@Jackpaza0508 you can draw them anywhere, should have seen my mates business studies folder after a year of sitting next to me during A levels. He never did become an entrepreneur 🤔
Edit: Just going to add spoiler tags around all of this because I am not sure who has finished the game (I know that anyone who I've tagged has finished it though) and I am a bit too tired right now to work out what parts of my post are actually spoilers.
I just finished the main story and have gone back to read the more spoilerific comments now, I avoided most of them particularly the ones about bullying as I kind of wanted to make my own mind up on that. It certainly seems that all aspects of the game have divided opinions and I am sure mine will be no different!
I don't know why the game didn't click with me for the first few chapters. It could be the poor performance I experienced, the motion controls, maybe the pacing just dragged a bit. Or it could have been me, I was really burned out by the last game I played so I wasnt really up for playing games this week and also I've been feeling the need to do something productive in my day times such as exercise which I often procrastinate on for ages and do it very late which doesn't leave much time for gaming.
I had a much better time with the second "half" of the game this evening but unfortunately I don't know why for certain! I had both a productive day (9 or so mile walk) but also felt like the pacing of the game picked up and the mechanics became less tedious. So it's that classic "it's not you, it's me" thing except that I am not entirely sure that it is!
My problem with the motion controls is that it's a two handed affair. If I could hold the DS4 in any other way and have a more natural "pointer" than the light bar, then it would have been way better. Even the sideways spray can position from Infamous: Second Son would have been more appropriate for the intricacies of the painting in this game. (I thought it was dumb in the otherwise excellent Second Son because you just spray a predefined tag.) Either way, I ended up using the right stick exclusively just so I could progress through the game.
I think as some others have mentioned, it may have been better to combine both styles of play from the get go. It would just add more variety. Part 1 is stealth, painting and exploration, part 2 is combat and different kinds of exploration. It just would have broken it up a bit more and stopped part 1 from becoming tedious and part 2 from becoming too action oriented.
The bullying one is a tricky one as discussed by @Kidfried@LieutenantFatman@Th3solution and @RogerRoger which is why I didn't read your comments before finishing the game. My immediate thought of the backstory and ultimate redemption of the bullies was a positive one. I did certainly think that in the worse bullies at school, this sort of beleaguered upbringing was often the cause. I did also immediately think of workplace bullying too and how while this can at least explain the behaviour in children that it absolutely cannot justify it in adults. I've been on all sides of the fence of this in my life, I've been treated very (very) poorly by both the most troubled individuals and also picked on by the "group" and I've also been part of the "group" that's picked on others. You can call it a vicious cycle or you can just call it what it was, which was bad behaviour and bad form on my part. So I definitely see where you are coming from Kidfried when you talk about the ringers in the group that don't really have the tragic backstory.
I don't think conformity is cool, especially as an adult. I value differences of (actual) opinion massively. But I also know the value of having friends. I can sit here and be into my comic books and video games, be a total movie and TV nerd etc and I don't feel like I have to give any of that up to actually have friends. There's an economy to it, hobbies give you something that you need and social interaction gives you something else. So while I may spend an evening not speaking about or thinking about Captain America's pyjamas or Batman's jockstrap, I'll satisfy another itch I might have by having a drink down the pub with friends. Sometimes you can just let go of your differences and enjoy the time you have together now before you go to war with your opinions another day.
It's funny that I have experienced two facets to this. My worse enemies have become best friends and my best friends have become worse enemies. All of it has been learning experience as to where my limits for various things are. I've let go of a lot of my sensitivity and learned to take a joke which is very rewarding but at the same time I will try to speak up if a joke goes too far, which has occasionally resulted in broken friendships. But if someone can't respect your limits then I guess they aren't a true friend. Likewise, friends who enjoy it will receive more banter from myself than a friend who has clearly stated that their limit for that sort of thing is much lower than others. You just kind of treat people how they want to be treated and unfortunately this is something that most people don't properly understand until they are an adult (if they even do then). It's true there are very mature people that are like that from a younger age but my experience with that at school was limited.
Having said all that, even with some of the total BS I put up with school, I wouldn't change it for the world. I look back at it very fondly even if it is through the rose tinted spectacles of time and in terms of the respect I eventually learned for others as well as stamping out any BS before it becomes a problem, it has shaped who I am today. Unfortunately some of the worse aspects of this learning came when I was an adult. About ten years ago a "friend" very seriously threatened to kill me, which meant I was too afraid to leave the house for about 3 years. Even when I did, if I even thought I saw or heard this guy then I would break down into a panic attack. Luckily Ive not seen him since though and generally that mind state has faded over the last decade even if it doesn't truly ever go away.
My main experience of work place bullying was a manager who would basically just pick on me, be nice to me, pick on me, be nice again and so forth. Totally inapropriate for the work place and it was worse working under him because you always felt like your job was in peril should you speak up. It was both words and physical. I can take and laugh at someone saying something like "oi (my name) ya fat c***" but this guy would really dig into my lifestyle choices and pick everything apart, not to mention just throwing things at me and hitting me. Basically it was the abuse of power that I had a problem with, the feeling of helplessness. Frankly, when my contract at that place was up, I was completely done with working in any kind of corporate environment, anywhere where you would have to put up with or even feign sucking up to those who are deemed above you. My perception of it was that it was just pathetic way of living and not for me.
More recently, I had to put up with an actual friend becoming increasingly nasty to me and my partner. I understand why he was like that, we met through him so there was a sense of jealousy at our relationship even if it wasn't a romantic jealousy. But after telling him to stop and it not stopping, I just had to end it with him. It was hard and it sucked but there is a limit that needs to be respected by all parties. We shared friends too so it was even worse in that respect and affected them poorly. Obviously there's no totally removing yourself from that situation so our relationship has mended to the point of politeness and civility which is probably about as far as it will go.
So yeah what was my point lol, apologies for that emotional vomit through my life 😅. My point was that everybody has limits and your limit with one person will be different to your limit with another which is why you treat different people differently and you are willing to accept insults jovially from one person but become all frosty to the same insults from another. I did have perhaps a naive optimism from the end of this game but honestly, the kids experience being friends with the group that bullied him could go either way after the end of this story. It could go balls up and they go their separate ways or it could be marvelous and they could become really tight. The key thing is that they took their first step to a path of redemption and conciliation by letting go of the negative aspects of their previous status quo and hopefully move toward something that is more rewarding for all involved. I mean it might not work out but that's life, at least they are going to give it a try. So no, bullying is not OK but embracing the situation (as gut wrenchingly hard as it is) can teach both the bully something and the victim something and that's the general takeaway that I got from this story. Of course you don't have to go that way in real life and there is absolutely nothing wrong with cutting all ties with a bully and sometimes/mostly it has to be done. It really depends on the person and again, such is life with all its contradictions, an olive branch you may be willing to accept from one person for whatever reason you may decline from another.
Anyway, I went on for rather long about that topic for some reason and just wanted to say wicked shots @RogerRoger ! I only took one other screen cap apart from my childish creativity in the first post on this page and it's this one of my man floating in front of a beautiful but grim landscape!
@nessisonett@Mr_B021 ok I have made a truly monstrous genie. Please please please only click this link at your own risk. This genie is most certainly NSFW and may scar you for life...
Hopefully I’m not jumping in too early, but...
Question about Hitman —
I actually bought the Definitive Edition on disc before it was offered on PS+ (although I claimed that digital base version too) and I’ve started it up, playing from the disc, and made it through the training missions. So far it looks fun, but much more difficult than I expected it. Anyways, I won’t get too far into the gameplay discussion, I was mainly trying to make sure I did the training and that I understand the basic premise before playing the game proper. And on the menu, I’m being prompted to download the “Legacy Pack” for free. It says it’s some kind of upgraded version with upgrades from Hitman 2? I’m confused. I thought it was extra content, like new levels, so I started the download (all 36 GB of it!) and it looks like the downloads are just the same levels — at least the download titles are the same : Paris, Bangkok, Sapienza, etc. So what is the Legacy Pack, and if it alters the original levels, should I play it or the originals? This plus the strange separated structure of the game in a bit confusing.
Edit: So... after searching online, the description sounds like the pack doesn’t really add content for playing Hitman 1, that it only lets you play the H1 content within H2??
Why is it prompting me to download it? That really should be clearer. Like at least some kind of prompt stating to only download the packet if you have H2, or maybe the game could check and look for H2 data on the hard drive and attach the DLC there, but instead l just downloaded nearly 40 GB of meaningless data onto my hard drive. I don’t know how easy it’s going to be to delete either, but I guess I’ll just leave it on there in case I do like this enough to buy H2. Just a really weird system.
@Th3solution You’d be better off buying Hitman 3 if you enjoy the first one. You can play the levels from 1 and 2 within it, with the enhancements from 3. The legacy pack is a strange system but with Hitman 3, you just need the original game installed and then you can redeem the upgrade for free within Hitman 3’s menu. It’s a bloody mess.
@Th3solution it let's you play the first one with the second games enhanced visuals, which have a ps4 pro upgrade if your on that or ps5. I've been doing that via the demo version of hitman 2 but have bought a copy of 2 and 3 this morning so I can get all my hitman on ps5. @ralphdibny great post, bullring is very hard and nuanced Subject (as evidenced by your experience) and so it was probably always a big ask for a game like this to tackle it in that after school special show kind of way. Many of your experiences, particularly the boss who cycles how they behave, are all too familiar. Hope things are better now
@ralphdibny
Wow, thanks for sharing, it definitely helps to know what others have been through and what impact it's had on them. I know that feeling of feeling helpless, it is awful and hard to endure.
I've been through the mill a few times as well, threats, assaults, being excluded from groups, etc, etc.
It was the sustained attacks on my character, or character assassination, that was worst for me, both once at school and once at work, that both times brought me so very low and made me feel less than worthless. It's incredibly tough to go through that sort of thing alone. Having experienced that myself, I always make sure I'm there for other people when I see similar behaviour being inflicted on them now, and tell them I've got their back. I've been told a few times the support has been hugely appreciated, so it's nice to know those experiences ended with something positive in the long run.
It's interesting that you mentioned about friends crossing that line and having to make the difficult choice to part ways, I had to do that recently myself. I was part of a group where one individual kept spreading a lot of misinformation and denialism about a particular type of hate crime and stating that it wasn't important. After trying to talk some sense into her on several occasions in the friendlist way possible, it got to the point where I just had to leave the group. Must admit, I did lose a lot of sleep over that. I didn't create any drama, I just left after challenging the behaviour one last time, so I think most people in the group just pretended nothing had happened. My mental health really did take a downward spiral, I think I've come to terms with it now but it was hard.
Really sorry to hear you felt afraid to leave your house for so long, that sounds horrendous, that must have made life really difficult.
Interesting that a video game can bring about a discussion like this.
I bought Sleeping Dogs for less than a fiver just over 3 years ago. I am really annoyed at myself for putting this game on the backlog of shame for sooo long, it is giving me serious Infernal Affairs vibes.
@LobsterJohnson
Definitely worth playing, even if it's just to burn though the main story and ignore all the open worldy stuff. Has a very entertaining narrative.
As always, drop a message if you want to be added or removed from The Great Tag List.
Alrighty, now that Concrete Genie seems to be done or abandoned (sorry) for most people, we’ll be moving onto Hitman.
Given how convoluted the upgrade procedure is, I’ll give a quick summary. On PS Plus, they gave away Hitman Season 1. This is a standalone app in which you play those levels. You can also buy Hitman 2, in which case you can transfer those PS Plus Hitman 1 levels across and have access to seasons 1 and 2. There is finally Hitman 3, in which you can transfer Season 1 across from PS Plus but have to buy Hitman 2 separately. Hitman 3 on PS5 is the way I’ll be playing these levels as I own the trilogy but I expect most people who haven’t played before to be using the Season 1 app.
There are some training missions, Guided Training, Freeform Training and The Final Test. These are optional but recommended if you really don’t know what you’re doing. Feel free to play these first. Otherwise, the level this week is Paris.
The levels are designed to be played multiple times, using different methods to assassinate your targets. This is why I’m structuring the playthrough in this way. You also get a score and a time after completing a level, so make sure to drop your best score and fastest time in the week and we’ll see who wins!
@ralphdibny Hey buddy, I failed to remark earlier that I did really enjoy reading your thoughts and personal takes regarding Concrete Genie and your experiences with bullying. There is a real strength of character that you display through learning from your life experiences. I especially thought it poignant when you contrasted the difference between adult bullying and child bullying. Your post brought back some memories for me. Thanks!
——————
As for Hitman, I played through the training levels last night in order to prep for the ‘real’ levels to begin and I can see how this game is such a cult favorite. The first training session is very well done as an intro, but there is a high difficulty spike when getting to the final test. I’m nervous that I won’t be very good at this. I kept having to suppress the instinct of just pulling my gun out and mowing people down. That definitely gets you in trouble quickly in this game. 😅
“We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.”
@Th3solution The final training level is quite tricky the first time around. I also find Paris to be one of the more challenging areas, just due to how many people are around.
It may seem daunting at first, but you can do it if you take it slowly and carefully.
@crimsontadpoles Yeah, I think I was taking things too hastily. There was one of my runs through the freeform training in which I had accidentally alerted the whole security force and they were chasing me down shooting me and yet I managed to make it to the car and successfully complete the level despite having compromised my secrecy and being actively shot. I expected the game to not let me finish while they were in active hunt mode but I guess you can. I guess that’s where the scoring system comes in.
The game really is a creative and intriguing approach to gameplay. I’m not sure I’ve played any game before that has quite this type of loop and combination of stealth, subterfuge, and sandbox elements. Reminds me slightly of MGS in the way stealth is important and how I always tried to play my MGS games as non-lethal as possible and avoid unnecessary slaughter. The only other similar game experience I can think of are the older Assassin’s Creed titles that emphasized blending in and assassinating a target without being seen. Obviously Hitman appears to be much more intricately designed as far as assassination gameplay than either of those two series.
Not sure how I ignored the Hitman series this long. I think I’ll like it.
————
As a follow up to my earlier post about downloading the Legacy Pack for those of us who don’t own Hitman 2 or 3, after finishing the large download, it does appear that I have access to a few DLC outfits and weapons and a couple extra missions (“Patient Zero” and “Sarajevo Six”?) and maybe other stuff too because I don’t know what “escalation contracts” or “elusive target contracts” or “featured contracts” are yet. So I don’t know, I guess I’ll just leave the additional DLC downloaded on my PS4 because if I go deleting stuff then it may mess with access to some of this bonus content. But my Hitman HDD file is now 100 GB and that’s with me playing it off of a BD disc!
“We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.”
@Th3solution It does seem weird that it's downloading the legacy pack if you don't have Hitman 2 or 3. I'm not sure why it's doing that, but it's probably not needed if you're just playing the Hitman 1 levels using Hitman 1.
The legacy packs are just there to allow the player to play the older levels in the newer games. That way, all the locations along with equipment, ranking, challenges etc are all accessible in one place.
It does get confusing with the different editions, legacy packs and whatnot.
The Patient Zero campaign, escalations, and featured contracts are just side content. They can be played whenever, but I'd suggest focusing on the game's main story first.
Elusive Targets were a set of targets that were only available for a limited time. Unfortunately they're no longer available in Hitman 1 and 2.
@Kidfried haha cheers for the clarification, I did initially read it as sarcastic which made me laugh but even before you explained, I had reread it as sincere but I guess I wasn't entirely sure. Not that it matters, both responses are positive in their own way 😅
Unfortunately, I don't think the gameplay mechanics of my life are as good as those in most games. I can just imagine it now...Press R1 to roll out of bed...Shake the Dualshock to brush your teeth. I actually think I'm describing Heavy Rain 😂
@R1spam cheers for reading it, yeah it is hard to really encapsulate the topic from a multitude of perspectives so I think all one can really do is talk about their own experience on either side of the fence. In an ideal world, I would like to not condemn bullies especially as it would be a bit hypocritical for me to do so. I think giving them space to talk about how bullying makes them feel, why they think they do it and hopefully move on with their life, even if it's as far away from the victim as possible. Having said that, it's really hard to offer that platform to somebody you hate because of the huge negative impact they've had on your life. I don't really seek revenge on anyone who has wronged me and if they can find solace in facing their own actions without involving me in any way then more power to them but for the most part, I would rather just never see them again. But yeah, pandering to many viewpoints rarely works in any situation and it creates division between peoples who are largely similar but have a particular sticking point that would otherwise not come up if they hadn't been forced to have a conversation about it. The game was right to pick something and run with it and I liked it but I can see why others might not as their own experience with and perception of the topic could be vastly different to my own.
@LieutenantFatman cheers, I am glad it was helpful to you in some way. It's such a weird one because I would never say something like that to my friends. I'd give it the time of day if they said something like it to me but I doubt they would if it was the other way around. And that's totally fine. Emotional stuff isn't for everyone, especially being a listener and the capacity of a person to listen can be vastly different on any given day depending on their mood. I know first hand that it's not pleasurable for anyone I'm around for me to mope in social situations so I use the time to forget my worries and enjoy the present instead. It's just a time and a place thing I suppose. I was apprehensive to write about that stuff here too but I guess I wanted to contextualise my viewpoint seeing as it was being discussed anyway.
The character assassinations are the worse, that's definitely a common thread in most of my experience. There's sort of an allowance for it between friends which is fine but you should never introduce your friend to a stranger with "This is such and such and he is a total (negative description)", it's just humiliating. Even the allowance between friends is incredibly small, you don't want to go to every social event and be referred to as something that's not preferrable. I think it crosses the line when someone's said it so much that other people begin to say it too as if it's "how you are known" now. That sort of level begins the paranoia about whether people actually think this of you and it's beyond a joke and they are talking about you behind your back. It's just not healthy and there are very few situations where you would feel comfortable to speak up about it as you've begun to feel that any support you had has now begun to turn against you.
Really sad to hear how things worked out with your whole group. It's easy and common to think that things go unnoticed as if you don't matter yourself. It speaks volumes of one's own self esteem and self perception and it's something I am guilty of. In many ways it's better than kidding yourself that "ah this is really going to pee them off" as if you have an inflated self worth which also speaks volumes to the self worth of somebody who would say that because I am sure that inflation comes from insecurity. But yeah, I think the reality of the situation is somewhere in the middle and it's really hard to remember that. If I begin to think I don't matter or that nobody cares, I really have to force myself to think and to remember that while I might not have people keeled over in despair about my reaction to a perceived injustice, it's definitely had an effect. Whether that's a pause for thought, a dismissive comment (which usually hides a deeper caring that the person doesn't want to acknowledge) or even a rational discussion. You matter in some way, it's just usually a lot less or a lot more than you think you do depending on whether you are under or over compensating for the effect you have on other people.
Yeah those three years sucked lol, I did spend it watching the entire canon of Star Trek though which was awesome. I did go out and see friends but it was horrible for me and I imagine for them, just having somebody around constantly looking over their shoulder, always wanting to leave early so I could travel at a safer time and other manifestations of my anxiety. But yeah, it is what it is really, I've learned to be careful who I trust and to not get involved in other people's business (among other more positive sounding things lol).
@Th3solution no worries! Cheers for reading it, I know you've already posted your thoughts on it too which I've read with interest anyway. I just thought I'd add my own thoughts to the discussion!
But yeah it's hard to talk about the topic with any conviction without referring to or at least implying personal experience. It's definitely been a very interesting discussion!
@ralphdibny
Thanks man, you have a lot of empathy, I can see that, and a lot of wisdom, definitely appreciated.
I'm glad you're feeling safer these days. Just tag me if you ever need to chat, or give me a shout on psn. Friendships can be complicated things, I guess we get better at learning how to handle these things with experience, just like everything else.
Not a glitch this time! I just managed to position him off the edge of a billboard between two lights. I guess it was a solid object between the lights even if visibly it looks like a space between them. Brought the camera down to hide the billboard and voila! I'm guessing you have refrained from clicking my NSFW creations, I don't blame you. I like to temper my introspection with juvenile behaviour 😂
@LieutenantFatman cheers to you too! Haha thanks for the compliment, wise and empathetic is not something I think I have ever been called in real life 😅. Honestly though, I just try not to kid myself which is super hard to do. Not everything can be resolved and I just have to accept that and move on. Same to you though, message me on PSN if things are feeling a bit sideways. And you too @RogerRoger as I have you on PSN as well!
Should get another game of Darkstalkers going if your up for it? Or another fighting game? I have a ton of different ones on PS3/4 and switch. Just picked up those £1 guilty gear games on PS4, I also have MvC 3 and infinite, MKX, injustice 1+2, street fighter 4 and soul Calibur 6 on PS4. Street fighter 2 hd, UMvC 3 and MK9 on PS3, oh yeah and the soul Calibur that has Darth Vader, can't remember which number it is, 4 I think. On Switch I have Dragonball FighterZ, Streetfighter 2: various subtitles, Street fighter 30th collection, power rangers battle for the grid and Fight of Gods -not sure if that one has online though.
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