I’ve been playing a tonnnn more UFO 50. Beat Vainger, started Mini and Max (absolutely amazing). Also did the whole meta game secret thing to the end which was super fun!
Vampire Survivors has got me back in its grip. The Ode to Castlevania DLC dropped on Halloween. I really don’t understand where the time goes when I play that game.
Also picked up Webfishing, an absolutely adorable time. I don’t know that I really consider it “playing”, the actual gameplay is pretty basic, but I’ve enjoyed the peaceful nature of it and have had fun just chatting.
This is seriously dating myself, and probably hyper-specific, but it feels more like chatrooms back in the late 90s to early 2000s. Most of the rooms I’ve been in have been relaxed. Having a talk about life while someone strums “Simple and Clean” on a guitar somewhere in the background. A bit of roleplay going on.
The small lobbies, the small map, the chill gameplay, all makes for a cozy, welcoming place. Like you really did just stumble across someone’s campsite, and they invited you to sit.
Look, I get it, but the state of DLC in Paradox games has moved beyond even the memes. I think they took those as inspiration. There’s a fucking monthly pass now!
I deeply enjoy their games, but the DLC bloat confounds me.
This is what happens when you take things away. Used to be you’d just levitate yourself wherever you needed to go.
Then there’s Fallout. Who needs horses? Courier can carry themself and 400 pounds of Sunset Sarsaparilla up a damn near vertical cliff face if you do the side-to-side.
[alt text: a screenshot from an unspecified Mario game. In the screenshot, Bowser is standing behind Donkey Kong, and Donkey Kong has a dramatic expression with eyes closed and mouth wide open like he is yelling or groaning.]
[alt text: a screenshot from “Mario Super Sluggers” (a Mario baseball game for the Wii), showing Goomba stepping up to the plate and Wario on the pitcher’s mound. Goomba has no hands, yet the baseball bat appears to be emerging from somewhere between their chin and their feet, which creates a suggestive image.]
Interesting thoughts about how to define success for video games in today’s market, particularly for those using early access. Lots of respect for Hooded Horse’s CEO, Tim Bender, he says all the right things and seems genuine....
Like, a big AAA dev/publisher or a relatively unknown newbie? Not gonna trust that it’s going to turn out good or get finished.
A company like Crate? Hell yeah, they make solid shit and haven’t fucked me over once on it. I watched Grim Dawn grow up from 2 acts to getting a third expansion. Farthest Frontier is also shaping up into a fun time, in my opinion.
If they have a history, it can be worth it to take the risk and take some small part in the process.
I think I single-handedly funded a complete overhaul of the Kantonian Safari Zone just to get Scyther in Pokemon Red.
I lost count of how many times I reset to actually catch Chansey. “You missed the Pokemon! Chansey fled!” over and over again, when I actually got one of them to spawn!
Then it was flying all over, since I had the Good and Super rods, finally, to do all of the fishing. Now it’s leveling up some of my catches while pushing through Saffron so I can grab Lapras, snag Hitmonlee from the dojo, get everyone evolved and caught up, and then finally take down Koga.
I remember my first time finding the ceiling path in the Pyramids in SML1. I just decided to try to see if I could jump up to the ceiling tiles, skip passed the enemies.
It blew my little mind when it worked. I could do that. Where else could I do that‽ The entire game just changed! I lost hours trying to make the stupidest jumps, just to see if I had found another one.
The Steel Battalion Mech controls. The size of a table, it was an appropriate recreation of the control panel for a mech, requiring you to go through all the steps from firing it up to ejecting in case of danger. You had pedals, sticks, knobs, switches galore.
Both games were pretty damn brutal, but memorable, experiences. I wish someone would come up with something like it, because that was the closest I’ve felt to my childhood dream.
You don’t have to tell me to get in the robot, you have to stop me from hijacking it just for a joyride.
I’ve always had long fingers, and The Duke was perfect. I remember getting one of the revamped controller models down the line, and it just never felt quite as good.
Still prefer X-Box style controllers on the overall, these days. Still not quite up there yet, but still better than PlayStations style, and while I think the JoyCons are absolutely adorable and clever, actually using them is just uncomfortable after awhile.
NYKO were a decent third party, back in the day. Not great, but a step above the competition. Downside, I don’t think they ever really changed their plans that much. I swear I saw PS3 controllers with the “air cool” marketing still on it, just now with RGB through the controller!
Still Pokemon Red. I’m beginning to regret my choices. The choice to include Blue-exclusives, and trade evolutions, because PKHex makes it so easy to do. The choice to try to keep a selection of various typings caught up in level, so I’d have some decent coverage versus brute forcing.
Having the trio of starters. I think I’ve grown to hate Bulbasaur, at this point. Every time I go to drop him into my party, all I can remember is “Not very effective”, over and over again. Well into the 20s, still taking 2-3 Vine Whips to take out a level 6 Kakuna.
Slowly grinding my way through a Pokemon Red Professor Oaks Challenge(Yay, switch-training Magikarp…), and when my brains to the point of melting from that, Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous. Kitsune Bladebound Magus, happily traipsing her fluffy way down wherever Desna may guide her.
May the Gods have mercy on the crusade she’s going to lead.
Just so you know, if it’s been awhile, Crate came in and did a pretty big overhaul on Grim Dawn, and are prepping for the “final” expansion that’s supposed to come sometime this year.
Dodge roll mechanic, potions are now a recharge resource versus pickups that take item space, the next expansion is adding potion customization, prettied up the old world to be more in-line with the quality the previous two expansions brought, tons of little tweaks.
It’s not exactly a “whole new game” experience, but it’s much more smoothed out!
Jauwn is a treat, and he makes such cool intros. He adds a nice perspective to the crypto games market. Open about his views on what it’s used for, but still willing to give it an honest try and look at it as a game alongside everything else.
Out of nowhere, I had the sudden urge to play New Vegas again, so that’s been taking up my time. Been enjoying a more Vanilla+ playthrough, just the patches to help it run better. And Someguys quest mods, but they fit right in to me. Still haven’t made my way onto The Strip, though I’ve cleared Boone’s quest and I’m working on Veronica’s(with E-DE in tow, of course).
It’s been awhile for me, been a nice revisit. Just taking my time, and really enjoying all the little rediscoveries I’ve been making.
“Horror” is easy. Dim lighting, spooky creature, feelings of powerlessness(such as limited view, limited to no combat capabilities, restrictions like a stamina meter, the like).
GOOD horror is hard. Good horror is the kind that sticks around with you, leaves you feeling uneasy even after the end. That takes talent, creativity, and genuinely, a bit of bravery. It takes understanding what makes us feel afraid. Facing your own fears, making them a reality, distorting that reality into how it makes you feel.
Silent Hill, at least the first three, are exemplary for this, in my opinion. They explore the fear, but also the sadness, the anger, the confusion. Everything fear brings with it. It molds itself around the characters, letting us experience those emotions as they do. They can be genuinely visually unsettling, then swing the psychological side of things right at you.
Hell, you can even have that and hit a bit of a power fantasy. Call of Cthulhu: Dark Corners of the Earth manages to have early moments where the tension keeps rising because you are basically powerless to stand and fight, to manning the guns later on.
Not everyone has the spark for good horror. It’s not a bad thing, just means it’s not your strength.
My first round of Tetris was on an old DMG my late stepfather owned. It was my first time even handling one of those old bricks, but I cherished it. I don’t know what in my young brain it hit, but something just felt right. That thing got lost somewhere in packing up the house after his passing, probably still had that exact cart slotted.
I don’t think I played it for years after that, until I got my OG Xbox, with the double pack Clone Wars/Tetris Worlds. If I wasn’t running around being a squeaker on Counter-Strike or MechWarrior, I was playing Tetris. Weekends spent gripping the Duke, trying to get as far as I could.
The soundtrack, art direction, color palette, and gameplay all come together in a relaxing loop. I have spent hours just drifting along spot to spot, taking care of the spirits in my care until their times came to depart, and still go back to it when I just want to have some time to relax.
As a warning, the game does deal with some emotional tones, so there’s a bit of melancholy mixed in. My wife and I both had times where we teared up because it felt like saying goodbye to someone again. It’s handled well, though. Really gives the feeling of everything being put to rest, and there’s still everything they taught you right there as a reminder of the effect they had.
Kingdom Hearts main menu theme. It’s absolutely a nostalgia hit for me. That game was one of my “get-away” games while in a rough situation. Hearing that music always makes me feel a little safer, like I’m just one step away from a completely different life.
Crash land near/in the main colony? Eh. I’d be thrown into prison to be beaten or put into Boris’ chair until I was compliant, but after, there’s a chance at a decent life with only some risk of death. At worst, they might decide I’m worth tossing in a Warcasket and joining the Dead watching the walls.
Outside of them? Ehh. Might be able to throw in with a tribe and keep my head down until we’re all slaughtered in a raid. Some of the Empires seem somewhat friendly, could try to offer services cleaning and hauling for a bed in a servant barracks. Completely fucked if I’m caught out by Raiders, Pirates, Insectoids, or Mechanoids.
Rimworld, in a fucked up way, has become my comfort game, so it’s taken up a good chunk of my playtime recently.
Got a nice little colony going, nestled in some mountains. Working on clearing out our “home” area, and then I want to start coring out the others to keep this look of a quiet, sleepy village nestled among the rocks until you step into our killbox and realize we’re actually a highly militarized group of escaped slaves with Spacer-grade gear, a GlitterNet set-up running our defenses, and no plans of going back.
At least, that’s the plan. Now that I have the first wing of a permanent hospital down, I’m planning on getting the colony gym up and running, hopefully not have a meltdown happen when Partridge realizes his husband, Dog, is now psychically bonded with, and boning, the new Highmate, Sarai, and hopefully remember to actually finish building the prisons hospital wing and the bones for the Ripper and Hema wings so we’re prepared for when we need subcores and blood.
I might put the organ harvesting wing near the beach. Let the bastards have one last look at the ocean before a sawbones rips their liver out.
What I mean by this, is instead of when you fail and are met with a game over, the game finds some way to keep it going. Instead of being forced to reset to a previous save or an autosave checkpoint, the game’s story continues in an interesting path. Are there any games like this?...
If your colony is close to collapsing, you have a chance for a “Man in Black” event where a stranger in black comes in and, hopefully, turns it all around.
But what if the MiB doesn’t trigger? Hell, what if they’re a pacifist pyromaniac with a meth addiction who wandered into a mass of cannibal sex slavers having a rave over the ashes and dies?
Someone will eventually come. It might take in-game years, but eventually, a pawn will come and want to make those ruins home. You can try to rebuild.
Admittedly, it can be quicker to just call it done and roll up a fresh colony over watching the seasons pass, but I like how even a complete loss doesn’t mean the story is done.
It can take a stupid long time, but eventually an event should cycle through saying someone wants to join the colony. There used to be mods to force the event after meeting certain conditions, but I have no idea if they’re still maintained.
A good distraction can turn the tide of a battle. Completely psychological warfare. Also possible lasting effects during the match. Get a player riled up, there’s a chance they’ll remain distracted and play worse on the overall, while being open to more distractions.
I think a lot of people have been on the receiving end of that. Even just getting outplayed can have a negative effect on your morale, and that can really get you off your game if you let it get to you. Add in a little trash talk from the enemy team, you got a recipe for trouble.
Have to agree there. It’s very newcomer friendly, even without using the bonus Personas the game gives you.
Also want to recommend Dragon Quest 11. While it has plenty of nods to the older titles, you don’t need to know them to enjoy the meat of the game, and it’s as traditional as they come while being a genuinely fun romp.
Pocketpair reveals specific patents featured in Nintendo's lawsuit against Palworld (www.gamedeveloper.com)
Weekly “What are you playing” Thread || Week of November 3rd
I’ve been playing a tonnnn more UFO 50. Beat Vainger, started Mini and Max (absolutely amazing). Also did the whole meta game secret thing to the end which was super fun!
Players are now less "accepting" that games will be fixed, say Paradox, after "underestimating" the reaction to Cities: Skylines 2's performance woes (www.rockpapershotgun.com)
Adding Horses to your Game: Tips, Resources, Do’s and Don’ts — The Mane Quest (www.themanequest.com)
Heaven 17 claims it turned down GTA 6 soundtrack offer over pay offer: ‘Go f*** yourself’ [VGC] (www.videogameschronicle.com) angielski
I typically avoid online games but this is why I'm fine with it in Elden Ring
uhhhh...guys? (beehaw.org) angielski
[alt text: a screenshot from an unspecified Mario game. In the screenshot, Bowser is standing behind Donkey Kong, and Donkey Kong has a dramatic expression with eyes closed and mouth wide open like he is yelling or groaning.]
Uhhhh...Goomba? (beehaw.org) angielski
[alt text: a screenshot from “Mario Super Sluggers” (a Mario baseball game for the Wii), showing Goomba stepping up to the plate and Wario on the pitcher’s mound. Goomba has no hands, yet the baseball bat appears to be emerging from somewhere between their chin and their feet, which creates a suggestive image.]
Long Dark dev criticises Manor Lords for lack of updates, Hooded Horse CEO replies that not every game needs to be "some live-service boom or bust" (www.rockpapershotgun.com)
Interesting thoughts about how to define success for video games in today’s market, particularly for those using early access. Lots of respect for Hooded Horse’s CEO, Tim Bender, he says all the right things and seems genuine....
Weekly “What are you playing” Thread || Week of July 7th
Whatcha playing?...
Let's discuss: Super Mario (beehaw.org) angielski
The format of these posts is simple: let’s discuss a specific game or series!...
Speaking of controllers: What's your favorite WEIRD controller? angielski
Today I learned about the Jogcon controller for PS1 & PS2:...
Weekly “What are you playing” Thread || Week of June 30th
Whatcha all playing!...
Weekly “What are you playing” Thread || Week of June 23rd
Whatcha all playing?...
thoughts on arpgs? angielski
to clarify, I mean games like Diablo 4, Path of Exile, and Grim Dawn!...
Jauwn Reviews Awful Crypto (Scam) Games (Timestamped Video) (www.youtube.com) angielski
I stumbled upon their videos and watched three. It’s absurd and often hilarious how bad most of the games are....
The Wolf Among Us 2 Gets New Screenshots, Devs "Heads Down" On Development (www.thegamer.com)
Weekly “What are you playing” Thread || Week of April 14th
Whatcha all been playing! I got the itch for outer wilds again, which I can’t really play anymore (😭)...
TIL you can remove tags such as horror from itch.io using ?exclude=tg.horror in the url. (itch.io) angielski
Its a query parameter. Completely changes the site.
Let's discuss: Tetris (beehaw.org) angielski
The format of these posts is simple: let’s discuss a specific game or series!...
You wankpuffin (lemmy.world) angielski
Finally, a farm sim that will let me date hot demons and also collect capybaras (www.pcgamer.com) angielski
What games make you happy?
Hello all! I would like to know what games give you that cozy, fuzzy feeling of simple happiness....
Super Monkey Ball Banana Rumble - The Big Roll Out Trailer (www.youtube.com) angielski
No greater sign of loyalty (lemmy.world) angielski
MSI has launched a new gaming handheld, and there are two things you should know: It's the first to launch with an Intel Core Ultra processor, and for some reason it's called 'Claw' (www.pcgamer.com) angielski
Sounds less like a handheld and more like a Marvel villain, but at least the hardware's intriguing.
So much effort... wasted... (lemmy.world) angielski
Whats your favorite Main Menu music? angielski
I’ll start it off - Legend of Dragoon has my heart with this one...
Dwarf Fortress- Adventure Mode Announcement Trailer (www.youtube.com) angielski
Just a Sims 2 DLC review (startrek.website) angielski
You teleport into the last game world you played. What happens next? angielski
(Idea taken from a similar post I saw in Reddit a longer time ago)...
What games have you been playing recently angielski
I myself have been playing alot of rdr2 and beamng
Valve Hires Creator Behind Popular ‘Half-Life: Alyx’ Mod (www.roadtovr.com) angielski
What are some games that "spin" failure states? angielski
What I mean by this, is instead of when you fail and are met with a game over, the game finds some way to keep it going. Instead of being forced to reset to a previous save or an autosave checkpoint, the game’s story continues in an interesting path. Are there any games like this?...
Multiplayer Gaming (lemmy.ml) angielski
Yakuza: Like a Dragon is Now DRM free on GOG. (lemmy.ml)
I always thought this game looked right up my alley but I refuse to buy games with DRM like Denuvo....