I have so many fond memories of GTA 4 multiplayer. I loved the open world mode the best. I don’t think there were any objectives at all, just run around the entire map with your friends and do stupid stuff. Many fun times had on GTA 4 multiplayer.
The vehicle handling is one of the largest critics of the game, especially if you’ve played GTA V beforehand. The driving is much more improved in V, so going back to IV feels like you’re constantly on ice. I actually find it fun myself, it forces you to take it slow and not go full speed everywhere you drive to.
As for the characters, I’m not going to try to convince you to like them, but I’ll say in my opinion and those of a lot of GTA fans, they are some of the most realistic and well written in the entire series. There’s a lot of depth to the characters that is easily missed on the surface. My only problem is that I wish the game would explore their backgrounds more, not just Nico. I still think RDR2 is the Rockstar’s best writing, but GTA 4 is a close second.
I will note that I was 15 when GTA IV was released, so I probably missed a lot of the depth. Though I've also never played the GTA games for their story, I mostly treat them as a sandbox for causing havoc and the missions are a necessary evil to unlock more options for chaos.
Zloth
Community Contributor
That's what video recordings are for! Steam does it automatically now. Save it away, watch it again next year!
I keep forgetting you can do that on Steam now.
Shadow of War has daily missions that I've mostly ignored until now. However, I noticed yesterday that one of them had a reward of a legendary piece of equipment of my level. Most of my legendary stuff is far below my level because I now prefer to recruit legendary orcs rather than kill them for their loot, so I decided to quickly complete this quest.
The quest was to kill a fire drake in a specific region. Despite my legendary equipment being woefully underpowered, I do have enough to get the set bonus to instantly dominate a fire drake, so I just needed to find one.
Sadly, it turns out they're more rare than I thought. I quickly gave up because running around is the worst part of the game, but all hope was not lost. There is a skill in the game that lets you summon your own fire drake, but it's a reward for doing a series of quests.
So I killed a Balrog, prevented it from being resurrected by a necromancer orc who was trying to supplant Sauron and I got the ability to summon a pet fire drake, which I promptly killed to get a snazzy new sword. Luckily it's not a single-use ability.
The quest was to kill a fire drake in a specific region. Despite my legendary equipment being woefully underpowered, I do have enough to get the set bonus to instantly dominate a fire drake, so I just needed to find one.
Sadly, it turns out they're more rare than I thought. I quickly gave up because running around is the worst part of the game, but all hope was not lost. There is a skill in the game that lets you summon your own fire drake, but it's a reward for doing a series of quests.
So I killed a Balrog, prevented it from being resurrected by a necromancer orc who was trying to supplant Sauron and I got the ability to summon a pet fire drake, which I promptly killed to get a snazzy new sword. Luckily it's not a single-use ability.
Now that's gaming the system!
Helldivers 2 is having a Killzone crossover. Arrowhead relased an armor set (Helmet, armor, cape) that makes you look like the Helghast. They also added a gun too, so now when shooting in FPS its like shooting in Killzone.
If you dont know Killzone, it was probably the best FPS to come out on PS imo and remained an exclusive. Killzone 3 was one of the games that pushed me to buy a ps4. Its fun and i really hope that, with this crossover, itll show Sony how much interest there is in another Killzone because it would be fantastic to play on a high-end pc and end the ps exclusive streak.
Also, Arrowhead has added maps that include cities to fight the newest enemy to the game (aliens from the first one).
When using my Mech, it 100% reminds me of Mechassult/mechwarrior when in combat with these new aliens, id love to see a stand-alone game take this scenario you can make in Helldivers and make that the next type of mech game. Mechwarrior 5 and clans are ok but feels less like mechassult or old mechwarrior games
If you dont know Killzone, it was probably the best FPS to come out on PS imo and remained an exclusive. Killzone 3 was one of the games that pushed me to buy a ps4. Its fun and i really hope that, with this crossover, itll show Sony how much interest there is in another Killzone because it would be fantastic to play on a high-end pc and end the ps exclusive streak.
Also, Arrowhead has added maps that include cities to fight the newest enemy to the game (aliens from the first one).
When using my Mech, it 100% reminds me of Mechassult/mechwarrior when in combat with these new aliens, id love to see a stand-alone game take this scenario you can make in Helldivers and make that the next type of mech game. Mechwarrior 5 and clans are ok but feels less like mechassult or old mechwarrior games
Last night I decided to play some Warhammer Vermintide 2. Steam says I have 3 hours in game and last played in June 2020. I barely remember the game besides the hub and how poorly it ran on my PC. Only different in my PC between then and now is a better CPU and faster SSD and it stayed at a constant 60fps on Ultra settings 1080p, so that allowed me to enjoy it more.
I’m surprised how much depth there is to this game. If you never played, very simply put it’s like Left 4 Dead set in the Warhammer End Times universe so the setting is dark gothic and most enemies are giant rodents. Without any paid DLC I counted 24 missions, with paid DLC there are 31 I believe. Each mission is very similar to a L4D mission where the main goal is to get to the end of the level with some different objectives along the way, usually ending with a huge horde fight before escaping. There is a good amount of looter mechanics thrown in as well which allows you to change your gear and equips different items for buffs.
I played the first two missions with a group of randoms. The matchmaking seemed to work good as everyone was low level, but with each character there are multiple “careers” or classes, and I think each one has its own level. But they weren’t the best players so they definitely seemed new to the game like I am. We finished the first two missions together which took a little over an hour, so in addition to being lots of missions, they’re decently long too. Also, we played on Recruit, so I can only imagine harder difficulties taking even longer.
Overall I had a lot of fun and I’m looking forward to playing more. The graphics and audio are fantastic, the lore is interesting (never gotten deep into Warhammer), and just very fun to play. The community is fantastic as well, I asked a few questions on the Steam forums and every response was very kind and helpful.
I’m surprised how much depth there is to this game. If you never played, very simply put it’s like Left 4 Dead set in the Warhammer End Times universe so the setting is dark gothic and most enemies are giant rodents. Without any paid DLC I counted 24 missions, with paid DLC there are 31 I believe. Each mission is very similar to a L4D mission where the main goal is to get to the end of the level with some different objectives along the way, usually ending with a huge horde fight before escaping. There is a good amount of looter mechanics thrown in as well which allows you to change your gear and equips different items for buffs.
I played the first two missions with a group of randoms. The matchmaking seemed to work good as everyone was low level, but with each character there are multiple “careers” or classes, and I think each one has its own level. But they weren’t the best players so they definitely seemed new to the game like I am. We finished the first two missions together which took a little over an hour, so in addition to being lots of missions, they’re decently long too. Also, we played on Recruit, so I can only imagine harder difficulties taking even longer.
Overall I had a lot of fun and I’m looking forward to playing more. The graphics and audio are fantastic, the lore is interesting (never gotten deep into Warhammer), and just very fun to play. The community is fantastic as well, I asked a few questions on the Steam forums and every response was very kind and helpful.
In case my last post enticed you to play some Vermintide 2, I just saw that it is on sale for $2.99 in the Steam Winter Sale. All DLC combined on sale is still $35.30, or $23.34 for the game and all DLC, but I think it’s best to check out the base game first. A lot of the DLC adds new maps and characters, but there is already so much content in the base game. Not sure if this is necessary, but grab all the free DLC. I found it easier to middle mouse click each one then add to library. I’m not 100% sure if this is necessary or if you already get the content unlocked, but since it gave me the option to add them to library, I went through the trouble of doing it but it only took a minute.
To be clear to people who haven't played: you don't get loot during a mission, you get loot after a mission and can change your gear before starting a new one. Better level gear mostly gives you a (small) stat boost and at the higher rarities a single passive trait. You can find consumables in the form of potions/first aid kits, potions that boost your speed/attack/ultimate and fire/explosive bombs.
Each character has its own level, not careers. Each career gives a different way to play a character and typically lets them specialize in either crowd control, tank, special hunter or monster hunter. The levels are just for unlocking extra careers and talents, which are like a small (passive) skill tree that lets you further define your play style.
I think harder difficulties usually take less time because every knows exactly what to do (or you die early). And what you do is typically to never stop moving forwards.
I've had great experiences with the community as well. I've done quite a lot of games with random people and they're generally very positive and helpful.
Got over 700 hours in this. It's a great. great game. Right now I'm playing Darktide, which is the next in the series.
The missions don't really take noticeably longer on higher difficulties because you'll get much better at the game. When we started grinding for gear, though, we always did the shortest mission, which is the scaven bell, but I can't remember the exact name of the mission. That one only takes 20 to 30 minutes. It was an easy in/out mission with all the grimoires.
We still died occasionally even after 700 hours. On higher difficulties the shear amount of insanity that the game throws at you can sometimes get you.
Nice thing about Vermintide missions is that they are so chaotic it really never feels like you are playing the same mission over and over again.
Thanks to Steam's machine learning recommendation tool, I have found the arcade without a laundry game I said I wanted 
My kid had seen a video of the Bluey video game and had been asking me to get it and since her Christmas vacation has started today I decided to indulge her. She loves the series, so even though the game is really simple I think she really enjoyed it, especially since we can play it together.
I also downloaded Infinity Nikki for her. I'd seen the review for it on the PCGamer website and it looked like something she would enjoy, especially since it looks somewhat like this Korean show she's been watching called Teenieping. So far it consists mostly of some simple platforming for which you get pieces of clothing as a reward, but the game is very pretty and my kid seemed to like it.
We'll have to see if either of them stick though. My kid is just like me in that she can get bored of a game very quickly.
I also downloaded Infinity Nikki for her. I'd seen the review for it on the PCGamer website and it looked like something she would enjoy, especially since it looks somewhat like this Korean show she's been watching called Teenieping. So far it consists mostly of some simple platforming for which you get pieces of clothing as a reward, but the game is very pretty and my kid seemed to like it.
We'll have to see if either of them stick though. My kid is just like me in that she can get bored of a game very quickly.
Still playing Resident evil 2 and trying to get my head around the remake. First thing that springs to mind? Christ almighty those zombies take a serious beating. Multiple headshots and still not enough to drop them. I got excited getting a shotgun and was quickly disappointed by the damage. The licker ate multiple shotgun shots and a knife stab before it finally succumbed.
Still, joy good stuff. Enjoying the exploration and trying to figure out where to go next, the limited tools makes backtracking inevitable. Perhaps i'll do better with hindsight and if i make a note of those codes, newgame+ might be cake walk...
Still playing POE. its still a slog, but the build i'm using plus the necro aspects of the league means that i'm making money. but there is still room for improvement. I still need a decent pair of boots and getting a decent 6 linked bow.
Still, joy good stuff. Enjoying the exploration and trying to figure out where to go next, the limited tools makes backtracking inevitable. Perhaps i'll do better with hindsight and if i make a note of those codes, newgame+ might be cake walk...
Still playing POE. its still a slog, but the build i'm using plus the necro aspects of the league means that i'm making money. but there is still room for improvement. I still need a decent pair of boots and getting a decent 6 linked bow.
Zloth
Community Contributor
Downloaded XCOM 2 and got the new Long War of the Chosen mod. And a few more. And some old ones that I liked. And... oh, it's past midnight already!? The only playing I did was starting the game off a few times to make sure nothing had broken!
P.S. Might need some robots in my squad. There's an HK-47, a GLaDOS, and a SHODAN mod to provide voices.
P.P.S. Shadow of War orc voices! https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3266634352
P.S. Might need some robots in my squad. There's an HK-47, a GLaDOS, and a SHODAN mod to provide voices.
P.P.S. Shadow of War orc voices! https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3266634352
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Just finished watching my kids stream Outlast Trials. I wish I could have my young brain back just for a day. I didn't appreciate it enough.
Sometimes I catch myself thinking that if only I could...whatever...I could keep up with them. But watching Guido play from his perspective makes me realize that it's not possible anymore. His lightning fast awareness of everything around him and his perfect directional recall is far beyond anything I could ever hope to do again.
Sometimes I catch myself thinking that if only I could...whatever...I could keep up with them. But watching Guido play from his perspective makes me realize that it's not possible anymore. His lightning fast awareness of everything around him and his perfect directional recall is far beyond anything I could ever hope to do again.
My wife would not appreciate Outlast Trials. We had a big discussion one day when she was astonished to find out that the Witcher games had nudity and sex scenes. She still doesn't understand why they have them, thinks it's ridiculous. But my wife has never played a game with narrative more than "Mario, save the princess."
This is probably obvious to most, but I just found out that Epic Games Store does not have an update news feed for individual games. Absolutely baffling, and it's been out for 6 years now? I occasionally play games on there that I get for free, and today I noticed LotR Return to Moria had an update. Even right clicking the game on the lefthand menu bar doesn't give any options whatsoever. I then go into my Library, right click then game, then head to the store page. I ran up and down the page at least three times, didn't see any news section. At the top of the program, there is a News section, but it's only news for the storefront and other Epic games. I had to go to Steam to find out what the update was.
I don't want to add to the pile of criticisms just because it's a trendy thing to do or whatever, but if Epic had any true hopes for become a major competitor to Steam, the app would not be almost identical to what it was when it first launched in 2018. I truly cannot think of any way the app has evolved since launch, and if it has, it's not the major changes they really need. The only reason it's still relevant today is because of Epic games, Unreal dev kits, and the free games every Thursday/holiday season. I also fully understand Steam has a massive monopoly on the PC gaming market and we're all just okay with it, but we're only okay with it because Steam and Valve are wonderful to the gaming community. They're by no means perfect, but they care enough about their products and customers that they are the default gateway for just about any and all PC gaming. You would think with how massive of a market share Steam has, competitors would put in much more effort to appeal to customers to get them to use their products more often.
I don't want to add to the pile of criticisms just because it's a trendy thing to do or whatever, but if Epic had any true hopes for become a major competitor to Steam, the app would not be almost identical to what it was when it first launched in 2018. I truly cannot think of any way the app has evolved since launch, and if it has, it's not the major changes they really need. The only reason it's still relevant today is because of Epic games, Unreal dev kits, and the free games every Thursday/holiday season. I also fully understand Steam has a massive monopoly on the PC gaming market and we're all just okay with it, but we're only okay with it because Steam and Valve are wonderful to the gaming community. They're by no means perfect, but they care enough about their products and customers that they are the default gateway for just about any and all PC gaming. You would think with how massive of a market share Steam has, competitors would put in much more effort to appeal to customers to get them to use their products more often.
Shot a 232 tonight, only managed a 156 and 168 on the other 2, but tonight was double points and we won all 3 games, so, even though were in last, down a person etc., our handicaps and combine score, were starting to beat people so we might finish the season not in last even though were the only team without 4 people. So well see where we go!
My game time is 49% POE 2, 49% Helldivers 2 and 2% Diablo 4 and Indiana Jones.
My game time is 49% POE 2, 49% Helldivers 2 and 2% Diablo 4 and Indiana Jones.
Not exactly the same type of game, but generally speaking this is exactly why I won't play PvP anymore. Last time I tried was in Destiny 2 maybe 5 or 6 years ago. Before I can react and hit the mouse button I'm already dead. A lot of it is my in-game awareness. It just isn't there. I remember thinking to myself, "OMG! I'm Joe Walsh!" For reference, I saw Walsh on Rock 'n Roll Jeopardy some time ago (late 90s I think). It was hilarious watching him trying to buzz in, he was about a second behind the other contestants (against a young Mark McGrath, who won the day). Of course Walsh probably had an excuse and looked stoned (but when does he not? lol).
I've also lost my knack for RTS games. These days I just want to get lost roaming an open world doing stupid crap for no other reason than because I can.
Kaamos_Llama
Moderator
Finished up Tactical Breach Wizards which I definitely cant say for every game I start, solid game but I wont be going back to do any of the extra stuff.
Getting into the campaign for Frostpunk 2. Liking it after 10 hours or so but not in love yet. It has a proper campaign which is a big bonus for me. What surprised me most is that you are actually managing a series of settlements rather than one city, which kind of blurs the lines between the city building screen and the further out overview wasteland map you are exploring and combing for resources.
Big picture, its a game of balancing. You need more people to run the production districts and/or machines but then you need more food, goods, or fuel to support them and the cycle repeats. There is a tech tree of several sections, and each tech to research has at least a couple of possible results to choose from that give similar but different benefits and costs. Each of the sub-techs is also supported by one or more factions and possibly opposed by others. So you have to balance your needs against appeasement, and if certain factions dislike what youre doing over time they can cause trouble. There are also laws to pass which work the same way which unlock as the campaign progresses. If youre lacking something theres either a series of techs to make it more efficient, a law you can implement to help, or somewhere on the map you can mine more of it you need to find and exploit. Theres also disease, squalor, crime and cold which need to be managed at the same time which all affect your pops general mood.
Theres still more involved with a meter that measure your decisions balance towards Adaption/Tradition and something else I forget, which are favoured by the different factions, but Im not really far enough in to know where that leads yet.
It has similar nicely written story beats from the first game that flash up on the map, which add I think more than just flavour. I find myself not wanting to enact some laws that in a pure game of numbers would make total sense, because they seem morally a bit icky when you get a little story bubble pop up about something terrible happening to an individual or group due to something you did as Steward.
Its good, lets see how I feel after a good few more hours.
Getting into the campaign for Frostpunk 2. Liking it after 10 hours or so but not in love yet. It has a proper campaign which is a big bonus for me. What surprised me most is that you are actually managing a series of settlements rather than one city, which kind of blurs the lines between the city building screen and the further out overview wasteland map you are exploring and combing for resources.
Big picture, its a game of balancing. You need more people to run the production districts and/or machines but then you need more food, goods, or fuel to support them and the cycle repeats. There is a tech tree of several sections, and each tech to research has at least a couple of possible results to choose from that give similar but different benefits and costs. Each of the sub-techs is also supported by one or more factions and possibly opposed by others. So you have to balance your needs against appeasement, and if certain factions dislike what youre doing over time they can cause trouble. There are also laws to pass which work the same way which unlock as the campaign progresses. If youre lacking something theres either a series of techs to make it more efficient, a law you can implement to help, or somewhere on the map you can mine more of it you need to find and exploit. Theres also disease, squalor, crime and cold which need to be managed at the same time which all affect your pops general mood.
Theres still more involved with a meter that measure your decisions balance towards Adaption/Tradition and something else I forget, which are favoured by the different factions, but Im not really far enough in to know where that leads yet.
It has similar nicely written story beats from the first game that flash up on the map, which add I think more than just flavour. I find myself not wanting to enact some laws that in a pure game of numbers would make total sense, because they seem morally a bit icky when you get a little story bubble pop up about something terrible happening to an individual or group due to something you did as Steward.
Its good, lets see how I feel after a good few more hours.
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It's all about money. The EGS is bare bones because they know it will cost millions a year to provide a lot of the same service Valve give Steam. When your business model is paying for exclusives and giving away lots of free games corners get cut.
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Zloth
Community Contributor
Well of course not, that's a PEGI 18+ game! Not appropriate for Christmas at all!!
Sounds like you need to circle back around to that Indiana Jones game! (Trying to flex my 'dad joke' muscles, even though I have no kids.)
And don't forget giving the game makers a bigger cut. I wonder if that store is even making a profit yet.
Last thing I read was that it wasn't making a profit, that the exclusives had been a disaster, but that giving away free games seems to be working, so they were going to cut back on the exclusives and continue to give away free games.
With all the money that Fortnite makes, Epic was losing money last year because of the store, which was why they laid people off.
WARNING: That's the way I remember it and is not necessarily accurate because my brain sucks.
***
Played some Voin.
Save 10% on VOIN on Steam
Crafted by a solo developer, VOIN is a first-person hack-and-slash. Cleave through hordes of enemies in fast-paced combat. Explore dark fantasy realms filled with secrets and dangers. Discover powerful gear and weapons, and face menacing bosses in your quest to cleanse a broken world.
It's a Boomer Swinger (first person hack and slash--but if we have Boomer Shooters, then I think we need Boomer Swingers)
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