Currently Playing - The Bear and Badger

Tempy

I am currently playing nothing but Slay the Spire which is the next Big One for you to all watch out for (that i have talked about at length before)

The new character, The Defect, is perhaps the most interesting mechanical deck i've come across in a card game.

regmcfly

I am currently playing nothing but Xenoblade Chronicles 2 which is not something you need to be aware of. It is a JRPG ass JRPG. I have fallen ludicrously into a deep put with it, and it is now my most played switch game, according to stats.
The battle system is really complicated, but with one of the blades I've unlocked I've now got the ability to take on things 10+ levels above me, so have, in effect, broken the game. I do enjoy a good run through an RPG where you are just one shotting everything, or at worst case, where I can literally set the console down and come back 5-6 minutes later and a titan has been slayed.

AndCallMeCharlie

Tempy wrote:

I am currently playing nothing but Slay the Spire which is the next Big One for you to all watch out for (that i have talked about at length before) The new character, The Defect, is perhaps the most interesting mechanical deck i've come across in a card game.

Have you played hand of fate 2? If so thoughts?

Tempy

Nah, didn’t really get on with Hand of Fate. I like my card games to be card games.

AndCallMeCharlie

I fancy playing one but Only have time on my commute, suggestions for iPad or switch games?

Tempy

I haven’t really looked into either platform to be honest

Nina

Still busy with Bravely Default, but the game does it's best to keep me from playing it. Last two times were a "battery empty" situation (but I was sure I had still half left when I turned the 3DS off the day before) and a "can't read cartridge, press home menu" message.

Halfway into chapter 5, a new bit of story has revealed and it's all very exciting and a perfect thing to combine with a twitch stream. For the same reasons Reg mentions earlier, it's a good battle system if you set it up correctly. Grind to level 99 will start soon.

Chapter 5:

Spoiler:

Syph79

regmcfly wrote:

I am currently playing nothing but Xenoblade Chronicles 2 which is not something you need to be aware of. It is a JRPG ass JRPG. I have fallen ludicrously into a deep put with it, and it is now my most played switch game, according to stats.
The battle system is really complicated, but with one of the blades I've unlocked I've now got the ability to take on things 10+ levels above me, so have, in effect, broken the game. I do enjoy a good run through an RPG where you are just one shotting everything, or at worst case, where I can literally set the console down and come back 5-6 minutes later and a titan has been slayed.

Which chapter are you on, or where story-wise? I've seen the credits and I'm wondering how much of the battle system you've seen. It keeps throwing new stuff right up to the end.

regmcfly

I'm on chapter 8 and recently did the

Spoiler:

mechanic. Fiddly bugger to activate tho.

Aaroncupboard

Got two main games on the go at the moment.

Okami HD

I guess I should hang my head in shame and confess that I have never played this until now. It is just one of those games that always passed me by until I finally took the plunge. And oh man it is wonderful. The visuals are incredible and the gameplay is excellent. I have always admired the Zelda format to games and I feel this is nailing it. Absolutely loving every second of it.

Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice

Also really enjoying this. It has moments of absolute frustration but is a very well made and inventive game. Some of the environmental puzzles are wonderful and the mental health aspect is actually very well done and explored sensitively and interestingly.

mrsmr2

hylian_elf wrote:

Wipeout Pure on PSP (I think that was the first one) was great.

2048 is a tech demo. I think Pulse is superior in every way.

Bob

mrsmr2 wrote:

hylian_elf wrote:

Wipeout Pure on PSP (I think that was the first one) was great.

2048 is a tech demo. I think Pulse is superior in every way.

2048 was a bad idea in every way

Yossarian

I still prefer Wipeout Threes!

Syph79

regmcfly wrote:

I'm on chapter 8 and recently did the

Spoiler:

now pyra is awoke
mechanic. Fiddly bugger to activate tho.

You've still got a fair whack to go!

regmcfly

Powering through. Hello, chapter 9

stormyskiesahead

My most played list doesn't change all that often. It's mostly multiplayer, and when something grabs me (and if I can then convince/trick/bribe my friends into joining in) that's it, I'm in for hundreds and maybe thousands of hours. So.

Overwatch, for when I feel the need to have toxicity hurled my way for picking someone "off-meta".
Fortnite BR, for when I wanna get fucked by AR bloom or inconsistent shotgun damage.
Rainbow 6 Siege, for when I wanna play a match with half a team or just get instantly teamkilled.

I'm only half serious, but these issues can spoil my enjoyment of otherwise stellar PvP games.

On the bright side, Paladins continues to be a pure blast of fun whenever I load up. It's got it's issues, but there's far more right than wrong here. Glad I bought that Founders Pack all those moons ago as well, the rate at which new heroes are released is kinda crazy.

Then there's Warframe, which when I'm not trying to figure out what I'm supposed to be doing, is a fucking blinder. Joyous player movement and super-tight combat for days.

I'm also one of those people that actually paid for Fortnite: Save the World. And sod it, I kinda love it. My trap layouts are diabolical and impassable, my buildings are castles, my guns are... actually not that great 'cause I'm an Outlander. But I can run really, really fast so ner!

Djornson

The Stanley Parable for the first time.

Amusing

AJ

Exceptional game that.

Djornson

Found the 'happy' ending on the second try. Watched the others on YouTube. Yeah, it's kind of cool, glad i got it for free though. Currently going through steam library at a very fast pace, so much fluff

AJ

You mean the ending the narrator directs you to or the one where you actually win? Presumably not the one with the happy place because that's dark as fuck.

To be honest, I thought it was so good I paid a premium for the collector's edition.

JRPC

I've started Octopussy (autocorrected, but I'm sticking with it).

So far it's delightful

Lovely atmosphere and visuals. Battling is fun so far (although basic right now). Story of my chosen character, the scholar, is holding the attention so far at least.

I doubt I'll finish it, but I think I'll enjoy my time with it.

Djornson

AJ wrote:

You mean the ending the narrator directs you to or the one where you actually win? Presumably not the one with the happy place because that's dark as fuck. To be honest, I thought it was so good I paid a premium for the collector's edition.

The one where you follow all his directions.

It's clever for sure but i'm done.

AJ

Heh. I've yet to find a single person that doesn't find it too tempting to disobey on the first run.

It's pretty funny too, if you ask me, but yeah, it probably only takes around four hours to map all the obvious choices, if you want to do that, and then you're on to random shit like the boundary break one and fuck finding those without a guide. Still, I like to revisit it now and then, like a good film or book, and remind myself how awesome it is.

Tempy

I have now finished a run with each character on the latest patch of Slay the Spire (this meant starting from scratch with unlocks etc) and have moved on to doing dailies and weekly customs on another forum.

Slay the Spire is fucking excellent. It totally eschews the notion that games have to have graphics anything other than functional. It feels like Hearthstone without any of the polish, but the satisfaction you get when you finally draft a killer deck is amazing. It’s all so understated and the maths is all so simple yet it makes everything feel brilliant. The three characters have enough variety of builds between them that it’s going to be a while before I properly exhaust that side of it, as there are still some deck types i’ve not quite managed to draft in a coherent way.

The sheer amount of synergy the game ekes out of a handful of card game mechanics is really special, it properl exemplifies what’s so great about roguelikes, and the craziness of the daily modifiers is really refreshing, covering everything from ridiculous overpowered decks to really interesting struggles that really test your understanding of the game’s central mechanics. It took me a few guides to grasp some of the finer elements of card power and efficiency, and I know i’m not that well versed in it yet (going more off gut than optimal decisions) but for anyone who likes card games, rogulikes, or the satisfaction of working out and succefully executing a set of decisions that synergise into an almost game breaking move, it’s an absolute must buy. Really looking forward to seeing what the final release build brings.

Between this and Dead Cells it feels like we finally got two proper successors to Spelunky and Binding of Isaac after years of games that didn’t quite get it (Gungeon) to games that deviated into something only lightly inspired by them (Invisible Inc, Duskers)

regmcfly

Where's my hotline Miami 3

AndCallMeCharlie

@Tempy. Had a play of it yesterday
Agree re simplicity but my first run took about 30 mins - is that standard?
Would be bored playing that first level before long (I get the building for latter but that’s a lot of time)
Am I missing something?

Tempy

You can’t avoid playing the early stuff, but you can complete a run of all three bosses in 40mins. If you hit the first boss and die during it or after it, you get a choice of modifiers when you start again - everything from more gold, transforming a card( or swapping your starting relic to completely change how you play.

You can path to avoid fights (it’s mostly recommended). Starting from scratch and drafting your way to victor is 100% the whole point of the game. The first 3 fights tend to be quite rote but they take minutes and the game ramps really quickly. All I can suggest is that you just forge in and get over it.

Tempy

I don't mean that as a dick either. I've played plenty of rogues, the first few minutes are always the worst and only Dead Cells really counters it with the item pool. But compared to Gungeon, Slay the Spire is bristling with choices from the beginning. As you learn how to deal with certain enemies you can fly through the first Act in 15 minutes or so, and the things that happen in the first few minutes can have a huge impact to your run later on. As you finish more runs and unlock more cards, the chance of drawing something in the first fight that can fundamentally alter your entire conception of what your run might be like. It's like Isaac, where your first Treasure Room decides whether you're hitting Abandon Run or you're in for the long haul.

I'm always battering on Gungeon for this, but pre-patch it fundamentally misunderstood that this was the appeal of Roguelikes, and forcing you to play the opening bit with the same shite guns is way worse than Slay the Spire making you fight one fight (or no fights if you reached the boss last run) before you get the chance of having a run altering experience. I've put 60hrs into this game over various versions, it absolutely stays playable.

JonB

I was playing the new version of Gungeon quite a bit last week but again find myself bored of it.

Improved drop rates are fine, but it's still too reliant on the random factor of getting good weapons. It's not the good random of Spelunky or Invis Inc, where it can radically change what happens and how you approach it. It's just simple luck. The randomness of the layout of each floor is pretty much meaningless, because the rooms aren't connected in any interesting way.

And yeah, the early parts get dull not only because you always start with the basic pistol, but also because there's no strategic variation. All you can do, apart from a few environmental triggers, is walk into each room and shoot everything until it's clear.

Edit: Which isn't to say it's terrible or anything. I do like the way it plays and got a good number of hours out of it. It just lacks the replay value that these games thrive on.

AndCallMeCharlie

@Tempy I loved gungeon until you pointed out the weaknesses and ruined it for me cause you were right - the gameplay is great but structurally it does have issues and the pacing is off.
I have bought Slay the Spire on steam now trying to get it running on my old windows tablet so I can play it on my commute

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