What game are you wasting time on?

[Baron Dupek]

And calling PoP 2008 "easy game" will be massive underestimation.

 

[Perkel]

Perkel I found Warrior Within to be more enjoyable mechanically than Sands (smoother camera, movement, improved combat) but the presentation was a huge turn off. Could you share what you enjoyed about the narrative? I was harsh in giving it 2 trolls, since I DID enjoy the gameplay. I liked the Nemesis chase sequences, but hated the bait-and-hit bosses. I liked that Thrones was more ambitious w/ its bosses, interjecting platforming into them. Sadly, this title only has one real encounter that tries it, but does so successfully. The final boss is a joke and left me feeling dry (hue hue hue).

Now then, should Prince of Persia '08 be avoided at all costs? I see it has the same director as Warrior, Thrones, and Forgotten. How bad could it be?

Well whole setup for game narrative is amazing imo. Prince is hunted by some monster who is relentless. Seems simple and you start game thinking it is just simple story to do tricks and shit but throughout game you start to understand that this monster is due to prince fucking around with time. That alone was really fucking good story for PoP i didn't expect but having shadow figure helping you at times thorughout story and getting to know who he was and ending of that story was just cherry on top of already good game narrative.

Yes game was better than first sands (gameplay wise) but story is what set it apart. It felt like sands was NWN2 and WW was Mask of The betrayer if you could compare it to something.

There are some cheesy lines still underlying story is fucking great and i wouldn't fucking expect something like this from PoP. Especially after all previous games. It feels more like a greek tragedy story than game story. Prince found blade that controls time, for a while he used it for his own things. But then came tragedy as price realized that there is always price for everything. Where Sands of Time was use of blade of time. WW is paying price for it.

 

[gaussgunner]

Wizardry 6+7
I never finished wiz7 back in the day.. thought I'd give it another shot, and I've seen good things about 6 so I started there. I'm liking the purity of it. Downsides are shitty EGA graphics, limited keyboard controls, and more trash mobs than a Spiderweb game.

Divine Divinity
Tried this on a whim just because it sounded good as ARPGs go. The realtime combat does get pretty stupid when you have 20 skeletons mobbing you, but it's still fun. I'll probably finish it, then skip ahead to Original Sin.

 

[Great Deceiver]

Binary Domain. First level was absolute shit but it picks up later, nice jap take on popamole GoW mechanics, but it's far better than GoW, at least to me.

 

[sullynathan]

Binary Domain. First level was absolute shit but it picks up later, nice jap take on popamole GoW mechanics, but it's far better than GoW, at least to me.

why's it better than gow?

 

[Lyre Mors]

Tried this on a whim just because it sounded good as ARPGs go. The realtime combat does get pretty stupid when you have 20 skeletons mobbing you, but it's still fun. I'll probably finish it, then skip ahead to Original Sin.

I would definitely say that Divinity 2 is worth a shot at some point too, though Divinity Original Sin trumps it by far.

 

[Great Deceiver]

Binary Domain. First level was absolute shit but it picks up later, nice jap take on popamole GoW mechanics, but it's far better than GoW, at least to me.

why's it better than gow?

Doesn't take itself so seriously, shooting robots that react to damage dynamically is better than whatever the fuck gears monsters were, the popamole aspect is subdued because enemies will flank your position and the bosses are pretty fun.

 

[Darth Roxor]

One thing that Warrior Within does very well with da storeh is the "fake" ending when you first fight and kill the empress.

As for dat pop 2008, I also tried playing that one during the pop binge. My computor refused to run it, as for some reason it would crash on "start game". I just assumed the PC was trying to do me a favour and I didn't bother googling for a solution.

 

[abnaxus]

Kaileena was bestest waifu and of course they get rid of her in first five minutes of Two Thrones



also the edgy Godsmack OST was p. hilarious

 

[Jaesun]

Wizardry 6+7
I never finished wiz7 back in the day.. thought I'd give it another shot, and I've seen good things about 6 so I started there. I'm liking the purity of it. Downsides are shitty EGA graphics, limited keyboard controls, and more trash mobs than a Spiderweb game.

A Wizardry 6+7+8 run through is HIGHLY recommended. And yes, the trash mobs will at some point grate on your nerves. Finish one game, and just keep your final save files handy and then take a break. Then import them into the new game, have a blast. DON'T FORGET TO GET THE RING.

 

[Jasede]

Also if you don't give the ring to X in 8 you haven't actually played 6-8, go start over.

 

[Darth Roxor]

Was playing Woodruff and the Schnibble of Azimuth.

Fun enough game, but it gets incredibly anal at places, especially when it comes to the puzzles using the weather watch/weather forecasts just randomly deciding to fuck with the player and leaving him confused whether he's doing it right or not. Their needs and applications also aren't exactly the most reasonable.
Also, you definitely get the fast-travel device MUCH too late in the game.

Still, I had a few good laughs, even though it's much worse than Goblins 2 & 3. Also, I found it interesting how the game always takes part within the same areas that get continuously unlocked (although the fact that you never get a hint when some of them are unlocked is also anal), as opposed to most adventure games that just proceed from puzzle screen to puzzle screen and offer little to no backtracking. The only other one like that that I can think of is probably Discworld.

And finally, unfortunately my playthrough was halted before I could actually finish the game due to a gamebreaking bug in the ScummVM edition, stopping me for good decently close to the end. HURRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR

 

[DramaticPopcorn]

Playing mods for single player Warband.
Mostly Prophesy of Pendor, The Last Days and Star Wars Conquest.
One thing that is very similar between them is that a bad start can mean really really really prolonged and gruelling early game that is devoid of variety and actual fun, TLD is the worst offender as it cockblocks you from better gear and better recruits until you make some progress, which sounds fine on paper but translated in chaos that is M&B overland AI, it can and will fuck you over numerous times.
PoP is, technically, the most interesting gameplay-wise of them all, but it lacks so much convinience of SW:C or nuanced inter faction features from TLD that it becomes boring much sooner.

Also, even with AI battle formations, combat AI is too easily exploitable that it turns literally every battle in same routine, no matter the army composition.

 

[baturinsky]

ZDoom with remakes of classic WADs.

Knee Deep in ZDoom is a bespoke remake of first episode of the first level. Much bigger, much more detailed and realistic an beautiful.
Doom In Name Only - WAS with levels themed not on actual levels, but on their names alone. Much bigger levels, some with interesting ideas.
I'm having fun with both.

Of cause, with Brutal Doom - vanilla Doom weapons are quite boring in comparison. On the other hand, both WADs like to drop hordes of enemies on your head, and having to reload with BD weapons can seriously fuck you up.

 

[CryptRat]

Was playing Woodruff and the Schnibble of Azimuth.
[...]I found it interesting how the game always takes part within the same areas that get continuously unlocked

Nice, I have never played Woodruff yet (I intend to, of course) and I love when the entire game takes place in the same area which expands ; Sam & Max Hit the Road comes to mind.

 

[Tick Tock Crocodile]

On a whim, I started wrestling with Prelude to Darkness. Going by the amount of crashes, the game is very determined not to let me enjoy it, but talking to that dude who throws lightning stones at children has made me equally determined to try

Warrior Within has fucking amazing story make sure you play it.

Finished all 3 from trilogy and first one was ok, second one is masterpiece, 3rd dropped quickly because it was mediacore as fuck.

Thanks so much for making me look those games up again, jesus--I had no idea the trilogy was even on PC. My mother's been mad on PoP since the first SNES game, and we spent a lot of bonding time co-oping our way through the series. I'll have to grab these and go for a nostalgia trip.

 

[Unkillable Cat]

ZDoom with remakes of classic WADs.

Knee Deep in ZDoom is a bespoke remake of first episode of the first level. Much bigger, much more detailed and realistic an beautiful.
Doom In Name Only - WAS with levels themed not on actual levels, but on their names alone. Much bigger levels, some with interesting ideas.
I'm having fun with both.

Of cause, with Brutal Doom - vanilla Doom weapons are quite boring in comparison. On the other hand, both WADs like to drop hordes of enemies on your head, and having to reload with BD weapons can seriously fuck you up.

IIRC, Knee Deep in ZDoom features custom enemies. How do they work in Brutal Doom?
Also, isn't it in Knee Deep in ZDoom where one of the enemies has a instakill projectile weapon that even ignores the almighty IDDQD?

 

[Deleted member 7219]

I'm still playing Trails of Cold Steel while I have access to the PS3. Access is limited on weekends, and I'm at work all week so I can't use it then, so progress is much slower than if the game had been available on PC.

I'm Chapter 3, Nord Highlands, and the game is just fucking brilliant. Not sure about the combat so far - I much prefer Trails in the Sky's - but the atmosphere is spot on. While I'm playing this game, I feel like I am a student at a military academy, doing my lessons, chilling with bros and hos, and going out on adventures every few weeks.

The translation has to be the best I've seen (besides The Witcher series, of course) - feels like it was written in English from the start (just like Trails in the Sky). If these games had more reactivity and choice, they would rank among the greatest of all RPGs.

I've also started a Wasteland 2 Director's Cut play through, having abandoned my original play through not long after getting to California. So far, the game does seem to be much more optimised thanks to an improved Unity engine, and it actually looks good (not that that matters - they did it to bring in the console crowd, but it's nice to play something pleasing on the eye).

I'm hoping to complete the thing before I get bored. I think the main problem with the game is there is no strong plotline driving you from the start, just various orders that get fed to you by radio.

 

[baturinsky]

ZDoom with remakes of classic WADs.

Knee Deep in ZDoom is a bespoke remake of first episode of the first level. Much bigger, much more detailed and realistic an beautiful.
Doom In Name Only - WAS with levels themed not on actual levels, but on their names alone. Much bigger levels, some with interesting ideas.
I'm having fun with both.

Of cause, with Brutal Doom - vanilla Doom weapons are quite boring in comparison. On the other hand, both WADs like to drop hordes of enemies on your head, and having to reload with BD weapons can seriously fuck you up.

IIRC, Knee Deep in ZDoom features custom enemies. How do they work in Brutal Doom?
Also, isn't it in Knee Deep in ZDoom where one of the enemies has a instakill projectile weapon that even ignores the almighty IDDQD?

They work without a hitch. And I haven't noticed any insta-kill enemies.

Btw, I can't remember it's name now, but there were a weapon wad that had both tour and enemie's weapons insta-killing and it was a morbid fun.

 

[Unkillable Cat]

I recall a orange Baron of Hell-esque enemy that had that projectile, with the orange Cacodemon being a possible second contender.

Keep in mind that I may be referring to an older version of the .wad, I haven't paid attention to its development since I played it sometime...around 2010, at the very latest.

 

[octavius]

Tried to play The Elder Scrolls - Arena, but it's too tedious.

It has a bigger view area than Ultima Underworld, but that's about it.

The sound in the game is a joke; there can only be one sound playing at a time. If an ambient sound is playing monsters' sounds stop playing. And when monsters' sounds are playing it's hard to get a bearing on their location, unlike older games like Dungeon Master and UU.

Also, there's seems to be significant respawning, which means that when you are low on HP and can't rest due to nearby monsters (you can hear them, but it's hard to get a bearing) it's effectively a walking dead scenario unless you do some heavy save scumming.

And from what I've read it's very easy to break the game and become invincible once you start making your own spells.
So the game features two things I dislike intensely: respawning and too uneven difficulty.
If not I think I would have enjoyed the lore and exploring the main quest dungeons.
The only really positive thing about the game was the atmospheric text messages.

 

[Unkillable Cat]

Just finished Soma.

First of all, many thanks to sser for giving me a chance to play this game.

I expected that Soma, being from the same developers as Amnesia: The Dark Descent, would have many things in common with it. But instead Soma is a reskin of Amnesia, with almost all the same game mechanics, gimmicks, scares and plot elements. But oddly enough it's the "almost" part of that sentence that is the most disappointing element.

About the mid-1990s a slew of games were released that didn't really have much gameplay to them. It was understandable as they were incorporating new technologies, such as true 3D, polygons instead of sprites and full-motion video. They were establishing the new environment for games to be made in, confined by various technological limitations, therefore they skimped on the gameplay itself. 20 years later Soma is repeating this, except there no new technology at work here, and no technological limitations - making Soma little more than a bloated Walking Simulator.

Amnesia was a game first and foremost, with the story and setting built around it. Soma gets this the wrong way round, the story comes first and gameplay is shoved further back on the list. Amnesia had you hunting for light sources and healing items to keep you up and going, Soma foregoes all that; the maximum number of items I ever held in the game's "inventory" were three items for a thinly-veiled fetch quest. Were it not for a couple of annoying puzzles in the Theta section, one could argue that Soma is completely devoid of gameplay. Soma follows the "show, don't tell" doctrine of fleshing out the story and allows for some exploration, but the manner those two are weaved together left me disinterested, so I quickly stopped bothering.

Another ball that Soma dropped is actually doing something that sticks with the player. Remember <GAMENAME>? Remember that <COOL_THING> in it? Amnesia had a few things like that, the biggest one probably being the water monster. Soma has nothing like that, the game treads no new ground whatsoever. Even the handful of enemies in the game all act very samey. Too many things about Soma remind me of other games, like the original Bioshock, STASIS and Alien: Isolation. Speaking of the Alien, the latter half of the Theta section is a huge rip-off of that game, down to the sound-based, teleporting monster that's rubber-banded to the player's position. I was never scared while playing Soma, mostly I was annoyed. The only time I ever felt any sense of dread was the "follow the lights or the things will eat you"-section near the end of the game, as the mood and suspense there is actually quite decent...but that's the only time Soma ever comes close to something of that ilk.

All this doesn't mean that Soma is crap. "Disappointing" is a more appropriate word. The story, plot and characters are all sound (if you can stand the protagonist being dumber than a sack of bricks) but there just isn't much of a game here to talk about. The premise captivated me until circumstances became apparent (after which I almost lost all interest) but fortunately the then-revealed "goal" of the game had enough juice in it to keep me going 'till the end. Saving the world has never felt so devoid of meaning.

Overall this is probably one of the better Walking Simulators out there. Treat it as such, and you'll be fine.

 

[sser]

And here I am still only like two hours into it

 

[Darth Roxor]

Another ball that Soma dropped is actually doing something that sticks with the player. Remember <GAMENAME>? Remember that <COOL_THING> in it? Amnesia had a few things like that, the biggest one probably being the water monster. Soma has nothing like that.

Come the fuck on, that's just not true at all.

 

[deuxhero]

Tried to play The Elder Scrolls - Arena, but it's too tedious.

Tried it again myself a bit ago. Pretty much the exact same thoughts as you have.