The last game you completed

[March's Ghost]

The Inn-Sanity on Steam

Early 90s. You stayed in a quiet hotel for just one night and the next morning you’ve found out that the old world was destroyed. Alien dreams, secrets of your past and other guests that are turning into monsters. This hotel will not let you to check out.

store.steampowered.com

Bought and playe dthis game yesterday as a break from Avatar: Frontier of Pandora. It a decently little game. Good visuals, I encountered no bugs that I am aware of. The premise is kinda basic, but it has some real refreshing gameplay elements that impressed me. For a horror game the scares weren't really there for me, but the setting has all the right parts for a creepy and gory atmosphere.

There isn't a lot of depth to the game, as it only took about 3 hours, but what is there is really good for such a short, inexpensive title. Certain parts really could have a great expansion to its system (mainly an influence dialog that determins how a certain character reacts to you, good or bad). If I had one major complaint it was the puzzles, they kinda dip into the over used (restore power, get the medkit) but fortunately they are not overdone or over used.

 

[McStabStab]

Just got 100% achievements on Ballionaire. Never thought I’d get the “score a billion points” achievement but I used the rainbow > broom > teleporter > cave > pinball bumper strategy to score mega points (I had already gotten all the other achievements before looking up a way to score a billion points).

 

[March's Ghost]

Puppet House on Steam

Puppet House is a puzzle-adventure horror with escape room elements. A freak ritual creates a killer puppet, murdering anyone who enters the ventriloquist’s mansion. Detective Rick, seeking missing locals, will soon face his greatest horror.

store.steampowered.com

Bought this last month on sale, played and finished it today.

Coming in at just under 3 hours, this short horror game probably isn't worth full price, but it does have some value. Parts of it are fantastic and other parts are decent, but nothing special, and some are not so great.

First and foremost this game is close to being a masterclass in non-janky indie game development. It's visuals are crisp, it's performance is extremely smooth (I encountered only a couple bits of stuttering) and its overall visual design is well above average.

Second, its story is pretty decent. Though you'll pretty much figure the hook out almost immediately, it's a good premise that is told somewhat poorly. Notes are basic fare being more straightforward in simple descriptions than with the kind of prose a good horror game should have. There's little mystery to ponder.

Third, though once areas are unlocked you can pretty much roam around at will, but the game is decidedly linear. Puzzles are about as simplistic as you can get and the answers given to you either just before, or shortly after, encountering the puzzle.

Fourth, while not exactly terrible, the voice work is pretty weak. The grizzled voiced protagonist sounds like someone trying too hard to pull off the grizzled voiced detective shtick and the spoken lines are...okay. Sometimes you're like "Why did he say that?" Every other time you're just "Meh."

As for the scares? They are lacking. The settings is creepy, there is some tension to start but it fades mid game and builds back a little bit near endgame. Fortunately the dev doesn't try to make it up with overused jump scares. There's a few, and a couple good ones, but not overdone. The truly tense moments end up being watered down with very generous quicktime triggers that take away any sense of real peril. The setting and the antagonist are still creepy as hell.

Last, the game is pretty much spoon-fed to you, so if you like 100% achievements in a game you'd have to be a really bad player to not get it here.

Ultimately I enjoyed it, but it lacks the writing and gameplay that make games great.

 

[DXCHASE]

Almost fell out of the top page!

Just wrapped up Avowed. Overall a solid 8/10 for me. Story was good, combat was fun, progression was quick and the VA wasnt too bad.

It was a unique experience playing this though because i mostly played this on a tv with a controller, something i rarely do anymore, even had an audience from time to time (not forced i swear).

 

[Rolfil]

I just finished AC: Mirage. I liked that it wasn't as open world and was a much shorter game that others in the series. Once I turned bloom effects off it looked really nice as well.

 

[March's Ghost]

Just finished the main story of Alan Wake 2 and will start playing the DLC later today. I think the game is brilliant. Its continued use of its metafiction hook elevates the concept well beyond its use in the first game.

The best part abut the game is that its weirdness fits so well you just stop wondering and start believing. It isn't weirdness for weirdness sake. A true example of there being a method to the madness.

Although quite improved from the first game the combat is, again, the weakest part of the game with most encounters being the same. It's just different enough to not be a straight rehash of the first game's combat, with a small dash of upgrade available to tweak how you fight.

The combination of live action sequences woven into the game, many from director/writer Sam Lake himself is a real treat as well, further enforcing the blend of reality and fiction.

And, of course, music from Poets of the Fall/Old Gods of Asgard (with one insane musical number) is almost worth the price of entry itself.

 

[Kaamos_Llama]

Just finished the main story of Alan Wake 2 and will start playing the DLC later today. I think the game is brilliant. Its continued use of its metafiction hook elevates the concept well beyond its use in the first game.

The best part abut the game is that its weirdness fits so well you just stop wondering and start believing. It isn't weirdness for weirdness sake. A true example of there being a method to the madness.

Although quite improved from the first game the combat is, again, the weakest part of the game with most encounters being the same. It's just different enough to not be a straight rehash of the first game's combat, with a small dash of upgrade available to tweak how you fight.

The combination of live action sequences woven into the game, many from director/writer Sam Lake himself is a real treat as well, further enforcing the blend of reality and fiction.

And, of course, music from Poets of the Fall/Old Gods of Asgard (with one insane musical number) is almost worth the price of entry itself.

That Champion of the Light sequence alone is one of the highlights of the last few years in AAA games. Agree on the combat, I think a couple of the boss fights are frustrating and could have been much better. Also liked Sagas origin story and the meta stuff excusing the quality of some of 'Alans' writing.

I mean to replay it because I think the second playthrough might give you a different ending, without wanting to spoil it for anyone.

Its a shame that quite a few people missed out on it due to Epic publishing it.

 

[March's Ghost]

I mean to replay it because I think the second playthrough might give you a different ending, without wanting to spoil it for anyone.

Yeah, The Final Draft is a New Game + mode with more lore drops and an extended ending. I am going to get to it later this year. Tonight it's The Lake House expansion followed by the Night Springs episodes.

Its a shame that quite a few people missed out on it due to Epic publishing it.

I am on the hate Epic and Tim Sweeney bandwagon, but I love games more than I hate them and I will buy what I want to play from wherever I have to and I doubt I'll ever not buy a Same Lake game.

Also this:

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l2AwUAr-jPo

 

[Kaamos_Llama]

Yeah, The Final Draft is a New Game + mode with more lore drops and an extended ending. I am going to get to it later this year. Tonight it's The Lake House expansion followed by the Night Springs episodes.

Nice, I'll probably get there one day. Its one of my favourites from the last few years.

I am on the hate Epic and Tim Sweeney bandwagon, but I love games more than I hate them and I will buy what I want to play from wherever I have to and I doubt I'll ever not buy a Same Lake game.

Pretty much the same.

Also this:

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l2AwUAr-jPo

I have AW Remastered as well, havent played the original in almost 10 years so would be fun to play them back to back. I think AW is a bit of a shorter game than 2 so would be easier to tack on and compare to the second, and see what I forgot story-wise related to the second game. I do remember that set piece pretty well, and Barry covering himself in Christmas lights.

I came straight out of Black Mesa and now Im most of the way through HL2. Was intending on running through the episodes but a change might be nice.

 

[March's Ghost]

Finished the Lake House DLC and it's alright. A decent bridge to further connect the shared universe. More taken, more Dr. Darling, a new weapon and enemy type.

MINOR SPOILERS FOLLOW

The part that I appreciated most was maybe Remedy taking a bit of a jab at AI content generation due to a part where researchers at the FBC tried to have some form of AI try to write fiction on typewriter. They wanted to create reality shifting stories like Alan Wake could , but it consistently failed.

There were examples of these writings and they mimicked what early AI fiction had to offer with one in particular which gave me a good laugh.

 

[Frindis]

Just finished Uncharted 2 with my nephew.

Overall, it's a decent game with stunning vistas, a good (though not perfect) story, and improved—though still somewhat mediocre—combat compared to the first one. The ambient effects are absolutely top-notch, with the ice cave being a standout. The game also features some thrilling action sequences, such as running away from a tank or surviving helicopter attacks while jumping between train wagons.

Nathan Drake, the protagonist, is a mix between Indiana Jones and Lara Croft. He got some cheese dialogues and seriousness in him and he is not perfect, which is evidently by the way he bumps into stuff he shouldn't have bumped into or tries to drive (badly). He is also extremely lucky and unlucky at the same time which makes for some pretty cool cinematic sequences.

I'm leaning toward the first one as slightly better in terms of my own experience, but overall, the majority of what you do in Uncharted is greatly improved in the sequel. Most notably, the regions are much larger, enhancing the feeling of being on a grand adventure.

One of my greatest experiences with both games has been the incredible panning. By this, I mean the large, open areas that gradually unfold as you enter each new section. I think they did this brilliantly and reminds me of the first time you exit the sewers in Oblivion or experience Whiterun for the first time in Skyrim.

 

[Pifanjr]

I finished the Blightfall modpack for Minecraft. It's a modpack for 1.7.10, so it's missing a lot of stuff compared to the latest version of vanilla Minecraft, but it has backported a bunch of QoL enhancements like better boat controls.

The modpack is based mostly around Thaumcraft 4, probably one of the most popular Minecraft mods, with Botania, Tinker's Construct and Blood Magic playing a major role as well, though you can (mostly) ignore them if you prefer.

Unlike other Minecraft modpacks, this one has one clear goal: clear the world of taint. It features a pre-made map full of interesting things to find, but the entirety is covered in taint which slowly spreads, damages you if you stand on it too long and on which only specific tainted mobs can spawn.

Since my main problem with Minecraft is its sandbox nature, having a clear goal to pursue helped a lot in keeping me motivated to keep playing.

The other thing that helped a lot was joining the Blightfall Discord. The people there are very knowledgeable about the game, very helpful and very enthusiastic, which helped keep me enthusiastic as well.

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I also completed Slay the Princess. I didn't really know anything about the game before going in, but I really enjoyed it.

The closest thing I can compare it to is The Stanley Parable, insofar that you play through the same events multiple times with a narrator you can obey or disobey, but it has a lot more variety than The Stanley Parable and is a lot more interactive, more like a choose your own adventure horror book, and with an overarching plot.

I didn't complete the game for 100%, I only saw about half of the possible paths, but I didn't feel like starting over as I felt like it would diminish the impact of my first playthrough.