so I'm told, I've never played COD MP).

I've only played about 11 hours so far. But it's been fun, and I can see myself getting a lot of play out of it.

[Sheep the Evicted]

Or light one of the bastards on fire and run around the maze until he dies.

Tried that. Hit a dead end. Tank came up from behind and made the phrase literal.

And stay the fuck away from mounted guns.

This though might be were we went wrong. The plan was everybody to camp around the gunner with melee weapons until the tank showed up. Problem was the Tank kept coming out of fucking nowhere and was often on us before we could escape.

[Darkostar]

The game encourages using stealth with large point bonuses. And has a level system very similar to COD (or so I'm told, I've never played COD MP).

Yeah, the ranking isn't off kills made, but points acquired.

[Arthmail]

Tried that. Hit a dead end. Tank came up from behind and made the phrase literal.

This though might be were we went wrong. The plan was everybody to camp around the gunner with melee weapons until the tank showed up. Problem was the Tank kept coming out of fucking nowhere and was often on us before we could escape.

The best place to hold out until the tanks arrive at the end of that level, in the old house, is on the stairway on the right hand side of the house. You should be on the right side of the house as it faces that far gate, with the main door and the grand staircase to your left somewhere.

Place two guys on the stairs, giving them direct lines of fire to the two entrance points on the ground floor. The other two face the top. At the top, on the secnod floor, there is an entrance to the balcony outside, i believe, and a doorway to the left that leads to a gap that must be jumped. Any zombies that come running are easy pickings, and the only difficulty that might arise is a spitter getting off a good shot onto the stair guys, forcing them to retreat a few feet - though a good player will jump up on the railing and keep firing because 9 out of 10 times the spit will not hurt you there.

When the tanks comes, its pretty simple. The first tank, the single, wait until he comes at you. Chances are, he'll come from the ground floor. Moltov his ass and then scramble out of the house, probably through one of the second floor exits. When he's dead, just run back inside and resume that position.

Now the next tank attack, the double tank attack, is a little trickier, but follows the same principle. If you can, fire bomb one of the fucks and then run the hell out. Make sure to have the two guys on the top watching the entrances up top for the tanks, because they might actually try and climb up to get you. If that is the case, simply run like hell towards whatever entrance to the outside they are not coming in.

When avoiding burning and non-burning tanks in the garden, stick to the outside tracks and the road that runs down the middle. For added firepower, if one of the tanks is dead, have a guy mount that nearly useless heavy machine gun on the second floor and fire at the tank until he comes at you. The mounted guns automatically pull major tank agro, but they deal as much damage as all your weapons combined so it can be worth it.

Now heres the important thing, and it often fucks people up at the end of this map. As soon as that second tank is down, run like hell for those double doors. Shit starts pouring into the map from all directions, and it takes no time at all for a guy to get overwhelmed. Just run as soon as the second tank drops, perhaps take a shot for extra speed if you can, and you'll be fine.

If you are playing on PC, i could probably help you out. If you are on a console, you have already lost....bwahahahaha. Anyways.

[Sheep the Evicted]

Quite honestly our plan was pretty much exactly as you described it. In fact we even added in bits like when we jump down to move to the front of the house so the machine gunner can have a clear line of fire.

But then smokers happened.And fucking hunters. And by the time we finished dealing with them and the horde our positions and health had all been screwed up enough for the Tanks to take us to pieces.But the campaign has moved on now - we are on Hard Rain.

Also yeah im on PC. My steam ID is godlikebuthumble . This is bad for two reasons; 1) it is a lie in both senses and 2) i stole a members username from here because coming up with unused names for steam is a bitch.

[Max the Mostly Mediocre]

So after a six month break I finally went and completed Jade Empire in a day. It was okay, but has the distinction of being the only bioware RPG I've no intention of replaying.

Wait, no, that's not true, I never even finished the NWN OC or SoU, so there's that.

[Alcibiades]

So after a six month break I finally went and completed Jade Empire in a day. It was okay, but has the distinction of being the only bioware RPG I've no intention of replaying.

Wait, no, that's not true, I never even finished the NWN OC or SoU, so there's that.

I've had Jade Empire sitting in my steam list since picking it up cheap in a steam sale. It always looked interested.

[Inigima]

I played it on Xbox and beat it. It is pretty short, and easy if you do it right (constantly swap between the style that stuns and one of the ones that kills people), but I enjoyed it. The story is really nothing to write home about, though, and a lot of the game feels like filler, plus the moral choices are really black and white and dumb. I liked the inventor guy near the end, he's the best character.

[Stone-Made-Soft]

Jade Empire is the only Bioware gamve I've played but never finished. I finished KOTOR, ME1 and ME2. I loved the combat in Jade Empire but lost interest in the story around when Wild Flower/ Chai Ka/Ya Zhen joined your pary.

I'm desperate for Fallout New Vegas to come out. Obsidian needs to release a list of perks in the game because I'm compulsive about planning my character ahead of time. Bethesda released the list before FO3's release.

[Max the Mostly Mediocre]

Not compulsive enough to google, apparently ;)

[Arthmail]

Okay, anyone playing Left4Dead2, play the new mutation. Its honestly the most intense bit of gaming i've been involved in for a long while. There are no other special infected but hunters, sometimes as many as six at a time.

It makes advanced feel like expert, if not nearly harder. Expert is impossible on it, at least, not with the random crews i've been playing with.

Its fucking awesome.

[Sheep the Evicted]

It makes advanced feel like expert, if not nearly harder. Expert is impossible on it, at least, not with the random crews i've been playing with.

We didn't get past the first map in The Passing on advanced. We nearly had it on the first go but then we fucked around a little and all four of us got pounced on at once.

After that everything that could go wrong did. And by that i mean Tanks. You'd think the game would at least have the decency to keep the hunters at bay while your fighting a Tank - but no! Also a shit load of lag came our way.

[WhiteHaven]

I own the Firewalker DLC now, for ME2..but how the heck can I start it?

Edit: Nevermind. Restart works wonders.

[palin99999]

So, is anyone else getting Rock Band 3 tomorrow? I'm really looking forward to Pro Mode.

[Sad King Billy]

I've been playing Amnesia: The Dark Descent for the past hour, and I need a breather. (for those who've played it: the water corridor(s). Dear god, I was trembling for 10 minutes after finishing that.

It's the most immersive horror/adventure I've had the displeasure of scaring the living shit out of me in at least 4 years.

And yet... a perverse little voice in my head wants to know what I was running away from

[Inigima]

This just showed up in my twitter feed and holy fuck yes

http://www.joystiq.com/2010/10/28/you-dont-know-jack-coming-january-25/

[Sad King Billy]

MotherF***** storage room!

I'm going to sleep with the light on tonight, two flashlights, a lighter, an oil lamp with enough oil to last 4 days, and my childhood teddybear bobba.

Jesus Christ what have I gotten myself into??!

edit: and a spas 12 with 1000 cartridges. With ductape.

further edit :

for those wondering about my rambling, Amnesia is an adventure-horror game by Frictional Games, and it's terrifying. Here is why:

1) It's basically a Lovecraftian game along the likes of The Mountains of Madness or The Case of Charles Dexter Ward.

2) the monsters are spaced out in such a way that the player can't become acclimated to them, so they don't become common enough to be irritating or dismissable and remaing scary throughout the game. Furthermore, they can appear or disappear with very little warning (this is acceptable within the setting). This keeps the player (aka 'me') on alert throughout the game, wondering where the next bastard is coming from, and looking for good strategies in such an event.

The developers are also firmly aware of the principle that 'there is nothing as terrifying as the unknown'

3) the player ... has no way to defend himself. There are no guns, no swords (and, given the nature of the beasts, probably wouldn't have helped anyway). There are only two survival tactics: Run. or Hide. And running away from them is dodgy at best: these enemies are as fast as the player is.

4) Hiding in the shadows is an effective strategy, unfortunately it has one negative effect. The player has a 'sanity level' (I prefer to call it a 'fear' or 'stress' indicator). This decreases as the main character stays longer in darkness, witnesses strange or terrifying events (wind blowing out all torches, supernatural events), and sees monsters, the closer to the player the faster it decreases. It improves when you stand in light, or progress through the game (ie solve puzzles and go further into the plot).

5) the player finds scattered throughout the levels small amounts of oil for a walking lamp (which consumes oil like crazy) and tindleboxes with which one stationary lightsource can be lit. The resource management lies in keeping enough shadow to hide away in while simultaneously keeping things bright enough not to become too terrified. And at times, you risk running out of resources due to lack of natural light sources (note: there is a sort of night vision which allows you to see quite a bit, but you only achieve night vision when you are also becoming more afraid).

6) The fear level has the following effects, at deeper levels of fear: blurry vision, sound of gnashing teeth, swaying camera, insects crawling over the screen, sluggish controls and, finally catatonic paralysis, where you collapse and at best crawl forsward at a snail pace. Eventually you snap out of this stage (or get to safety) and it resets to stage 2, with slightly blurry and swaying vision. As the fear increases, you hear more imagined noises in the background, such as footsteps or screams.

7) Most importantly, though: the more terrified the player character is, the more agressive and alert the monsters are! So, you have the choice: stay in the light and risk getting spotted by monsters. Or hide in the shadows, which you Must do if there is one nearby, praying it doesn't see you, listening to the player gnash it's teeth and becoming more and more afraid by the minute. And don't even look at it, because then you risk it becoming aware of your presence!

It is intensely atmospheric and terrifying, and every time I quit my heart races like a maniac, yet there is this masochistic curiosity which demands to know where it all leads....

I have to admit: I have resorted to a walk-through on some occasions. Not because I didn't know what to do, but because I was too terrified to go on alone.

[The Evil Hat]

I've had Jade Empire sitting in my steam list since picking it up cheap in a steam sale. It always looked interested.

I think I'm the only person who loved Jade Empire. I've beaten it several times. It's true that it's way too short, and there are only two proper RPG maps with the rest being far too liner, but it was still a lot of fun. Then again, I'm a pretty crappy RPG fan, as the only Bioware I've played is Jade Empire and Mass Effect.

[Sheep the Evicted]

SKB, that sounds absolutely awesome. I'm trying to decide if im masochistic enough to do this to myself and whether or not i can spare the money. Though due to Halloween its £8.70 on steam which is nice.

As for me, in keeping with my whole "play games months after they have come out" thing with Assassins Creed II and i'm loving it. The setting is extremely atmospheric and nuanced, probably because it leans heavily on real life historical events. The story is actually pretty solid, its also more ambitious and courageous than i have ever encountered in a video game. They smoothed out the repetition problems from the last game and generally improved the game in every single way.

The only problem for me is that i feel bad killing the guards (its absurd i know but there are times when the guards talk about going back home to their wives with an honest days wage) so i go to extraordinary length to avoid alerting them and then when shit goes down, like it always does i end up in real trouble and almost always end up slaughtering them all anyway.

And there is nothing more annoying than spending 10 minutes scaling a tower and then falling down (and not dying for the restart) because the damn computer, and yes it is the computers fault, sent you in the wrong direction or the camera wouldn't behave itself. Thankfullly this has been extremely rare for me and i'm about half way through the game.