Thirith on 24/3/2022 at 08:05
Yesterday I finished replaying Mirror's Edge Catalyst, and I'd still defend the game against some of the criticism it received. There are things it does badly, there is a lot of potential that isn't fulfilled, but I enjoy traversal just as much in this game as in the first one.
However, there's one thing I absolutely hate that I suspect is down to the engine: there are some side activities (races against the clock of one kind or another) where you can just press R to restart, which is needed quite often, because the time limits are brutal. Get a jump or a wall run wrong? Press R and try again. Other such activities, however, don't allow for a quick restart, probably because, being A-to-B races, they cover a larger area of the map. I guess the map can be streamed while you're playing, but if you have to reload a whole chunk, it'll take a few seconds. Nonetheless: it would be so much better if you could just press R and the game puts you back at the beginning after a few seconds of loading - but instead, you either have to keep running until the time runs out (which always happen if you make more than one or two minor mistakes) or you have to go to the menu and reload the last checkpoint. It seems like a small thing, but when you're retrying races again and again and again it's the kind of friction that makes you give up sooner or later.
What next? I'm still replaying Horizon Zero Dawn on PC and enjoying that quite a bit more than expected, but I really want to play Tunic after having read and watched a number of reviews. There's also Sekiro that I should finally play, but I'm shying away from that one at the moment.
Anarchic Fox on 24/3/2022 at 22:40
Quote Posted by Tomi
Can someone recommend another game that I could play with her?
I recall
Hidden Folks being highly reviewed, and
My Brother Rabbit sounds quite similar to it.
reizak on 24/3/2022 at 23:22
Quote Posted by Tomi
Can someone recommend another game that I could play with her?
(
https://store.steampowered.com/app/96000/The_Tiny_Bang_Story/) The Tiny Bang Story maybe. I can't remember how difficult the puzzles were-probably not very-but the mood was great. Also Samorost/Botanicula should be fun for a kid and have no dialogue.
Tomi on 25/3/2022 at 00:33
Hey, thanks for the recommendations!
Quote Posted by Anarchic Fox
I recall
Hidden Folks being highly reviewed, and
My Brother Rabbit sounds quite similar to it.
They're not exactly that similar - both may be hidden object games, but MBR is more of an adventure and very story-driven, whereas Hidden Folks is all about searching for those tiny pixel objects on your screen. We did actually try Hidden Folks though! :) It's a bit too advanced for a 3-yo, I think. Finding those objects requires quite a lot of logical thinking and patience. I suppose the black and white palette looks a bit boring for a child as well.
The Tiny Bang Story looks so much like My Brother Rabbit - I actually had to check that they're not from the same developer! (They're not.) It seems suitable for kids, so I'm adding this on my shopping list.
I've never played Samorost or Botanicula, but I always thought that they are more arty-farty and meant for adults. They do look weird, but in a fun way. I seem to have Samorost 1 in my games library already, so perhaps we'll give it a try. I think it may be more suitable for a bit older kids though... Is Machinarium very similar to these two games? My daugher likes robots. :p
demagogue on 25/3/2022 at 04:00
Hidden Through Time is a better find-the-thing game, or at least more visually interesting. It's in color and it animates little scenes.
Tiny Lands is a spot-the-difference game. About as simple as a game gets.
I could also recommend Labyrinth City. It's a maze game. The scenes can look busy, but at the end of the day you just walk down the open paths and you'll get there eventually. But it tells a story targeted for kids; that's the key point.
Townscaper might be good. It's not a game; you're just plopping down buildings. But it's pretty!
Maybe Fireworks Mania! You shoot off fireworks. What more do you need? ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
reizak on 25/3/2022 at 10:40
Quote Posted by Tomi
I've never played Samorost or Botanicula, but I always thought that they are more arty-farty and meant for adults. They do look weird, but in a fun way. I seem to have Samorost 1 in my games library already, so perhaps we'll give it a try. I think it may be more suitable for a bit older kids though... Is Machinarium very similar to these two games? My daugher likes robots. :p
It's been years since I played all these games, but I think Machinarium was a bit more like a traditional adventure game than the others and maybe more amenable to actual deduction. It can definitely be hard to figure out how to progress in most of them, mostly you just click on things and see what happens. I'm bad at estimating what a 3 year old might be into, but I think out of the Amanita games Botanicula might be the best bet; I recall it moved at a pretty good clip, whereas I can easily see a kid get bored with the pace of Samorost. It does have a "scary" monster that's chasing the protagonists through the game, though.
WingedKagouti on 25/3/2022 at 12:24
I'd say that anything with abstract/weird/scary imagery or antagonists chasing the player are not appropriate for a 3 year old. At that age, kids are still learning how to appraise the world as a whole and something like that may cause issues. I am obviously not a child psychologist and I don't know the child in question, but I do know that the first 3-4 years are a fairly fragile time period as far as long term mental health goes.
I was first thinking about recommending the LEGO games, but I feel they are far too complex (both game mechanics and puzzles) for a 3-yo even with parental co-op, despite the early ones not having any spoken dialogue. Relatively simple Hidden Object games and (non-adult) adventures/story books seem like they would be more appropriate until she's 4-5 (depending on mental maturity). You could also try some Match 3 games, if you can find ones with a good theme for her and no a timer.
reizak on 25/3/2022 at 12:57
You're probably right, I watched the trailer to Botanicula and even in that the monster at the end is pretty menacing, and you're literally running from it the whole game. Could easily become nightmare fuel. It's a pity because otherwise it's a lovely game.
Starker on 26/3/2022 at 04:33
Might want to look into the Putt-Putt games from Humongous Entertainment. I don't quite remember what age they were meant for, but I think they skewed rather young.
PigLick on 26/3/2022 at 09:54
I played Morrowind with my daughter who was around 3 at the time (pretty advanced kid though). We encountered a nix hound for the first time and it rushed me and killed me. We were both traumatized. Morrowind is now my daughters favorite game of all time, to the extent she has coded mods for it and such.
