centipede
CGR Undertow Groupie
It was just one soy latte, I swear!
Posts: 2,700
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Post by centipede on Dec 13, 2023 3:48:18 GMT
I've jsut started playing Sonic Frontiers. I'd describe it as a giant playground park, with all the equipment. You're running everywhere, trying to collect things. The boost stages are more like mini challenges where you earn keys to chaos emeralds. What irks me is they've done a Sonic Unleashed and gave the homing attack a different button! Grr!
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stratogustav
Supreme Overlord
Warrior with Bandana
Posts: 7,460
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Post by stratogustav on Dec 15, 2023 23:25:30 GMT
Still Grid Legends, those games nowadays never end.
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Post by Imperial Khador on Jan 4, 2024 1:28:28 GMT
The Legend of Heroes - Trails into Reverie - PS5 Afterimage - PS5 Xenoblade Chronicles X - Wii U
Afterimage has been a pretty straightforward, but well done Metroidvania so far. The environments remind me of Ori a bit.
Trails into Reverie continues to be enjoyable, but I'm taking it slow, as the next entry (Trails Through Daybreak) won't be out until later this year, and I might be waiting until 2025 for a decent sale.
Just started Xenoblade Chronicles X today, and played through the prologue. I've got to say, I'm really enjoying it so far. My understanding is that it doesn't connect to the story/worlds of the numbered Xenoblade games at all, so shares little aside from the control style and expansive environments.
However, the music is banging, and it looks pretty darned good for a 2016 Wii U game that features such large environments. The character-designs are a bit doll-like, but in a way that reminds me of Xenosaga, so hits a bit of nostalgia. I'm also finding switching between ranged and melee weapons a nice addition to the Xenoblade combat rhythm (though I'm sure 2, Torna and 3 have evolved it further).
I've heard XBCX described as having a Phantasy Star Online feel, and I can see why, with the limited online features, crashed spaceship on an unexplored land feel, etc.
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dschult3
CGR Undertow Groupie
The true heir to the Monado.
Posts: 2,776
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Post by dschult3 on Jan 4, 2024 15:23:00 GMT
Just started Xenoblade Chronicles X today, and played through the prologue. I've got to say, I'm really enjoying it so far. My understanding is that it doesn't connect to the story/worlds of the numbered Xenoblade games at all, so shares little aside from the control style and expansive environments.
However, the music is banging, and it looks pretty darned good for a 2016 Wii U game that features such large environments. The character-designs are a bit doll-like, but in a way that reminds me of Xenosaga, so hits a bit of nostalgia. I'm also finding switching between ranged and melee weapons a nice addition to the Xenoblade combat rhythm (though I'm sure 2, Torna and 3 have evolved it further).
I've heard XBCX described as having a Phantasy Star Online feel, and I can see why, with the limited online features, crashed spaceship on an unexplored land feel, etc.
You're speaking my language Imperial Khador! X is one of my favorite games. (I even set up a thread in the Nintendo sub thread.) Although I haven't played it in years, It would be great to hear about your adventure. It really is amazing that this is a Wii U game. The music kicks all sorts of ass, and I bought the soundtrack when it came out. My kids, including my daughter who has never seen me play the game, know it, since I play it in the car every now and then. The combat is probably the best in the series, so enjoy it. 2 and 3 are spectacular games in their own right, but X is definitely the most fun. As for the connection to the other games, I do believe there is one, but you won't know the connection until you play through the other games, especially after the revelations in Xenoblade Chronicle 3's DLC, Future Redeemed. I won't give spoilers here, but it's one of those "OOOOOH NO WAY" moments. (You get one of those in 2 as well.) I hope they port it to the Switch or the Switch II in the future. I'd love to see the story continued.
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Post by Imperial Khador on Jan 7, 2024 22:03:10 GMT
You're speaking my language Imperial Khador ! X is one of my favorite games. (I even set up a thread in the Nintendo sub thread.) Although I haven't played it in years, It would be great to hear about your adventure. I won't give spoilers here, but it's one of those "OOOOOH NO WAY" moments. (You get one of those in 2 as well.)
I have heard some light spoilers that are some varying references at the end of XBC3 to Xenosaga and Xenogears as well, so it would not surprise me
I've just found a Nopon as well, which I wasn't expecting. The vibe so far seemed to be going for a...slightly more grounded sci-fi setting, but maybe not.
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Cervantes
Off-Brand Transformable Robot
A former Incompetent Evil Commander (XP: 2423)
Posts: 2,821
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Post by Cervantes on Jan 8, 2024 7:22:17 GMT
I am playing Final Fantasy XIII (PC)!
Well, look, here's the thing: I'm really liking it. Yeah. But keep in mind that I also kind of love the movie FF: Advent Children, so I'm a sucker for highly stylized japanese art/animation with convoluted, nonsensical stories and FF13 was obviously made to be a game version of Advent Children's action scenes.
The controversial nature of the game comes from it being a combat-centric RPG. Everything outside combat was greatly simplified: I'm almost ten hours in and there are no towns and almost zero exploration, every map is a corridor. Except for a very short section, I didn't even find any characters to talk with and never had dialog choices. It's similar to an action game like Half-life 2, with the characters just moving forward from one combat scene to the next and the interactions being either cutscenes or the nearby characters making quips while I walk. The equipment is reduced to just weapon and accessory, the shops are on the save points (so there are no shoppers to interact with) and have barely anything to buy (I don't think I've bought anything until now). The level-up system gives more freedom, with you choosing which roles to level up and, within them, which abilities to get.
With all those downsides, what is good about the game? The combat is truly engaging. At first, it seems like the battles were also stripped down, as you only control directly the leader of the group and she/he even has an "autobattle" command. But then the "Paradigm Shift" concept is introduced and the combat gets deep very fast: basically, instead of choosing commands for the secondary characters, you can quickly change their jobs at any time. You can choose various combinations of jobs: let's say, the leader will be a Commando (physical attacker), the second character a Ravager (mage) and the third a Saboteur (which inflicts status ailments on enemies). But once the enemies already have bad statuses, and you see that physical attacks aren't effective, you change to another (previously set up) combination, with three Ravagers. But your characters take too much damage, so you shift to a third combination with two Medics and a Synergist (which gives status bonuses); once their health is recovered, you go back to using three Ravagers. While you keep quickly doing these shifts, you're also fully controlling the leader - the autobattle works, but manually choosing the commands and when to use them (that is, not always waiting for all the gauges to fill up) lends to better results. Since every battle is ranked, you'll have to use everything to get those five stars, even the cannon-fodder enemies. Battles are fast and you have to keep on your toes, which is also why the characters begin every encounter with full health and why dying in a fight just sends you back to before it started instead of the save point: because most battles are dangerous. Just a moment of distraction may kill the leader of the group, which is a Game Over even if the other characters were still alive. Dying is much more common than in other FF games.
I guess you can win most battles without properly strategizing and Paradigm Shifting, but that would be like finishing Devil May Cry or Bayonetta with just the worse ranks. That is probably why there are some reviews saying that the game plays itself: it's possible to ignore the nuances of the combat system and just abuse the use of items and do some grinding, but that's missing the point. I think it's unfortunate that FF13 was released just a year before Dark Souls, which is when harder, more punishing design came back to the limelight - under the different design philosophy post-2011, Square Enix could have made that you had to go back to the latest save point after dying, which would force players to learn the combat and obligate more strategic thinking and better planning. But until 2010, in that generation, one of the most celebrated games was Bioshock (2007), in which dying had zero consequences, which was followed by games like Prince of Persia (2008). Square Enix probably feared that the difficult combat, especially to an RPG audience, would be badly received, so the punishment for playing badly is too soft.
The other great thing about FF13 is that it's an absurdly good looking game and its cutscenes are all very well animated. I would usually complain about a game being full of cutscenes, but these ones are a joy to watch, more than a lot of CG movies. I do think the story is convoluted and some characters are ridiculous, so it's an acquired taste: people who hated Advent Children for its nonsensical story and exagerated combat scenes will probably hate FF13 too; it's definitely a case of form over content. But that's the point: to make the form stand out so much that it's almost an abstraction. It's flawed, yes, but it's a joy to see. So I'm enjoying it.
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Post by Imperial Khador on Jan 10, 2024 0:15:57 GMT
I seem to have lots on the go at the moment.
The Legend of Heroes - Trails into Reverie - PS5 Afterimage - PS5 Xenoblade Chronicles X - Wii U Super Paper Mario - Wii (played on the Wii U) Mario + Rabbids: Kingdom Battle (Switch)
Afterimage is staying enjoyable, the more I get into it. The environments and music definitely still remind me of Ori, but the weapon system is a lot like Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia. It's good stuff.
I skipped Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door on the GameCube for now, as I know a remake isn't too far off. I played this one originally when it came out on the Wii, as my roommate at the time had bought it, and I really enjoyed it then. It was my introduction to the series, and even though I knew it ran pretty different from the previous two entries (it's more of an adventure game with puzzle, RPG and platforming elements), I still liked it back then. So it's a nice revisit, as I like the characters and story.
Mario + Rabbids I played about halfway through when it came out, and put it down for no particular reason. A friend's kids got it for Xmas along with the second one though, and were enjoying it, so that's motivated me to finish. I think I have a bit more of the main story to go, and then the Donkey Kong DLC. Still enjoying it, so maybe I'll pick up the sequel afterwards.
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Post by Imperial Khador on Jan 11, 2024 0:56:47 GMT
I think I may be running into the same problem with Afterimage that I had with Hollow Knight: length. Ideal length for a Metroidvania for me is 10-15 hours. I'm at 20 right now, and new abilities seem to be going a long time before unlocking. A quick search shows it's a 40-60 hour game with 10-ish endings, so I think I will likely be stopping soon.
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lukefonfabre388
Sonic Wing
Move like a shadow, sting like a nuke.
Posts: 469
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Post by lukefonfabre388 on Jan 11, 2024 1:26:39 GMT
Battlefield bad company 2 online multiplayer on PC through fan made servers. I've put 19 hours into the multiplayer so far since I bought it. It's still a good game 14 years later.
I found a randomizer for one of my favorite games ever Pokemon mystery dungeon explorers of sky. It is now a much harder game than the original and I have died a lot in it. I am an absol and my partner Pokemon is a ninetales.
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Post by Imperial Khador on Jan 23, 2024 13:06:10 GMT
Xenoblade Chronicles X - Wii U Super Paper Mario - Wii (played on the Wii U) Mario + Rabbids: Kingdom Battle - Switch Monster Tale - DS (played on the DS)
So with my complaint above about Afterimage being far too long for my preference for a Metroidvania, I saw Joe on GameSack this week recommend Monster Tale for the DS, and figured I'd give it a shot. I'm really enjoying it so far. I think Joe was right about it likely being under appreciated due to coming out after the launch of the 3DS. A genuine hidden gem.
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Cervantes
Off-Brand Transformable Robot
A former Incompetent Evil Commander (XP: 2423)
Posts: 2,821
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Post by Cervantes on Jan 24, 2024 17:30:00 GMT
Imperial Khador - I also saw the Game Sack episode and was surprised by Monster Tale, it looks fairly good for such an unknown game.
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Post by Imperial Khador on Jan 25, 2024 14:48:06 GMT
Imperial Khador - I also saw the Game Sack episode and was surprised by Monster Tale, it looks fairly good for such an unknown game. Thus far, I'd definitely recommend it. The movement speed of the character is a bit on the slow side, but it seems to allow for some precise platforming. I have a few games on the go at the moment, but I'll be giving it some more attention.
In other news, I appear to have selected about the last possible time to play through Xenoblade Chronicles X with the full online experience, since the Wii U and 3DS online services have been announced to be fully going down in April. I'm pretty sure I can finish XBCX by then. Of course, I'm sure fans will homebrew servers or workarounds sooner or later.
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dschult3
CGR Undertow Groupie
The true heir to the Monado.
Posts: 2,776
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Post by dschult3 on Jan 25, 2024 16:22:35 GMT
In other news, I appear to have selected about the last possible time to play through Xenoblade Chronicles X with the full online experience, since the Wii U and 3DS online services have been announced to be fully going down in April. I'm pretty sure I can finish XBCX by then. Of course, I'm sure fans will homebrew servers or workarounds sooner or later.
Or maybe they'll FINALLY remake it or make a sequel to it (which should DEFNITELY be a thing!).
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Post by Imperial Khador on Jan 25, 2024 17:12:08 GMT
It would be nice to see it get a Switch remake/remaster, since the numbered XBC games seem to have found a decent audience.
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Cervantes
Off-Brand Transformable Robot
A former Incompetent Evil Commander (XP: 2423)
Posts: 2,821
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Post by Cervantes on Jan 26, 2024 2:50:24 GMT
Of course, I'm sure fans will homebrew servers or workarounds sooner or later. People are still playing Phantasy Star Online on the Dreamcast, so I'm sure fans will find a way.
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