What game are you wasting time on?

[someone else]

State of Decay 2, Daybreak DLC, played with 3 other randoms vets and we easily owned the juggernauts with snipers. Replayed again with the remaining 2 vets and won again but it was harder with one less player.

 

[octavius]

Been playing the user made map Dragon King 1 (alas there were no more maps from Marin Bouman) for HoMM 3.
This is a very ambitious map that tries to combine a quest type of map with a semi-open dynamic map where there are not just one, but two one way Teleporter exits in your starting area, making for a very nerve wracking mid game.
Unfortunately it's a bit too dynamic, and the enemies invade too soon, so when I played they were able to flag two Border Guards (one of which I couldn't have prevented no matter what), messing up the whole story line and making lots of events making little sense, and possibly even making the game unwinnable with enemies reaching places they were not supposed to reach.

This could have been one of the greatest HoMM maps ever, with so much to explore and many events, but is partly ruined by some imbalances and rather poor placement of one of the border guards.
I will probably edit the map somewhat and then meta game it, and play it "as it should be played".

Tip: make sure you get Pathfinding and Navigation.

 

[Baron Dupek]

Medal of Honor - Pacific Assault
I got terrible flashbacks from STALKER Clear Sky while playing this. Enemies have same "get hit animation" that make them invincible for a short time. Also - japs rifles are weaker so it's better to find (scarce) ammo boxes and not pick their crap.
Wooden plank and shattered trees (and some leaves) are bulletproof. Despite jungle scenery - they feel more like large trenches covered in grass, Men of Valor (and Vietcong) did that part better.
Some things boggle my mind. Slower ADS and diving to crawl was one thing but there were instances where my character was pushed out of cover (like rocks for example), it was like teammates jumps to my cover and push me out but there were no teammates there. Can't explain this thing. :itisamystery:
Guess the animations

Had to use cheats to beat one mission, on the recently captured airfield. There is a task to defend 3 hangars with MG nest. You can let them destroy these hangars and still proceed but then - your position get bombed and everyone except radioman get KO so hard not even medic can get you back.
BTW - limiting medic calls for your character only? Huh.
Managed to defend these hangars? Enjoy random 1-shot kill from nowhere right after that. Switched to Easy, tested - same result. There were no enemy infantry or planes around so what gives?

 

[octavius]

I've been playing HoMM 3 for two decades and for the first time I noticed that visiting a Temple on a Sunday gives double morale boost...

 

[janior]

Dropped KOTOR I, somehow I can't get really into it like I could with KOTOR II

Spoiler

Completed Star Wars: Empire at War campaign as the Empire and the Republic(in Republic at War mod) - it was your Total War in space, solid RTS title, even if you don't like Star Wars. Broken pathfinding, lackluster planet management, your usual TW issues.
It'd say it's worth playing it for space battles alone.

Beaten Bayonetta on normal difficulty yesterday, awesome action game. My hands still hurt today from all the button mashing. Top tier waifu(s). No Major flaws. Combo system definitely lacked fluidty at times, QTE were annoying because they resulted in instant death most of the time, not sure how usual it is in such games. Arcade/Platforming elements weren't as obnoxious as I usually find them, few glitchy jumps. Good soundtrack. Game really felt like something devs actually wanted to create.

Spoiler

Today I finally managed to finish(successfully) my first campaign ever as Gaia Stepdaughter's in Alpha Centauri, probably the best turn-based strategy game I played in my life. Not only the gameplay is great but also the visuals(Not a huge fan of AI spamming units, but that's a minor annoyance.) Preferred building my cities up rather than fighting, game allows you for so many options... Dipolomancy is also well made and thought out, each faction having actual leaders with their agendas and personalities, even the cut-scenes were well made. Game is pure art. Reminds me how much potential video games have as a medium.

Spoiler

cums

 

[mastroego]

After having fun with the Early Access of the LotR digital LCG, I got interested in the original (physical) version (which is quite different, all considering).
Turns out there are plugins for programs that allow online matches, or even solo ones, for card games like LotR which is a solo or cooperative game.

I've always liked card games, in theory, but I'm not into competition nor online multiplayer gaming.
So this looks like a nice fit for me. I didn't even know stuff like this existed, until recently.
Check this out:

Spoiler

Of course, the program basically simulates A TABLE so you'll have to do everything yourself.
But it's how the game is originally meant to be played after all.
From what I've learned of it so far, the LotR card game has elegant mechanics, which convey the flavor of the quests, and of the setting, pretty well.
Not to mention great art, which again helps to sell the experience.
I'm not a superfan of LotR lore, but this is captivating me.

 

[Chippy]

I'm playing King Arthur: The Roleplaying Wargame for about the 5th time. I feel I should remind everyone what a great game this is - as it constantly crashes on me because of the Microsoft Runtime error, forcing me to distract myself by making posts on the Codex while my rage dissipates...and as I consider that it just crashed after four fucking battles (each taking over 20 min) where i was abushed and unable to save... It's a duty at this point to reiterate WHAT A BAG OF CUNTS NEOCORE GAMES ARE for creating this fantastic game that doesn't really work.

They really outdid themselves with King Arthur 2 because the game actually looked worse, the sound was broken, the game (once again) didn't really work, and although I actually finished it (somehow rolling a 20 on the game breaking bugs) - it seems that they didn't have the time to finish it; because the end slides were like watching a super8 slideshow...with no sound, no sound effects, and no subtitles to tell you what was actually going on.

I feel it's important to calmly take these brief moments in my life to reflect and evaluate on the decisions I have made up to this point - and remind myself not to buy another game from this company ever again. Even if it is in the Warhammer universe.

Thank you for reading.

Edit: I can confirm that the crashing with Microsoft Runtime Error C++ for King Arthur the Roleplaying Wargame lessens after installing the 4gb patch found here: https://ntcore.com/?page_id=371
It was crashing every 3-4 battles, now it's down to about 5 or so.

Edit 2: Also used Explorer suite on that page, right clicked on the EXE for the game>open CFF explorer>File Header>Characteristics & (Click Here)>'app can handle 2gb address' was ticked>save and exit.
Have gone for over 15 battles so far without a crash.

I wrote that out as a good deed for the day - in the event someone used a search engine - should balance out against the fact that I led them to the Codex.

 

[HansDampf]

I've played the tutorial and a few battles in Tactics Ogre (PSP), but I can't get into it. I'm overwhelmed by unusual leveling systems, millions of classes, menus, tutorials, etc. I like complex TB tactics, and this seems like a pretty cool game. But it's like I'm navigating through menus upon sub-menus for hours, and get very little done in the process. I also can't find anything that stands out and grabs me to make me "push through". The battles haven't been engaging or satisfying so far (I'm assuming they get more tactical and challenging later). And I don't understand the inclusion of the Undo system, that lets you go back up to 50 turns during a battle. It makes permadeath kinda pointless and would drag battles on even longer.
I've put this game back onto my list and may give it another shot, in case I get into the mood for it in the future. This would be better if you could control it with KB.

 

[pakoito]

>This would be better if you could control it with KB

PPSSPP should be easily able to emulate this, right?

 

[HansDampf]

No, I meant KB. What I'm asking for would require a completely different UI that's optimized for KB. Being able to hover over and click on units and menus with the mouse, and have keyboard hotkeys for every action.

 

[Frozen]

 

[flyingjohn]

Giving up on 1954 Alcatraz,the last "proper" adventure game made by Daedalic.

-Horrible 3d models with bland backgrounds.
-Bland writing with characters barely being more then tropes.
-Choices only effecting some random line of dialogue and ending,nothing more.
-Small linear locations with barely any exploration.
-A map system making the world feel not connected whatsoever
-Puzzles being too easy and the character always tells you what to do so you don't get lost.
-Uses multiple character system from deponia but without any way to actually give inventory to the other character (minus some specif moments) feels like a wasted implementation.
-Puzzles are sometimes not even connected to what you are doing.You have to make a anti shiv vest against a guy that uses a gas pipe,wtf?

I have never been a big adventure game fan but i always liked Daedalic games because of their aesthetics and writing,but this game feels like a big waste of time.
If they wanted to make a short easy adventure game they could have looked at Pendullo and their monster game which was perfect for a semi episodic feel.
But then again,Pendullo did make yesterday which was terrible.

 

[someone else]

The updates on State Of Decay 2 make it fun to replay.
Future updates: difficulty modes next year, SOD1 map.
Maybe will have Steam future release.

 

[Gregz]

I really enjoyed State of Decay, glad to hear the sequel is good.

 

[Azalin]

Finished Shadow Warrior 2(2016),I haven't played the original or the remake so I can't compare it to any other game of the series.It's a mediocre shooter with some weapons for hacking enemies to pieces,graphics are good for a game from a small company,the gameplay isn't that great and becomes boring and repetitive,the levels too since they are reused.They are some rpg elements in here to make it more interesting but it didn't work there are some skill you upgrade but mostly you have to gather tons of trash loot to upgrade your weapons every couple of mission with some +8 and +9 add-ons instead of the +5 ones you have on them and so on.Not recommended.

 

[Dedup]

I've been playing Wing Commander. I've finished the main campaign and am working on the first Secret Missions expansion. God I forgot how shitty Hunter is as a wingman. Always getting in the middle of my shots, crashing into me or getting shot up to the point where he just leaves (sometimes a best case scenario). All I need from a wingman is to keep one or two Kilrathi busy while I shoot down the rest and to keep the hell out of my way. The other wingman seem to be able to handle it but Hunter just flies like a moron. Other than that and some pain in the ass escort/defend missions, it's been a fun ride so far. There's a simple joy to lining up a target and unloading with all your guns on it.

 

[HansDampf]

I'm close to completing Celeste. It's an excellent hardcore platformer with pretty pixel graphics. But one might be forgiven to think this was overhyped garbage. On the surface, it looks like every game journalist's wet dream: Non-sexualized female protagonist. Annoying hipster sidekick. Painfully wholesome story about mental illness. There is even an assist mode for game journalists. But unlike some other games that tick similar boxes, this one includes some revolutionary features, like gameplay and challenge. It's obvious, the game came first, the story second.

Controls are simple. You can jump, dash, and grab walls. But there are new tricks and gimmicks coming up everywhere throughout the game. Even now, as I'm playing the super-optional levels, the game is still teaching new movement techniques. The regular chapters start out relatively easy (by hardcore platforming standards), with a smooth difficulty curve. The optional strawberries are usually sitting in mean spots, and require significantly more skill to get. They've raised my death count into the hundreds. Then there are alternate versions of every chapter, and also an unlockable bonus chapter. Those are pure platforming challenges without any story crap or collectibles, and most of them use their gimmicks in new, sometimes surprising, ways. I'd rate their difficulty at least as high as the berries from the original levels. If that's still not hard enough, completing them will unlock even more kaizo challenges in each chapter. I haven't done all of them, yet. They've been pretty short so far, no more than 2 or 3 screens per chapter. But you could easily waste half an hour or more trying to get through just one of them. And if that's still not enough, you can also go back to the original chapters and try to play through them without dying to get the golden strawberries. They won't unlock anything, though, and are just sitting there to tempt masochists.
I can't really find any major flaws in this game. There is one section with scripted sequences that move some platforms in unpredictable ways. This game is a lot of trial and error anyway. But in theory (not realistically), if you were skilled enough, you could predict and react to everything in a split second, and beat every challenge on your first try. In this particular section you have to fail a couple of times, just to learn where the platforms are going. It's the only part I didn't like.

I'm also not so keen on the way assist mode has been implemented. It's basically built-in cheats that allow you to lower the game's speed, make yourself invincible, etc. When you try to turn it on, a message from the devs will pop up saying that challenge is the point of this game, and that it's meant to be played without assist mode. The only penalty for using it, though, is a permanent mark of shame on your save file. You could still use it to unlock everything in the game and get every achievement, if you care about those. Assist mode really should have been restricted to the main story. Looking at the achievement statistics on Steam, the vast majority of people either don't care, or seem to have some sense of pride and see no point in completing the challenges with cheats enabled. 43.5% completed the main story. Only 6.1% did the optional kaizo challenges.

 

[Wayward Son]

Currently in the middle of Icewind Dale and Underrail. Both of them are very good, with well-designed encounters for the most part being heavily present in both of them and Underrail feeling like if you took Fallout and gave it a really good combat system. Both at least 8/10 o far imo.
Addendum: I'm also wasting my time learning C++ in another attempt to design my own RPG.

 

[Azalin]

Finished Full Throttle Remastered,good enough remake,the gameplay is simple and nice apart from the action parts that remain as shitty as I remembered them to be,graphics are ok and so is the sound,plot and characters are ok.It's a short game shorter than I remembered it to be,about 3 hours.Still if you are in a nostalgia trip recommended for a sale.

 

[Poseidon00]

I'm close to beating Morrowind for the first time. Nothing but graphics mods and a few bug fixes. I'm using a Monk build, unarmed and unarmored with the occasional staff, speed/agility and athletics/acrobatics pumped to the max.

The quality of the world building and factions was not exaggerated. Seeing how badly they butchered later installments depresses me a bit. But at least we'll always have Morrowind.

 

[unfairlight]

Rising Storm 2
It's a great game and the recent christmas map is pure incline.

 

[ERYFKRAD]

Playing some AssCreed while waiting for V2, Insomnia and the rest. I see that ac3 received a buttload of flak, but eh, the forest region is pretty good to look at. Also how the fuck is Haytham more fun than most of the other dudes.

 

[whydoibother]

I've been revisiting Slay The Spire, trying out funky decks, and being punished for it.
Tried to play some They Are Billions! too, but my wrist wouldn't cooperate and had to call it quits.
I should have a look at Darkest Dungeon again, I rage quit it when two of my teams died at the last boss in a row, losing me my trinkets. I've since purchased the vampiric DLC thing, but haven't even played it yet, due to IRL aggro at the time.

 

[Ovplain]

Going through my goddamn backlog. It's colossal. It's disgusting! Would probably be best to just write a bunch of this shit off, but I can't. I have to at least make an effort.

Spoiler

First bunch:
DOOM (Had lass than half way to go, had fun!)
Wolfenstein: The New Order (Just the final boss left. No idea why I stopped the last time.)
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt (Think the save I used was midway through the game, still took me nearly 3 weeks to finish together with both expansions.)
Batman: Arkham Knight (Started from scratch, took almost two weeks, had a blast, nice send-off.)
Beyond: Two Souls (Old save, about a third through I'd say, wrapped the game up in 3 days. Well, 'game.' Did end up caring about what happened to the girl though, so that's something.)
Sleeping Dogs: Definitive Edition (Started from scratch, took a week. Solid 'GTA-clone.')
Virginia (From scratch, took like an hour, hour and a half though! Hardly a game, but much like with Beyond, I was invested, I cared. Nice music, nice style.)
Injustice: Gods Among Us Ultimate Edition (Just an easy one to chalk off the list, took a couple hours. Whatever, it's a fighting game. The story was insufferable!)

Second bunch:
What Remains Of Edith Finch (A walking simulator, but it was pretty. I liked it, I cared!)
Rise of the Tomb Raider (Had an old save, had like the last hour or two to go.)
Limbo (Cool, spooky platformer)
Mirror's Edge (Had it since forever, took a couple hours to beat, looks good for a 10 year old game!)
Steep (Used to snowboard as a kid in the late 90s and that was the last time I played a snowboarding game too before this one. Was fun for about a week!)
Mass Effect 2 (Man, this one. Sex & violence in space. Goofy to the 10th power! Laughed my ass off several times and I liked it, goddammit!)
Mass Effect 3 (Less entertaining than the previous one, wasn't QUITE as 'out there.' The last third of it really seemed to take forever.)
Scribblenauts Unmasked (Fun puzzle game, though I'm sure it would've been a whole lot more fun if I was a DC fanboy.)
Transformers: Devastation (I'm 2 hours into it now and I like it. Feels nice! Liked the cartoon a bunch as a kid and this definitely feels like the cartoon.)

Latest bunch:
Middle-earth: Shadow of War - Definitive Edition (The first game I bought since I really started going after my backlog. Also the game that probably made me swear off buying any kind of DLC for good. Could've taken just the base game for 12,5 bucks, HAD to get the complete one for 25. Quickly came to the realization that I just didn't care enough about the extra crap. And that the days of trying to 100% games are just done! Ended up ignoring pretty much all of the DLC stuff. And after like 15 hours into the game I just tried to get it over with as soon as possible. No chance in Hell I was going to do the 'epilogue' either. Still had fun though!)

Fallout 4 (There's never been a video game that I've hated more than Fallout 3. Seems times have changed because I didn't have much of an issue with Fallout 4. It's not the Fallout I remember, but that's fine, I'm fine with Fallout being dead. Had a lot of fun exploring the wasteland for the 50 hours or so it took me to finish. And playing a chick, a mother, the main questline threw me for a solid spin in the second half of the game.)

Assassin's Creed Syndicate (Had a huge urge to get Oddyssey on sale. For whatever reason. 'Forced' myself to fire up Syndicate instead. Gotta keep chipping away at that backlog! Anyway, I had fun! Started to get a bit boring after 15 hours or so, this is Assassin's Creed afterall, but I just bulldozed my way through the last couple of chapters and wrapped the whole thing up in about 20 hours.)

Shadowrun: Hong Kong - Shadows of Hong Kong (Really like the Shadowrun games, but this thing was just a slog. Didn't even bother with the side-missions, just wanted to wrap it up ASAP and did.)

 

[deuxhero]

In addition to some Warsword Conquest, I'm playing Forge's new Planar Conquest mode (on my phone, since the mode isn't in the desktop version yet and I'm not going to bother with Java on my PC).

The good:It is a solid attempt at a campaign mode for a single player card game, which hasn't been done in half a decade. Being able to pick a starting general and planeswalker gives some control over starting deck (I'm using Rune-Tail's Essence, since you start with 30 life and field lots of creatures). Each of the opponents feels different enough.

The bad: AI is really slow, especially when lots of tokens are in play. You also need more cards to start with. Allow the player to buy boosters and (better yet) starter decks with shards instead of just random cards would make the game a lot smoother. Being able to ensure you get some basic cards like Lightning Bolt or Doom Blade this way would make it a lot less frustrating.