Whatcha Been Playing?

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KSubzero1000
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Re: Whatcha Been Playing?

Post by KSubzero1000 »

Chopper wrote: July 18th, 2019, 7:08 pm Absolutely loving Field of Glory: Empires. I was initially playing as Ireland, and trying to conquer the British Isles. Nothing personal - one of my druids came to me with a dread prophecy, that of The Ascension of Boris, which he said was to take place in 2,500 years time (the game starts in 310 BC). He said it was my sworn duty to eradicate the Britones, and therefore change the course of history.
I'm a bit confused as to how the math plays out, but that's hilarious nonetheless. :lol:

That's a real historical quote, btw. Total old school flex.
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Chopper
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Re: Whatcha Been Playing?

Post by Chopper »

Celtic years, man. Close enough ;)
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Flabyo
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Re: Whatcha Been Playing?

Post by Flabyo »

Spoiler: Macedonia did invade Sparta and it didn’t go well for Sparta. Or anyone else really. Some chap called Alexander was in charge?
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Suits
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Re: Whatcha Been Playing?

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Flabyo wrote: July 19th, 2019, 7:38 am Spoiler: Macedonia did invade Sparta and it didn’t go well for Sparta. Or anyone else really. Some chap called Alexander was in charge?
He sounds pretty Great if you ask me.
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Chopper
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Re: Whatcha Been Playing?

Post by Chopper »

You can play as Sparta but they are in a pretty tight spot as the game begins. Powerful army, but they suffer penalties for fighting on rough terrain, and your culture forbids the hiring of mercenaries. 85% of your population consists of slaves, so there will be unrest to deal with there, never mind being hemmed in by the big bads.

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KSubzero1000
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Re: Whatcha Been Playing?

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Chopper wrote: July 18th, 2019, 7:08 pm Absolutely loving Field of Glory: Empires.
I know next to nothing about the genre, so how would you say this compares to something like Civilization?

Been looking at some footage and it's not bad. A bit too opaque for my tastes and the current price point is rather prohibitive, but I can definitely see the appeal for the historical aspect alone.
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Chopper
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Re: Whatcha Been Playing?

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KSubzero1000 wrote: July 19th, 2019, 10:36 am I know next to nothing about the genre, so how would you say this compares to something like Civilization?
I don't know! I have never been able to get into Civilisation - I wasn't gaming when the first several came out, and if you try and pick it up now, it's hard to get something that doesn't assume you have accumulated knowledge from previous versions. Plus, I hate video guides etc so that narrows it down too. I have started several games of Civ and there seems to be a phenomenal amount of waiting around waiting for stuff to build. But at the same time I didn't know what I was doing.

All that being said, I did actually watch a series of videos for this game - this chap seems pretty personable and I watched the first seven of these, so 3.5 hours of video beforehand :?



Now, the game itself is extremely slow if you pick a small faction like I usually do. There's a lot of clicking Next Turn as you try and establish a footing by growing your population and culture. On the other hand if you pick Rome for example, you are thrown into the thick of it and have to fight multiple wars straight off the bat to survive.

This game is mainly grand strategy and not battles - it has a great battle system but that's not purely the focus. In fact the company has another game called Field of Glory II, which is basically a battles-only standalone game. And if you want, you can export your battles from this game and fight them in that one on a massive battlefield, Total War-style, with hundreds of troops etc.

There is a very elegant manual for the game, which you don't see too often these days. If you didn't feel like watching videos, it's a good read.

All in all, it's a fantastic 4X, and I have Wikipedia open in another session to further illuminate and entertain. It is quite tough and idiosyncratic - basically the decadence mechanic stops you 'blobbing' your way to victory - but very rewarding. Also, I believe there are elephants.

Turns take 10 seconds or more to process on my SSD, so you'd probably be looking at an increase there, but it doesn't trouble my fairly powerful PC in any way, the fans don't even come on, but as usual be sure and check out minimum requirements. It is very expensive too - I paid 46 euros for the double pack and haven't used the other game (the playing out the battles game) at all.
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Michiel K
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Re: Whatcha Been Playing?

Post by Michiel K »

That The Evil Within game is quite gory and disgusting, isn't it?

Playing through it with my main horror game playing buddy and we're having a good time. It's rough around the edges, but still compelling enough.

It shows glimpses of something akin to the Super Mario Galaxy of horror themed action adventures, the way the plot excuses throwing you from one creative off the wall situation to the next, all non sequitur-like. It doesn't go there all the way, but still... glimpses.

Currently, we're in Chapter 5 on the PS4 version. I'm also trying to catch up bit by bit on my own Xbox 360 copy, by myself, just so that I don't feel like I bought that for nothing and can get a few "see, I've done it" achievements on my account.
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stvnorman
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Re: Whatcha Been Playing?

Post by stvnorman »

Finished some more Game Boy titles from the recent Konami collections on Switch.

Castlevania II: Belmont's Revenge is an excellent game and a perfect companion to Adventure. By this point they properly knew how to get the most out of the hardware, so it looks even more wonderfully atmospheric, runs smoothly and sounds just like a Castlevania game despite the limitations. It’s pretty quick to get through, though the final boss fight is a bugger until you memorise every single move it’s going to make and literally every pixel you need to be positioned on for each move to counter it. Super Castlevania IV next I think.

Operation C was the first Contra game I jumped on from that collection - having dabbled with them all, it seemed a bit easier than the rest, and I’m easily impressed when it comes to the Game Boy! I was struggling a bit until I tweaked the controls to be like Mega Man, then I sailed through the first area. I was then amazed that the second switched to top-down shooting like Ikari Warriors - not having any history with Contra beyond several first levels, I didn’t see that coming!

I think there were five gradually more bonkers stages in the end, including another top-down level with organic backgrounds and giant insects running about like something from Xenon 2! None of them took more than a few goes to get through, and the bosses were fairly easy until the (almost) last one, and that was also fairly easy once you worked out its couple of attack patterns. Which is how I like my bosses, and how I like my games! Not sure which one to go for next. Maybe the NES Contra, which still looks stunning at least.
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Suits
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Re: Whatcha Been Playing?

Post by Suits »

I’ve been enjoying Dragon Quest Builders 2 a lot recently but it just keeps going and going.

I’m still in the first area you visit after you begin, which is fine, it’s teaching me certain aspects of farming etc.... but I feel it losing me with the same tasks and environments over and over and the combat is awful, one button, just stand and smash stand and smash.

I mean I’m about 20 hours in, so I’m not getting that impatient I feel.

With that said, I’m still enjoying it - I just need a break I think.

So, this weekend I’m delving into my gapped history and pondering whether to go for Mario Galaxy 2 or Minish Cap.

Mario Galaxy has been in my list for ages and playing anything on my Wii on my PVM is a delight anyway.

Minish Cap, is a similar tale and I recently picked up a lovely copy for a bargain so I’m keen to play that in my AGS-101.

As in both cases the hardware is just as enjoyable to use sometimes as the game itself.

I’ve just got to pick one.....

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Scrustle wrote: July 16th, 2019, 7:46 pm Thanks! I sometimes wonder if I'm just talking in to the void or spending too long on unnecessary minor details, so it's good to know at least someone gets something out of it.
I know what you mean man but worry not, the level of detail and explanation to you bring is always very welcome and insightful 👍🏽.

Never be put off by the lack of direct responses.

I sometimes find that putting something down, (or typing it out rather) allows me to digest it better myself and the pondering and working out of how to explain or word things makes me process how I feel about it much clearer.
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Chopper
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Re: Whatcha Been Playing?

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Suits wrote: July 20th, 2019, 8:05 am I’ve been enjoying Dragon Quest Builders 2 a lot recently but it just keeps going and going.
:lol: The first one was like that too. I played 8 hours and it was just starting to introduce me to building defenses and throwing 1hp critters at me. I was thinking, this game must be 500 hours long, but Joshi later told me it capped out at 40-50.
I sometimes find that putting something down, (or typing it out rather) allows me to digest it better myself and the pondering and working out of how to explain or word things makes me process how I feel about it much clearer.
Also, I search the forum a lot for game names, so it’s good to see people’s views both before you buy and after you complete a game. It’s a great resource. Even though I feel I don’t have a lot in common with most folks on here, taste wise, it’s still interesting and helpful.
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Alex79
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Re: Whatcha Been Playing?

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Suits wrote: July 20th, 2019, 8:05 amSo, this weekend I’m delving into my gapped history and pondering whether to go for Mario Galaxy 2 or Minish Cap.
Have you played the first Mario Galaxy? If so, Minish Cap! It's my favourite of the traditional Zelda games (admittedly I've only played 3 or 4 of them).
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Suits
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Re: Whatcha Been Playing?

Post by Suits »

Alex79uk wrote: July 20th, 2019, 9:28 am
Suits wrote: July 20th, 2019, 8:05 amSo, this weekend I’m delving into my gapped history and pondering whether to go for Mario Galaxy 2 or Minish Cap.
Have you played the first Mario Galaxy? If so, Minish Cap! It's my favourite of the traditional Zelda games (admittedly I've only played 3 or 4 of them).
I've played the first yes, but not the second. I liked the idea fo busting out the Wiimote and MG2 seemed like a great idea.

Minish Cap, nope nothing never played it. I bought it to play it, so I'm dead keen to get into it.

As it happens, I'm currently slap bang into refurbing/building fully genuine AGS-101, after I managed to get hold of an authentic screen, so that will be a great opportunity to test it out.

I'll see how the build goes......

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KSubzero1000
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Re: Whatcha Been Playing?

Post by KSubzero1000 »

Whoa.
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Stanshall
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Re: Whatcha Been Playing?

Post by Stanshall »

That would make for some cool artwork. Stuff broken down, separated neatly into component parts, organised and framed.

Huh. I actually do think that's a neat idea.
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Suits
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Re: Whatcha Been Playing?

Post by Suits »

Huh, that was me just checking I had everything before I put it back together.

If its of interest.....

Just finished the pot adjustments for the screen, which is hella awkward on a SP due to the dial being under the battery on the SP, meaning adjustments are done via memory and eye.

I use Metroid Fusion as a test as I have a save that has a busy grated background which is easy to spot mis-calibrated screens on.

Anyway, all back together, all genuine parts, all calibrated - beautiful console and screen.

I'll get into Minish Cap tonight I think, with a beer and headphones (with the silly 3.5mm jack adapter).

The image looks a little oversaturated in these images but it's hard to capture on a digital lens iPhone camera - it looks great, very rich and vivd.

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Alex79
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Re: Whatcha Been Playing?

Post by Alex79 »

Damn it man, you've made me want to play Minish Cap now. As if I have time with all the other stuff that needs playing!!
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Suits
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Re: Whatcha Been Playing?

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It’s been in my list for a long time.

As was Spirit Tracks, that I bought on launch and didn’t like it.

Played it again. Didn’t like it.

Have you played Link Between Worlds ??
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Kacey
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Re: Whatcha Been Playing?

Post by Kacey »

I just finished Max Payne 3 last night after having an itch for a gritty third person shooter. It was sort of the perfect storm, really. I like film noir, I like glitchy digital aesthetics, and I already love HEALTH, the band that scored the entire game. After grappling with the DRM for a bit, I managed to get my old steam copy working.

Back when I played Max Payne 3 the first time, I made it as far as the stadium and a few hours of multiplayer. However, I have horrible gaming ADHD and always forgot about it for years at a time. Having grown up a little, the game's story grabbed me well enough. This isn't to call it deep or moving, it's neither, but it's well written enough to look past the cliches and appreciate excellent execution for what it is. Newer discussions of the game have related it to the John Wick films, and I think the comparison is apt.

What Max Payne 3 lacks in player agency it more than makes up for in its atmosphere, tight gunplay, brutal violence and excellent voice acting. I can't recall what game it was for, maybe one of the Halos, but there was once a documentary or something about a game that described the thought process for its multiplayer maps being "let's create places that are fun to fight in- where do our players want to fight?" And Max Payne 3 understands this question perfectly. Jumping from a Nightclub window, fighting your way out of a police station, and taking cover on a still-functioning people mover as it slides you through the game's climactic airport level are all thrilling.

The airport shootout in particular stands out as one of my favorite levels in any game, simply for the creativity in its cover, and the music- Gods, the music. HEALTH is one of my favorite bands, and the airport version of TEARS is fantastic- both for its lyrics which were written about Max Payne's titular character and for the hammering percussion. I recommend listening to HEALTH's new record VOL 4.: SLAVES OF FEAR if this track gets you the way it gets me- particularly "BLACK STATIC" as it is very close sonically to TEARS. And if you haven't played MP3, I'd recommend giving it a shot.

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Alex79
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Re: Whatcha Been Playing?

Post by Alex79 »

Really brilliant game, that. One of my favourites of the last gen. Shame so many people gave up after it's ever so slow start, but once it kicked in, god it was good. Proper epic gunfights towards the end.
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