Son of Videogames Thread

[Tyrellius]

Thats disappointing about Rage.

These are the guys behind Wolfenstein 3D and Doom, so I was thinking of giving it a go at some stage.

I went back to Dead Island and decided to get my moneys worth out of it and finished it off. It does get better as you flesh your character out a bit and spec down your proper path. Guns for the Aboriginal chick, Blunt weapons for the rapper, thrown shit for the other guy and edged weapons for the Asian chick. I went with edged weapons and enjoyed hacking up some zombies. There is a mod out there which makes the zombies, well be more zombie like. As the game is in vanilla, headshots won't actually kill a zombie while hacking at them will. The mod changes this so headshots are always a kill, you can beat at a zombie for ever without killing it, you need to finish it off by cutting its head off. The mod also changes weapon effects. If I shoot a sawn off shotgun into a group of 4 rushing infected, it actually damages them all. I may try it out if I get bored.

Oh yeah - multiple monitor set-ups with Dead Island are a pain in the ass. It only loads the game properly sometimes, unless you disable multi monitors, then it boots up perfectly all the time. Its not worth going out and buying at full price, but if its it the bargain bin, it wouldnt be a waste of cash.

[The Anti-Targ]

You console guys are like one generation away from ubiquitous installs just like a PC. :P

Hard drives in consoles are a double edged sword.

I went back to Dead Island and decided to get my moneys worth out of it and finished it off. It does get better as you flesh your character out

Pun intended?

[Inigima]

I have a vague understanding that the Radeon issues in Rage are the result of ATI fucking up their drivers, not iD screwing up.

I've been playing two games, The Binding of Isaac and Dark Souls.

Isaac: Hard to describe. Think Zelda with roguelike elements -- random dungeons, monsters, and loot, permadeath, that kind of thing. Oh, and unbelievably fucked up. I fought my first boss in a room where the floor was covered in blood and shit. I mean that literally. Did I mention the art style is cartoony and deformed?

Dark Souls: Just started this last night. I played Demon's Souls, and was acceptable at it if not great. This time around I died like four times in the tutorial. I might actually buy the guide for this one.

[Muttering Bill]

I'll be getting Dark Souls either tomorrow or Friday.  There's no rush since I won't have time to play it until the weekend anyway.

Never cared about Rage.  Just not that into FPS's.  But I'm hearing things about part of the single player game being locked out without a pass code.  I don't support this kind of non-sense on my consoles, so I based on that alone I wouldn't buy it.

So, now that DC Universe Online is going free-to-play (and will also be a free download on PSN), anybody going to be checking it out?  I don't have much experience with MMO's, but I played the beta and liked it.  Maybe enough to have bought the lifetime subscription - except that I don't have enough game time to make it worthwhile.  Once it goes free, I'll definately be getting back into it.  How long that lasts will depend on how restrictive their free access is.

[a wooden chair]

I'm running a nvidia and get issues with rage graphics. Sound also bugged in my game to where it works for menus but cuts out in game. All my saves are bugged silent now.

Aside from the bugs it's a decent ride so far.

[Arthmail]

Dead Island certainly could have been better. I only liked it because i played the entire thing through with a friend. There was a great concept involved, but it failed in the execution somewhere. Not that it was a bad game, just not a great game. One of the things i hate in an RPG (and i don't play alot because i'm an FPS guy), is when they have autolevelling for your enemies. I mean, in one sense its fine in that you never feel bored. But in another, i never feel like my character is accomplishing anything. The zombies are just as fucking tough at the end of the game as they were at the beginning. And despite the 40 mods in the game, i could never find enough gear to do more than a few at a time.

Also, the characters sucked. All of them. Boring and stupid. If they were going to copy Left4Dead so much, they could have added a few more options for the survivors. I mean...some idiot rapper with a one hit wonder? A disgraced football star? Really? And both guys are pricks while the women are kind and understanding. I got more out of five minutes of listening to Loius in L4D than i did in the entire game.

And weapon degradation has always, always sucked. So do escort missions.

[Bronn is God]

Finished (ughhh) Rage.

No, its not worth your money. And there were framerate drops galore and some poor loading times (360).

• The story sucks.
  
• It's linear as hell. Even though its supposed to be an open world, every "shooting gallery" is exactly that - you walking through corridors and tight spaces shooting stuff. Gets very boring, and its funny how they tried to make it interesting by giving you new items.
  
• Weapons get insanely boring. Upgrades are fine, but there is no variety.
  
• Driving sections are... fun. Infact, they are the only times where you feel like your in an open world
  
• Wingstick is OP as shit
  
• Multiplayer is so tacky. Don't play it. Dont.
  

Apart from that its a really beautiful game, and it does have its fun moments, but it certainly got God-status prematurely and fails to deliver. It is nothing special, not at all.

[The Anti-Targ]

@ BoG: Did you fully install (both discs) Rage on your 360? It's meant to run a lot smoother fully installed.

Sounds like patches will be coming in fairly soon, esp for PC graphics card crashing faults.

It's interesting that John Carmack said games are so much easier to make on 360 and PC compared to PS3. If the faults across all 3 platforms are more or less the same I wonder what that means for the ease of multiplatform game development.

[ICE CROW]

Well i beat my Uncharted 2, great game. I know others will disagree, but i felt the combat mechanics weren't as solid as i would have liked them. Im also working on beating God of War from the HD collection, now here is a game im sad i missed when it originally came out on the PS2, but am loving the HD remastered version of it.

I also just started my Metal Gear Solid 4 playthrough, ive literally only played about 30 minutes so far, so understand this is merely an opening opinion. im not getting that feeling of amazement i had when i started the Metal Gear Solid, on PSOne or Metal Gear 2 back in the day. I also feel like the tone isn't what im hoping for. Im asking you fellow gamers who have played through, am i just jumping the gun, is this game truly amazing or is it just too full of itself that it loses the identity the series once had?.

Also what are your guys feelings on all these HD remake bundle packs like:

Ico/Shadow of the Colossus HD

Silent Hill 2+3 HD

Tomb Raider Trilogy HD

Metal Gear Solid Collection HD, want this never played part 3

God of War HD Collection, God of War Origins HD Collection

Resident Evil Code Veronica/Resident Evil 4 HD

[Inigima]

I have the Ico/Shadow of the Colossus Collection, if you never played those games you owe it to yourself to do it now. The same for the Silent Hill collection, although mostly for SH2 -- 3 is very good as well, but SH2 is the masterwork. That isn't out til the end of the year, though, I think.

[Muttering Bill]

I also just started my Metal Gear Solid 4 playthrough, ive literally only played about 30 minutes so far, so understand this is merely an opening opinion. im not getting that feeling of amazement i had when i started the Metal Gear Solid, on PSOne or Metal Gear 2 back in the day. I also feel like the tone isn't what im hoping for. Im asking you fellow gamers who have played through, am i just jumping the gun, is this game truly amazing or is it just too full of itself that it loses the identity the series once had?.

I played through the first chapter and lost interest. Way too many cut-scenes. I think I got one every 5 minutes. Also felt like it lost all emphasis on stealth. If you get caught, you're pretty much forced to shoot your way to the next cut-sceen. No matter where, or how well, you hide, the AI will find you. So you either have to play through perfectly, or just treat it as a TPS. Doesn't feel like MGS at all.

Also what are your guys feelings on all these HD remake bundle packs like:

Ico/Shadow of the Colossus HD

I'll be getting this at some point. But I'll wait for some price drops. (It's on sale at Best Buy this week for $25, but I'm already buying Dark Souls, so I know that I won't have any time for it for a while anyway.) Never played SotC, but Ico was amazing.

Tomb Raider Trilogy HD

Not really an HD upgrade. As I undersand, they just ported over 2 games from the 360 - Anniversary and Legend. Polished them up a little, but not too much work. Then threw in Underworld for good measure. I've already played them all on the 360, but I'll probably pick it up at some point anyway. I just like the TR games. But no rush. I'll wait for the price to drop a little farther.

Metal Gear Solid Collection HD, want this never played part 3

As great as these games were, after MGS4 I've lost all interest in the series.

God of War HD Collection, God of War Origins HD Collection

Got the collection for the PS2 games a while ago. I had loved the first game when it originally came out, and never got to play the second. I played through them once, and sold the game a month or two later. They're good games, but really don't have any replay value. GoW3 was much the same. So I'm going to pass on the Origins Collection.

Also, don't forget that Final Fantasy X is getting the HD upgrade treatment. While I hated the Sphere Grid, there is such a lack of good console JRPG's that it might be worth buying again despite that. But they should throw in Final Fantasy X-2. Not that it was all that good, just to make it a better value. Every other HD upgrade package has at least 2 games after all.

And then there is the Prince of Persia Trilogy, Splinter Cell Classic Trilogy and The Sly Collection.

Oh, and Tekken Hybrid - which is just Tekken Tag Tournament, upgraded to HD, packaged with a demo of TTT2, and a movie.

Yeah, they're definately getting out of control. And, IMO, not really worth $40 each.

[Renasko]

Downloading the demo for the new Football Manager game, at the minute. Taking forever. :drunk:

http://www.footballmanager.com/demo

[The Anti-Targ]

My understanding of FFX is it's a quasi-remake. Somehow it's not a full re-make but SE are using their FFXIII assests in the upgrade/remake. So unlike those other PS2 re-releases which come with one or 2 games perhaps SE think a semi-re-make of FFX is a big enough deal to make it a stand alone game instead of a re-release.

I've never played a MGS game, so I'll be getting the MGS collection. If I like them I'll get MGS4 too. Some MGS fans LOVE MGS4, others not so much. One opinion I've seen around the traps is that MGS: Peacewalker is fantastic and has much more universal praise among MGS fans than MGS4.

I've heard there's a Jak collection in the works, which I will be getting if true. But the only HD upgrade I really want is Valkyria Chronicles 2 & 2 to be brought over from PSP, like MGS: Peacewalker and GoW Origins collection. Valkyria Chronicles should never have left PS3 so it's time for it to come back home.

I started playing Ico but never got around to finishing it (I only rented it). Loved what I did play so I want to play it through. So I'll be getting Ico and SoTC. Apparently there's also hitherto unseen fottage of The Last Guardian on the disc, so I'm keen on seeing that too.

[Swift]

I also just started my Metal Gear Solid 4 playthrough, ive literally only played about 30 minutes so far, so understand this is merely an opening opinion. im not getting that feeling of amazement i had when i started the Metal Gear Solid, on PSOne or Metal Gear 2 back in the day. I also feel like the tone isn't what im hoping for. Im asking you fellow gamers who have played through, am i just jumping the gun, is this game truly amazing or is it just too full of itself that it loses the identity the series once had?.

Metal Gear Solid 4 definitely loses the identity the series once had. I thought it was still fun, and I played it for quite a while (mostly speed running), but it is nowhere near the level of greatness the earlier entries in the series are.

[ICE CROW]

Metal Gear Solid 4 definitely loses the identity the series once had. I thought it was still fun, and I played it for quite a while (mostly speed running), but it is nowhere near the level of greatness the earlier entries in the series are.

This is what i feared, i have read across the internet that very same thing. I think i heard theres like 20 hours of cut scenes in the game, not sure if thats true or not. I love a good story but that seems too long a time to take me out of the rythm of playing the game. Im still gonna play it, i did buy it and for 20 bucks, whether i love it or only like it. For that price well worth the purchase.

It seems alot of you feel the same way i do about all these HD remakes, their either hit or miss. Some seem to get done with really care like the God of War ones, or just a simple format change so the perspective fits HD tvs without being distorted. I do think they are great ideas though, if for nothing else so that we can enjoys these great games on our new TVS. Cus i know i personally don't enjoy playing my older systems on HD TV, they just look well wrong. So like many of you i will buy these HD collections but when their price drops from what seems to be the average price of $39.99.

So any one out there got any comments on Heavy Rain, i played the demo and am thinking about adding this to my PS3 library. I played Quantic Dreams Indigo Prophecy and thought it was a fun game, but alot of standing around not doing much.

[Muttering Bill]

Started Dark Souls. So far I can't say that it's any more difficult than Demon's Souls was. I started as a Wanderer (still favoring Dex characters). Died once during the tutorial, but that was due to overconfidence and carelessness. I've had a few deaths since, mostly from being overwhelmed. The enemies are faster, and there are more of them. But if you've played the first game, then you'll should still have an advantage. I just went back with a new strategy and kicked ass.

Then I came across a Black Knight. Tried to sneak up on him, and got smacked in the face for it. Realized I was severly outclassed and ran away. He chased me down and slaughtered me. But at least I got my blood stain in a more convenient spot.

But still, I'd say it's actually a little easier than Demon's Souls was. So far anyway. Enemies are faster, smarter and more abundant, yes. And you get a limited amount of health items. But checkpoints - "Bonfires" - are more frequent, so you have less traveling to get back to your blood stains, and taking another shot at the enemy that beat you.

(ETA - also, it appears From has caught on to the 'quit to dashboard' cheat from the first game and taken it away. Bastards. ;))

So any one out there got any comments on Heavy Rain, i played the demo and am thinking about adding this to my PS3 library. I played Quantic Dreams Indigo Prophecy and thought it was a fun game, but alot of standing around not doing much.

I'd say that Heavy Rain is a must play. Not necessarily a must own. But it's cheap now anyway, so why not. I rented it and got the platinum trophy over two weekends. It's just great storytelling, even if the story itself has a few plotholes. It's very tense. And even after you've finished, and seen the big "who is the Origami Killer" reveal, it's still fun to go back and see how some of the scenes could have played out differently, and what affect that has on the ending.

What I liked most is that when you screw up and get get a character killed, then they're just dead. No game over, reload at the last checkpoint. You finish out the story with one less cast member.

[The Anti-Targ]

It seems alot of you feel the same way i do about all these HD remakes, their either hit or miss. Some seem to get done with really care like the God of War ones, or just a simple format change so the perspective fits HD tvs without being distorted. I do think they are great ideas though, if for nothing else so that we can enjoys these great games on our new TVS. Cus i know i personally don't enjoy playing my older systems on HD TV, they just look well wrong. So like many of you i will buy these HD collections but when their price drops from what seems to be the average price of $39.99.

So any one out there got any comments on Heavy Rain, i played the demo and am thinking about adding this to my PS3 library. I played Quantic Dreams Indigo Prophecy and thought it was a fun game, but alot of standing around not doing much.

I really recommend, if you don't have it already, you get Playstation Move to play Heavy Rain. I played a few chapters using the DS3 and it was fine. But playing with PS Move was way better, for me. I've only played it the once. I would like to see some of the different endings, but I feel like now that I know who the origami killer is it won't be such an engaging game on another playing through. In that respect I kinda go along with MB that it's a must play, but not necessarily a must own.

@ Muttering Bill: do you think the fact that all enemies respawn if you use a bonfire acts as a big enough disincentive to using bonfires? The respawning is meant to make players find a balance and not use every bonfire you come across.

So Dark Souls may not end up being harder per se, but it seems like you've got to be more wary and cautious in this game compared to Demon's Souls. I'm looking forward to reading impressions from people who've never been exposed to Demon's Souls. Demon's Souls is a special game, so more people being able to experience something similar to Demon's Souls is good to know.

[Ser Aardvark]

I know we have a thread for this in the Objects section...but whatever you do, DO NOT BUY GAME OF THRONES: GENESIS. It's a piece of crap from top to bottom.

[TheEvilKing]

I bought Dark Souls today, never played Demon Souls.

I think I might just be incredibly annoyed from dying all the time. It wouldn't be so bad, but combat does not feel very fluid. That might be just the class I chose though (bandit).

The online stuff is cool though. I like randomly seeing ghosts of other players running around. Looking forward to exploring that more.

[Muttering Bill]

@ Muttering Bill: do you think the fact that all enemies respawn if you use a bonfire acts as a big enough disincentive to using bonfires? The respawning is meant to make players find a balance and not use every bonfire you come across.

So Dark Souls may not end up being harder per se, but it seems like you've got to be more wary and cautious in this game compared to Demon's Souls. I'm looking forward to reading impressions from people who've never been exposed to Demon's Souls. Demon's Souls is a special game, so more people being able to experience something similar to Demon's Souls is good to know.

From what I've read on other boards, it's supposedly is much harder than Demon's Souls was. I'm not seeing it yet, but I've only played about an hour and a half.

As to the respawning enemies... maybe. When I got to my first bonfire past, the Nexus-like area, I tried not use it right away, and clean out some nearby areas first. I died. Then died again losing a blood stain with around 1500 souls - probably would have given me one level. After Demon' Souls, where I might have dropped up to as much as 100k souls and not bothered reclaiming them if it was inconvenient, 1500 doesn't bother me too much. It stings a little because it's early in the game, but I know it's not really a big deal. Anyway, because of that, I figure there's no harm in activating the bonfires right away. I'm only fighting standard issue, low level zombies right now. Beating them again after using a bonfire is much trouble, and I can farm a few extra souls in the process.

Maybe I'll change my mind when I start dealing with more difficult enemies. But honsestly, I'd guess it more likely that I'd become even more cautious. Ok, I might have to beat a few tough enemy twice now. But I hold out on the bonfire and something kills me, then I'll have a dozen to get through again to get back to my blood stain.

The enemies are harder, definately. And the limited heals are probably going to end up being a nightmare. But they've balanced those by taking away some of the penalties. Bonfires look to be as frequent as fog gates, so you don't have to traverse the entire level again after death. There are no penalties to being in undead form. While Demon's Souls halved your HP, in Dark Souls it looks it's mainly just for aesthetics and determining whether you get to invade or be invded online. It's much easier to get back to human form - no point in making it difficult if it doesn't really change anything. No more World and Character Tendencies, or the difficulty shifts that went with them. You can sell items (or so I've read, but not until you find some certain NPC). You can level up, shift to human form or change out invenory items at any bonfire (no more retreating to the Nexus and having to redo the whole level). Not sure about repairing or upgrading, since I haven't found a blacksmith yet.

I bought Dark Souls today, never played Demon Souls. I think I might just be incredibly annoyed from dying all the time. It wouldn't be so bad, but combat does not feel very fluid. That might be just the class I chose though (bandit). The online stuff is cool though. I like randomly seeing ghosts of other players running around. Looking forward to exploring that more.

The controls do take some getting used to. I've always played a lot of fast pace action games - like Ninja Gaiden and DMC. It was a bit of an adjustment coming from those to the slower pace, and using shoulder buttons to attack instead of the 'circle' 'triangle' combination that has become practically standard. I found after spending some time with it, that the control scheme feel very appropriate for this game.

As to dying... get used to it? :dunno: The fact that it's so punishing is one of the biggest draws for many of the games biggest fans.