PossibLeigh

@Spiders That IS an interesting question! I guess in the grand scheme of things video games are still a 'young' medium. But I, as I suspect you are, am definitely old enough to have rose tinted glasses about old games. Generally, I think I prefer modern games for the overall progress that has been made in things like game design, animation, physics, AI (uh, not so much that one), UI and responsiveness. The range of experiences that are available now enabled by the progress of technology is quite exciting. I'm probably fairly unique in gaming though in that I'm not into online play and don't appreciate generic game design.

We've definitely moved from the wild creativity of the early years into something more akin to manufactured pop, but, just like the music scene, it just means we have to look a little harder for worthwhile experiences.

Interestingly, early games were often defined by technological limitations and the creativity needed to work around that. As those limitations disappear, we are loosing some of that creativity. That's why I'm mainly an 'indie' gamer, though that classification is problematic these days.

There are outliers, of course. I'm immensely enjoying Death Stranding. A game that probably wouldn't have been possible a generation ago.

The ubiquitous nature of gaming today had changed consumption. I find myself craving a new experience, even if I've got half a dozen games half finished and it's almost become more about that first rush of stimulation rather than progressing and beating one game. It's a far cry from waiting 20 minutes for Robocop to load on the Speccy to play through for the dozenth time!

So, yeah, I think we are a bit spoilt now and the industry is becoming more like the music industry every day. Even those creators who are doing it for the love of the medium have to battle through a ton of corporate *****, like loot boxes etc...

Out of curiosity, how did you get started on this crazy hobby?

@Jayofmaya That's technically outstanding, man! Thanks for sharing. Not my cup of tea (I prefer something with lyrics to sing along with), but amazing skill!

@Jayofmaya Love a bit of Big Band...

@Spiders Dude, I could not agree with what you're saying more! I'm as guilty of changing how I listen to music as anyone. It's rare that I put on specific abums these days. Instead I just put my 120 GB collection on random and skip if something I'm not in the mood for comes along. Honestly, I think I have enough 'old' music to last me a lifetime. Plus, I'm a singalonger, so tend to favour stuff I already know.

You're right when you say the way we consume is changing. Not just music, everything. I don't have the attention span I used to, so I'd imagine the kids have no hope!

I do try not to dismiss stuff out of hand and we need to remember that the best music does take some effort to appreciate (like everything Radiohead have done since OK Computer), but mainstream stuff will never be my jam. And I'm fine with that.

Stay cool, brother.

@Spiders Don't hesitate, dude! Embrace it! Cast your elderly scorn far and wide. It's one of the only pleasures of being 'old'! 😅

@zupertramp Hey, man! Nice to meet a fellow fan.

Between the Bars is great and I actually prefer the original to Peyroux's version, though I love her too, but (and excuse me going full Uber nerd, but I'm slightly obsessed with his music) he has done much better.

Maybe not lyrically, as the lyrics to that song are very clever, but if you've not already, then I urge you to listen to the album 'Figure 8'.

Needle in the Hay and Between the Bars are tonally very similar (ie quite 'sad'), but he's got more range than that. Try LA and Happiness (Figure 8), or Alameda, Angeles or Say Yes (Either/or) to get a taste of his full range. And then listen to Condor Avenue, which he wrote when he was 17, on his 1st album to be blown away by his skill.

Apologies if you've already experienced all of them. I can't help but evangelise when it comes to ES!

Not sure if linking to YouTube is allowed, but will give it a go!

LA: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=WxLn44KhFrc

Happiness: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Hadz9rZH5zI

Alameda: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=WcRgqXYmzZE

Angeles: https://m.youtube.com/results?sp=mAEA&search_query=angeles+elliott+smith

Say Yes: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=NcalJSO6jDY

Condor Ave: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=FtRQyqBe1WI

Cheers chap!

Not into footy, so won't be playing, but I see no problem with this small amount of content at 'release'. Konami's options are to either release early or hold it back until it's feature complete. As it's F2P, I see no harm in releasing what they have now to get people trying it and generate interest.

No comment on microtransactions or 'battle passes'.

I love that one of the pros on this review is 'just a really pleasent game'. That's all we need to know in one succinct sentence.

@MJF Our mutual chum, @Would_you_kindly, gives a perfect example. Needle in the Hay is the most popular Elliott Smith song. It's not his best, by a looong way, but it's his most popular song because it was in a popular film (The Royal Tenenbaums). A prime example of how exposure shapes what we listen to.

@Would_you_kindly I'd give you all the ❤️'s if I could!

@MJF Okay, I'm gonna respectfully disagree with you there. The mainstream is often wrong. There are reasons things are popular, yes, but just because something may be popular with certain demographics, it doesn't mean it's the best, or even good, it just means it's had the most exposure.

Generally, (in my opinion, of course) manufactured pop hasn't been good since the days of The Monkees. Of course there are exceptions, but we should never automatically equate popularity with quality.

The best music will always be made by people who are passionate about making music, not people who are passionate about being celebrities or making money.

But, at the end of the day, you do you and enjoy what you enjoy. No one should judge you for that.

Unless you're forcing it on others, like some kinda tween door-to-door Mormon.

@MJF of course, there is still good music. Saying 'all modern music is crap' is a bit disingenuous, admittedly (there's lots of good stuff in the alternative rock scene - loving Courtney Barnett at the moment), but in a perverse way, I kinda like being old and dismissive of what 'the kids' like. Even though I'm not the target audience, it's just a bit of fun.

@Futureshark 'reem'? That's a new one! Maybe from dream, maybe from 'to ream someone out'... I stopped trying to understand years ago.

@Jayofmaya Welcome to the club, good friend! Pull up a rocking chair and grab a corn cob pipe. Yeah, I've heard 'slaps', like you I've always equated that to slaping a bass guitar string. Not sure how many kids know what a bass guitar is though.

(Semi) interesting annecdote; I recently completed a teaching placement in a UK college. To my delight many of the teens also thought modern music was crap and they all listened to older music. It was a really pleasent surprise!

@PossibLeigh or maybe syphilitic! Wow, that bass beat is syphilitic, man.

@PossibLeigh I wonder what negative word will be the next 'cool' for the kids. Let's consider the progression; bad - wicked - ill - sick... My money's on 'plague ridden'. What do you think?

Wake me up when they bring Elliott Smith back from the dead.

Who?

(And additional words that blunt the humour of the one word reply)

@Bad-MuthaAdebisi It's pretty sick though, right?

Fortnite: popular amongst pre-teens, teens and... Football players? There's a joke there about mental age that I'm just too classy to make.

Where's Lil' Devil Inside? That's what I wanna know!

@RainbowGazelle Cheers, buddy!

@RubyCarbuncle He joked that they were gonna turn Aloy gay and then put, like, 20 different scared / vomiting emojis.

As he's said he's bi himself before in posts, he was obviously joking that this would be a bad thing, but it wasn't up to his usually level for sure.

Possibly a bit overly sensitive of the mods, but storm in a tea cup really.

@RainbowGazelle Aw, cheers, buddy! Self deprecating humour is kinda my thing. 🤭 I've actually got a lady, but haven't seen her in over a year due to the pandemic. In the UK I'm considered sub standard, in China I'm a blonde haired god! Confidence in oneself is key.

@nessisonett Yay, me?

@Deadhunter Sometimes I wish I were asexual. Would make being single and ugly much less concerning!

@nessisonett She always struck me as being asexual.

Yet more pro cat propaganda! Wheres the option to play as a dog, eh?

Seriously though, looks great.

Cats are evil.

Love, love, love this game! I've never felt such dread as going into Giants Deep the first half a dozen times. Until I got to Dark Bramble, that is.

@Mergatro1d Nah, just teasing. You're alright. I think there's plenty of people these days don't think to look in settings.

@Mergatro1d Wait... There's a settings menu?! I have, mate. If I change from mid to high then the sound seems minutely higher, and the same for low. Mid seems the right level, but there's not much distinction between mid, high and low for my ears. I've got small ear canals that are prone to blocking.

Good to know it works well for some people!

@GamingFan4Lyf I found the same thing with Returnal; no good for judging height. I thought it was just me!

@Bezzator I've got a pair of Creative 3D audio 'phones. They ask you to scan your ear to make a 3D profile. The 3D is okay, but I have problems locating higher or lower positioned sounds. Same with the PS5 3D audio. I figure it's my ears that are the problem! 😂

(As an example: Returnal has gates with switches that need to be shot to open them. The switches emit a beeping sound to help locate them. One of them is located high, but it sounded like the beep was coming from below. I spent far too long looking for it before looking up!)

@get2sammyb Or criminally insane. One or the other!

@huyi It's their engine, they can do as they like with it! One would hope they have a deeper understanding of the engine and what it can do than most Dreams players.

I started playing this a week ago and it's great! Much better than I expected. The mythology is batshit, but interesting and the environment is gorgeous. Looks nothing like North America though!

You can see the bones of it in MGS5, but for my money this is way more absorbing than MG.

@Daleaf Same here. The purse strings are tight, but that Metro Exodus deal is too tempting! And Disco!

Totally agree. It was always gonna be this way.

@ChrisDeku haha, nice one! Shouldn't be a problem then. Oh, and the irony of a music producer sacking an artist from doing coke...🤣

I wonder how difficult it would be for Sega to change the characters face on PC, a lá Spider-Man.

@LeeHarveyOzgod Amen to that, brother!

@Col_McCafferty Not violence, but verbal abuse and just being considered 'wrong' for not supporting a team or having any interest in it. I'm not into any sports, but football fans* in particular seem to take it as a personal slight and don't seem to understand people have different interests.

*Not all, obs, and my experiences are from a long while back, so maybe it's changed now, but I've never had the same hostility from, say, rugby fans.

Anyway, cheers chap. Enjoy your foot to ball! I'll enjoy avoiding it (it's likey to be on the TV in the living room anyway).

@Col_McCafferty Haha, no, English. But I've been on the receiving end of bullying several times for not being interested in football, so it's made me dig my heels in. Nothing against the game, I enjoy a kick around, just don't like the thuggery it seems to inspire in some people.

Hope everyone else enjoys it though!

@LeeHarveyOzgod Fair enough. I don't think you not buying their last PS game will possible make MS reverse their decision, and by doing so you're potentially missing out on a great game. The ink is dry on that deal and there is no going back. Why is MS exclusivity any different to Sony exclusivity? Other than the fact we are more likely to have a MS powered machine in our houses anyway, it's not.

This games called Deathloop, which pretty much promises that this is a closed narrative. Dishonoured 2 wasn't directly connected to Dishonoured 1 and if there is a DL sequal, it will probably be stand alone, but that is all just conjecture on my part.

Tha ks for responding and my apologies for spalshing the 'fanboy' accusation round.

@Kang81 Hitman: yes, starting the level again, but with more knowledge of what's going to happen where and when and how, meaning you can use it to your advantage. Each level is a multilayered clock of intricate interaction that you get to play around in. Deathloop will be like that on a grander scale. Possibly the scale will be too great, as you suggest.

@Kang81 Yes, it has roguelike elements, but as you say, melding together genres is most common these days. I personally find that exciting. This game is not a roguelike, but does have elements.

You're other point is a good one though. They've not yet revealed if a visionary stays dead on subsequent loops, and I agree that is pertinent information. I guess we will find out in reviews!

It's also not mentioned if there is only one opportunity to off the visionaries or if they can be taken out in multiple ways. Hell, it may be possible to just blast your way straight through everyone, but I would expect the game to be more subtle than that.

I expect that each loop will see us trying different things, learning the layout of the island and the schedules of the inhabitants, with the eventual goal being to learn enough to wipe them all out in one go.

Don't know if you're familiar with The Outer Wilds (another time loop game), but that game could be completed in 15 minutes if you know what you are doing. The game is actually about gathering all the info needed to do that final 15 min run. I think this will be the same. Honestly, I think if people give it a chance, you may find it more compulsive than you think. Shame that a price point of £70 is not going to convince anyone on the fence to give it a go.

A Plague Tale on PS5 and Wildermyth on PC after a stellar review on Eurogamer. And pointedly trying to avoid all football.

@Futureshark oh, that's a good question! Hopefully one can create a snapshot save state at any time which is deleted as soon as you start the game again, like Souls games. Just like what Returnal desperately needed.

@Kang81 Its not a roguelike.if anything it's the exact opposite. Roguelikes are procedurally generated.

The game is no different to any other game in which you have to restart after dying. Prime example is Hitman. Each level is layered with multiple characters and events on a tight schedule. If you die or otherwise mess up you need to start that mission again. Deathloop is exactly the same, except the mission is longer and it has given a narrative reason for restarting. It's literally no different to a traditional game other than in the way the mechanic of retrying is presented with a justification that fits the narrative.

Crazy how people aren't getting that from the extensive looks at the game that we've had.

@LeeHarveyOzgod Don't understand this attitude at all. MS made an acquisition as happens in business. They are not raping babies or anything. Rabid fanboyism to a company has always struck me as odd.

Why deny yourself a good game because you feel slighted by business being business?