Minion21g on 11/3/2021 at 17:04

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Regarding Loop Hero, I really wish there were a few more card combos early on to get different things going because repeating that first few loops is terribly dull. I've found it an easy game to run while I'm at work as you can enable an option to pause back at camp at the end of the loop. You might burn through a few cards, but really by that point it's just resource you can use to upgrade your camp.

I've been playing a lot of different games lately, it's difficult to stay focused on one thing for too long, but Final Fantasy XII: The Zodiac Age has held my attention longer than I expected to especially after bouncing very hard off the original PlayStation 2 version. I'm glad for a 2x / 4x game speed modifier. In fact, I'm glad a lot of the recent Final Fantasy remasters have received that treatment, because while I remember a lot of the good things about those games I also remember how GRINDY they were. Who's got time for that anymore? Not me. Anyway, I've put 75 hours into Zodiac Age (ha). I've recently reached the end game and I'm setting myself up to fight Zodiark, the last of the possible summons you can collect. Just need to do a quest to find a bunch of amulets, tackle the Chaos summon, find Zodiark, and hope not to die.

I've also been playing Breathedge and I really don't know how I feel about it. I came in expecting something along the lines of Subnautica, and parts of that are there, but it feels like it's more of a walking simulator (I'm fond of these games and the term) disguised as Subnautica. You have health and breath and nutrition requirements which add to the experience of it being a survival game, but the way resources are distributed alongside the story beats makes me think those systems are tertiary to the experience it's going for. Also, it has the dreaded tool durability a la System Shock 2 and Breath of the Wild, it's not great - plenty atmospheric (ha) though so I'll probably stick it out until the end.

henke on 14/3/2021 at 14:36

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I've had Frontier Pilot Simulator on my wishlist for ages, but finally picked it up in the current sale and ended up spending a lot of the weekend with it.

[video=youtube;qLMIRT1X4to]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qLMIRT1X4to[/video]

If you play Elite Dangerous or Lunar Flight for the spacetruckin' you'll probably like this. This is exactly the kinda flying sim I like: a flying sim that realizes that the most boring part of flying sims is all the damn the flying you gotta do. The gameworld is relatively small which keeps the trips short and lets the game focus on the good parts of flying sims: the take-offs and the landings. The presentation is very nice, with lots of detailed animations for cargo-loading and plane-configuration/repair. You also get other missions besides just cargo and passenger-hauling, like search-and-rescue missions and some kinda geometry-scanning thingy I haven't gotten to yet. The only real downside is the stuttery performance I'm getting with my GTX1070, I've turned most settings down to Low but still get occasional stutters.

(https://store.steampowered.com/app/673210/Frontier_Pilot_Simulator/)

faetal on 17/3/2021 at 16:14

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I'm quie enjoying Loop Hero as something to just chuck on and play semi attentively while I have lunch or something.
The curve for being able to unlock village stuff goes up pretty quickly.
True that the gameplay loop is basically like watching fanfic of a 20-sided dice roll, but maybe I'm just easily amused.

In other news, still digging AC: Odyssey. Kassandra might be my favourite AC protagonist so far (although I actually really liked Bayek too).
It's kind of weird though in that I can't yet see how it actually relates to the AC series. AC: Origins was pretty clearly laid out, but I'm currently playing a game where the assassin's creed hasn't been mentioned yet (I'm well over 50 hours in) and there are no Templars either. There are some shiny gold triangles, which I guess might be related to the weird AC angel alien civilization people, but it's not explicitly mentioned.

It's an off one, but definitely one of the best games I have payed in recent years. It's on a par with The Witcher 3 in terms of how much I am enjoying it. The plot & characters in TW3 are way better, but the actual gameplay in AC:Odyssey beats TW3 to a pulp, especially combat, where TW3 really falls short. TW3 is a novel which uses exploration gameplay as a way to interact, AC: Odyssey is an exploration game which uses story as an excuse to explore.

I really should not play Valhalla after this though. I'm surprised I managed this many AC games without burning out - possibly just miss actually being able to travel.

Anarchic Fox on 23/3/2021 at 15:53

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Ring Fit Adventure has turned out to be whole lot of game. I'm on day 40, and still nowhere near the end of the main campaign. Thankfully, I'm far enough in that I can choose powerful abilities wholly to my taste. They're not optimal abilities, by any means, but they exercise what needs exercisin'.

Months ago I started a new game of Dragon Warrior 3, only to set it aside when I discovered the classic NES controller is murder on my left hand. Recently, I acquired an NES Advantage (a joystick) and have found it much more ergonomic. Surprisingly, it also has a solid, heavy base, as one would demand of modern joysticks. (I expected it to be Nintendo's usual lightweight affair.) Anyway, the game is fun (when I'm in the mood for it), more so since I'm playing through using the classes I never used before: Soldier, Merchant and Goof-off.

Avernum: Steam's Proton (a WINE fork) has reached the point where it can play this with little hassle, and I've been meaning to do so for years. Currently, my party has made it to Fort Draco, and they're focusing on gathering the resources to fill out their magical library.

Spiritfarer hit me as hard as I'd dreaded. The first soul to move on wasn't so bad, since she departed on her own terms after some impromptu therapy. I figured that's how they would all go: you help a spirit with their lingering problems, they come to terms with their deaths, and move on. However, the second death did not fit that pattern, and kinda hurt. It was a dear old grandma hedgehog. I found her charming and wonderful, so I prioritized doing things for her, which I now realize sped through her plotline. What happened was... she sinks into dementia as you progress, the same dementia she died in. By the end of her story she thinks you're her daughter Alice. Instead of her choosing to move on, you make that decision for her. Ouch. Now I'm approaching the death of the character I like most among my current passengers, so I've set the game aside for now.

Briareos H on 28/3/2021 at 16:14

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Genesis Noir was utterly brilliant. If you don't mind interactive fiction with basic (and occasionally frustrating) puzzle elements, and have at least a passing interest in noir, jazz, stylish line art or cosmology, I heartily recommend it. Not pessimistic enough to be perfect, though.