The Currently Playing & Random Game Thoughts Thread (31 July to 6 August)

[ZedClampet]

Random Memories: The "Greatest Lengths to Play a Game" thread reminded me of something that happened to me way back when. I had bought an American Football game, and my PC wouldn't really run it, so I put it aside until I got a new PC, which was a good bit later. I didn't buy the PC just to play the game, but I was thinking about the game while I was buying it and excited to finally get to play it.

So I get the PC set up and the first thing I do is install the football game, which, if I remember correctly, was in grayscale. I launch the game and everything is going fine. I get a football game set up and the little players (If I remember correctly they were X's and O's) are all lined up. I hit the button to kick off, and the play ended instantaneously. You couldn't really even see the players move they went so fast. Turns out the game was running faster because I had a faster processor.

That's why I'm a sad and bitter man today. I never got to play that football game.

 

[Frag Maniac]

You couldn't really even see the players move they went so fast.

I bet sports agents wish they could bottle that and sell it to NFL teams.

 

[ZedClampet]

OT: Today is the day that George Jetson was born. He will go on to live an idyllic life supported by technology every step of the way.

I don't know who all would know the Jetsons. It was an American cartoon in the 60's that was shown on reruns all through at least the 70's.

By the way, Mrs. Jetson's birthday is on September 23, 2024.

 

[Frag Maniac]

OT: Today is the day that George Jetson was born. He will go on to live an idyllic life supported by technology every step of the way.

I don't know who all would know the Jetsons. It was an American cartoon in the 60's that was shown on reruns all through at least the 70's.

By the way, Mrs. Jetson's birthday is on September 23, 2024.

Of course I know the Jetsons, I used to watch it when it came out, but I bet many here weren't born yet when it did.

 

[ZedClampet]

Of course I know the Jetsons, I used to watch it when it came out, but I bet many here weren't born yet when it did.

I wasn't quite born yet for the original run, but I was there soon after for all the reruns.

 

[WoodenSaucer]

I think posting in the "What was the first video game you remember playing?" thread is an automatic ban. Lol.

 

[Frag Maniac]

Hey Zed, I've got another old cartoon for you. I've been thinking about one of the characters in it since I started playing Race Driver Grid again. Mainly because the teammate I selected reminds me of him. My teammate is often apologizing any time he causes a mishap that makes me bump into him, or even if he winds up in last place. My teammate is Japanese and sounds a lot like the character Joe Jitsu from the Dick Tracy cartoon every time he says sorry. When my teammate Eiji Matzuke spins out he says, "Here I go spinning!" He's only a mediocre choice even for the bottom tier races, but in Grid 2019 I made the mistake of picking a teammate that was so skilled he was often the only AI I had a hard time beating, and at times had to settle for 2nd because of him. The Dick Tracy Show came out a year before The Jetsons in 1961.

 

[ZedClampet]

Hey Zed, I've got another old cartoon for you. I've been thinking about one of the characters in it since I started playing Race Driver Grid again. Mainly because the teammate I selected reminds me of him. My teammate is often apologizing any time he causes a mishap that makes me bump into him, or even if he winds up in last place. My teammate is Japanese and sounds a lot like the character Joe Jitsu from the Dick Tracy cartoon every time he says sorry. When my teammate Eiji Matzuke spins out he says, "Here I go spinning!" He's only a mediocre choice even for the bottom tier races, but in Grid 2019 I made the mistake of picking a teammate that was so skilled he was often the only AI I had a hard time beating, and at times had to settle for 2nd because of him. The Dick Tracy Show came out a year before The Jetsons in 1961.

I never got to see Dick Tracy, which is kind of weird because everything I watched were reruns from that period. Maybe it was on and I watched something else, but I don't remember it at all.

 

[Ryzengang]

I haven't gotten in a ton of gaming on the PC side of things. I've already dropped nearly 20 hours into Slay the Spire on Switch, though. I'm having a great time with it and I suspect I'll be going back to it for quite some time. I do want to keep chipping away at Final Fantasy VII, but things have been a bit busier lately and I haven't gotten around to playing it again since my first session about a week ago.

 

[Pifanjr]

This is an RPG, right? You make it sound almost fun… how can that be???

It's a Rogue-like and much closer to the original Rogue game than most games labelled rogue-like nowadays. So not really a RPG, more like a turn-based ARPG. Think Diablo, but monsters only move when you move and if you die you have to start over from level 1. Also, instead of graphics it just uses letters and symbols.

The fun part is that there's just so much content. I think there's over 40 races, some with very unique gameplay mechanics, well over 1000 monsters, tons of loot, tons of magic and a lot of options to customize the game.

 

[Kaamos_Llama]

Not had much time recently for a lot of reasons, but I made the mistake of buying Pokemon Legends:Arceus on the Switch because my 4 year old really liked the look of it. Its actually quite engaging for the collection game it is, the only problem is she only wants to watch me play it and wont take the controller herself very often.

Played a few rounds of Slay the Spire as well while I was away, it really is a great game you can pick up and put down easily.

Really want to get back into Death Stranding and Tunic this week, lets see if I have time and energy.

 

[Zloth]

Started playing the "Intermission" DLC for FF7 Remake. It's OK - not as good as the main game, but fun enough.

Maybe it was on and I watched something else, but I don't remember it at all.

Busy watching this!

View: https://youtu.be/suCm1w_KTiY

View: https://youtu.be/GQG3ZMpe1EA?t=301

Now that's memorable.

 

[ZedClampet]

Started playing the "Intermission" DLC for FF7 Remake. It's OK - not as good as the main game, but fun enough.
Busy watching this!

View: https://youtu.be/suCm1w_KTiY

View: https://youtu.be/GQG3ZMpe1EA?t=301

Now that's memorable.

Didn't actually watch Speed Racer, but I can still sing the theme song for some reason.

 

[ZedClampet]

So there's this shark in Raft named Bruce. He's the most relentless creature I've ever encountered in a game. He follows your raft everywhere it goes, occasionally attacking the raft to try to rip parts off of it. And the second you get in the water, he's after you. He follows you everywhere. If you manage to kill him, he stays gone for a couple of minutes then is back. He's really damned annoying.

So there's this shop that shows up on some islands and you can trade for items there. Some of them are just for fun. When you get to tier two with the trader, that opens up new items you can buy. One of those items are "disguise glasses". You know the ones, black rims, big nose and a mustache.

If I were the developer, I would have made it so that if you put those glasses on, Bruce would leave you alone. I don't know why, but I think that would be hilarious. He's actually not a bad shark. He just hates you. Sadly, the glasses had no impact on Bruce.

I guess you could do the Hollywood thing. In the final battle against the boss of bosses, Bruce would inexplicably show up and help you.

Oh well, probably just my weird sense of humor kicking in.

 

[Frag Maniac]

So there's this shark in Raft named Bruce. He's the most relentless creature I've ever encountered in a game. He follows your raft everywhere it goes, occasionally attacking the raft to try to rip parts off of it. And the second you get in the water, he's after you. He follows you everywhere. If you manage to kill him, he stays gone for a couple of minutes then is back. He's really damned annoying.

So there's this shop that shows up on some islands and you can trade for items there. Some of them are just for fun. When you get to tier two with the trader, that opens up new items you can buy. One of those items are "disguise glasses". You know the ones, black rims, big nose and a mustache.

If I were the developer, I would have made it so that if you put those glasses on, Bruce would leave you alone. I don't know why, but I think that would be hilarious. He's actually not a bad shark. He just hates you. Sadly, the glasses had no impact on Bruce.

I guess you could do the Hollywood thing. In the final battle against the boss of bosses, Bruce would inexplicably show up and help you.

Oh well, probably just my weird sense of humor kicking in.

Any chance you can get a bigger boat, because I really think you're going to need a bigger boat!

 

[ZedClampet]

Any chance you can get a bigger boat, because I really think you're going to need a bigger boat!

I saw that movie when I was a kid, and I was afraid to go into the deep end of the pool for awhile.

 

[Frag Maniac]

I saw that movie when I was a kid, and I was afraid to go into the deep end of the pool for awhile.

Yeah they say sharks are getting close to swimming areas of beaches again. It usually has to do with changing habits in schools of fish they hunt. Even in times like this there are simple common sense steps swimmers can take to avoid attacks though, like not swimming near schools of fish. There's also a ton of info one can access via their smartphones anymore on current conditions in certain areas, so there's no reason anymore to be afraid of or blame the sharks. It's always a few idiots that cause false rumors to turn into mass chaos.

 

[WoodenSaucer]

Yeah they say sharks are getting close to swimming areas of beaches again. It usually has to do with changing habits in schools of fish they hunt. Even in times like this there are simple common sense steps swimmers can take to avoid attacks though, like not swimming near schools of fish. There's also a ton of info one can access via their smartphones anymore on current conditions in certain areas, so there's no reason anymore to be afraid of or blame the sharks. It's always a few idiots that cause false rumors to turn into mass chaos.

How dare sharks live in the ocean!

 

[ZedClampet]

Yeah they say sharks are getting close to swimming areas of beaches again. It usually has to do with changing habits in schools of fish they hunt. Even in times like this there are simple common sense steps swimmers can take to avoid attacks though, like not swimming near schools of fish. There's also a ton of info one can access via their smartphones anymore on current conditions in certain areas, so there's no reason anymore to be afraid of or blame the sharks. It's always a few idiots that cause false rumors to turn into mass chaos.

I love to swim in the ocean. I mostly just avoid feeding times as the only precaution I really take. I got bumped by something large one time. No idea what it was. Water was very murky. But I assume there are sharks all around me, anyway. They just are very unlikely to attack.

 

[ZedClampet]

The Steam Survival Sale is now live. There aren't many survival game players here, but don't worry, the sale seems to be rather random with little to no relationship to survival games, so it may be worth it to check your wishlist and see what's on sale. Kingdom Come Deliverance is really cheap right now, which is just one thing I happened to see.

 

[ZedClampet]

Speaking of survival games, Raft is almost too much. To be sure, I'm enjoying the game, but it's right on the edge of "too annoying to deal with". Hunger and thirst are constants. All of your equipment is constantly breaking. There's Bruce the shark. There's this crazy bird that drops rocks on you. The pigs will chase you all over the place, attacking until you kill them or die. There are bees. There are angry bears. I was under the water looking for scrap and got hit by three exploding pufferfish. Inventory management is a nightmare. We're near the end of the game, and we finally unlocked the backpack. Crafting recipes require too much stuff.

And unlike the vast majority of survival games, none of this is configurable in the settings.

And yet, somehow, I'm enjoying it. Just barely.

 

[Zloth]

Subnautica is a really good one that's half price now.

Kenshi isn't on sale. That's a bit of a surprise.

But I assume there are sharks all around me, anyway. They just are very unlikely to attack.

(Swaps out Zed's suntan lotion for BBQ sauce)

 

[ZedClampet]

Subnautica is a really good one that's half price now.

Kenshi isn't on sale. That's a bit of a surprise.
(Swaps out Zed's suntan lotion for BBQ sauce)

Subnautica is fantastic. I still need to go back and play the second one, whatever that was called. I had 50 hours in it then lost my save file when the developers were goofing around with Steam cloud saves. I just don't feel like doing all that stuff again. Maybe a few years from now....

 

[Frag Maniac]

How dare sharks live in the ocean!

Yeah, the sheer audacity of them! I can't afford a bigger boat! Hell, I can't even afford any kind of boat!

 

[ZedClampet]

Welp, I can no longer beat Guido in Forza unless he makes serious mistakes, and even then it's tough. He's just gotten too much practice this summer. We did two multiplayer championships today against two different groups of players, and Guido won 5 out of 6 races. The race he lost he missed a checkpoint at nearly the halfway point then moved from last place to second by the end of the race. I came in second 4 times and then 3rd, and the race he missed the checkpoint, I crashed and got 4th. None of his wins were even remotely close. He did basically the same thing last week, and I just shrugged it off, but this kid can play games.

Between that and his utter domination of Fall Guys, I'm trying to convince him to start a YouTube channel. He may literally be world class. I don't know enough about it to really know, but I bet people would watch him.