What game are you wasting time on?

[antimeridian]

Don't get your hopes up. Crysis -> Crysis 2 is one of the worst examples of decline I can think of in that genre.

You're right. My god it sucks. Quit halfway through. Is the third one any good?

 

[Jack Of Owls]

Don't get your hopes up. Crysis -> Crysis 2 is one of the worst examples of decline I can think of in that genre.

You're right. My god it sucks. Quit halfway through. Is the third one any good?

I always avoided Crysis 2 & 3 due to reviews and their adaption (intention?) for consoles, but I heard the expansion to the original Crysis, Crysis Wahead was okay. If you're on a Crysis kick, you might want to try that.

 

[JDR13]

Don't get your hopes up. Crysis -> Crysis 2 is one of the worst examples of decline I can think of in that genre.

You're right. My god it sucks. Quit halfway through. Is the third one any good?

I haven't played Crysis 3, but the general opinion seems to be that it's on par with Crysis 2 or maybe slightly better.

 

[Darth Roxor]

I've dusted off Dawn of War in anticipation of the official RPG Codex DoW Tournament. Sign up now at your local commissariat!

 

[d1r]

Mostly just BG 2 EE.

Did you at least disable the EE NPC's via mods?

 

[Sceptic]

I haven't played Crysis 3, but the general opinion seems to be that it's on par with Crysis 2 or maybe slightly better.

I played all 3 (4 if you count Warhead?). Looking back I'm not sure why. 1 and Warhead are by far the best. Warhead is more action than 1, which I wasn't a huge fan of, but it also ditches a lot of the modern shooter annoyances of 1 (that god-awful escort mission...) so it balances out. 2 was decline incarnate, and that middle part where the main line goes on hold while you help the marines for several missions in a row is so forgettable I don't remember a single thing about any of those missions. The best mission is towards the end, very nice stealth one, but it's really not worth the whole slog just for it. 3 is similar to 2, but I also forgot large swathes of it. The one thing that was really striking is how much of a clusterfuck the story becomes as you go, 1 and Warhead had a pretty decent one with fun characters, then as you go through 2 and 3 the plot spirals more and more into complete retardo. It's pretty emblematic of the general decline in the series.

 

[HansDampf]

Copypasting my comment from a Doom thread for context:

I finished Doom, Doom II, and Thy Flesh Consumed in that order over the past two weeks.
Disclaimer: I played all of them in Ultra Violence, with only Doom being played using mouselook and the jump button (as I didn't know it wasn't a thing... but I already had my suspicions in a few levels).

I thought that Doom was much more enjoyable than Doom II. Probably because of the amount of enemies the latter throws at you. I used a lot of savescumming in the latter, in the sense of "save before a hard area, save after being done with it no matter my remaining health". It's possible Doom II was also much harder for me as I had to get used to no mouselook. Indeed the first levels were very very clunky for me to play through, but as I play Evilution now I feel like I'm much more competent. I was able to easily beat the first three levels of the original game in Ultra Violence without a single death (until an unexpected swarm killed me in the fourth level I believe).

Doom II's levels felt less inspired I think. Like it wanted to be harder but without the creativity of Evilution (the levels I've played so far at least). Overall I agree with the OP that the game's are short and I took my time playing them. Probably because in that one hour of gameplay I get so much more thrill than I would get from six or seven hours in other games. Doom is so fast paced that it is a nice change of pace from games where I would walk for minutes on end endlessly thinking about my life (instead of, you know, thinking about the game I'm playing). The shooting is so satisfying and it does make me question my choices in other games (like manual reloading).

Overall I'm really glad I played through these. It's something I had in my "to play" list for a long time, and something I thought I would never get around to doing.

Now I can also bask in the memes.

UPDATE

So I'm around level 23 in Evilution.
I have to say I'm not enjoying this WAD. Mostly because the levels are BIG in the sense of "spread out", as opposed to BIG in the sense of "cramped, but large". I don't know if that gets my point across.
I also heavily dislike the amount of chaingunners. The levels start getting pretty predictable as well, with an item usually being an indicator of "grab me and watch the walls around you collapse to reveal 30 chaingunners".

But it's good in the sense that this helps me realize that what makes or breaks Doom is level design. Which should be fairly obvious, right? However, I've been comparing Doom to my most played RPGs (which I won't mention in case of butthurt, but everyone who knows just a little about me will know which ones they are), and it made me realize that those games just aren't particularly fun after a while, and no level design would change that because their core gameplay is fundamentally flawed.

I'm really itching to try the neat total conversions I've seen around, particularly Ashes and Aliens: Eradication, which look atmospheric as fuck.

You should have skipped TNT and tried one of the modern megawads like Valiant, Ancient Aliens, Eviternity, Going Down, or AUGER;ZENITH. TNT sucks the fun out of Doom.

 

[samuraigaiden]

I just beat Ultima III, DOS version using the Exodus Project patch. This game is great. It's perfectly beatable without a walkthrough as long as you write down the hints scattered throughout.

 

[Chippy]

Currently replaying Syndicate. I'd forgotten how glorious these old games are. Will move onto Syndicate Wars which I rate despite everyone saying it wasn't as good as the first one. I'll probably have to boot up my old 98Se PC though because on GOG and a modern PC the breathing of the cyborgs is just too fast, and that's unacceptable.

Then I might move onto Satellite Reign. I played that for a bit when it came out, and remember it as being an unoptimized mess. And a bit boring. I know something put me off. Although it might have been my PC under my desk cooking my balls.

 

[Unkillable Cat]

Currently replaying Syndicate. I'd forgotten how glorious these old games are. Will move onto Syndicate Wars which I rate despite everyone saying it wasn't as good as the first one.

It isn't. Still a fun game though.

What I (and a few others) will want you to do, is hold off on Syndicate Wars for a bit and move into the American Revolt-data disk for Syndicate instead, once you're done with the original. We want to know how you fare.

Post all the details. We will read them. We will rate them. :D

 

[Daemongar]

Playing Anvil of Dawn - and quite a ways through the game. Started this maybe 4 times since I bought it on GOG - and never played it back in the day. Very charming in you fight lots of enemies but no respawn so you can rest when you feel like it. However, the GOG version is buggy - may be bugs from the original but have been teleported to places outside the maze on the map I'm on quite a few times. No way to fix other than reload - or use a save editor.

Think I avoided this when it first came out as I wasn't a fan of pregen chars but I realize you can select a character race and modify the stats anyway you see fit. The problem is the stats. There is so much crap you need to carry around, and if you don't put enough in strength its a lot of messing with the inventory. Mana regen is another problem - just too slow. End up rushing around killing things, then camping and multitasking (like now) while mana regens in a Dosbox window. Think as long as you clear all squares on a map - that is, explore every spot - you have everything, have all the spells and items you need. But I just don't know - my weapon really sucks and i'm 3/4ths of the way through the game.

Lots of fun and a rough classic. Follows the old school logic of it would be very, very easy to lose this game by dropping something important somewhere or forgetting to get this or that enchanted. I'm still not sure I'll have everything I need in the end - I'm preparing for heartache.

 

[Unkillable Cat]

Lots of fun and a rough classic. Follows the old school logic of it would be very, very easy to lose this game by dropping something important somewhere or forgetting to get this or that enchanted. I'm still not sure I'll have everything I need in the end - I'm preparing for heartache.

The game has multiple endings (Bad, Good and True). You can only get the True Ending if you do everything right and figure out what a certain spell does, and cast it at the right time.

Let me know if you want to know more.

 

[NerevarineKing]

Played the demo for Skald and it was very promising. Now I'm finishing up Eschalon Book 1 which has been a pretty good indie RPG so far

 

[Daemongar]

Lots of fun and a rough classic. Follows the old school logic of it would be very, very easy to lose this game by dropping something important somewhere or forgetting to get this or that enchanted. I'm still not sure I'll have everything I need in the end - I'm preparing for heartache.

The game has multiple endings (Bad, Good and True). You can only get the True Ending if you do everything right and figure out what a certain spell does, and cast it at the right time.

Let me know if you want to know more.

I think I'll get the good ending as I accidentally discovered what something was for after scrounging around for a hex editor to recover a few hours of lost work. Thanks for letting me know - I have no idea about a true ending but we'll see when the time comes. Im at the Titan's Fortress or whatever it's called right now to put in perspective where I am.

 

[Daemongar]

Lots of fun and a rough classic. Follows the old school logic of it would be very, very easy to lose this game by dropping something important somewhere or forgetting to get this or that enchanted. I'm still not sure I'll have everything I need in the end - I'm preparing for heartache.

The game has multiple endings (Bad, Good and True). You can only get the True Ending if you do everything right and figure out what a certain spell does, and cast it at the right time.

Let me know if you want to know more.

Well, thanks - I think I got it at the end (eh, I accidentally read something on one part), and the game they drops a major hint via a messenger. Always wanted to finish this, but now I feel a little beat up. The game was enjoyable, but the mechanics never really evolved past dungeon one. Sat up until 2:00 AM last night trying to get to the end, but just got stuck too many times and had to see every square - a bad combination. There were some nice touches though. You are one of 5 heroes you can select and throughout the game you intersect with the other heroes and such. Lots of charm but you gotta earn it.

After finishing this as well as Legend of Grimrock 1 and 2* I should be able to write a thesis on pressure plates. This took pressure plates to places they weren't meant to go. I may be done for the next few years on blobbers after this. Still nice to tie this up.

I was thinking on revisiting Eye of the Beholder at some point but now - I don't think I can. My score:

Spoiler

* note: finished Legend of Grimrock 2, but didn't see the real ending. Never pulled it off... yet.

 

[Keshik]

Hardspace released yesterday, I've enjoyed the game in Early Access. Is quite fun, bit of a relaxing game (although I still fail horribly at reactor extraction).

 

[Abu Antar]

Beat a few more games.

After five runs, I finally survived in Cultist Simulator. All previous runs ended with my character dead, or arrested. I haven't really played anything like it. It's card game, that I guess counts as a roguelike. It's my first time playing anything like it. It wasn't amazing, yet I didn't mind playing it. I could play something similiar in the future, but not for at least a few months.

I "beat" Absolute Drift. I got all the world challenges, and I got to the finish line in all races, with at least some challenges completed. This game can go to hell, as it caused a lot of stress. I still wanted to beat most of it, out of stubbornness.

I did a different Liverpool run in CM 01/02. I sold off every player, and then bought a completely new squad, with young players. I also alternate with the updated database, and original data base. On my next run, I'm adding myself as a 14 year old wonderkid.

I started F.E.A.R. 2: Project Origin. My skill in shooters, or action games in general has declined, so I'm playing on easy. I like the atmosphere, although it doesn't beat the first game in that regard. It feels like the first game was more psychological horror, while this game seems to go for more jump scares. The level design is still good, but I think the first game edges it out in this area, too. Presentation is better than the first, but that's no surprise. I was offered to play the third game in co-op some time ago, but my lack of skill in first person shooters would probably make the whole experience bad for both of us. And I am also gaming anti-social, if I don't know the person irl.

I reached chapter 10 in Resonance of Fate. I was supposed to write deeper impressions when I reached it, but I am too lazy. In short: it's easy to learn, but hard to master. Positioning your characters right, and having upgraded your weapons efficiently seems to be the two most important factors. In general, it has felt repetitive for a long time. The only variation is the type of enemy you face, but with grinding, even that can become a slog. I was killing stuff left and right, but the current quests that I am doing are all higher level enemies, that barely get damaged by my weapons. This means even more grinding. On the production values, I can only assume that the game had a very low budget. It has fine models, and visuals for its era, but most environments look similar, and there are a lot of color palettes for samey monsters. Cities look cool, and monsters can look cool the first time you see them. Voice acting and soundtrack are both very competently done. I have also noticed something in cut scenes: Usually, there's someone sitting at a single table, and someone else standing. It gives a very simplistic feel to it all. I don't know if this is because of some theme or not enough money for something else.

I keep switching consoles between PS5 and PS3, but I've halted a bit on my Elden Ring playthrough. I hope to beat RoF before the end of July, so I can focus on ER once more. I might also pick up ER on PC, to play with my childhood bro. We were looking to do it at release, but the way it works was not the way we wanted it to. But now, I have read about a co-op mod that is being worked on, that will allow players to play the whole game together. If that one turns out good, we will be bro-oping the game.

 

[Unkillable Cat]

Lots of fun and a rough classic. Follows the old school logic of it would be very, very easy to lose this game by dropping something important somewhere or forgetting to get this or that enchanted. I'm still not sure I'll have everything I need in the end - I'm preparing for heartache.

The game has multiple endings (Bad, Good and True). You can only get the True Ending if you do everything right and figure out what a certain spell does, and cast it at the right time.

Let me know if you want to know more.

Well, thanks - I think I got it at the end (eh, I accidentally read something on one part), and the game they drops a major hint via a messenger. Always wanted to finish this, but now I feel a little beat up. The game was enjoyable, but the mechanics never really evolved past dungeon one. Sat up until 2:00 AM last night trying to get to the end, but just got stuck too many times and had to see every square - a bad combination. There were some nice touches though. You are one of 5 heroes you can select and throughout the game you intersect with the other heroes and such. Lots of charm but you gotta earn it.

After finishing this as well as Legend of Grimrock 1 and 2* I should be able to write a thesis on pressure plates. This took pressure plates to places they weren't meant to go. I may be done for the next few years on blobbers after this. Still nice to tie this up.

I was thinking on revisiting Eye of the Beholder at some point but now - I don't think I can. My score:

Spoiler

View attachment 24610

* note: finished Legend of Grimrock 2, but didn't see the real ending. Never pulled it off... yet.

Congratulations, I understand you perfectly having had your fill of blobbers... at least for a good while.

Regarding the five characters in AoD:

The big strong fighter was crucified somewhere close to the cemetary.
The little gnome just hung around a campfire outside a fortress.
The goblin was executed by one of the Warlord's lackeys close to the end of the game.
Can't remember what happened to the women, though I recall one of them dying.

As for the endings:

Spoiler

Bad ending is if you choose to side with the Warlord.
Good ending is walking into the Anvil of Dawn to deny the Warlord its power, thereby sacrificing yourself in the process.
True ending is casting that 'Undo Death'-spell before entering the Anvil, thus surviving.

 

[ferratilis]

In the last week, I played Elden Ring for 60 hours. Fucking Miyazaki did it again. Amazing game.

 

[samuraigaiden]

Jade Empire. It's not an RPG. Lots of talking tho. Chinese people sound very Canadian in this game. I know it's short so I'll stick with it. I must avenge Fing Fong Fung.

 

[ERYFKRAD]

Regarding the five characters in AoD:

Took me five full seconds to realise you're likely talking about Anvil of Dawn and not Age of Decadence.

 

[Lawson Ashurst]

Right now, Call of Duty Vanguard, and I have no idea why.

The game is absolute dogshit, and arguably the worst Call of Duty ever made.

It doesn't even have a good zombies mode, which is what would usually keep me coming back to them.

Who knows, my brain is probably mush lmao.

 

[SumDrunkGuy]

Currently playing Weird West and loving it. This game is kewl af. Fuck all that other shit I wasted money and time on. This is where I needed to be.

 

[Bigg Boss]

I've been having fun with Verdun but you really have to play at a certain time or most of the players will be bots. Isonzo might actually make me purchase a game at launch.

 

[Lawson Ashurst]

I've been having fun with Verdun but you really have to play at a certain time or most of the players will be bots. Isonzo might actually make me purchase a game at launch.

On the Xbox version, you actually get Multiplayer experience for playing with boths.

It's pretty dope.