Games completed 2017

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hazeredmist
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Re: Games completed 2017

Post by hazeredmist »

ThirdMan wrote:
hazeredmist wrote:Steins;Gate (Vita)

I can't overstate how good this game is if you're into the whole visual novel thing. Utterly superb. Twists and turns, dark storylines and the building of a pretty believable out-there concept in a perfectly realised world, with multiple endings well worth pursuing. I've done all six possible endings. Highly recommended.
I'm 2.5 hours. Really enjoying it so far. I'm playing it in 20 minute sessions before bed but because of that I can never remember what happened the previous night. It's just not staying in my head. I suspect I need to put in bigger sessions but the visual novel format hasn't quite clicked for me yet and small bites is all I can manage. I'm screwed but I'll persevere.
That's all I did to be honest, don't worry about things not clicking, the game took me about 4 months to complete! It does hit a point where it will start to consume your every thought, enjoy the calmer bits while you can :D
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gallo_pinto
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Re: Games completed 2017

Post by gallo_pinto »

ThirdMan wrote:15/01 - Hidden My Game By Mom (Android)

I came to this via gallo_pinto's earlier post. It's mildly amusing with a weird satisfaction loop to keep you playing. I didn't appreciate being bombarded with ads though. There's even an option to 'earn' a tip by watching a video. Filthy. I want to experience more mobile gaming in 2017 but I'll be going out of my way to avoid stuff like this in future. There's plenty of free games out there that aren't as blatant about using you for money.
Haha maybe I should have warned of that. To me the ads were worth it though. Did you get to the level where (I'm going to put this in spoiler tags because it's one of the funnier jokes in the game)
Spoiler: show
the DS is hidden in the ad banner at the top?
I thought that showed the developer knew what he/she was doing and was playing with the tropes of cheap, shitty mobile games. Though by having actual ads in as well he/she was having their cake and eating it too, so I get why that could be a turn off.
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Combine Hunter
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Re: Games completed 2017

Post by Combine Hunter »

Spoiler: show
02/01 - Hyper Light Drifter (PC)
014/01 - The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks (DS)
15/01 - Owlboy (PC)

Great game. Recommended for fans of Zelda looking for a new spin on the formula. Surprisingly short too.
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Scrustle
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Re: Games completed 2017

Post by Scrustle »

Spoiler: show
05/01 - Forza Horizon 3: Blizzard Mountain
15/01 - Odin Sphere Leifthrasir

Fantastic game. Gorgeous looking art, and great feeling, fast, fluid combat. Also a pretty hefty game. Turned out to be quite a lot longer than I was expecting. Took about 40 hours by the end. I really liked the variety of characters too. Some more than others, but there were none that I didn't enjoy overall. Lots of charming little details to the world too. The culinary system was pretty fun, as you would expect in a Vaniallware game. Although the story is mostly badly VO'd nonsense that gets extremely confusing by the end, I still enjoyed its campy charm. The finale is pretty exciting too. Great song over the ending credits as well. Can't really say anything more than I haven't already. Great game. A lot of fun. Really looking forward to 13 Sentinels. I kind of feel like dipping my toes back in to Muramasa again too in the meantime. If only they would bring out the Vita version on PS4 and give it a proper graphical overhaul like Odin Sphere...
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chase210
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Re: Games completed 2017

Post by chase210 »

15/01 - Gravity Rush, I got the platinum trophy! Love that game, really psyched for the sequel now.
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Beck
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Re: Games completed 2017

Post by Beck »

01/01 - Titanfall 2 - What a game, I'm still cleaning up trophies. Add me if you want to do some multiplayer (PS4)
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Sinclair Gregstrum
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Re: Games completed 2017

Post by Sinclair Gregstrum »

First completion of the year!

Jan - Titanfall 2 (XBO)

Finally found the time to sit down and blast through the remainder of the TF2 campaign. Enjoyed it! Not quite the sensational experience that many had been heralding, but still a very good, well crafted experience with the same slick gameplay that made the first title such a pleasure to spend time with. On the narrative front, the story was fairly standard sci-fi fare but well told, and the characters while generic were a largely likeable bunch. I've not dived into the multiplayer yet but am planning on doing so this week.
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Sinclair Gregstrum
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Re: Games completed 2017

Post by Sinclair Gregstrum »

Beck wrote:01/01 - Titanfall 2 - What a game, I'm still cleaning up trophies. Add me if you want to do some multiplayer (PS4)
Ha! Snap! Only just noticed the post!

Would add you but playing on the XBO!
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Beck
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Re: Games completed 2017

Post by Beck »

Sinclair Gregstrum wrote:
Beck wrote:01/01 - Titanfall 2 - What a game, I'm still cleaning up trophies. Add me if you want to do some multiplayer (PS4)
Ha! Snap! Only just noticed the post!

Would add you but playing on the XBO!
Doh, have you tried to get the achievement to complete the gauntlet run in the top 3 runners? It's a tough one :?
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Scrustle
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Re: Games completed 2017

Post by Scrustle »

Spoiler: show
05/01 - Forza Horizon 3: Blizzard Mountain
15/01 - Odin Sphere Leifthrasir
17/01 - The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt

This is just the base game, not including the expansions, which I do own but have intentionally not touched yet. But regardless, I've finally finished one of these games! It was a great experience and I'm happy I was finally able to get on with one of them. I'm not as overwhelmingly in love with it as some other people are, but it definitely is an exceptional example of the genre. Worth its notability. Loved how it cultivated such a rich and believable world, full of interesting and nuanced characters. So many intriguing stories to see everywhere, be they ones that last only a short moment, or dozens of hours. Although I have to say I think I was at a loss at some of the references though, not having played the previous games. I think a few things went over my head a bit, or that I would have been able to appreciate more if I had played the others more. Or maybe these things require me to read the books too, since there's just so much there that spans back on the enormous back-stories of so many characters. But regardless, the game contained enough in itself to be a fulfilling and enjoyable story in its own right.

But I'm not too hot on a lot of the gameplay systems to be honest. Combat is generally mediocre, or even sub-par near the start of the game. Enemy animations aren't great, especially with the larger non-humanoid enemies. Makes fighting them feel clumsy and somewhat unfair. But by the time you level up a certain amount, which isn't even that far in the game, you become overpowered to most things, even stuff at your suggested level. Combat becomes trivialised and you can basically just mash the light attack button and occasionally dodge. Although getting hit it usually of little consequence, since Quen is so easily exploitable. Although, the audio effects of whacking stuff is fairly satisfying, and it's fun to slice people to bits. So once you get to that point where combat isn't a frustration, you can kind of just sit back and enjoy the carnage. I didn't care much for a lot of the other mechanics in the game too. Things like alchemy, bombs, and the levelling mechanics can be pretty overwhelming near the start of the game. There's so much thrown at you and it's hard to get your head round it. But as the game goes on, with how easy it becomes, these systems end up being pretty useless, even when you do learn how to do a decent amount of crafting. A lot of the level perks aren't great either. Mostly tiny percentage upgrades to specific stats. The few genuinely different skills are good, but it takes so long to unlock them, and early in the game when upgrade points are scarce, it doesn't seem very appealing to dump them in to insignificant stat boosts.

But despite those problems I still really liked the game. It's not in my top favourites of all time, but I can certainly understand why it is for a lot of people. Looking forward to getting to the DLC, and Cyberpunk 2077. Although that title seems more like a release date at this point. But right now, I'm glad to be done with these hefty RPGs I was playing. I've had Bloodborne waiting in the meantime, and Nier is arriving soon, so those will be taking my attention now I think.
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Stanshall
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Re: Games completed 2017

Post by Stanshall »

It's not really a fair comparison but going from TW3 to Bloodborne will be like going from The Last Guardian to Super Mario Galaxy, in terms of mechanical improvements.
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Re: Games completed 2017

Post by KSubzero1000 »

Stanshall wrote:It's not really a fair comparison but going from TW3 to Bloodborne will be like going from The Last Guardian to Super Mario Galaxy, in terms of mechanical improvements.
Ice cold. :lol:
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Combine Hunter
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Re: Games completed 2017

Post by Combine Hunter »

Spoiler: show
02/01 - Hyper Light Drifter (PC)
014/01 - The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks (DS)
15/01 - Owlboy (PC)
17/01 - Sid Meier's Civilization VI (PC)

Well, my first run through at least. Hoping there will be some great DLC to come.
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Re: Games completed 2017

Post by DomsBeard »

18th January Infinite Warfare Xbox One

Easily my favourite Call Of Duty Campaign I've played (FYI I have not played Black OPs 2 or 3). Great fun for a franchise that isn't usually my cup of tea.
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Jobobonobo
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Re: Games completed 2017

Post by Jobobonobo »

Spoiler: show
14/01: Rez Infinite
16/01: Journey
This year, even though I will be considerably busy with a PhD, I am going to do a proper list of all the games I finished this year. I thought I would start the year doing short but oh so sweet titles.

Rez Infinite - Rez is one of my top ten games ever and so I was delighted to hop into this gorgeous HD version. Blazed through the main game in one evening and still just as incredible as it was 16 years ago. The new Area X is a delightful fusion of Rez and Child of Eden in terms of aesthetic while the free roaming movement is like the dogfight sections of Lylat Wars. It was a lovely addition to the game and would like to see something like this fleshed out further in future. If I had the money and space I might even have splashed out on a VR headset as I feel this would be one of the few titles where it would be truly something special. This will always be something that I will return to, whether it is unlocking new modes or beating the high score, Rez will always be something I can go back to.

Journey - This was the shortest game I ever completed. I finished it in an hour and a half which was shorter than the amount of time that I downloaded the demo of Gravity Rush 2! When I first started, I was a bit skeptical about the high praise it got, I was just wandering through a big desert collecting scrolls and thought "what's the big deal?". Then when I encountered a fellow player, then the genius of this game clicked with me. Even though your communication is limited, you feel an incredible bond with this stranger as you travel these lands. If my partner fell behind I would go back to check that they were alright, lighting my body up to serve as a beacon to the right way. Likewise, if I lagged behind my partner would stop and wait, lighting the way so I knew where to go next. I have little to no interest in online gaming so I was surprised by the attachment I felt to strangers and sticking by them no matter what. It is a feeling of camaraderie that is rare in gaming I find. Journey is also a beautiful game, both visually and aurally. Particular stand outs include the side on view of you sliding down the sand dune through the tunnel while the sand is illuminated by the sun in between the imposing pillars and going through the brutal snowstorm up the mountain. Moments like that actually make having a HD telly worthwhile. Like Rez, it will be a title I will go back to time and time again.

This has been an encouraging start to the year, here is hoping the rest of 2017 will be full of equally wonderful games!
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Re: Games completed 2017

Post by ratsoalbion »

Jobobonobo wrote: Rez Infinite - Rez is one of my top ten games ever and so I was delighted to hop into this gorgeous HD version. Blazed through the main game in one evening and still just as incredible as it was 16 years ago. The new Area X is a delightful fusion of Rez and Child of Eden in terms of aesthetic while the free roaming movement is like the dogfight sections of Lylat Wars. It was a lovely addition to the game and would like to see something like this fleshed out further in future. If I had the money and space I might even have splashed out on a VR headset as I feel this would be one of the few titles where it would be truly something special. This will always be something that I will return to, whether it is unlocking new modes or beating the high score, Rez will always be something I can go back to.
Yes to all this - but I still cannot believe that leaderboards are not included in this PS4 incarnation, nor have they been patched in. The 9 year old XBLA version has them!
It would be a lot more infinite (oxymoron I know) if you could compete for high score bragging rights!
:cry:
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Flabyo
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Re: Games completed 2017

Post by Flabyo »

Leaderboards are a platform feature on Live, it's part of the api itself. On psn, not so much. So they'd have to write their own and store it somewhere. That's not hard, but I guess they didn't think it would sell enough to be worth setting up AWS or whatever for it.
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Re: Games completed 2017

Post by ratsoalbion »

Flabyo wrote:Leaderboards are a platform feature on Live, it's part of the api itself. On psn, not so much. So they'd have to write their own and store it somewhere. That's not hard, but I guess they didn't think it would sell enough to be worth setting up AWS or whatever for it.
I'm aware of that but it seems like a significant oversight for a title that has been kept relevant in part due to its nature as a score attack game.
Most PSN games have managed to have some form of scoreboard even if it isn't mandatory, or in some cases even that relevant.
Even just a handful of local scores - as per the DC and PS2 original - would have been something, but to save just one score per stage is a bit pathetic I think!
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Jobobonobo
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Re: Games completed 2017

Post by Jobobonobo »

Oh, forgot that there was no leaderboards! They were built for games like this! Real shame. Would only improve the experience even more.
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Alex79
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Re: Games completed 2017

Post by Alex79 »

When you were on the American podcast the other week Leon (I think it was that one? It could have been the C&R end of year one?) you mentioned about Rez not having proper leader boards and I meant to check whether they'd been patched in yet. I take it they've not, then? That's just crazy. It's actually the reason I've not taken the plunge and am waiting for a sub tenner price drop in a sale before picking it up, so it's harmed their sales by at least one!!
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