Hyper Light drifter(Pc)- Finnished it just now and yeah it's pretty great, it's zelda meets Furi so what's not to like. Difficultywise I must say I was abit disapointed after all the talk because when it came to combat I had 0 issues in the game, sure I died a few times but it was smoth sailing I mean I only died for the northern boss and the final boss all the other ones I took down on my first time and the only moment that combat was really challenging was in the battle arenas in the town where you have to face 10 enemies waves in a row, this isnt a big deal the game even unlocks a NG+ that's way harder as soon as you beat it but I just thought it was funny since I was bracing myself for a super punnishing game but it ended up being kinda of relaxing, the combat like I said is a more zen version of Furi and I really liked that.
I have to say that if there's a aspect I was underwhelmed by was the "story" or the lack there of because while the game has some really great imagery there's really nothing here, I mean the game does the whole "minimalist" ICO thing where there's no dialogue and you're supposed to piece things out yourself only you have no context for anything that's happening, you wake up have a vision and every time you collect 4 triangle piece you get the same vision and then you beat the final boss and that's that world is saved I guess, I collected all the monoliths thinking it would unlock something or explain anything but it just got me a suit, aparently there's a way to translate those into english but Im baffled anyone even tried much less succeeded because how you're supposed to do that is beyond me and Im sorry if you need to do that to get something out of a story of a game then that game has no story, this isnt really a thing exclusive for hyper light drifter but for several indie games and even some AAA ones that go for the whole minimalist story and vagueness only to mask how hollow and devoid of substance their stories really are, if you just wanna make a game with cool visuals that's fine but dont try to be pretencious pulling something like this, there's a really big difference between what games like ICO, Journey and even Dark souls do and stuff like this.
Games completed 2017
Re: Games completed 2017
100% agree with this, and I find it really infuriating. I can't figure it out. Are developers just that bad at story telling, or is it a conscious decision to provide a hook (in this case, sick/dying hero and mysterious forces that are never explained) but no development/resolution, or (what I'm leaning towards) that more people are now satisfied with some vague hand waving in the direction of story, with 'make of it what you will' being an acceptable resolution.Todinho wrote: ↑August 4th, 2017, 4:45 am ... several indie games and even some AAA ones that go for the whole minimalist story and vagueness only to mask how hollow and devoid of substance their stories really are, if you just wanna make a game with cool visuals that's fine but dont try to be pretencious pulling something like this...
NB I'm talking about games that go out of their way to set up the story at the beginning here, not all games.
Re: Games completed 2017
Supposedly, HLD is 'about' its creator's struggle with an incurable heart defect, or something of that nature. I can understand why he'd sooner present this struggle as an allegory, rather than explicit narrative, but I agree that it's not really successful. I didn't get any of it from my time with the game (which I admittedly didn't finish).
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Todinho
Re: Games completed 2017
I finnished the game and couldnt get anything out of it, and I did hear that was what the game was supposedly about but only because I saw the vice video on youtube, the only clue you could have that this was what the game was about was that the protagonist coughs alot which seems to be linked to the main story and world because alot of other characters also do that too, you could put that to be reflected on gameplay but it isnt you're not hampered as you progress in any way you just get more powerfull. Once I saw that video I kept thinking of Papo&Yo a game about the developer's troubled childhood with an abusive father and that's all very clearly represented in the game both in a mechanical and a story sense and for all it's flaws it's successfull in convenying that. HLD on the other hand I cant even understand what happened when I finnished the game much less try and take any meaning out of it.
Re: Games completed 2017
Most game stories are bad because most game developers don't hire writers.
We're still very much in the infancy of the medium when it comes to that aspect.
Slowly getting there though. Very slowly.
We're still very much in the infancy of the medium when it comes to that aspect.
Slowly getting there though. Very slowly.
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mikeleddy83
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Todinho
Re: Games completed 2017
I mean not every game needs a well told story sometimes that's not the point of the game and that's fine but Im baffled at how writers can be brought in so late in development from what I've heard in interviews.
I do have to challenge you on something and that's this prevailing argument that I see online of how " Videogames stories are so bad" and well most movie stories are bad as are most books,tv shows,etc. Sure the videogame bar for awhile was "save the princess" because unlike those other mediums narrative wasnt at the forefront, but this idea that game stories are just now getting good because of professional writers being brought in is bullshit, sure maybe the overall bar has been raised from 1990 but that doesnt change that most game stories are mediocre they're just a bit more complex now. In fact as I look back I see more interesting game narratives then I see looking at what's been done today, For example: Planescape Torment a game about existentialism, the game not only is incredibly well written but it incorporates the gameplay aspect of choice and playstyle of CRPGs into it's narrative, another example that's fresh in my mind Tactics Ogre made in 1995 is a game that talk about ethinic cleansing,civil war,racism and politics in a mature way, the recently covered Legacy of Kain, writen by the same person who wrote Uncharted but ask anyone which is better storywise and the anwser is pretty unanimous.
Sure Im cherry picking , if you were to somehow do a scientific study comparing all games from the 90's and today the ones from today would have better narratives overall, what Im trying to get at is that game narratives are alot more generic nowadays and the amount of great stories produced has stayed on the same level at least(once again my perception I dont have a scientific study to measure that)in fact publishers have done most likelly suffocated great potential stories then foster then, can you see big publishers backing something like Torment, Tactics Ogre or legacy of Kain in this day and age? Not even that can you imagine if Ueda came to a AAA publisher today an pitched the Last Guardian without his track record, nobody would back that. One of the more interesting game stories in the past 5 years was Spec Ops the Line and there the team basically tricked the publisher into thinking they were making a generic shooter, instead of the subversive critique of the genre they were going for. Add to this the indie trend that I was complaining about and sometimes I catch myself really underwhelmed by how the industry has progressed in this area, I do concede that in terms of the breath of stories being told increased alot stuff like Life is Strange,Gone Home,etc just didnt exist 10 years ago and it's good that they do now but I wish we could have that and stuff like Planescape.
Re: Games completed 2017
All the games you cite as having good stories are from teams that had professional writers on board, so you’re basically agreeing with me.
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KSubzero1000
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Re: Games completed 2017
I think this is very much the crux of the issue here, aside from the presence (or lack thereof) of professional writers. The modern AAA gaming industry is just incredibly risk-adverse in general. Be it on the mechanical, aesthetic or narrative front.Todinho wrote: ↑August 5th, 2017, 5:49 pm can you see big publishers backing something like Torment, Tactics Ogre or legacy of Kain in this day and age? Not even that can you imagine if Ueda came to a AAA publisher today an pitched the Last Guardian without his track record, nobody would back that. One of the more interesting game stories in the past 5 years was Spec Ops the Line and there the team basically tricked the publisher into thinking they were making a generic shooter, instead of the subversive critique of the genre they were going for.
Games were a lot cheaper to produce 15 years ago. And that's why some of them could reach for the stars the way they did.
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Todinho
Re: Games completed 2017
Oh yes,I didnt wanna make the point that writers arent important but that them alone cannot create great narratives we want to see if the enviroment around then isnt condusive to that , it's what ksub said the industry seems so risk averse nowadays in comparison to 10,20 years ago that you just dont seem to have the budget or the freedom to make something very unique like back then, for example even recent games with great writing like Last of Us and Horizon are safe by comparison.
Re: Games completed 2017
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James
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Re: Games completed 2017
Probably take a bit of a break to cleanse your palate, but I would recommend Darksiders II too (two to?)
There's a remaster for current gen platforms for it as well (though not Switch): the Deathinitive Edition. It's a bit different from the first, but I quite enjoyed playing as another Horseman, with his own style and feel.
There's a remaster for current gen platforms for it as well (though not Switch): the Deathinitive Edition. It's a bit different from the first, but I quite enjoyed playing as another Horseman, with his own style and feel.
Re: Games completed 2017
Ha ha, deathinitive edition, I didn't spot that pun.James wrote: ↑August 7th, 2017, 11:00 am Probably take a bit of a break to cleanse your palate, but I would recommend Darksiders II too (two to?)
There's a remaster for current gen platforms for it as well (though not Switch): the Deathinitive Edition. It's a bit different from the first, but I quite enjoyed playing as another Horseman, with his own style and feel.
I remember buying Darksiders II on PS3 and being disappointed with it. I wanted to see an expansion on Darksiders but it felt more like a Prince of Persia game? I totally went in with too high of expectations and judged the game unfairly, I do plan on going back.
I managed to snag the PS4 Darksiders remasters as well as some other games with that US Humble Bundle deal a couple months back. Darksides II is on the to do list but I've just bought Dishonored 2 and have been given a shot of Horizon Zero Dawn. It's a good time to be a gamer.
I really hope Darksiders 3 is good.
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mikeleddy83
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Re: Games completed 2017
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Re: Games completed 2017
August 7th - Splatoon 2 : Campaign (Switch)Flabyo wrote:Jan 1st - Gravity Rush Remastered (PS4)
Jan 8th - Shantae: Half-genie hero (XBO)
Feb 1st - Tales from the Borderlands (XBO)
Feb 6th - Stories: The Path of Destinies (PS4)
Mar 19th - The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (WiiU)
Apr 2nd - Uncharted 4: A Thief's End (PS4)
Apr 17th - Ryse: Son of Rome (XBO)
Apr 25th - The Sexy Brutale (XBO)
May 13th - Borderlands 2 (360)
May 21st - The Witness (XBO)
May 25th - Injustice 2 : story mode, all paths (PS4)
July 17th - Horizon : Zero Dawn (PS4)
Good, but not quite great. Some of the stages are very punishing, and the final boss isn’t a patch on the first games one. It’s still worth playing, the Nintendo magic is there in patches, but the single player of the first game felt so much more consistent and fresh.
(Also: the Octoling AI is weak sauce, I could do so much better, heh)
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James
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Re: Games completed 2017
You've excellently summed up my thoughts there too. I can't compare it to the first, but it felt very uneven in both difficulty and ingenuity. Some great stuff, and I'm glad I played it, but the thought of clearing every level with every weapon (or even one of them) is frankly laughable to me.
The Octoling levels were really cool, I thought, but I absolutely agree re. the AI. Some of the basic enemies in other levels were more likely to test me than the Octolings, who surely ought have been the toughest opponents outside of the bosses?!
The Octoling levels were really cool, I thought, but I absolutely agree re. the AI. Some of the basic enemies in other levels were more likely to test me than the Octolings, who surely ought have been the toughest opponents outside of the bosses?!
Re: Games completed 2017
I’d defintely suggest you play the first games campaign if you still have it around, you’ll see many of the same ideas but it just seems to hang together better. And the final boss is so much more of a proper climax to the mode.
The octoling levels are all based on ones from multiplayer, which was the case in the first game too. But I think the levels here have way more vertical movement in them than those in the first game, which hurts the octolings as their AI doesn’t know how to use ink to climb.
The octoling levels are all based on ones from multiplayer, which was the case in the first game too. But I think the levels here have way more vertical movement in them than those in the first game, which hurts the octolings as their AI doesn’t know how to use ink to climb.
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James
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Re: Games completed 2017
I never had the first, and no longer have a Wii U, so that ship has sailed, sadly.
In all honesty, I picked up Splatoon 2 in the hope that the single player would help ease me into enjoying a multiplayer shooter again, but it didn't manage that. Will be selling Splatoon 2 on with no regrets, but also no real desire to play any more of it.
In all honesty, I picked up Splatoon 2 in the hope that the single player would help ease me into enjoying a multiplayer shooter again, but it didn't manage that. Will be selling Splatoon 2 on with no regrets, but also no real desire to play any more of it.
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Dante Fireseed
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Re: Games completed 2017
February 18th - The Witness (PS4)
February 26th - Mirror's Edge Catalyst (PS4)
March 13th - Dishonored 2 (PS4)
April 5th - Horizon: Zero Dawn (PS4)
April 14th - Abzu (PC)
April 24th - Deus Ex Mankind Divided (PC)
April 25th - Deus Ex Mankind Divided DLC - Desperate Measures (PC)
June 11th - The Last Guardian (PS4)
June 24th - Alienation (PS4)
August 1st - Wolfenstein: The New Order (PS4)
February 26th - Mirror's Edge Catalyst (PS4)
March 13th - Dishonored 2 (PS4)
April 5th - Horizon: Zero Dawn (PS4)
April 14th - Abzu (PC)
April 24th - Deus Ex Mankind Divided (PC)
April 25th - Deus Ex Mankind Divided DLC - Desperate Measures (PC)
June 11th - The Last Guardian (PS4)
June 24th - Alienation (PS4)
August 1st - Wolfenstein: The New Order (PS4)