Octopus Overlords

Yeah, a couple of times.

Your description does say rougelite, while the game description (which I read first) said roguelike, so I probably just blurred them in my brain. But as you said, pixel graphics are a non-starter for me. I can appreciate them, artistically, but I lived through the pixel era. We learned to make better looking games (which is admittedly subjective), and I don't really feel any desire to return to them.

Has anyone replayed The Witcher recently? Like say within the last 5 years? Im considering a full replay.

AllI really remember about is the naked witch, the old sawmill, a demon hound, and swamps that had torches that made my system crawl.

Thought perhaps a replay might be fin. But just the first one.

Or is that redo of it a real thing?

Witcher 1? The remake is still going, but I wouldn't expect it for at least a year or two (maybe longer.)

I am desperately trying to play Baldur's Gate 1. I have never finished it.

The older I get, the less I enjoy crpg's. I wish I knew why. I loved them as a kid and I love the idea of them.

Best advice I have for BG1 is when you start out give everyone a bow..even your casters. Makes it a LOT easier. I used bows on everyone until after I visited the mines in the south. Also go slow and only uncover a little of the view at a time.

Here is my Baldur's Gate 1 strategy guide:

1. Open door.
2. Die.
3. Reload.
4. Walk to door.
5. Pause. Queue buffs. Unpause.
6. Pause. Queue buffs. Unpause.
7. Save.
8. Open door.
9. Win.
10. Rest.

Yeah, it's not a success/failure issue. It's something else affecting my enjoyment.

There's definitely a fomo issue that I have with crpgs, that has only gotten worse over time (decades). So much so that I have trouble playing anything without a guide. Knowing Baldur's Gate 1 has tiny pixels with rewards in them just exacerbates my issues.

I feel like that that is not the only issue, but it's a noticeable one.

I saw I have save files from Act IV. Despite this, I'm starting over.

GreenGoo wrote: Tue Sep 05, 2023 8:01 am I am desperately trying to play Baldur's Gate 1. I have never finished it.

The older I get, the less I enjoy crpg's. I wish I knew why. I loved them as a kid and I love the idea of them.

Join the club. I bought the remastered version several years ago and for some reason just could not get into it. Everyone says it's so good, so I gave it a second chance. But as far as I can remember, both times had me bouncing off it after getting to the first town. To be fair, I've never been into Bioware's or Black Isle's very early games when they were all isometric, so I hold no nostalgia for them as I simply wasn't into those types of games at the time they first came out.

GreenGoo wrote: Tue Sep 05, 2023 1:03 pm Knowing Baldur's Gate 1 has tiny pixels with rewards in them just exacerbates my issues.

There should be a key to highlight those areas. Are you playing the Enhanced Edition? If not, you should be. Lots of quality-of-life stuff in the engine upgrade.

I think in the original the key to highlight items was ALT. Then again its been about 25 years since I played it and I dont remember yesterday.

I'm thinking (and it's been close to 25 years since I played the true original) that the original release didn't have the highlighting. I believe that was introduced in BG2. After a few years, the BGTutu mod (which imported BG 1 into the BG2 engine - BGtutu = "Baldur's Gate to Two") became the go-to way to play 1, and then the Enhanced brought it all together along with other improvements (which is why I haven't actually seen the 'original' form of the game since the 90s, despite having played it since then.)

Of course, I could just be completely wrong.

Blackhawk wrote: Tue Sep 05, 2023 4:08 pm

GreenGoo wrote: Tue Sep 05, 2023 1:03 pm Knowing Baldur's Gate 1 has tiny pixels with rewards in them just exacerbates my issues.

There should be a key to highlight those areas. Are you playing the Enhanced Edition? If not, you should be. Lots of quality-of-life stuff in the engine upgrade.

Yes, I'm aware, but the fomo means I have to explore every square inch of the map, and the pixels just add to the ocd. It's not fun, it's just required by my crpg ocd.

what i've achieved in day five of 'stay at home from COVID'



goals...

(and apparently no one wants to bother to learn the rules of cribbage, lol)

Ahh the dark ages of gaming...25 years....we must have been blindly running into cave walls and avoiding dinosaur poo on our way to the local software stores.

I just got a notification from Sony that they're upping the price on my Playstation Plus account - from $99.99 to $134.99. A 35% price increase.

And... canceled, for the first time in a long time.

Yeah...saw this news reported online a few days ago, and got my email from Sony today. Not happy at all. It does put them roughly in line with what MS charges for Gamepass, but I don't think their service offers as much.

I'm on the essentials plan, and the increase there isn't terrible, at least. The increase is worse with the other tiers. And I'm fine with less as I don't have enough time in the world to deal with the stuff offered in the other tiers.

Blackhawk wrote: Thu Sep 07, 2023 11:38 am I just got a notification from Sony that they're upping the price on my Playstation Plus account - from $99.99 to $134.99. A 35% price increase.

And... canceled, for the first time in a long time.

Yes, this has been in the gaming news for a few weeks now. I also just got my email notification. It was already expensive imo, and the price in Canadian dollars is a bit ridiculous.

That said, things (across industries) have gone from expensive in Canada to much more expensive now. Will I cancel? Probably not. I already overpay for cable services I rarely use, and the PS+ account at least gives me access to an entire library that I have never had access to before, as the PS5 is my first PS ever.

Also, my kids are entitled and just expect it to be there. My kids are good kids. They are spoiled, but don't realize and are not obnoxious about it.

BH, you have a pm. Shortly.

I've made a point in the last two or three months of taking a good, hard look at any and all subscriptions I had, and seeing what I actually used enough to justify maintaining the sub. It's why I dropped down to a single streaming service (currently Paramount+ for some Trek, although I'll switch from time to time.) PS+ was already on the ropes, and the biggest reason I kept it active was to have access to the huge library of free stuff. But I've been on a PC kick for gaming lately, as has Caiden (Ian never really use it), and so many games coming out for the PS5 exclusively makes still being on PS4 a little discouraging.

So, yeah - this pushed it over the edge. Whenever I get back into a console habit, I'll consider renewing.

That was a first. Myself and the LFG group (Brian, Crazy Lady, myself, and my son) have been playing Generation Zero.

I've played a lot of bad games with bugs, and I've played a lot of good games with bugs. I've played games with AI bugs, quest bugs, sound bugs, scripting bugs, multiplayer bugs, UI bugs, you name it.

Today is the first time that I've ever played a game with a buggy EULA.

Today, in order to launch the game, I (and the rest of the group) had to click a button to declare that we agreed with, and were willing to abide by, an error message.

GreenGoo wrote: Thu Sep 07, 2023 1:51 pm

Blackhawk wrote: Thu Sep 07, 2023 11:38 am I just got a notification from Sony that they're upping the price on my Playstation Plus account - from $99.99 to $134.99. A 35% price increase.

And... canceled, for the first time in a long time.

Yes, this has been in the gaming news for a few weeks now. I also just got my email notification. It was already expensive imo, and the price in Canadian dollars is a bit ridiculous.

That said, things (across industries) have gone from expensive in Canada to much more expensive now. Will I cancel? Probably not. I already overpay for cable services I rarely use, and the PS+ account at least gives me access to an entire library that I have never had access to before, as the PS5 is my first PS ever.

Also, my kids are entitled and just expect it to be there. My kids are good kids. They are spoiled, but don't realize and are not obnoxious about it.

BH, you have a pm. Shortly.

Honestly, I kind of wish they'd have a lower tier with just the multiplayer. I play multiplayer with friends of mine, but I don't always feel I need anything else. If they'd offer a cheaper tier with just that, I'd go for it.

But yeah, it is expensive. My essential plan is jumping from 69.99 (79.99 with the tax) to 94.99 without the tax. It almost feels like we pay a premium to be gamers these days.

In my opinion, the requirement to pay either MS, Sony, or Nintendo for access to multiplayer is a complete scam. Like, borderline criminal.

edit: Which does nothing to alter the fact that you need to pay for multiplayer. That's why I paid Nintendo in the first place.

I keep buying new games and I keep going right back to the only two I play - WoW and OOTP.

I got GamePass to try out StarField. Made it to New Atlantis, saved for the night and had zero motivation to ever play again. I bought JG3, ragequit and refunded it.

I'm stuck in a rut but it's a $12.99 a month rut instead of a $70 game rut.

*sigh* I'm tempted by NFS: Heat, as I haven't played a NFS game in a long time, but I'm quickly reminded that I didn't even play Forza Horizon 4 that much, and I have quite a games on my backlog, so even though it's only a few bucks, no thanks.

I'm not normally into racing games, but I find my eye straying towards various car games lately.

If I were to play something, it wouldn't be a pure (i.e. professional racing simulator) racing game, but something with missions and likely progression. But not too fantastical either. No flying cars or jet propelled street cars etc.

I liked the old style demolition driving games and the original Car Wars (you won't fool me again! I won't even try going back to that again, much as I am tempted) Just racing hasn't done it for me since Turbo and Pole Position in the mid 80s.

Been playing NFS:Payback on PS and enjoying it.

Isgrimnur wrote: Fri Sep 08, 2023 12:54 pm Been playing NFS:Payback on PS and enjoying it.

Worth a look.

LordMortis wrote: Fri Sep 08, 2023 12:51 pm I liked the old style demolition driving games and the original Car Wars (you won't fool me again! I won't even try going back to that again, much as I am tempted) Just racing hasn't done it for me since Turbo and Pole Position in the mid 80s.

Outrun!

Exodor wrote: Fri Sep 08, 2023 10:39 am I bought JG3, ragequit and refunded it.

Jagged Alliance 3? Baldur's Gate 3? Jump Gate 3?

Jagged Gate 3, obviously. Personally, I loved storming the beaches of Grand Chien with Shadowheart, Minsc and Boo at my side.

GreenGoo wrote: Fri Sep 08, 2023 12:59 pm

Isgrimnur wrote: Fri Sep 08, 2023 12:54 pm Been playing NFS:Payback on PS and enjoying it.

Worth a look.

I enjoyed Payback moreso than Heat. The different characters with their different abilities and the different biomes made things more interesting, whereas in Heat it always seemed to be the same color palette all the time. Its biggest downside though is easily the upgrade system. Heat's gameplay just left me wanting.

LordMortis wrote: Fri Sep 08, 2023 12:51 pm I liked the old style demolition driving games

Is it fun? I just wishlisted it.

LordMortis wrote: Fri Sep 08, 2023 2:20 pm Is it fun? I just wishlisted it.

it's fantastic. i've gone at length about this game here before. (it's from Bugbear, who did the first few FlatOut games)

trying to get Dark Souls (Prepare to Die edition) running on a Linux business laptop (works fine) with the DSFix mod (not quite successful yet)

(the Remastered edition technically works, but is very stuttery due to what appears to be an underpowered video card on the laptop)

can't believe what a boon modern WiNE/Proton is for non-Windows gaming

Hrothgar wrote: Fri Sep 08, 2023 1:14 pm

Exodor wrote: Fri Sep 08, 2023 10:39 am I bought JG3, ragequit and refunded it.

Jagged Alliance 3? Baldur's Gate 3? Jump Gate 3?

Whoops - JA3 I refunded same day. BG3 I played for like two hours and shelved it. I forgot I even bought it when I wrote that post.

hitbyambulance wrote: Fri Sep 08, 2023 2:00 pm

LordMortis wrote: Fri Sep 08, 2023 12:51 pm I liked the old style demolition driving games

How weird, I went to check this game out after you just shared it here... and it showed as in my Library. I have no memory of a game called Wreckfest. I went to my Library to see when I purchased it, and I bought it back in 2014.

Apparently, it was called "Next Car Game" back when I bought it.

It's come a long way since then, and it looks really fun! And I own it!

GreenGoo wrote: Fri Sep 08, 2023 12:47 pm I'm not normally into racing games, but I find my eye straying towards various car games lately.

If I were to play something, it wouldn't be a pure (i.e. professional racing simulator) racing game, but something with missions and likely progression. But not too fantastical either. No flying cars or jet propelled street cars etc.

The older NFS games aren't bad. I find NFS Payback pretty fun, if a bit tedious. In order to give you "variety", the gang each have a speciality and will split up and do different missions, and make you switch among them. There are also a few vehicle wrecks you can find that you can rebuild into whatever discipline you want (some may require some crazy jumps to claim).

NFS: The Run was older and kinda interesting, but a few too many quicktime events. It's basically a race from west coast to east coast and the protag, i.e. you, have to outrun both rivals and the cops to settle your debt AND beat your hated rival who's obviously a cheater, LOL.

If you want to just do fun races, I guess DIRT 5 will also do? It's just various types of offroad racing. If you prefer on the road, Grid Legends.