KSubzero1000 wrote: September 5th, 2018, 2:39 pm

kayjoon wrote: September 5th, 2018, 2:28 pm Otherwise I'm finally playing Dead Space after several previous attempts to get into it, I think I'm probably a third of the way through.

Sweet! I feel the urge to replay the series at some point in the near future. Are you enjoying it so far?

I replayed it last year and it still holds up

DomsBeard wrote: September 5th, 2018, 2:47 pm

KSubzero1000 wrote: September 5th, 2018, 2:39 pm

kayjoon wrote: September 5th, 2018, 2:28 pm Otherwise I'm finally playing Dead Space after several previous attempts to get into it, I think I'm probably a third of the way through.

Sweet! I feel the urge to replay the series at some point in the near future. Are you enjoying it so far?

I replayed it last year and it still holds up

Dead Space 2 is even more rock solid. I could play that game 10 times in a row and not get bored of it.

DomsBeard wrote: September 5th, 2018, 2:47 pm

KSubzero1000 wrote: September 5th, 2018, 2:39 pm

kayjoon wrote: September 5th, 2018, 2:28 pm Otherwise I'm finally playing Dead Space after several previous attempts to get into it, I think I'm probably a third of the way through.

Sweet! I feel the urge to replay the series at some point in the near future. Are you enjoying it so far?

I replayed it last year and it still holds up

Same. If it was released today it will still get plaudits and critical praise.

I definitely need to give Dead Space a go too - it’s always just passed me by, but I’m fairly sure at least one of them came with my son’s Games With Gold recently.

I did finish Owlboy on the Switch, despite a very frustrating vertical platforming section just before a pretty enjoyable final boss and cool ending. This platforming stage was a bit Mega Man, where you’re anticipating from the memory of previous failed attempts where you need to jump to next, in time for the tiny platform you land on to disappear on impact as you frantically try to remember where to jump next. But unlike Mega Man, the altered jump / flying mechanic you get in the last section just didn’t seem to work consistently for me; I died over and over again feeling it was the fault of the controls and not my ineptitude. Anyway, apart from that it was a really fun 9 hours or so exploring, platforming, shooting and puzzling in a gorgeous pixel art world.

Back to Breath of the Wild now - 65 hours in and probably 50% through the main quest, though I’m at that point where I’ll now focus on that, get it done, then decide if there’s anything left I really need to do. I could really do with finishing with it before Red Dead and Smash Brothers, as much to sell it to fund them as anything else!

stvnorman wrote: September 5th, 2018, 8:59 pm But unlike Mega Man, the altered jump / flying mechanic you get in the last section just didn’t seem to work consistently for me; I died over and over again feeling it was the fault of the controls and not my ineptitude.

There's two examples of this that stick in my mind so hard and always will;

The Revenge of Shinobi, Mega Drive - That damn double jump always felt so inconsistent and play throughs would often end on the Waterfall stage and that final double jump to the level ending ledge.

Super Metroid, SNES - Again, the double jump in this game is flawed, I swear. It spoilt my experience of this overall tremendous game and cut short my mopping up at the end of the game as it literally forced me to destroy a Super Famicom controller in rage.

I agree about Super Metroid’s double jump, were you playing the PAL or NTSC version?

The latter is noticeably more responsive. Worth seeking out on N3DS VC or SNES Classic Mini!

ratsoalbion wrote: September 6th, 2018, 8:37 am I agree about Super Metroid’s double jump, were you playing the PAL or NTSC version?

The latter is noticeably more responsive. Worth seeking out on N3DS VC or SNES Classic Mini!

It was the NTSC version.

That's good to hear, I have it on my 3DS but never really stuck with that version long enough to unlock the skill.

That and the wall jump, required almost frame perfect reactions - tough to master !

The main reason why I prefer the GBA Metroid games over Super Metroid is the responsiveness of the controls. Super Metroid is an amazing game with superb level design and presentation, but the core movement mechanics are unfortunately not as refined as the game deserves, if you ask me.

I don't know if I "entirely" agree. I think the double jump and wall jump could be a lot better, especially when Mega Man X was close by and nails this. However, Samus feels like she's wearing a heavy suit of armour in Super Metroid in a way she doesn't in the GBA games. Prime does a good job of selling this also. That feeling is valuable in the same way it's valuable in Dark Souls. Without it, the later 2D games lose that immersive quality. Other M dropped the weight of the Prime games too, and while that wasn't the only issue, certainly bothered me.

^^^^ Huh, excellent points. Never though about that, but yeah.

Combine Hunter wrote: September 6th, 2018, 11:19 am Samus feels like she's wearing a heavy suit of armour in Super Metroid in a way she doesn't in the GBA games. Prime does a good job of selling this also. That feeling is valuable in the same way it's valuable in Dark Souls. Without it, the later 2D games lose that immersive quality.

That's an interesting point, I hadn't really considered that. Maybe because, for me, the Metroid games have always casually disregarded the laws of physics in order to provide a more arcadey feel and movement. When I think of Samus, I think "agility" instead of "weight". The best example of this would be the Morph Ball in Prime, which is an utterly unrealistic, biology- and physics-defying mechanic based on old-school responsive animations. Something like the Screw Attack, Shinespark or Turbo Bomb would also suggest that the internal Metroid logic isn't beholden to the same standards of "realism" as Demon's Souls. So in that sense, I feel like the input latency and the heavy-footed feel in SM takes away from the purity of the experience more than it adds.

There certainly are games that are best served by slow and deliberate animations and movement feel, like Splinter Cell for example. I suppose I'd have to replay SM one of these days!

Samus feels almost mechanic to me in Super Metroid, then like a Ballerina in the Samus Returns remake last year.

I don't suppose I have a preference, or considered it a design consideration, I just thought of it as a hardware limitation.

I don’t think it was a hardware limitation when you think of how Mario, Contra, Mega Man X et al controlled on SNES, more that it was yet to be fully refined. I think it mainly comes down to a slightly too small window in which to activate that second jump.

ratsoalbion wrote: September 6th, 2018, 2:49 pm I don’t think it was a hardware limitation when you think of how Mario, Contra, Mega Man X et al controlled on SNES, more that it was yet to be fully refined. I think it mainly comes down to a slightly too small window in which to activate that second jump.

Oh yeah, sorry I meant the way that Smaus generally moved in Super Metroid and that weighty jump was a hardware issue (but on reflection you're right - comparing it to Super Mario World etc... it would be a choice.)

That silly double jump and wall jump is certainly a too small of a window issue.

The wall jump is optional though isn’t it? Not required to finish the game.

Flabyo wrote: September 6th, 2018, 9:24 pm The wall jump is optional though isn’t it? Not required to finish the game.

Errrm, my memory fails me.

Although I can certainly remember having to do it. Whether it was for just a rocket pack, I can’t remember.

At the time it seemed necessary.

Bloody thing.

Making progress in Call of Cthulhu: Dark Corners of the Earth for the podcast. Really interesting how the game keeps on shifting focus, from pure adventuring and clue seeking, to stealth, to shooting. It's all a bit shaky, but I'm digging the atmosphere and there are some truly freaky and disturbing bits in it.

Michiel K wrote: September 6th, 2018, 11:39 pm Making progress in Call of Cthulhu: Dark Corners of the Earth for the podcast. Really interesting how the game keeps on shifting focus, from pure adventuring and clue seeking, to stealth, to shooting. It's all a bit shaky, but I'm digging the atmosphere and there are some truly freaky and disturbing bits in it.

Are you playing it on the Xbox or pc?

Glad you’re enjoying it. I hoped that my negative post would be offset by some positivity:)

Had a bash at SNK Heroines this morning. It's not really what I expected as I have got into the Neo Geo fighters this year, with Garou, KoF98, The Last Blade, Real Bout FFS and more and after seeing the early trailers thought this would be a slightly more modern and flashy take on that style, albeit with a girl power spin. Hmm...Not quite.

It's very simplified in terms of combat, almost like Smash in terms of movesets and execution but more limited. The real depth and variety in the game appears to be playing dress up and putting clown noses on the girls' tits and furry handcuffs on their wrists and ankles and cow ears to match their cow bikini and tail and taking screenshots of them crying in the car park of the SNK headquarters through a telephoto lens overlay.

Oh, I'm not joking, no.

Favourite thing about the SNK heroines games has been comparing the trailers they put out in Japan versus the ones the put out here. To say there’s a slight difference in focus would be putting it mildly.