Video Games Randomness - Prioritize specific game threads!

[Hrothgar]

Skiny makes a strong move to win the randomness thread.

[Skinypupy]

Skiny makes a strong move to win the randomness thread.

I'm pretty sure I'm the only person on earth who played Shadow Hearts, but the other two series are pretty well known.

[Hipolito]

Skiny makes a strong move to win the randomness thread. :D

:lol:

I'm pretty sure I'm the only person on earth who played Shadow Hearts, but the other two series are pretty well known.

I liked Shadow Hearts: Covenant, too. (Gushed about it a bit here.) Epic game with cool characters. And it's crazy how much optional content quietly opened up once you set foot in the final dungeon. I would have missed this had I not been reading a walkthrough.

Thanks for the nostalgia buzz, and for introducing me to Hell Fire RPGs, looks like a good YouTube channel.

[Skinypupy]

I had a multi-page thread about Shadow Hearts over at GT before it all imploded.

[dbt1949]

Got Warcraft 2 yesterday and came face to face with the number one thing I hated about it.
Finding that last goddamned unit hiding in the corner where nothing has ever happened.

[Rumpy]

I'd try another HDMI cable. I had one go bad that was causing display issues and a new cable completely resolved it. It's an easy enough thing to check.

Turns out, I did have a cable laying around somewhere. A brand new cable that had never been used. So, I switched to that one. Problem solved

[Isgrimnur]

[LordMortis]

While looking for something new but mindless but enjoyable I found this:

[Sudy]

I get three days off this weekend. Will I actually boot up a game? Or just fantasize about it without actually doing it, like I have for the past three weeks. Let the betting commence.

My FFXIV character is sitting at level 9. Will he ever get to 10? I've been feeling the gaming itch heavily, but I've been in such a funk. I feel like there's no point in starting a game unless I can do so at the start of my day.

So what happened?

Failed harder than Michael Jordan at baseball. I just can't make myself sit down and play. It's extremely frustrating. I have free time, and my mind wants to play. But my body just can't summon the will to sit down and do it. I know it's partially due to being messed up by night shift, and the fact that I sit at my desk for 12+hours on the nights I work. But I've hit gamer's block like this before. I'll fantasize about playing a game all day/week, but won't actually do it for weeks.

Will try again during my nights off this Monday and Tuesday. I know if FFXIV gets its hooks in me it'll keep me coming back. It would be really nice to have a diversion right now.

[Baroquen]

Will try again during my nights off this Monday and Tuesday. I know if FFXIV gets its hooks in me it'll keep me coming back. It would be really nice to have a diversion right now.

I can sympathize with not having the urge to dive into a game. That said - if your character in FFXIV is still at level 9 or 10, so much of the game is still ahead of you. There are so many options of things to do, and they do gradually unlock at a good clip. But I'm trying to remember - there's not much opened up yet at that level. I think you at least least need to get to 15 - 20 to get a feel for the game world. I'm sure others have a better perspective on that than I do though.

[JetFred]

I've been doing way better at short games than digging into any one deep strategy or tactics game, but it certainly depends on whether you even like that sort of game. I kind of have a thing about adventure games.

[EzeKieL]

I get three days off this weekend. Will I actually boot up a game? Or just fantasize about it without actually doing it, like I have for the past three weeks. Let the betting commence.

My FFXIV character is sitting at level 9. Will he ever get to 10? I've been feeling the gaming itch heavily, but I've been in such a funk. I feel like there's no point in starting a game unless I can do so at the start of my day.

So what happened?

Failed harder than Michael Jordan at baseball. I just can't make myself sit down and play. It's extremely frustrating. I have free time, and my mind wants to play. But my body just can't summon the will to sit down and do it. I know it's partially due to being messed up by night shift, and the fact that I sit at my desk for 12+hours on the nights I work. But I've hit gamer's block like this before. I'll fantasize about playing a game all day/week, but won't actually do it for weeks.

Will try again during my nights off this Monday and Tuesday. I know if FFXIV gets its hooks in me it'll keep me coming back. It would be really nice to have a diversion right now.

When I reach that funk I do other stuff. Play board games, paint miniatures, work on game designs, stuff like that until I burn out on those and go back to gaming

[Hrothgar]

Skiny makes a strong move to win the randomness thread.

I'm pretty sure I'm the only person on earth who played Shadow Hearts, but the other two series are pretty well known.

It was just a joke. I played some eclectic stuff back in the day too.

[Daehawk]

[hitbyambulance]

Skiny makes a strong move to win the randomness thread.

I'm pretty sure I'm the only person on earth who played Shadow Hearts, but the other two series are pretty well known.

It was just a joke. I played some eclectic stuff back in the day too.

Culdcept worked pretty nicely for what it was - i still have fun with it as a multiplayer game.

[Kasey Chang]

I remember playing Close Combat: First to Fight, one of the few FPS games from Atomic games (best known for their overhead Close Combat games) and always kinda wondered why wasn't there a sequel, or even a spiritual sequel.

Now I know that the spiritual sequel, i.e. "Six Days in Fallujah", was canceled because some critics roasted the game for "trivializing the great sacrifices of our soldiers" and scared the publisher (Konami) into backing out.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oqNvf2gcoys&t=622s

[Skinypupy]

Skiny makes a strong move to win the randomness thread.

I'm pretty sure I'm the only person on earth who played Shadow Hearts, but the other two series are pretty well known.

It was just a joke. I played some eclectic stuff back in the day too.

I have such a love/hate relationship with Culdcept. It alternates between very fun and insanely frustrating. Ultimately, the RNG always ends up driving me away.

[jztemple2]

Anniversary time! It was 20 years ago today that Deus Ex was released.

[Daehawk]

Huh, I always thought it came out in 1999. Must have been a lot of advertisement for it in 1999. Every time I see anything about it Im reminded of my wife who said that when I said the name or asked about it in the store it sounded like I was saying dog sex. I was pronouncing it DOS Ex instead of DAY us ex

[Skinypupy]

I'm in week 13 of my Madden 20 season, and I have yet to either cause or give up a single fumble the entire season (playing on all the default settings, "Pro" level). The only penalty I've seen called has been face mask, and I would guess that happens 4-5 times every game.

Neither of those factors are great for immersion, tbh.

[Daehawk]

Quake is 24 years old now

[JetFred]

I know y'all might not get that excited about adventure games, but the last three Quantic Dream games have been only on Epic and they just hit Steam. I've got such a huge playlist that there was no way I was bothering with them in any format until the PC versions got to Steam, and now all three are there. Detroit: Become Human has already gone into top 10 sellers on Steam. I know competition is good, but Epic exclusives still just piss me off.

[Skinypupy]

I know y'all might not get that excited about adventure games, but the last three Quantic Dream games have been only on Epic and they just hit Steam. I've got such a huge playlist that there was no way I was bothering with them in any format until the PC versions got to Steam, and now all three are there. Detroit: Become Human has already gone into top 10 sellers on Steam. I know competition is good, but Epic exclusives still just piss me off.

I really enjoyed Detroit: Become Human, although I’ll admit that some of David Cage’s commentary after the fact has kinda soured me on his games in general.

[Rumpy]

I get nightmares from crawling around in the tunnel maze full of broken glass in Heavy Rain. That part was such bullshit.

[JetFred]

I know y'all might not get that excited about adventure games, but the last three Quantic Dream games have been only on Epic and they just hit Steam. I've got such a huge playlist that there was no way I was bothering with them in any format until the PC versions got to Steam, and now all three are there. Detroit: Become Human has already gone into top 10 sellers on Steam. I know competition is good, but Epic exclusives still just piss me off.

I really enjoyed Detroit: Become Human, although I’ll admit that some of David Cage’s commentary after the fact has kinda soured me on his games in general.

I haven't followed any individual game design personality for over a decade. What kind of stuff did he say?

[Sudy]

Anniversary time! It was 20 years ago today that Deus Ex was released.

Wow, I still remember seeing the box in Electronics Boutique. It looked like The Matrix the game. Being a broke high school kid I think we downloaded a warez version at my friend's house. When I got my Pentium 4 I eventually bought a copy. I think it ran horribly before I upgraded my video card. Brings back a lot of great memories and feelings, as does the more recent Human Revolution. (Which I can't believe is almost half the original's age!)

Quake is 24 years old now

I think this might have been my first PC FPS experience. It was definitely the first one I played heavily online with friends. The family Celeron was enough to run it. Played a lot of Chaos Deathmatch. I remember being paranoid there'd be pentagrams I'd need to hide from my mom.

I'm in week 13 of my Madden 20 season, and I have yet to either cause or give up a single fumble the entire season (playing on all the default settings, "Pro" level). The only penalty I've seen called has been face mask, and I would guess that happens 4-5 times every game.

Neither of those factors are great for immersion, tbh.

This is my biggest gripe with sports games. I don't expect a 100% accurate simulation in the gameplay, but I do want some semblance of it in the stats. (Presuming it's a title with simulation features.) If I have to fiddle with the settings and quarter/period lengths endlessly, I get frustrated and lose interest. I honestly don't watch sports much anymore... I might if the Blue Jays became interesting again, or if I could remember to tune in to the Raptors. But that doesn't mean I don't get the urge to play/sim.

Unfortunately, we've been in a dead zone for good licensed titles on PC for a while. (In terms of titles with full gameplay.) NBA 2K is a pain with its microtransactions and in-game advertisements. Hasn't been an NHL title in almost a decade. We finally got Madden back, but as on consoles it's the only game in town. Baseball's been gone for almost as long as hockey, though I'm excited to hear we might be getting The Show next year. And I guess there's always FIFA if you like the other flavour of football.

I'm probably least interested in the NFL, but I do have fond memories of Madden 64, and watching Lions games in the late 90s when I moved to the U.S. for a while and was trying to fit in with the other kids. (I picked the Lions because Barry Sanders was fun to watch, not because I lived near Detroit. So... it didn't help me make friends much after all. I always had to be different. ) I got nostalgic a few months ago and installed an old copy of Madden 08 I'd never activated. Unfortunately, it hadn't aged particular well so I subscribed to EA Access to try out Madden 19. I just couldn't crack it... there's so much to learn in Madden and NBA 2K to be proficient these days. I just want to pick up and play, at least at first. It's also immersion shattering to lose the first five games of the season 82-3. Yet, I don't want to have to waste time playing exhibition while I acclimatize.

[jztemple2]

Going against all my principles, I just bought a game that is still in beta, even though I have sworn never to buy a game that wasn't in full release. However I was bound to be a sucker for Port Royale 4 since I played the heck out of PR2 and PR3. Whether I'll find this new version as interesting, or if I even still care about these kinds of games, we'll see.

These kinds of games refers to trading game like Port Royale or the Patrician series. Games like the Anno series are somewhat related, although their focus is more on city building, which I find sometimes tedious.

Anyone else interested in trading type games?

[Kasey Chang]

Grandpa in Taiwan plays 64 games of Pokemon at the same time...



https://kotaku.com/grandpa-is-playing-p ... 1844156863

[Fardaza]

Going against all my principles, I just bought a game that is still in beta, even though I have sworn never to buy a game that wasn't in full release. However I was bound to be a sucker for Port Royale 4 since I played the heck out of PR2 and PR3. Whether I'll find this new version as interesting, or if I even still care about these kinds of games, we'll see.

These kinds of games refers to trading game like Port Royale or the Patrician series. Games like the Anno series are somewhat related, although their focus is more on city building, which I find sometimes tedious.

Anyone else interested in trading type games?

I've tried PR and Anno a couple times each, and they never really seem to grab me. I remember a game many moons ago called Merchant Prince. That was a good trading game that I played a lot. I think it got a later release under another name also.

[Kasey Chang]

Decide to switch gears a little and bought WH40K Space Wolf, the mobile port to PC, and so far it's NOT too bad. Typical WH40K miniature rules where you move your units and defeat all chaos marines and other critters as they come. I'm playing on easy and even then I almost lost the 2nd mission as it has no "firing arc preview" (unlike, say, Battletech) before you move. Somehow the bad guys can shoot me but I can't seem to shoot back as it's always "one square off", and it wasn't clear what can be shot through and what cannot be. (i.e. LoS rules suck) The main guy was down to 100 hp and no first aid kit or heal in sight. But the other two guys, a scout and a terminator reached him and was able to hold off the attackers.

[Eel Snave]

Have I talked yet about the Super Metroid/Link to the Past Randomizer? Because if I haven't, it's some CRAZY shit.

So, apparently, the two games used very similar memory structures, so much so that it's possible to place the items from Zelda into Super Metroid and vice-versa. Now, you can't USE the items in the opposite game, but it's conceivable to make a situation where you FIND an item in one game that you can then TAKE to the other one to use.

Enter the randomizer. It randomizes the items with a few exceptions and then has you play between the two separate games. It doesn't end until you've beaten both games. It's a trip and I love it even though I can't actually beat it and keep finding myself stuck where my skills/brain won't let me progress.

[Eel Snave]

I'm probably least interested in the NFL, but I do have fond memories of Madden 64, and watching Lions games in the late 90s when I moved to the U.S. for a while and was trying to fit in with the other kids. (I picked the Lions because Barry Sanders was fun to watch, not because I lived near Detroit. So... it didn't help me make friends much after all. I always had to be different. ) I got nostalgic a few months ago and installed an old copy of Madden 08 I'd never activated. Unfortunately, it hadn't aged particular well so I subscribed to EA Access to try out Madden 19. I just couldn't crack it... there's so much to learn in Madden and NBA 2K to be proficient these days. I just want to pick up and play, at least at first. It's also immersion shattering to lose the first five games of the season 82-3. Yet, I don't want to have to waste time playing exhibition while I acclimatize.

I play a shitload of Out of the Park, and while you don't get to control the players, it's a pretty accurate simulation. I played as the Dodgers and got them to the WS where, in true Dodgers fashion, they lost. Mike Trout was a goddamn cheat code.

[jztemple2]

Was reading an article from Rock, Paper, Shotgun about the (in their opinion) better games on the Steam Sale. One of the games is Infra. Looks interesting...

About This Game
INFRA puts you into the boots of an ordinary structural analyst – nothing more than a desk jockey assigned to survey some routine structural damage. Quickly though, your mission turns from a mundane trek to a fight for survival, all caused by deep-rooted schemes of the past. Your tools are simple: the camera around your neck and the wits to navigate a virtual labyrinth of debris. How you tell your story is your choice, will you have the commitment to finish your duty, or will you ignore all else but the preservation of your own life?

INFRA is what we like to call a gun-free puzzle adventure. Instead of large explosions and powerful guns, you will rely on your cunning to survive puzzles in an incredibly detailed world. As you travel through the infrastructure of a city you will find that your actions and thorough observations ultimately determine if others will survive. A society obsessed with upgradation has brought a disaster upon itself and it is your job to help restore it.

I couldn't find a thread on the game, anyone have an opinion?

[Anonymous Bosch]

Was reading an article from Rock, Paper, Shotgun about the (in their opinion) better games on the Steam Sale. One of the games is Infra. Looks interesting...

About This Game
INFRA puts you into the boots of an ordinary structural analyst – nothing more than a desk jockey assigned to survey some routine structural damage. Quickly though, your mission turns from a mundane trek to a fight for survival, all caused by deep-rooted schemes of the past. Your tools are simple: the camera around your neck and the wits to navigate a virtual labyrinth of debris. How you tell your story is your choice, will you have the commitment to finish your duty, or will you ignore all else but the preservation of your own life?

INFRA is what we like to call a gun-free puzzle adventure. Instead of large explosions and powerful guns, you will rely on your cunning to survive puzzles in an incredibly detailed world. As you travel through the infrastructure of a city you will find that your actions and thorough observations ultimately determine if others will survive. A society obsessed with upgradation has brought a disaster upon itself and it is your job to help restore it.

I couldn't find a thread on the game, anyone have an opinion?

The AdventureGamers.com review of INFRA seemed a wee bit less enthused. So take that for what it's worth.

If you're after an interesting puzzley-adventure, you may want to look into the alternate reality game from the developers of Nite Team 4, Black Watchmen:

[Sudy]

I play a shitload of Out of the Park, and while you don't get to control the players, it's a pretty accurate simulation. I played as the Dodgers and got them to the WS where, in true Dodgers fashion, they lost. Mike Trout was a goddamn cheat code.

I played a lot of OOTP about a decade ago. Sometimes I miss it dearly, especially online leagues. But the barrier to re-entry has always seemed steep. I've actually got at least a couple of the recent versions I've picked up from bundles but have just never fired them up. In contrast with a "hit the ball" baseball game though, sometimes I just want to... hit the ball. And with licensed rosters! Otherwise, Super Mega Baseball would be great. I totally know that if The Show does indeed come to PC next year, I probably won't bother to learn the controls and will only play 12 games into a season. But I still crave the experience.

I still wish we could get another OO OOTP league together, but the problem always used to be that nobody could commit the time to being commissioner.

[Eel Snave]

I also never really liked online leagues for some reason. I played in one for just a little bit and I wanted to claw my eyes out. I miss fantasy baseball, though.

[Sudy]

I think the enjoyability of an online league depends heavily upon the dependability of the commissioner(s) and whether the other owners share your interest level. Nothing wrong with low vs. high effort, but when you put a ton of thought into trade negotiations just to receive a "no" reply without any explanation or counter-offer, it's disheartening.

But I found online leagues would power my imagination endlessly during downtime at work, etc. Not being in control of the pace of play allows you to enjoy the history of the league as it develops.

[Kasey Chang]

Playing WH40K Space Wolf, and I'm NOT really enjoying it as much as I thought I would. I like little short games that are sorta chess-like, but the secondary objectives are impossible to line up. And seriously needs better onscreen "QoL improvements".

Space Wolf is a card-based tactical combat game based on the WH40K universe. A Space Wolf cruiser was ambushed by Chaos Marines and crashed landed on a remote planet, surviving crew scattered all over the place. And you play as the hero in one of 3 choices: power armor, scout, or terminator armor, and with some squadmates, will have to survive mission after mission, defeat the Chaos marines, and find a way off the planet. And along the way, you'll meet various allies, of other specialties all serving the Eternal Emperor.

You start as regular Power Armor dude with 30 cards, and if you play on easy, enemies have like 1 quarter of your hitpoints or less, but there are a TON of them. Your cards have multiple grades, from common to legendary. And even within a single grade, you can often "merge" cards to create a better version(s). When you complete a mission or two, you gain access to alternate armor such as scout (sniper rifle but less HP) or terminator (heavy armor and weapons, but not as agile) with their own 30 card deck. Play long enough and you'll unlock booster packs, extremely rare or legendary weapons, and scrap useless cards, and use scrap in the forge to create some new cards.

Every card has "effort" which is sort of like a combination initiative/action point system. You can perform two actions per turn... And the combination of "effort" of those two moves determines your initiative the next turn, lowest effort goes first. And yes, you can skip the action if you want to.

The tedious part is facing and firing arcs. You have to choose among the 4 compass headings when your character stops moving, and the game has strict firing arcs that aren't so obvious. You can't fire at everyone in range. You can ONLY fire at the enemies in your field of view based on your facing, AND happens to be in that weapons firing arc. Different types of weapons have different firing arcs and ranges. A sniper rifle can't engage someone close (usually 5-7 squares), but a pistol can only shoot 3 squares, for example. Flamers shoot an arc, but since gameboard is square, it's represented by a T instead. Melee weapons are adjacent square only and can "fire" diagonally, but given most units only have a movement range of 4 (and weapon range of 4), melee is the exception, not the rule, unless you get surrounded. Flamers spread out their damage and can damage multiple units within the arc (so line up multiple targets), while bolters are like burst-shot weapons with multiple salvos. Again, you have to know the firing pattern of each weapon and know how to position your units for optimal effect, and that's kinda... tedious. It's as if I have to create a "cheatsheet" to illustrate the firing arc of each and every weapon, and that's... stupid in a game in 2020.

Another gripe is how the mission ends as soon as you achieve the victory condition. There is no salvage, or automatically considering "recovery" secondary objectives fulfilled once all hostiles are killed. No, you have to PHYSICALLY reach the crate for recovery BEFORE you achieve the victory condition, or it doesn't count.

And the "friendly" AI is just... annoying as f***. In one mission, you're supposed to retrieve Egil the Runemaster who's surrounded by spawning chaos marines. One of the secondary obj was to prevent Egil's health from dropping below 50%. He starts at 1500. You start with two guys, and a third guy joins you later. The problem here is you can't control Egil... and while he can handle himself, he also charges enemies, and not always in the most efficient manner. And no matter how fast I move I can't do that secondary objective. I've read that you pretty much have to be extremely lucky and use a scout with a wolf that can be deployed ASAP. Let the wolf run past everything and help Egil, while the remainder of your marines work your way around the map (apparently, jumpjet down to a lower level is NOT permitted) And even then it's hit and miss.

The objective is to fill your card deck with as many legendary, exceptional, and basically "good" gear (and max merged uncommon or rare items) as possible, and use that to grind through the missions. And with various DLCs, there are a LOT of missions including challenge missions, survival missions, and have Space Wolf face other enemies like Necrons instead of just chaos marines and cultists.

Combat basically is 6 cards are randomly drawn and becomes your hand. Play 1 card each action phase of turn (out of 2). Having the wrong mix can severely hinder your progress, because healing is rather limited. There are personal first aid (100 points) and there are high effort (15!) healing spells that also heals allies nearby, but only if within 5 square radius.

There are just TOO MANY weapons, and choosing which ones are good was always a struggle. And the puzzle-type approach to combat that relies on the vagueries of card draw depends a lot more on luck than solid tactics.

[Kasey Chang]

Retried the Egil mission, and somehow made it this time. I did have a wolf active, and I sent it ahead while rushing forward with a scout and a terminator. The plasma guy joined up later. I dropped a turret to keep some of the enemies occupied, and I guess I was enough of a threat that some of the enemies that were attacking Egil decided to engage me, which helped Egil slaughter them without losing too much HP. And instead of engaging the enemy I basically just ran through the salvos and kept going, dropping mines and turrets when available. It was "just enough".

Won the mission to fight to the enemy temple entrance, and use the wolf as a sacrificial play to nab the crate (it has 10 hp left out of 400 when it reached the create, next to an enemy, so it died the next round, but not before it claimed the crate). Judicous use of turrets kept the enemy at bay, as are the effectiveness of luring them over mines and grenades.

The next mission is a doozy. Egil arrived trying to seal the obelisk inside the enemy temple, so we had to fight through the defenders as well as reinforcements from the outside, and there's a chaos mage that has equivalent of a piercing sniper rifle, huge range, hits multiple people if stacked, 125 damage. And he has 960 hp, equivalent to Lvl 5 players. Had to send in the scout with sniper rifle to hit him for 450 damage, then whittle him down over next three turns. Didn't even try to go for the remaining crate as enemies are coming hard from the entrance... like 5-6 of them. But really should have gone after the crate, as 2 guys and a turret should be sufficient to hold the line, and Egil finished the very next turn, but at the time, simply didn't consider it.

Now that I know I can probably make it, will have to try again, probably with extra turrets and mines.

[jztemple2]

So I have a bunch of games on my Steam Wishlist, but when I exclude Pre-Release and Early Access and filter for only the ones on sale, damn there just isn't much there <sigh>

I am really missing Watch Dogs Legion