Everything to do with our favourite pastime! Reviews, recommendations, sells/swaps, problems etc. Whether they are on the latest consoles, arcade or retro classics. It's not the winning or losing, we came to play!
MattyP wrote:
This is why I've mostly struggled with GTA games in general - the scripted missions. I understand why they need to be like they are but sometimes its a frustrating balance between success and failure. Get one thing wrong or a few seconds late and bang fail.
That kind of mission structure really winds me up. Assassin's Creed 2 - amazing game where you can approach everything the way you want. Then they ruined it in Brotherhood by bringing in insta-fail stealth missions. Similar thing with Far Cry 3 where toward the end of the game you have insta-fail missions. Just goes against everything the game has tried to set up and it sucks.
I've played pretty much all the GTA games (even the top downs) and never finished one, mainly because of this stupid rigid structure they put in place.
While looking up on the web to see if there was a Windows version of Crackdown 1, I read the story of the original developer and the spectacular crash with the release
of APB. You can really go from winning awards to just destroying everything in a matter of months in the games business if you let the initial success go to your head.
And yeah the rigid nature of the missions in GTA is extremely annoying, especially when to retry you have to drive all the way back to the start point and fail in a matter of seconds like the "follow the subway train" mission which I decided to just ignore completely after a few frustrating tries.
That really is a cardinal rule in games design that they ignored : never frustrate the player unnecessarily just to pad out the game time.
noodles wrote:
That really is a cardinal rule in games design that they ignored : never frustrate the player unnecessarily just to pad out the game time.
Yes.
Especially with services like Game Pass now available (where I assume you get paid on the use of your game?). Frustrate me when I've paid £50 I may stick with it for a while, frustrate me when it's just part of the service and I'm gone...
noodles wrote:
That really is a cardinal rule in games design that they ignored : never frustrate the player unnecessarily just to pad out the game time.
Yes.
Especially with services like Game Pass now available (where I assume you get paid on the use of your game?). Frustrate me when I've paid £50 I may stick with it for a while, frustrate me when it's just part of the service and I'm gone...
To be honest I'll probably never spend £50 on a game again. The next GTA game (whenever it arrives) won't get bought unless it offers something radically different. As mentioned they are getting more scripted over time rather than less.
Games are supposed to be dynamic and interactive - that is the essence of the media for me. Not just a film with interactive bits. Not to say I don't like story games and interactive movie type games because I do but just like a game to be one or the other.
Think VR is still going to be a big thing at some point as the tech keeps developing. It just feels like a natural progression of gaming. Playing 3D worlds on a flat 2D device has never really felt right to me since trying to make my first jump in Super Mario 64 on the Nintendo 64 all those years ago.
Anyway... Enjoying R-Type Final 2 at the moment. It's lovely. And I'm probably just getting old or wanting the future too soon.
A light that burns twice as bright burns half as long.
Steam/Xbox/PSN User Name: CypherQ Switch - 8177-9514-5116
MattyP wrote:
Think VR is still going to be a big thing at some point as the tech keeps developing. It just feels like a natural progression of gaming.
Yeah, I'm hoping you're right about this. Currently, it still has a number of flaws and limitations, but when you consider how new the tech is it's quite incredible how good the experience already is.
And with a number of companies seemingly committed to it for the long haul, both hardware and software, it's past the point where it can be considered a gimick.
Picked up "There is no Game" last week and OMG, what a joy it is.
A meta-game of sorts, very much the video game equivalent of "There's a Monster at the End of this Book". Starts off by having you poke around with a fake OS, before dipping you past a P&C adventure that you direct from behind the scenes. Currently stuck trying to complete a Legend of Zelda - esque adventure.
There's no direct control of player characters and you're constantly battling with unique or interesting spins on game mechanics. Genuinely fantastic stuff - all the thumbs up
Rhythm wrote:Picked up "There is no Game" last week and OMG, what a joy it is.
A meta-game of sorts, very much the video game equivalent of "There's a Monster at the End of this Book". Starts off by having you poke around with a fake OS, before dipping you past a P&C adventure that you direct from behind the scenes. Currently stuck trying to complete a Legend of Zelda - esque adventure.
There's no direct control of player characters and you're constantly battling with unique or interesting spins on game mechanics. Genuinely fantastic stuff - all the thumbs up
It's out on PC, Switch, Android and iOS
Well, that's an intriguing write-up.
Do you think it will work well on an iPad? I'm a bit anti Switch at the moment.
A half heated recommendation from me. Nice idea, reasonable execution (and it moves on for direct game but alot of the humour, and the love story, fell a little flat for me.
Bit Trip Presents: Runner 2 - Future of Rhythm Alien
So I got this on Steam ages ago, but I started playing it again this week. As research, because I was interviewing the narrator Charles Martinet (best known as the voice of Mario).
This morning I unlocked an hilarious character - Reverse Merman (fish on top, legs underneath)
Revisited Horizon Zero Dawn as hadn’t played the expansion.
It added a fair few quests and some additional weapons (and rather generous helping of trophies).
I enjoyed the game when I first played it and really enjoyed the little expansion so looking forward to the sequel but unlikely to get it until I manage to get a PS5 (so next year at this rate I guess)
"England is funny, but sometimes she scares me"
Tony Wakeford
VNVObit wrote:Revisited Horizon Zero Dawn as hadn’t played the expansion.
It added a fair few quests and some additional weapons (and rather generous helping of trophies).
I enjoyed the game when I first played it and really enjoyed the little expansion so looking forward to the sequel but unlikely to get it until I manage to get a PS5 (so next year at this rate I guess)
I loved Horizon Zero Dawn. It wasn't perfect, but for a new IP it was great and I can't wait for the sequel.
Elsewhere and late to the party, I've just finished Firewatch on Switch, and let's just say I don't get the hype. Poor performance, horrible interaction with the environment and objects, incredibly linear and dated game design. I will say the voice acting was good and I hung on until the end hoping the story would make it all worthwhile and, well, it was just as inconsequential as the game as a whole. *shrugs*
Fire watch was a lovely game. Really enjoyed the story telling
Played call of the sea recently which had a similar feel, though with greater emphasis on puzzle solving. Very enjoyable game
Currently back playing isometric RPGs. Played a little of Shadowrun and really enjoyed it and picked up Pathfinder on GOG during the sale. Finding it really enjoyable. Not gotten too far into it but enjoying the pace of the game so far. Character development is a little more involved than Baldurs Gate was (going from memory). Graphically it’s quite nice and thanks to GOG can play on Mac or PC and save will sync between them
"England is funny, but sometimes she scares me"
Tony Wakeford
