I decided to start making my way through some of the older Zelda games. I didn’t really play them until BoTW and ToTK.
I just finished the first game: The Legend of Zelda. I never got into it as a kid. I was more of a Dragon Warrior kid, mainly because I got a free version with Nintendo Power. It really brought me back to that, and having the giant map unfolded in the living room trying to find my way around. Kids have it easy these days.
Overall I enjoyed it from a nostalgia perspective. It’s amazing how far video games have come in my lifetime so far. It’s definitely lacking in any real story other than save the princess, but it’s interesting to see some of the themes that are still present in the modern games.
I think I’ll probably skip Zelda 2, and go right to Link to the Past next.
I just finished the first game: The Legend of Zelda. I never got into it as a kid. I was more of a Dragon Warrior kid, mainly because I got a free version with Nintendo Power. It really brought me back to that, and having the giant map unfolded in the living room trying to find my way around. Kids have it easy these days.
Overall I enjoyed it from a nostalgia perspective. It’s amazing how far video games have come in my lifetime so far. It’s definitely lacking in any real story other than save the princess, but it’s interesting to see some of the themes that are still present in the modern games.
I think I’ll probably skip Zelda 2, and go right to Link to the Past next.
someone made a zelda 2 remake, thats generally the way they are telling people to go, its much more balanced.
I mentioned earlier today that I traded some games for the entire Uplifting Adventures bundle. I didn't have anything else today, so I've been playing some of them today.
Smushi Comes Home
An adorable, but not very challenging platformer. What it lacks in challenge, it more than makes up for in charm. I beat it, and mostly completed it, after only 3 hours. One of those games to play if you don't feel like playing a long or terribly challenging game. But you'll still walk away with a smile on your face.
Bear & Breakfast
I like it...for the most part. Unlike something like Stardew Valley, there's not a lot to do in between waiting for people to come and go to your inn(s). There wasn't much in the way of side games or collecting other things to keep you busy during the day. It seems like most of it is "Unlock area, fix up another inn, rent it out." But there's just not enough to keep me engaged. Which is a shame because it's cute, and charming. But the core gameplay loop is severely lacking.
Smushi Comes Home
An adorable, but not very challenging platformer. What it lacks in challenge, it more than makes up for in charm. I beat it, and mostly completed it, after only 3 hours. One of those games to play if you don't feel like playing a long or terribly challenging game. But you'll still walk away with a smile on your face.
Bear & Breakfast
I like it...for the most part. Unlike something like Stardew Valley, there's not a lot to do in between waiting for people to come and go to your inn(s). There wasn't much in the way of side games or collecting other things to keep you busy during the day. It seems like most of it is "Unlock area, fix up another inn, rent it out." But there's just not enough to keep me engaged. Which is a shame because it's cute, and charming. But the core gameplay loop is severely lacking.
Doing another playthrough of Psychonauts 2, as while I respect Double Fine's choice to close the gates to the factory on this one, I NEED MORE PSYCHONAUTS!!!
Or like, at LEAST a bonus level or something, one that utilizes the full aspect of all your upgraded Psi-powers. Or a spin off about Dr. Loboto, I'm easy!
Or like, at LEAST a bonus level or something, one that utilizes the full aspect of all your upgraded Psi-powers. Or a spin off about Dr. Loboto, I'm easy!
I may give it a try. I’m just not looking for a game where I have to grind a bunch of levels right now. But maybe it’s not as bad as I’m imagining it.someone made a zelda 2 remake, thats generally the way they are telling people to go, its much more balanced.
figmentPez
Staff member
LEGO DC Super Villains
Just finished 100%-ing this one. I love the LEGO games. They're not revolutionary, but each new one adds just a few QOL improvements, and it's clear that they're made by people who understand fandom.
A Little to the Left
I got this one from my sister for Christmas, and it's fantastic. It's a chill little puzzle game where you organize objects.
Just finished 100%-ing this one. I love the LEGO games. They're not revolutionary, but each new one adds just a few QOL improvements, and it's clear that they're made by people who understand fandom.
A Little to the Left
I got this one from my sister for Christmas, and it's fantastic. It's a chill little puzzle game where you organize objects.
Rogue Trader is scratching some CRPG itches I did not know I had.
Being in charge of a minor interstellar empire in a totally RPG setting is neato. I also dig that your ship is so large that while you're cruising around planets doing CRPG things, you have random encounters inside your vast kilometers long (small for the Imperium) ship with tens of thousands of crew members. You'll be called down to the lower decks to quell a rebellion or investigate something. Very neat.
Being in charge of a minor interstellar empire in a totally RPG setting is neato. I also dig that your ship is so large that while you're cruising around planets doing CRPG things, you have random encounters inside your vast kilometers long (small for the Imperium) ship with tens of thousands of crew members. You'll be called down to the lower decks to quell a rebellion or investigate something. Very neat.
Rogue Trader is fucking great, except for the times where it's totally bullshit trash. Chapter 3 is the worst gaming experience I've had in quite a while.
Also those cruising events are fun for as long as the unique events last; if you're fully exploring the systems it pretty quickly devolves to getting 3 or 4 functionally identical, totally irrelevant combats each time you're going from point A to B, effectively just padding the length of the game with repetition and tedium.
And again, I really like a lot about the game. The first two chapters are the most fun I've had with a new game in quite a while. Just think the whole experience would have been less rough if I'd known going in that the whole thing wasn't going to be up to that standard. Also, get Toybox and be ready to figure out how to solve some bugs on your own. There is a LOT of outright broken nonsense in the later parts of the game, and while they're plugging away with patches it hasn't been exactly quick or all-encompassing.
It's an Owlcat game. In 6 months once they're done finishing the latter half of the game, I'm sure it will be better like all the Pathfinder games were.
It sucks, but at least I know what I'm in for at this point and Owlcat is one of the the only companies putting out massive crunchy CRPGs.
It sucks, but at least I know what I'm in for at this point and Owlcat is one of the the only companies putting out massive crunchy CRPGs.
I will say one thing I don't fucking even begin to understand is the percent to hit chance when using a burst weapon. 8 percent to hit me, 80% to hit the giant Chaos Spawn, 0% to hit the Seneschal guy whose name escapes me. Sister of Battle just obliterates the Seneschal guy without hitting me or the spawn once. Hit him 4 times, crits each hit and kills him outright. That ability she gets to allow allies to autododge her burst attacks is so fucking crucial I don't even try to aim a burst near one of my guys without it.
Also, the unsanctioned psyker lady (again name escapes me) is SO much more powerful than Henrik or any psyker you could build yourself. That +1 psy power is unbelievably strong and the increased perils chance is so minor that I don't get why you wouldn't always use her.
Forge World origin is busted too. That cybernetic upgrade is so much better than any of the other origin world bonuses. It even gets a good dumpstat AND comes with a feat to completely negate the dumpstat entirely. I wracked my brain over the others and none of them came mechanically close.
So the game does have some balance issues, but then, so does the 40K universe in general.
Also, the unsanctioned psyker lady (again name escapes me) is SO much more powerful than Henrik or any psyker you could build yourself. That +1 psy power is unbelievably strong and the increased perils chance is so minor that I don't get why you wouldn't always use her.
Forge World origin is busted too. That cybernetic upgrade is so much better than any of the other origin world bonuses. It even gets a good dumpstat AND comes with a feat to completely negate the dumpstat entirely. I wracked my brain over the others and none of them came mechanically close.
So the game does have some balance issues, but then, so does the 40K universe in general.
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A lot of the combat displays are like that. Bursts and area attacks have percentages that are at best tangential to the actual outcomes, listed damage ranges are sometimes off by orders of magnitude with no real way of knowing until you take the shot (I've had some listed with a range of 150-200 that ended up hitting for ~30, and some listed at 200-230 that ended up dealing 800). The plus side is that you get way more and better options for gear as you go on and eventually get to start making coherent builds for characters to let them perform more consistently.
The absolute worst of it is in the first couple chapters when you have allies for some fights, and those allies have and prioritize using their own burst and area shots. I swear to god they make a point of walking behind your squishiest characters before taking their shots.
The absolute worst of it is in the first couple chapters when you have allies for some fights, and those allies have and prioritize using their own burst and area shots. I swear to god they make a point of walking behind your squishiest characters before taking their shots.
I've used her my whole run and definitely her damage output is ridiculous, but some of the perils you can trigger are very capable of swinging fights against you, too. Extra enemies, aoe knockdown effects centred on herself, sometimes just one-shotting herself along with what she's hitting... Basically the reasons you wouldn't use her are a) roleplaying a Dogmatic character or b) you value consistency over maximum output. If there were an Ironman option, especially, she'd be the first character I'd bench.
I hate to say it but these bugbears with the game is kind of part of the charm for me too. These games being busted messes that barely hold together is as old as Fallout 1 (when I first became a PC gamer) for me.
Oh some sugar for the game. I love the officer class. A whole class built around absolutely supporting everyone else, being a force multiplier and bringing a ton of adaptability to a fight is really, really cool. Perfect PC class for this game really. Obviously I haven't hit the second archetype selection, but I'm stoked to see where character building goes.
Oh some sugar for the game. I love the officer class. A whole class built around absolutely supporting everyone else, being a force multiplier and bringing a ton of adaptability to a fight is really, really cool. Perfect PC class for this game really. Obviously I haven't hit the second archetype selection, but I'm stoked to see where character building goes.
That excites me. So far, the only thing she's done is do 1 damage to everyone and 5 damage to herself and I'm like....this is it?
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I finished my first Rogue Trader playthrough, and for the most part the things I said before hold up. The game is fun, VERY 40k, and buggy almost to the point of being impenetrable. I got ending slides that were fully contradicting each other, and pretty much back to back at that. All of the numbers for reputation gains - both with other factions and with the game's alignment systems - are totally out of whack, to the point where some of them are impossible to max out without cheating. Some achievements just don't trigger, and other wait until you've loaded your game again or trigger at random. All told, I absolutely can't recommend that anyone buy the game at full price in the state it's in.
I also jumped right back in for another run on max difficulty.
I also jumped right back in for another run on max difficulty.
Dave
Staff member
Just started playing this game. Really like it so far.
figmentPez
Staff member
A Tiny Sticker Tale
Tiny is right, this is a short game. It's kinda like someone mixed a point & click adventure game with Animal Crossing and then miniaturized it. It's fun, and has some cute game mechanics, but it's probably not worth the full $10 price point. I got my copy with Prime Gaming.
Tiny is right, this is a short game. It's kinda like someone mixed a point & click adventure game with Animal Crossing and then miniaturized it. It's fun, and has some cute game mechanics, but it's probably not worth the full $10 price point. I got my copy with Prime Gaming.
figmentPez
Staff member
Small Saga
This one I didn't play, but watched Dodger's Let's Play of the game, and it's really good. If you're a fan of 16-bit era turn based RPGs, then you might want to give this one a look. The main character is a mouse, and it's got Redwall / Mouse Guard / Secret of Nimh vibes. The pixel art is absolutely fantastic, and the story is well told. It's also a zero grinding game, with no random encounters. There's lots of LGBTQ representation, and some internet meme references (one of the healing items is a reference to the King's Hand.)
This one I didn't play, but watched Dodger's Let's Play of the game, and it's really good. If you're a fan of 16-bit era turn based RPGs, then you might want to give this one a look. The main character is a mouse, and it's got Redwall / Mouse Guard / Secret of Nimh vibes. The pixel art is absolutely fantastic, and the story is well told. It's also a zero grinding game, with no random encounters. There's lots of LGBTQ representation, and some internet meme references (one of the healing items is a reference to the King's Hand.)
City of Heroes
Well shit. I got home from work tonight and was in the mood for City of Heroes. For the rest of the night, I played multiple missions with random pick-up groups.
And I got to ham it up as Doug the Troll the whole time. Doug's comedy routines came back to me so naturally, it was like slipping on a comfortable old pair of pants. When one person fell and was waiting to be resurrected, I had Doug sit, stick his smelly feet by their head, and said "Here! Smell Doug feet! Them like smelling salts!" Which got multiple laugh reactions from the team.
Plus, I'm a pretty good tanker as Doug, in between the jokes, so my teammates seemed to appreciate me. Another tanker joined the team who said they were just learning how to tank. Someone else on the team said, "Just follow what Doug does."
At one point, I got overwhelmed and dropped by some enemies. One of the few times we had any casualties, honestly. While I waited for my team to resurrect me, I typed "*snore*" or variations of it. Then I said "No, clowns! Doug no want to join circus!"
A teammate responded "Shit, guys, he's having the clown dream again!" I hadn't even done any clown jokes or references up until then, but they still went right along with it.
It's unexpected reactions like that that I love about this game and doing Doug's antics.
Well shit. I got home from work tonight and was in the mood for City of Heroes. For the rest of the night, I played multiple missions with random pick-up groups.
And I got to ham it up as Doug the Troll the whole time. Doug's comedy routines came back to me so naturally, it was like slipping on a comfortable old pair of pants. When one person fell and was waiting to be resurrected, I had Doug sit, stick his smelly feet by their head, and said "Here! Smell Doug feet! Them like smelling salts!" Which got multiple laugh reactions from the team.
Plus, I'm a pretty good tanker as Doug, in between the jokes, so my teammates seemed to appreciate me. Another tanker joined the team who said they were just learning how to tank. Someone else on the team said, "Just follow what Doug does."
At one point, I got overwhelmed and dropped by some enemies. One of the few times we had any casualties, honestly. While I waited for my team to resurrect me, I typed "*snore*" or variations of it. Then I said "No, clowns! Doug no want to join circus!"
A teammate responded "Shit, guys, he's having the clown dream again!" I hadn't even done any clown jokes or references up until then, but they still went right along with it.
It's unexpected reactions like that that I love about this game and doing Doug's antics.
So I'm playing some more XCOM 2 using the Long War of the Chosen mod.
If you have the War of the Chosen DLC in XCOM 2, then after every successful mission, the game will allow you to take a commemorative photo and make a poster out of it. If you choose not to make your own poster, the game will create one for you based on the specifics of that mission: it'll take the soldiers that took part in that mission, put them in a variety of random dramatic poses, and stick them somewhere on the map where the mission took place. Then the game will take a picture and then stick a proapanda slogan somewhere on it to create the final poster. Usually the results are fairly good, if a bit generic:
However, because computers are stupid, they can't tell when some part of the map's scenery is blocking the shot. Usually this isn't a big problem, because even if there's something in the way, the final result is still acceptable, with most if not all of the soldiers in view, eg:
and
Or at least I thought so until the computer gave me this:
If you have the War of the Chosen DLC in XCOM 2, then after every successful mission, the game will allow you to take a commemorative photo and make a poster out of it. If you choose not to make your own poster, the game will create one for you based on the specifics of that mission: it'll take the soldiers that took part in that mission, put them in a variety of random dramatic poses, and stick them somewhere on the map where the mission took place. Then the game will take a picture and then stick a proapanda slogan somewhere on it to create the final poster. Usually the results are fairly good, if a bit generic:
However, because computers are stupid, they can't tell when some part of the map's scenery is blocking the shot. Usually this isn't a big problem, because even if there's something in the way, the final result is still acceptable, with most if not all of the soldiers in view, eg:
and
Or at least I thought so until the computer gave me this:
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Not all of them! For example, I also have huge robots.
(And I can't put the robots in corsets and hotpants.)
GasBandit
Staff member
Speaking as someone who has seen my Conan bases, you should realize they are much more fully dressed than "half dressed" could actually turn out to be.
Has anyone tried Palworld?
GasBandit
Staff member
My GF's kids are nuts about it.
Oh thank god I can scratch that game off the list, I've got too much to play already
I like Dunkey and I do admittedly like the game so bias sure but that's the most reductive video he's ever made. All he needs to say is he doesn't like survival games and it could have been 9 minutes shorter. It's also odd to focus and complain about having to craft things/grow when it's one of the better games for allowing you to automate so you don't need to do that yourself.
And I dunno why he'd be surprised that a level 6 pal barely damaged a level 16?
And I dunno why he'd be surprised that a level 6 pal barely damaged a level 16?
KNACK 2, BABY! *sings "Here Comes the Money"*
Jeez, Palworld doesn't have any concept art at all. There's literally zero 2D concepts, documents or anything of any kind. They apparently STARTED designing with 3D models and, what do you know, they're almost directly lifted from recent Pokemon games with some slight alterations.
Who knew a crypto/AI asshole CEO with a company that literally didn't include artists and didn't know what 3D rigging was could manage to put out such a feature rich game so quickly.
I WONDER HOW?
Who knew a crypto/AI asshole CEO with a company that literally didn't include artists and didn't know what 3D rigging was could manage to put out such a feature rich game so quickly.
I WONDER HOW?