Octopus Overlords

Sniper 3 is when I realized I needed a new computer. It was freezing because of an issue with the video card drawing too much power from an under-sized power supply. Just throwing that out there.

Smoove_B wrote: Sun Mar 17, 2019 9:19 pm Sniper 3 is when I realized I needed a new computer. It was freezing because of an issue with the video card drawing too much power from an under-sized power supply. Just throwing that out there.

It's a brand new PC with supposedly standard 600W P/S. Should not be underpowered.

Also, the video frames froze, but the game was still running, which is the weirdest part, as the game still responds to keyclicks and such.

I am starting to wonder what's wrong with my system. I got Sniper Elite 3 working fine, but Sniper Elite V2 has problems (it played fine before).

Now I cant' even get Watch Dogs to start. It keeps crashing during the intro movie (not the game intro, but the start narrative intro) and I can't even start my first mission. Never even got that far.

EDIT: Strangely, the old games run just fine. Was playing World in Conflict, and that, once I made a few tweaks (no ultra texture, etc.) ran like a champ.

Stop a donkey politician's vengeful plot to disqualify a baseball team that rejected him!

Not to be missed.......releases on the 29th of March. i may have to take that day off work.

Captured from Reddit... the first "Yo Mama" joke that actually made me laugh.

I've noticed lately that my patience for frustration, especially in games, has plummeted. Particularly difficult games, especially those where there the difficulty isn't 'fair' (IE - Bad Thing was out of my control or the proper solution wasn't communicated well) tend to irritate me a lot. Do others get the same way? How do those of you who enjoy games that are intentionally frustrating (harder levels of X-Com, Dark Souls, etc) handle the irritation of the difficulty and continual loss of progress? Is it that some people actually enjoy being stymied and frustrated?

Blackhawk wrote: Tue Mar 19, 2019 3:04 pm I've noticed lately that my patience for frustration, especially in games, has plummeted. Particularly difficult games, especially those where there the difficulty isn't 'fair' (IE - Bad Thing was out of my control or the proper solution wasn't communicated well) tend to irritate me a lot. Do others get the same way? How do those of you who enjoy games that are intentionally frustrating (harder levels of X-Com, Dark Souls, etc) handle the irritation of the difficulty and continual loss of progress? Is it that some people actually enjoy being stymied and frustrated?

I’ve been this way for a few years now. The Easy setting has become my default in most games.

Blackhawk wrote: Tue Mar 19, 2019 3:04 pm How do those of you who enjoy games that are intentionally frustrating (harder levels of X-Com, Dark Souls, etc) handle the irritation of the difficulty and continual loss of progress? Is it that some people actually enjoy being stymied and frustrated?

I feel compelled to respond to this while GreenGoo works on his response that will provide actual useful insight and likely contradict much of what I am going to say.

I've beaten XCOM2 on every difficulty and on the N-1 difficulty on Ironman. I don't find any part of XCOM2 frustrating. I see each combat situation as a puzzle to be solved and have spent enough effort solving these puzzles and honing my toolbox that I can generally get it right on the first try, making Ironman possible. The puzzle, to be clear, is how to kill every revealed enemy on the turn it is revealed without risking revealing any more enemies. I have spent literally hundreds of hours getting to this point and have enjoyed almost every minute of those hundreds of hours.

For Souls-like games, it's kind of similar, learning through trial and error, building your toolbox through punishing experiences. I've never actually finished any Dark Souls game as I find them a bit slow and boring, but I've done everything there is to do in Bloodborne and the Surge and most everything in Nioh and am very eagerly awaiting The Surge 2 and Sekiro this year. Very little progress is ever lost in these games, you get more of whatever the game calls XP with each run and hopefully learn something each time and make it a little further. Much like with XCOM over time you learn what to expect and are generally thrilled when those the game goes against those expectations because it a new experience to master.

On the other hand, when I try to play a game like Civ 4 or 5 on even lower difficulty levels I find myself stymied repeatedly and don't have the will to push on to learn the game and make progress. Jeff V would scoff at my efforts, mentioning that is his young son can beat the game on the middle levels without taking his eyes off the youtube video running on his tablet. So, I can kind of understand where you are coming from, but in my case it doesn't apply to the games you mention specifically. Of course, I know that kind of game doesn't work for me so I generally don't play them.

I feel like that is enough typing for now...

Skinypupy wrote:

Blackhawk wrote: Tue Mar 19, 2019 3:04 pm I've noticed lately that my patience for frustration, especially in games, has plummeted. Particularly difficult games, especially those where there the difficulty isn't 'fair' (IE - Bad Thing was out of my control or the proper solution wasn't communicated well) tend to irritate me a lot. Do others get the same way? How do those of you who enjoy games that are intentionally frustrating (harder levels of X-Com, Dark Souls, etc) handle the irritation of the difficulty and continual loss of progress? Is it that some people actually enjoy being stymied and frustrated?

I’ve been this way for a few years now. The Easy setting has become my default in most games.

Easy or normal settings for me also. I do play xcom On veteran but only because I love the game so much. If it is frustrating and not worth the extra effort it gets filed in my "blah" category on steam. I have too many games to play to be frustrated with one because of bad design or nearly impossible levels or only one solution that works out of many and you have to keep retrying.


Sent from my Pixel 3 using Tapatalk

Ya Ive gotten really pissed at idiots in Apex lately. I can kill a enemy and my teammates can die first....but theres always the idiot complaining about me. Hey buddy you died first so shut up.

Another game tease from Gearbox / PAX

coopasonic wrote: Tue Mar 19, 2019 3:28 pm I've beaten XCOM2 on every difficulty and on the N-1 difficulty on Ironman. I don't find any part of XCOM2 frustrating. I see each combat situation as a puzzle to be solved and have spent enough effort solving these puzzles and honing my toolbox that I can generally get it right on the first try, making Ironman possible. The puzzle, to be clear, is how to kill every revealed enemy on the turn it is revealed without risking revealing any more enemies. I have spent literally hundreds of hours getting to this point and have enjoyed almost every minute of those hundreds of hours.

Thank you, that was helpful. As was this comment on Reddit:

...frustration is almost always tied to flawed expectations. You're playing the game expecting to beat the boss, but then you die. You can train yourself to expect less, or different things. If you die, lower your expectation to figuring out how the mechanic works that you died to.

I've been reading up on this and thinking about it for hours, ever since a bad run in Divinity:OS had me ready to quit the third title in a row over it. It seems that low tolerance to frustration is a very common issue for people who suffer from anxiety. And remember, I'm on disability for anxiety. While that condition itself hasn't gotten any worse over the years, my patience with frustrating experiences (both games and real-life) has gotten worse and worse. It not only pops up in my poor reactions to some games, but in my quick burnout for activities and my tendency to procrastinate important, but difficult, activities.

Now that I'm recognizing it, I do believe it is time to start correcting it. I don't actually want to be the angry old man yelling at clouds in a few years.

Maybe thats why I shut off my PC and cussed a storm and walked the house. Im on edge all the time these days and sad beyond hope but with tomorrow coming up fast Im really stressed.

Blackhawk wrote: Tue Mar 19, 2019 5:09 pmNow that I'm recognizing it, I do believe it is time to start correcting it. I don't actually want to be the angry old man yelling at clouds in a few years.

It's probably been a decade for me, but I'll start a game on normal and if there's any type of frustration or ridiculousness, I'll drop to easy without hesitation. I'm not a person that derives pleasure from defeating a difficult game or in figuring out a specific way to move beyond a difficult problem. I've put a few hours into the Divinity: OS games and just gave up; even on easy they're just not what I'm after. Instead, I play games to relax so the story and experience are everything to me.

I think I made it about 15 minutes with Far Cry 5 and then started wondering what the hell was up with the AI. I was putting head shots on some guys and they were just continuing to come at me. I dropped it to Easy and there's still dudes that can apparently take a .50 sniper round to the skull, but it's so much better now just tooling around and enjoying the gaming world.

You're not alone!

Something's weird with my RTX2070.

Some games just don't want to run at 1080p, which should be a piece of cake with this card.

I had to drop Deus EX: HR (Director's Cut) to 1280x720 and all settings to LOW to make it run properly. Otherwise, it freezes up in the intro cutscene, where I walk with Megan to meet with the head honcho. I had even turned off DX11. The game was nice enough to blab about "your PC can't handle the resources, drop resolution and features to continue". So I kept turning all features off, then lowered the res to 1280x720. Now the game runs fine. It's really really weird.

Regarding game difficulty... I'll be the first to admit I mainly play SP for the experience, not to master it or such. So when the going gets really tough, I break out the trainer and cheat codes, esp. when the game started to cheat.

Smoove_B wrote: Tue Mar 19, 2019 6:55 pm I think I made it about 15 minutes with Far Cry 5 and then started wondering what the hell was up with the AI. I was putting head shots on some guys and they were just continuing to come at me. I dropped it to Easy and there's still dudes that can apparently take a .50 sniper round to the skull, but it's so much better now just tooling around and enjoying the gaming world.

You kind of make me want to load up FC5 again because I don't remember anything like that... but it has been a while. It definitely wasn't like that in New Dawn. A head shot as a kill. unless there was a helmet where I think the first shot nocked the helmet off and the second was the kill. I am playing The Division 2 right now and a head shot is only a kill on the basic enemies unless you have your skills focused on head shot damage anyway. Stupid armor.

coopasonic boyz wrote: Wed Mar 20, 2019 9:00 am Yer kind uv make me want ta load up fc5 again 'cos i don't rememba anyth'n like ‘dat... but it ‘as been a while. It definitely wasn't like 'dat 'n new dawn. A head shot as a kill. unless 'der was a helmet where i fink ‘da furst shot nocked ‘da helmet off an’ ‘da second was ‘da kill.

Yes, that's exactly what it is - the heavies with helmets. On normal if you head shot them when they're aware of trouble, it knocks off the helmet. Then you need to do it again to kill them. On easy if you head shot them while they're not aware of trouble, it's a one-shot kill. It's the same for VIPs. When I first started, I'd assumed it was my entry-level weapon that was the problem. When I finally upgraded to the .50 cal and it was still happening? Get the hell outta here.

Jesus I hate reading my own posts after someone quotes it and seeing all of the typos. I really should have learned how to type at some point in my life.

There, I fixed it for you.

Smoove_B wrote: Wed Mar 20, 2019 10:36 am There, I fixed it for you.

Prefect. Thanks. At least it's not the LordMortis interpretation.

FC5 did have some intentional 'bullet sponge' enemies that headshots wouldn't drop, explained away as being insane super-drugged fanatics. They were few and far between, though.

difficult games actually help with increasing my patience and self-discipline. so gaming for me is actually self-improvement!

As my "new" PC won't handle heavy 3D games due to malfunctioning video card, decided to play really lame graphics games... like Shuyan Saga... a VERY Chinese game that's been very nicely localized in English and now with full Chinese both subtitles and voice pack. This doesn't crash the PC. Lucky me.

EDIT: WTF... the mouse control scheme made me realize these guys designed it for mobile or something. Click and drag to "greet" an attack? And then "drag back" to counterattack?

Are they going to replace your card?

Daehawk wrote: Sun Mar 24, 2019 12:01 am Are they going to replace your card?

I'll find out on Monday morning.

Decided to go retro... Playing Line of Sight: Vietnam, kinda Vietnam Sniper Elite. Hahaha. Except initially I had it set on easy/realistic, which results in I get shot dead by a single shot. WTF. I don't expect to be a bullet sponge, but dying from one or two shots of enemies firing through the bush is ridiculous. Set it back to "arcade", and now it's much more manageable.

That reminds me of the times I'd played the first two Rainbow Six games with my friends. They were much more unforgiving than a lot of shooters out there now and the fact that it could take one bullet to kill you made us more vigilant. We'd have these last man standing matches, and we had one guy in our group who had a knack for dropping a grenade at his feet. Those were fun times.

Loved the first rainbow 6...heartbeat sensor and a G36 on airport...or maybe road and hacienda too.

EDIT: 1998...21 years ago. Wow. Miss that life.

Kinda reminds me... What happened to AI companions that actually do some real damage?

In LOSV on 3rd missions and later, I have an AI companion, who's kinda my spotter and bodyguard, and he engages enemies more efficient than I do, and he can see through the bushes. So when I hear audio cues that enemies are near, I go prone and let him handle it.

I can also switch to him and let my sniper alone for a while. necessary if they get stuck on terrain and can't do "follow me" orders. Unfortunately, this also means the sniper will waste his ammo on easy kills.

Ive also wondering about AI and npc damage. In modern games I can sit and watch two AIs enemies go at it forever and never kill each other. Its like they are made to simply look like they are doing something.

Maybe it's to prolong firefights to make them look cooler? I think it also depends on the game. I mean, in RDR 2, your companions in some missions are not perfect by any means, and while they can actually be quite helpful, they still require you to clean up lest one of them gets pinned and killed I think it kind of gives the illusion of some weapons being inaccurate. But it also gives the feeling of being in a big epic western shootout.

On the other hand, you have games like Mafia 3 where you can call in squads of men, who in certain situations, can completely wipe out an area full of enemies without you having to do anything but hide.

In The Division 2 the civilian fighters are far less effective than you are, but they hold their own against the bad guys and the firefights will resolve one way or another without your interference if you let it.

In Ghost Recon Wildlands sometimes I'd just tell my three AI guys to go attack and I'd sit back and snipe. They do pretty well, although I've had to go resuscitate them occasionally.

I think the most egregious example of lame AI were the COD games and VOY: Elite Force. Your buddies rarely kill anything. If you just sit there and hide nothing ever happens. I mean the OLD COD like 1 and 2.

That's because they weren't AI so much as they were scripted actions. They weren't firing at the enemies, they were just performing a firing animation. They were set dressing.

That Time a Video Game had an Economy Almost as Strong as Russia

In late 2001 an economist called Edward Castronova made tsunami sized waves in the world of economics when he published a paper claiming that an isolated place called Norrath had a currency stronger than that of the Japanese Yen- an especially bold claim considering Norrath had less than a million inhabitants, had only existed for about two years and didn’t exist physically. Yes, Norrath was entirely virtual and populated exclusively by players of the video game EverQuest.

Mayhem is coming...

That's three pre-orders for this family. Unless it turns out to be something other than BL3.

On the one hand, it seems reasonable to fear that they're doing a Borderlands battle royale game, but on the other hand Pitchford was specifically teasing the number three on Twitter a while back, so I'd be surprised if it is anything but BL3.