Enter the Matrix, I loved the slowmo effects and the fights, the first hallway scene felt like it was straight from the movie. Using the computer terminal to unlock stuff felt magical. Only later I learned that Path of Neo was supposed to be a better Matrix game while Enter the Matrix was universally panned. And I’ve played it too, but didn’t get as much enjoyment out of it, it just didn’t have as much soul
Same, as a kid i had no idea if the controversy to and was still waiting on a sequel for some time after. I thought it was a novel idea and it was my first proper foray into Norse mythology.
That scared the crap out of me as a child. Absolutely no warning that it was coming.
Also its not anywhere because the company that made it doesnt exist any more so technically nobody has the rights to sell it. There’s going to be a lot more legal technicalities than that but that’s basically it.
Yeah, it terrified me too! It was also just one of those things that kind of made it seem like games were magic, in a way? Like, it was so unexpected and it expanded what a game could do in my child mind to such an extent that suddenly they could do almost anything! I miss that.
Ugh, sucks to hear it’s unlisted due to some legal technicalities. That’s a shame.
I’m a total dullard when it comes to these things but like, if you disconnect your machine from the internet so no outside checks can be made… Wouldn’t it just run as usual?
I believe it uses DRM that doesn’t work on newer Windows versions. There’s a fan patch that removes the drm and the game should run. Online (being connected to the internet) is probably not an issue.
Does DRM work without an internet connection? I always assumed that sort of thing needed to be able to communicate with a server somewhere to check… Something? 😅 Or is it just that the DRM used in this case actually just breaks in an unintentional way when running on new Windows systems and locks the game into not being able to boot?
If you remember the “glory days” pre ubiquitous constant internet connections, you had to enter a big long code when installing any software. I think the principle is that the license key is some sort of decryption key that unlocks a core part of the software which would otherwise prevent it running.
I do! I see okay, so it’s like the private key is stored within the ROM somewhere, and that activation code is like a public key that just decrypts based on the locally stored private key, making anti-piracy software work whether online or offline. Quite clever, really! Thanks 😊
In the first one at least it would whisper “deaaath” if a follower died and there was no graveyard built. Terrified me hearing that the first time playing at night
Haha that’s the kind of thing I love!! the developers that stopped water being a limitation and turned it into some kind of feature
For example, in the infamous games, you’re an electric man so waist high water kills you, and shallower water conducts your electricity. If an enemy also stands in that water, it’s an instant kill on them
Made up instantly for the fact you couldn’t swim lol.
My evil run in Infamous, I would just find a group of people next to a puddle and just walk right onto it. Then I’d just watch as people would panic and run right into the water. Fun times.
Although I haven’t played a lot of gam es you play, at least not enough to have a discussion, I upvote every time out of sheer admiration for your dedication to post every day. Most days I have to remind myself multiple times to brush my teeth.
But the Steam Deck isn’t a console? And a game running through a compatibility layer isn’t a port.
A Linux laptop with a controller instead of a keyboard isn’t a console. Thats similar to the Atari VCS, which isnt a console either, just a Linux PC that comes with controllers. Both can run unmodified or barely modified Linux software, which a game console would require ports of.
I mean, if that logic held up, then the Xbox wouldn’t count as a console either—because it literally runs a customized version of Windows under the hood. It boots into a UI shell, but it’s still Windows at the core, running DirectX just like a PC.
By that same standard, the PlayStation wouldn’t be a console either, since it’s running a customized BSD-based OS that can support a lot of traditional software frameworks.
The idea that a console must run completely proprietary software or require deep code rewrites for every game is just outdated. These days, the distinction is more about the delivery method and user experience than the underlying OS. Steam Deck boots into a curated interface, runs games with gamepad-first optimization, and delivers a console-like experience out of the box. Whether it’s using Proton or not doesn’t change that—it’s still targeting the exact use case of a console: plug in, pick a game, play.
So if the Xbox qualifies despite being a glorified Windows PC with a gamepad and a skin, then so does the Steam Deck. You don’t get to move the goalposts just because it runs Linux.
You cannot take a full unmodified Windows program and directly run it on the Xbox, even in Developer Mode. You have to make changes to the software for the Xbox to run it. Xbox runs a modified version of Windows, but it cannot run software built for the full unmodified version of Windows. I have no experience with developing for PlayStation, but I imagine it is the same, it probably does not run unmodified BSD software. Likewise, Nintendo software needs to be modified in order to run on Nintendo console operating systems. The Switch cannot run unmodified Android software, unless you hack it to install unmodified Android onto the console.
But you CAN take a full unmodified Linux program and directly run it on the Steam Deck, without needing to modify the software at all. Same with the Atari VCS.
Goalposts were not moved. The Steam Deck is a Linux laptop with a controller attached to it, its not a game console.
The claim that the Steam Deck runs unmodified Linux software “out of the box” glosses over a lot of caveats.
Sure, it’s possible—but only if the software is compatible with SteamOS’s Arch-based flavor of Linux, its dependencies, and its sandboxing. And to even attempt that, you have to exit Gaming Mode entirely and boot into Desktop Mode. From there, you’re dealing with a mouse-and-keyboard interface, and many apps require terminal commands, sudo access, or specific library versions to even launch. That’s not something you casually do with a game controller from your couch.
More importantly, I reject this narrow definition that “console” must mean a closed, locked-down system incapable of running general-purpose software. That might describe a traditional console, but it’s not a requirement. Plenty of recognized consoles have been open or hackable: the Ouya ran Android. The Miyoo Mini running OnionOS is basically a retro Linux handheld, yet it’s absolutely treated as a console by its user base. A Raspberry Pi running Batocera, plugged into a TV with a controller, is a console experience. Even the Nintendo DS, when booting homebrew off a flashcart, operates in the same way.
What actually defines a console isn’t the OS or whether it can run unmodified desktop software. It’s the user experience: you turn it on, pick a game, play with a controller, and everything revolves around gaming. The Steam Deck nails that. You don’t need to know it runs Linux. You don’t have to touch Desktop Mode. For the average user, it’s as much a console as a Switch or Xbox—just with a lot more flexibility if you go looking for it.
I was born in the same year, 1976, and I really don’t feel the same way. Pretty much every era has bangers and also really bad games.
I have really good memories from the '80s (games like Pitfall II or the MSX Konami games), the '90s (playing MUDs with my college pals, the classic SNES JRPGs like Chrono Trigger or the classic PC CRPGs like Baldur’s Gate and its ilk), the '00s (games like Silent Hill 2, Morrowind or GTA: San Andreas), the '10s (pretty much every FromSoft game from that decade, NieR:Automata or the Rocksteady Batman games) and the '20s (games like Elden Ring, Hades, etc.). And many more games I didn’t mention.
Some decades have been better than others, but there are incredible games in all of them.
I started on the first PSP game and it was heavily more obtuse, with almost zero direction, tutorial, hints, anything hahaha. It got a LITTLE better with later “old style” games but it was still pretty obtuse. World NEEDED a tutorial that explained every little detail and held yer hand, otherwise new players would be hella turned off by the game and it wouldn’t have blown up like it did.
I’ve been playing racing games ever since I was a kid but was never into Nintendo. I played everything from Crash Team Racing to Assetto Corsa and everything in between, but never own a Mario Kart game.
Just in the last year my roommate picked up a Wii U and I played through 8. It doesn’t necessarily do anything that other racing games haven’t individually done better and there’s nothing truly unique.
That being said, the one thing it does better than anyone else is precision and feedback. It is exceptionally tight and responsive compared to others like it. It’s also just incredibly well animated and visually consistent. The game still looks good a decade later, no issues.
I would akin a lot of what Nintendo does to Apple. Not necessarily the first, or the most powerful, but almost always the most polished.
Probably, yeah, but I have exported snapshots and backups for such cases, and data itself is encrypted. So at worst a few hours lost. They can be easily disconnected i just never actually do it.
Many malicious actors don’t trigger their payload that you would notice until after data has been mined.
I’ve visited businesses to help put together basic infrastructure after their systems were encrypted and ransomed. We would bring up a backup from the night before only to find the system still infected. We would go back a week, 2 weeks, a month.
These things lie in wait and only as the final nuclear option do they get noticed.
Kind of not a problem? If malware in question would try to write itself onto other drives it needs to know my luks pin and support my fs, so at worst it can try and fail. If it’s a windows machine that has it, well I’ll just nuke it after firat reoccurence. Realistically, I’ve had this setup for over a decade and there were 3-5 times when pirated game had malware.
Well I can already predict this thread will be full of comments on the price so I’ll go ahead and give actual impressions on the game.
It’s really good! The free roam mode is maybe a bit more bare bones than I thought it would be but it’s still great fun driving around and doing challenges. Some of the challenges are legitimately difficult and some of the special ones have taken me ages to complete. The driving feels great, the new movement mechanics are really fun. Knockout tour is absolutely the star here and a great new mode. The AI is harder this time around which makes racing against them much more fun in my opinion.
Overall I’ve been having an amazing time. I do think $80 is steep. But that aside, the game is outstanding
I’m glad you’re enjoying it. I’m not going to be having a switch 2 any time soon but I do really like Nintendo games, so I’m glad I’ll be able to get some of the excitement through you :).
I’m a bit sad about the free roaming part being a bit bare bones. When they first announced it I was hoping for the creativity of a Mario Odyssey crossed with Breath of the Wild in a Kart, discovering secrets and fun places everywhere.
Also with respect to pricing: I think it depends on the game to decide what an honest price is. I would gladly give 100 or more for the joy that Slay the Spire has given me over the years. I think that a big and polished Mario game is not immediately the worst offender for being this expensive. It’s when the less polished and more cash grabbing AAA games start to follow this example that it becomes a problem. I do like how some games decide their price points differently, like Clair Obscur for example.
I’m not a Nintendo gamer, but I’ve been watching a streamer play the game, and whenever I see the Knockout Tour it reminds me of the opening set pieces of the Forza Horizon games, where you’re going through all the different biomes, to introduce you to the game. And afterward you’re let loose on the Mario Horizon festival (aka the empty open world).
The game itself doesn’t look fun at all for me, but who cares, if people enjoy it.
I do think $80 is steep. But that aside, the game is outstanding
Isn’t the launch deal essentially getting the game for $30 off? Seems like a fair price for the game when you consider that - if you are buying the Switch 2 at launch, you are buying it to play the new Mario Kart, so I guess the $80 price tag is just to push you towards the bundle? I wonder what kind of discounts they will do this gen. Nintendo has historically been very stingy with deals, but I wonder if $80 price tag will mean slightly deeper discounts in the future?
@ItsMeAlex It's not Open Source. Maybe at one time it will be but it wasn't started as one and I don't really have the capacity right now to maintain it as open source.
Hello Mr Developer 😅
I couldn't find the source code, it would be perfect if that was! Otherwise I can understand if u are keeping a closed hobby project.
Different games have different rules for how summoning works. If memory serves, Dark 2 was the “worst” because it was fully based on soul memory and you may have even incremented that by wiping without spending? Whereas I think Dark 3 was a mix of highest upgrade level for gear on you combined with Soul Level?
In general? When the game is new or having a community wide resurgence, no. There will always be someone who is SL200 in newbie village. When the game is older and not played regularly, yes. There are various sites (never trust fandom or fextralife) that list recommended level ranges but as long as you aren’t actively grinding more than a level or two extra per region, you are fine.
All that said? Be VERY careful about playing any of the PC Dark Souls games online because they are mostly abandoned by From. I believe the outright RCE was fixed but you can still have your game ruined. www.youtube.com/watch?v=H-XFIfmJ2T8 is a great video on the topic.
You are partly correct about DS2. It did increment even by wiping without spending the souls, but on the other hand the ranges involved meant that there was very likely always someone in range.
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