Whatcha Been Playing?

[Alex79]

Just finished Dead Space and did not enjoy it at all.

The visuals and the atmosphere were quite impressive (had me thinking about Metroid Prime the whole time), everything else in the game was terrible. 4/10

I actually preferred the second game. Never got round to the third though, but the first one never quite clicked with me. I enjoyed the weapons though, it was great slicing those limbs off with the gun you could fire in either a vertical or horizontal line. To be honest, I might actually be up for some remasters of those games if anyone from EA is reading

[DomsBeard]

Dead Space 1 and 2 are on EA Access currently. I have a physical copy of 3 Alex if you want to play it (I believe they are all backwards compatible now?).

[Chopper]

Had a quick blast on the GT demo over lunch. It certainly seems like more of the same, though I admit the nuances are lost on me.

[Alex79]

Totally agree. Can I recommend headphones and cockpit view and sitting three feet from the telly? It's one of the most amazing and immediate 'flow' games I've ever played. It requires such concentration and such constant refinement of movement, and has such a floaty feel, it gets me slack jawed staring into the middle distance in seconds.

Totally what I do! I sit on the coffee table literally a foot away from the screen, and refuse to play in anything other than cockpit mode. I only wish I had a wheel!

[Alex79]

Dead Space 1 and 2 are on EA Access currently. I have a physical copy of 3 Alex if you want to play it (I believe they are all backwards compatible now?).

Ah thank you - I do have a copy since it was on PS+, just never got around to playing it!

[rob25X]

Started a second play through on Dead Space (new game+) and it was like a completely different game. So much easier with a fully upgraded suit, different weapons and knowing exactly what to do etc. I also learned in the tutorials the second time that X (or square) gives an instant heal - meaning using the menu in combat is not neccesary.

[DomsBeard]

Dead Space 1 and 2 are on EA Access currently. I have a physical copy of 3 Alex if you want to play it (I believe they are all backwards compatible now?).

Ah thank you - I do have a copy since it was on PS+, just never got around to playing it!

No worries just pm me your address

[Chopper]

Thought I'd jump in to Resident Evil 7 - the VR experience tonight, and see what's what. Played 25 minutes and got to a save point and was happy for it. The setting is great, if a little cliched (cockroaches in the cookpot, and who puts a whole crow into a microwave oven, come on now). I went into it with the view that if I just keep thinking this is good over the top fun, then I should be ok. That's being challenged after just 25 minutes

[Flabyo]

Started Gravity Rush 2 cause it was finally on sale.

My word the opening of that game is... unexpected. Takes quite a long time to reach the point where it actually feels like the first game. Not really played something with such a slow paced opening since, well, probably FF8.

[Michiel K]

But is it better than Wipeout?

They're both very different games, despite the fact that they share a futuristic hover car theme. WipEout is more of a combat racer, like Super Mario Kart.

It's just that there is very little that touches GX in terms of finely tuned controls, overall polish and content.

DUUUDE

Dude.

[Scrustle]

Started Gravity Rush 2 cause it was finally on sale.

My word the opening of that game is... unexpected. Takes quite a long time to reach the point where it actually feels like the first game. Not really played something with such a slow paced opening since, well, probably FF8.

That opening is... odd. Strange you don't see people talk about it much. The worst parts of both games has always been when they take your gravity powers away, and they start the sequel with an extended sequence of that. I suppose I'm part of that too, since I've never really thought to bring it up before myself. They do contextualise it in an interesting way though. But it probably goes on way longer than it should past that introduction mission.

[Joshihatsumitsu]

I recently acquired Parodius Da! - (JAMMA - 1990) from an ebay seller in Western Australia for around the same price as it would cost in Japan. So in other words, the seller wasn't a greedy bastard, and for that I'm grateful.

Anyhow, its a fun little horizontal shooter, with some beautiful bright sprite-work. But the thing that struck me was the attract-mode. Not that it was unusual for a game named "Parodius" to reference the games it's parodying, but that there was a time, mostly in my younger days, where Konami gave a crap and celebrated it's own IP and history.

Juxtapose that colourful celebration from 1990 with Konami's efforts to celebrate 30 years of Castlevania with... uh... well, you get the point. It became a very different company over time. But then Taito and Sega manage to celebrate their on IP, so it's not an insurmountable task.

But yeah, the Konami of my youth in in my collection, so at least I have some physical evidence of better years.

[Sinclair Gregstrum]

I recently acquired Parodius Da! - (JAMMA - 1990) from an ebay seller in Western Australia for around the same price as it would cost in Japan. So in other words, the seller wasn't a greedy bastard, and for that I'm grateful.

Nice! I do enjoy a bit of Parodius. Visually so imaginative vs many other shmups and while it's still a stern challenge I find it a bit less brutal as well.

I've currently got 3 games on rotation - Uncharted 4 (PS4 Pro) and Sonic Mania (Switch), with a bit of Battlefield 1 multiplayer thrown in (Xbox One).

Uncharted 4 is....more Uncharted! Enjoying it for sure, but feeling like I probably won't need any more of this franchise afterwards. Must be said it does look pretty bloody beautiful on the Pro. It's not native 4K as the Pro can't really hit that often, but it still looks sharp as hell to me and the effect of HDR is really impressive.

Sonic Mania is bloody wonderful. It's essentially the Saturn 2D Sonic we never got, which fills me with joy really. Will be popping this on for a blast for months if not years I expect.

Battlefield 1 is....a bit baffling. I've only played a couple of sessions with a few friends and it's my first Battlefield, so really I've got no idea what the fuck's going on. Apparently it's not just about shooting people, so way out of my depth. I'm sure I'll pick it up! Maybe...

[Alex79]

Dead Space 1 and 2 are on EA Access currently. I have a physical copy of 3 Alex if you want to play it (I believe they are all backwards compatible now?).

Ah thank you - I do have a copy since it was on PS+, just never got around to playing it!

No worries just pm me your address

No I do have it! On PS3! Thank you for the offer though!

[Chopper]

Some more Resident Evil 7 VR. It’s gone from outright terrifying to panto violence in the space of about ten minutes. I’m not sure if I welcome this but it’s easier on the nerves for sure.

Still early days (second save point).

[Stanshall]

I've been going shmup crazy, putting hours into the following on XB1:

Sky Force Anniversary (grindy but makes replaying earlier stages more fun when you upgrade, like Dark...yawn, sorry, terrific fun to master the stages, love the buyable powerup system, really feels like progression)

Omega Five (unusual twin stick shooter, in that you control a flying humanoid character in a horizontal scroller, makes for odd feeling hit boxes but it's plenty of fun, weapon powerups feel great, charming visuals)

Radiant Silvergun (heresy perhaps but I'm not especially enjoying this legendary title, I kinda like the multiple/combo weapons but the actual level design is a bit too 'puzzley', choose the right weapon for the section of the map, I'd sooner have traditional powerups and collectibles, maybe I need more of an appreciation of shoot em up tropes to see how creative and innovative this is, fantastic soundtrack though).

Ikaruga (I prefer this, but need to give it more time, the core mechanic is smart and less gimmicky than I remembered from scant experience back in the day).

And on the Switch, Sine Mora Ex (really enjoying this one, and it's largely what prompted me to explore the XB1 & BC catalogues for further shmups, it's got a generous powerup system and I really like the regain idea, tied into the inspired time manipulation mechanic, pretty visuals, neat soundtrack, some creative bosses).

[Joshihatsumitsu]

Radiant Silvergun (heresy perhaps but I'm not especially enjoying this legendary title, I kinda like the multiple/combo weapons but the actual level design is a bit too 'puzzley', choose the right weapon for the section of the map, I'd sooner have traditional powerups and collectibles, maybe I need more of an appreciation of shoot em up tropes to see how creative and innovative this is, fantastic soundtrack though).

I kinda feel the same way about Radiant Silvergun. Though I can't help but wonder: had I played that game with the context of the time period it came out, would I feel differently about it? Obviously, I played it years after it initially came out, so it feels more like a little piece of shmup history than something I have any deeper connection to.

But yeah, the Xbox platform has a ridiculously generous selection of shoot-em-ups, and is easily one of it's strengths.

[hazeredmist]

Just started playing XCOM: Enemy Unknown on the Vita.

Pleasantly surprised, I picked this up cheap on PSN a while ago, haven't played a game like this in quite some time. I've got no history with the franchise at all. Style wise it feels like Chess meets Gears of War with a bit of Mass Effect, which I wasn't expecting. It feels meaty as hell. Mechanically it's fun if slightly clunky, and I've already been asked to make a tough decision only two missions in. I also felt pretty bad that I basically sent someone to her death with poor cover placement, and in the assessment at the barracks later, the name was there with a picture, KIA. Gutting! I'm sure it'll get a lot harder too as I've heard that about this game...

Early days but I'm excited to play more.

[Joshihatsumitsu]

Just started playing XCOM: Enemy Unknown on the Vita.

Pleasantly surprised, I picked this up cheap on PSN a while ago, haven't played a game like this in quite some time. I've got no history with the franchise at all. Style wise it feels like Chess meets Gears of War with a bit of Mass Effect, which I wasn't expecting. It feels meaty as hell. Mechanically it's fun if slightly clunky, and I've already been asked to make a tough decision only two missions in. I also felt pretty bad that I basically sent someone to her death with poor cover placement, and in the assessment at the barracks later, the name was there with a picture, KIA. Gutting! I'm sure it'll get a lot harder too as I've heard that about this game...

Early days but I'm excited to play more.

Do keep us up to date with the technical side of that Vita version too. What I mean by that is: I played through the PS3 version years ago, and during longer battles the game would slow to a crawl. A reset of the system would usually speed everything up again, but it was a bit of an inconvenience.

But yeah, I played through to the end despite those technical issues, so that says something about the quality of the game. Enjoy!

[Alex79]

I have played the Vita version of Xcom fairly extensively. It chugs a bit from time to time and the loading times are a bitch, but it's a full version of Xcom in your pocket and the trade off is fair I think. I really enjoyed it. Keep meaning to restart it actually.