WingedKagouti on 24/9/2019 at 09:47
Quote Posted by Sulphur
but it's got a hard nihilistic edge
I find it more grim dork than having any kind of edge. They're just trying too hard.
Also, some of the DLC included (Arkham Episodes & skins) "spoils" the identity of the Arkham Knight
Jason Todd, making the segments with him and his radio messages that much less impactful. Not that you couldn't figure out who it was with all the "You've lost someone"-messages constantly being thrown at you in the story and the Knight's knowledge of Batman and his methods.
Regarding DLC, from a quick glance it does seem that the Epic version includes all of it. If you downloaded the game on the day it was released you may have to update it. But it'll still run just fine without the Launcher.
Sulphur on 24/9/2019 at 11:55
Quote Posted by WingedKagouti
I find it more grim dork than having any kind of edge. They're just trying too hard.
I don't mean edge as in edgy, just that the stakes are high and the story reflects that it always was a losing battle (until they backtrack on stuff they shouldn't have).
And yeah, the whole Arkham Knight thing was easily the worst part alongside the forced Batmobile sections.
Aja on 24/9/2019 at 22:20
I've been working through Hollow Knight for the past month or so, and I like it a lot except for the voice acting and the occasional massive spikes in difficulty. So far I always seem to succeed in the end, but it feels like it's getting to the point where I may start giving up. Still, that's like 40 hours in so far, so I can't really complain.
All I've been doing this year is playing indie games on Switch: Stardew Valley, Gato Roboto, Minit, Untitled Goose Game, and then Celeste next. And other games that I've avoided buying in the hope that they would come to Switch, like Return of the Obra Dinn, are in fact getting released. It's turning out to be such a great console.
Aja on 25/9/2019 at 17:11
I got through the first two, but I'm not eager to try the third. I'm actually doing pretty good overall; most of the main bosses are done, and I appreciate that it's possible for some of the harder fights to gear up and just tank it and succeed. Reminds me of Dark Souls in that way. I suspect on a repeat playthrough some of this stuff would be a lot easier, but for now it's feeling like definitely one of the more difficult games I've played.
SubJeff on 26/9/2019 at 01:43
Quote Posted by icemann
I found Arkham City to be a massive disappointment over Asylum. Far less Metroidvania-ish.
Different type of game though, exactly because of that. It is a bit Metroidvania for the the Riddler stuff and some of the side missions though. My big gripe with it is how it locks you into the final section too early and without warning that you can't finish the side missions now or continue the main story.
Marecki on 26/9/2019 at 15:57
Finished Stealth Bastard Deluxe (I know, right? I am worse than that guy from XKCD who gets games on a five-year lag!), including the DLC, a few days ago.
The main game is bloody amazing, having struck a near-perfect balance between stealth and speed. It is by no means easy to S-rank a level but once you have got yourself into the right groove, the smooth flow of movement through each level feels almost like dancing. I just wish there were there an option to automatically restart a level (preferably minus the "test starting" screen) upon death, Super Meat Boy style, instead of respawning at a checkpoint - one does have to restart after death while going for S and the restart sequence is rather slow. There may not be much of a story but it is really good too, and the acerbic comments of the eponymous bastard (who one quickly finds out is the controller running the test chambers rather than the player character) have repeatedly made my day.
I wish I could praise the Teleporter Chambers DLC as well but alas, I haven't enjoyed it nearly as much. It's not that it is bad, quite the opposite - some of the puzzles are fiendishly clever and having mastered solving them opens a whole new set of possibilities for main-campaign levels (you do get to play with teleporters there too, they just take time to unlock and one cannot achieve the S rank with any equipment active). The problem is, the way equipment controls are in general and the way key bindings have been defined in particular makes meeting S-rank time requirements of these level require the levels of uber micro typically associated with seriously hardcode RTS players and which I do not like being forced to practise. If only there were a way to, I don't know, handle throwing and teleporting using the mouse instead of the same keys as for movement control... As things are, after a few attempts I gave up trying for rank S on any of the DLC levels. Pity that means I'll never get to play X1-9 and X2-9 - but whatever.
Thirith on 27/9/2019 at 15:47
I've gone and finished Subnautica... though, truth to tell, I did cheat a bit there towards the end. It started with a certain key not being readily available, and I would've had to return to my base roughly 10 minutes away just to fabricate another key, and then there were various other things that needed crafting where I would've simply gone and revisited placed I'd already been to many, many times - so I activated the console command that made crafting require no materials. This sort of gameplay at the end of a game, being sent to various locations I'd already been to in order to do things that I've already done, it's not exactly what I play games for. The developers try to make it easier by allowing you quick travel to key spots, but it's still something of an anticlimax at the end of the game. Which is a shame, because the plot points towards the end are memorable. It's just the gameplay that resorts to busywork of the kind that you've already done a lot. I'd still very much recommend the game (though I wish they'd optimised the VR version better) and I'm looking forward to Below Zero... eventually.
Renault on 27/9/2019 at 16:09
I'm having fun with Void Bastards. I can see it getting old eventually, with some of the samey layouts, and the fact that I rarely change my approach from ship to ship (Go to helm, get map, locate oxygen, get items, leave). But I still get that cool uncomfortable feeling each time I board a ship, not being exactly sure what is behind the first door or two or what or who I will run into. I really wish sneaking was more integral to the gameplay, that would definitely be more my style. But the game is still fun. It does feels like the map just goes on and on and on without getting anywhere though, I'd prefer more main objectives that are closer together. I'm still looking for that damn ID card after like 7 hours.
froghawk on 29/9/2019 at 03:32
Quote Posted by SubJeff
Different type of game though, exactly because of that. It is a bit Metroidvania for the the Riddler stuff and some of the side missions though. My big gripe with it is how it locks you into the final section too early and without warning that you can't finish the side missions now or continue the main story.
You can once it's done, though.
