Video Games Randomness - Prioritize specific game threads!

[Blackhawk]

That golden age was one game ago.

[Daehawk]

Well DA3 is not near as good as the others. Andromeda ruined the ME series for me and most others. And now they are making another bad game called Anthem. Its just crap Destiny with a loot game like Diablo mixes with a great game called Tribes.

Worse was the sobs they hired on Andromeda. the game may suck...but its the crew that Ill not forgive them for.

[Max Peck]

Dude, The Crew was an Ubisoft game...

[Blackhawk]

Well DA3 is not near as good as the others. Andromeda ruined the ME series for me and most others. And now they are making another bad game called Anthem. Its just crap Destiny with a loot game like Diablo mixes with a great game called Tribes.

Worse was the sobs they hired on Andromeda. the game may suck...but its the crew that Ill not forgive them for.

DA3 was head and shoulders above the repetitive mess that was Dragon Age 2. And while Andromeda was mediocre, it didn't affect the original trilogy in any way, and the sheer number of game series that were great, had a medoicre game, then came back with more great games would fill a page. It also doesn't say anything about Mass Effect Next.

One bad game from a company that has put out piles of great games doesn't represent a bad company. And using a game that hasn't been released that you haven't played as proof - just because it isn't in your preferred genre - is silly.

[Max Peck]

Speaking of Mass Effect, at least we can all agree that ME3 was a great game.

Modders unite to polish up Mass Effect 3 for N7 Day

It’s November 7th, and according to Bioware that means it’s N7 Day, where we salute the (colour-coded) hard choices made by Commander Shepard in defence of Earth. This year, an alliance of Mass Effect 3 modders have gotten together to release a slew of complimentary updates, polishing up old content, adding entirely new missions and expanding the player’s impact on its galactic war. Below, an official video celebrating this day in future fictional space-time, and a peek at some of the mods rolling out or being updated today.

• Priority Earth Overhaul
• Expanded Galaxy
• Ark
• Spectre Expansion
• Omega Hub
• A Lot of Textures

[Daehawk]

2 was much better except for the stupid mining and lack of MAKO. But the first is easily the best.

[Carpet_pissr]

Thanks guys. Looks like I'd enjoy Stalker a lot more than Crysis. I'd maybe even enjoy Dishonored for that matter. I'll be waiting for them to go on sale before I get them.

Just to reiterate, if you have any interest in STALKER, you don't need to wait for a sale. Grab Lost Alpha and dive in. You definitely don't want to play an un-modded STALKER anyway.

I wonder how it compares to the Stalker Complete mod?

http://stalkercomplete.com/

[Daehawk]

COMPLETE is the mod I used in all 3 Stalker replays I did recently. Beautiful mod in graphics sounds and weapons.

The blowouts are amazing with it. They will actually kill you if you get caught outside in them unlike the default game. They are scary.

[Fardaza]

I don't know what it is but XCOM 2 is just not grabbing me like XCOM 1.
Perhaps it's too controlling or the silly limited scientists and engineers.
I don't know.

My post in the XCOM2 thread says essentially this same thing. Although it's hard to say that 763 hours in XCOM2 is "not grabbing" me.

[dbt1949]

I'm sure I'll play it thru a couple of more times, it's still better (and newer) than most of my games.
But I enjoy bitching.

[coopasonic]

Give it another 700 hours...

[gbasden]

I'm sure I'll play it thru a couple of more times, it's still better (and newer) than most of my games.
But I enjoy bitching.

You need to take some lessons for Daehawk - there are a lot of ways you can improve the quality and quantity of your bitching.

[TheMix]

Thanks guys. Looks like I'd enjoy Stalker a lot more than Crysis. I'd maybe even enjoy Dishonored for that matter. I'll be waiting for them to go on sale before I get them.

Just to reiterate, if you have any interest in STALKER, you don't need to wait for a sale. Grab Lost Alpha and dive in. You definitely don't want to play an un-modded STALKER anyway.

I wonder how it compares to the Stalker Complete mod?

http://stalkercomplete.com/

Not even in the same ballpark.

Complete was just a mod for the existing game. It improved the graphics and weather. And probably a few other things. It definitely didn't add the armor/weapon improvements from the later games. It didn't fundamentally change the original/base game story and play.

This one is blowing me away. Aside from some bugs with some of the added side quests and some positively atrocious English conversions, it's been changed on a dramatic scale. I believe it's been converted to use a newer version of the engine. The graphics have definitely been significantly improved. And the size has been ... at least doubled. Probably tripled. The zones from the later games have all been added in, as well as some new zones. It's VAST. Which is probably why they also added in vehicles (though the physics around the vehicles are a little annoying).

[Jeff V]

Could've had it all.

[Daehawk]

https://www.ign.com/articles/2018/11/09 ... 857900061b

Strategy Guide Publisher Prima Games Shutting Down

I own a lot of their guides starting in the 1990s.

The longtime video game guide maker will call it quits just shy of 30 years after its founding.

By Nick Santangelo Longtime strategy guide maker Prima Games is shutting down next year, according to new reports.

Variety reports that a spokesperson for publisher DK said "I can confirm that the decision has been made to no longer commission new Prima Games strategy guides and the U.S.-based imprint will be discontinued in Spring 2019. We are in conversations with the Prima Games team and cannot comment on this further at this point.”

[GreenGoo]

https://www.ign.com/articles/2018/11/09 ... 857900061b

Strategy Guide Publisher Prima Games Shutting Down

I own a lot of their guides starting in the 1990s.

The longtime video game guide maker will call it quits just shy of 30 years after its founding.

By Nick Santangelo Longtime strategy guide maker Prima Games is shutting down next year, according to new reports.

Variety reports that a spokesperson for publisher DK said "I can confirm that the decision has been made to no longer commission new Prima Games strategy guides and the U.S.-based imprint will be discontinued in Spring 2019. We are in conversations with the Prima Games team and cannot comment on this further at this point.”

I believe Zax did some writing for them at one point in time, although maybe it was another publisher.

[Blackhawk]

Versus, I know. Not sure if he worked with Prima.

[MonkeyFinger]

https://www.ign.com/articles/2018/11/09 ... 857900061b

Strategy Guide Publisher Prima Games Shutting Down

I own a lot of their guides starting in the 1990s.

Saw that yesterday. Dang. I also own a metric crap-ton of their guides since well, forever, especially the hardcover "Collector's Editions" which were kind of my kryptonite (he says while looking over at the RDR2 CE guide open on the table next to him).

[Daehawk]

Watching witcher live concert right now. Its free through GoG. Orchestra playing all the Witcher series music wit ha giant screen of the games behind them. Amazingly nice music.

https://www.pcgamer.com/the-witcher-3-c ... il-sunday/

[Kasey Chang]

Playing a little more Truck Mechanic Simulator. It's a bit more burdensome than Car Mechanic Simulator, feels as if it's built for a console, virtually no keyboard shortcuts. But the play mechanics (no pun) is the same. Vehicle comes in with some list of problems, you need to disassemble the bits to get to the right part(s), replace them, and put it all back.

I think I'll go play something else. Maybe Heat Signature... I feel really bad about killing half of my Bomber Crew.

[Daehawk]

Ill wait on the lazy mechanic sim where I just pay a guy to do all the shop work for me and I make the profit.

[Max Peck]

Does acquiring inXile and Obsidian officially make Microsoft the new Interplay/Black Isle?

[Daehawk]

Nah they're just making another foray into killing off PC gaming again. Its already started with MS forcing them to make these feel good about shit news videos.

[Kasey Chang]

Playing Heat Signature. In a way, it is a LOT like their previous game, Gunpoint, yet it isn't. Right now, I'm mainly doing medium and hard missions. And I'm a non-lethal kinda guy, but when a room's crowded, things get ugly. I generally don't use glitch or other teleporting tricks. Though I appreciate the ability as it can get really handy sometimes. For example, imagine this... You run into two guards. Both try to shoot you. You use the "exchange" glitcher and you swap places with one of them. So the other guard shot his buddy, then you turn around and shoot him.

On the other hand, I'm generally into just knocking everybody on the head if I can, and I take my time around the ship. I can generally knock them out before getting into sensor range. But it's the group of guards that gets me. Guess it's shotgun or concussive (stun) shotgun time.

Last mission was me missing on a guard and he tossed me out the airlock, but I was able to get back to my pod and get back into the ship and finish the mission: hijacking the ship. Bet you he was surprised.

[Daehawk]

Never heard of it.

[Kasey Chang]

Never heard of it.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/2681 ... Signature/

You board an enemy ship in stealth mode, and your job is to steal something, kill someone, capture someone (alive), or hijack the whole ship (by removing everyone, alive or dead). You can carry like 6 items, lethal or non-lethal weapons, gadgets like teleporters, grenades, traps, and so on. There may be turrets and so on on the ship... Don't wander into their arc or they can shoot you full of holes. Guards can patrol, and mount stationary turrets, and other countermeasures. Your job is to carry out your mission and get away, preferably without raising alarms, getting spotted, or even leave evidence of you ever been there... Depending on alarm level, you may see additional guards and other reinforcements, and later missions will have special mercenaries with sheilds, jammers, and other gadgets. So it's basically a kind of stealth game... but each mission is only a few minutes long. You can play different characters, each with their own "personal mission" (generated, like avenging a relative, find lost child, etc.)

[Kasey Chang]

Never heard of it.

Didn't you post this?

viewtopic.php?f=2&t=95594&p=2560477&hil ... e#p2560477

[Daehawk]

Yup..totally slipped my mind.

[Alefroth]

Nah they're just making another foray into killing off PC gaming again. Its already started with MS forcing them to make these feel good about shit news videos.

We'll see. Seems like positive news to me.

[Kasey Chang]

Tried to play the new Battletech. Ouch, I suck at this game. Finished the "escort the princess" missions well enough, but the first mission as a merc... Lost TWO mechs, 2 pilots injurred, 1 KIA, and got the other two mechs badly damaged. I won't have a mech to deploy for the upcoming unbonded mission. Ouch. Maybe I should start over, eh?

Maybe I should play something else for a while.

[Hipolito]

IFComp just keeps getting bigger and bigger. This year, there are 77 entries!

One of them is about a Corgi, in case you're into that sort of thing.

I used to judge this competition every year, then kinda fell out of it. I might just get back into it this year, and post some recommendations when I'm done.

I've tried 40 of the 77 entries, and that's about all I can stand. Here are the ones that I recommend playing:

Alias "The Magpie": As a notorious gentleman thief in England, you impersonate a psychiatrist to gain access to a rich man's home and steal his priceless jeweled scarab. You'll have to contend with some crazy coincidences and hairy hijinks as you hunt for the scarab without blowing your cover. Funny, delightfully written story. But may be too elaborate a puzzle for its own good, as doing things in a slightly different order than the walkthrough doesn't work even when it ought to.

Animalia: A covert team of forest animals attempts to solve a very human problem. From assembling the team to navigating the human world that's barely understood, this game offers an incredible amount of personality and replay value. But it's Forest God-dang hard to get a successful ending. After 5 tries, I still haven't managed to do so.

Bogeyman: You're one of several kids forced to toil for an evil man in his wretched hovel. The white text on black background and haunting soundtrack make this an ideal game to play in the dark before you go to sleep. Grim, chilling story. My favorite entry in the competition.

Cannery Vale: You're a writer trying to flesh out a novel. As you take naps, you dream that you're in your novel, and you wake up with ideas on what to put in the novel. Huge, almost open-world feel. Lots of weirdness, gruesome horror, and a variety of sex encounters. Its craziness and duality remind me of Spy Intrigue from IFComp 2015. But, as with Spy Intrigue, I never finished it. It's either bugged or I made the game unwinnable as I seem to be stuck. Also, the writing quality varies, perhaps intentionally, so I found myself skimming a lot.

They Will Not Return: Humans have disappeared, leaving behind robot butlers like you with no one to take care of. Reads like classic sci-fi.

Winners will be announced next weekend.

[Max Peck]

If you are the sort that wished that Pathfinder Kingmaker was turn-based instead of RTWP, you might want to keep an eye on Realms Beyond.

It looks like they've reached their funding goal, with a little over 3 days left in the campaign.

[MonkeyFinger]

IFComp just keeps getting bigger and bigger. This year, there are 77 entries!

One of them is about a Corgi, in case you're into that sort of thing.

I used to judge this competition every year, then kinda fell out of it. I might just get back into it this year, and post some recommendations when I'm done.

I've tried 40 of the 77 entries, and that's about all I can stand. Here are the ones that I recommend playing:

Alias "The Magpie": As a notorious gentleman thief in England, you impersonate a psychiatrist to gain access to a rich man's home and steal his priceless jeweled scarab. You'll have to contend with some crazy coincidences and hairy hijinks as you hunt for the scarab without blowing your cover. Funny, delightfully written story. But may be too elaborate a puzzle for its own good, as doing things in a slightly different order than the walkthrough doesn't work even when it ought to.

Animalia: A covert team of forest animals attempts to solve a very human problem. From assembling the team to navigating the human world that's barely understood, this game offers an incredible amount of personality and replay value. But it's Forest God-dang hard to get a successful ending. After 5 tries, I still haven't managed to do so.

Bogeyman: You're one of several kids forced to toil for an evil man in his wretched hovel. The white text on black background and haunting soundtrack make this an ideal game to play in the dark before you go to sleep. Grim, chilling story. My favorite entry in the competition.

Cannery Vale: You're a writer trying to flesh out a novel. As you take naps, you dream that you're in your novel, and you wake up with ideas on what to put in the novel. Huge, almost open-world feel. Lots of weirdness, gruesome horror, and a variety of sex encounters. Its craziness and duality remind me of Spy Intrigue from IFComp 2015. But, as with Spy Intrigue, I never finished it. It's either bugged or I made the game unwinnable as I seem to be stuck. Also, the writing quality varies, perhaps intentionally, so I found myself skimming a lot.

They Will Not Return: Humans have disappeared, leaving behind robot butlers like you with no one to take care of. Reads like classic sci-fi.

Winners will be announced next weekend.

Hey, thanks for once again taking point on this trail. 77 entries would be a bit daunting but now I have a curated list to check out.

[Hipolito]

IFComp just keeps getting bigger and bigger. This year, there are 77 entries!

One of them is about a Corgi, in case you're into that sort of thing.

I used to judge this competition every year, then kinda fell out of it. I might just get back into it this year, and post some recommendations when I'm done.

I've tried 40 of the 77 entries, and that's about all I can stand. Here are the ones that I recommend playing:

Alias "The Magpie": As a notorious gentleman thief in England, you impersonate a psychiatrist to gain access to a rich man's home and steal his priceless jeweled scarab. You'll have to contend with some crazy coincidences and hairy hijinks as you hunt for the scarab without blowing your cover. Funny, delightfully written story. But may be too elaborate a puzzle for its own good, as doing things in a slightly different order than the walkthrough doesn't work even when it ought to.

Animalia: A covert team of forest animals attempts to solve a very human problem. From assembling the team to navigating the human world that's barely understood, this game offers an incredible amount of personality and replay value. But it's Forest God-dang hard to get a successful ending. After 5 tries, I still haven't managed to do so.

Bogeyman: You're one of several kids forced to toil for an evil man in his wretched hovel. The white text on black background and haunting soundtrack make this an ideal game to play in the dark before you go to sleep. Grim, chilling story. My favorite entry in the competition.

Cannery Vale: You're a writer trying to flesh out a novel. As you take naps, you dream that you're in your novel, and you wake up with ideas on what to put in the novel. Huge, almost open-world feel. Lots of weirdness, gruesome horror, and a variety of sex encounters. Its craziness and duality remind me of Spy Intrigue from IFComp 2015. But, as with Spy Intrigue, I never finished it. It's either bugged or I made the game unwinnable as I seem to be stuck. Also, the writing quality varies, perhaps intentionally, so I found myself skimming a lot.

They Will Not Return: Humans have disappeared, leaving behind robot butlers like you with no one to take care of. Reads like classic sci-fi.

Winners will be announced next weekend.

Hey, thanks for once again taking point on this trail. 77 entries would be a bit daunting but now I have a curated list to check out.

You're welcome! Hope you enjoy the games.

I found the strength in me to play a few more entries, and can now add another recommendation.

En Garde: IFComp usually has at least one zombie game. This one's about as charming and funny as a zombie game can get. You're the zombie here, which is not a new concept. But what is new is that you gain the thoughts and personalities of the brains you eat. And they have conversations with each other. Incredibly fun. Hate to say it, but this edges out Bogeyman as my favorite of the competition.

[MonkeyFinger]

IFComp just keeps getting bigger and bigger. This year, there are 77 entries!

One of them is about a Corgi, in case you're into that sort of thing.

I used to judge this competition every year, then kinda fell out of it. I might just get back into it this year, and post some recommendations when I'm done.

I've tried 40 of the 77 entries, and that's about all I can stand. Here are the ones that I recommend playing:

Alias "The Magpie": As a notorious gentleman thief in England, you impersonate a psychiatrist to gain access to a rich man's home and steal his priceless jeweled scarab. You'll have to contend with some crazy coincidences and hairy hijinks as you hunt for the scarab without blowing your cover. Funny, delightfully written story. But may be too elaborate a puzzle for its own good, as doing things in a slightly different order than the walkthrough doesn't work even when it ought to.

Animalia: A covert team of forest animals attempts to solve a very human problem. From assembling the team to navigating the human world that's barely understood, this game offers an incredible amount of personality and replay value. But it's Forest God-dang hard to get a successful ending. After 5 tries, I still haven't managed to do so.

Bogeyman: You're one of several kids forced to toil for an evil man in his wretched hovel. The white text on black background and haunting soundtrack make this an ideal game to play in the dark before you go to sleep. Grim, chilling story. My favorite entry in the competition.

Cannery Vale: You're a writer trying to flesh out a novel. As you take naps, you dream that you're in your novel, and you wake up with ideas on what to put in the novel. Huge, almost open-world feel. Lots of weirdness, gruesome horror, and a variety of sex encounters. Its craziness and duality remind me of Spy Intrigue from IFComp 2015. But, as with Spy Intrigue, I never finished it. It's either bugged or I made the game unwinnable as I seem to be stuck. Also, the writing quality varies, perhaps intentionally, so I found myself skimming a lot.

They Will Not Return: Humans have disappeared, leaving behind robot butlers like you with no one to take care of. Reads like classic sci-fi.

Winners will be announced next weekend.

Hey, thanks for once again taking point on this trail. 77 entries would be a bit daunting but now I have a curated list to check out.

You're welcome! Hope you enjoy the games.

I found the strength in me to play a few more entries, and can now add another recommendation.

En Garde: IFComp usually has at least one zombie game. This one's about as charming and funny as a zombie game can get. You're the zombie here, which is not a new concept. But what is new is that you gain the thoughts and personalities of the brains you eat. And they have conversations with each other. Incredibly fun. Hate to say it, but this edges out Bogeyman as my favorite of the competition.

Nice! Thanks for finding strength.

[Kasey Chang]

Looked at the various games that I have loaded, yet didn't want to play them. I tried to get back into Truck Mechanic 2015, but it crashes loading mission 8. (got black screen). Gave up.

Decided to play Shenzhen I/O instead. Already got past two puzzles (the initial, and the solitaire). It's very reminiscent of TIS-100 and MHRD, in different ways.

[jztemple2]

Decided to play Shenzhen I/O instead. Already got past two puzzles (the initial, and the solitaire). It's very reminiscent of TIS-100 and MHRD, in different ways.

Huh, never heard of MHRD. Now it's on my wishlist

I wish you much luck with Shenzhen I/O. It kicked my ass and I gave up after 6 hours . Apparently I lost the ability to write code about 1983

[Kasey Chang]

Oh, I was okay with TIS-100. I put MHRD on the backburner for a while.

Shenzhen I/O reminds me of the times I had in my university EE class. Though we actually have to wire gates on a breadboard instead of doing all these virtual gates.

[Hipolito]

IFComp just keeps getting bigger and bigger. This year, there are 77 entries!

One of them is about a Corgi, in case you're into that sort of thing.

I used to judge this competition every year, then kinda fell out of it. I might just get back into it this year, and post some recommendations when I'm done.

I've tried 40 of the 77 entries, and that's about all I can stand. Here are the ones that I recommend playing:

Alias "The Magpie": As a notorious gentleman thief in England, you impersonate a psychiatrist to gain access to a rich man's home and steal his priceless jeweled scarab. You'll have to contend with some crazy coincidences and hairy hijinks as you hunt for the scarab without blowing your cover. Funny, delightfully written story. But may be too elaborate a puzzle for its own good, as doing things in a slightly different order than the walkthrough doesn't work even when it ought to.

Animalia: A covert team of forest animals attempts to solve a very human problem. From assembling the team to navigating the human world that's barely understood, this game offers an incredible amount of personality and replay value. But it's Forest God-dang hard to get a successful ending. After 5 tries, I still haven't managed to do so.

Bogeyman: You're one of several kids forced to toil for an evil man in his wretched hovel. The white text on black background and haunting soundtrack make this an ideal game to play in the dark before you go to sleep. Grim, chilling story. My favorite entry in the competition.

Cannery Vale: You're a writer trying to flesh out a novel. As you take naps, you dream that you're in your novel, and you wake up with ideas on what to put in the novel. Huge, almost open-world feel. Lots of weirdness, gruesome horror, and a variety of sex encounters. Its craziness and duality remind me of Spy Intrigue from IFComp 2015. But, as with Spy Intrigue, I never finished it. It's either bugged or I made the game unwinnable as I seem to be stuck. Also, the writing quality varies, perhaps intentionally, so I found myself skimming a lot.

They Will Not Return: Humans have disappeared, leaving behind robot butlers like you with no one to take care of. Reads like classic sci-fi.

Winners will be announced next weekend.

Hey, thanks for once again taking point on this trail. 77 entries would be a bit daunting but now I have a curated list to check out.

You're welcome! Hope you enjoy the games.

I found the strength in me to play a few more entries, and can now add another recommendation.

En Garde: IFComp usually has at least one zombie game. This one's about as charming and funny as a zombie game can get. You're the zombie here, which is not a new concept. But what is new is that you gain the thoughts and personalities of the brains you eat. And they have conversations with each other. Incredibly fun. Hate to say it, but this edges out Bogeyman as my favorite of the competition.

Nice! Thanks for finding strength.

The results are in! Here are the top 10, plus where a couple of other ones I liked ended up. Next to the top 10 winners that I didn't recommend, I added some commentary.

1. Alias 'The Magpie'
2. Bogeyman
3. Animalia
4. Grimnoir: This fantasy detective game seemed a little dry to me, so I didn't play it long.
5. Erstwhile: In this one, you're a ghost who has to figure out who just killed you at a Thanksgiving party. I thought it was decent.
6. The master of the land: I bounced off this one pretty hard. I just didn't like the presentation, interface, or writing style.
7. Junior Arithmancer: This is as mathy as you'd expect from the title. I didn't get far.
8. Ürs: This one, about bunnies whose warren is threatened by a mysterious force, has excellent art. But I didn't get into the story.
9. Cannery Vale
10. Lux: I never got around to trying this one. Looks like it's about surviving on a space station that just got attacked.
14. En Garde
22. They Will Not Return

That was an impressive IFComp, not just for the quantity but also for the quality of the entries. And it's great that most of them work in your browser so you don't have to download files and mess with interpreters.

Next time I judge this comp, I'm not going to hide here in PC Gaming Randomness. I'll proudly create a dedicated thread, just like I used to do. I'll even create a separate thread for each game! (Kidding)

[Kasey Chang]

Still playing Shenzhen I/O. I've just solved the IR Sensor / Alarm module.

The trick is to realize the limitations of each module quickly and determine if you need a bigger module. Often, the limit is imposed by number of instructions you can put in each module, and how you can wire them together.

I ended up using a 6000 and a 4000, with some clever (to me) trace routing (going under a chip for one of them)

On one of the earlier ones, I think I can optimize it a bit more, the "animation" one. I used 3 4000 chips, 1 for the flip-flop, and 2 for the animation, but I think I could have done animation with just 1 chip plus an i/o expander.

EDIT: Yep, got the animation done with 1x4000 chip and an i/o expander.