What Are You Playing?

Walter

Administrator
Staff member
Sounds like an awfully familiar big new addition...


Is EMMI the Nemesis to SA-X's Mr. X?

The EMMI are absolutely the evolution of SA-X, the director even said as much in an interview for Dread. But its pathing and scripting are far more advanced, tough to fool and to escape, making it pretty fucking scary.

As for what inspired Dread’s robot enemies, Sakamoto told reporters on a Zoom call through a translator this week, “That would be Metroid Fusion, and that would be the SA-X gameplay. [...] The whole entire concept hasn’t changed over these 15 years. Really, it was that Samus, this powerful warrior, would be confronted with some overwhelming enemy that would chase her. That was the idea.”

Also, does this game literally have Adam in it giving you directions as well... but, uh, more subtly? =)

Same schtick, but he's not as overbearing. Fewer interactions with him, and he provides you with general objectives, not "go fix the air conditioning unit, you fucking pleb." Oh, and he regularly provides you with blunt updates on how underpowered you are. A real sweet talker! But most of the zone to zone exploration happens with only light commentary from him. Nothing on the level of the Fusion talk, which from memory went something like this: "THE NEXT ZONE IS VERY COLD AND YOU WILL BE INJURED BY THE COLD. SO WHEN YOU GO INTO THE COLD ZONE TAKE CAUTION THAT YOU DO NOT LOSE YOUR LIFE. NOW GO DO IT." Fuckin shut uppppppp :schierke:
 
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Griffith

With the streak of a tear, Like morning dew
The EMMI are absolutely the evolution of SA-X, the director even said as much in an interview for Dread. But its pathing and scripting are far more advanced, tough to fool and to escape, making it pretty fucking scary.

What's funny is before you edited your post my internet was acting up and crashed so I just saw what was seemingly the quote from the director and you saying like, "ugh, shut the fuck up!" :ganishka:

Same schtick, but he's not as overbearing. Fewer interactions with him, and he provides you with general objectives, not "go fix the air conditioning unit, you fucking pleb." Oh, and he regularly provides you with blunt updates on how underpowered you are. A real sweet talker! But most of the zone to zone exploration happens with only light commentary from him. Nothing on the level of the Fusion talk, which from memory went something like this: "THE NEXT ZONE IS VERY COLD AND YOU WILL BE INJURED BY THE COLD. SO WHEN YOU GO INTO THE COLD ZONE TAKE CAUTION THAT YOU DO NOT LOSE YOUR LIFE. NOW GO DO IT." Fuckin shut uppppppp :schierke:

Boy, you really hated him! I kind of enjoyed the company honestly, and the genre appropriate play on Hal 9000 and Bishop with an AI you weren't sure you could trust, so I wasn't nearly as bothered by him. I even liked the payoff, but don't know how I feel about him becoming a recurring character after the fact. Are they trampling sacred Adam ground here? =)

I'll also say, not to pick a fight with everybody, that since I didn't play Super Metroid as much in its time, I'm not nearly as beholden to its way of doing everything. Were they really engaging in a brilliant "found" narrative experience, or were they just giving you nothing like basically every old NES game? I'd say the same about the Souls games to be fair, is it brilliant world-building and found storytelling, or just a brilliant work-around for bone-thin material?
 

Walter

Administrator
Staff member
For me, a deep sense of atmosphere and isolation were crucial to making games like Metroid and Super Metroid work well. And then in waltzes Fusion with fully lit rooms on a space station, with a non-stop-blabbing AI telling you exactly what to do in each numerally demarcated zone. So yeah... that one just wasn't for me! Also... Samus looks weird and dumb throughout most of that game. The blueberry-banana swimsuit look doesn't do it for me.
 
I watched a review of Resident Evil 4 VR and I'm surprised to say that it looks good! This is also the solution to the problem I had with this game's awful controls. I don't have a VR set unfortunately, nor would I want to buy one just for RE4.

You guys going to bother with this one?

---

Still playing Eastward. What a charming little game, but man can it be dark at times. Finally unlocked a gun and a flamethrower. They're pretty satisfying to use along with that legendary frying pan.

Also going for another run in Demon's Souls, on NG+4. Man, they hit really hard on this level. Its easy to forget how nerfed the other Souls titles can be sometimes.
 

Griffith

With the streak of a tear, Like morning dew
Diablo II Resurrected - Finally hit Act III on Hell and man is it a slog now. I think if I'm going to actually finish this with this build I'm just going to run/leap/whirlwind to the bosses and basically skip the mobs. They're just too strong with my current gear.

For me, a deep sense of atmosphere and isolation were crucial to making games like Metroid and Super Metroid work well. And then in waltzes Fusion with fully lit rooms on a space station, with a non-stop-blabbing AI telling you exactly what to do in each numerally demarcated zone. So yeah... that one just wasn't for me!

Well, it had a different sort of atmosphere and kind of isolation on the station, and it being the different one from the rest in this regard makes it distinct; again, I also think a lot of that, including the brighter color palette, has to do with its handheld design. I mean, you wouldn't call Link's Awakening a failure for not being in color and having smaller areas. I appreciate it's no replacement for Super Metroid, but it's not supposed to be.

Also... Samus looks weird and dumb throughout most of that game. The blueberry-banana swimsuit look doesn't do it for me.

I like your unwavering pettiness for this game, it's only getting stronger as we go; it reminds me of me when I really sink my teeth into something I DON'T like! I think you hate it more than I like it too, I just think it's a nice little game for a GBA iteration of the franchise, but I guess it's stepping lightly into big shoes.

I watched a review of Resident Evil 4 VR and I'm surprised to say that it looks good! This is also the solution to the problem I had with this game's awful controls. I don't have a VR set unfortunately, nor would I want to buy one just for RE4.

You guys going to bother with this one?

I absolutely would if it ever comes to PC in some fashion or if I got a Quest II. I mean, this is one of the best games ever so it shouldn't be surprising it's good if they put any serious thought into it.

Also going for another run in Demon's Souls, on NG+4. Man, they hit really hard on this level. Its easy to forget how nerfed the other Souls titles can be sometimes.

Yeah, it's no joke, once you hit +3 or +4 it's one or two hit kills even if you have decent world/character tendency, and if you don't watch out... I finally lost interest sadly, not because it got too hard, I was actually getting more OP, but it just sort of petered out after so much repetitiveness. Not as bad as D2 though!
 
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Aazealh

Administrator
Staff member
Anyway, I gotta play this, I dig all the 2D Metroids, including Zero and Fusion, and would have finished Samus Returns if all the buttons on my 3DS' didn't crap out halfway through.

Don't mind Walter and his irrational hatred of Fusion. :iva: It's great, and Metroid Dread is great too in its own modern way. Beyond just the EMMI, I think it's a total success as a mainline Metroid title in 2021. A tour de force, as they say. A must play.

I watched a review of Resident Evil 4 VR and I'm surprised to say that it looks good! This is also the solution to the problem I had with this game's awful controls. I don't have a VR set unfortunately, nor would I want to buy one just for RE4.

You guys going to bother with this one?

I've been playing it and it's great fun. It's been well adapted to VR with equipment you grab from your body and manual reloading of weapons, and the enemies and environments have been touched up enough that it "looks as good as I remember, for the time it was made" instead of "wow, was it that low res back then?". Now, it's not perfect: having all the cutscenes play in a "virtual theater" where you see them in 2D just takes you off the game for example and that's too bad. I'm guessing they had no way of adapting them gracefully, so this was the "least bad" option. Not a deal breaker, but not great. The weapons and grenades handling is also not as good as in made-for-VR games. It's never fun to grab a grenade only to realize you just grabbed the pin, with the grenade then exploding in your face.

The superior aiming and movement also arguably makes the game much easier, but I've still died a few times despite that! Hah! The thing is that you do get swarmed at times and there are plenty of traps and other ambush-like situations where Ashley can easily get killed or swept away, and in those cases calmly aiming for their heads with your pistol to conserve ammo just isn't the best option. All of this to say that it remains decently challenging as a 2021 game if you're going for a "no deaths, minimal saves" run like I am.

Last thing: it's the biggest, longest Resident Evil game by far, which also automatically makes it one of the longest story-driven VR games. Great value, especially for people who've never played it before. It's only available on the Oculus Quest 2, of which a new model will be announced tomorrow.
 

Griffith

With the streak of a tear, Like morning dew
Diablo II Reclickerrected - I've finally finished my "Hell Build," it utilizes the Leap skill to bypass every area and then I chip the boss to death with Concentrate. I think I can finish this weekend if I put my mind to it.

Don't mind Walter and his irrational hatred of Fusion. :iva: It's great, and Metroid Dread is great too in its own modern way. Beyond just the EMMI, I think it's a total success as a mainline Metroid title in 2021. A tour de force, as they say. A must play.

I actually got some hands on time with Dread myself, just the opening area, and... I'm assuming it's going to develop into much more than Samus Returns for Switch? =)

Coming full circle, I didn't like speak-n-spell voice Adam, bring back the creepy text version that tells you exactly what to do and not just that cold is bad for you!

I've been playing it and it's great fun. It's been well adapted to VR with equipment you grab from your body and manual reloading of weapons, and the enemies and environments have been touched up enough that it "looks as good as I remember, for the time it was made" instead of "wow, was it that low res back then?".

Looks like fun, but I'm not really hankering for it; there's a lot of great classic games available in VR that always leave you wanting because, like you get to and have always said, it's just better to play VR games in VR. That said, I need to get back to Skyrim VR! The weird thing about VR, and I actually made a real life VR acquaintance at work, is I'll play it exclusively for months, and then go away from it for months. I still haven't even tried the official wirelessly tethered Quest! But it grows cold, good VR weather, better clean the computer room...

Fuckin eh, I actually played untethered Alyx in the living room while my wife did virtual teaching on the same PC in the office, and apparently I started moving the mouse around her shared screen trying to open it in steam! Ah, the pandemic life, how I'll miss... er, nothing about it, so glad that's over.

Now, it's not perfect: having all the cutscenes play in a "virtual theater" where you see them in 2D just takes you off the game for example and that's too bad. I'm guessing they had no way of adapting them gracefully, so this was the "least bad" option. Not a deal breaker, but not great.

The Doom 3 VR fan mod I played did a great job of making cutscenes dynamic, so you're still in the scene in VR from multiple angles, like actually watching a movie designed for VR as I'm sure you're very familiar with, and I think would have been a much better approach for the scenes that don't feature Leon viewing them in first person.

It's only available on the Oculus Quest 2, of which a new model will be announced tomorrow.

This is a great flex by you, "They're announcing what I already know tomorrow." =)
 
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Aazealh

Administrator
Staff member
I actually got some hands on time with Dread myself, just the opening area, and... I'm assuming it's going to develop into much more than Samus Returns for Switch? =)

The first 20 minutes are a bit awkward but it only gets better from there!

Looks like fun, but I'm not really hankering for it; there's a lot of great classic games available in VR that always leave you wanting because, like you get to and have always said, it's just better to play VR games in VR. That said, I need to get back to Skyrim VR! The weird thing about VR, and I actually made a real life VR acquaintance at work, is I'll play it exclusively for months, and then go away from it for months.

Yeah, same for me. I'll play a bunch for a while, then not so much, then again... I think it's a function of the still limited content. Same goes for game consoles in my case: I only play when a game I like comes out. And yeah, while RE4 is great in VR, it's still just a port in the end. An actual Resident Evil game developed for VR from the ground up would be so much better it's hard to describe. Anyway, they're also bringing GTA: San Andreas to Quest 2 in the future, so it seems like they're happy with that strategy. Personally I'm still waiting for a GREAT way to play untethered PC games, because I never got a dedicated Wi-Fi router just for it. I feel like that'll seriously revive PCVR when it happens.

The Doom 3 VR fan mod I played did a great job of making cutscenes dynamic, so you're still in the scene in VR from multiple angles, like actually watching a movie designed for VR as I'm sure you're very familiar with, and I think would have been a much better approach for the scenes that don't feature Leon viewing them in first person.

Indeed, would have been a better way to handle it. I'm sure the devs had a reason for doing what they did, but... yeah, it's too bad. Still, for all of that, it's awesome to play the game like that.

This is a great flex by you, "They're announcing what I already know tomorrow." =)

Images had leaked online. :iva:
 

Griffith

With the streak of a tear, Like morning dew
The first 20 minutes are a bit awkward but it only gets better from there!

Well, I'll spend some more time with it. It's already in my top 3 Switch games I want to play along with Mario Odyssey and Link's Awakening. BotW2 will be #1 upon release barring it somehow being much worse than its predecessor, though they're taking so long it'll surely release on Switch 2 or share the original's fate, and Twilight Princess', as a dual release.

Yeah, same for me. I'll play a bunch for a while, then not so much, then again... I think it's a function of the still limited content. Same goes for game consoles in my case: I only play when a game I like comes out.

Yep, same, I have to feel the need, no matter how well regarded or recommended a title is (sorry, Monster Hunter). And if I do feel it then logic goes out the window. The PS5 was basically a DeS player for me, now it collects dust while I play a 20 year old game. But, no regrets, it'll get more must play games for me soon enough.:shrug:

Speaking of flexing, I recouped 2/3rds the cost selling my PS4 and a big game bundle of titles I still have access to through PS Now. USA! USA! Sell those PS4s, 3DSes and Switches while they're hot folks. Man, I wish I'd bought that SNES model New 3DS XL Amazon exclusive for $150 (came with Mario Kart too). Or the fucking Link Between Worlds model I bought and returned. At the time they would have been splurges, now they're steals I'll never see again and I actually fuckin' need one!

And yeah, while RE4 is great in VR, it's still just a port in the end. An actual Resident Evil game developed for VR from the ground up would be so much better it's hard to describe.

They're so close with RE7/8 too, but it'll never happen until Capcom can sell 5 million units on it.

Anyway, they're also bringing GTA: San Andreas to Quest 2 in the future, so it seems like they're happy with that strategy.

They're porting the wrong Rockstar game, San Andreas was great and was even my "dream game" back in the day (California Mischief Simulator =), but it hasn't aged terribly well visually unless they completely overhaul and I doubt they will. To me this is like learning they're porting the original Super Mario Bros to VR, like who even fucking wants that? Anyway, GTAV was the obvious choice since it is to be released on every new system in perpetuity, but they should have ported Red Dead 2 because that could have been really special.

Personally I'm still waiting for a GREAT way to play untethered PC games, because I never got a dedicated Wi-Fi router just for it. I feel like that'll seriously revive PCVR when it happens.

I had it man, there's no going back, and I didn't even get a special router or anything, I just got lucky the logistics of my setup happened to come together and actually work.

Indeed, would have been a better way to handle it. I'm sure the devs had a reason for doing what they did, but... yeah, it's too bad. Still, for all of that, it's awesome to play the game like that.

I'm guessing it either didn't quite work, maybe depending on how those scenes were originally rendered, or they were trying to maintain the integrity and nostalgia of the original viewing experience, which would be weird since the whole point is completely changing the viewing experience.

Images had leaked online. :iva:

Hmmmm, the IP address of those leaks didn't happen to originate from France, did they? :carcus:
 

Aazealh

Administrator
Staff member
They're so close with RE7/8 too, but it'll never happen until Capcom can sell 5 million units on it.

Yeah, they could probably let twenty of their developers tinker in a corner for a while and come up with something neat. That said, I fully expect RE4 to sell over a million units, so we're getting somewhere.

They're porting the wrong Rockstar game, San Andreas was great and was even my "dream game" back in the day (California Mischief Simulator =), but it hasn't aged terribly well visually unless they completely overhaul and I doubt they will.

They'll be touching it up for sure, but as for what the result will be... Time will tell. The problem is that a game like GTA IV is still too graphically intense for mobile VR, let alone GTA V.

Hmmmm, the IP address of those leaks didn't happen to originate from France, did they? :carcus:

Nope, straight from their own servers! :ganishka:
 

Griffith

With the streak of a tear, Like morning dew
Yeah, they could probably let twenty of their developers tinker in a corner for a while and come up with something neat. That said, I fully expect RE4 to sell over a million units, so we're getting somewhere.

Great news, and RE7 had at least a million PSVR users, so that's something for them consider, especially if Sony takes PSVR to the next level (if they hadn't neglected it RE8 might have been VR too).

They'll be touching it up for sure, but as for what the result will be... Time will tell. The problem is that a game like GTA IV is still too graphically intense for mobile VR, let alone GTA V.

Well, you know me, fuck the mobile gaming user base, wirelessly tether that shit and give me the best! Alas, Rome wasn't built in a day...

Nope, straight from their own servers! :ganishka:

How... Meta.
 
I have been doing quite a few any% glitchless Dark Souls 3 runs as of late. If any of you have ever played the game, you all know how much of a raging bitch Pontiff Sulyvahn is, which kills a hell of a lot of runs for me. Even with practicing the fight, I have to say nearly 70% of my runs are tragically ruined by him. Sadly Pontiff really is not the biggest problem for me, it's usually just the tiny fuck ups that cause me to get a bad time. my best time is 3hr 23min so I wont be posting to speedrun.com for a while since I'm JUST now getting into this whole shebang.
 

Griffith

With the streak of a tear, Like morning dew
Metroid Dread - At first I didn't get what the hype was about, just seemed like more Samus Returns, which got really repetitive after a while, but now I'm into area 3, got the the Varia suit, etc, and am starting to see all the layers this game has. It's not just the different areas, or the EMMI, which aren't all the same themselves, and it's becoming a very satisfying, multifaceted experience. So, I see the potential now and look forward to how it all pays off. I just hope it doesn't reach that point most of these games do for me where it stagnates after you've seemingly explored everything you currently can and the path forward becomes like finding a needle in a haystack. I hate that.

Diablo II Resurrected - After conquering Hell with a Djinn Slayer, all that's left is gearing up to go Ubering, etc.

I have been doing quite a few any% glitchless Dark Souls 3 runs as of late. If any of you have ever played the game, you all know how much of a raging bitch Pontiff Sulyvahn is, which kills a hell of a lot of runs for me.

He was my first big problem in my last run, nothing so extreme or competitive as yours, and I believe the first to make me try switching from my twindagger Bloodborne build to using a straight sword because it's just such a bitch having no reach against that guy. I also tried just shredding him toe to toe with iron flesh and quickstep to compensate but I don't remember what worked ultimately. I may have started with the former and switched to the latter to more safely finish out the fight, and I know I resorted to embering as a final healing push.

Even with practicing the fight, I have to say nearly 70% of my runs are tragically ruined by him. Sadly Pontiff really is not the biggest problem for me, it's usually just the tiny fuck ups that cause me to get a bad time.

Precisely, you can master the bosses, but there's a lot more variables out in the world; even if you approach the same areas the same way the timing could be imperceptibly different and throw you a curve ball.

my best time is 3hr 23min so I wont be posting to speedrun.com for a while since I'm JUST now getting into this whole shebang.

Very impressive, I've never gone for speed, just degree of difficulty if anything, like trying some weird build or a no leveling run.
 
I beat Metroid Dread tonight. I really wish the completed files included a death counter because I’m very curious how many times I got destroyed.

Now I’m going to work on my backlog. Going to play Astral Chain a bit because I hit a gaming slump right at the end and didn’t finish it. Haven’t started Sekiro yet even though I’ve had a copy for about a year, so going to try it soon.
 
Nice! What'd you think of it overall?
Dread would have scared the shit out of me as a kid. :ganishka: I remember the SA-X in Fusion freaked me out when I was 10, I wouldn’t have been able to handle the EMMI. The EMMI zones gave Dread a unique game flow from the other 2D Metroids and it was always exciting when I’d manage to parry one. But I was definitely relieved when Samus finally had enough of their shit and just finished the last one on her own.

Pretty challenging boss fights but not overly punishing which was fine because I died A LOT. I wished the map screen was clearer about showing which items I had already acquired because that made getting 100% kinda tedious.

Samus going all wild eyed and screaming like a DBZ character while fucking up Raven Beak was hilarious.
 

Walter

Administrator
Staff member
Well, I finally finished Half Life: Alyx last night after over a year of procrastination on my part. A few hiccups aside, it's been one of my favorite game experiences. It was a joy to play, with amazing visuals, and pushed the boundaries for games in so many ways. Just to name two: I've never played through a prettier game, and the interactions with objects are incredible. Grabbing something from across the room with the gloves, or unloading a spent clip and grabbing a fresh one to reload then resighting the enemy and squeezing the trigger— these are such natural extensions of real interactions that going back to old-ass normal games suddenly felt like a massive step backwards. I've already written a lot about this stuff, though, so I'll keep it brief.

I'll admit that my heart wasn't really on fire when Alyx was announced. A VR game set in City 17 sounded promising. But I was really holding out for a continuation of the story Valve hadn't touched in 13 years. An episodic adventure with Alyx wasn't really what I was looking for. That was pretty naive in hindsight, because among many things, I took for granted how fucking cool exploring a high-fidelity City 17 in VR would be. But besides that pleasant and constant surprise, Alyx is much more than a missing puzzle piece that neatly slots in to before HL2. It's a big, bold game from people who grew up with Half-Life and wanted to breathe new life into it, and clearly don't want to see it end so unceremoniously. So, I really really hope they make another one some day, because this game absolutely teases more to come.
 

Griffith

With the streak of a tear, Like morning dew
Metroid Dread - Well, I finally finished it, and everything Walter said about it is true! It's a worthy successor to the throne, but also a modern take on the genre that isn't just trying to do Super Metroid again. This is a different world and a different gameflow that almost never stops propelling you forward, which is always the fatal flaw in these games to me (when halfway through the game it's stopped dead in its tracks while you figure out which power you have to use on which pixel in order to proceed =). Basically, while it has that open, explorative design that has you going back and forth all over the place, there's also a logical progression and flow for you to follow, like a current, even in how you revisit old areas; basically, without telling you explicitly what to do, if you go with the flow and keep moving forward you should progress naturally (I actually slowed myself down once or twice trying to backtrack). Plus, there's unexpected twists and turns with the environment along the way that feel truly consequential (so you're not just looking for keys to unlock static doors).

The best feature though is the combat. It's cliche to say, especially when talking about a well established classic genre and series here, but this game definitely has some modern Souls DNA injected in it like the Metroid genes in Samus' X vaccine. The variation in abilities and their application is truly remarkable, and the boss and sub-boss encounters are many and varied in breadth and kind, from giant full screen arcade monsters, to small speedy humanoids and wicked flyers, taking full advantage of what Samus can do. One load screen tip says it best, "No attack is unavoidable" and they expect you to learn how to avoid them. This isn't a game where you can just spam the attack button as fast as possible or go HAM with your missiles and win (though it helps if you can do so while staying alive =). You have to learn the matchups, you have to solve their moves, and you have to strive for perfection to win. You don't have to BE perfect, and actually healing is a factor in some fights (or even learning when to take a lesser hit rather than put yourself in a more vulnerable position, especially later), but if you think you can energy tank up and get hit regularly it's just not going to work out.

The EMMI are their own thing, and I properly hated them as one should. So many restarts, but it added a real change of pace and lived up to the title, especially as they kept adding new wrinkles. Actually parrying one was very exciting and I think I did it 8 times by my count, and it can really make the difference!

The game's final fight was great, a pain in the ass but totally fair so that once you've learned it you can beat it again with confidence... which I had to due to an unforseen mishap, but I relished the opportunity to have another go at him now that I knew all his tricks.

Finally, the plot was simple and not without cheese, like Aaz' said the weakest link, but they can't all be Fusion in this regard (Walter bait :troll:). It was still effective with some cool moments though, and it managed to reintroduce and incorporate a lot of elements from past games without it feeling like a retread, but an effective use of the established lore. I enjoyed the twists and turns, not so much for their pure plot value but for how it actually affected the game world, whether it was changes in the landscape or in the enemies you faced. Let me put it this way, if Super Metroid and Fusion were kind of like 80's slow burn action sci-fi from a plot standpoint, this was more like a Marvel movie. Anyway, very cool game, at least my second favorite of the year.

Well, I finally finished Half Life: Alyx last night after over a year of procrastination on my part. A few hiccups aside, it's been one of my favorite game experiences.

Hallelujah! Glad you loved it, and I no longer feel the imposter syndrome and shame of loving this while you, the most ardent and avowed Half-Life fan I know, hadn't yet. I felt like I was cavorting around with your girl or something. =)

going back to old-ass normal games suddenly felt like a massive step backwards.
Alyx is much more than a missing puzzle piece that neatly slots in to before HL2. It's a big, bold game from people who grew up with Half-Life and wanted to breathe new life into it, and clearly don't want to see it end so unceremoniously. So, I really really hope they make another one some day, because this game absolutely teases more to come.

Exactly, this may not technically be Half-Life 3, but it's definitely the spiritual fulfillment of it and maybe more. It's really undersold as a VR side game or spinoff when it's really more that if they called it Episode 3, Half-Life 3 or just the next mainline Half-Life game, as a VR exclusive, there'd have been a revolt (there practically was anyway, "waaaah, accessibility, waaaaah"). As I've said, people's expectations of HL3 weren't going to be fulfilled by just another modern FPS game; whereas, THIS is a worthy leap, but in order to do it they had to call it something else and sell it as some experiment... which it also is! Anyway, I'd be very disappointed if we don't get Alyx 2 or the next Half-Life game isn't at least VR compatible. I still say they should just do Half-Life 3 in VR now that they've put everyone on notice and laid the foundation, "You were warned."
 
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Aazealh

Administrator
Staff member
While waiting for "Triangle Strategy" (what a dumb name) I've been playing T-RPGs on the Switch from Rideon, namely the "Mercenaries" series. I'd bought a compilation of the first three games (originally created for phones in the mid-2000s) years ago and hadn't really played it much then. Well, I've since beaten that and the next game they did, Mercenaries Wings. I've got two left to do: Blaze, released a couple years ago I think, and Rebirth, which just came out. These two seem more advanced, with Rebirth maybe getting closer in ambition to landmark titles from 30 years ago.

Still, even as I played those first four titles, I wondered why I kept at it, because their storylines, dialogue and characters are just so terribly mediocre and uninspired. Sadly, it's also been my big worry about Triangle Strategy after I played the demo, which was super boring. It's all pretend politics and tries to take itself seriously, but no one cares about those fake kingdoms and their laughably telegraphed power relations. And yet I just like that genre enough that I'll mindlessly play through that drivel... At least until I get sick of it.

I guess this post is basically a roundabout way of begging Square Enix to bring Tactics Ogre and FFT to the Switch. :schnoz: More than that though I just wish this genre would get a renaissance of sorts, because it's great but has been deserted since its heyday in the 90s.
 

Griffith

With the streak of a tear, Like morning dew
Returnal - Rise from your grave! After finishing a real Metroid game, I still had a hankering for this sort of action and it's been a pleasant returnal (I already thought of this as sort of a contemporary take on Metroid, thematically if nothing else). Not least of which because they finally added a mid-run save feature, "Suspend Cycle!" This is an objectively great development, as I was able to hop onto Diablo II mid-run to help my friend beat Radament in Hell, and even turn off the PS5 to give the family some attention. Anyway, I got my farthest yet, which was pretty much just to the tippy top of the spire tower in the Crimson Wastes, but was killed by the last fuckin' alien dude before the goal door (I guess I should have just run for it instead of trying to methodically eliminate everyone, but then you risk multiple big bads on your tail). I really should have had him too, but he grabbed me, I didn't know what to do and by the time I saw the dash prompt it was too late. Not an efficient run either, as I wasted two revival items on the first alien guy guarding the temple before upgrading from my first weapon. Anyway, I'm way more hooked in now so will hopefully enjoy the process a lot more this time. I didn't even mind starting over because I'm basically starting to see how I can just grab what I need and get back to where I was quickly, and potentially stronger or in better position than before. I also don't get too hung up on my resources or losing them either because you can get killed quickly either way and just need to survive and find a way to keep going by any means necessary. Figuring out how to survive with no health is when you actually learn how to play the game.

Ultra Street Fighter II: The Final Challengers - Violent Ken playable in SFII? Yes, please! I like this edition much more than the previous HD iterations on PS3, etc. It feels much smoother and more fluid, though maybe I've just gotten used to the contrast in super high quality art vs limited frames of animation. Still, I had a blast with it the few times I've through arcade mode and for whatever reason it feels much better than the preceding HD editions.
 
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Been casually playing Minecraft with a few friends, and I must say this new update Caves and Cliffs, is a horrible update. The Warden is a fun new enemy, but its unlikely to come across them. I honestly preferred the old caves, since I need either scaffolding to get most ores, or I need to pillar up with cobblestone, which I don't enjoy doing when mining in a cave. The cliffs are pretty nice, but personally, having the ENTIRE map that way, makes building more of a hassle in the end. I never find plains that are just flat now, I either need to make multiple shovels now just to make it flat or I need to make a base on slopes. Personally I enjoy building bases on plains more so this update has seriously fucked me, but then again, if I built on a mountain, it would honestly look decent.
 
And yet I just like that genre enough that I'll mindlessly play through that drivel... At least until I get sick of it.

I guess this post is basically a roundabout way of begging Square Enix to bring Tactics Ogre and FFT to the Switch.
:schnoz:
More than that though I just wish this genre would get a renaissance of sorts, because it's great but has been deserted since its heyday in the 90s.
It’s funny because that’s how I felt about Octopath Traveler. Ironically, made by the same developer(?). The story was so disjointed that I’m not sure how anyone could care much about each character. Which should be a successful part of the game since the whole eight character idea is part of the title. But the turn based RPG combat kept me going and I couldn’t put it down. Along with the great music.

Speaking of great music…

I am finishing up Delta Rune chapter 2. Surprisingly, I am loving it!

This is coming from someone that did not enjoy Undertale at all. Everything from the overly vocal fandom to seemingly obnoxious dialogue gave me a bad bias from the start.

Toby Fox uses music in such an effective way to convey emotions. It was probably the one thing that I enjoyed about Undertale and it’s only gotten better here.

The battle system is also a huge improvement compared to the overly simplistic one in Undertale.
 
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Aazealh

Administrator
Staff member
It’s funny because that’s how I felt about Octopath Traveler. Ironically, made by the same developer(?). The story was so disjointed that I’m not sure how anyone could care much about each character. Which should be a successful part of the game since the whole eight character idea is part of the title. But the turn based RPG combat kept me going and I couldn’t put it down. Along with the great music.

Yep, I didn't bother with that one since someone (most likely Walter) had told me the story sucked. Hopefully they heard the feedback and learned the right lessons from it.
 

Rhombaad

Video Game Time Traveler
I ended up playing Paper Mario before Dragon Quest VII. I remember hearing good things about it back in the day (probably in EGM or GamePro), but it exceeded all my expectations. It was delightful! I loved its combat system, the graphics still hold up amazingly well, and there was so much to explore. Intelligent Systems did a fantastic job. I can’t wait to play more entries in the series.

Next up: Dragon Quest VII. For real this time!
 
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