Whatcha Been Playing?

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dezm0nd
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Re: Whatcha Been Playing?

Post by dezm0nd »

Been playing Alex Kidd in Miracle World DX.

Man, i forgot how rough that game is with its difficulty. Alex is rubbish! He can't jump on enemies, hes wildly all the place with the physics.

But I sort of admire it. Nostalgia is powerful.
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Seph
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Re: Whatcha Been Playing?

Post by Seph »

Scrustle wrote: June 22nd, 2021, 9:30 pm I did the massive Adamantoise boss fight. The giant mountain-sized superboss which takes like 40 minutes to beat. Honestly not particularly fun. The main problem seems to be the sheer size of it breaks the games combat systems. Mostly with the lock-on not knowing what to do with the thing. Often I was trying to hit it, yet Noctis would just stand there doing nothing, or he decided he would rather run in to the limb I'm standing next to trying to hit the one behind it instead. The camera frequently freaks out with similar issues. The boss itself isn't particularly dangerous. Attacks can wipe you out in one hit, but by that point in the game you'll have more than enough healing items, and those attacks don't happen very frequently. The hardest thing was just trying to find a spot that I was actually allowed to hit and keeping locked on to it.
I think that boss took me 15 in game days to beat it. As you say, it's not dangerous, it's just more of a test of patience and tedium than anything. I admire the ridiculousness of it though, the only way they can top this in the next game is if you fight a planet or something.
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ColinAlonso
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Re: Whatcha Been Playing?

Post by ColinAlonso »

I finally beat ascension level 20 with the Silent in Slay the Spire. A lot of luck is needed on later ascension levels.

Well just 235 hours put into it over the last six months and now I'll start using the third character.
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SludgeWizard
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Re: Whatcha Been Playing?

Post by SludgeWizard »

Kingdoms of Amalur Re-reckoning
I really enjoyed it when I played it on 360, and was excited to give the remaster a try (once it went on sale)

The story is meh and the art style is pretty ugly, but the gameplay is there and I'm really enjoying hacking through countless fantasy baddies and collecting loot (while skipping the dialogue).
About 15 hours in and still having as much as much as ever.
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Alex79
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Re: Whatcha Been Playing?

Post by Alex79 »

I've gone back to Zelda BOTW. On my 3rd Divine Beast set of quests now (the volcano folk). Was spending a fortune on bloody fireproof elixirs before noticing there was fireproof armour available. 105 hours in, and finding new stuff every go.
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Scrustle
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Re: Whatcha Been Playing?

Post by Scrustle »

Continuing through God of War 2 HD. I'm about half way through now, and to be honest I'm not really having the best time with it. I think I'll save going in to the full details until I'm done with it, but right now I'm finding it feels kind of... sloppy, almost? A lot of little details about it feel like they weren't fully fine-tuned, leading to a lot of minor aggravations that build up over time. It's given me kind of the strange feeling that maybe, out of these GoW games I'm replaying recently, I might prefer Chains of Olympus out of all of them. The first attempt and a spin-off by a completely different studio.

I also finally started Horizon Zero Dawn after picking it up when it was given away for free on PSN a while back. So far I'm somewhat underwhelmed by it. Visually it's really impressive, with gorgeously detailed graphics, fantastic lighting, and a really interesting aesthetic. But the rest of the game feels somewhat lacking. The characters are extremely dull and boring, as is the voice acting. The controls and general character movement have this problem that I've seen in a couple of other similar games too. It feels like it's putting a lot of emphasis on believable weight in a way that is also very forgiving of player input, at the expense of style, personality, and consistency. So it ends up feeling sluggish and vague in a way that is uninteresting to look at, as well as feeling like I can't really rely on the game to respond how I expect to inputs. I also find the whole open world/light stealth/crafting heavy loop pretty mediocre and uninspiring. I really want to give this game a chance though, and it's one that is clearly meant to be a slow burn that builds to the more exciting stuff. I see potential in the combat against the really big robots. But I can already feel my patience growing thin, and I've already once nearly forgotten that this was a game currently on my plate. I'm going to stick with it a little while longer to see if things pick up, but if it can't manage that soon, I'll probably drop it.
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Angry_Kurt
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Re: Whatcha Been Playing?

Post by Angry_Kurt »

That was my experience with HZD too but in the end I didn’t carry on with it. I no longer own it or a PS4 but if I saw it cheap on PC or if I got a PS5 I would consider giving it a second chance.
Marlew
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Re: Whatcha Been Playing?

Post by Marlew »

It is took me about three years to get round to just mainlining it and I ended up having a ball. It builds really nicely in terms of environments and enemies but it does feel like you're in first gear for ages if you potter around doing all the side quests and stuff. I thought it was all snowy landscapes and wolf type enemies. Far from it. I didn't make any effort to craft or loot anything and I ended up with the top tier shit to play with. The main story is good and goes places, the side quests are inane. Still one of the most beautiful games for HDR and the DLC is even more impressive looking.
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Alex79
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Re: Whatcha Been Playing?

Post by Alex79 »

Scrustle wrote: June 25th, 2021, 7:32 pm I also finally started Horizon Zero Dawn after picking it up when it was given away for free on PSN a while back. So far I'm somewhat underwhelmed by it.
I'd really recommend mainlining the story, personally. I thought the story was the strongest aspect of that game, and the side missions plan tedious. Didn't really enjoy the world, the characters, even the combat got dull for me after a short while. But the story was the one redeeming feature. I know a lot of people felt the actual opposite, that the story was lackluster and the gameplay was the star, but I just didn't find that.

I might go back and try the Frozen Wilds DLC at some point, but it's not a priority.
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ColinAlonso
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Re: Whatcha Been Playing?

Post by ColinAlonso »

I mainlined the early hours of the story of HZD but the rest grew on me later on too.

I've been playing What The Golf? and it's quite clever. Controls are simply direction and power but it uses that simple control for loads of inventive ideas. It has an idea, elaborates and moves on to the next one. Good fun.

I also played the Neo The World Ends With You demo. It covers the first 2 days and I'm already curious where this story will go. Combat is a simpler affair than the original (not hard that). Each party member carries one pin and the pin is set to a specific button for that pin's attack. For example the first two pins do slash attacks (X on Switch) and fire energy bullets (Y). It seems that all pins that do slash attacks will be set to X and so on.

I didn't quite get the hang of it at the start as it is not clear how to build the Groove meter. In the pin menu it says what to do for each pin to 'Drop the beat'. The basic idea is to stick with one character until that happens then switch to another and that builds the groove meter. Its a cool way to give the same feel as the light puck between the two charactersin the original. Its fun and I kept looking for fights but I'm concerned it will be too simple over the length of the full game.

I was a big fan of the original and the demo has left me wanting the full game.
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Alex79
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Re: Whatcha Been Playing?

Post by Alex79 »

I know I'm repeating myself here, but I've put 10+ hours in to Breath Of The Wild over the last dew days, and it's so good. Last time I played it, according to my save, was September 2020, and I was 100 hours in with two of the divine beasts and about 35 shrines done.

In the last few days I've got another divine beast done and another 25 or so shrines, and also got the master sword. It amazes me there are areas of the map I've still not even been to. Got one final tower to climb and unlock, and discovered loads of cool stuff over the last few days; giant snowball bowling was fun!
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Angry_Kurt
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Re: Whatcha Been Playing?

Post by Angry_Kurt »

I’ve been playing Mario Golf Super Rush and to me it seems pretty fun. I’m quite early on but I like the core golfing mechanics and the Mario spin on some of the courses with obstacles they introduce. Only thing I’m undecided on yet is the whole running between courses aspect, thankfully you don’t have to do this in “play golf” mode if you don’t want but you have to in adventure mode which is basically the career. It just seems to add padding and so far I haven’t found it particularly fun to do. Something I really don’t like is having to wait and watch your competitors finish the hole if you finish before them, you can’t even fast forward them. I can understand viewing enemy turns in a strategy game as it can reveal important information to you but I really can’t see the point in why I have to watch Bowser Jr or whoever take their last couple of shots to finish the hole!
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stvnorman
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Re: Whatcha Been Playing?

Post by stvnorman »

I finished Silent Hill 3 on PS2. Went from disliking it to enjoying it because it was Silent Hill by numbers, to really getting into the second half, which offered a couple of moments of series brilliance. Glad I finally played it, and I had a good time even though most of it wasn’t terribly memorable, especially compared to its top ten favourite game ever predecessor.

Too much other stuff on the go… I recently picked up F1 Racing Championship on PS2 as part of an ongoing (but almost complete) attempt to build a curated collection, and it’s still a very good racer that I’ve really clicked with! A quick try of Game Pass Madden NFL 21 has turned into a full season of franchise mode. Similar for Dungeons & Dragons: Dark Alliance - mindless, full of bugs and no co-op partners, but for now I’m having a good time with it!

Also lots of Xenon 2 on Atari ST for a piece I’m writing. Still a very fine, very tough shooter that’s always a joy to see in action. Still playing Wave Race on GameCube and Forza Horizon 4. And had a great time on a couple of high score challenges with some retro gaming friends on Twitter with Moon Cresta on Spectrum and arcade Phoenix on PS2 - not that my scores were very high!
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ReprobateGamer
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Re: Whatcha Been Playing?

Post by ReprobateGamer »

Video gaming at the minute is mainly Sea Of Thieves.

With the same regular crew, we are settling into particular roles and just enjoying spending time in the open world. Which has got a lot harder since the Pirates of the Caribbean update dropped as there are a lot more enemies now in the world (Phantoms and Ocean Crawlers are interesting additions but the Sirens appear in too large groups and as they are underwater with an unlimited ranged attack, are steadily proving to be far too much bother to fight - particularly as they don't seem to stop coming.

The new tall tales added are relatively meaty additions and make for interesting additions - and there's a Secret of Monkey Island secret in the first to search out ...

It still feels like it would be nice to have a purely PvE server - it's a little too easy for griefers to have their day but after a pause of a couple of years, this game feels like it's settled into a good spot.

Elsewhere, I've tried the first couple of levels of Dark Alliance. It's a 3rd person take on Vermintide but without the hordes, essentially. Nothing fundamentally wrong with it but absolutely no spark of inspiration and nothing is outstanding. With a group and getting your attacks to properly mesh, it works better (like so many other games). I'll admit to a bit of a rosy view of it as I'm a regular D&D player but I'm glad that it was a Game Pass addition and not something that I had to pay money for.

Also helped one of my daughters complete the campaign on Defense Grid 2. This remains a great tower defence game. It's very unlikely there'll be a third sadly but Hidden Path Entertainments do this style of game very well. And while SoT has slowed progress, we do also continue to go through The Wild At Heart - it's day/night cycle luckily means that it's relatively easy to drop in for a short play session, though the game is just feeling a little like it's railroading a little. I'm hoping that it's just for the point where we are at and it's trying to unlock abilities for it to open out soon
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Jon Cheetham
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Re: Whatcha Been Playing?

Post by Jon Cheetham »

Still playing Monster Hunter Rise, I mean I've played it almost daily since it came out. I've been gradually ticking off the endgame content, Capcom have been really good with adding lots of new monsters and occasional event quests, plenty to be going on with. Will be hard to beat for GOTY in my opinion. 160+ hours in, HR126 or so.

Also grabbed the demo of Monster Hunter Stories 2. The animation and environments are stunning and they've made some smart improvements to the battle system over the original. It's definitely the year of Monster Hunter.

Played about 6 hours of Ni No Kuni, another drop dead gorgeous JRPG. Big fan of Ghibli and I've really enjoyed the cinematic cutscenes, plus the game is really charming just to be in. Not totally sold on the combat yet, it's a bit fiddly but will see how I go.

Did some more Minit, it was in the Switch sale so I just picked it up there as well since I'm unlikely to do much PC gaming in the near future. Really great little game.

Did a little more Ghost of Tsushima, checked a chapter list and seems like I'm almost exactly halfway after 20 hours. Shelved for now as in the absence of any narrative or characters that interest me I'm only playing for the world, the stealth and combat, which I've also had my fill of for the time being I think.

Started Yakuza Like a Dragon instead. Now this is superb. It's my first Yakuza game and I can already see that this mix of crime drama and bonkers humour is right up my street. The writing is superb often gripping, the characters are by turns sweet, funny, relatable. Kasuga Ichiban has sauntered directly into my top video game characters of all time only 11 hours and change in. But the supporting cast of Nanba and Adachi are terrific in their own right as is Hamako.

And on top of that there's this riot of a turn-based combat system where the enemies and moves are often really funny, the music bangs and the timed button presses to get maximum damage from your attacks adds a fun real-time aspect.

Also really enjoying exploring this virtual Yokohama, using Ichiban's smartphone to take pictures of spots I recognise. There's this Pocket Cafe which is a riff on the Doutor coffee franchise where we've made many a pit stop in the past, right down to the smoking area and even the furnishing. Getting very nostalgic ogling all these menus in the restaurants the boys are hitting up too.
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Alex79
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Re: Whatcha Been Playing?

Post by Alex79 »

Jon Cheetham wrote: June 27th, 2021, 2:29 pmPlayed about 6 hours of Ni No Kuni, another drop dead gorgeous JRPG. Big fan of Ghibli and I've really enjoyed the cinematic cutscenes, plus the game is really charming just to be in. Not totally sold on the combat yet, it's a bit fiddly but will see how I go.
My unsolicited tip: focus your character on finding monsters with high physical attack, and leave the magic to the rest of your party (one focusing on healing magic and one on offense). The starting monsters will only last you so long before you want to look for better ones. Some really good heavy hitting tanks to find, pretty much brute forced my way through most the combat. Might be boring for some I guess, but I had fun with it.

Also, I need to get back to MH: Rise. Took a break but can't leave it too long or I'll never go back...
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shadowless_kick
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Re: Whatcha Been Playing?

Post by shadowless_kick »

got acquainted with Rolling Gunner with a quick playthrough in Novice mode and I was happy with my purchase pretty much instantly.

the actual 'rolling gun' mechanic is cool and sure to be a fun challenge to master, the visuals are nice and don't suffer from the simplistic, digital-toy look (for lack of a better description) non-pixel-based shooters tend to have, and I even like the music, which I almost never pay attention to in games from this genre.

also, it's great to have a strong horizontal shoot-em-up to sink my teeth into, as the Flip Grip sadly does nothing for my Switch Lite.

I've also returned to River City Girls, going through new game+ picking up more collectibles and messing around with Kunio and Riki. though his moveset is limited compared to the girls, Kunio's snappy punch attacks are so much fun to play around with! this game really does of great job of selling the impact of blows.
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Jon Cheetham
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Re: Whatcha Been Playing?

Post by Jon Cheetham »

Alex79uk wrote: June 27th, 2021, 3:05 pm
Jon Cheetham wrote: June 27th, 2021, 2:29 pmPlayed about 6 hours of Ni No Kuni, another drop dead gorgeous JRPG. Big fan of Ghibli and I've really enjoyed the cinematic cutscenes, plus the game is really charming just to be in. Not totally sold on the combat yet, it's a bit fiddly but will see how I go.
My unsolicited tip: focus your character on finding monsters with high physical attack, and leave the magic to the rest of your party (one focusing on healing magic and one on offense). The starting monsters will only last you so long before you want to look for better ones. Some really good heavy hitting tanks to find, pretty much brute forced my way through most the combat. Might be boring for some I guess, but I had fun with it.

Also, I need to get back to MH: Rise. Took a break but can't leave it too long or I'll never go back...
Nice one, thanks Alex. Haven't got to the point where I have too much choice of monsters to fill my party yet but will keep that in mind!
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Eterno
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Re: Whatcha Been Playing?

Post by Eterno »

I made an impulse buy this weekend, though I tried to resist it for a good 5 hours, my urge to play a good old Musou type “mindless” action game kicked in as I saw an ad for the newly released Samurai Warriors 5 on Xbox twitter account.

I put mindless in quotes because while you can absolutely play them this way, these games can also be played trying to figure at the best combos for each type of situation and be a little more tactical with the different characters. In my opinion, whichever way you play it is still very fun and relaxing.

What attracted me to Samurai Warriors 5 though was the art style! It’s very stylish and looks absolutely gorgeous. Knowing it was mostly made for the previous gen, I was confident my XSX would run it at 60 fps, and while I had fun with the Zelda Warriors game, the framerate did hurt my enjoyment a bit.

The story seems to be focused on Oda Nobunaga younger years and rise to power, with a lot of side stories with the various characters. If you know Japanese Sengoku history, it’s a fun way to enjoy a re-imagined version of it, and if you don’t it’s a good entry point, though about only 60% of it is accurate. All the cutscenes and dialogue are voiced and are pretty good so far.

The gameplay is exactly what you would expect from a Musou game. I think the only novelty in this one, apart from the characters, is a side mode that plays like a time limited horde/score mode where you defend on a map to get resources, that you can then use to upgrade the various shops and stables, allowing you to further level up weapons, characters, etc. It’s also in this mode that you increase the bond between different characters to unlock a short scene between the two. It’s a nice side mode apart from story to grind in quick sessions and play some other characters.

All in all, I’m having a ton of fun and I’m quite impressed by the visual style, story presentation and certainly not disappointed by the gameplay, so if you also need some Musou fun once in a while in your life, I’d check this episode out.
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Miririn
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Re: Whatcha Been Playing?

Post by Miririn »

I've been playing "Super Mario Odyssey" and I'm disturbed by the existence of actual human-proportioned people (?) in Mario world. Do not want.

Also none of my friends are ever allowed to tease me for how much I love emotionally harrowing games ever again. Throughout this game my sentient hat and I possess the bodies of other creatures and use them as meat puppets to kill their comrades before I exit their body and stomp them to death for coins. It is dark. Mario is a monster.

Edit - I've also been playing "Overboard!" which is very funny and charming and you get to play as a golddigging murderess who hates dolphins. I don't approve of the anti dolphin bias but the rest is fun.
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