Currently Playing in 2019....

Anything to do with games at all.
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Seven
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PostRe: Currently Playing in 2018....
by Seven » Mon Oct 15, 2018 9:04 pm

Finally starting playing kingdom hearts 2 final mix on PS4, been meaning to for ages but lack of movitation and other reasons made me delay it. Glad I've managed to at least start it, might not try for 100% at first and just enjoy the game.

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dfox1987
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PostRe: Currently Playing in 2018....
by dfox1987 » Mon Oct 15, 2018 9:24 pm

ps4:
farcry 5 - just finished and platinumed it a few weeks ago, the game is mediocre at best.

spiderman 2018 - finshed the story, got all the collectibles and challenges left to do still.

dark souls remastered - finally got round to this, and it was worth the wait. great game, lives up to the hype in my opinion along with
the other souls-borne games

pc:
bioshock infinite- i didnt play this on release, and with so many games out over the last few years, it just got lost in my massive list of
unplayed steam games. 9 hours in, im really enjoying it. hoping the DLC is just as good.

forza motorsport 7 - mehh....more of the same as usual with forza. not a bad game but i wish they would just make some tweaks and improvements,
basically forza 6 with re-skins and micro transactions.

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PostRe: Currently Playing in 2018....
by Gemini73 » Mon Oct 15, 2018 10:18 pm

Jazzem wrote:
@Gemini73 Honestly I think everyone was taken with it upon release, I remember plenty of praise from non-critic folks as well. Definitely one of those games whose reputation has fallen over time.



I guess a lot were caught up in the Bioshock hype of the time, myself included. I borrowed a copy from a friend sometime after its release and while I did see it through to the end it was a hell of a chore, even though I was quite excited to play the game and for those opening sections was enjoying it. I think Infinite may have also played a part in my "just because you've begun playing it, doesn't mean you have to finish it" in how I now think about video games. If I had played Infinite for the first time these days I doubt I would have gotten past the first few hours before binning it off. It goes downhill very quickly.

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PostRe: Currently Playing in 2018....
by Squinty » Mon Oct 15, 2018 10:55 pm

Samus Returns and Super Mario Odyssey.

I've been gushing about the latter in the Switch. It's so goodddddddd

Samus Returns is still good but it hasn't ever really gone beyond that. I have no idea how far I am into it. Just beat some big Robot, which was a bit annoying.

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PostRe: Currently Playing in 2018....
by Tafdolphin » Tue Oct 16, 2018 7:07 am

One of the things I find most frustrating about Infinite is the potential it had. I'm not going to fork out for the art book but a fair amount of concept art is online and the original plan was a Rapture in the sky (and an Art Nouveau design ethic to contrast with Rapture's Art Deco) with a society based around the concept of American Exceptionalism and High Tech Vs Luddites.

Image

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What we got was a pisspoor mishmash of conflicting ideas that are rushed past at such a speed that they make no sense and have zero impact.

Also, the ending fundamentally misunderstands the concept of infinity and multiple worlds theory.

Jazzem wrote:Bet there's loads of untold stories still to tell from the poor overworked staff.


Rumours at the time were that after BS1 shipped a large portion of the staff vowed never to work with Levine again. BS:I was then hit by a string of high profile resignations (including the art director!) throughout its production, some of them specifically due to the game's content. According to the wiki, a high-level designer quit after Levine pulled the Shantytown level. After the resignation, it was put back in.

It was a mess of a development schedule.

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PostRe: Currently Playing in 2018....
by 7256930752 » Tue Oct 16, 2018 7:39 am

Tafdolphin wrote:One of the things I find most frustrating about Infinite is the potential it had. I'm not going to fork out for the art book but a fair amount of concept art is online and the original plan was a Rapture in the sky (and an Art Nouveau design ethic to contrast with Rapture's Art Deco) with a society based around the concept of American Exceptionalism and High Tech Vs Luddites.

What we got was a pisspoor mishmash of conflicting ideas that are rushed past at such a speed that they make no sense and have zero impact.

Also, the ending fundamentally misunderstands the concept of infinity and multiple worlds theory.

Jazzem wrote:Bet there's loads of untold stories still to tell from the poor overworked staff.


Rumours at the time were that after BS1 shipped a large portion of the staff vowed never to work with Levine again. BS:I was then hit by a string of high profile resignations (including the art director!) throughout its production, some of them specifically due to the game's content. According to the wiki, a high-level designer quit after Levine pulled the Shantytown level. After the resignation, it was put back in.

It was a mess of a development schedule.

How so?

I've never been back to Infinite but like the Andrew Ryan moment in 1, the ending left my speechless. I'm sure you can analysis it and point out why objectively it why it was stupid but at the time it was incredible. The thing about Bioshock 2 is that I really liked it but I can't remember anything about it.

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PostRe: Currently Playing in 2018....
by Tafdolphin » Tue Oct 16, 2018 7:52 am

Infinite means infinite. Unending. Many worlds theory posits all possible realities are real, an infinite amount of them. Therefore it is impossible that every single Elizabeth destroyed every single Booker before he could become Comstock, which the game explicitly states is what happens. There are potentially infinite Super Lizs who realised their true power, but there are also infinite dead Lizs or Lizs that don't exist or Lizs where she's a character in a videogame.

The game's ending only makes sense if you completely ignore the concept of infinity, a concept the game not only takes for it's name but also spends an not inconsiderate amount of its runtime explaining to the player


Like the entirety of Infinite, the ending was memorable simply because it looked amazing. Unlike the Ryan moment, it never actually made any sense.

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PostRe: Currently Playing in 2018....
by 7256930752 » Tue Oct 16, 2018 8:03 am

Tafdolphin wrote:Infinite means infinite. Unending. Many worlds theory posits all possible realities are real, an infinite amount of them. Therefore it is impossible that every single Elizabeth destroyed every single Booker before he could become Comstock, which the game explicitly states is what happens. There are potentially infinite Super Lizs who realised their true power, but there are also infinite dead Lizs or Lizs that don't exist or Lizs where she's a character in a videogame.

The game's ending only makes sense if you completely ignore the concept of infinity, a concept the game not only takes for it's name but also spends an not inconsiderate amount of its runtime explaining to the player


Like the entirety of Infinite, the ending was memorable simply because it looked amazing. Unlike the Ryan moment, it never actually made any sense.

I think you're being a little bit harsh man, I get what your saying and you're not wrong but I still think it's incredible that a fairly complex subject was tackled in a video game. Even if it is a bit silly in hindsight for me it doesn't take away that moment I had at the time.

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PostRe: Currently Playing in 2018....
by Tafdolphin » Tue Oct 16, 2018 8:33 am

I'm definitely glad you enjoyed it, and it was certainly a spectacle but I don't think it tackled the issue as much as it... mentioned it. It spends its whole runtime explaining the concept then completely ignores this in it's ending. That's a stunning narrative failure in my mind.

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PostRe: Currently Playing in 2018....
by Saint of Killers » Tue Oct 16, 2018 8:57 am

Still playing Dead Cells. Opened up two new zones (Ancient Sewer :lol: and Slumbering Sanctuary) with two of the most inventive enemy mobs I've seen recently in games. When you're having trouble with the other regular enemies in the game, you can just put distance between you and it and you're gonna be okay. That isn't the case with the 2 new ones. The mob in the AS has a larger than usual aggro zone and so will attack you before you see it *and* keep attacking you if you try to get away from it. And the mob in the SS will warp you to it. And then pummel the gooseberry fool out of you. I also reached Forgotten Sepulchar and whilst that doesn't have any particularly interesting enemies, it does add a new challenge to the gameplay.

Oh and whilst the mob in AS sounds cheaty bordering on annoying, its attack is a delayed one so while it does "see" you before you see it, you have time to dodge its incoming attack.

SS also has another type of mob which alters how you approach regular enemies in its vicinity, but it's easy to take down and so doesn't fulfil any of its potential.

Last edited by Saint of Killers on Tue Oct 16, 2018 9:02 am, edited 2 times in total.
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PostRe: Currently Playing in 2018....
by 7256930752 » Tue Oct 16, 2018 8:58 am

Tafdolphin wrote:I'm definitely glad you enjoyed it, and it was certainly a spectacle but I don't think it tackled the issue as much as it... mentioned it. It spends its whole runtime explaining the concept then completely ignores this in it's ending. That's a stunning narrative failure in my mind.

I'm not going to lie, most of my joy came from briefly going back to Rapture.

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PostRe: Currently Playing in 2018....
by Photek » Tue Oct 16, 2018 10:13 am

Infinite has one of gamings most beautiful settings. The fact that after an hour or so you're continually fighting (with what I'd argue is worst combat than BS1) is a major headache. It's telling that the times in between gun fights when you're just walking about are easily the best parts. It also has the worst boss fight in living memory, make that 2 if you include the final horde mode.

I love the ending, it's hubris to the nth degree but I love it all the same.

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PostRe: Currently Playing in 2018....
by dfox1987 » Tue Oct 16, 2018 11:44 am

They got the lighting in this game perfect, the way they over exaggerate it in certain in a certain way...just fits the game so well with the world and
character design. Is the dlc any good? does it connect to the previous games?

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PostRe: Currently Playing in 2018....
by Photek » Tue Oct 16, 2018 11:46 am

dfox1987 wrote:They got the lighting in this game perfect, the way they over exaggerate it in certain in a certain way...just fits the game so well with the world and
character design. Is the dlc any good? does it connect to the previous games?

DLC is good, not spectacular but it connects to BS1 massively as most of it is back in Rapture.

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PostRe: Currently Playing in 2018....
by Tafdolphin » Tue Oct 16, 2018 11:56 am

dfox1987 wrote:They got the lighting in this game perfect, the way they over exaggerate it in certain in a certain way...just fits the game so well with the world and
character design. Is the dlc any good? does it connect to the previous games?


I dunno... Even this aspect I found distracting. When you enter the Raven cult for example, the lighting just switches immediately; the colours drain out, the contrast is heightened. It's really noticeable and sort of the equivalent of when a movie throws a discordant string refrain at you to telegraph something scary is coming.

I just found it rather cheap.

DLC is much better than the main game.

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PostRe: Currently Playing in 2018....
by dfox1987 » Tue Oct 16, 2018 12:00 pm

im glad you said that because im enjoying myself so far, im happy to hear that it only gets better.

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PostRe: Currently Playing in 2018....
by rudderless » Tue Oct 16, 2018 3:19 pm

Brerlappin wrote:I tried to replay Infinite earlier in the year but i just cant. Everything about it just irritates me. I don't know if its possible for a game to be smug, but Infinite just feels so strawberry floating... smug about itself. Made even worse by the fact that it tries to tackle a bunch of serious topics but swerves them all completely rather than confront them. Its so over indulgent, and tries soooooooo hard to make you love Elizabeth with so many pointless scenes like the guitar playing scene. I cant help but compare it to The Last Guardian in a way, because TLG also has an AI companion, but that game slowly builds a bond between you and Trico, its all done so naturally over the course of the game, it feels completely organic the way Trico comes to trust the boy and the emotional impact of the ending is completely 100% earned. Trico feels like someone you've overcome hardships with, someone whose trust you've actually worked to earn, someone you've been on an actual journey with, as opposed to Elizabeth who just kinda hangs throwing coins at you while you shoot gooseberry fool, and then you're supposed to care for her because shes got big eyes and can sing and does a dancing bit too? Remember how cool that was??


Blimey, this is absolutely bang on the money.

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PostRe: Currently Playing in 2018....
by Rik_ » Wed Oct 17, 2018 3:21 am

Finished Ratchet and Clank, running through it again on Challenge Mode to clean up the trophies and get those maxed out weapons. The final sections of it didn't really change my opinion much, it's a fantastically well-presented game with great action at its core, but the story and characters are really lacking.
The museum you get to access at the end is really cool, but it also made me feel a bit sad somehow, just seemed to give off a vibe of "yeah, this is history now" as if the series is at its end point. Really hope that's not the case, would love to see them tackle a sequel that isn't as shackled to the movie's direction.

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PostRe: Currently Playing in 2018....
by Tafdolphin » Wed Oct 17, 2018 11:38 am

Brerlappin wrote:I tried to replay Infinite earlier in the year but i just cant. Everything about it just irritates me. I don't know if its possible for a game to be smug, but Infinite just feels so strawberry floating... smug about itself. Made even worse by the fact that it tries to tackle a bunch of serious topics but swerves them all completely rather than confront them. Its so over indulgent, and tries soooooooo hard to make you love Elizabeth with so many pointless scenes like the guitar playing scene. I cant help but compare it to The Last Guardian in a way, because TLG also has an AI companion, but that game slowly builds a bond between you and Trico, its all done so naturally over the course of the game, it feels completely organic the way Trico comes to trust the boy and the emotional impact of the ending is completely 100% earned. Trico feels like someone you've overcome hardships with, someone whose trust you've actually worked to earn, someone you've been on an actual journey with, as opposed to Elizabeth who just kinda hangs throwing coins at you while you shoot gooseberry fool, and then you're supposed to care for her because shes got big eyes and can sing and does a dancing bit too? Remember how cool that was??


Precisely. There's a reason I haven't mentioned Elizabeth in any of my thoughts so far, even if it wasn't a conscious decision. Once you've seen past the artifice she's just a badly drawn trope, and another example of Levine's go-to for emotional resonance: young, terrorised women.

For example, the gatherers in BioShock 1 were originally sea slugs but the critical emotional decision the team wanted emphasise, to kill or not to kill, simply wasn't there with such an object at its core. But strawberry float, have you seen the plethora of ideas they had after that? They went from slug to dog-in-a-fucking-wheelchair to abused little girl. Because those are the only things that elicit sympathy apparently, animals and abuse victims.

Elizabeth is no better. She's another abusee, far more transparently this time with the corny abusive partner allegory of Songbird, and that's her entire character. She is defined not by any internal conflict or wants and needs but by the actions of her abusers. The only other things we learn about her is her love of lockpicking and codebreaking (both gameplay mechanics) and Paris (because, um, she had a picture of the tower in her room?). There's the illusion of character development simply because she stops being scared and becomes a Strong Female Character(tm) but she's purely one note.

EDIT: Taking this a bit further (spoilers for BS2 and Infinite):

Compare her, for example, to Eleanor Lamb from BioShock 2, a much more developed character. Eleanor is also abused but she takes an active role in separating herself from her situation: she wakes Delta, she guides him through Rapture, and through her Little Sisters she eventually, actively, transforms herself into a character responsible for her own salvation.

Elizabeth on the other hand is never anything but a passive presence, a victim. She has to be rescued by Booker, a strange man she immediately trusts implicitly. She is then guided through Colombia by Booker, who repeatedly lies to her, because he tells her it's for her own good. She essentially swaps one abusive relationship for another, which would be an interesting twist if I thought this was something the game intended to bring up. It never does. I mean, the one time Booker isn't there to save her, she simply gives up and becomes a monster. Even in Burial at Sea chapter 2 her guide is a memory fragment from her omnipotent past that takes the form of, yes, Booker. The less said about the torture scene the better (is it a coincidence the only time any of the games come close to having a drawn out scene of personal distress it's being done to a woman?)


tl;dr Elizabeth is a bad character and Levine has a thing for victimised women.

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PostRe: Currently Playing in 2018....
by Photek » Wed Oct 17, 2018 1:40 pm

Elizabeth initially attacks Booker with a book so she doesn't immediately trust him.

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