April 2024 General Game Discussion Thread

[Brian Boru]

so far the UK Government hasn't tried to reinvade Australia

Well of course not, they're not stupid—look how it turned out last time

 

[BeardyHat]

Start cramming the Doctor Who and Monty Python! Oh, and Young Ones, of course.

Peep Show is really more my speed and I've only half watched Doctor Who, starting with Eccleston through to Picardi, but stopped there. Felt kind of weak at that point and Sonic Sunglasses were ******* dumb.

 

[DXCHASE]

Start cramming the Doctor Who and Monty Python! Oh, and Young Ones, of course.

The Young Ones- 100% watch. Funny and its full of UK punks. Monty Python... has good sketches but a lot of them are too droll and dry, but i appreciate them nonetheless. Doctor Who, no. I know this wasnt for me, but i dont see anyone ever talking about The Young Ones so i had to say something.




As for me, ive been playing.....Destiny 2. I know! I said i pretty much dropped it, but theyve added new stuff (onslaught mode, which is really fun and has me wondering why this wasnt done a lone time ago) i havent touched yet (its a live service after all), also completed missions that have been around for the last couple of months that i just didnt have any interest in before. Have played 0 MP outside of a PVEVP mode called Gambit.

I havent bought their expansion yet, im probably just going to wait until it releases because i still dont have high hopes for the last part of the story, but right now theres a chase for these old Destiny 2 weapons that were my home for a good 1-2 years in my arsenal, so its nice to be bringing them all out again. Thats the main draw for me. Its got some good QoL updates too (YOU CAN FINALLY EDIT YOUR CHARACTER AFTER 10 YEARS!).

Still playing Helldivers 2. Everyday. I also just realized i have more time in Helldivers than i do in CP2077, which is weird to me but i still have to beat the exp. story. Anyways, the wife and i helldive all the time, plus i like to help lower levels through the tougher tiers. FOR DEMOCRACY.

 

[Kaamos_Llama]

Booted up Returnal today after finishing off Max Payne. Tried Max Payne 2 for a bit, but seemed pretty similar to the first game and I needed a change.

First impressions really good, movement and shooting fast and fluid in third person, super fast jump and dash. Intriguingly weird alien feeling world, dour but pragmatic player character which suits the tone. First hour and a half is a little confusing as there seems to be a lot of upgrades and materials to figure out, I think thats a design choice though because the player character has crash landed on an alien planet and had no idea what is going on there either. Its run based, the story being that you have no idea why you keep coming back to life and finding your own corpses all over the place, kind of Edge of Tomorrow thing going on, but not quite.

This feels pretty special. Its also running great with Epic settings including RT + DLSS quality on my sig rig, 80 minimums so far, smooth.

 

[Pifanjr]

Peep Show is really more my speed and I've only half watched Doctor Who, starting with Eccleston through to Picardi, but stopped there. Felt kind of weak at that point and Sonic Sunglasses were ******* dumb.

I really disliked Peter Capaldi at first, but he has some really great episodes. The episode "Heaven Sent" in particular is really good and "Fatality Index" has one of my favourite Doctor Who moments.

I have only seen 2 or 3 episodes of the one after Capaldi and didn't really care for those, but maybe the later episodes are also better.

 

[BeardyHat]

I really disliked Peter Capaldi at first, but he has some really great episodes. The episode "Heaven Sent" in particular is really good and "Fatality Index" has one of my favourite Doctor Who moments.

I have only seen 2 or 3 episodes of the one after Capaldi and didn't really care for those, but maybe the later episodes are also better.

I think we did actually get through the Series with him as the Doctor, but never got around to watching the next series. It was really more my wife's interest, so I mostly only paid half attention and I'm pretty sure she watched plenty without me.

 

[Brian Boru]

Peter Capaldi

Haven't seen any Doc Who, but Peter did a great turn in Prime Suspect 3 which I watched last week.

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Uninstalled Far Cry 5 in disgust when one of the obnoxious capture sequences bugged out on me. It was the last of the 9 'regular' ones too—I'd eliminated Faith and John, and this was #3 for Jacob.

These set pieces are so stupid, get this: they happen as you make progress in each region, after roughly 25%, 50%, and 75% completion—so they can be many hours of gameplay time apart. So you'd expect 3 different if annoying encounters—but what you get is the exact same mission each time!

My guess is there's less time in each repeat, but how stupid is that, repeating the exact same mission? There's a lame-ass excuse about this conditioning you to kill one of your friends, but that was pretty obvious going in—there had been a load of broad hints dropped to that effect beforehand.

Anyway, 3rd repeat I failed a couple of times doing it the 'normal' way—ie melee corridor shooting, exchanging weapon for stronger guns at transition points. So I ignored the guns and just did takedowns, which worked a treat and left me with more time than usual when I finished it by killing my buddy. But the damn thing didn't end—Jacob told me to 'Keep Moving'… which I did, until the timer reached zero and mission failed.

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Here's my current In Play:

 

[ZedClampet]

Having a problem with Hydroneer. It's a sandbox, but there really is no goal other than wealth. I've been moving my way through the mining tiers, but the next thing will be automation, and I'm just feeling kind of meh about it. It's really just a huge pain for more money, which I don't need. I did buy a super huge truck today, which was cool.

****

@neogunhero I really liked those games. I have always planned on going back and finishing them, or at least trying to finish them, on a higher difficulty, but I've never gotten around to it. Actually I probably need to play them solo on "normal" first since I played co-op the first time around.

 

[Zloth]

The DLC for Elden Ring has its own collector's edition. If you're wondering how much it costs, this product is not for you. If you SHOULD be wondering about the cost, this product is also not for you.

I don't remember ever seeing a collector's edition of a DLC before.

Haven't seen any Doc Who....

No. No!! That isn't true! That's IMPOSSIBLE!!

Oh wait, wrong IP....

 

[Brian Boru]

That's IMPOSSIBLE!!

You'd think so, wouldn't you—it still surprises me too, every time I trip over it.

However I have overcompensated by watching the superb Broadchurch, which had 2 Doctors and an Oscar winner as leads.

 

[Kaamos_Llama]

The DLC for Elden Ring has its own collector's edition. If you're wondering how much it costs, this product is not for you. If you SHOULD be wondering about the cost, this product is also not for you.

I don't remember ever seeing a collector's edition of a DLC before.


No. No!! That isn't true! That's IMPOSSIBLE!!

Oh wait, wrong IP....

Fromsoft Merch seems to sell out quick, any book or guide starts going for 5 or 10 times more on Ebay when theyre out of stock, its an investment

 

[ZedClampet]

Haven't seen any Doc Who, but Peter did a great turn in Prime Suspect 3 which I watched last week.

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Uninstalled Far Cry 5 in disgust when one of the obnoxious capture sequences bugged out on me. It was the last of the 9 'regular' ones too—I'd eliminated Faith and John, and this was #3 for Jacob.

These set pieces are so stupid, get this: they happen as you make progress in each region, after roughly 25%, 50%, and 75% completion—so they can be many hours of gameplay time apart. So you'd expect 3 different if annoying encounters—but what you get is the exact same mission each time!

My guess is there's less time in each repeat, but how stupid is that, repeating the exact same mission? There's a lame-ass excuse about this conditioning you to kill one of your friends, but that was pretty obvious going in—there had been a load of broad hints dropped to that effect beforehand.

Anyway, 3rd repeat I failed a couple of times doing it the 'normal' way—ie melee corridor shooting, exchanging weapon for stronger guns at transition points. So I ignored the guns and just did takedowns, which worked a treat and left me with more time than usual when I finished it by killing my buddy. But the damn thing didn't end—Jacob told me to 'Keep Moving'… which I did, until the timer reached zero and mission failed.

---

Here's my current In Play:

imo timed missions are the worst.

 

[ZedClampet]

The DLC for Elden Ring has its own collector's edition. If you're wondering how much it costs, this product is not for you. If you SHOULD be wondering about the cost, this product is also not for you.

I don't remember ever seeing a collector's edition of a DLC before.


No. No!! That isn't true! That's IMPOSSIBLE!!

Oh wait, wrong IP....

I would never buy that, but if I were someone who would buy that, I still wouldn't buy it unless I could pick it up and take it to a register then drive home with it. There is no chance I would get that in the mail before the DLC releases. That's just the way things work, at least for me.

All that said, I would love to have that figurine. I need to get into making my own figurines like @BeardyHat or my old friend, Amy, who lives in Vermont and has her own shop.

3D printers....

 

[BeardyHat]

I would never buy that, but if I were someone who would buy that, I still wouldn't buy it unless I could pick it up and take it to a register then drive home with it. There is no chance I would get that in the mail before the DLC releases. That's just the way things work, at least for me.

All that said, I would love to have that figurine. I need to get into making my own figurines like @BeardyHat or my old friend, Amy, who lives in Vermont and has her own shop.

3D printers....

Highly recommend it as a hobby and painting is easier than you probably think. 5 years ago I could never imagine myself doing it, but here I am...

 

[neogunhero]

@neogunhero I really liked those games. I have always planned on going back and finishing them, or at least trying to finish them, on a higher difficulty, but I've never gotten around to it.

I’d say going straight into 3 would be best as each game is essentially a better improved version of the last. They try to jam in some sort of backstory which is entertaining to watch but not essential to the core gameplay experience at all. The third game just feels the most polished with the most amount of content and levels included. There are some DLC available for purchase but the base game seems like it will take a very long time to unlock everything.

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I wish I would have gotten back into Fallout 76 right as the show launched. I’m a little late to the huge influx of new players, but when playing last night there was till 52K players online which is massive for FO76. The reason being is that I wanted to create a “new player pit stop” right along the road to the first main mission after leaving the Vault. I tried to do that yesterday but ran out of materials, I completely forgot to scrapping your base does not give you 100% of crafting resources back. I got the main structure built though, it hangs over the main road that a lot of new players follow to the first mission, and I’m going to have tons of lights around it. It will be full of all crafting stations, beds, any decoration that gives you buffs (musical instruments, gymnastics equipment, bench press, etc), stash boxes and my bartender. It will also have vending machines full of ammo, aid items, low level and cheap weapons, clothing, armor, everything you need to outfit yourself for adventure. I plan on making the vending machine prices very fair for new players. That’s one thing I love about this game, doing stuff like this to help other players is very fun and I enjoy doing it.

 

[Brian Boru]

“new player pit stop” … help other players is very fun and I enjoy doing it

What a great idea!

 

[ZedClampet]

I’d say going straight into 3 would be best as each game is essentially a better improved version of the last. They try to jam in some sort of backstory which is entertaining to watch but not essential to the core gameplay experience at all. The third game just feels the most polished with the most amount of content and levels included. There are some DLC available for purchase but the base game seems like it will take a very long time to unlock everything.

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I wish I would have gotten back into Fallout 76 right as the show launched. I’m a little late to the huge influx of new players, but when playing last night there was till 52K players online which is massive for FO76. The reason being is that I wanted to create a “new player pit stop” right along the road to the first main mission after leaving the Vault. I tried to do that yesterday but ran out of materials, I completely forgot to scrapping your base does not give you 100% of crafting resources back. I got the main structure built though, it hangs over the main road that a lot of new players follow to the first mission, and I’m going to have tons of lights around it. It will be full of all crafting stations, beds, any decoration that gives you buffs (musical instruments, gymnastics equipment, bench press, etc), stash boxes and my bartender. It will also have vending machines full of ammo, aid items, low level and cheap weapons, clothing, armor, everything you need to outfit yourself for adventure. I plan on making the vending machine prices very fair for new players. That’s one thing I love about this game, doing stuff like this to help other players is very fun and I enjoy doing it.

Love Fallout 76. Put 100s of hours into it. Built some mighty fine bases if I say so myself. I quit playing right after the basement update.

***

Fabledom is the worst balanced colony sim I've ever played. It may be the worst balanced game period. It's so bad that the developers created a gift system. Whenever you run out of a key resource, another noble decides to gift you some. Personally, I'd rather they just fix the balancing. With a 26 person starter colony, you need 4 coal plants, 5 farms 4 foresters, 4 rock pits, and 3 laborer huts. That's 45 jobs for your 26 colonists, almost half of which are stay-at-home people who don't work jobs. So you are constantly out of everything and accepting lots of gifts.

 

[Pifanjr]

I’d say going straight into 3 would be best as each game is essentially a better improved version of the last. They try to jam in some sort of backstory which is entertaining to watch but not essential to the core gameplay experience at all. The third game just feels the most polished with the most amount of content and levels included. There are some DLC available for purchase but the base game seems like it will take a very long time to unlock everything.

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I wish I would have gotten back into Fallout 76 right as the show launched. I’m a little late to the huge influx of new players, but when playing last night there was till 52K players online which is massive for FO76. The reason being is that I wanted to create a “new player pit stop” right along the road to the first main mission after leaving the Vault. I tried to do that yesterday but ran out of materials, I completely forgot to scrapping your base does not give you 100% of crafting resources back. I got the main structure built though, it hangs over the main road that a lot of new players follow to the first mission, and I’m going to have tons of lights around it. It will be full of all crafting stations, beds, any decoration that gives you buffs (musical instruments, gymnastics equipment, bench press, etc), stash boxes and my bartender. It will also have vending machines full of ammo, aid items, low level and cheap weapons, clothing, armor, everything you need to outfit yourself for adventure. I plan on making the vending machine prices very fair for new players. That’s one thing I love about this game, doing stuff like this to help other players is very fun and I enjoy doing it.

Every time I've started a MMO I will get the idea to do something similar, then quit playing well before I have enough money or resources to actually do something like that.

Also I don't like interacting with strangers.

 

[neogunhero]

Built some mighty fine bases if I say so myself. I quit playing right after the basement update.

I haven’t tried out the basement base building parts much at all. I much rather have a large monumental base that players can come across while wandering the world, however it sounds like the basements are where the best decorated player homes are at. I don’t think I’ve ever visited another players basement home yet.

Every time I've started a MMO I will get the idea to do something similar, then quit playing well before I have enough money or resources to actually do something like that.

Also I don't like interacting with strangers.

I wanted to start a new character but I ran into that exact problem, no way am I gonna scrounge for enough resources when I have a character with 150 hours that has it all already lol. I started playing my old character and it’s just the getting used to my build part that has been difficult. Also, imo FO76 is the best MMO for people like me who don’t want to use a mic, but still want some minimal player interactions. Nearly every person you come across just emotes at you, runs around your base, then leaves. I also really enjoy how there is no PVP if you don’t want any.

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I finished all the main parts of the new player friendly base. All crafting stations, a few beds, stash boxes, bench press station, guitar, and got my vending machines up and running, though I want to go through all my items for sale and rework the prices to be more affordable. Right now I’m focusing on decorating the base and gathering more items to sell that will benefit new players.

I had to grind a bit for some screws. I went to Wendigo Cave, which according to Co-Pilot, should have tons of screws. I found maybe two. I then found a Reddit post from 6 years ago that suggested a specific office building called Sugar Grove, so I headed over there and found about 30 total screws, though I think I have a perk to give me a chance to get more components when scrapping.

I had a few newbies come over and take a look but left pretty quickly. I need to find a way to make them aware of the buffs you get from sleeping, working out and playing an instrument. They’re easy to miss if you aren’t aware of them because it takes almost a full minute of interacting with those things to get the buff, but they’re really beneficial especially when first starting out.

 

[ZedClampet]

I haven’t tried out the basement base building parts much at all. I much rather have a large monumental base that players can come across while wandering the world, however it sounds like the basements are where the best decorated player homes are at. I don’t think I’ve ever visited another players basement home yet.


I wanted to start a new character but I ran into that exact problem, no way am I gonna scrounge for enough resources when I have a character with 150 hours that has it all already lol. I started playing my old character and it’s just the getting used to my build part that has been difficult. Also, imo FO76 is the best MMO for people like me who don’t want to use a mic, but still want some minimal player interactions. Nearly every person you come across just emotes at you, runs around your base, then leaves. I also really enjoy how there is no PVP if you don’t want any.

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I finished all the main parts of the new player friendly base. All crafting stations, a few beds, stash boxes, bench press station, guitar, and got my vending machines up and running, though I want to go through all my items for sale and rework the prices to be more affordable. Right now I’m focusing on decorating the base and gathering more items to sell that will benefit new players.

I had to grind a bit for some screws. I went to Wendigo Cave, which according to Co-Pilot, should have tons of screws. I found maybe two. I then found a Reddit post from 6 years ago that suggested a specific office building called Sugar Grove, so I headed over there and found about 30 total screws, though I think I have a perk to give me a chance to get more components when scrapping.

I had a few newbies come over and take a look but left pretty quickly. I need to find a way to make them aware of the buffs you get from sleeping, working out and playing an instrument. They’re easy to miss if you aren’t aware of them because it takes almost a full minute of interacting with those things to get the buff, but they’re really beneficial especially when first starting out.

you should post some screenshots if you get a chance.

 

[neogunhero]

you should post some screenshots if you get a chance.

I’ll post some tonight! It’s definitely function over style, but I still like how I laid it out. I hope it gets a lot of use and helps some players out.

 

[ZedClampet]

I’ll post some tonight! It’s definitely function over style, but I still like how I laid it out. I hope it gets a lot of use and helps some players out.

I far prefer function over style and will gladly kill all aesthetics to make something more functional. When it's as functional as it can get, like in Enshrouded all the crafting tables and storage and buffing decorations are properly taken care of, then I do try to style it up a bit, but I never create anything special. Looking at my bases and not being revolted is acceptable.

By the way, my favorite house companions in 76 are the robots that go out and find things. Mostly it's just because they are hilarious. In that case, making me laugh beats function.

In World's Adrift I once created a max-cube ship, which just means it was the maximum size ship (which was huge) and shaped like a cube. We called it the Death Cube, and it looked so stupid it made people genuinely happy. Twice we came across random people talking about seeing it (we were in different ships at the time, so they didn't know we were the owners of the cube), so I felt like it did its primary function quite well.

 

[neogunhero]

By the way, my favorite house companions in 76 are the robots that go out and find things. Mostly it's just because they are hilarious. In that case, making me laugh beats function.

I have both the Scavenger Collectron and the bartender human ally. The bartender is cool because he adds to the look and feel of the base, but he is very chatty. While building up my base I kept quoting him because he only had a couple idle lines that get recycled over and over lol. I haven’t tried to new ally that came out with the show, I’m not sure what purpose that guy serves.

 

[neogunhero]

Here are some screenshots of my base. Getting a lot of people passing through tonight.

Spoiler: The New Player Friendly Base

I'm too lazy tonight to redo the prices. I think they're still good and fair, but some items I want to lower, however that requires you to completely delist the item and relist it at the new price. There needs to be a way to edit the prices.

Next to each "station" that gives you buffs, I wrote out small notes indicating what buff you get from each. I hope that helps new players realize you need to sleep/workout/play instruments for almost a whole minute before receiving the buff.

Spoiler: Strength Buff Bench Press

 

[ZedClampet]

I decided to go ahead and do the automation in Hydroneer. As it turns out, it's more fun than surfing the web or working on a game. I'm done with my contribution to that college football game.

Think I'm going to make a simple co-op shooter game for me and Guido just to see if I can get the multiplayer to work correctly.