Coelacanth

Coelacanth, 21 dni temu

This will probably make me finally get around to playing it. I had a lot of fun with NWN back in the day, but that was more the multiplayer custom servers. The single player campaign was pretty mediocre.

I never actually played the sequel, but I remember hearing very good things about the Mask of the Betrayer expansion to NWN2. Hope it lives up to the reputation.

Coelacanth, 21 dni temu

I guess it’s like Rust but in space? Survival MMO set in the EVE universe? Not really what I’m looking for but it could work I suppose.

Coelacanth, 21 dni temu

What’s it like these days? I sometimes miss the heyday of like 2011-2014 EVE, but I stopped keeping track of what was going on some time after quitting. I also kind of lost faith in the direction it was going and what CCP was doing.

As someone who’s been around the block, is it in a good state now?

Coelacanth, 21 dni temu

I played it obsessively for a solid month or so following its release. One of the best puzzle games ever and still a GOTY contender for me.

I know some people didn’t like the RNG, but for me it never became a real big problem. You get some control over the randomness eventually, and I also just found the drafting part of the game enjoyable in itself.

Piecing together the story and the world building bit by bit and uncovering the mystery was also super enjoyable. It’s one of the most rewarding games ever for note-takers. So much so that keeping physical notes in a journal was like half my enjoyment.

Coelacanth, 21 dni temu

There were a couple of moments for me that made me go “wait, how fucking big is this game actually?”, but otherwise yeah it’s more of a game where you gradually scratch at the surface and peel at the corners and bit by bit it keeps opening up and opening up and opening up beneath you.

Coelacanth, 21 dni temu

There are several more. Some examples (light spoilers):

spoilerPick any room upgrades that give you extra dice. There are also two items that let you reroll, though they aren’t the easiest to acquire (but can be Coat Checked!). I also recommend looking into the Sheet Music puzzle.

There are some other ways to reroll or affect RNG, but I don’t know how to hint at them without spoiling too much.

Coelacanth, 21 dni temu

It’s not a perfect game as I’m sure you’ve gleaned from this thread. It varies from individual to individual how much the RNG affects your enjoyment but I can understand some people’s frustrations.

That being said: it’s not a full price game, it’s an incredibly interesting and unique concept and it’s put together with an incredible amount of detail and care. It’s also made by a small indie studio, and I love supporting those. If the puzzle you helped solve seemed interesting and you like puzzles and escape rooms and piecing things together then you should absolutely buy it, in my opinion.

Coelacanth, 22 dni temu

Mapocolops played through Dark Forces II recently and it was incredible watching those FMVs again that blew my mind as a child. I will always love Kyle Katarn.

However… the level design is absolutely wild! I have no idea how I got through that game as an 8-year-old!

Coelacanth, 24 dni temu

Finished playing F.E.A.R. for the first time and am now about halfway through the first expansion Extraction Point. Man, it really holds up incredibly for a 20-year-old game.

The particle effects look fantastic for their age, the lightly destructible environments add a beautiful layer of carnage and the gunplay is surprisingly great for such an old game. Every single gun feels satisfying to use (bar the bizarrely awful assault rifle), with the highlight of course being nailing people to the wall with the famous 10mm HV Penetrator.

The AI is also just as good as people say and it continues to surprise me with shockingly good dynamic behaviour for again a game of this age. Especially the way they interact with the environment in unscripted ways impress me: closing doors behind them as they retreat to wait in ambush or smashing windows and vaulting over to charge you for example.

The horror and story is actually the weak point, at least of the main game. It’s all pretty predictable, the horror is fairly mediocre and not even the jump scares really land. I will say it has been better in the expansion so far, though, even if it’s still only sort of okay.

But that doesn’t really matter. The atmosphere does enough to sell its pseudo horror identity, but the fantastic gunplay across these well designed claustrophobic levels is worth experiencing. It’s a classic for a reason and I completely get why. And with it frequently being for sale for like a dollar on GOG it’s a must play, I think.

Just make sure to install the EchoPatch!

Coelacanth, 24 dni temu

Been keeping an eye on this for years, and every trailer it looks better and better. Looks like they really have found more of their own identity by now. Very curious to try it.

Coelacanth, 25 dni temu

This type of gore and body horror doesn’t really get to me, but the gunplay looks very satisfying and this seems like it could be a fun zombie horde shooter.

Coelacanth, 25 dni temu

“Modern retro” games are such a vibe. All the charm of retro games but without the clunk. I played Skald: Against the Black Priory earlier this year and loved it and this looks amazing too.

Coelacanth, 25 dni temu

It looks like a great game but I think it’s too difficult for me.

Coelacanth, 25 dni temu

Ok this actually looks fucking sick. It’s not often we get something fresh like this.

Coelacanth, 26 dni temu

I got the first one for free from Epic. Is it worth playing?

Coelacanth, 26 dni temu

Thanks. My backlog is too long anyway, glad to hear I’m not missing out.

Coelacanth, 26 dni temu

I had no idea it was today so I’m not looking forward to anything in particular. Having just finished Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 it would be amazing news if they had an announcement that they’re intending to release a DLC.

Would also love to see something from Remedy about Control 2 as I love those guys and the Remedy Connected Universe. Well, what I’m really desperate about is Alan Wake 3, but that’s surely not even in pre-production yet (sadly).

Would not mind seeing something from Bloodlines 2 either out of morbid curiosity, but I have no hopes it will actually be good.

Coelacanth, 26 dni temu

Control 2 entered full production this year. I don’t think it’ll be more than 3 years unless something goes terribly wrong.

Coelacanth, 26 dni temu

Is it really a replacement? Isn’t this just a show (like the Game Awards) as opposed to a huge ass convention like E3?

Coelacanth, 26 dni temu

Ooh good shout, this has to be the ultimate convergence of power fantasy and boobs surely?

Coelacanth, 27 dni temu

Isn’t Prey (2017) well liked?

Coelacanth, 27 dni temu

That’s what I thought. I bought it recently on a GOG sale but haven’t played it yet. But all I hear about Prey (2017) is people raving about how great it is.

Coelacanth, 27 dni temu (edited 27 dni temu)

No PC eh?

EDIT: I’m blind

Coelacanth, 27 dni temu

Okay I need to stop commenting before coffee.

Coelacanth, 27 dni temu

I loved Blue Prince. It’s still putting up a good fight for my personal GOTY despite having just finished and loved Clair Obscur.

Play it, take notes, enjoy it. Games like it don’t come along often.

Coelacanth, 27 dni temu

I haven’t played BNW yet (though I really should), but I’d be hesitant to suggest something that makes so many fundamental changes for someone’s first playthrough. The one I tend to recommend is Woolsey Uncensored

Coelacanth, 27 dni temu

Don’t know how far into Clair Obscur you are, but I recommend sticking with it. I can’t really say anything else without spoilers but I found the story very good.

Coelacanth, 25 dni temu

Fun! Keeping a notebook is like half the fun of Blue Prince, at least it was for me. Same with Obra Dinn. I ended up with like 50 pages of notes for Blue Prince, as well as hundreds of screenshots.

Coelacanth, 29 dni temu

Ciri enters the portal in all endings.

Coelacanth, 29 dni temu (edited 29 dni temu)

Yes, she always goes through the portal. It’s what happens after that varies. She either becomes a Witcher (looks like that will be the canon ending considering Witcher 4), becomes an empress or she doesn’t come back. In the latter ending it’s implied (but left up for debate) that she dies. It’s also very heavily implied that Geralt dies in that one.

Coelacanth, miesiąc temu

The most busted late game strat I found on Lune was using Braselim to farm a level 3 Gradient attack every turn (Storm Caller is key for this).

Elemental Genesis actually fell out of favour for me once I discovered Hell does better AoE damage and Lightning Dance does better single target.

Typhoon is also great if you’re playing full strength teams and not low HP/Inverted. You can load it up with both Energising Heal and all the buffs, as well as Energising Rush/Shell/Powerful as needed and it will have your team triple buffed and at max AP every turn.

Coelacanth, miesiąc temu

RDR2 is probably the best-feeling in terms of NPC behaviour in the open world.

Coelacanth, miesiąc temu

Baldur’s Gate 3 is a good game and a worthwhile experience but you can absolutely make quite a lot of very valid critiques about it.

Coelacanth, miesiąc temu

We’ll see how much is recency bias and how well it will stand the test of time, but I really think Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 will be on this list going forward. It’s definitely one of the best games I’ve ever played, and I’ve played a lot of games. It’s not perfect, but it’s close enough in all the parts that actually matter.

Otherwise there’s your usual suspects:

• Disco Elysium
• Portal
• Half-Life 2
• Bioshock 1
• Final Fantasy VI
• Chrono Trigger
• Zelda: Ocarina of Time
• The Last of Us
• Baldur’s Gate 2

Coelacanth, miesiąc temu

I know this is a hot take, but: BG3 is a good game. Clair Obscur is a work of art.

Coelacanth, miesiąc temu

BG3 has some very fun gameplay at times, such as the much-lauded variety with which you can deal with the Goblin Camp in Act 1. That’s where it shines.

The writing is not really comparable. BG3 is in the “fine for a video game” territory. Disco Elysium’s writing is art, both the narratives, the characters, the themes and even the prose itself.

Coelacanth, miesiąc temu

Good list. I desperately wanted to put Dark Souls on my list, as the first blind playthrough of it was a magical experience. But I don’t think it’s correct, no matter how much I love it. Flawed masterpiece is about right.

Coelacanth, miesiąc temu

I love STALKER with all my heart, and if we’re talking atmosphere and vibes and even world building it is up there. But it does not really belong in the objective masterpiece category. Flawed masterpiece, maybe.

Also I think Call of Pripyat is the better STALKER game, but it might be controversial.

Coelacanth, miesiąc temu

Disco Elysium is definitely closer to the visual novel spectrum of video games than it is to something like Tetris. But make no mistakes, its narrative and impact would be much lessened were it delivered in any other medium. It is absolutely a perfect example of how you use video games to make art.

Coelacanth, miesiąc temu

Hard to argue with most of those. I’d put Ocarina of Time over BotW, but that’s splitting hairs. Diablo 2 needs LoD included in my opinion.

God of War is an embarrassing blind spot in my gaming history. Is it actually that good?

Coelacanth, miesiąc temu

Oooooh I like that question. I feel like it would have to be some kind of Call of Duty, right? Some absolutely mediocre slop that still has enough mechanical satisfaction and mind-numbing explosion-and-cliché-filled story to keep you somewhat entertained, yet still remaining completely forgettable.

Coelacanth, miesiąc temu

The game is not for everyone. That’s okay. Rothko paintings are worth tens of millions of dollars and I completely do not get them at all.

I will give you that there are two soft locks early on that are a little too easy to stumble into and it is for sure the game’s biggest flaw.

Coelacanth, miesiąc temu

Last time a game was in the zeitgeist to this extent was BG3, and we all know how that went. Only thing going against E33 at this point is that the Game Awards are a long time off and recency bias/forgetting about it tends to have an impact.

I sincerely hope it does sweep the awards, not only is the game phenomenal but it would also send a very positive message to the industry.

Who knows though, people love Kojima and if Death Stranding 2 is slightly more approachable than the first it might put up a good fight.

Coelacanth, miesiąc temu

The final version of the script was in french. I can try to find the interview if you want. Basically, the lead writer of the narrative has English as her first language, but the co-writer of the script is french (as is the studio at large). The script went back and forth between English and French multiple times during development, but the final script ended up being in French.

Performance capture was done by the french actors, but speaking English (for motion/facial capture), so technically both languages are dubs, and neither has perfect lip synch.

Both casts are absolutely great. I prefer some voices in English and some in French. However, there are absolutely some parts of the script where it’s obvious it was written in French, with wordplay or double meanings that don’t translate to English.

Did that help?

Coelacanth, miesiąc temu

I’m drunk on recency bias myself but I’m tempted to put him in Uematsu tier myself. I know that sounds outrageous but it’s actually that good. Even the lyrics are absolutely amazing. It will probably end up being my favourite OST of all time.

And there’s 8 fucking hours of it and not a single weak track!?

Coelacanth, miesiąc temu

It somehow just keeps getting better too. Super strong leitmotif work as well, throughout the game. And like I mentioned, even if you don’t speak french try looking up translations for the lyrics (but after you finished the game). Some really beautiful passages, but steeped in foreshadowing and spoilers.

Coelacanth, miesiąc temu

I wish I hadn’t fumbled my french fluency over the past decade and a half as I still had to go back multiple times and re-listen and read the lyrics to understand them. And also the male singer on the OST sounds like he’s not a native french speaker so that makes it even harder to pick out.

But yeah, maybe it was for the best that I didn’t understand right away in the end!

Coelacanth, miesiąc temu

I finished Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 a couple of days ago. I’m sure you’re tired of hearing people rave about it at this point. All I can say is: the hype is justified.

It’s a beautiful piece of art, with a wonderful story, gorgeous visuals and absolutely unbelievable music. One of my favourite OSTs of all time, and there’s more than 8 fucking hours of it.

It’s definitely within my top 10 games of all time. Thoroughly recommended, and a game I will still think about for a long time, even after putting it down.

In fact, it’s one of those rare games where I’m seriously considering going immediately back in to a NG+ playthrough right after finishing it. Yes, it’s that good.