Returnal - on PC now - The Bear and Badger

hylian_elf

Halo is gonna be Halo. Unless it he campaign is better than Bungie’s games, Returnal will still be ahead.

stonechalice

Okay I've piled hours into this game and I'm beginning to hate it. I haven't even beaten the first boss yet. There seems to be a trend of having a really great run only to enter a room and all hell breaks loose and I can barely scrape through and end up dying. Does anyone have any tips because I'm getting infuriated and I'm gonna quit soon. This seems to be a game where if you take a hit you may as well quit that run and start again. I'm having real trouble discerning what's a projectile and what's an enemy.

Also, some of these elite enemies - wtf?? How the fuck are you supposed to dodge their attacks?? I dodge out of way of a stream of bullets but they keep coming and smack me anyway. Seems terribly unfair to me.

I'm loving the gameplay and the atmosphere but it's just far too punishing as it is and it's so fucking frustrating.

digi

hylian_elf wrote:

b0r1s wrote:

Still GOTY

JonB

stonechalice wrote:

Okay I've piled hours into this game and I'm beginning to hate it. I haven't even beaten the first boss yet. There seems to be a trend of having a really great run only to enter a room and all hell breaks loose and I can barely scrape through and end up dying. Does anyone have any tips because I'm getting infuriated and I'm gonna quit soon. This seems to be a game where if you take a hit you may as well quit that run and start again. I'm having real trouble discerning what's a projectile and what's an enemy. Also, some of these elite enemies - wtf?? How the fuck are you supposed to dodge their attacks?? I dodge out of way of a stream of bullets but they keep coming and smack me anyway. Seems terribly unfair to me. I'm loving the gameplay and the atmosphere but it's just far too punishing as it is and it's so fucking frustrating.

There are specific challenge rooms marked with a star over the door. Best to avoid those unless you're feeling confident.

Otherwise, I'm not sure. It's just general tips like keep moving and use cover. Sometimes it's a good idea to hang around a doorway for a while to draw a few enemies out safely. But when you're in the middle of an area and there's a lot going on, don't stand still.

Also, I don't know why you'd start again if you get hit. There's usually plenty of silphium around to top up, and no reason why good runs can't come from early setbacks.

tin_robot

stonechalice wrote:

Okay I've piled hours into this game and I'm beginning to hate it. I haven't even beaten the first boss yet. There seems to be a trend of having a really great run only to enter a room and all hell breaks loose and I can barely scrape through and end up dying. Does anyone have any tips because I'm getting infuriated and I'm gonna quit soon. This seems to be a game where if you take a hit you may as well quit that run and start again. I'm having real trouble discerning what's a projectile and what's an enemy. Also, some of these elite enemies - wtf?? How the fuck are you supposed to dodge their attacks?? I dodge out of way of a stream of bullets but they keep coming and smack me anyway. Seems terribly unfair to me. I'm loving the gameplay and the atmosphere but it's just far too punishing as it is and it's so fucking frustrating.

Some slightly spoilery tips:

Spoiler:

It gets easier.

b0r1s

Depends on how far you’ve got to. One permanent power up really helps with your mobility around the arenas. But doubt you’ve got that far if you are struggling early on.

Get your active reload down. It builds adrenaline. Higher adrenaline gives mini perks especially the visual radar which is very useful.

Early doors take the carbine. But be careful with gun perks. You don’t want the slower firing options. There’s one called rising something that gets faster as you fire great for starters. Try and back off initially and pick off enemies.

Been ages since I played so there’s a lot I’ve forgot.

stonechalice

Thanks for the tips but most of these I'm already doing. Like I said I've been playing for hours. I just can't beat the boss. The last run I had was the best yet. I had a level 6 sidearm with homing and piercing and full health. I'm getting to phase 3 and he's just overwhelming me. I don't seem to doing anywhere near enough damage and the fight just goes on and on and on and I run out of steam.

There are things in this game that just seem to be there to piss you off. I was about an hour and a half into a run with the map fully explored (apart from grapple points I can't get to) and the game decided to just remove the map. WTF? How is that fun in any way? Is that a glitch or a thing? It took me about 20 minutes to find the boss door without it. Pure bullshit.

The game is fantastic but playing this same biome over and over got tiresome long ago. Think I'm gonna trade it in today.

stonechalice

JonB wrote:

There are specific challenge rooms marked with a star over the door. Best to avoid those unless you're feeling confident.

Funnily enough I make a beeline for these rooms as they've never given me much trouble lol.

b0r1s

Removing the map sounds like a debuff that triggered from the purple shit (forget what it’s all called). I wouldn’t personally do the gamble stuff until you are comfortable with the game. I know some people have success with it but I found negatives, certainly early on, don’t outweigh the positives you gain.

And the first boss I’d honestly go in with a carbine and just hang back. Don’t get close to him. When he gets close in the second and third phases just dash away. Keep firing at him while focusing the projectiles.

tin_robot

stonechalice wrote:

Thanks for the tips but most of these I'm already doing. Like I said I've been playing for hours. I just can't beat the boss. The last run I had was the best yet. I had a level 6 sidearm with homing and piercing and full health. I'm getting to phase 3 and he's just overwhelming me. I don't seem to doing anywhere near enough damage and the fight just goes on and on and on and I run out of steam. There are things in this game that just seem to be there to piss you off. I was about an hour and a half into a run with the map fully explored (apart from grapple points I can't get to) and the game decided to just remove the map. WTF? How is that fun in any way? Is that a glitch or a thing? It took me about 20 minutes to find the boss door without it. Pure bullshit. The game is fantastic but playing this same biome over and over got tiresome long ago. Think I'm gonna trade it in today.

If it's the boss that's giving you the most hassle then try going straight to him for a bit. You almost certainly won't beat him but it will give you plenty of opportunities to practice and get his various attack patterns down. (Generally, hang back and keep moving.) Then once you feel like you know what you're doing, go for a proper run, beef yourself up, and try him again.

If the challenge rooms don't give you much trouble save them for just before the boss for maximum rewards.

Finally, I struggled with him at first, then swapped guns and beat him first time. So maybe try a different weapon if you haven't already, and see how it feels.

(Sorry, I appreciate most of that's probably obvious...)

stonechalice

Nice guys cheers I'm gonna put it down for now and try again fresh in a few days. Not gonna let it beat me.

stonechalice

Finally beat the first boss with a sliver of health left. This game is fucking exhausting. Started exploring the second biome but was still struggling to discern stuff and get by confidently.

I thought I'd have a root around in the settings and oh my there's a plethora of UI options and accessibility stuff that I fucked around with. I've made my target reticule bigger and bolder, which helps massively with the active reload thing, upped the aim assist, switched to always run rather than the stick click and set all hold button presses to single presses.

It's made the game much more manageable and enjoyable.

stonechalice

b0r1s

It’s not that bad Chalice :-D

I think I forgot to mention melee on the elites, which someone mentioned. It’s especially great against the the adrenal beast (the big with tentacles that jumps all over the place). Dodge his jump then melee him. He goes down then just keep smacking him. Just keep an eye for grunts. Works the same for the one that shoots loads of projects shielded.

Also works very well on the tree guys in the second biome. Definitely the best way to take these guys out.

stonechalice

Yeah I'm certainly getting better at the game now. Done some bits and bobs. Yet to get the grapple I'm assuming that's the reward for second boss.

I've realised you're better off just mainlining objective rather than entering every blue side
room in the first biome. Can I fight the first boss again or is that it? Since I've put auto sprint on and done the first boss the game feels easier. It's like I've bedded in with the game. It's a strange thing but it hints at masterful game design - I'm intrigued to see what's next.

b0r1s

You can take him on or avoid him. No real reason to unless you enjoy the fight.

As for entering rooms it’s still down to what you need. For example if you want to boost your health bar and you’re looking for the green stuff (silphium?) then you might go in. Same for if you’re looking for a decent gun. Also with guns the perks you earn last between runs, so level up the traits you like. Personal fav is Hollowseeker with serrated ammo. However it’s shit on biome three grunts.

It’s an absolute GOAT. The design is flawless IMO and I’m shit at hardcore games.

stonechalice

Any game that makes me slap my leg and invades my thoughts when I'm not playing it is a goat.

Minnesänger

You’re doing good, Chalice. Keep it up.

ShabbyMcCrabby

My tip is to have Cinty watch you play. Worked for me.

drumbeg

digi wrote:

hylian_elf wrote:

b0r1s wrote:

Still GOTY

Easily.

stonechalice

I can't think of another shooting game that plays as well as this - even Halo comes up short. It's just such fun to hoon about blasting things. There's a distinct rhythm to exploration balanced with action that no other games can touch. It's brilliant.

It definitely gets easier once you realise what works. Getting up in the shit with melee is the way to go. I've tried a variety of weapons now and that acid lobber thing is unbelievably good - you just pump em and move on to the next target while they burn to death. So satisfying. I'm blitzing through it now. Second boss went down first try. That 3rd biome though! I really love the level and all the grappling but those drones wreck your shit up big style. I've had a couple of runs end when I've stupidly tried to do one of those dash disabled rooms - they're just not worth it lol.

This is GOTY for me no question.

Minnesänger

Nice work, that 2nd boss is no joke. Was a roadblock for a few peeps. And yes, biome 3 mobs can be proper nasty.

Keep up the good work.

mrsmr2

I still can’t get past the second boss. Brain can’t deal with the bullet hell in 3d.

b0r1s

Glad it’s clicked Chalice. Once it does and it gets it claws into nothing comes close. Those flying fuckers in biome 3 are a pain in the arse. The rocket launcher (can’t recall what it’s called) or a carbine with armour piercing does well against em. My favourite gun, Hollowseeker, basically gives em a tickle as you die.

b0r1s

You got headphones @mrsmr2 ?

They helped a lot on the second boss as you can hear where he’s coming from even when you can’t see him. The spatial audio works well here. In fact the spatial audio really helps with this game in general, I played most of the game with headphones on.

JonB

3rd biome was by far the hardest for me. But there's a reason you've just got the grapple and it's full of grapple points at different heights. Use them a lot.

mrsmr2

I use headphones or a surround setup. Neither help.

mrsmr2

Thanks to save scumming, I was able to have a couple of attempts at the 2nd boss. Got to third phase on both attempts so that's progress.

Used headphones.

tin_robot

stonechalice wrote:

I've tried a variety of weapons now and that acid lobber thing is unbelievably good - you just pump em and move on to the next target while they burn to death. So satisfying.

I'm also a massive fan of that particular weapon - "dunk 'em in acid, then get out of there" was a fairly reliable approach I found.

JonB wrote:

3rd biome was by far the hardest for me. But there's a reason you've just got the grapple and it's full of grapple points at different heights. Use them a lot.

This. For me biome 3 clicked once I realised that I needed to exploit the grapple (something I'd largely been using only to traverse up until that point).

stonechalice

Biome 3 is unreal. This game is astonishing. Got to

Spoiler:

and whittled him down to his second phase then the pressure got too much and I fell of the edge and died. Is there a shortcut back to the boss in biome 3? Because I felt like I was there for hours - the thought of doing that again is daunting but it probably won't be that bad. I had a level 15 shotgun and I was decimating folk with it. Those

Spoiler:

are terrifying.

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