@RogerRoger I loved ICO and I think it was pretty much for the exact same reasons that you mentioned as being the good parts! The scale and that castle, I just love ridiculous castles in games for some reason. I couldn't get into SotC when I played it tbh but I will get around to finishing it some day. I haven't played the last guardian yet either but I have it on disc and will play it some day. What did you mean about seeing the castle again in TLG, is it set in the same place or something? The HD version also supports 3D, I really want play it in 3D at some point if I can secure the now hard to find at a reasonable price technology to do so!
@colonelkilgore well done on finishing Peace Walker! Have you finished the final chapter where you have to keep finding that guy and beat Metal Gear Zeke at Mother Base? Also did you manage to unlock the two Date missions and the Monster Hunter crossover missions? I can't remember the exact method of getting it but there is a weapon called the Fulton Cannon or something that is absolutely brilliant for those stupid tank and armoured vehicle missions because you can Fulton a bunch of enemies with one well aimed shot.
@ralphdibny so gone and found Zadornov 7 times and then beat you know who atop mother base and had a date with Paz. The date with Kaz hasn't become available yet though. Still playing through the 2nd and 3rd generations of the various ai's so I havent gotten to the Monster Hunter crossover ops yet either.
I was playing some co-op earlier this week and my partner had the fulton cannon, that paired with the infinity bandana seems a pretty OP combination. I don't have either yet but will be looking to get them ASAP.
@ralphdibny As far as the Ico setting, I can’t be overly confident because it’s been a while since I played it, but I don’t think the castle is point-for-point the same structure as The Last Guardian, but I think Rog was referring to the fact it is thematically, artistically, and functionally the same basic kind of structure as the castle in Ico, just less well done. The awe and wonder of seeing it would certainly be blunted after seeing TLG’s more sophisticated rendition.
But here’s where it gets a little touchy, not trying to spoil things — if/when you play Shadow of the Colossus and The Last Guardian, there are plenty of theories about the three games being in the same universe and interconnected. In fact I think it’s fairly safe to say they are. As for whether the exact locale is supposed to be identical, I don’t know. I don’t think so. Definitely there is a shared world amongst Ueda’s games.
“We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.”
@crimsontadpoles Hey, fair enough! You have reminded me that, despite my general ambivalence towards the game, I did appreciate the boy's animations. His unrefined bat-swinging, panicked balancing and frantic swimming were neat aesthetic touches that made sense for one his age.
Like I said, maybe I just played them the wrong way around. That and yeah, forming a relationship with a bird-dog holds much more appeal to me than a mostly-mute anime girl.
As you say, takes all sorts! Glad you like it. Have you gone for its platinum, by any chance?
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@Ralizah Yeah, it does make me wonder what Ueda will do next, and whether he's only capable of variations on a theme. Which is no bad thing (in the context of wider gaming, outnumbered by so many shooters and whatnot, they're uniquely beautiful experiences) but I'm left wondering whether I'd have preferred Ico had I left longer between it and The Last Guardian. Right down to the whole "shared bond" mechanic (as you're right, I'd heard similar about Agro) which was so potently effective for Trico, having been refined to near-perfection by what came before.
Bluepoint know how to remaster a game. The PS3 version's performance is flawless. I encountered zero framerate hitches (there's a fuzzy filter in some areas, which I'm assuming dynamically lowers the detail to keep things running smoothly) and only a small handful of glitches inherent to the game's core design, like enemies getting stuck in walls and some infrequent wonky jumping.
No idea how the PS2 original runs. I get the feeling the remaster might've been necessary.
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@Th3solution Oh hey, it might be the perfect game to try replaying! Especially since it's so short (perhaps even shorter when you know what you're doing). I respect you wanting to keep your "warm fuzzies" intact, and therefore respect your overall 2021 resolution as a result, but you might have a better experience than I did. Moreso considering you played The Last Guardian a while back (wasn't it this time last year?) and would have nostalgia to pull you through.
I awoke today questioning whether I was too harsh on it anyway. It's not a terrible game, not by any standard metric; I just failed to connect with it, because I preferred a subsequent iteration which I'd played very recently. I'd be curious to read the reactions of a long-time fan, returning to it today.
Of course, don't let me tell you what to play and what not to play! It's your resolution to uphold, and therefore your list to tackle. What else is on it, I wonder?
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@ralphdibny My comment about the environmental similarity between Ico and The Last Guardian was mainly aesthetic; they're not the exact same location, but they're almost certainly in the same fictional construct. The architectural styles are familiar, the surrounding geography identical. It'd be like setting a trilogy of games across each of the Medway Towns; you could have a different experience in each one, but you can see Rochester Castle from wherever you are, and you're still gonna come away with lunch from a Greggs. It all feels local, and a little interchangeable as a result.
Ah, the ol' stereoscopic 3D push from the PS3 days! Something tells me Ico would work pretty well with that technology. I've got a couple of games which support it, but never worked up the courage to splash the cash on those ridiculously-expensive televisions.
"We want different things, Crosshair. That doesn't mean that we have to be enemies."
@RogerRoger Haha! We are not only on the same wavelength, but the exact same timeline too! 😂
Edit: As far as the list — the leading games are the Uncharteds 1-3. Especially 1&2 have been a long time since I played and thoroughly enjoyed them. Pretty sure those will be some of the ones I revisit. BioShock Infinite, Mass Effect trilogy, and some old MGS games are also all in the mix
@Th3solution ...and yet, on opposite sides of the world. Crazy, this modern age!
Edit: That's a pretty sweet list, hope you enjoy! At least the Uncharted games are quick and easy to blast through, and have a nice popcorn tone which doesn't make them too demanding. Will you be getting Mass Effect: Legendary Edition this year, then? Or just stick with your old copies?
@RogerRoger If I play the Mass Effect games, it will be through the remaster / Legendary Edition for sure. In fact, I never played the first game and only jumped in at #2, thanks to the added mechanic that the PS3 version included to make some quick decisions from ME1 in order for the narrative to make sense. It would be nice to go back and actually play ME1 and make those decisions in the context of the actual game. Also, I’d probably go for a Fem-Shep run since my Shepard was male the first go.
“We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.”
@Th3solution Sounds like a plan. I'm curious to see how the first Mass Effect turns out, whether they've felt the need to make sweeping changes or not; it'll be interesting to see how you get along with the game, coming fresh to it but as a pre-existing fan.
I should really finish my run with Kathryn Shepard. She made it through the first two games, but I never found the time to play Mass Effect 3 with her.
"We want different things, Crosshair. That doesn't mean that we have to be enemies."
@RogerRoger I didn't attempt the platinum trophy for The Last Guardian. There's a few tedious ones that require playing through again multiple times, such as feeding Trico 96 barrels. There's only a maximum of 48 available in a single run.
I'm guessing that Ico has similar annoying trophies. It seems to be a theme in these games. Likewise, Shadow of the Colossus has one to max out your health and stamina bars, which requires a few playthroughs of the game.
@RogerRoger@Th3solution ah fair enough! I think I'm going to try and give all 3 a whirl when my partner's finished their stint of work and we can play them together. I'm sure ICO had a two player mode that unlocked after you beat the game but I don't know if it would be worth playing like that. Will be some time before I play them though I think.
Interesting that you mention Rochester castle there Rog! It's a small one but it absolutely scares the kaka out of me. I've never made it to the top of that castle because the way it's laid out makes me scared I'm going to fall over the edge, even around the inside of it. Not to mention that the last time I went there it was a proper windy day and I didn't want to blow away haha
I can imagine the Bluepoint ports being half decent in 3D because they are decent without it. I mentioned my distaste with the frame rates in the similarly branded splinter cell trilogy ports though so I can only imagine something like that would only get worse in 3D
@colonelkilgore nice one! I had to look up where to find zadornov on that last one, I don't think there's any clues in game to say that you find him in the first training mission. Unless I missed something!
Fulton+infinity is definitely OP, doesn't work totally on every level though, I still think you need to keep swapping into other items for certain things if I remember correctly. I can't remember the process for getting the Fulton Cannon but I remember it being very long winded, like getting your teams up to a certain level to be able to develop it which if course would be much easier if you had the Fulton cannon which you are trying to develop!
How many hours is your save file at out of interest?
Visage kind of snuck onto PSN on Halloween with no fanfare. There's only a handful of reviews for the game on the internet, so I know it's going under the radar big time. I think the high price point ($35) is killing it, and no sales as of yet being it is digital-only.
And yeah, ultimately it is a "walking simulator" - no combat, similar to Amnesia, Layers of Fear, and Outlast. If you just dont like that type of thing, this won't win you over. But there is a lot of exploration and the puzzles are amazing. The run and hide sequences are thankfully very sparcely used (I hate those).
There are a lot of set piece scares where I was like... I dont think I've ever seen that done in a horror game. I'm a big horror buff when it comes to movies and games, and for the first time in my life I had to stop playing this game because it was getting to me... twice! Can't recommend it enough.
Its a great homage to the Silent Hill and Resident Evil games of old while still doing its own thing.
One more possible negative: the puzzles are intentionally vague and obtuse but very, very well done. Clues as to what you are supposed to do are very sparse but materialize as you wander the house. You can be stuck for 30 minutes at a time but I wouldn't use a guide as that obtuse lack of direction is part of the design I believe.
I got about 70 hours logged... a lot of those were where me and some guy just left the game running a death match cycle though to get the 20,000 camaraderie for the Vic Voss trophy (probably around 30-40 hours). Still that was the trophy I was most concerned about what with the game being so old and such... thought I would have little hope of finding anyone to even play one game with, let alone 30-40 hours worth.
Yeah, I had to look up where to find Zadornov that last time, don’t think I would’ve ever found him otherwise. My R&D is currently around 65 so I need to recruit quite a few high level staff in that area for the top items... think it needs to be in the high 70’s. I’ve planned 2021 out in regards to what games I’m playing and how many plats I want to earn. I planned to have MGS: PW done and plat’d by end of Jan/beginning of Feb, so I’m kinda on course so far I reckon.
@UnlimitedSevens Thanks for the recommendation. I loved P.T. and enjoyed the story of Soma, so I think this style of game can be done well. I'm just not a huge fan of stuff like Outlast where it feels like I'm constantly on the run from something. But even then, I do want to play Alien Isolation, so even that isn't a total dealbreaker.
I'll be adding this to my Steam wishlist and checking it out the next time there's a big sale on that platform. I love horror games when I do play them, but I'm also a gigantic chicken when I have no way to defend myself, so I have to steel myself before playing them.
Any interest in The Medium if it ends up coming to PS5?
Yes, please do, it's a small dev and I think what they made is something special and rises above what we usually see in games like Outlast. I just want a sequel haha! Maybe better luck with sales on Steam?
I'd jump on The Medium if it came to Sony's console. I'm still secretly hoping for an Alan Wake port on Playstation, dirty Xbox exclusive lol. Keep the dream alive I say!
@crimsontadpoles Ah, forgive me, I meant whether you'd attempted the platinum for Ico on PS3, but it sounds like you never got the remaster. There are trophies dependent on a second playthrough, but none are as missable or as fiddly as those examples you cite.
The worst demands you complete the game in two hours. I hate speedrunning trophies.
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@ralphdibny Sorry to hear Rochester Castle scared you! Despite being super-familiar with it (half the family are from the local area) I doubt I'd venture up on a windy day, either!
Yeah, whoever did those Splinter Cell ports was no Bluepoint. You can always trust their work, at least from my experience. I thought they'd also done the excellent PS3 remasters of the Jak & Daxter trilogy, but a quick Google to double-check tells me otherwise. Ah well.
"We want different things, Crosshair. That doesn't mean that we have to be enemies."
@RogerRoger Ah yeah, I misread your question. I never actually had a PS3, so wasn't able to play the remaster. I did get the opportunity to revisit the PS2 version of Ico a few years back, so still remember it reasonably well.
I also share your sentiment on speedrunning trophies. They seem to require a different mindset than what I have, as I always love to take my time and investigate every nook and cranny.
@colonelkilgore 30-40 hours just to get the cameraderie trophy?! I don't think that's one I'll ever get. Did the person you played with have the trophy already?
Good luck with the rest of PW though, it is such an addictive game, I mentioned before that my last playthrough was 90 hours and that was without any multiplayer!
@RogerRoger ahh it's ok, it's part of the fun! I am just scared of heights in open spaces if you know what I mean. I'm fine with rollercoasters (though I wouldn't want to get stuck up one) and I'm fine with flying in planes (though I still hate it because of travel sickness) and im fine in tall buildings. It's just when I'm outside, the barrier/wall is low and I feel like I'm too close to the sky, then I get freaked out!
@ralphdibny the 'grind' wasn't that bad in all honesty, we just set it up on hdmi1 and let it run while I switched over to hdmi2 and farmed some upgrade mats on Sekiro... and no he didn't have it at the time either so we popped it roughly the same time.
Well if for whatever reason you ever do fancy chasing the plat on it, give me a shout and I'll help you get the Vic Voss trophy.
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