What are you playing?

Hailey Knight · Nov 19, 2013

Yeah. Think I'm about done with Disgaea, both 4 and series. However ...

The Legend of Zelda: On a whim I started this up again and I'm loving it now. This is incredibly advanced for an 8-bit game. What turned me off before was that I was completely lost, but today I learned that unlike the Oracle titles, when you clear a screen of enemies, they stay cleared until you enter/exit a dungeon or die/continue, so the game doesn't penalize you with endless enemies if you wander around a while.

Got the boomerang and the first piece of the Triforce. This is great. This is also the first Zelda game I've played where non-event combat feels like it has a purpose, since Link is pretty fragile.

GasBandit · Nov 19, 2013

Zero Esc said:
Yeah. Think I'm about done with Disgaea, both 4 and series. However ...

The Legend of Zelda: On a whim I started this up again and I'm loving it now. This is incredibly advanced for an 8-bit game. What turned me off before was that I was completely lost, but today I learned that unlike the Oracle titles, when you clear a screen of enemies, they stay cleared until you enter/exit a dungeon or die/continue, so the game doesn't penalize you with endless enemies if you wander around a while.

Got the boomerang and the first piece of the Triforce. This is great. This is also the first Zelda game I've played where non-event combat feels like it has a purpose, since Link is pretty fragile.

Also, if you just leave ONE enemy, the others never ever come back ever.

Hailey Knight · Nov 19, 2013

GasBandit said:
Also, if you just leave ONE enemy, the others never ever come back ever.

Awesome tip, thanks.

I gave up on the Oracle games because I got so lost that even a walkthrough couldn't help, and every screen was a nightmare. I thought this would be the same and I'm so glad it's not. I'm willing to be lost and enjoy it if I'm not getting abused for it by rapidly respawning enemies.

Shawn · Nov 19, 2013

I bought the Oracle games when I got my 2DS, but wasn't a big fan of the style. I don't know if they are highly rated, but graphic wise I'm just not impressed. If you have to copy the sprites of a game that came out several years before, then you just haven't done your job. I'm not completely put off on the games. I may try them again soon once I'm on vacation next week. However if I'm going to have to play that level of graphics I might as well be playing the awesome Link's Awakening.

Hailey Knight · Nov 19, 2013

Shawnacy said:
I bought the Oracle games when I got my 2DS, but wasn't a big fan of the style. I don't know if they are highly rated, but graphic wise I'm just not impressed. If you have to copy the sprites of a game that came out several years before, then you just haven't done your job. I'm not completely put off on the games. I may try them again soon once I'm on vacation next week. However if I'm going to have to play that level of graphics I might as well be playing the awesome Link's Awakening.

Another thing is that the changing seasons really complicates maneuvering. It's ... grating.

I have Link's Awakening too; I was kind of giving up on the Gameboy Color games after the Oracles, but since you're making that comparison, I'll give it a go once I have fewer Zelda games to play through.

Bowielee · Nov 19, 2013

If you're not using game guides, some secrets will be frustrating to find. Hint: burn all the bushes, bomb all the walls.

So, I finished the main campaign of Arkham Origins. With doing most of the wanted list side quests with the exception of the "Enigma" ones, it clocked in at 18 hours, so the game isn't nearly as short as some reviews purported. Overall, it was a pretty disappointing game. On the plus side, many of the bugs in the game have been patched, and I actually liked some of the villain quests, such as the Anarchy and Shiva quests, but most of them were simply: go here, use gadget A to disable this, or blow up that. Pretty boring. I did like the main storyline, particularly with the development of the Joker, though the "twist" was telegraphed from your very first crime scene. Speaking of which, one bright spot of the game was the detective work stuff. I thought that was the only real improvement over past games. The combat was pretty godawful, as has already been mentioned. I found myself pretty much mashing the counter button most of the time until I got the shock gloves. The two new enemy types sucked, particularly the martial artists. I hated the blade dodge in City and it's made even worse in this one as I felt like I was constantly using it.

The multiplayer looks interesting, but it will not stay active for long.

AshburnerX · Nov 19, 2013

I can't seem to get into Arkham City at all. It's nowhere near as well thought out as Arkham Asylum and the bullshit training to get new items is frustrating at the best of times. I do like the Catwoman bits though.

Ravenpoe · Nov 19, 2013

AshburnerX said:
I can't seem to get into Arkham City at all. It's nowhere near as well thought out as Arkham Asylum and the bullshit training to get new items is frustrating at the best of times. I do like the Catwoman bits though.

I just finished a playthrough of Arkham City, and I still found it to be as great as the first time. Asylum still has a better narrative, but I love City, and was sad to complete it again.

The only training you have to do for an item is the grapple boost, which is more a luxury item for moving faster around the city than anything necessary.

Fun Size · Nov 20, 2013

Me last night: Well, I'll just kill a few minutes playing Lego Marvel until my wife gets done putting the kids to bed. Grab a couple of gold bricks, maybe do a race or two. Just for a few annnnnnnd it way past my bedtime all of the sudden.

Shawn · Nov 20, 2013

Fun Size said:
Me last night: Well, I'll just kill a few minutes playing Lego Marvel until my wife gets done putting the kids to bed. Grab a couple of gold bricks, maybe do a race or two. Just for a few annnnnnnd it way past my bedtime all of the sudden.

You get to do things as a married man with kids? How can this be?

Gilgamesh · Nov 20, 2013

Shawnacy said:
You get to do things as a married man with kids? How can this be?

Yeah I get to as well, sorry Shawn.

Fun Size · Nov 20, 2013

In my case it stems from the fairly recent development of finding things she likes that I'm not interested in (The Good Wife), things I like that she's not interested in (Agents of Shield and video games), and planning on doing them at the same time through on-demand resources after the kids are in bed. Combined with things we like together, it works out. We get time together. We get time to ourselves. Sure, I don't play as many games as I like, but really, as a parent I've accepted that for a while I'm not going to do all sorts of things I like as much as I want.

My $.02.

Dei · Nov 20, 2013

Meanwhile, in my house, we all just play our video games all the time, while my kids complain that I get to play video games while they have to do homework.

GasBandit · Nov 20, 2013

A friend of mine has had to all but give up gaming, except when he can sneak on when his wife is out of the house. His wife has major insecurity/control issues and harangues him for not wanting to spend time with her or their 3 y/o daughter the instant he starts to play any game.

Oddly enough though, he can spend 5 straight hours in the garage tearing apart and rebuilding dash electronics and other tinkering and she never bats an eyelash.

Both myself and his brother are concerned, but we've said our piece and he's made his decision not to make a fuss about it, even though I can see in his eyes it's torture for him. I've known this guy since high school, we used to have marathon 12+ hour gaming sessions before she came along. She doesn't like to watch TV by herself so she makes him watch with her. For the first few years they had this compromise where he had a badass gaming laptop and sat next to her on the couch and gamed while she watched, but after a while even that wasn't enough.

When he goes out of town on business trips is the best, he can game with us from his hotel room after work.

Ravenpoe · Nov 20, 2013

Dei said:
Meanwhile, in my house, we all just play our video games all the time, while my kids complain that I get to play video games while they have to do homework.

Parenting!

Dei · Nov 20, 2013

Ravenpoe said:
Parenting!

Please, my kids are too old to fit in that cage.

Ravenpoe · Nov 20, 2013

Dei said:
Please, my kids are too old to fit in that cage.

Well that's your fault for feeding them.

Jay · Nov 20, 2013

As a parent of a 3 month old, my gaming habits have changed, mostly because I'm too TIRED to play. My wife gives me no qualms nor will she. I do my part, she does hers. Everyone has their hobby. I play when I can.

When Leyla will be older, she'll be playing games with me, particularly those she can learn stuff like math. For example, when Dragon Age 5 comes out and 30% of the content will be removed for Day 1 DLC I'll make her learn all about fractions.

"The EA Variable"

Gilgamesh · Nov 20, 2013

Jay said:
As a parent of a 3 month old, my gaming habits have changed, mostly because I'm too TIRED to play. My wife gives me no qualms nor will she. I do my part, she does hers. Everyone has their hobby. I play when I can.

When Leyla will be older, she'll be playing games with me, particularly those she can learn stuff like math. For example, when Dragon Age 5 comes out and 30% of the content will be removed for Day 1 DLC I'll make her learn all about fractions.

"The EA Variable"

True story right here. I play all type of games with my boys. We're on a SNES kick at the moment and my oldest son just finished Viewtiful Joe completely on his own with no strat guides. My daughter is more of a puzzler and does those with my wife when my wife isn't playing online games with me or party games with the boys. Again, we didn't start off this way, in the beginning my wife was one of those completely opposed to gaming type of people, which is why we didn't get married until we got on the same page (about other things as well but that was one of them).

Hailey Knight · Nov 20, 2013

Jay said:
As a parent of a 3 month old, my gaming habits have changed, mostly because I'm too TIRED to play. My wife gives me no qualms nor will she. I do my part, she does hers. Everyone has their hobby. I play when I can.

When Leyla will be older, she'll be playing games with me, particularly those she can learn stuff like math. For example, when Dragon Age 5 comes out and 30% of the content will be removed for Day 1 DLC I'll make her learn all about fractions.

"The EA Variable"

Perfect.

Yoshimickster · Nov 21, 2013

Rocket: Robot on Wheels

Suckerpunch's first game for the Nintendo 64, its really fun! Only one boss level, but the puzzles are clever and the levels are really fun. I also love the visual aesthetic similarities between this and the Sly games, how Whoopee looks like Murray and Jojo is the clear inspiration for Sly.

I'm also working on DK64 and I must ask, is it even POSSIBLE to beat the beetle in the Dessert world? Its freakin' impossible! And when you lose he just LAUGHS AT YOU with what is possibly the most annoying laugh in all existence.

Hailey Knight · Nov 21, 2013

After focusing on the single-player to finish the story and unlock all weapon types, I came back into the multi-player for Kid Icarus: Uprising and I was a fucking machine. Took top place in every Free-for-all match and won every Light vs Dark game (though credit there also goes to teammates). I hope people keep playing this for a long while; I know it's one of the older 3DS games at this point.

Yoshimickster said:
I'm also working on DK64 and I must ask, is it even POSSIBLE to beat the beetle in the Dessert world? Its freakin' impossible! And when you lose he just LAUGHS AT YOU with what is possibly the most annoying laugh in all existence.

It's possible, but you may drive yourself crazy doing it. I know I beat him because he wasn't one of the three last golden bananas I was missing ... before my illiterate little brother erased my game. I have three to go. THREE. Out of 200+ and some of them are fucking hard.

figmentPez · Nov 21, 2013

Yoshimickster said:
I'm also working on DK64 and I must ask, is it even POSSIBLE to beat the beetle in the Dessert world? Its freakin' impossible! And when you lose he just LAUGHS AT YOU with what is possibly the most annoying laugh in all existence.

That isn't the challenge that got me pulling out my hair. Lanky's races in the ice world were worse for me, or Diddy's aerial races in the world that has a day/night cycle.

Yoshimickster · Nov 21, 2013

Damn straight they are! Also with some of them you have to exit the damn level to be able to do a level again, like that Diddy Kong one with the robo fish? Its freakin' irksome. Also while I love this game, the water level is the most irksome thing in the history of forever and makes me want to smash my head against a wall.

bhamv3 · Nov 28, 2013

Skyrim

I finally have a rig capable of playing it, and thanks to the Steam sale, I finally got it at an acceptable price.

After having played New Vegas for so long, and growing accustomed to the devastation in the Mojave, I feel like there's so much going on on-screen. It's a bit overwhelming at first. I'm sure I'll get used to it though. I created a Redguard character, the idea being I want to keep everything as simple as possible for my first playthrough; if there's a problem, I'm going to smack it with a mace until it's no longer a problem.

The game's pretty immersive and atmospheric so far. I'm on my way to deliver the message to the Jarl. Had fun making detours along the way, chasing down deer and smacking them with my mace.

Yoshimickster · Nov 28, 2013

I BEAT THE BEETLE! I can die happy now, hearing his cries of SORROW! THATS FOR SPINNING INTO ME YOU PRICK!

I am also working on Banjo Kazooie, specifically working on the Clanker level where you have to spin the key while swimming on limited freakin' OXYGEN! Damn 90s platformers were hardcore.

figmentPez · Nov 28, 2013

Yoshimickster said:
I am also working on Banjo Kazooie, specifically working on the Clanker level where you have to spin the key while swimming on limited freakin' OXYGEN! Damn 90s platformers were hardcore.

Yes, I had a lot of trouble with that one, until I figured out that you don't push the key to turn it, you just swim through the handle.

Yoshimickster · Nov 28, 2013

figmentPez said:
Yes, I had a lot of trouble with that one, until I figured out that you don't push the key to turn it, you just swim through the handle.

Just beat that part, and I can't believe how simple it was. I thought when it went back to the original way it was resetting and had to start AAAAAAAAAAAALL over. Seriously thanks man, I woulda been at this for hours if I didn't know I was doin' something wrong.

bhamv3 · Nov 29, 2013

Goddam Skyrim is awesome.

I finished the quest in Bleak Falls Barrow, and when I left the cave, it was the middle of the night, so I emerged from the cave to see a stunningly beautiful aurora borealis staring me in the face. So I just sat there for a few minutes, staring into the sky.

Skyrim isn't a game, it's an experience.

I can't believe I have to spend the whole weekend visiting inlaws, and won't be playing any Skyrim.

Jay · Nov 29, 2013

Skyrim made November/December feel short as fuck.

Ravenpoe · Nov 29, 2013

bhamv3 said:
Goddam Skyrim is awesome.

I finished the quest in Bleak Falls Barrow, and when I left the cave, it was the middle of the night, so I emerged from the cave to see a stunningly beautiful aurora borealis staring me in the face. So I just sat there for a few minutes, staring into the sky.

Skyrim isn't a game, it's an experience.

I can't believe I have to spend the whole weekend visiting inlaws, and won't be playing any Skyrim.

Skyrim is a game that you really have to have the right mindset to enjoy, and it sounds like you do. It's a sandbox. It's full of what game devs like to call "Emergent Gameplay." You have to be willing to be lost in the world and understand that this is the experience, and to go out and find your own adventure.

Frank · Nov 29, 2013

It's too bad we'll never have the Skyrim that launched again, with all it's wonderfully insane glitches. When the guy I was escorting survived a huge battle with some raider thugs decided to just walk off the side of a cliff, I couldn't stop laughing. Those early Skyrim times were the greatest.

Jay · Nov 29, 2013

Frank said:
It's too bad we'll never have the Skyrim that launched again, with all it's wonderfully insane glitches. When the guy I was escorting survived a huge battle with some raider thugs decided to just walk off the side of a cliff, I couldn't stop laughing. Those early Skyrim times were the greatest.

The best were then patch that derped dragons

They flew backwards and if you managed to take then down they move backwards with they neck under their body.

Bethesda QA triumphed greatly

Frank · Nov 30, 2013

Against my usual judgment, I decided to look around at my expensive ass ship in the Star Citizen hangar.

And now I want to be put into stasis with the timer set to the release date of this game.

I'm gonna post some screeeeeeeenz.

The buddy who is going to play this with me was contemplating one of the 5000 dollar packages so he could get the 10 man carrier and every other ship. I told him he's nuts while secretly wanting to do the same thing.

Bowielee · Nov 30, 2013

Jay said:
The best were then patch that derped dragons

They flew backwards and if you managed to take then down they move backwards with they neck under their body.

Bethesda QA triumphed greatly

Did they keep the giants launching you into the air? I haven't played in a while. I understand that it was orginally a bug but they may have kept it in because people loved it.