Talking Point: What Are You Playing This Weekend? - Issue 496

I'm Foaming at the mouth playing Foamstars Beta with 2 friends. Its actually alot of fun and a bit chaotic. Looking forward to playing more this weekend. With a sprinkle of Octopath Traveler 2 Happy Gaming folks!

Been playing and watching a bunch of stuff the last two days as I've hurt my back and couldn't go to work.
Tears of the Kingdom and Splatoon 3 have been my go to's but I'm considering picking up both RE4 Seperate ways and Caccoon. Both look very cool.

Finally started Cyberpunk on PS5 and 3 hours in... I'm really underwhelmed, it's missing something, not sure what yet. Armored Core on the other hand, has been great so far.

Final push on Sea of Stars

Having finished the plat for Sea of Stars last weekend I fully intended to go back to FFVII Remake. However, I let my curiosity about 13 Sentinels get the better of me, and now I’m 8 hrs in and loving it. (Yes, i’ve noted all of the liberties the translators took so I can have the true, intended experience)

I’m trying out Disney Speedstorm. I played a little last night and had fun. Also will continue Ghostwire Tokyo. I love this game. Not really invested in the story, I just like exploring the city and doing side missions

I was planning on playing some powerwash simulator but I ended up with a defective disc so I’ll be playing the games I installed from disc to see if the disc drive was the problem, so Apsulov, psikyo vol 1 and neon white this weekend.

Cyberpunk 2077 - I’ve gone all in on this game. I absolutely love it 😁 the changes to skills and cyberware and how easy it is to respec makes it really fun to play around and explore different builds. Im currently playing as a cyberware ninja, its awesome. Just made it to Dogtown, seems really promising.

Also, Panam 😍

South park the stick of truth and Separate ways

Carrying on with NG+ in Lies of P. What an excellent game it is. Might even be my favorite of the year.

The big 2.0. Needed some time to get into it, somewhat like a soulsborne, once I reached the point where I did not have to consciously think about how to play, it stepped up a gear.
And then there is lots of office stuff that carried over into the weekend…sucks!

It always feels like only two days has passed since the last one of these articles. Anyway, I've been playing that Harvest Moon type game called something something Olive Town. Theatrhythm, which is addictive but kind of off-puttingly stressful sometimes (some of those boss songs on Ultimate are legit the hardest thing I've ever seen in a game). Had a dabble in Cyberpunk and tried to have another playthrough of Remake but as much as I love the characters, music, story, atmosphere etc, the fact so much of the game is effectively just a series of big dungeons - and boring, sloggy dungeons - makes it pretty much unrelayable for me.

The Quarry, giving It a run before they take It from extra

I beat TOEM and Ace Attorney: Justice for All last week and I’m currently playing Solar Ash and Ace Attorney: Trials and Tribulations.

With spooky month starting tomorrow I’m gonna play spooky games all month. My plan is to beat Super Castlevania IV, Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow, House of the Dead: Overkill, Until Dawn and Luigi’s Mansion 3 amongst other games.
Very maybe I’ll try Silent Hill 2 but that game is too spooky for me.

Ps5 Cyberpunk Phantom Liberty really loving the improvements and the car combat. Separate Ways Chapter 4 really fun DLC. Jedi Survivor about 30 played playing on Jedi Master. Series X Starfield and Cuphead

Mario Kart: Super Circuit (GBA) - Playing a quick run on 50CC.

Contre Jour (Windows Phone) - Finishing this up this weekend.

Lies of p but its ryder cup weekend and i'm enjoying watching team europe destroy team america just a little too much. Have an awesome weekend everybody 👍

@edwinjoe450 stick with it, the game doesn't start until act 2.

After putting 75 hours into Starfield and not even completing the main story I am spending time on a second run of Cyberpunk having waited for the update and DLC. Really enjoying the changes so far. Planned on looking at Cocoon but that might have to wait a week!

Made a start on Chicory last week and should be mopping up all the collectibles this weekend. Really nice little indie, that I’ve enjoyed more than I’d have guessed. Can’t stop whistling the jaunty tune too 😅

Checking out FoamStars ^__^🫧🫧🫧

Finished Disco Elysium.

Cuno has to be one of the greatest NPCs ever.

Assassin's Creed Valhalla is next on the list for PS5, but also still playing Starfield on Xbox and Metroid Prime Remastered on Switch.

Tried FIFA Sorry EA Sports FC , Shock Horror Hardly A Difference Why Do I Do It 😩😩

@SolarSpirit86 a turd by any other name still stinks like any other turd lol

Elden Ring...what else?

I´m 37 hours in and only started exploring Liurnia of the Lakes area. Love this open world - so addictive and fun.

And today of course a little of PL, looking foward to Tottenham - Liverpool match.

Happy gaming and enjoy the weekend!

@mac_da_man ...Panam...hell yeah 😍😍😍

Thanks to the ps trials, I gave Eternights a try and I really liked it. I ended up buying it and so far I'm really enjoying it. The story is interesting, the gameplay is quite challenging and satisfying and it reminds me a lot of Persona.

Anyone else's played it yet?

Starfield on XBX...loving it, strangely compelling and unputdownable. ..this is gonna last me years I think
Baldurs Gate 3 on PS5 - quite simply GOTY ..about 110 hrs in and I'm gonna happily play 15 times longer than that
Also, earlier got the plat for FF16 another GOTY contender ...
Will also dabble in Invasions mode on Mortal Kombat on XBX
2023 is a legendary gaming year!
Have a great weekend guys and gals ❤️

Xbox - starfield
Playstation - death stranding, ace combat 5 (ps2)
Nintendo - metroid prime remastered
Pc - deus ex 1

Still on Sekiroooooo, typical FromSoft fashion, will keep calling you back even if you wanna give up. Another game that does that is Monster Hunter World Iceborne, will be playing that too, currently on 304hrs on my first save. Then some HFW, Valhalla and anything else.

I've been jumping between loads of games recently can't seem to stick to anything but probably more Cyberpunk trying to get through the main story so i can buy Phantom Liberty.

Just finished Lies of P. Very good yet frustrating game as a huge Fromsoftware fan. Probably wouldn't have finished if it wasn't for the patch. Now I've started Sea of Stars and so far its awesome, JRPG bliss!

Dread Nautical & Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night on PS4 and jumping in for a bit of Disney Speedstorm on PS5.

Have fun and wishing a happy weekend to you all

@Nekomichu I really enjoyed it after a bit of a slow start. Playing it through again to see some of the other outcomes before it departs in a couple of weeks. Never played any of their games before so will be giving Until Dawn or Man of Medan a spin next.

Dead by Daylight. My son bought the Nightmare Edition which includes Steve and Nancy and the Demogorgon from Stranger Things. The developers lost the rights to the Stranger Things characters so they have been removed from the game and the physical copy sells for an obscene amount on eBay. But it’s his money that he has been saving, and he loves the game, plus the price seems to be gradually increasing, so he can always resale the disc later. He has found a glitch (he loves glitches) that allows him to put a portal on a downed survivor, and when he starts to burrow, he is able to carry the survivor with him through the Upside Down. He did it during a game, and then the other survivors started standing on the portal and teabagging because they wanted to be carried through the Upside Down as well. Hysterical. Much fun. The only bad thing is that it is a PS4 disc and the PS5 upgrade that he usually plays does not unlock the characters for some reason. So now he has been playing the game nonstop on our older console and will probably end up getting a second Platinum. That is not ideal for our trophy competition.

Finished the main story on Lost Judgment last night so probably finishing off some of the side content and starting the Kaito files dlc for me

@Enigk yeah this is my first run ever I only played until dawn some years ago I'm enjoying it so far (currently in chapter 5)

Saints Row and Sonic Rush here. A couple weeks holiday has put me off my Sonic marathon, so it will be good to get back into the swing of things.

Finally getting around to 13 sentinels on ps and dead space remake on pc. Struggling for time though, as always.

For me it's going to be a bit of:

• Fate Samurai/Remnant, Baldur's Gate 3 and some Cyberpunk

@darkswabber Toem. Superb little game that. Absolutely loved it

I’m itching closer to my second Skyrim platinum so I will be focusing on that before Mirage comes out next week.

@3Above I'm absolutely loving it, it's so much fun ^__^ it's a pretty good feeling when you do abysmally in your first two games and then carry the team and get match MVP 😅

I’m playing The Life and Times of Clive Rosfield

Im playing the fantastic trek to yomi and the excellent red dead redemption 2.i just finished the amazing 🕷 spiderman.what a game.easily one of the best games i ever play.and one of the best games ever made.i willbe watching my Pittsburgh Steelers💛🖤 play.i will be watching legendary sitcoms tv 📺 comedies in Sanford and son.good times and saved by the bell.word up son

Phantom Liberty - it's fantastic and I've been really enjoying my time revisiting Cyberpunk. Spent about 30hrs so far with my new 'Hack n Slash' netrunner

And of course, Baldur's Gate 3 is still amazing me at every turn. Easy GOTY. Hell, it's one of the best of all time.

Just got R Type 3 Evolved.
I love a good shmup.

@Shepherd_Tallon if you have premium, you should definitely give it a try. It has a smaller budget than games like Persona, so it's not for everyone. Then again, it costs less, so you kind of know what you're getting. If you're into anime, I think you'll like it.

I plan to do a huge push in the sidequests of Dragon Quest XI S, beat the real final boss too. Assassin's Creed Valhalla is on the list too (and will be for a long time), the final things on Yakuza 0 or Hogwarts Legacy. Trying to clear some games, as others are already in the plan. This day and age, there are more options than time to play them. And that's good!

Still working on Sekiro and Tekken 7. Have a great weekend folks 😄🤘

New game plus in Starfield and I've started a 7th playthrough of Cyberpunk 2077. Nomad Valerie.

Started playing Atlas Fallen-couldn’t get into it. So decided to play Final Fantasy 16 instead. Throughly enjoying it as I’ve never played a Final Fantasy game before. Story is interesting enough & gameplay is excellent so far.

Baldur's Gate 3 (tough but good) and Cyberpunk (still pretty much broken but OK I guess).

On Steam, DA:I. I forgot how huge that game is. Almost 30 hours in and I've still got at least three outstanding areas to explore, plus I don't know how many story missions, plus DLC areas.

Mass Effect: Andromeda

80+ hours in and still going. I really thought I'd be done by now, but I'm still enjoying it, so I guess carry on Ryder.

Playing some PS1 games.
Specifically Final Fantasy VII, Shin Megami Tensei 1 (fan translated) and Ace Combat 3: electrosphere (Japanese version).

Shadow of the Tomb Raider: Great environments and gameplay, weak story.

Project Cars 2 (PCVR): Awesome, now I just need a racing wheel and pedals!

Pathfinder Kingmaker: Good CRPG. Very similar to Pillars of Eternity, but better in every way.

@naruball I tried the hour trial and it was pretty good, I am so tempted to buy it today but I just bought Fate Samurai so I may hold off for now, plus it's getting a physical release in November so I may get that.

@Shepherd_Tallon is Frieren getting a dub? Just finished How to pick up girls in a dungeon S4 so looking for something new to watch and that Frieren looks interesting but the trailer I watched was in Japanese.

I'm playing Elden ring and I'm loving it my first Souls game I was a bit afraid it would be difficult and it is but very approachable now I understand why it was Game of the Year and such a revolution in gaming

On PS5 theres a lot for me to do this weekend, i will be continuing with 13 Sentinels Aegis Rim which is good so far but I'm still confused as its keeps skipping parts, I will also be continuing with Monochrome Mobius, currently 22 hours in and I highly recommend it to anyone who likes turn based JRPG's. I have downlaoded the Foamstars Demo which I can't wait to start later, I've also downlaoded and played a few matchea of My Hero Academia Rumble which is ok but I absolutely get destroyed every game so I may give up on that one. Finally I should be getting my copy of Fate Samurai/Remnant today so I will save that for tomorrow and have a long session on that, reviews have been solid so far which make me more hyped to play it.

On Switch, it's just the Pokémon Violet DLC for me this weekend, I mainly waiting for Silent Hope and Detective Pikachu 2 next week.

Alan Wake now that we are in spooky season and excited for the sequel. 😃

@Shepherd_Tallon I Just checked and Crunchyroll have confirmed it will be getting dubbed, but not necessarily a simuldub like they do with the bigger anime so might be waiting a few weeks. Oh well I may start Oshi No Ko for now.

FC24 & Baldur's Gate 3 it's a classic mix, almost too common, i'd say 👀

Finally in Act II, exploring everything I can possibly find, and fighting any shadow who looks at me funny for that sweet XP 😁

The majority of my weekend will be spent playing Cyberpunk 2077 on the PS5. I bought the game the day it released but did not touch the game due to all of the negative reception. And then, I almost started the game once the 1.5 patch released, but was too busy with other games.

However, with the praise of 2.0 and Phantom Liberty I decided to reinstall the game. So far, I’m blown away. I’m roughly 8 hours in and the game has already introduced fascinating characters, intriguing world building, smart and gritty writing that I’m personally a big fan of, and a captivating world that you want to get lost in.

I just finished “The Heist” mission, and the interlude where you get introduced to Johnny Silverhand. The entire concept and how it came together was very cool. Moreover, the voice acting is phenomenal and adds so much depth to the scenes and characters. I have a feeling it’s going to be a fun ride.

As for my other obsession for the past three weeks - I’m taking a (short rest; see what I did there?) break from Baldur’s Gate 3. I’m at the end of Act II after 80 hours and I’m starting to get burned out. Also, I accidentally completed a few minor quests prematurely and overwrote the save file (and I’ll be damned if I reload an autosave that makes me backtrack quite a bit) and that has me frustrated.

I actually haven’t played Street Fighter 6 in a few good weeks so I want to get back on that. Still playing Monster World 4 on the Genesis Mini and I’m halfway done with Danganronpa on the Switch.

Out of town with the kids for the week so I may finally finish TOTK on my switch.

Otherwise I have my backbone with me so maybe some Sea of Stars remotely, or if the connection holds up, Lies of P. What a brilliant souls like that is quickly becoming one of my favorite games beside Bloodborne and Elden Ring.

Gravity Rush and Atari Flashback vol.2😬

I'm trying to finish up FF16 on hard mode (last thing for platinum) but holy hell is this game garbage. I thoroughly enjoyed it until Barnabas the first time, then everything just started to D R A G and it turned into a super lame DMC knockoff. The ending was cool at least. But then, trying out everyone's OP builds for hard mode that everyone swears is "easy mode", almost everything OHKOs me, or takes 80% of my healthbar in a single hit. You can't level past the enemies (I did everything on first playthrough to 100% was never more than a few levels higher) and hard mode has kept all enemies 4+ levels ahead of me.

I just got the platinum for Elden Ring, and for as difficult as people claim Souls games are, it was actually fair. This is just an aggravating unbalanced mess. It's still a better game that 15, but I certainly miss the X-13 days.

I got LEGO Marvel Superheroes 2 and the season pass for less than £10 so I'm playing that this weekend. It actually plays really well on the Switch which was surprising.

I’ll mainly be playing Phantom Liberty but the extra content for Sonic Frontiers is also calling my name. It’s been a incredibly hectic week at work so I’m very much looking forward to some much needed escapism. Have a great weekend, everyone!!!

Final Fantasy 16. I'm about 40 hours in and it's a real slog. The quest design is such a drag and I mean the main quests and not just the side ones. When you spend 30mins walking around just talking to villagers in static uninteresting cutscenes, something ain't right. Just playing it now to get it done and out the way.

I'm well over 100 hours into Baldur's Gate 3 on my PC, and am part way through Act 3. I think there might be a possibility of me finishing my solo run of the game during the course of next week, though I'm still in Act 1 with my two mates...

@UltimateOtaku91 lovely to hear that you enjoyed it. If you're busy with other games, yeah, you may want to wait for a price cut or something. It seems like a good, but not outstanding game to me. I'm having fun so far, but it's a game that I don't mind putting down and playing in a day or two.

FFVI pixel remaster on switch and Trails of Cold Steel 2. Have also shortly dabbled in the Kirby Amazing Mirror game on GBA with switch online. I loved that game as a child.

I finished up reading Salems Lot and am moving on to Pet Sematary. Not gaming related, but worthy mentions all the same. Also still playing Baldurs Gate 3….just finished Shadowhearts companion quest

I cannot wait for Spidey 2, so I am very jealous of the week Mr. Croft is having!

Until that 10/20 release, I am playing and loving Starfield. I am really and truly hooked.

Just in the last couple months I have played in order: Marvel Midnight Suns, BG3, Hi-FI Rush, Starfield (all excellent). Then we get Spider-Man 2 and Alan Wake 2. What a time to love games! It is an embarrassment of riches.

Knee deep in lies of P

BG3 from now until eternity, but I did have a break with Super Stardust HD (best twin stick shooter for my money) and managed to get into the top 50 monthly score board, which was nice. At least my life has meaning now

Mostly playing Baldur's Gate 3 but might try and make some time to finish ff16😴

PS5: Cyberpunk 2077 - really one of my favourite games of all time. The expansion is just awesome!

XBOX Series X: Starfield and Fable Anniversary

Switch: F-Zero 99 - I used to be really good at this back in the 90's. Still a little rusty but I still know the tracks by heart and the handling in this version feels spot on. Love it!

@Dusk_Actual Salem's lot is an amazing book. Slow build up but by doing that you get to know the characters and want them to survive. Find both adaptations of it to be very disappointing

@Westernwolf4 Spiderman 2 or Alan wake 2 is my dilemma. Think I'll have to hold off on AW2 until Christmas as I think Spiderman 2 is more likely to get spoiled for me if I don't get it at launch.

Phantom Liberty & Separate Ways

@rusty82 Absolutely same! I am also playing Spidey 2 first to avoid spoilers. Too bad that is even a consideration, but in today’s world…..

I think both are going to be great!

@Shepherd_Tallon looking forward to hearing your thoughts! Like I said, I don't think it's absolutely amazing, but I enjoyed it and would definitely recommend it.

Playing god of war 2005 on my steam deck. Runs really well and fits the handheld really well

@Westernwolf4 I've been wanting a big new game to get lost in then October cones along with them 2 and AC mirage looking solid too.

I'll save AW2 for my wife to get me for Christmas and get to enjoy it fully when off work after Christmas

@ApostateMage ....that's some serious gaming time invested there dude ! Way ahead of me

@rusty82 agreed on all fronts, though I haven’t seen the film adaptations..I looked a few scenes up on YouTube and immediately thought “Nope.” Just like with Game Of Thrones, the characters exist more perfectly in my imagination than on the screen.
Not sure why they felt they needed to make the vampire blue lmao. Barlow already looks creepy af as he’s described in the book.

I’m really hoping Pet Sematary is tops as well. I read the foreword King wrote and then the first three chapters and it’s downright creepy thus far. I like how dissimilar Creed is to Mears

Finally finished fallout NV.. and cocoon has to the front of a very long queue

I can't decide nfs unbound or Gran turismo 7 to buy...
Then, I saw EA play £0.70 first month offer and it clicked. I am going to play as much as I can with it. And around Christmas I will buy GT7 .

Immortals of Aveum

• this is a very solid game. The combat feels good, not too difficult. The leveling is fair and gives options to your play style.

The world has a lot of maps and allows you to continue seeking hidden treasure and paths. With the music, it reminds me a lot of metroid prime.

The story is interesting and VA done very well. Dialogue can get a bit Marvel campy but nothing off putting, it doesn’t take itself too seriously.
** This game is definitely undervalued IMO.

Foamstars

• Having fun alternating turns with my 6 year old. He doesn’t play too many games but is loving it. I haven’t played Splatoon but if this is close, I can see why people like it.

Finally got 100% trophy completion on Black Ops 1 so I’m moving on to Black Ops 2’s DLC and cleaning up World A War’s as well ……..if I can

Speedstorm! It went f2p and is good fun so far!

@Dusk_Actual not actually read pet Sematary it's one I'll check out.

The shining, Dr Sleep, Duma Key and It (if you don't mind massive books) are all highly recommended

@ReadySlayerOne think you're the only other person I've seen who's played Immortals of Aveum.

I was very impressed. Looked great, gameplay was rock solid. Decent story. You can go deep in the lore if you explore and read a lot.

Think it could have made a good series if it sold well but looks like it's flopped unfortunately

Finished Separate Ways, attempted a professional run, and got a little overzealous in chapter 5....stupid turrets...ah well, I'll give it another shot tomorrow.

Other than that, grabbed Phantom Liberty so I'm doing another full Cyberpunk playthrough (this will be my 4th), AND randomly decided to check out Speedstorm...hot damn, it's REALLY good. It's about as disgustingly monetized as something can be, but the gameplay is genuinely excellent.

Also, still working on AC6, and need to try and wrap up BG3 before Spidey....TOO. MANY. GAMES!

@rusty82 agreed. I would have liked another game by this crew. I think a second game would have been excellent. It’s too bad, they hit some unfortunate timing. I am just realizing I need more of this type of game.

@ReadySlayerOne it's refreshing to get a new IP that's 1) single player 2) good story and world 3) decent length with more side content if you still want more. Most new IPs that are launching are either multiplayer focused or always online or both.

But then it doesn't sell so EA and other big publishers will be extra wary of making big AAA single player only new IPs

Baldurs Gate 3 for me. 65 hours in and just about to start act 2 I think.

Infinity Strash on the switch and BG3 on ps5!

Lies of P and Phantom Liberty!

Foam stars (actually enjoyed it). 13 sentinals also.

Well we got a interesting week for sure. Was able to beat Trails To Azure and try out A.K.I and the Sonic Frontiers update. All top of the line excellence all around. This weekend is kinda simple tho. Doing some more Rain Code to finish out the weekend that’s definitely on the list of games I wanna beat next but I wanna try to do something this week for both Switch and PS5. And that’s play a different game each day instead of going ham on one game to finish. That means after Rain Code and the Foamstars beta on PS5 tonight I wanna play one of these games each day this week. Over on switch: Zelda TOTK, Pikmin 4, Fire Emblem Engage Fell Xenologue, Xenoblade Chronicles 3 Future Redeemed, Pokemon Scarlet The Teal Mask and Disney Illusion Island. And on PS5: Baldurs Gate 3, FFXVI, Bomb Rush Cyberfunk, Mortal Kombat 1, Sea of Stars and Sonic Frontiers. Guess we’ll see in next weeks journal if I was able to do that. Also decided on the games the rest of the year. That’s Detective Pikachu, Sonic Superstars, Super Mario Wonder, Spider-Man 2, Alan Wake 2, Like A Dragon Gaiden and Super Mario RPG. Very excited for all of them we have a excellent holiday season of gaming ahead. As for anime we finished a lot this week like Sugar Apple Fairy Tale. While some fall anime have started outside of Spy X Family I can only give one small tease of the ones I’m excited for and that is…… Frieren. Yes that cute little elf girl has stolen my heart already. Very excited and interested. As for podcasts it’s the usual. Castle Superbeast, Big Think Dimension, Nextlander, Remap Radio and RPGsite’s Tetracast. Also special shout-out to Critical Roles Zelda TOTK One Shot I think I’ll be using that for my 7 hour cart shift at 9 am on Saturday hahaha. Have a awesome weekend everyone and Happy Gaming.

@rusty82 yes I agree. It was refreshing. It’s a shame the devs paid the price. I’ll go back and platinum this because the combat is so satisfying.

With all the remakes and sequels coming out, I’ll be rather thirsty for something like this again in 2024.