Topic: Games you've recently beat

Just finished off my Legend playthrough on Yakuza Kiwami 2 and it’s been good. I’m still not feeling as fanatical about the series as some… but I’m definitely moving in that direction.

Think the completion list was a bit easier in this one than the original and it obviously doesn’t have the highway car chase, which serves as a plat-blocker for many. I’m feeling like I liked this game more than the first one too… could just be recency bias I suppose but I definitely feel a fair bit more positive about the series than I did prior to starting it in December.

As an aside, I’m always trying to get the missus to game with me… and for the most part my efforts aren’t that well received. We have played the various Hazelight games together… but it takes me twisting-her-arm something chronic 😅… and we did start Silent Hill 2 Remake together as she liked the trailer… but she didn’t click with it and it was abandoned. She absolutely loves mahjong in these though… and it was a really good time taking it in turns against the ai. So much so, that she’s now twisting-my-arm to start Yakuza 3 so that we can play some more mahjong 🤣.

I was really meaning to make mention of the Clan Creator mini-game too but completely forgot about it for some reason. I’ve never really played anything that would be considered tower-defense, so this was a first for me and I actually really enjoyed it. So much so, I’m now taking a second look at Kunitsi-gami Path of the Goddess for some tower-defense fix down the line.

Beat Tengai Makyou: Ziria. One hell of a game, absolutely mad to think it’s from the 80s given it’s massively ahead of its time for an RPG. Probably due to it being a PC Engine CD game, the world is massive, the graphics are detailed for the time and the enemies are varied. Really great game, can understand why the series was up there with Dragon Quest and Final Fantasy throughout the 90s.

@Herculean I kept thinking I'd start Pentiment before KCDII as a little medieval appetiser, but seeing you mention it is actually quite long and labour intensive maybe means I'm less bothered if I don't get round to it right now 😅 I'm assuming it's a game I will still really quite enjoy due to the setting and themes, but i'm maybe not in a big rush to get to it.

Will you be partaking in KCDII next month?

Currently rolling credits on Indiana Jones and the Great Circle. All I can say is "Bravo" once more.

This game is going to sell many, many millions on PS5 😅

And to anyone who said it will "suck and/or fail because of it being first person", it's good to be wrong every now and again, isn't it 😛 Take that L. it's a quality game and perfect for a First Person experience.

Admittedly, people that said things like that are infrequently in the push square forum, it's more comments section fare from people that seemingly don't like any games anyway.

If I had to rate it objectively I'd struggle between an 8 and a 9. By the end I'm glad it was the exact length it took me, as I couldn't have stuck with the gameplay loop for, say, 6 more hours, and the last open world area had a LOT of pop in, but it's hard not to respect and celebrate the job they have done with the game. It is pretty much the exact game they should have made, and they have made it damn well.

Graphics, content, structure, performances and audio all very high level with only some minor issues. Gameplay works nicely with it for the most part. It is also full of charm and humour, especially if you are patient enough to give all the dialogue and information pick-ups a read and listen rather than tear through it like a kid that had too many Red Bulls. The multi language element adds a real nice feel to it.

Okay. It's a clear 9, then, having written all that down. It won't go in my all time top games or anything like that, but you have to appreciate the effort and execution and praise it. Bravo 👏

Shame it's on Game Pass, really. But glad it's coming to PS5.

@Ravix Cool, looking forward to it!

Just beat The Witcher 3 Wild Hunt with the ending where Ciri became a witcher and Gerald got the best ending with Yennefer.

Also saved Keira Metz and she took off with Lambert

It is my very first time finishing a witcher game. I loved it but it is not perfect by any means.

The worst thing for me is Gerald's movement, it is so unresponsive The stories on the other hand were amazing and the world is cruel and mysterious.

Definitely going on a vacation to Toussaint next!

See you on the path!

@Zuljaras do hearts of stone before blood and wine. That is all.

Had to write this quickly. But can now elaborate via an edit 😁 Blood and Wine is the definitive final chapter of TW3 (almost a game in itself anyway) so if you've yet to tackle 'Hearts of Stone' it's best to do that first before you go off to Toussaint for B&W.

Both are top quality DLC's but B&W is the true ending of the Witcher 3 story.

How long did you put in your TW3, by the way? It feels like only yesterday that you mentioned joining us all on the path. Time really flies 😱

I recently beat Stalker 2 on the Series X. My total hours played was 165 hours. I never play games for that long; I tend to get burned out once I clock 50+ hours, even on some of my all time favorite games. However, I’ve never been more immersed in a world before. It is going to be an all-timer for me, and once it hits on PS5 I’ll be jumping in again.

@Ravix I think it was around 20-25 hours as I started it 2 weeks ago. I played it completely offline, so I don't have my time tracked.

Hearts of Stone is first then.

Devastated 😱… I’ve had the flu, so I was looking for something a bit chilled to occupy my time. So I thought let’s go back to Deus Ex: Human Revolution - Directors Cut and try and get the Foxiest of Hounds trophy (trigger no alarms during the whole playthrough) that alluded me during my first playthrough last November.

Well after three days of extremely careful play, it didn’t pop again!

Having looked into it, apparently the Directors Cut is notoriously buggy as it was produced using an earlier version of the game for some reason… but I even took the measures necessary to try and negate those bugs (no bodies at all during The Missing Link dlc and deactivating the signal-jammer at the Omega Ranch). Annoyed grunt 😡

@colonelkilgore Ah, brother, that stinks! And to have the flu on top of that! Is it worth a third try?! Personally I would cry “uncle” after a second try but that lone trophy is probably going to grate on you!

@Th3solution yeah I dunno mate. It is something that’ll stick with me if I decide not too… but it’s just such an annoying one to keep retrying. A playthrough (which has to be a careful one of course) is around 20 hours and at no point during that time do you have any idea whether you’re on track or not.

Doubtless I will try it again at some point but probably not anytime soon.

@colonelkilgore one if my pet peeves is trophies or tasks within a game which you have no way of knowing if you’re on track and don’t find out until the end of a long interval.

Definitely let the game lie for a long while. Maybe you’ll feel like taking it on again in a few months… or years. 😅
And definitely get well soon from that nasty flu. Hopefully not the new bird flu?

@Th3solution cheers buddy, I dunno anything about a new bird flu… but I think I picked it up from my parents over Christmas and New Years. They’re both still rough after two weeks of it… but they’re obviously older and they both smoke too, which doesn’t help. I think that I’m on the mend now thank god. Hopefully your good self and everyone else on here for that matter manages to avoid it, most unpleasant.

@colonelkilgore Glad you’re improving. Those platinums aren’t going to earn themselves. They need a healthy hunter at the helm. (One who finds his worth in the waking world 😄)

I’ve been spared this latest viral onslaught, thankfully [touches wood]. But many family, friends, and colleagues have had the mess. It can be brutal.

@PeaceSalad appreciated mate… and after a heavy evening fume-session yesterday, I’m already back at it again 😅.

What’s the definition of madness again? 🤪

Just finished Solar Ash on Series X after 6 hours of playtime. Absolutely fantastic game! While I still feel like the controls were rather wonky, I still enjoyed my time with the game. The platforming was fun (and a lot of levels reminded me of Super Mario Galaxy) and the boss fights, which are heavily reminiscent of the ones from Shadow of the Colossus, were really cool. I highly recommend checking out this game, it's so much fun!

@LtSarge Glad you enjoyed it! It has been on my wishlist since it came out as i've always liked the art style. It has just never been at a price low enough for me to pull the trigger and I always think it will come to PS Plus. If it is on Gamepass, that might explain why it has not come over yet.

@JohnnyShoulder Yeah, the game is on Game Pass, which is how I accessed it. I also agree that it's never been discounted enough for a purchase as I've also had the game on my wishlist on PlayStation. But seeing as how I still have a couple of days left of my GP subscription, I figured I might as well check it out. Hopefully it'll come to PS+ soon, I think you'd enjoy it!

I also finished The Exit 8 on Series X, which took me about 2 hours. Apparently the game has been out on PS5 since last summer but it just shadow dropped on Xbox, which is why I decided to get it there as I remember it was quite popular for a while on YouTube.

I was so close to reaching the exit during the first half hour, but then I failed. I feel like the anomalies range from very easy to detect to very challenging. But the more you play, the more you know where to look for them. I actually managed to find all of them and it was very cool whenever I discovered a new one. I'm glad though that I managed to finish the game as you can absolutely have bad luck and constantly restart the cycle if you're not careful. Fun game though, for the €4 I paid for it, it was worth it.