Topic: What PS4 Games Are You Currently Playing?

The Last of Us Part II ... currently murdering Seraphites with Ellie.

@Zuljaras That part when you're just walking thru the woods and get an arrow to the shoulder scared me! Brilliant stuff.

@TraCuz- Well it was no surprise to me because I watched the whole game last year. Now I just want to enjoy the scenery myself

Ah The Last of Us Part II. What a game.

Crazy to think this time a year ago the internet was starting to go nuts about several key moments from the game and rumours started that it wasn't going to be worth playing and a disaster waiting to happen.

How wrong I was to be worried. I absolute adored this bleak yet strangely beautiful, depressing but also hopeful game and it's still very much a game all things considered. It's challenging and there are some truly nightmarish 'levels' (The Descent being the worst of the lot imo) but it's also fun to play and really satisfying when you take down an enemy in one hit or find a great new weapon or upgrade or simply just 'existing' in that world and experiencing it through someone else's skin. Very special and I'm just sad that I couldn't get to play it completely blind as quite a lot was ruined for me.

@Col_McCafferty I actually play it just for the environments. Nothing else as I was extremely disappointed in the story and character development

But that world building and the atmosphere are really good!

@Col_McCafferty
I think when a game like that comes along, best bet to avoid spoilers is to get it on day one and avoid games sites and social media until the story is finished. But as you say, it was still one hell of an experience.

@Col_McCafferty I'm currently playing through the first one in prep for part 2 later this year. I've almost completed the online requirements (been quite the slog... but it is a very good mp template). Havent played the single player since 2015, so I can't remember a great deal, so I'm looking forward to refamiliarising myself with it.

And obviously, I'm really looking forward to playing part 2.

@LieutenantFatman I did buy it day one but unfortunately I didn't stop going online so the various algorithms worked their 'magic'.

Watch one The Last of Us Part II video on YT and they assume you'd like to see more of them, including those with obvious spoilers in the thumbnail and/or text!

@Th3solution I just beat the first real boss of Biomutant this morning, pleased with myself, how are you finding the Control DLC? Still playing that?

@Col_McCafferty
Yeah, that's YouTube in a nutshell. I do use it quite a bit myself, and I fell into a similar trap earlier this morning, so easily done, lol. Should call it spoiler tube.

@TheBrandedSwordsman Congrats on progressing through Biomutant. Looks like you’re still enjoying yourself, so I have a fair amount of curiosity about the game, and might give it a try down the road.

Control DLC is done and dusted. It was really good. The bosses were quite challenging. I think the boss for the first expansion was the hardest, but the boss for the second was also really difficult and I died about 8-10 times before besting it. It required constant movement and evasion while picking your attacks carefully. Not like a Souls boss exactly, but similar in that getting too greedy offensively puts you in dire situation to die quickly. Anyways, it’s done and I’ve moved on now. Can’t wait for a sequel to the game, I hope.

I started Subnautica on PS5 with the game club and it’s decent. It’s a survival and resource management / building game, minimal combat. It’s a nice change of pace and more laid back. Although I hope to stick with it to conclusion, I got a little bored of it after a few hours so took a break and started A Plague Tale: Innocence on PS4. I had heard good things about it so expected to like it but I’m actually pleasantly surprised that it is exceeding my expectations completely. I’m only an hour or two into it, but I have really, really positive first impressions. I actually thought about you while playing it, thinking in my head that it might resonate with you. I think you asked a couple months ago about any games that were similar to Uncharted, and this might be close enough to qualify. It’s not a cover based shooter and combat seems much less of a focus with a lot more emphasis on stealth and light puzzle / problem solving, but it’s got that linear story-driven third-person core to it that reminded me of the Naughty Dog games. I’ll have to keep you updated, but I really like the story and setting so far (Medieval 1300’s France) it feels really distinctive and the protagonist is unique to play as (a young girl and her little brother). I like a good third-person narrative-driven game every now and then.

@Th3solution @TheBrandedSwordsman I’d second the ‘A Plague Tale: Innocence’ recommendation! Great game if you like that type of thing. Get’s even better as it goes on!

@Jimmer-jammer I played another couple hours - on chapter 4 now, and it’s great. I love how these AA games produce high quality but do things just different enough to feel fresh apart from the AAA fare. The game has done a fantastic job in making me connect to the characters, and done so with actually very little exposition or dialogue. I think there is something about playing as vulnerable young people that instinctively makes you want to see them succeed in their plight and inherently want to protect them.

The gameplay is nothing complex, but I like that about the game. It’s a great ‘pick up and play’ game to just enjoy without having to devote a lot of energy to struggle with complicated systems and menus.

The art and graphical presentation is actually quite good, although clearly nothing on par with the best AAA stuff out there. Character models are a little janky at times and movement can occasionally appear strange or stiff. Yet the world is beautiful and the colors and environments are spot on with what I would image life would appear like in the Middle Ages.

Well, here I’ve gone off and nearly done a review of the game, and I’m only about a fourth of the way through it. 😅 My early impressions are positive, to say the least.

@Th3solution I completely understand your excitement! When I first played it I had no expectations at all and it turned out to be one of my favourite games of 2019. Amicia is such a well realized character, I thoroughly enjoyed playing as her.

I quite like when things are kept simple. Complexity is great too but simple can be equally as moving. Look to Inside. With that said, the systems do layer by the late game and I’ll just say that it does offer a deeper experience than I was expecting. If ever there is a sequel of some kind, I will be there. Glad to hear you’re enjoying it. Let us know how things progress!

@Jimmer-jammer Good to know the experience continues to please all the way through. I’ll certainly continue to post my thoughts! Especially since I have a fellow admirer of the game 😄

And I forgot to mention one of my favorite experiences with the game so far —
It’s a simple thing really, but the first human enemy you come across that you can kill... that was just an amazing small moment. We get so accustomed to killing enemies in games that I didn’t even bat an eye when I came to that situation and I just pulled out my sling and shot the guard with a rock to the head for a kill so I could move past him. While I had murdered almost without thinking, Amicia recoils in horror at what she’s done and sobs quietly, pleading to her inner conscience ... and it just shook me. I realized at how lackadaisically I have come to approach killing people in games and this was the first time in a long while that the game made me emotionally step back and ponder what I had done. It was a simple little interchange; the game didn’t get melodramatic with the whole sequence, or pause and blare some Hollywood fanfare to make it feel hyperbolic — rather it was this sweet and innocent moment that I’ll probably always remember about this game. Then there’s this subtle moment later when she realizes Hugo was watching when she killed the first boss that also drove the realism further. Just a well executed atmosphere, above what I’ve seen other games be able to do.

Anyways, I just wanted to share that.
Definitely getting vibes like it’s a marriage of The Last of Us and Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons.

@Th3solution That (A Plague Tale: Innocence) is now next on my list to play after Biomutant! Thanks for thinking of me whilst playing it, anything Uncharted-flavored will float my boat I'm sure, and I do like puzzles, as long as they are not too hard!

@Th3solution A Plague Tale: Innocence is really really good, it took me by surprise too, glad you are enjoying. It is full of those little character moments you explained which help fill them out. I can't wait too see what you think of what happens in the last part of the game, as it could go either way.

@JohnnyShoulder Yeah, I’m sitting here thinking about the game while at work, itching to get back into the story when I get home. It’s one of those games.
I have a little time this weekend so maybe I can finish it, or at least take a large chunk out of it.

@Th3solution It not the longest of games either but I thought the run time was judged pretty much perfectly. The platinum is not too hard to get but I did resort to a guide in order to obtain the collectibles I missed the first time round, and there are a couple of decision based ones, so will need to make use of the chapter selection.

@Th3solution sounds like that truly was an impactful moment for you...it is interesting how killing forms the basis of (arguably) most gaming experiences. I think it’s good that games like this or The Last of Us attempt, with varying levels of success, to explore this fact in a meaningful way, though I enjoy a 500 body count romp as much as the next person. There are definitely a few moments in Amicia and Hugo’s journey that will stick with me for quite some time. As @JohnnyShoulder mentioned, the platinum is very doable, though I’m still a couple trophy’s short. I’ve been meaning to go back through this one for a long while.