June 2024 Game Discussion Thread

[BeardyHat]

I’m hoping with the great foundation the exists already, content shouldn’t take too long to come by. However on the Early Access info section on their Steam page, it does say they expect to be in EA for 1 or 2 years.

When I finished the last chapter, on the “thanks for playing” end screen, they did mention to have Workshop and level editor support out later this year, and that will definitely increase replayability of the game while we wait for full release.

This is my problem, I'm just impatient and once I play it, I'm not going to want to wait!

I'm already struggling with Cultic, which is easily my favorite so far of the Boom Shoots I've played, but man do I want more. Maybe I should just play the first episode again.

 

[Brian Boru]

I resent that

Spoiler

I love any game that lets me stack barrels on top of each other to get to the roof of a massive apartment building just to find hidden secrets in an area most people wouldn’t think to go

That's sth I've always wished they'd add in Far Cry games.

You can pick up almost any object and throw it

Nice. I don't play with FC distraction gadget—eg the baseball in FC6—as it makes it too easy, but I wouldn't mind it occasionally to get out of a tight spot.

And woohoo, my PC can do Recommended specs!

the legion battles don't seem fun at all … the battles have been very fun

Does not compute 😵

Asia Minor -> Aseeah Meenor

That was probably an accent, not old Latin—drawing from Roman History as part of Latin class >50 years ago, but I'm fairly sure the current English version of the Latin name is Levant, and of the Greek, it's Anatolia.

three people in my party of six named Marcus

It was one of the most common male first names, probably because it derived from Mars, their god of war.

 

[Zed Clampet]

Also, I've got three people in my party of six named Marcus.

I named my character after Monty Python's Biggus Dickus. Made reading the dialogue much more fun.

****

Profits are up! I downloaded a mod that makes customers not care what the prices are in Supermarket Simulator. Marked everything in the store up by $5. Finally, I'm getting somewhere...

 

[Hveðrungr]

It's weird to hear names pronounced in (possibly) old Latin. Centurian -> Kantaurian, Asia Minor -> Aseeah Meenor. Also, I've got three people in my party of six named Marcus.

That is indeed classical Latin! For example, “veni, vidi, vici” would have been pronounced “wenii, wiidii, wiikii”. Fallout New Vegas also dabbled in this with how they pronounced ‘Caesar’.

I'm fairly sure the current English version of the Latin name is Levant

The Levant is usually the Lebanon, Syria, Israel, Palestine, Jordan area. The Roman name for the province containing Ephesus and Miletus was Asia, hence Asia Minor:

 

[BeardyHat]

The time may have come; after 21.6 hours with Abiotic Factor, I might be bored. I'm pretty far into the game (in the Animal Pens/Lab, I believe), but I'm also just tired of looking through cabinets and things, trying to find new recipes to build. I've reached the point where I just can't be bothered.

I might also be reaching that point with Skald, but I'm not 100% certain of that yet. I've reached a point where exploration is a little less obvious, but I did very much just enjoy the little story of a town I just reached and was eager to finish that part/quest off this morning, which I did.

So I'm not sure. I'm never quite sure, but it certainly feels like I'm reaching that point with Abiotic.

 

[Brian Boru]

The Levant is usually the Lebanon, Syria, Israel, Palestine, Jordan area. The Roman name for the province containing Ephesus and Miletus was Asia

Right, I was referring to the anglicization of a Roman word for the area, not the current Levant region. It originally meant sth like 'eastern' and was loosely applied to anywhere east of Greece, depending on whether you were talking to Biggus Dickus or Marcus Aurelius 😀

Another map for you:

As far as I know—bear in mind, I was only a young lad at the time—the Roman admin used Anatolia more than the alternatives, that Asia was a more local usage. But doesn't matter anyway 🙂

 

[Zed Clampet]

The time may have come; after 21.6 hours with Abiotic Factor, I might be bored. I'm pretty far into the game (in the Animal Pens/Lab, I believe), but I'm also just tired of looking through cabinets and things, trying to find new recipes to build. I've reached the point where I just can't be bothered.

I might also be reaching that point with Skald, but I'm not 100% certain of that yet. I've reached a point where exploration is a little less obvious, but I did very much just enjoy the little story of a town I just reached and was eager to finish that part/quest off this morning, which I did.

So I'm not sure. I'm never quite sure, but it certainly feels like I'm reaching that point with Abiotic.

Since you are on the verge of quitting anyway and said you were in the animal pens, did you meet the monster who suddenly shows up wherever you go? That contributed to my quitting the game.

You have to stay alert and know when he's around and track him down as fast as possible and then just stare at him until he disappears. If you are too late finding him, he kills you. You can't fight him. He shows up every few minutes. It's a damn nightmare.

***

Soulmask-we destroyed the boss we got killed by yesterday. Was very easy today, but then we both died in stupid ways later when we shouldn't have had any problems.

 

[Zloth]

It was one of the most common male first names, probably because it derived from Mars, their god of war.

And I'm hiring a bunch of soldiers. Sheesh. Well, it's not like we're on a first name basis anyway. Still, I really wish I could give them code names or something.

Oh! I was confusing on my battles!

The game is a mix of RPG and turn-based squad tactics. You'll walk around in a fort, or a hill with several shrines, or whatever and talk with people. Then you'll go off on some mission on another map that feels a bit like an XCOM mission with swords, pikes, and arrows. Then back to chatting again. Every once in a while (only once so far for me), there will be a big battle between armies - that's a bit dull.

Here's a review:

View: https://youtu.be/1FIbaJsZxoo?si=1Nhm03Abp-Rk9XRv

 

[BeardyHat]

Since you are on the verge of quitting anyway and said you were in the animal pens, did you meet the monster who suddenly shows up wherever you go? That contributed to my quitting the game.

You have to stay alert and know when he's around and track him down as fast as possible and then just stare at him until he disappears. If you are too late finding him, he kills you. You can't fight him. He shows up every few minutes. It's a damn nightmare.

***

Soulmask-we destroyed the boss we got killed by yesterday. Was very easy today, but then we both died in stupid ways later when we shouldn't have had any problems.

I did find that guy and yeah, he's killed me by surprise several times. The last time I encountered him, I froze him, but he disappeared anyway.

I've definitely gone through this cycle where generally I'd play until something killed me, then take a break and come back. The thing about this game is that I've generally felt annoyed every time I die, which is not a thing I often feel in games. Often I play a game and if I die, I think about what I could have done better, but in Abiotic, generally I feel like there's nothing I can do except avoid the stuff that's killing me until I can build better things to kill it.

Which is generally the cycle in these survival games, but it never annoys me like it does in Abiotic. I've played loads more Valheim and never felt annoyed or frustrated in a similar way, so I'm not sure what it is.

I might just have reached the usual place I do when I'm tired of the gameplay loops and am finding a reason to justify it, but I don't think that's exactly it.

 

[Pifanjr]

I played some more Marvel: Midnight Suns today. I had planned to skip most of the optional stuff outside of the battles, because I know that kind of stuff can cause me to burn out on a game trying to optimise it, but honestly I might enjoy all of the collecting, talking and upgrading more than the battles.

Which isn't to say I'm not enjoying the battles. Though I have found that some heroes are more fun to play with, especially those that do more than just hitting enemies or knocking them back.

I'm also a bit disappointed in how limited the deckbuilding aspect is so far. It would be nice to have some more different cards and allowing some more synergies between heroes. But I'm still early in the game and it does seem like it'll get better.

 

[neogunhero]

Gaming with Intent & Purpose: The Mindful Gamer Lifestyle

Lately I’ve been watching this guy on TikTok, DerrickTheMindfulGamer, he’s also on YouTube. He talks about a large range of topics relating to representation in video games, burnout, and what he calls mindful gaming. The main idea is to have intent and purpose when you play games, rather than playing for the sake to play. Maybe a lot of us can relate to this, but me especially, I have a problem of mindless doomscrolling my library and after 30 minutes, picking something to play but getting bored pretty quickly. At this point, what is even the point of gaming? I start to get doubtful of my hobby, thinking I could do something else that’s more productive, that I’m wasting time, etc.

The thing is, I have a strong relationship with gaming and I don’t want to give it up. However the way I’ve been approaching it, it’s devolving into a pure waste of time. Gaming shouldn’t be a waste of time, it should be an enjoyable experience and a hobby that you get something out of, whether that is just pure entertainment, solving puzzles and exercising your brain, or a space to hang out with friends. Gaming shouldn’t be something that does nothing but waste your time and make you feel bad about it.

That’s where the whole mindful gaming thing I’ve been educating myself on comes in. If you’re at the same point as I am, where gaming has become nothing but a pure waste of time, it’s time to take a different approach. Of course the first step will be to try to find something different to do and take a break from gaming, at least for a day minimum. I’ve been occupying my time doing yard work and catching up on podcasts, and making really good dinners I normally wouldn’t make on weeknights. Taking a break isn’t the end of the world of course, it will just make your return to gaming more enjoyable.

When you are ready to game again, think about your intent and purpose. Having very simple goals to give reason to why you’re about to play a game has made me enjoy my time with gaming a bit more. Last night I had some free time so I decided to play a game. Before even sitting at my desk, I try to think of a game I want to play instead of doomscrolling my library. I decided on DUSK, since I recently finished Fallen Aces, I should play another New Blood game. My intent with DUSK is to finish a few levels in the campaign, and my purpose was to unwind and enjoy this game while having fun for an hour. Even something as simple as thinking of my intent with this game before playing it has made my mind think there is a better reason for me spending time playing a game compared to just sitting at my desk bored not knowing what to play.

Being better at taking breaks, finding other things to occupy time that I normally would be gaming, having intent and purpose when gaming has all changed my approach to gaming a bit different. The goal is to not get burnt out by games, since it has literally been a lifelong hobby of mine. I love gaming and I want to be able to enjoy it for the rest of my life, so making small changes like this will help make my relationship with gaming a positive one, not one that causes major boredom and burnout. There has been sooooo many times I just look at my library of games and think how bored I am. I want to change that, and find enjoyment with each gaming session I have.

This is all probably stuff you guys have heard before, but I thought I would share my experience trying to make these small changes in my life these past few days.

 

[Hveðrungr]

honestly I might enjoy all of the collecting, talking and upgrading more than the battles.

Yeah, I didn't understand the people who complained about the stuff around the Abbey. I loved having a relaxing jog around the grounds of an evening, picking mushrooms and looking at the scenery.

Which isn't to say I'm not enjoying the battles. Though I have found that some heroes are more fun to play with, especially those that do more than just hitting enemies or knocking them back.

Don't judge all the heroes too soon though. Some have later-game cards that really change up how they play. Also, it's as well to keep all the heroes up to speed because there are compulsory missions for each of them throughout the game for which you won't want them to be under-powered if you're playing on a decent difficulty level.

I'm also a bit disappointed in how limited the deckbuilding aspect is so far. It would be nice to have some more different cards and allowing some more synergies between heroes. But I'm still early in the game and it does seem like it'll get better.

Yeah, the more exciting cards are unlocked later in the game, of course, same as many games. Check out the MMS wiki if you want to see what cards are heading your way for your favourite heroes.

 

[Colif]

New AC game

Why is the Female character the stealthy one and the Male wanders around town killing things. Her race matches the environment, his doesn't. It would make way more sense to have her be the one in open and him doing the stealth... Its just logic. The suspension of logic to make it so he can kill all these people and never get challenged for it, is beyond me.

I know its a game but come on. Magic? must be it, they can't really see him... i don't know. Maybe story will explain.

 

[Zed Clampet]

New AC game

Why is the Female character the stealthy one and the Male wanders around town killing things. Her race matches the environment, his doesn't. It would make way more sense to have her be the one in open and him doing the stealth... Its just logic. The suspension of logic to make it so he can kill all these people and never get challenged for it, is beyond me.

I know its a game but come on.

Maybe she needs stealth to give her an advantage in a fight, and he's stronger, so he's more in-your-face.

The real Yasuka was described as a warrior with great physical strength who could kill multiple enemies with ease on the battlefield.

That said, he was also an assassin (for real), and I imagine he was more careful then than on the battlefield.

Needless to say, he didn't just run around towns killing people as you do in these games. 🙂 I guess if you are playing a crazy person, one way is as good as the other.

He had a bit of authority and quite a bit of fame. I imagine if he wanted into a guarded area, his first step would have been to walk up to the guards and tell them to let him in.

 

[Rolfil]

Her race matches the environment, his doesn't

Well he is based on Yasuke, a real historical figure who was African in origin. Having a historical figure is unusual for a playable character.
There was also a english Samurai, William Adams, which is generally more well known.

 

[Colif]

I know the story... but how many African Samurai are there wandering around Japan killing people? How long before they work out who it might be? Does he kill all the people in the towns to make sure no witnesses?

I won't be playing it anyway, Only AC game I ever had was BF and I didn't play it much.

 

[neogunhero]

I think Ubisoft said it best themselves. To paraphrase a quote I read by someone at the company, they use historical facts to create fictional universes. They use the historical samurai Yasuke to create a spinoff version of reality so they can make their own fictional universe with its own rules and logic. Just like as previous AC games very loosely used historical facts and settings to create their game worlds and stories, nothing is meant to accurately portray what really happened. Don’t sweat about historical accuracy, just think of it as silly storytelling from the French weirdos at Ubisoft.

 

[BeardyHat]

Gaming with Intent & Purpose: The Mindful Gamer Lifestyle

Definitely need to take breaks and this is exactly what I try to cultivate, where if I find myself mindlessly scrolling through my games list, I'll try to figure out something else to do. Can be difficult at times though, because I feel like for me (and it seems many others), Gaming is the default, so you tend to just fall back on it when you're looking for something to do or relax to.

I think I'm feeling similarly right now, fairly bored with gaming, but I'm having trouble motivating to do other stuff. I have plenty of models to paint, but not really feeling anything in particular right now; would like to begin painting some Napoleonic British soldiers, but I feel like I need to finish building the box of 1000 of them first, because then I can batch begin a batch painting process.

 

[Zed Clampet]

I know the story... but how many African Samurai are there wandering around Japan killing people? How long before they work out who it might be? Does he kill all the people in the towns to make sure no witnesses?

I won't be playing it anyway, Only AC game I ever had was BF and I didn't play it much.

You're over-thinking it. Anyone wandering around killing people left and right is going to be caught. You have to use game logic 🙂

I won't be playing it either. I've pretty much lost interest in Ubisoft games.

 

[Pifanjr]

My wife and I continued our Baldur's Gate 3 game today, but it's become apparent our desktop PC is just not powerful enough to run it properly. Walking around works fine, but casting a spell caused the game to start stuttering. After closing every unnecessary program it went a bit better, but going into a new dialogue or cutscene would still take several seconds each time. One of the cutscenes also had the textures go to minimal for part of it.

It was still playable, until the game crashed twice in a short amount of time. As far as I'm aware the game only gets more demanding after the start, so I think we'll have to shelve the game until we can afford to upgrade to a new PC, or at least upgrade some components.

 

[Zed Clampet]

Got to love indie devs.

Clothing Store Simulator launched at $10

Murky Waters did even better, launching at $5.

 

[Brian Boru]

think about your intent and purpose. Having very simple goals to give reason to why you’re about to play a game

To borrow from the patron saint of smartasses, gaming is much too important a thing ever to talk seriously about it 😉

My intent … is to finish a few levels in the campaign, and my purpose was to unwind and enjoy

I usually dip in and out of games throughout the day, as I work from home, so it's usually something like yours for each session—get from A to B, expand to that island, etc.

Some of the best games allow for multiple approaches, have you tried that? Can be as simple as 'I approached from the West last time, I'll try the East this run', or a more significant rejig of the economy for instance.

Similarly, in better games there can be particular goals you select for yourself. Get X done in Y turns is a fav of mine in Civ games, or currently in Far Cry 6 I'm working thru capturing all the enemy bases undetected while accomplishing the bonus objective for each one. Next playthru may be to unlock all the Cryptogram chests, the one after may be to capture all the Supply Drops, the one… you get the idea, loads of different stuff to do.

I assume intent and purpose should lead to an increase in your Replay list. That's my secret to almost never getting bored by gaming—eg Crysis and Warhead have been glaring accusingly at me for the past couple of weeks, so clearly their annual replay is imminent.

There may be weekly or monthly 'challenges' running for your fav games, which should be good for you without any danger of burning out on them.

Ultimately tho, you'll probably get the best experience from shaping games to your requirements, rather than letting the devs dictate how you spend your leisure time. I mean, if you bought a coffee machine, you're not going to logon to the maker's website to see when you're allowed to make coffee with it, are you?

Playing how the game was intended to be played

Topic came up in the current "How often do you save your game?" thread. Three main views: 1. Games should be played as the devs designed it; 2. Games should enable the player to play how se wants; 3. Compromise via options. Please vote, and if you have something of interest to say—ie a lot...

forums.pcgamer.com

 

[Zed Clampet]

If you like kart racing games (like Mario Kart), you might want to check out Nightmare Kart:

Nightmare Kart on Steam

Zoom through gothic streets in this horror themed vehicular combat racing game!

store.steampowered.com

Has close to 4000 reviews since it launched late last month with 97 percent positive.

This is the game that was originally a demaked Bloodborne racing game, but they eventually realized that they were making something really good, so about a year ago they started getting rid of all the Bloodborne stuff so that they wouldn't get the wrath of From Software.

 

[Colif]

You're over-thinking it. Anyone wandering around killing people left and right is going to be caught.

Genghis Khan seemed to manage it for a long time 🙂

 

[neogunhero]

Some of the best games allow for multiple approaches, have you tried that?

A lot of games I play allow multiple approaches, but I usually stick with one and get done with it, which ruins replayability in the short term. Take Cyberpunk 2077 for example. That game lets you approach every objective in a large variety of ways, but my playthrough earlier this year only focused on using the Katana to kill as many enemies as I could see with my eyes. Once I beat the game and DLC, I was completely done with it for the moment. I don’t want to go back and try a different approach.

…but I loved the game, so why would I just drop it instead of starting a new character with a totally different playstyle? Because I dropped the game, I spent the subsequent few weeks in torment, bored with nothing good to play, and I was too stubborn to even think about approaching it differently.

I also used to play games with my brain shut off. Of course I enjoyed the gameplay and stories of each game I played, but never had a clear goal or knew what I wanted to achieve with that gaming session. As BeardyHat said, gaming became the default time killer for me, and I would just do it mindlessly. I’m trying to fix that with the intent and purpose I talked about, thinking to myself a clear goal I want to achieve and be content with it once I complete it.

I played more DUSK last night with the goal to complete a few more levels, and as soon as I achieved that, I felt more satisfied and thoroughly enjoyed that session. I could be totally overthinking it… but just having that sort of mindset before I start to game is making it more enjoyable to me. So not only do I need to change my approach in game, changing my approach towards gaming itself has been helping me not get bored so quickly.

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I also tried some Still Wakes The Deep on Game Pass last night. First of all… the voice acting is absolutely master class. I don’t think I’ve ever played a game where all the characters are Scottish. The actors they chose to voice the characters all have done an absolute amazing job. Voice acting is a major component to making a game feel believable or not, and they totally achieved that with this game.

Gameplay wise, if you’ve played other Chinese Room games (Dear Esther, Everybody’s Gone To The Rapture), you know what to expect. Fairly simple walking simulator, but with intense moments such as being chased or trying to maneuver around the destroyed oil rig. No action so far, but that’s okay, I’m enjoying the story so much it makes up for lack of excitement in the gameplay.

I only got about an hour in, I’m excited to play more tonight.