|
Post by Juliett. Bravo. Alfa. on Nov 3, 2013 19:11:14 GMT
WWE 2K14. A mix of meh and NOSTALGIA. The roster feels horrid and incomplete. You got Lita! but no Trish. No Zeb Coulter as well yet Racist!Jack Swagger is there in his glory. Engine really does feel better though and because they arent working on about 15 different consoles the graphics look a bit better. Kinda fully expecting 2K15 to look a load better though. DLC doesn't look tasty either with the exception of the nWo pack. Also I miss lippy John Cena and Heel Miz. None of this either: How can you deny this man a place in the roster? But Diesel and Razor Ramon are there. <3 Batsman Arkham Orgins. Doing the Deadshot boss. Get annoyed with the respawning lackeys. RAGEQUIT. Batamang Arkham Orgins: Blackgate. Seems ok so far a bit weirded out by the 2D plane but 3D environments and the fighting seems to be off.
|
|
|
Post by Badly-Drawn Manchild on Nov 13, 2013 19:46:05 GMT
Grand Theft Auto Online. I think I'm just gonna stop trying to do the missions in it and just do races and random stuff; without a second person helping out, many of these jobs are just annoying as all hell. Not to mention the police are absolutely vicious. I absolutely hate it when you're evading the cops and the game just decides to spawn a cop car right in front of you that you cannot possibly avoid, thus starting all the trouble all over again; that is unbelievably cheap. On top of that, my online avatar is about as hardy as a wet piece of cheap toilet paper, and there doesn't seem to be any way to increase the Strength stat that doesn't take an ungodly amount of time or doesn't attract unwanted attention from the police.
So yeah, I have my issues with this game. Oh, and the community's one of the worst I've ever seen in a game like this. I don't see how this game can possibly be fun without friends.
|
|
|
Post by Ryan James on Nov 16, 2013 0:48:54 GMT
Mega Man Legends. I've been obsessed with speedrunning this game lately and have managed to get my clear time down to 76 minutes, but I can't seem to get the sub 75 I'm aiming for.
|
|
|
Post by Beeth on Nov 16, 2013 1:06:52 GMT
Acquired Asura's Wrath today, resurrected my 360 for the first time in a while to give it a go. Just done the first episode, I think I'm going to like it.
|
|
|
Post by L. T. Dangerous on Nov 16, 2013 20:25:46 GMT
Arkham Origins and WWE 2K14. The former is a good continuation of the formula with huge depth to the side missions. Much as I love it, I think it should be the last for a few years, I don't want it to get overfamiliar. The latter is, as last year's was, solid stuff, though I've barely scratched the surface of the game's content.
|
|
|
Post by modochi on Nov 19, 2013 17:21:53 GMT
Ratchet and Clank: Nexus. Love this series so much.
It has delivered everything I expected from it so far. unlike the past three 3D Sonic games.
|
|
|
Post by Ryan James on Nov 21, 2013 21:47:43 GMT
I've been having a lot of fun with a recent Smash Bros. Brawl mod.
|
|
|
Post by Badly-Drawn Manchild on Nov 25, 2013 17:24:03 GMT
Castlevania: Mirror of Fate HD. It's pretty much the same game as the original, so if, like me, you thought that was deeply flawed and you're generally not keen on this rebooted series, then this won't do anything to change your mind.
Still, there is one area where the game's a definite improvement; there aren't so many bloody QTEs this time! You empty a boss' health bar, you grab them, then you just watch a cutscene as they're finished off. While this does reduce the amount of interactivity from minimum to zero, at least it gives the feel of that cutscene, seeing the enemy finished off with style, being a reward for beating them without having to watch the screen for a "press X to not die" moment.
I would hope this means MercurySteam finally realised that QTEs are not fun in the slightest, though I have the horrible feeling they'll be back full bloody force for Lords of Shadow 2...
|
|
|
Post by mikescrase on Dec 5, 2013 21:23:02 GMT
Gonzonzardy I just found out there is a Broken Sword 5, and in an odd coincided was just released yesterday. I'm downloading it right now. This is the happiest I've been in quite a while.
|
|
|
Post by Ringo (2015 Edition) on Dec 18, 2013 18:20:11 GMT
To get into the Xmas spirit, I bought the 3rd Headhunter DLC for Borderlands 2 today: How Marcus Saved Mercenary Day. It was so short I had it finished in 20 minutes, but it was utterly fantastic. Snow, tinsel, prezzies and a singing psycho just hit the spot for me. More gaming next week.
|
|
|
Post by Devo DrakeFox on Dec 21, 2013 0:27:29 GMT
Today I bought Batman: Arkham Origins. Enjoying it so far, but then they've stuck with the same formula as the last two Arkham games so they can't really go wrong. Also, having heard more of Roger Craig Smith's performance as Batman, I gotta say he's pretty good.
|
|
|
Post by mikescrase on Dec 22, 2013 19:45:47 GMT
Lol. I am so glad I live in a world where the same guy who voiced Sonic also voiced Batman.
|
|
|
Post by Devo DrakeFox on Dec 23, 2013 0:42:05 GMT
Hehe. Bet no one ever saw that coming.
|
|
|
Post by Ringo (2015 Edition) on Dec 31, 2013 18:26:50 GMT
Professor Layton And The Azran Legacy. This game is just fantastic, haven't got very far but I am loving it.
|
|
|
Post by Sam on Jan 1, 2014 17:16:28 GMT
I've been playing through A Link Between Worlds; I quite like the non-linear approach to it.
|
|
|
Post by Devo DrakeFox on Jan 2, 2014 1:12:53 GMT
Completed Arkham Origins a couple of days ago and also made a start on Project X Zone. Downloaded a couple of Game Boy classics from the Nintendo Store too: Super Mario Land 2 and Kirby's Pinball Land. Retrolicious! ;D
|
|
|
Post by Badly-Drawn Manchild on Jan 2, 2014 21:12:42 GMT
Super Mario 3D World. Finally got a chance to play this; I'm up to world 8 and I'm enjoying it immensely. So many little touches and ideas crammed into this game. One little detail that made me grin was that sometimes, if you choose to use Peach in one of Bowser's castles, she actually says "It's about time!" in an ever-so-slightly peeved tone of voice. Considering Peach's usual role in these games I found that really funny, and I hope they do this multiple playable characters approach more often.
|
|
|
Post by Ringo (2015 Edition) on Jan 2, 2014 23:51:20 GMT
Super Mario 3D World. Finally got a chance to play this; I'm up to world 8 and I'm enjoying it immensely. So many little touches and ideas crammed into this game. One little detail that made me grin was that sometimes, if you choose to use Peach in one of Bowser's castles, she actually says "It's about time!" in an ever-so-slightly peeved tone of voice. Considering Peach's usual role in these games I found that really funny, and I hope they do this multiple playable characters approach more often. I have this game. I've only made it to World 2 but I havent played it in almost a week, due to being really poorly. I hope to get back to it soon.
|
|
|
Post by ShayMay on Jan 3, 2014 19:48:52 GMT
Playing 3D World myself and it's making me a bit grumpy. Don't get me wrong, it's very good, but it's also got more than one piece of nonsense, a lot of which is centered around the 3-star + stamp system. I might elaborate sometime but honestly I would be blowing it out of proportion and I'll instead focus on the fact that it has been very good throughout. Better than 3D Land by some degrees and certainly better than the New Super Mario Bros. series.
Also been playing a Link Between Worlds, and polished it off on Hogmanay. It's my favourite game of 2013: I was incredibly sceptical because they were going to have to draw a very fine line between subverting A Link to the Past while also retaining its qualities, but I needn't have worried because they pulled that off flawlessly. In fact, and this is incredibly surprising considering Nintendo's track record of late, I think that from a design perspective this is better than A Link to the Past. EVERYTHING is perfect. What is familiar is kept familiar exactly when it should be, but made unfamiliar exactly when it's needed. The combat has a lot more teeth to it this time around: I can't describe how happy I am that the bosses are more of a gauntlet than a 'puzzle'. I initially criticised the dungeons for being short, but there isn't an ounce of fat on them. They have an hour's worth of ideas and so they end after an hour, rather than drag themselves on for three. The game is happy to go hands-off and let the player invest themselves in and discover its world, but I think that the biggest, most impressive thing is that it was able to strike a perfect balance between the original Zelda's open endedness and A Link to the Past's better level design. In fact, I love it so much that I hope that this becomes the default Zelda formula: a couple of dungeons to show you the ropes, then the game really opens up with loads of dungeons ready for you to explore in any order you like. Also, I hope that the final reward for the Mother Maiamai sidequest becomes a staple of the Zelda franchise too. All of this said, I think the only thing I dislike about the game is how much it borrows from other Zelda games. I don't think it's better than A Link to the Past for the sole reason that it's only as good as it is BECAUSE of A Link to the Past. Another major example is the final boss. I'm not going to spoil anything, but suffice to say if you've ever managed to reach the finale of a Zelda game before this you aren't going to spend any time puzzling out what to do. It's played with beautifully throughout though, so it still works out as a plus in my book. THIS is the re-imagining Zelda needed, not Skyward Sword. I would love to see this formula done again but with a brand new map.
|
|
|
Post by Sam on Jan 4, 2014 19:12:20 GMT
I agree with almost everything that Shay has said; I'm not sure about it being great because of A Link to the Past; I think it's great on it's own, but it was nice to see what happened to the world in, I assume, centuries, and I would be happy to see that formula happen again.
Shay, I'm a little confused, you praised the bosses for being gauntlet rather than puzzle, then seem to disagree with the final boss being non-puzzling? Though, I suppose it would have been nice for the final boss to be something different from the other boss fights to separate it out a little bit.
I loved this game, really did, and like Shay, hope this becomes the formula. However. Where are the sidequests? I felt they had this world that they had made even more beautiful than the first outing and they didn't ask you to explore it other than go to dungeon, complete dungeon, go to next dungeon. With the exception of the Mother thing. I miss the trading quests of handheld fame (ok, Link's Awakening fame). It also feels really really short. Perhaps I just chucked a lot of hours in without realising it.
Great game, if you like Zelda you need to give it a go, and I hope this is a sign of things to come.
|
|
|
Post by ShayMay on Jan 4, 2014 20:25:21 GMT
Ugh, chalk a lot of what I say up to poor phrasing, haha.
A Link Between Worlds isn't great entirely because of A Link to the Past, obviously, but I do think it has to be noted that the game simply wouldn't exist without the former. The map was always going to be so assuredly good BECAUSE it's taken from ALttP. I think ALBW relies very heavily on ALttP, especially for subversions and the like, and as such I'd rath the former higher, if that makes sense? As for the final boss fight: what I meant (while trying to keep it as spoiler-free as possible) was that it recycles a formula that the series final bosses frequently use. There are more than enough nice little touches to prevent it from becoming a complete retread, and I like that it keeps the high pace of the other boss fights and doesn't just devolve into waiting for the boss to use a specific attack. But I didn't even miss a beat: as soon as the boss fight started I knew exactly how the fight was going to go and it did just that. There were a few hella fun touches but even those didn't make me pause for thought.
As for the sidequests, I see what you mean. It wasn't completely bare-bones but according to my Activity Log it took me approximately 20 hours to 100%. I'd love to see that time increase, especially if the side quests replace stuff like the random treasure chest opening and the baseball minigame for the pieces of heart.
|
|
|
Post by Badly-Drawn Manchild on Jan 8, 2014 16:54:47 GMT
Super Mario 3D World. Got the credits, as I know there's post-game stuff so I can't rightly say I've beaten it.
The only complaint I can really think of is that, in my opinion, it's not the best game ever made. It's not as good as the Galaxy games, but those are a hard act to follow; otherwise it's absolutely magic, and reminded me of why, in spite of everything, I can't imagine ever refusing to play Nintendo games again.
|
|
|
Post by ShayMay on Jan 10, 2014 20:20:16 GMT
Super Mario 3D World. Can't contain my frustration with this game any longer. First off, let me say it's fun. It is. Its controls are smooth as silk, it has bags of new ideas, and it does more than enough right to warrant a recommendation. It's just a shame that it doesn't even come close to scraping Super Mario Galaxy's level of quality. See, here's the thing: in 1996 Super Mario 64 came out and it completely changed the way Mario worked in order to accommodate its new 3D environment. There is a very good reason for that: the 2D Mario formula simply does not work as well in 3D. The levels are extremely linear and designed with a 2D mindset. However, they can't afford to be as challenging or tight because of the 3D isometric camera, which is only adjustable 45ยบ in any direction. The only bits of meaty level design I found were in trying to collect all the Green Stars: there's one level that you can complete in under 30 seconds without encountering a single enemy if you don't bother going for the bonuses. But that's fine. Go for the Green Stars then, right? Well, I found that rife with frustration as well. It clashes frequently with the 2D Mario power-up system. There are plenty of Stars that require you to have power-ups to collect them; alcoves in a wall require the cat suit to get to, torches need lit with the fire flower, etc. Don't have the right power-up? Quit the level, go back to a level that DOES have it, collect it, finish the level (making sure not to take a hit), come back. Admittedly, 9 times out of 10 you'll find the correct power-ups in the level itself, but what if you do take a hit? Time to commit suicide. The worst ones of all, however, are those ones that you have to have a certain character to collect. Not because critical thought and mastery of the characters' different maneuvres have to be applied in order to collect them, oh no. Because there is literally a [censored] switch with the [censored] character's name on it that can't be pressed by anyone else. So you quit, come back with the necessary character, and what happens when you hit it? Star appears above the switch for instant collection. No challenge or puzzle, just a half-hearted reward for jumping through the game's hoops and padding out the play time by another five minutes. Obvious response: well then, just collect the ones you can! Who cares? To which I respond: exactly. But I definitely shouldn't be saying "who cares?" about the Wii U's first 3D Mario. Edit: Also, the game is clearly hampered in order to accommodate those playing with a Wii Remote and Wii Remote alone. That's why the face buttons on the Wii U remote repeat themselves, and why most of the levels are designed to go in 8 directions rather than in all directions. They pulled some similar [censored] with Pikmin 3 and I wish they'd cut it out. Okay, last bit. Champion Road can sincerely [censored] right off. I managed it, but again, it doesn't seem to recognise the limitations of its power up system. The level is next to impossible with Mario: in order to be in with a chance you need to have the Tanooki Suit. Do you get it in the level? Do you buggery. The disappointing thing is that the level would actually be a really great, fair challenge if they just gave you a Tanooki Suit. As it is, I only beat it by going through the tedium of resetting the game every time I died in order to retain my power up. That isn't old-school hard, that rewards a fair challenge, that's just being obtuse. Grandmaster Galaxy got it spot-on, but then, it wasn't wrestling with the same crappy power up system - or the same identity crisis. Seriously, Gusty Garden music? I [censored]ing love Gusty Garden but I would have thought 3D World would at least want to go out on its main theme.
Okay, so that's me completed it 100%. Or so I thought. In order to truly beat it 100%, you have to do every single level with every single character: a monolith of repetition and time-wasting that I think sums up my experience with this game nicely.
|
|
|
Post by Badly-Drawn Manchild on Jan 11, 2014 15:31:35 GMT
The Last of Us. As my dad got a PS3 for Christmas I finally have a chance to play it. I'm about a quarter of the way through now and so far... ehn... I'm finding it's just okay rather than anything worthy of a Game of the Year award.
The opening chapter's effective, but after that it's just the same basically functional action/stealth blend that all triple-A games seem to be lately. The story so far is... well, it's well-presented, but very predictable.
Then there are the Clickers. God-damnit, I hate those guys. I swear there's no way to defend yourself against them if you screw up with the stealth aspect. The instant-kill stuff wouldn't be so bad if it didn't seem like they were basically invincible to everything I can throw at them. What a cruel punishment for such a simple mistake.
What also throws me out of the experience constantly is that enemies are basically blind to CPU allies. It breaks the immersive factor completely when they can basically brush right next to a Clicker and they're not noticed. It means they're not a gameplay factor and thus completely pointless. It's convenient for the player, I suppose, but it wrecks suspension of disbelief. They should have gone the RE4 route, where enemies could affect them but you could tell them to hide in a bin until the fighting was over.
So yeah; so far it's good, but not as brilliant as everyone makes it out to be. Maybe I'll see what's so special about it later...
UPDATE (03/02/14): Well, the game's now finished, and... I thought it was okay, but I think the press and the fans have overblown its qualities somewhat. To me, it's the gaming equivalent of Oscar bait; technically it's all well-made, no doubt about that. However, I found the gameplay got monotonous, and that it thinks it's deeper than it actually is. Plus the ending left a sour taste in my mouth.
So yeah; good, but grossly overrated.
|
|
|
Post by Devo DrakeFox on Feb 15, 2014 13:19:03 GMT
Assassin's Creed III
So far, I'm not seeing why so many people hate this game. It's not broken and glitchy, the gameplay doesn't seem to have changed much at all and the story is as gripping as it's ever been. But then I haven't got that far in yet...
EDIT: Okay, I have noticed some glitches that actually have made my game slightly difficult. A couple of times I didn't crouch in the shrubs and that led to me being spotted, and the AI in this game seem to be unnaturally alert. A couple of times I've had redcoats walk a fair distance away from where I'm ducking so they shouldn't be able to notice when I break cover, but as soon as I do I de-sync.
Another game I've started on is Dead Space. I like this game, it's like a space-age Resident Evil, but actually scary.
|
|