Topic: What Games Are You Hoping For?

@colonelkilgore IGN posted a really good video detailing more about the lore and stuff for Black Myth. Well worth a watch.

@JohnnyShoulder I’ll check it out 👍

@Keith_Zissou I get that and respect the self-control.

As I’ve mentioned many times… I just don’t ‘get’ turn based action. I’ve tried a couple of the classics (albeit briefly) but no matter how much I’d love to click with the games I’ve tried (Persona 5 & Divinity: Original Sin 2), I just end up real bored… real quick.

But it looks like I’m gonna have to try (probably in vain) this style at least once more as this just looks awesome:

@colonelkilgore I can understand that if you're younger and/or didn't grow up with that, it likely seems odd. Its not a feature a lot of games have used in a while.

I personally did grow up with it, so it seems completely normal to me. It was the default mechanic for console RPG games (at least JRPG, which dominated) from the late 80s, all through the 90s, up through around 2010. For me, adjusting AWAY from this style to action RPGs was the adjustment.

I've found very few games that still use the style over the last decade, though. But heck, party based RPGs in general are sadly super hard to find, now.

@Unlucky13 I’m 42! 🤣 But yeah I never played any JRPG’s growing up… I kinda played a lot of beat’ em ups, shoot’ em ups and platformers during my childhood and teens. Stopped gaming really during my late teens to mid 20’s (though still bought a Sega Saturn, a PlayStation 1 and a Sega Dreamcast during this time… just didn’t really use them all that much). Then GTA3 hooked me back in but all I played was open world games for years. It’s only been the last 5 years that I’m open to playing every type of game… and in fairness I’ve enjoyed pretty much each and every genre… except games that have turn-based action.

@colonelkilgore I'm a year older than you and one of the first turn based combat games that I connected with was the original Final Fantasy 7, the PS1 version on PS2 through backwards compatibility. So I would have been in my early to mid twenties. I probably played a few beforehand but didn't really gel with them. I played a couple of Finial Fantasy games after 7 but kind drifted away from them after 10. One of the games that got me back into was Child of Light on PS4. Wouldn't say I'm a massive fan of them, but i don't let it put me off anymore, like was the case previously.

@JohnnyShoulder I'll keep trying as although I'm put off by the combat... the world's, lore and characters in a lot of these games massively appeals to me.

@colonelkilgore 🙌

I know it won't be out until next xmas (at least) but I can't wait for PSVR2.

@colonelkilgore Oh ok. We're almost the same age then. But we all obviously have our own preferences and styles. I'm the same way with first-person games. They've been everywhere for a while, but I have absolutely zero interest in playing them. Its just too weird and difficult for me.

@hypnotoad yeah I might go for PSVR2… never bothered with the original but am curious.

@Unlucky13 not a massive fan of first-person shooters myself… but do schedule them in occasionally. Quite like the Farcry games and I enjoyed Doom (2016) a lot more than I thought I would have.

As a turn-based fan, what do you make of that Astria Ascending?

@colonelkilgore As far as Astria goes, I'm unsure. While I respect the team that's making it, it feels outdated. A game not only last generation, or the one before that, but ages ago. It looks like it has PS2 era graphics but SNES era gameplay. Its something that I would have likely loved 20 years ago, but its hard for me to get hyped for something like that. My expectations have grown and are higher now.

@Unlucky13 I know what you mean but I think they’re intentionally going for that whole vanillaware-look… I love the aesthetic to be honest but it is probably a personal thing. I love the vanilla-ware designs too but that’s just me.

@colonelkilgore Yeah, I get that its become a thing. Some people like retro because it reminds them of the past or because they just think its cool. I personally want games to look as high end as is reasonably possible most of the time. That might mean semi-photo realistic like Ghost of Tsushima, or it might mean looking like a Pixar cartoon, but pushing the current system's possibilities has always been a big deal for me.

However, I also accept that not all studios are capable of that, and if they give it their best shot and create a deep and fun game that has mediocre graphics, I might still enjoy it as a AA experience. But I'm probably only paying 20-30 dollars for it.

PVR2 got you the dual sense controller.

@Unlucky13 yeah I can see that way of thinking… watch a gameplay video of Dragons Crown Pro though… it just looks phenomenal.

@colonelkilgore Its a game I might have enjoyed 25-30 years ago. It kind of reminds me thematically of the old TMNT or Simpsons arcade games of the early 90s. But its too fast paced and action oriented for me anymore.

I'm very much into games where I can take things slowly and carefully, explore, discover, and then pick my battles with enemies as I go. That's probably why the older Final Fantasy and other turn-based games appealed to me so much.

@Unlucky13 well take your enjoyment where you can find it buddy 👍. It’s funny, I was only having this discussion with a friend last night… he used to be ‘experimental’ in terms of his gaming and would try pretty much anything if it had good word of mouth etc. but now there is only one very specific and rarely catered for sub-genre that he wants to play.

On the other hand, I was always quite particular and would only invest my time into a couple of game-types but ended up going the other way and now try to play a bit of everything. As a result, he is cursed with nothing to play and I’m cursed with nowhere near enough hours in the day 😅.

@colonelkilgore I think there is finding a balance of trying new stuff out while still having some core experiences you will always go for and some you don't. Realistically you are not going to be able to play (and enjoy) every game out there, as there are just too many games available these days. For instance, I've played enough MMO and Battle Royale games to know they are not for me, so those are off the list and I won't even bother trying them any more. As I've grown older I learn just to accept this as when I was buying loads of games I eventually was becoming overwhelmed, and gaming was beginning not to be fun anymore. Which it should be at the end the day.