May 2024 General Game Discussions

[Johnway]

Did you end up picking up Dragon Age: Inquisition for free on Epic? Also, Yakuza: Like a Dragon is like $10 on GoG right now. I ended up picking it up and I'm hoping to play it on my upcoming vacation if this eGPU works out for me, but we'll see.

I got my wife into Dorfromantik a couple years ago now. It's definitely a fun little game, but didn't hold my interest super long, but she's got like hundreds of hours in it now. She tends to play it (and other games) while she has queries running at work.

Tbh i've already got dragons age: inquisition GOTY edition years ago. Hasn't stopped me bagging it on Epic though. Its an ok game tbh, wasn't all that excited or impressed when i played it. Multiplayer is a pretty dire experience.

Atm just playing Dorfromantik to see how things pan out and aiming for achievements and getting the extra pieces here and there. How long my attention span will be held by it remains to be seen. no story no list of puzzles so i doubt it will take long before i'm sick of it and move on to something else.


I was thinking about getting yakuza like a dragon but sitting on the fence on that one as well, whether to get all the DLC or just the base game. Tbh i think the DLC are just accessories so its not all that worth it. We'll see.

 

[BeardyHat]

Tbh i've already got dragons age: inquisition GOTY edition years ago. Hasn't stopped me bagging it on Epic though. Its an ok game tbh, wasn't all that excited or impressed when i played it. Multiplayer is a pretty dire experience.

Atm just playing Dorfromantik to see how things pan out and aiming for achievements and getting the extra pieces here and there. How long my attention span will be held by it remains to be seen. no story no list of puzzles so i doubt it will take long before i'm sick of it and move on to something else.


I was thinking about getting yakuza like a dragon but sitting on the fence on that one as well, whether to get all the DLC or just the base game. Tbh i think the DLC are just accessories so its not all that worth it. We'll see.

I struggle when buying a new game with DLC, as well. Way too often I've bought everything and then I'm not actually interested enough in the game to play much, so I've been a little better about it lately.

I did end up with the Hero edition of LaD, just because it was like $3 more, so I figured it wouldn't hurt too much. Still haven't tried it yet, but I do have it installed on my Deck and I'm intending to give it a go soon.

Instead I've been playing Paradise Killer which I picked up quite some time ago and it's...weird, but intriguing, so I'll keep playing it. That's usually a good sign for me.

 

[BeardyHat]

Oh, also, I've decided to be completely ridiculous. We'll be leaving for Portland on Saturday and bringing just all the electronics. 3 laptops, three Xbox controllers, my Steam Deck and probably at least one other handheld.

I went ahead and looked at the TSA site for my Airport and found that they have new machines in the West Security so I don't have to take any of it out of my bag. I'm hoping Portland has the same, otherwise I will be a (more) completely ridiculous manchild pulling it all out.

 

[Johnway]

its fun unless you get addicted to putting down perfect placements. I haven't looked at it much this year.

Not really put much thought in the process, maybe group things together and make one or 2 main bits and if i see any mystery white tiles, work towards building towards them and completing the quests on them. I have found myself quite absorbed even if i'm doing the same thing repeatedly. high scores etc are meaningless to me.

I struggle when buying a new game with DLC, as well. Way too often I've bought everything and then I'm not actually interested enough in the game to play much, so I've been a little better about it lately.

I did end up with the Hero edition of LaD, just because it was like $3 more, so I figured it wouldn't hurt too much. Still haven't tried it yet, but I do have it installed on my Deck and I'm intending to give it a go soon.

my biggest issue hurdle is probably the JRPG nature of the game. Nothing against JRPGs, but it feels like they should belong on a handheld more then on a pc as the grindy nature can be irksome. I'm currently playing through shin megami tensei 4 and trying to get the good ending by remaining neutral is a bloody headache to achieve. I'm reading a walkthrough to pick the right decisions etc. lets just say that the game is p2w. The DLC has definitely helped in ensuring i survived and all the resource gathering trivial ranging from money, exp, app points. Can absolutely afford everything and max out stats with ease. My only regret is perhaps i look bloody stupid in my cosmetics Traje de Luces outfit:

 

[Colif]

Not really put much thought in the process, maybe group things together and make one or 2 main bits and if i see any mystery white tiles, work towards building towards them and completing the quests on them. I have found myself quite absorbed even if i'm doing the same thing repeatedly. high scores etc are meaningless to me.

Placing things perfectly gives you tiles back, so its one way to extend game length

you might like this, its very similar and easier to get to end

Save 50% on Pan'orama on Steam

Relax and unleash your creativity in this new city building puzzle game. Create amazing landscapes and discover wide range of structures with special abilities. Enter the world of beauty and tranquility with the panoramas of your own creation and don't forget to pet your new animal friends!

store.steampowered.com

 

[Brian Boru]

@Johnway @Colif You guys probably know of Carcassonne on Steam—was my first thought when I first saw Dorfromantik. Carcassonne is one of the all-time great board games, and the digital version is pretty good.

 

[Zloth]

At least it got Guido some practice with troubleshooting, which is something they don't have a class for in college. And I didn't have to buy him an emergency bluetooth mouse, which is good.

That reminds me of a skill PC gamers really should know, but I bet most don't: getting around Windows with no mouse. Many know about alt-tab for getting out of a game, but that's really just the way you switch from window to window. The tab key by itself goes from control to control, shift-tab does the same but backwards. And Windows-tab to... well, you get the idea.

I only need to forgo the mouse maybe once every two or three years but when I need it, I really need it - like if the mouse flat out dies and I haven't got a spare to plug in.

I struggle when buying a new game with DLC, as well. Way too often I've bought everything and then I'm not actually interested enough in the game to play much, so I've been a little better about it lately.

DLCs are tricky, too. Sometimes the DLC is really need right at the start of your game, other times there really isn't much point to getting it until you've finished the game, and still others are best when you stick the DLC in about halfway along. I try to remember to put info like that in my Steam reviews. It's not something all those release-day reviews can say anything about.

 

[Colif]

Depends what the DLC is really. if its just items then they could be optional, but if its a DLC that is an actual expansion to the game, and adds entire new areas, then I would generally get those in games I like.
Grim Dawn has expansions that add new character classes, new areas and new monsters... though I have only ever seen one of them so I can't comment if all three expansions are same size... the one I played through adds at least 10 hours onto story. One opens up after chapter 1 whereas other two are end game. Buying them just for the character classes is a valid reason.
I don't play many games that have dlc that I have purchased in the game. I don't play AAA games very often so there is that.

 

[Brian Boru]

National Solitaire Day

Get your cards out and play a few—physical or virtual. I suppose for virtual solitaire, it should be the Steam Deck

National Solitaire Day is May 22 — we asked experts why the computer game is so addictive

Solitaire has been a staple of digital gaming since 1990. We asked scientists to explain why we find the game so addictive.

www.businessinsider.com

 

[Pifanjr]

I finally got Slay the Spire (on Android) and it's almost an exact copy of another game I've played before (or, rather, I assume the other game is a copy of Slay the Spire). Which isn't a bad thing, I really liked the other game as well (I think it was Indies' Lies, but I'm not sure).

I really like the amount of relics you can gather throughout a run, it's one of my favourite mechanics in these type of games. My least favourite aspect is that the game doesn't really support a slow play. There's too many enemies that ramp up in power quicker than you do if you don't defeat them fast enough.

So far I've completed and won a run with each of the first two heroes and lost three runs with the third. For some reason I'm struggling with making a decent deck with him, though my current run is going fairly well so far, so hopefully I'll be able to defeat the last boss this time.


However, the same day as I bought Slay the Spire, I also got recommended a video about Pokémon, where someone played a custom rom where every randomized outcome was hardcoded to always be the worst result for the player. This means, for example, that every attack of his Pokémon always do minimal damage, while opponents always do critical hits. If the attack even hits, because any attack with less than 100 accuracy will never hit. Likewise, you cannot catch Pokémon unless you have a 100% chance to catch it, which is impossible with a regular Pokéball. He then added a couple more limitations for himself and it's honestly great to see how he gets around the issues he encounters:

Spoiler: video

View: https://youtu.be/2MpEkq9vx8k

So this got me in the mood to play Pokémon again, though not with the same ruleset, as the amount of grinding (which is mostly cut from the video) would probably discourage me before I even got to the first gym. Which is when I noticed a video recommendation for Pokémon Infinite Fusion (not to be confused with Pokémon Ultimate Fusion): a fanmade Pokémon game created in RPGMaker based off of Pokémon FireRed, but with a mechanic that allows you to fuse any two Pokémon together. I believe there are over 150,000 possible fusions, so most of them have an autogenerated sprite, but a ton of artists have made custom sprites for the more common fusions. I'm a sucker for games with a ridiculous amount of content to discover, so I immediately downloaded it as well, but I didn't get it to work until this morning, so I haven't gotten to play it yet.

 

[Colif]

 

[Alm]

Just downloaded xdefiant. Could just be new launch hype but I hope it's good.

 

[Colif]

Its Ubisoft, I expect them to mess it up somehow... the game is free so I expect its got a shop in it?

 

[Alm]

Yeah there are expensive micro transactions. £10 for a skin, though the in game currency bundle you’d need would be £16. I’ll still give it a chance without spending money.

 

[Pifanjr]

I won my run with The Defect in Slay the Spire. It just took me four tries to find a good strategy...

I also played a bit more of Pokémon Infinite Fusion and realised that the fusions, while very fun looking, don't really change the game in a meaningful way. Because Pokémon has never really been a strategic game, it's a game made primarily for kids. So while it has a whole bunch of complicated (and often hidden) mechanics you can exploit, you can just ignore all of that and can win with pretty much any Pokémon and almost no strategy beyond paying attention to type matchups (like using water vs. fire and fire vs. grass).

So once you have a team of 6 (half-)decent Pokémon, there's no mechanical reason to catch (or fuse) any more. Unless you make the game harder to force you to engage with the mechanics you can normally ignore. Luckily Infinite Fusion comes with a Hard difficulty and a separate option to cap your Pokémon's level based on the amount of badges you have, so you can't just outgrind the next gym boss. We'll see if that's enough or if I should add in some of my own rules as well.

 

[BeardyHat]

Not really put much thought in the process, maybe group things together and make one or 2 main bits and if i see any mystery white tiles, work towards building towards them and completing the quests on them. I have found myself quite absorbed even if i'm doing the same thing repeatedly. high scores etc are meaningless to me.




my biggest issue hurdle is probably the JRPG nature of the game. Nothing against JRPGs, but it feels like they should belong on a handheld more then on a pc as the grindy nature can be irksome. I'm currently playing through shin megami tensei 4 and trying to get the good ending by remaining neutral is a bloody headache to achieve. I'm reading a walkthrough to pick the right decisions etc. lets just say that the game is p2w. The DLC has definitely helped in ensuring i survived and all the resource gathering trivial ranging from money, exp, app points. Can absolutely afford everything and max out stats with ease. My only regret is perhaps i look bloody stupid in my cosmetics Traje de Luces outfit:

Like the bastard child of Mr. Clean and a Matador.

That reminds me of a skill PC gamers really should know, but I bet most don't: getting around Windows with no mouse. Many know about alt-tab for getting out of a game, but that's really just the way you switch from window to window. The tab key by itself goes from control to control, shift-tab does the same but backwards. And Windows-tab to... well, you get the idea.

I only need to forgo the mouse maybe once every two or three years but when I need it, I really need it - like if the mouse flat out dies and I haven't got a spare to plug in.


DLCs are tricky, too. Sometimes the DLC is really need right at the start of your game, other times there really isn't much point to getting it until you've finished the game, and still others are best when you stick the DLC in about halfway along. I try to remember to put info like that in my Steam reviews. It's not something all those release-day reviews can say anything about.

Definitely spent a lot of time navigating Windows without a mouse when I was working on servers everyday. That skill really has come in handy just in general.

Speaking of DLCs, I thought I might try and learn Europa Universalis IV, as I own the base game. Imagine my (not) surprise when I see there's at least 2 dozen DLCs and after doing some Googling, most agree that the game isn't worth playing without them, as there are so many QoL features packed in.

Of course, I could subscribe to a Paradox service for $x per month to get them all, but that's a problem with my general distaste for subscription services. Many other people suggest buying the base game and...ahem... Finding alternate means to acquire the DLCs.

Needless to say, I probably won't bother learning the game even if I get ahold of the DLCs in one way or another. It's just so dense and I'm so lacking in brainpower and motivation right now to learn such complex systems.

 

[ZedClampet]

I don't think I'll be finishing my V Rising solo game. There are about 70 bosses in the full release, and I made it to the last one, Dracula, and that's the best I can do. He whips me so easily that it feels almost pointless to try. Hopefully when Guido and I get there in our co-op game I'll be able to last longer since Guido will be drawing more aggro than I will.

I'm not disappointed. It's one of my favorite games of all time, and if I completely finished it solo (It's really not meant to be played solo), I'd have no more goals. Now I will always have one. There are hundreds, possibly thousands, of loadouts to try. There are tons of legendary weapons--all with randomized stats--that I don't have. Who knows? Maybe someday...

 

[Brian Boru]

It's just so dense and I'm so lacking in brainpower and motivation right now to learn such complex systems

Yeah, I have EU4 and all the earlier ones, barely played one of them. Far too much like work, or heaven forbid, RPG—yep, that distasteful

Pity about the DLC, Paradox were a great player-friendly dev at one stage. But they have made some top-class games for masochists

 

[Colif]

Hellblade 2 looks amazing and has good sound, but game is only 5 hours long and you spend the first 40 minutes walking before any combat happens. Interactive movies aren't games.

Meanwhile, historical accuracy isn't in play here:

 

[Pifanjr]

Speaking of DLCs, I thought I might try and learn Europa Universalis IV, as I own the base game. Imagine my (not) surprise when I see there's at least 2 dozen DLCs and after doing some Googling, most agree that the game isn't worth playing without them, as there are so many QoL features packed in.

Of course, I could subscribe to a Paradox service for $x per month to get them all, but that's a problem with my general distaste for subscription services. Many other people suggest buying the base game and...ahem... Finding alternate means to acquire the DLCs.

Needless to say, I probably won't bother learning the game even if I get ahold of the DLCs in one way or another. It's just so dense and I'm so lacking in brainpower and motivation right now to learn such complex systems.

I have found that the best way to enjoy Paradox' grand strategy games is to play them cooperatively with a couple of friends who love the game.

First of all, only the host needs to own the DLC, fixing the problem of having to fork out hundreds of euros or paying for a monthly subscription.

Second, it's a great way to learn the game. You can pick a small empire/country and rely on your friends to keep you safe so you can take your time to mess around with the game. And because you're playing cooperatively, it feels like you're accomplishing things even if you don’t really know what you're doing.

I also find that grand strategy games are a lot more fun if you set your own goals instead of just trying to conquer everyone and people who love the game will have dozens of ideas for fun things to try, plus they can help you achieve them.

Most importantly, at least for me, is that it's much more fun sharing all of the little stories that happen with friends. Grand strategy games are as good in making stories as something like Rimworld, a self-proclaimed story generator, in my opinion.

Plus, once you've learned how to play, it can also be very fun to backstab your friends. Treachery is so much more fun against human players. There's nothing quite like secretly sleeping with your friend's wife amd indirectly giving him syphilis in Crusader Kings.

 

[ZedClampet]

Like the bastard child of Mr. Clean and a Matador.



Definitely spent a lot of time navigating Windows without a mouse when I was working on servers everyday. That skill really has come in handy just in general.

Speaking of DLCs, I thought I might try and learn Europa Universalis IV, as I own the base game. Imagine my (not) surprise when I see there's at least 2 dozen DLCs and after doing some Googling, most agree that the game isn't worth playing without them, as there are so many QoL features packed in.

Of course, I could subscribe to a Paradox service for $x per month to get them all, but that's a problem with my general distaste for subscription services. Many other people suggest buying the base game and...ahem... Finding alternate means to acquire the DLCs.

Needless to say, I probably won't bother learning the game even if I get ahold of the DLCs in one way or another. It's just so dense and I'm so lacking in brainpower and motivation right now to learn such complex systems.

I mentioned this about Europa Universalis a few days ago myself. Parts of the base game don't work unless you have certain DLC. Some of the DLC don't fully work unless you have other DLC. Several of the DLC are just QoL things that should have been added to the game for free. It's just an absolute mess. And there's no way I'm rewarding them for creating this mess by buying over $500 of DLC or subbing to their monthly DLC thing.

 

[BeardyHat]

Hellblade 2 looks amazing and has good sound, but game is only 5 hours long and you spend the first 40 minutes walking before any combat happens. Interactive movies aren't games

I call this, "Naughty Dog" syndrome, which also includes games that are basically hallways and the game is completely proscriptive in how you play. Just make a damn movie (or TV show in this instance.)

I have found that the best way to enjoy Paradox' grand strategy games is to play them cooperatively with a couple of friends who love the game.

First of all, only the host needs to own the DLC, fixing the problem of having to fork out hundreds of euros or paying for a monthly subscription.

Second, it's a great way to learn the game. You can pick a small empire/country and rely on your friends to keep you safe so you can take your time to mess around with the game. And because you're playing cooperatively, it feels like you're accomplishing things even if you don’t really know what you're doing.

I also find that grand strategy games are a lot more fun if you set your own goals instead of just trying to conquer everyone and people who love the game will have dozens of ideas for fun things to try, plus they can help you achieve them.

Most importantly, at least for me, is that it's much more fun sharing all of the little stories that happen with friends. Grand strategy games are as good in making stories as something like Rimworld, a self-proclaimed story generator, in my opinion.

Plus, once you've learned how to play, it can also be very fun to backstab your friends. Treachery is so much more fun against human players. There's nothing quite like secretly sleeping with your friend's wife amd indirectly giving him syphilis in Crusader Kings.

The stories are absolutely the most intriguing parts. I have a friend who has relayed so many about CK3 and it sounds amazing; my problem is coming to terms with the UI and just all the "stuff" that needs to be done.

I'm just not ready to be studying right now. I have a very small amount of time to play games these days and typically prefer something I can jump into for 20 minutes and have a good time. I'd like to learn EU IV, as I'm starting to discover my interest in the Napoleonic era, but just don't have the time to commit at the moment.

I mentioned this about Europa Universalis a few days ago myself. Parts of the base game don't work unless you have certain DLC. Some of the DLC don't fully work unless you have other DLC. Several of the DLC are just QoL things that should have been added to the game for free. It's just an absolute mess. And there's no way I'm rewarding them for creating this mess by buying over $500 of DLC or subbing to their monthly DLC thing.

Exactly my thoughts. Even buying just a couple of DLCs felt like rewarding them for this behavior.

Honestly, I'd probably be much more likely to spend the money if everything was bundled into one or two more expensive expansion packs (remember those?), than 2 or 3 dozen DLCs of varying quality and necessary features.

 

[neogunhero]

I’m starting to get better at AoE4. Playing other civilizations, learning their unique traits and features, and trying to branch out more. I never used naval warfare before until I forced myself to play on a map with a lot of water. It’s so much to keep track of, but if I just learned how to use more hotkeys it should make that part easier.

It was really cool garrisoning my army into transport boats and making our way to the enemies island. I had a ton of transport boats and attack ships for defense, and we landed on the enemies island and took over their landmarks. I have only ever played on land only maps before, so learning how to do all of that was a fun experience. I really should do the tutorials but I’m having more fun playing skirmishes and learning as I go.

I joined a 4v4 all player server last night also. It said “NOOBS ONLY” but everyone in the server was at least 100+ levels above me, meaning they have definitely played a fair share of the game. I went with it and apologized in the chat prior to starting the game saying how sorry I am for being a noob. I say that kind of stuff half serious half jokingly because it’s always funny to see people go “nah you’re good” and it excuses me for how bad I am haha. Still though we went on to win only because I got totally carried by my team, but I still made good progress as the match went on.

I have no idea why as soon as I buy Animal Well, I get really into a totally different game. Animal Well is amazing and I have enjoyed all of the 6 hours I’ve played so far, but AoE4 is just taking over my attention right now. I’ll get back to Animal Well this weekend, I’m making that promise to myself.

 

[ZedClampet]

As Yoda might say, BS is Total War Warhammer.

Playing an unmodded game last night. It's turn 16. I've finally taken over my starting province, and I look more carefully at the Chaos Dwarfs next to me who I was ignoring until taking care of my province even though they have been threatening me and making demands.

At turn 16, their capital is max tier 5. What? They only have two cities, but they have 2 twenty stack armies? How is this possible? Then I look at their armies and they are late game game armies with the best units available to Chaos Dwarfs.

It's utterly ridiculous. I wasn't worried about them because the Chaos Dwarfs play slow. You start terrible and really don't get good until late game. And here they are already maxed and spending way more money than they can be earning. It's ridiculous. And I was on Normal difficulty, too.

All I can do now is hunker down and work on my region and hope they don't declare war soon. I tried to send them a gift, and they rejected it.

 

[BeardyHat]

I have no idea why as soon as I buy Animal Well, I get really into a totally different game. Animal Well is amazing and I have enjoyed all of the 6 hours I’ve played so far, but AoE4 is just taking over my attention right now. I’ll get back to Animal Well this weekend, I’m making that promise to myself.

Everytime.

I just bought several new games and instead, I'm getting into ones I purchased awhile ago.