Rate the video games you're currently playing

[SilverEars]

I'm just over 40 hours into AC Shadows, and I'm still not sure how I feel about it. I guess I largely don't like it, but I'm continuing through nonetheless.

My biggest, broadest complaint about the game is that it's the absolute most unfocused game I've ever played. It's not even an issue of the huge amount of content in the game, it's that it's too open, and quests are too spread out.

The game runs with the idea from the last few games that there's a circle of baddies that need to be taken down, but it extends that to the side quests.


So you have all these targets, and the circle in the middle, The Shinbakufu, is your main quest line. Each one of those is sub-divided into smaller quests: 5-6 each. Then you have the outer circles, which generally don't sub-divide, but they usually have a quest that ties them all the targets together. From there, each target is waaaaaaay out of the way from each other: often in entirely different regions. So you can't just knock out side quests in whatever region you're in; if you want to do complete side quests you have to go allllll over the map.

This game is basically the quintessential time waster, and I really have no idea why I continue through. Maybe to justify my purchase? At any rate, I really don't see how the series can continue on like this. I feel like moving forward the games should become more linear. The super-open world has really lost its novelty. I'd like to see it be more like the first game where you have multiple smaller maps, and have all the quests in a given region stay in that region. It would also open the door to more location variety.

It's ubi soft game. I couldn't even stand Rise of the Ronin when I got to the 2nd city, it's just got too repetitive. I don't like check off the list open world. If you can stand 40 hrs of it, hats off to ya!

Some people like these types of games. Maybe those types that likes to get 100% achievements.

 

[Kukuk]

It's ubi soft game. I couldn't even stand Rise of the Ronin when I got to the 2nd city, it's just got too repetitive. I don't like check off the list open world. If you can stand 40 hrs of it, hats off to ya!

Some people like these types of games. Maybe those types that likes to get 100% achievements.

In a lot of their games I find it entirely tolerable. Far Cry 5 is probably my favorite Ubi game, which while it does have some bloat it's focused enough that it's never overwhelming. I guess some of the appeal of Ubisoft games is they cater to my OCD brain, where stacking quests and clearing areas is satisfying to me. AC Shadows is so wildly unfocused, though, that it's simply impossible for it to scratch that itch. I feel like if the game had all the targets relatively close by, in the same region, the game would end up feeling 1/4 as big, and would be a LOT more manageable.

The game basically represents the absolute worst excesses of Ubisoft games. It's the Ubisoft formula on steroids.

 

[SilverEars]

I'm going to give my thoughts on MH Wilds after trying out a 2nd playthough. I don't like it as much as the previous games. I prefer to play World actually, but World is nearly done with including DLC with Wilds waiting on Title Updates for additional monsters.

I understand MH Wilds was more streamlined with QoL, and generally easier game, however, the game not having challenge walls throughout the game makes it a bit bland. I feel walls should not be at post game, but placed throughout the progression. Also, the current state of the post game content is pretty meh with Tempered Arkveild bieng farmed to make Artian weapons, which there is no motivation to do unless there's monstters you want beat with Artian weapons. It's repetitive as well.

On my 2nd playthrough, I found the game pretty bland in terms of progression, and doesn't feel engaging. The longsword got too powerful, and too boring due to being easier to use with snappier response.

Story is bad, and doesn't make progression that interesting. I don't like Gemma as the smith, much prefer World smith. I don't like moving around in camps, prefer permeninent camps like in World.

If anybody knows MH series, they would know that the engagement of the combat comes from high commitment moves like sluggish weapons. Some weapons are still like that, but it's completely gone with longsword now. High commitment combat is where learning of the monsters and skills ceiling gets placed. The wounding system is too powerful as well makes the hunts braindead and doesn't require the player to learn the mechanics.

Also, sharpening mechanic was so that you'd be strategic in timing it, but now with Sekreit, that mechanic is non-existant. Lot of the charactersistics of what makes MH are kinda gone, including impossible RNGs to get gems (which I hated myself).

If you'v played the old games, the healing is another mechanic they used to make the player be strategic in timing it as well. Since healing took a long time. With the Sekreit coming and bailing you out, that helpless feeling is gone during the hunt.

As we move forward with newer MHs, it becomes less of what MH was characterized.

 

[SilverEars]

Let me know what yall think of the new Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion Remastered that recently dropped. I'm more of a Dark Souls games type player with good action, but was wondering if the remake could be worth it. Skyrim was too much jank I couldn't handle.

 

[Death_Block]

You won’t like oblivion then.
The only combat in Skyrim I liked was archery and magic. But yeah, melee got boring quick.
I’m confused, I just heard about skyblivian thing. Is that a new game or just a mod team? Are they making their own game?

 

[SilverEars]

You won’t like oblivion then.
The only combat in Skyrim I liked was archery and magic. But yeah, melee got boring quick.
I’m confused, I just heard about skyblivian thing. Is that a new game or just a mod team? Are they making their own game?

I think it starts out better than Skyrim did. The dialog is better too. Skyrim had an awkward start for me. How it bagan made no sense. In Oblivion, there's some kind of organization or a phase getting the player into what is going on.

My experience with Skyrim was they put you someplace, and then you just go around and then at some enemies would one-shot you. It was really awkward.

I recall going into a cave in Skyrim, and it was really generic design, but in Oblivion, there was a cave, but the interior had some structure or design to it.

 

[lifeson]

Let me know what yall think of the new Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion Remastered that recently dropped. I'm more of a Dark Souls games type player with good action, but was wondering if the remake could be worth it. Skyrim was too much jank I couldn't handle.

Skyrim has quite a few mods that turn the combat more Souls like, made it feel totally different.
Pretty sure Oblivion remastered will have equivalents soon.

 

[SilverEars]

Skyrim has quite a few mods that turn the combat more Souls like, made it feel totally different.
Pretty sure Oblivion remastered will have equivalents soon.

I looked at videos of it, and it looked pretty bad. Not even close to DS1 clunky combat. Way clunkier.

Ghost of Yotei looks intereting.

 

[ThanatosVI]

As an Intermezzo between MH Wilds updates, I started something completely different.

Techtonica, a factory builder like Factorio/Satisfactory. It's an addicting and really well done game. Only thing I'm missing for the genre are blueprints. The rest is awesome

 

[michael2v]

Super Punchout - 10/10 (SNES)

This is one of my all time favorites games from any console.
I used to play it all the time and got so good that I could clear most of my opponents in under a minute easily.
I haven't played this in over 10 years and I was surprised how I could remember all the patterns to clear each one.
I even defeated Bald Bull on my first attempt! He has this charging move that I always seem to miss.

I actually got to Masked Muscle before I finally got a TKO. I totally forgot his patterns.
For example when he does an uppercut from one side, you have to press the correct buttons or you'll miss your hits.
I forget about his headbutt move, but remembered how to avoid his spit. Yes, he spits at you!
If I was able to defeat him i'm pretty sure I would have lost vs the old Kung Fu expert in the next round.
It's boxing, but he is able to use his cane to attack you!

I played the last two opponents so many times that i'm positive I could defeat them on my first try!

BTW I never beat Mike Tyson on the NES version. I never got that far. I think I always lost to Super Macho Man. I think the 2nd version of him if I remember right?
Regular Punchout is a lot harder I think.

NES games were stupidly hard, especially considering there was no internet back then, and if you couldn't get your hands on a copy of Nintendo Power magazine (or had friends who did), no tips and tricks for you!

And to think that some games like Contra can be beat in something like 10 minutes...

 

[tdockweiler]

NES games were stupidly hard, especially considering there was no internet back then, and if you couldn't get your hands on a copy of Nintendo Power magazine (or had friends who did), no tips and tricks for you!

And to think that some games like Contra can be beat in something like 10 minutes...

What's funny is that I was actually thinking about this today while watching NES speed runs. Many of them can now be cleared in under 20 minutes easily.
Back then it took us weeks, if it was even possible. I didn't know a single person who could beat Battletoads.
I still remember how beating the Grim Reaper in Castlevania was like a big event for us. Neither my brother and I could do it for months.

I remember when I had my NES I had to call up Nintendo's Game Counselor 1-800 number. Believe it or not it was once free!
Plus we all had landline phones at the time. Lots of people with the rotary types attached to the wall!

I still remember how it was back when we had internet service (dialup) but streaming videos and youtube wasn't a thing yet.
There was a site called GameFaqs I think where you could view text based strategy guides.
I think when the Nintendo 64 came out I still had dialup.
The first console with internet access I remember was the Playstation 2. WiFi wasn't really a thing or common back then.

I'm sure some remember the days when you'd have to write down all your save game passwords.
Luckily most games switched to a battery save mode.

BTW I definitely think games were made a lot easier when the SNES came out.

Very few super hard games were available past the SNES era it seems like until Dark Souls came out.

One that was stupid hard was Final Fantasy XI (Online) at 75 level cap.
You'd have certain jobs like Dark Knight take 2-3 years of grinding to get to 75. Now it can be done in a day.
It was so hard because you HAD to party with 6 players past say level 30 because the enemies were too hard.
Then you'd spend 2 hours to get a party going, only for someone to have to leave when you got to the "camp".

 

[Death_Block]

I remember the insanity of earthworm Jim.

 

[SilverEars]

I can't recall if I ever beat Mike Tyson's punch out. It's a pretty short game. Back in the NES, they made the games harder so people would spend time replaying it until they master the game, which takes longer for harder games. That's how they must have inflated the playtime with limited game duration.

We played Konami games a lot like Contra or Lifeforce. You can do codes to get good amount of lives so you can actually finish the game. Strider was a game I finished in an afternoon. You can finish games in a day if you keep at it in those days.

People say these days that the NES Zelda was even more unintuitive and obtuse. I don't know how I did it when I was young. I think I beat it, but don't know how I figure itt all out. I don't recall it being that obtuse. I think certain games arn't that abtuse for certain people and other are, which depends on the person. I'm not good with certain types of puzzle like in Mist or Rivan, those types of games.

I beat Metroid in an afternoon back then, and people say that's the most abtuse Metroid. I thought SNES one was more frustrating personally.

Castlevania and Ninja Gaiden are the two games that were impossible for me. Same for Mega Man. I think my taste in games correlate to what I actually made me keep at the game like Zelda, Metroid, or Strider, etc.. Probably the kinda game I like to this day. Today, it's more like Souls-likes and games that have metroidvania characteristics. Some kind of action like simpler times.

I feel like you develop video game reflexes if you grew up with NES. I think it lasts, just it's slightly slower than when you are young I believe. I think the muscle memory sticks with you a life time. Growing up with NES is interesting because it was an era when games weren't easy.

I always thought I'd be much slower reflexes when I got to my age, but it didn't slow down that much. By the fact that I can still play Souls-likes or Monster Hunter games proves that.

 

[JackBurton7130]

I think looking back a lot of the difficulty of NES games was just an issue of patience. I loved Nintendo, but also had a short attention span and a million other things to do as a kid. That and I just sucked at learning games and seeing the patterns I suppose. Definitely didn't finish more than I did.

 

[chesebert]

Expedition 33: music 10/10 - sounds amazing with Emm Labs dac feeding ZDS driving Utopia

Game itself is pretty good. The story is kind of slow - I am 1/3 through it. Battle is pretty interesting. World map design is great. The designer borrowed a lot of elements from numerous RPGs and executed them all pretty well. Overall a solid 8.5/10.