October 2024 PCG Article Discussion Thread

[BeardyHat]

Having spent 100's of hours playing a game you can finish in 90 minutes, I see just basing the value of a game on its "completion" time as short sighted. Some games you can complete fast have endless re-playability. Some of the longest games can be as boring as hell. Busy quests don't add up to fun... all the time. Forcing players to be X level to continue story isn't fun. Artificial extenders... lucky they don't put in Mobile game incentives and let you pay to continue... I guess that isn't far off.


As for songs, it can depend on mood. Some days I want to just hear shorter songs, and others I play 20+ minute ones... its generally a mix.
I am glad Tool didn't get their way and release last album as just one long song... though the songs themselves area already too long. Some one should have told them to stop... but I digress.

I don't watch movies anymore so can't comment.
Book length never stopped me buying a book. May have stopped me picking up War and peace but you know, when books become as big as bricks, you have to consider if you can hold them... my Far Side collection books are bad enough... one day I might read them all.

This is true. I think generally the games I've played for many hours tend to be the shorter ones I've replayed countless times. Even Vanilla WoW, I've done much of the same content repeatedly because there's certain areas and quests I like.

But for songs, I haven't listened to anything beyond 8-minutes, at most, in years! I used to love the ridiculously long songs Symphony X would put towards the end of their albums, but now I just find myself somewhat bored with these things. But I think it all just has to do with the amount of time and focus I have these days, which generally is not much.

Books, yeah, actually. I generally don't look at page count, to be honest. Whatever it is, it's going to take me weeks to read through anyway, as I typically only read for 20-40 minutes per night before bed.

 

[Colif]

i enjoyed levelling more than end game in wow.

I sometimes just want to listen to really long songs... so much so I made a playlist. I have to say it doesn't get much use (just the longest few listed below)

listens to Dogs

Most days I don't gravitate towards long songs, I am suffering the problem I had before I found tidal, not sure what to listen to as I have too much choice. I fought that by not having all my music on a device.. now I have more than before lol.

Length of song isn't a reason to stop me listening... unless I get bored of it.
Book length doesn't stop me, but end has to be worth it. I recall one series I read where nothing would happen almost all book and then at end something might... becomes predictable. Oh look, I see how you write your books.

Do NOT read them in bed, with one of them balanced on your chest. If you start laughing, you'll break a rib for sure!

those books weigh so much you have to be careful what you lean them on

I need one of those tables you get in hospital that goes over the bed and lets you eat meals... that would be sturdy enough.

Could have made it easier on us by making it 4 books

my profile picture here is from its back page

 

[Brian Boru]

I recall one series I read where nothing would happen almost all book and then at end something might

You need to go see Waiting for Godot

We only watch stuff over dinner, so a 3-hour movie will be over 2 evenings. A YT video has to be compelling if it's over 15 mins.

Longest song is probably Free Bird by Lynyrd Skynyrd ~10 mins—I don't think Comfortably Numb, Bohemian Rhapsody, Total Eclipse of the Heart or Stairway to Heaven are longer.

Game length is mostly irrelevant to me, it's all about the gameplay. My daily filler is Picross Touch, a nonogram game with typically 2-5 minute discrete levels—I've played over 2,500 so far because I enjoy the gameplay. I dip into Far Cry 6 regularly, without thought of beating it—I did that once to get NG+, may again but don't need to—just to enjoy the gameplay and growing familiarity.

 

[BeardyHat]

i enjoyed levelling more than end game in wow.

Leveling is the best part. Anytime I reached 60 or whatever cap was, I started to lose interest; exploring and questing is the best..

Most days I don't gravitate towards long songs, I am suffering the problem I had before I found tidal, not sure what to listen to as I have too much choice. I fought that by not having all my music on a device.. now I have more than before lol.

You're a weirdo like me then. I just upgraded from a 64Gb to a 256Gb SD card on my phone because I was running out of space for my music.

Generally, new albums will catch me for quite some time (I listened to the new Darkthrone from April to about August, on repeat), but when I'm at a loss for what to listen to, I just shuffle everything until something hits right and then I'll listen to that particular album.

You need to go see Waiting for Godot

We only watch stuff over dinner, so a 3-hour movie will be over 2 evenings. A YT video has to be compelling if it's over 15 mins.

Longest song is probably Free Bird by Lynyrd Skynyrd ~10 mins—I don't think Comfortably Numb, Bohemian Rhapsody, Total Eclipse of the Heart or Stairway to Heaven are longer.

Game length is mostly irrelevant to me, it's all about the gameplay. My daily filler is Picross Touch, a nonogram game with typically 2-5 minute discrete levels—I've played over 2,500 so far because I enjoy the gameplay. I dip into Far Cry 6 regularly, without thought of beating it—I did that once to get NG+, may again but don't need to—just to enjoy the gameplay and growing familiarity.

30-minutes is my cutoff for Youtube. It has to be someone I really like in order to actually be compelled to watch it.

And I guess I do fall more in your camp, for the most part, on game length. I don't generally look and instead just play until I'm satisfied and then drop it. Still been meaning to start over on Pillars of Eternity again.

 

[Zloth]

those books weigh so much you have to be careful what you lean them on

Amazon says they just weigh 20lbs together!? That sounds like an underestimate to me!

 

[Colif]

I would test it but I don't have a crane handy to lift the box. I don't think I have lifted it up in years, it just sits in the same spot as no one is going to just take it. They would also need to see it. It has its own little niche now.

https://publishing.hardiegrant.com/en-au/books/the-complete-far-side-by-gary-larson/9780740721137

9kg aka 19.85 pounds
(I assume that is combined weight)

Two sites tend to agree. Probably using same source for book details. Probably publisher.
I searched it via its ISBN

BIBLIO | The Complete Far Side by Gary Larson | Hardcover | October 2003 | Andrews McMeel Publishing | 9780740721137

Find the best prices on The Complete Far Side by Gary Larson at BIBLIO | Hardcover | 2003 | Andrews McMeel Publishing | 9780740721137

biblio.com.au

You're a weirdo like me then. I just upgraded from a 64Gb to a 256Gb SD card on my phone because I was running out of space for my music.

Generally, new albums will catch me for quite some time (I listened to the new Darkthrone from April to about August, on repeat), but when I'm at a loss for what to listen to, I just shuffle everything until something hits right and then I'll listen to that particular album.

I don't use my phone for music anymore. Just as well as it only has 256gb total space and no SD card. Now... I have a DAP with 64gb of onboard storage and more than I need on my SD card... spare space anyway (no music is actually on the onboard, made mistake of filling it up once already, I just leave it for the OS now)

since I stream music most of the time, the music on sdcard is just when I am out and about, and don't feel like setting up a hotspot on my phone for the dap to use. I should do that as downside to playing music off sd card is if I haven't used DAP for a while, it takes up to 4 minutes before Tidal plays its first song... doesn't help if I have added songs to downloaded playlists in that time.

DAP means I can use wired headphones and not sacrifice sound to the wireless gods. The sound quality I can get out of DAP and complete inability to take phone calls is enough to make me not want to go back.

note: Probably should replace screen protector but I can still read screen, its only in daylight and in photos I notice it. I am trying to get as much use out of it before I put another one on instead

new albums: depends if they good or not. Last two I heard recently both have a handful of songs. I just pick those for playlists.

 

[ZedClampet]

Dragon Age: The Veilguard review

Dragon Age's return nails the action-RPG pivot but falls short of the storytelling the series is known for.

www.pcgamer.com

Gets a 79. Per metacritic, the average of the PC reviews is 78 and the PS reviews, an 84. There aren't enough Xbox reviews because the only people who own Xbox's don't actually know anything about games and just bought an Xbox to play Madden.

If these reviews are an accurate reflection of the game's quality, this is a nice win for Bioware after all their recent failures (which were rated higher than this by PCG).

The real question is how many people will buy it and whether it's enough to save them from EAs chopping block. Right now, it's 7th in global sales on Steam, which is not very encouraging for a major RPG releasing in two days. It's behind Factorio, which isn't even on sale and is almost as old as Dragon Age 3.

I imagine they'll at least get to finish the next Mass Effect, but they've lost so many of the people who helped to make these games great. ****deleted slightly political comments***** Bioware doesn't have the luxury of continuing to churn out mediocrity. They'll be closed down sooner rather than later if they can't get it together. This game seems like it will at least extend the deadline to the Mass Effect game, but if that scores a lackluster 79, I imagine that will be the end of the line.

Of course, this Dragon Age game could be surprisingly successful, too. We'll just have to wait and see.

 

[ZedClampet]

What the heck? This is such a mediocre game (I almost said "mid" but remembered I'm not under 30)

After more than 10 years on Steam, DayZ sets another new concurrent player record

The Frostline expansion launched earlier this month and by all reports it's absolutely miserable, which is apparently what DayZ players want.

www.pcgamer.com

501,522 Daily active users
235,618 Steam
152,037 Xbox
113,897 Playstation

Apparently I need a Playstation.

For new players, expect to run around aimlessly for 30 minutes while starving to death and carrying the only thing you've found, a can of peaches that you can't open.

 

[ZedClampet]

You need to go see Waiting for Godot

Don't wait too long. He ran out in front of my car. That's what the play never tells you.

 

[Colif]

Oh joy, Failguard is out

its bad when those who try to stay on the fence can't manage to do it.

 

[ZedClampet]

Oh joy, Failguard is out

its bad when those who try to stay on the fence can't manage to do it.

From the video: "The writing is, frankly, terminal. It lacks any nuance, wit or wisdom. It cannot communicate ideas, except to say them aloud to the camera. It manufactures petty, unbelievable tension because it doesn't know how to create anything more real, and it's too scared to ever be truly confronting or dark for fear that it might make the audience uncomfortable. Every interaction between the companions feels like HR is in the room, and every interaction led by the main character Rook sounds like he's addressing an under-12 soccer team before a semi-final or teaching toddlers to properly share toys."

I can't think of anything worse you could say about a narrative-heavy game. Their political side has destroyed them.

Go ahead, EA. You know what you have to do...

I hate if for Bioware and Bioware fans, but I do enjoy watching a well-deserved failure.

 

[Colif]

Its not made by the same people who made company great
They are wearing the game as a skin suit
You like this thing... buy it.

Spoiler

There is no tension between party members
There is no way for character to be evil
Faces lack emotions. Voices show them but the matching facial expressions aren't there. Everything looks plastic
Only a few choices in the game mean anything
Preview given out weeks ago that was sold as just the start of game, was actually 9 out of the 14 chapters.
The reviewer above said its the first game he reduced difficulty in, not cause it was hard, but cause it made the combat shorter and less boring.
Game is 45 hours of numb and 5 hours at end of fun
its linear and predictable.
Bait and Switch used on who main boss is

 

[BeardyHat]

Their political side has destroyed them.

Its not made by the same people who made company great
They are wearing the game as a skin suit
You like this thing... buy it.

Less any particular political expedience that any disingenuous company takes-up and more what Colif says.

I've been saying the same stuff about Blizzard for a decade now and having just finished reading Play Nice, it's abundantly clear how executive meddling drives away the real talent by pushing towards homogenization and monetization all in the pursuit of creating value for shareholders.

It's like this because it offends the least amount of people, because it pushes the least amount of players away and draws in the general audiences who think graphics are everything and will pick-up a title based on a name they are already familiar with.

 

[ZedClampet]

Less any particular political expedience that any disingenuous company takes-up and more what Colif says.

I've been saying the same stuff about Blizzard for a decade now and having just finished reading Play Nice, it's abundantly clear how executive meddling drives away the real talent by pushing towards homogenization and monetization all in the pursuit of creating value for shareholders.

It's like this because it offends the least amount of people, because it pushes the least amount of players away and draws in the general audiences who think graphics are everything and will pick-up a title based on a name they are already familiar with.

They are the only EA studio writing this way. F1 23 took more narrative chances. Great writers know that you have to challenge your audience--their preconceptions, their emotions, etc. You have to trigger them. I have no problem with Bioware's politics except that they took it to extremes and wrote a script so lifeless that it's actually offensively bland and childlike and interesting to no one (given the examples I've been reading).

 

[Colif]

It's like this because it offends the least amount of people, because it pushes the least amount of players away and draws in the general audiences who think graphics are everything and will pick-up a title based on a name they are already familiar with.

It sure helps that casual audience might still believe the scores given by some websites accurately portray how good the game is, and don't even think to watch Youtube video reviews that might challenge those ideas.

People who don't expect to be lied to are so easily led.

Bio Were - The now partially animated corpse of a once great company

 

[Zloth]

How about this one?

View: https://youtu.be/xCz1ITSy2O8?si=m94Rv1G85iDd9viI

It's behind Factorio, which isn't even on sale and is almost as old as Dragon Age 3.

Well, to be fair, Factorio never goes on sale. The developer figured us patient gamers out and wants us to cough up our fair share!

Of course, this Dragon Age game could be surprisingly successful, too. We'll just have to wait and see.

I would be exceedingly surprised. Basically, Dragon Age 2 stomped everyone's trust. Other actions from the company have made things even worse, and they sure haven't done much to try and earn that trust back. This game was doomed to fail as soon as it appeared. People simply won't give it a fair hearing. Even if the game is great, it's bound to have flaws, and those flaws will be magnified while the positives get ignored.

 

[Colif]

EA were selective as to who got review copies - which is their right -- but they only picked people who didn't say anything negative about the preview. So It is probably best to wait until game is released in a few days and watch gameplay video from more than just paid reviewers.

It will sell okay to the uninformed. All those awards it will win will make people think its good.

 

[Brian Boru]

Factorio never goes on sale

Rarely, but it does happen:

 

[Pifanjr]

Rarely, but it does happen:

Oh no, that wasn't a sale, the game has just become more expensive over time. Just check out the price graph on SteamDB.

 

[Brian Boru]

that wasn't a sale

Huh, how about that—thanks

I don't think I've ever seen that price profile on a game before—are there other examples?

 

[Pifanjr]

Huh, how about that—thanks

I don't think I've ever seen that price profile on a game before—are there other examples?

Rimworld is somewhat similar. It's more expensive than when it launched as well and though it does go on sale, it's never more than 20% off.

 

[Rolfil]

Factorio just had the massive Space Age expansion released which has temporarily pushed numbers up again.

 

[Kaamos_Llama]

Eh, Bioware stories havent been great for a long time, and I wasnt even that into them when they were. David Gaider said many years ago there was a culture in management who thought their stories were getting in the way of their games, we're just seeing that play out.

Its not inclusivity that makes a story suck, its the bad writing.

 

[Johnway]

To no one's surprise concord is dead:

https://www.pcgamer.com/games/fps/concord-isnt-coming-back-and-the-developer-is-done-for-too-sony-says-it-considered-its-options-and-apparently-the-best-path-forward-is-to-permanently-sunset-the-game-and-close-the-studio/

All those millions well spent /s Should have maybe used that money to bring more ps4 winners to the list. Damn it sony why couldn't you just release bloodbourne on the pc? it would have been a winner ffs.


honestly, even if concord was to return i doubt it would make it a success, it would have the stigma of a game that sucked and it was unlikely to rise like a phoenix like Final Fantasy did. best to cut their losses and run.

So sing it with me:

lets all laugh at an industry,
That never learns anything,
Tee hee hee!

 

[Colif]

Its not inclusivity that makes a story suck, its the bad writing.

I find in many games it is a layer of paint put on to the game, its not what makes them bad, its just a red flag that other things are bad and they trying to paint over it. Its not what makes them bad.
Many of the creatives left in the last 9 years as well, so there isn't many there who helped make the games they are reincarnating now. Frankenstein is at work again.