Topic: What PS4 Games Are You Currently Playing?

Had a spare hour after work this evening. So made a start on The Surge 2 and all things considered it seems good so far. Combat is really quite nice, considering I’ve barely scratched the surface as of yet… special mention to the directional parry which works well.

The major takeaway though, if you’re gonna play it boosted on PS5 play it Quality mode as Performance mode as the latter looked bloody awful. Pretty sure that the Quality mode still runs at 60 fps when boosted on PS5 anyway.

A little update on The Surge 2… about 3 hours in now and really liking it. The combat is so much faster than the original. So much so that I thought it was a little too ‘floaty’ initially… but it’s starting to click. Really enjoyed the level design of the Port Nixon area and the Little Johnny boss fight was class, better than all of the first games bosses combined.

Started playing Assassin's Creed Chronicles: China. I've had the trilogy pack in my backlog for probably 7-8 years now so it feels great to finally play through these games. I also haven't played an Assassin's Creed game in quite some time now and there aren't many left for me to play. Even though the Chronicles titles are 2.5D games, they still feel like AC. I'm having a blast playing through China and it's interesting exploring these different settings. Looking forward to playing more soon!

I haven't played a Tekken game since Tekken 5 on PS2 but all those trailers for Tekken 8 has really impressed me and so I decided to give Tekken 7 a shot.

It's ridiculously light on single player content with the arcade mode not having character endings and only a measly 5 battles to it as well.

Haven't touched the actual story mode yet but I've spent quite a bit of time doing "treasure battles" and worked my way up to 4th Dan already with one character.

... And not with a character I was expecting either.

Hwoarang, Eddie, King and especially Yoshimitsu were favourites to play as from previous games (Not that I was any good at them).

But I ended up trying a new character Katarina Alves and goddamn I'm just gelling so much with her Savate fighting style. Her kicks are absolutely devestating and I find she's pretty easy for a newcomer to use.

Really hope she makes the jump to Tekken 8.

... Also why is Lucky Chloë a thing? You have Cyborgs, Ninjas, Robots, The Misihma family and demonic bloodlines, Assassins and all sorts... And then a very "Kawaii" blonde streamer idol girl or something? Like what?!

Made a start (like an hour max) on Diablo 3 this evening and it was fun fair play. I did try the game back about 5 years ago and it just didn’t click… but I think it’ll be different this time. It might be a change in my mood… or the change in character class maybe, either way it’s a good sign.

I know I've already shared my adoration for Final Fantasy VII Remake in threads on this forum multiple times already in the previous weeks, but this game is so incredibly good and keeps getting better and better that it's almost obscene.

How were they able to completely catch that 90s fantasy RPG magic into an otherwise modern game so well is just beyond me. I feel giddy playing, like I'm 7 years old again, playing my first RPG. Magic, pure pure magic.

(Chapter 17 right now, by the way)

@Kidfried Really happy to see that you are continuing to have a great time with the game as it was a fantastic experience both times I played it. It'll be interesting to see what you think about the ending, as it's obviously divisive. I actually didn't mind the ending at all, although the PS5 version's extended ending is better. I hope it ends up being the complete experience from beginning to end like it was for me.

playing the Xdefiant beta on PC , really cant stress enough how great the dualsense controller is, literally the best video game controller ive ever used in my life. i tried the xbox controller first & it just wasnt as convenient or comfortable, crazy $ony is the go-to controller for shooters now. i use the dualsense honestly for every game i play that doesn't have mandatory xbox controller inputs or is an xbox game.

i kinda got off topic because its about games were playing, but god damn the dualsense is so good!!!!

@Kidfried I like you loved the Remake, I think they did all of the characters justice, the gameplay and the visuals where amazing and I liked what they did with the story. I loved the original but I believe that Nostalgia sometimes holds us back. Heck I'm just going to say it I like the new one more than the original, There I said it!

@MaulTsir I would definitely recommend Final Fantasy VII Remake over playing the original to new gamers. I think it perfectly captures anything that's great from the first part of that game, and improves on it as well.
(I don't really like saying that, because in general I'm someone who really loves all those great video game classics. I think some of the best game experiences you can have today are found on the SNES. But FF7 might be that rare case of the remake being superior.)

@Kidfried Shhhh, don't tell too many people that. You will ruin their childhood memories.

I can't actually give my opinion on which one I prefer as I never finished the original while finishing the remake twice, but I have my doubts I would like the original more. I wouldn't mind actually going back and playing the original again and actually finishing it, but it's low on my priority list given everything else I have to play.

@KilloWertz The port is easily available, though!

I didn't finish FF7 either, I must confess. Though I did play through everything FF7 Remaster covers. So my opinion is definitely somewhat uninformed.

@Kidfried I know. I could literally play it on almost anything, It's just with so many games coming out and so many I still want to play in my backlog, it's not easy to fit something in that I wouldn't mind playing but isn't a high priority. It's not exactly a short game either, which doesn't help.

I believe I did as well, although it is multiple decades since I've played it. Unfortunately it's a product of getting stuck in a spot and then giving up on it like I did with several games back in those days before YouTube help videos existed.

@KilloWertz @Kidfried @MaulTsir The Remake better than the OG FF7!?! Sacrilege!
😜

Although I’m not quite as high on the Remake as you all, I did like it. From a technical and visual standpoint, it’s fantastic. I really enjoyed the characters also and felt that voice acting and 3D facial modeling added so much more to the experience of getting to know them. The story however… it’s a bit of a question mark for me. Hopefully they salvage it with Rebirth or Resurrection or Renovation or Reconciliation, or whatever this second installment is called.

@Th3solution sounds like Redemption or Rectification might be more apt 😉

@Th3solution You probably posted this already a long while ago, but I'm wondering what's the part of the story you didn't like.

@colonelkilgore Retaliation, maybe? Or better yet, Regurgitation? 😂

@Kidfried It was the ending when things seemed to go a little off-rails. And it’s not even necessarily that it veers wildly from the source material, but that’s part of it. I guess it just seemed the last story sections get muddled and confusing with this idea of whispers and altering fate. It’s like they have built in a metaverse concept whereby they can manipulate the plot however they want without relying on sensical writing. Clearly they want to retcon Aerith’s death, one of the most iconic gaming moments of all time which is fine, but the way it’s conveniently handled through the idea of alternate fates or whatever seems very… I don’t know, vague and too convenient? The ending seemed rushed too which added to the loose and incomplete feeling of not all. When you see Zack show up, it’s supposed to be a teaser, I realize, but it just made me confused and feel a bit left out because I never played Crisis Core, which until a couple months ago there wasn’t a way to play it without a device from 20 years ago. People have complained the story has treaded into Kingdom Hearts territory, and I can’t speak to that since I’ve never played those, but I do know they are definitely games that are known for ridiculously twisted and nonsensical storytelling. I’m just hoping it doesn’t get that way with FF7 remakes going forward.

Like I say, I liked the game a lot, and I plan to be there if not day 1 probably within the launch period of the second game, depending how it reviews. I just wished they fleshed out this whole alternate storyline concept better, and maybe they will.

@Th3solution Well, I did say I never finished the original, so....

It's Rebirth by the way. Who knows afterwards. Maybe they third one will be one of the other ones. Maybe even Final Fantasy VII: We Swear We Aren't Killing Aerith This Time.

I've technically only finished the original FF7 once, but have replayed it up to the point where you're right before the final dungeon at least six times over the years. I guess I really just didn't want it to end.

@Th3solution It's like they delivered on 95% of remaking FF7's Midgar arc rather faithfully, and then, at the last minute, decide to go full Kingdom Hearts-level bonkers with everything in a way that totally throws off the story progression. If you told me they decided to allow a child to storyboard the last couple of hours of that game, or that the ending was just a really weird acid trip, I'd take it.

It's actually the second time recently that a beloved Japanese property I'm invested in has seen a modern release that was billed as a remake, but eventually flips the table and reveals itself to be a stealth sequel. It's pretty much that meme... if I had two nickels for every time it'd happened to me, I'd only have ten cents, but it's still weird it happened twice.

It definitely didn't ruin the game for me, but it does make me VERY wary of where they're going with the story in the sequels.

@Ralizah Yes, exactly! And I’m not an expert on the original story of FF7, having played it once several years ago, but I know the ending of the Remake felt very foreign. You described it perfectly.

What was the other franchise that did the ol’ bait-and-switch on its remake?