@Zeroo “literally every great Final Fantasy game has been pretty much linear”
I guess it depends on how you define “linear” (and “great”) - but I’d say the second half of Final Fantasy VI isn’t very linear at all.
Final Fantasy XII, which I consider the last great FF game, is also relatively nonlinear.
At the very least, those two certainly have plenty of “meaningful exploration” and don’t feel too “on rails” in the way XVI (which I still enjoyed) often does.
(Not disagreeing with your main point - an RPG doesn’t need nonlinearity to be great.)
@Toilet_Goat It’s not the best trailer I’ve ever seen, but it’s got nice vibes. I like the retro-future aesthetic and the music.
Beyond that, we don’t really know what the gameplay or anything will be like - but as far as trailers go, it was pretty good. Your mileage may vary, of course - but there are reasons beyond “zealotry” to be excited by this.
@Blaze215 Abby lives in a football stadium full of food - and a gym. She's also hellbent on revenge.
In other words, she has both the resources and the motivation to get into the shape she's in.
There are a lot of unrealistic things in "The Last of Us" games - Abby being buff isn't one of them. It makes total sense within the world of the games.
@Mr_B021 While it's true that you don't technically own the contents of a physical release, there's actually a helpful site (DoesItPlay) that lets you check if the version of a game on a disc or cartridge is playable without an internet connection and without additional downloads. (So basically, whether or not you'll still be able to play it in a decade or two when the servers are no longer online and there's no legal way to get all the bugfixes, etc.)
I've referenced it quite a bit when deciding whether to buy the physical release of a game.
Some games are basically unplayable without all the Day 1 patches, but a surprising number work perfectly well out of the box. And if you don't need to buy right away, sometimes reprints of games (which that site also tracks) will include a later, more stable version with all the post-release patches.
@LifeGirl “ This is an old clunker of a game that is heavily dependent upon nostalgia doing the heavy lifting”
I played this for the first time a few months ago - so nostalgia wasn’t a factor for me - and I thought it held up shockingly well. Then again, I’m a sucker for immersive sims, so I got a kick out of seeing where many of the defining traits of the “genre” originated.
(For the record, I’m not criticizing the review here. Just saying there are more reasons to play it in 2024 than just nostalgia.)
@Ralizah So then perhaps it’s not censorship, but indeed an artistic choice for that particular outfit? This actually seems the likelier situation, considering other more revealing outfits remain unchanged.
I guess I can understand people being upset if they prefer the look of the original costume, but no one crying “censorship” seems able to explain that discrepancy. A would-be censor is unlikely to only have a problem with this one outfit and not several others in the game.
@man_what “i really feel like we are seeing how powerful marketing can be for someones final evaluation of a game”
As someone who also has little interest in this… There are plenty of hyped games that reviewers had no problem panning, so it seems much more likely to simply be a case of different people enjoying different things.
I know some Gamers still feel traumatized by a video game making narrative choices that aren’t uncommon in other art forms (“catastrophe,” lol), but the game came out more than three years ago.
It was also extremely well received by critics and by many gamers, and it sold extremely well. Since then, ND had a remake of the first game, which was also the source material for one of the few “event” shows of this year.
We can speculate as to the reason for the recent departures, but there’s not actually a lot of concrete evidence to support the “Naughty Dog is struggling” narrative. It mostly seems to be wishful thinking on the part of capital-G Gamers who still feel hurt because Daddy Druckmann dared to tell a story they didn’t like.
It's extra tragic, because Japanese people are almost completely unrepresented in media and these games are otherwise known for their complete historical accuracy.
Still, I'm sure the Japanese people will somehow survive the horrific genocidal act of, uh... [checks notes] video game developers including a real-life historical figure in their historical fantasy game.
They never should have released Cyberpunk in the state it was in - but now that it actually, you know, works on most systems… it’s a lot of fun. Not quite great, and it doesn’t live up to its potential - but it’s still one of the better gaming experiences I’ve had in the past few years.
More to the point, though… They’re not a prolific studio, and even the best studios have an occasional misfire. I’d give them another game or two before making pronouncements about their decline.
Any time a US politician starts talking about tech-related issues, it’s basically guaranteed to be cringeworthy. Even apart from the lobbyist issue, they just tend to be… very ignorant on these subjects.
I spent the first ten or so hours of the game exploring Limgrave, and it was one of the most enjoyable gaming experiences I’ve had in a long time. The atmosphere, the worldbuilding, the desolate but beautiful scenery - with the awe-inspiring Erdtree always in the background, towering over everything…
The game does lose some steam, and starts to feel less well balanced, after you get through Leyndell - but I can’t say there was any point where I grew tired of exploring or didn’t feel like seeing it through to the end.
It’s not perfect (what game is?) - but it’s given me 130+ hours of enjoyment and some of my favorite gaming memories, so I think it deserves its hype and sales. (I can’t see the future, so no idea what I or others will think of it in ten years - it’s enough that it gave me this much pleasure now.)
In general, I think Arkane is a great, somewhat underrated studio.
“Prey” is one of my five or six favorite games of the last gen - which I wouldn’t have expected after struggling to get into it during the first few hours. It starts out a bit slow (and rather hard), but it gets a lot better as you’re able to explore more of the station and unlock more abilities (so those Phantom typhon can’t kill you in seconds.)
I really like the “Dishonored” series too, but I prefer the art style and atmosphere of “Prey.”
(And this all reminds me that I still need to play “Deathloop.”)
Wasn't really expecting anything more. Far Cry 5 left a sour taste in my mouth, but I still enjoy the gameplay loop of the series - so I'll probably get this when it inevitably drops to $15-$20. That way I won't feel like I wasted my money when I (also inevitably) get burned out and stop playing before the end.
@Porco Poor writing? I’ve only read two reviews so far, but they both say the writing is a highlight - which isn’t too surprising, since The Witcher 3 had some of the best writing and world building I’ve experienced in a video game.
@LemonHaze Yeah, I don’t think Plex-provided TV shows or movies are much of a draw for anyone.
The main benefit of Plex is that it provides a way to organize and view your own media collection. I recently ripped backups of my CDs, DVDs, and Blu-rays before moving most of my collection into storage - and Plex makes it easy to access all of them just by connecting my external hard drive.
I also find it an aesthetically pleasing UI, which helps.
So yeah - Plex isn’t great as an alternative to Netflix (etc.), but it is great if you have your own library of music and movies that you want to keep organized and accessible.
Dear sweet Jesus. Some of you guys really need to get some real-world experience outside your bubble, because literally nothing in this game shows an "extreme leftist" worldview.
I love it when people throw around terms like "fact based" when their comments reveal they have no idea what constitutes a "fact."
With that said, I find it easy to separate the art from the artist in all but the most egregious cases, so I'll still happily buy this game if I hear positive things from people whose opinions I trust.
@JJ2 Moral ambiguity is a thing. It's not so much people "thinking what they're told," but rather people having different worldviews and philosophies. While you may think the right choice was obvious, I found it much less clear cut.
I can understand why Joel did what he did in the hospital - but understanding and sympathizing with his motivations does not mean it was the morally correct decision. He murdered an entire hospital of people - including an unarmed doctor - because he didn't want to lose his own surrogate daughter. And though the Fireflies also do a number of morally ambiguous things, their motivations are still some of the most noble in the game's universe - they're working to find a cure for something that has destroyed civilization and caused billions of deaths.
Of course, we don't know if they would have been successful in finding a cure - Ellie's extremely rare (or perhaps even one-of-a-kind) immunity was the best lead they had, but perhaps the knowledge they gained from her brain would have only lead to a dead end. ...On the other hand, it's possible they may have actually discovered something valuable - in which case Joel's actions just cost many, many more people their lives.
Beyond all that, Joel did take away Ellie's agency - and lied to her about it. Yes, she was only a young teenager - making a choice of that magnitude for someone else is, well... Problematic.
Look: His parental instinct is admirable and very human - but once again, I'm not convinced that his feelings as a father outweigh the feelings of the fathers, mothers, sons, and daughters that he killed, and potentially millions more who will die but who could have been saved by a cure.
TL;DR - The world of "The Last of Us" is not a black-and-white one - if you think the right choice is obvious, then you're probably not thinking through the consequences of the choices being made.
@Nah900 And that's something I absolutely respect.
Though I personally don't think every plot development "works," overall I still think it's a pretty natural continuation of the story of the first game - and not the "betrayal" that some would suggest. In balance, I don't see any significant difference in quality between the storytelling of the first game and the sequel.
Others are free to disagree.
My only issue is with the people who go around saying silly things like "the story is ObJeCtIvElY aWfUl," as if they're delivering the cold, hard truth to us sheeple. It's like they can't fathom the concept that two people can have honest differences of opinion about a video game (or book or movie or band or...)
Gay guy here. You're not speaking common sense, and neither you - nor I - represent the "majority of level headed LGBT types." What you're actually doing is using your orientation to give yourself a veneer of objectivity that your comments don't merit. You're using your "gayness" as a shield from criticism for other shortcomings - which is, oddly enough, the exact thing you accuse Naughty Dog of doing. (For the record: "I'm gay, and even I think this game sux!!1" isn't really much of an argument.)
Here's the thing: It's fine that you don't like the direction the story takes. I've read the spoilers, and I can understand why it's divisive. What's silly, however, is pretending that the story and gameplay are objectively inferior to the first game, and that the game is inclusive only to compensate for its other failings. Because of course the developers who spent years of their lives creating this game all know and agree that the story and gameplay are inferior.
It's the sort of bad-faith argument you're making - that critics are too afraid to give their "true opinions" because of the diversity in the game - that makes it hard to take you seriously. It's also what causes so many here to be skeptical of this torrent of negative reviews.
Never mind that there's no way a vast majority of the bombers could have played all (or even most) of the game already - the bigger issue is that there actually are a significant number of gamers who believe that any sort of inclusivity in a game is "pandering" and who think that any deviation from the "traditional" video game protagonist and storytelling formula must be part of some "agenda." (Search this thread for words and phrases like "agenda," "SJW," "virtue signalling" - terms that'll always be prominently featured in any comments section involving a game that prominently features LGBT characters or other minorities. Some people simply cannot fathom the idea that there doesn't have to be any justification for inclusivity in games. The fact is, LGBT people exist - and that's reason enough for them to be included in some games.)
Don't get me wrong - I do NOT believe all criticisms of the game are illegitimate or uninformed. There's not a single game in existence that's perfect or universally loved. The writers took a risk telling the story that they did, and I doubt they're surprised that not everyone likes the direction it takes. Personally, however, I interpreted the first game (particularly the ending) differently than a lot of gamers, so the sequel's narrative and themes seem like a logical continuation.
...Incidentally, I've now played about five hours of Part II, and so far I think the gameplay is a significant improvement over the first one. My main criticism so far is that it sometimes it feels a bit didactic and heavy-handed at times. Overall, though, the positives far outweigh the negatives, at least so far.
As much as I'd like to write this off as empty posturing by ultra-conservative governments - it will have the insiduous effect of further alienating an already vilified outgroup. It's a reminder of how much it sucks to be part of a scapegoated minority in authoritarian cultures where even acknowledging the existence of people like you is considered "propaganda." (See also Russia giving the live-action "Beauty and the Beast" remake the equivalent of an R-rating because of a fleeting shot of two men dancing. It defies logic and common sense, but it reinforces existing prejudices and the established social order - which can be useful for unscrupulous leaders.)
@Makina While I'm sure you'll be relieved to know that the Saudi government shares your views, in reality telling a story that includes some LGBT characters =/= "ideological propaganda."
Do you also consider the huge number of games (and movies, and books) that feature straight white protagonists to be "propaganda"?
@ApostateMage I also really liked the voiced protagonist, though I know that's a divisive thing. It personally made me feel more connected to the character.
@ApostateMage I think the main issue is that it removed a lot of the RPG/player choice elements of the previous games, so it felt a little more generic.
On the other hand, I personally found combat much more enjoyable and felt it had some of the best-written/most interesting companions in the series (caveat - I still haven't played the first Fallout game.)
Overall, I still loved it and spent many, many hours exploring the Commonwealth.
I don't know what to expect from Bethesda anymore - but if they can bring back more of the RPG elements from FO3 and FNV, while retaining the fluid combat of FO4, then the next game in the series could be incredible. (But also glitchy, because it's Bethesda and I can't expect a miracle.)
@Scraggler I know what happens in the game. I'm still excited for it.
While it's not the direction I expected the game to take - or even the one I would have wanted - I'm all for games tackling more challenging narratives and "forcing" us to make unpleasant decisions. It's what many of the greatest works of art do, and if ND can pull it off then they deserve major kudos.
Oldschool - I'm not sure if you're aware of this, but your comments are coming off as more than a little unhinged. You've called half the people in this thread lunatics and morons and cucks (LOL), made extraordinarily presumptuous comments about another poster's military experience, and displayed an intellectual arrogance that's not at all justified by the content of your posts.
It might be a good idea to take a break from your computer. I usually find going on a short walk helps clear my head a bit when I start losing my temper online.
@LN78 Yeah, well... Shirer and Kershaw may have spent decades of their lives researching the Nazi era, but oldschool here knows that Nazi means National Socialism. Checkmate, leftists!1!!
@oldschool1987 Oh honey - you're not really in a position to be criticizing other people's understanding of Nazism. All you've done here is regurgitate some of the most facile Right-wing talking points about history - and spew vitriol at anyone who dares to point out the gaping holes in your understanding.
But since names are so convincing for you, I can't imagine how confused you are by the Democratic People's Republic of Korea and the German Democratic Republic.
Also: LOL @ teachers brainwashing students into "communism." Your rhetoric evidences that you've been more thoroughly brainwashed than anyone here.
This is all subjective of course. It was just a very satisfying gaming experience for me, and I’m looking forward to seeing what they do with a sci-fi setting.
But in general, I think it’s better to expect games to be “very good” rather than “revolutionary.”
I spent the last month finally playing through the entirety of TW3 and the DLC, and I think it absolutely earns its reputation as one of the best games of this gen.
I’ve never enjoyed exploring a video game world more. Traversing the (enormous) world and discovering its secrets is a joy—it’s exactly the kind of immersive fantasy game I dreamed about someday playing when I was a kid in the 90s and early 00s.
And while combat wasn’t as fluid as Horizon Zero Dawn or Breath of the Wild, it was never less than adequate for me.
In terms of quest design, and “immersiveness,” I haven’t played a better RPG. And I think it sets a new standard for storytelling in video games.
Open world games can be great, as “Horizon: Zero Dawn,” “Breath of the Wild,” and—yep—“Red Dead Redemption 2” attest. In those cases, the open worlds make sense, and they helped the games feel uniquely atmospheric and immersive.
On the other hand… This notion that every AAA game needs to be open world is silly. There is no formula that guarantees a great game—developers should do what makes the most sense for the story being told, rather than applying a cookie cutter template to everything. A game that’s unnecessarily open world just feels tedious and repetitive - moreso than other mediocre, non-open world games.
In short - I think the developers here made the right choice for the game, and I hope more AAA game makers are willing to deviate from the current trend of making everything open world.
RDR2 isn’t a perfect game—“God of War” is more polished, and “Spiderman” is more immediately satisfying—yet it’s still the best new gaming experience I had this year. It evokes emotions I tend to associate with film and literature—which, in my book, is a very good thing.
Riding around in the mountains during a blizzard, trudging through an alligator-infested swamp on a foggy night—there were so many strangely beautiful moments in the game that I won’t soon forget. So yes, while the gameplay wasn’t always as smooth as it could be (though I do find the complaints about clunkiness a bit overstated), it reached highs that no other game that I’ve played so far this year was able to reach.
I personally never found it boring, but of course that kind of thing is subjective. In fact, as someone who is NOT a completionist, it’s one of the only games since the first “Xenoblade Chronicles” where I still felt like wandering around the world even after I had completed the main storyline.
“God of War” is the most polished of the top three games and I had a great time playing it, but I think “Red Dead Redemption 2” will have more staying power (for me, at least.) I’ve felt little desire to go back and play the former, while I’m still playing RDR2 two weeks after beating it just for the sheer enjoyment of hanging out in that world.
With that said, they’re both fantastic games, and you can’t go wrong with either.
…And I really need to play “Astro Bot.” I bought it on release day after reading the raves, but I haven’t even opened the case yet. So much to play, so little time...
“you do realize theres a lot of people that says the legend of Zelda breath of the wild was trash right.”
And…? I bet a handful of those people have even played the game.
Any acclaimed game is going to face some backlash. There are also a lot of people that “says” “The Last of Us” and “Horizon: Zero Dawn” and “God of War” are trash. They’re in a minority, but they do exist. I’m not sure why that’s relevant though—you like what you like, and it’s clear that a lot of people also love those games. Trying to hold up the existence of negative opinions as some sort of “proof” that a game is terrible is silly—especially in the case of games like “Breath of the Wild” or “God of War” which also received huge numbers of rave reviews.
Judging by reviews from both critics and general gamers, a lot more people—myself included—consider “Breath of the Wild” one of the best games of the current gen, rather than “trash.”
“why don’t you go play Mario..and Zelda and play halo.”
Your response is like a Nintendo fanboy spitefully declaring that someone who doesn’t like “Zelda” should go play “Uncharted” and “Red Dead Redemption 2,” as if playing those games is going to be considered a terrible fate by most gamers. It doesn’t really make any sense.
Well, except some of the greatest films, novels, bands, video games, etc. of the 20th and 21st centuries. And some of the greatest minds of recent times. And technologies you use on a daily basis.
They also singlehandedly keep quite a few parasitic red states afloat, but I guess some may not see that as a good thing.
But you're right - other than being a center for technology, innovation, and art, and apart from being an economic powerhouse that dwarves most countries of the world, and beside the enormous amount of agriculture produced there, and other than containing an astonishing amount of gorgeous scenery, California hasn't really given us much.
It's no Kansas or Mississippi, that's for sure.
Next up from Gamer83: "What have the Romans ever done for us?"
@RoyalD People denying that video games have any connection to sociopolitical reality are far, FAR more of a problem with the gaming community than people who actually understand the importance of context.
I see arguments like yours much more in the gaming community than in, say, the world of cinephiles or classical music aficionados or literature lovers. People in those groups generally understand that art, no matter how great, doesn't exist in a vacuum. It's a product of the environment in which it was created, and people's reactions are also tied to their own times. They don't insist that everything must be completely apolitical and treated with kid gloves.
Certain gamers, on the other hand, really want to have their cake and eat it too. They want games to be respected as Great Art, but whine and cry about "SJWs" and the like when people actually treat games like other art forms are treated.
This is all beside the fact that this whole kerfuffle started when the Youtuber (who almost certainly considers himself an anti-SJW) made things explicitly political in his videos. If you can't see the political news media talking points in his tirades, you're not paying attention.
To put it another way: if you were really worried about people "injecting unwanted political news media talking points" into a game, you'd be aiming your ire at the guy who livestreams himself mutilating suffragettes while spewing Limbaugh-esque vitriol about feminists.
But you're not actually worried about that. You're worried that those darn SJWs are ruining all your regressive fun.
I thought the mixed reviews were justified - the game felt like it could have spent more time in development.
With that said, I still had a good time playing it - and I'm always glad to see a smaller title like this do well, even if the execution didn't always live up to its ambitions.
Arkane is one of my favorite recent developer discoveries - Prey and the first Dishonored became instant favorites when I played them earlier this year. I'm saving the second Dishonored for a rainy day, because I'm pretty sure I'll love it.
But yeah... It'd be a real loss if they decided to move away from that kind of great, immersive single player experience.
Comments 46
Re: Preview: Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 Looks Stunning, Hits Hard, and Feels Fresh on PS5
@Zeroo “literally every great Final Fantasy game has been pretty much linear”
I guess it depends on how you define “linear” (and “great”) - but I’d say the second half of Final Fantasy VI isn’t very linear at all.
Final Fantasy XII, which I consider the last great FF game, is also relatively nonlinear.
At the very least, those two certainly have plenty of “meaningful exploration” and don’t feel too “on rails” in the way XVI (which I still enjoyed) often does.
(Not disagreeing with your main point - an RPG doesn’t need nonlinearity to be great.)
Re: Naughty Dog's New PS5 Game Is Finally Announced, Sci-Fi Action Title Intergalactic
@Toilet_Goat It’s not the best trailer I’ve ever seen, but it’s got nice vibes. I like the retro-future aesthetic and the music.
Beyond that, we don’t really know what the gameplay or anything will be like - but as far as trailers go, it was pretty good. Your mileage may vary, of course - but there are reasons beyond “zealotry” to be excited by this.
Re: Unknown 9: Awakening (PS5) - Brand New IP Shows Plenty of Promise
@puddinggirl That’s true - but I still place higher value on the judgments of those who have actually played a game, versus those who have not.
Re: TV Show Review: Tomb Raider: The Legend of Lara Croft - Globetrotting Animated Adventure Edges Lara's Arc Forward
@Blaze215 Abby lives in a football stadium full of food - and a gym. She's also hellbent on revenge.
In other words, she has both the resources and the motivation to get into the shape she's in.
There are a lot of unrealistic things in "The Last of Us" games - Abby being buff isn't one of them. It makes total sense within the world of the games.
Re: Newly Signed Law May Restrict Sony's Use of Terms Like 'Buy' or 'Purchase' for Digital Games
@Mr_B021 While it's true that you don't technically own the contents of a physical release, there's actually a helpful site (DoesItPlay) that lets you check if the version of a game on a disc or cartridge is playable without an internet connection and without additional downloads. (So basically, whether or not you'll still be able to play it in a decade or two when the servers are no longer online and there's no legal way to get all the bugfixes, etc.)
I've referenced it quite a bit when deciding whether to buy the physical release of a game.
Some games are basically unplayable without all the Day 1 patches, but a surprising number work perfectly well out of the box. And if you don't need to buy right away, sometimes reprints of games (which that site also tracks) will include a later, more stable version with all the post-release patches.
Re: System Shock (PS5) - A Faithful Remake That's Showing Its Age
@LifeGirl “ This is an old clunker of a game that is heavily dependent upon nostalgia doing the heavy lifting”
I played this for the first time a few months ago - so nostalgia wasn’t a factor for me - and I thought it held up shockingly well. Then again, I’m a sucker for immersive sims, so I got a kick out of seeing where many of the defining traits of the “genre” originated.
(For the record, I’m not criticizing the review here. Just saying there are more reasons to play it in 2024 than just nostalgia.)
Re: Stellar Blade PS5 Fans Irate Over Alleged Censorship
Developer: “We made this change ourselves - no one told us to.”
Developer: [leaves other far more revealing costumes unaltered]
Terminally Online “Fans”: “I can’t believe Sony forced them to do this!! Censorship!!!1!1”
Re: Stellar Blade PS5 Fans Irate Over Alleged Censorship
@Ralizah So then perhaps it’s not censorship, but indeed an artistic choice for that particular outfit? This actually seems the likelier situation, considering other more revealing outfits remain unchanged.
I guess I can understand people being upset if they prefer the look of the original costume, but no one crying “censorship” seems able to explain that discrepancy. A would-be censor is unlikely to only have a problem with this one outfit and not several others in the game.
Re: Stellar Blade (PS5) - A Stellar PS5 Debut Destined to Become a Fan Favourite
@man_what “i really feel like we are seeing how powerful marketing can be for someones final evaluation of a game”
As someone who also has little interest in this… There are plenty of hyped games that reviewers had no problem panning, so it seems much more likely to simply be a case of different people enjoying different things.
Re: Naughty Dog's Neil Druckmann to Receive NYVGCC Legend Award
@EfYI
“in the midst of”
I know some Gamers still feel traumatized by a video game making narrative choices that aren’t uncommon in other art forms (“catastrophe,” lol), but the game came out more than three years ago.
It was also extremely well received by critics and by many gamers, and it sold extremely well. Since then, ND had a remake of the first game, which was also the source material for one of the few “event” shows of this year.
We can speculate as to the reason for the recent departures, but there’s not actually a lot of concrete evidence to support the “Naughty Dog is struggling” narrative. It mostly seems to be wishful thinking on the part of capital-G Gamers who still feel hurt because Daddy Druckmann dared to tell a story they didn’t like.
Re: Rumour: One of Assassin's Creed Red's Protagonists Is Based on African Samurai Yasuke
@stu2023 "race replacement"
It's extra tragic, because Japanese people are almost completely unrepresented in media and these games are otherwise known for their complete historical accuracy.
Still, I'm sure the Japanese people will somehow survive the horrific genocidal act of, uh... [checks notes] video game developers including a real-life historical figure in their historical fantasy game.
LOL.
Re: 100 Layoffs at CD Projekt RED Amid Organisational Changes
@RobynAlecksys “factually incorrect”
You’re trying too hard, mate. Flamebait should be a bit more subtle, otherwise you’ll just provoke a bunch of eye-rolling.
Re: 100 Layoffs at CD Projekt RED Amid Organisational Changes
@Yakito1988 Eh - that seems a bit premature.
They never should have released Cyberpunk in the state it was in - but now that it actually, you know, works on most systems… it’s a lot of fun. Not quite great, and it doesn’t live up to its potential - but it’s still one of the better gaming experiences I’ve had in the past few years.
More to the point, though… They’re not a prolific studio, and even the best studios have an occasional misfire. I’d give them another game or two before making pronouncements about their decline.
Re: American Senators Continue to Target Sony Over PS5, PS4 Timed Exclusives
Any time a US politician starts talking about tech-related issues, it’s basically guaranteed to be cringeworthy. Even apart from the lobbyist issue, they just tend to be… very ignorant on these subjects.
Re: Elden Ring Sold More Than 13.4 Million Copies in Its First Five Weeks
I spent the first ten or so hours of the game exploring Limgrave, and it was one of the most enjoyable gaming experiences I’ve had in a long time. The atmosphere, the worldbuilding, the desolate but beautiful scenery - with the awe-inspiring Erdtree always in the background, towering over everything…
The game does lose some steam, and starts to feel less well balanced, after you get through Leyndell - but I can’t say there was any point where I grew tired of exploring or didn’t feel like seeing it through to the end.
It’s not perfect (what game is?) - but it’s given me 130+ hours of enjoyment and some of my favorite gaming memories, so I think it deserves its hype and sales. (I can’t see the future, so no idea what I or others will think of it in ten years - it’s enough that it gave me this much pleasure now.)
Re: Video: Why Prey Is Arkane's Best Game
In general, I think Arkane is a great, somewhat underrated studio.
“Prey” is one of my five or six favorite games of the last gen - which I wouldn’t have expected after struggling to get into it during the first few hours. It starts out a bit slow (and rather hard), but it gets a lot better as you’re able to explore more of the station and unlock more abilities (so those Phantom typhon can’t kill you in seconds.)
I really like the “Dishonored” series too, but I prefer the art style and atmosphere of “Prey.”
(And this all reminds me that I still need to play “Deathloop.”)
Re: Game of the Year: #2 - Returnal
@KundaliniRising333 Why would it be sad to award GotY to the GotY?
Re: Mini Review: Fatal Frame: Maiden of Black Water (PS5) - Remaster Is More of a Trick Than Treat
I haven’t played this port yet, but I thought it was quite good - and underrated - on Wii U.
Re: Returnal Update 2.0 Finally Lets You Suspend Your Run
I’m generally pretty terrible at games like this, but I did manage to beat it (after many, many deaths.)
It’s a great game, though, and I’m happy if this makes it more accessible and gets more people to play it.
Re: Round Up: Far Cry 6 Reviews Paint a Familiar Open World Picture
Wasn't really expecting anything more. Far Cry 5 left a sour taste in my mouth, but I still enjoy the gameplay loop of the series - so I'll probably get this when it inevitably drops to $15-$20. That way I won't feel like I wasted my money when I (also inevitably) get burned out and stop playing before the end.
Re: Round Up: Cyberpunk 2077 Reviews Mark Another Epic RPG
@Porco Poor writing? I’ve only read two reviews so far, but they both say the writing is a highlight - which isn’t too surprising, since The Witcher 3 had some of the best writing and world building I’ve experienced in a video game.
Re: Plex Will Be Available on PS5 At Launch
@LemonHaze Yeah, I don’t think Plex-provided TV shows or movies are much of a draw for anyone.
The main benefit of Plex is that it provides a way to organize and view your own media collection. I recently ripped backups of my CDs, DVDs, and Blu-rays before moving most of my collection into storage - and Plex makes it easy to access all of them just by connecting my external hard drive.
I also find it an aesthetically pleasing UI, which helps.
So yeah - Plex isn’t great as an alternative to Netflix (etc.), but it is great if you have your own library of music and movies that you want to keep organized and accessible.
Re: UK Sales Charts: The Last of Us Remastered Returns Amid Sequel's Success
@Logmein "extreme leftists"
Dear sweet Jesus. Some of you guys really need to get some real-world experience outside your bubble, because literally nothing in this game shows an "extreme leftist" worldview.
Re: PS5 Harry Potter RPG to Launch Late Next Year, Says New Report
I love it when people throw around terms like "fact based" when their comments reveal they have no idea what constitutes a "fact."
With that said, I find it easy to separate the art from the artist in all but the most egregious cases, so I'll still happily buy this game if I hear positive things from people whose opinions I trust.
Re: Talking Point: The Last of Us 2 Spoilers Discussion
@JJ2 Moral ambiguity is a thing. It's not so much people "thinking what they're told," but rather people having different worldviews and philosophies. While you may think the right choice was obvious, I found it much less clear cut.
I can understand why Joel did what he did in the hospital - but understanding and sympathizing with his motivations does not mean it was the morally correct decision. He murdered an entire hospital of people - including an unarmed doctor - because he didn't want to lose his own surrogate daughter. And though the Fireflies also do a number of morally ambiguous things, their motivations are still some of the most noble in the game's universe - they're working to find a cure for something that has destroyed civilization and caused billions of deaths.
Of course, we don't know if they would have been successful in finding a cure - Ellie's extremely rare (or perhaps even one-of-a-kind) immunity was the best lead they had, but perhaps the knowledge they gained from her brain would have only lead to a dead end. ...On the other hand, it's possible they may have actually discovered something valuable - in which case Joel's actions just cost many, many more people their lives.
Beyond all that, Joel did take away Ellie's agency - and lied to her about it. Yes, she was only a young teenager - making a choice of that magnitude for someone else is, well... Problematic.
Look: His parental instinct is admirable and very human - but once again, I'm not convinced that his feelings as a father outweigh the feelings of the fathers, mothers, sons, and daughters that he killed, and potentially millions more who will die but who could have been saved by a cure.
TL;DR - The world of "The Last of Us" is not a black-and-white one - if you think the right choice is obvious, then you're probably not thinking through the consequences of the choices being made.
Re: UK Sales Charts: The Last of Us 2 Is Sony's Fastest Selling PS4 Game Ever in the UK
@Nah900
And that's something I absolutely respect.
Though I personally don't think every plot development "works," overall I still think it's a pretty natural continuation of the story of the first game - and not the "betrayal" that some would suggest. In balance, I don't see any significant difference in quality between the storytelling of the first game and the sequel.
Others are free to disagree.
My only issue is with the people who go around saying silly things like "the story is ObJeCtIvElY aWfUl," as if they're delivering the cold, hard truth to us sheeple. It's like they can't fathom the concept that two people can have honest differences of opinion about a video game (or book or movie or band or...)
Re: Of Course The Last of Us 2 Is Being Review Bombed
@GayCommonSense
Gay guy here. You're not speaking common sense, and neither you - nor I - represent the "majority of level headed LGBT types." What you're actually doing is using your orientation to give yourself a veneer of objectivity that your comments don't merit. You're using your "gayness" as a shield from criticism for other shortcomings - which is, oddly enough, the exact thing you accuse Naughty Dog of doing. (For the record: "I'm gay, and even I think this game sux!!1" isn't really much of an argument.)
Here's the thing: It's fine that you don't like the direction the story takes. I've read the spoilers, and I can understand why it's divisive. What's silly, however, is pretending that the story and gameplay are objectively inferior to the first game, and that the game is inclusive only to compensate for its other failings. Because of course the developers who spent years of their lives creating this game all know and agree that the story and gameplay are inferior.
It's the sort of bad-faith argument you're making - that critics are too afraid to give their "true opinions" because of the diversity in the game - that makes it hard to take you seriously. It's also what causes so many here to be skeptical of this torrent of negative reviews.
Never mind that there's no way a vast majority of the bombers could have played all (or even most) of the game already - the bigger issue is that there actually are a significant number of gamers who believe that any sort of inclusivity in a game is "pandering" and who think that any deviation from the "traditional" video game protagonist and storytelling formula must be part of some "agenda." (Search this thread for words and phrases like "agenda," "SJW," "virtue signalling" - terms that'll always be prominently featured in any comments section involving a game that prominently features LGBT characters or other minorities. Some people simply cannot fathom the idea that there doesn't have to be any justification for inclusivity in games. The fact is, LGBT people exist - and that's reason enough for them to be included in some games.)
Don't get me wrong - I do NOT believe all criticisms of the game are illegitimate or uninformed. There's not a single game in existence that's perfect or universally loved. The writers took a risk telling the story that they did, and I doubt they're surprised that not everyone likes the direction it takes. Personally, however, I interpreted the first game (particularly the ending) differently than a lot of gamers, so the sequel's narrative and themes seem like a logical continuation.
...Incidentally, I've now played about five hours of Part II, and so far I think the gameplay is a significant improvement over the first one. My main criticism so far is that it sometimes it feels a bit didactic and heavy-handed at times. Overall, though, the positives far outweigh the negatives, at least so far.
But that's just, like, my opinion, maaaan...
Re: The Last of Us 2 Has Apparently Been Banned in Some Countries
As much as I'd like to write this off as empty posturing by ultra-conservative governments - it will have the insiduous effect of further alienating an already vilified outgroup. It's a reminder of how much it sucks to be part of a scapegoated minority in authoritarian cultures where even acknowledging the existence of people like you is considered "propaganda." (See also Russia giving the live-action "Beauty and the Beast" remake the equivalent of an R-rating because of a fleeting shot of two men dancing. It defies logic and common sense, but it reinforces existing prejudices and the established social order - which can be useful for unscrupulous leaders.)
Re: The Last of Us 2 Has Apparently Been Banned in Some Countries
@Makina While I'm sure you'll be relieved to know that the Saudi government shares your views, in reality telling a story that includes some LGBT characters =/= "ideological propaganda."
Do you also consider the huge number of games (and movies, and books) that feature straight white protagonists to be "propaganda"?
Re: The Elder Scrolls 6 News and Details Are Still Years Away
@ApostateMage I also really liked the voiced protagonist, though I know that's a divisive thing. It personally made me feel more connected to the character.
Re: The Elder Scrolls 6 News and Details Are Still Years Away
@ApostateMage I think the main issue is that it removed a lot of the RPG/player choice elements of the previous games, so it felt a little more generic.
On the other hand, I personally found combat much more enjoyable and felt it had some of the best-written/most interesting companions in the series (caveat - I still haven't played the first Fallout game.)
Overall, I still loved it and spent many, many hours exploring the Commonwealth.
I don't know what to expect from Bethesda anymore - but if they can bring back more of the RPG elements from FO3 and FNV, while retaining the fluid combat of FO4, then the next game in the series could be incredible. (But also glitchy, because it's Bethesda and I can't expect a miracle.)
Re: PlayStation Disables Likes, Dislikes, and Comments on The Last of Us 2's New Trailer
@Scraggler I know what happens in the game. I'm still excited for it.
While it's not the direction I expected the game to take - or even the one I would have wanted - I'm all for games tackling more challenging narratives and "forcing" us to make unpleasant decisions. It's what many of the greatest works of art do, and if ND can pull it off then they deserve major kudos.
Re: Call of Duty: Modern Warfare Has a Gruesome Easter Egg for Sadists
@oldschool1987
Oldschool - I'm not sure if you're aware of this, but your comments are coming off as more than a little unhinged. You've called half the people in this thread lunatics and morons and cucks (LOL), made extraordinarily presumptuous comments about another poster's military experience, and displayed an intellectual arrogance that's not at all justified by the content of your posts.
It might be a good idea to take a break from your computer. I usually find going on a short walk helps clear my head a bit when I start losing my temper online.
Re: Call of Duty: Modern Warfare Has a Gruesome Easter Egg for Sadists
@LN78
Yeah, well... Shirer and Kershaw may have spent decades of their lives researching the Nazi era, but oldschool here knows that Nazi means National Socialism. Checkmate, leftists!1!!
QED, historians!!!1
Re: Call of Duty: Modern Warfare Has a Gruesome Easter Egg for Sadists
@oldschool1987
Oh honey - you're not really in a position to be criticizing other people's understanding of Nazism. All you've done here is regurgitate some of the most facile Right-wing talking points about history - and spew vitriol at anyone who dares to point out the gaping holes in your understanding.
But since names are so convincing for you, I can't imagine how confused you are by the Democratic People's Republic of Korea and the German Democratic Republic.
Also: LOL @ teachers brainwashing students into "communism." Your rhetoric evidences that you've been more thoroughly brainwashed than anyone here.
Re: First Impressions: Cyberpunk 2077 Looks to Raise the Bar for All RPGs Again
This is all subjective of course. It was just a very satisfying gaming experience for me, and I’m looking forward to seeing what they do with a sci-fi setting.
But in general, I think it’s better to expect games to be “very good” rather than “revolutionary.”
Re: First Impressions: Cyberpunk 2077 Looks to Raise the Bar for All RPGs Again
I spent the last month finally playing through the entirety of TW3 and the DLC, and I think it absolutely earns its reputation as one of the best games of this gen.
I’ve never enjoyed exploring a video game world more. Traversing the (enormous) world and discovering its secrets is a joy—it’s exactly the kind of immersive fantasy game I dreamed about someday playing when I was a kid in the 90s and early 00s.
And while combat wasn’t as fluid as Horizon Zero Dawn or Breath of the Wild, it was never less than adequate for me.
In terms of quest design, and “immersiveness,” I haven’t played a better RPG. And I think it sets a new standard for storytelling in video games.
Re: God of War Dev Could Not and Did Not Want to Make the Game Open World
Open world games can be great, as “Horizon: Zero Dawn,” “Breath of the Wild,” and—yep—“Red Dead Redemption 2” attest. In those cases, the open worlds make sense, and they helped the games feel uniquely atmospheric and immersive.
On the other hand… This notion that every AAA game needs to be open world is silly. There is no formula that guarantees a great game—developers should do what makes the most sense for the story being told, rather than applying a cookie cutter template to everything. A game that’s unnecessarily open world just feels tedious and repetitive - moreso than other mediocre, non-open world games.
In short - I think the developers here made the right choice for the game, and I hope more AAA game makers are willing to deviate from the current trend of making everything open world.
Re: Game of the Year 2018: Sammy's Personal Picks
RDR2 isn’t a perfect game—“God of War” is more polished, and “Spiderman” is more immediately satisfying—yet it’s still the best new gaming experience I had this year. It evokes emotions I tend to associate with film and literature—which, in my book, is a very good thing.
Riding around in the mountains during a blizzard, trudging through an alligator-infested swamp on a foggy night—there were so many strangely beautiful moments in the game that I won’t soon forget. So yes, while the gameplay wasn’t always as smooth as it could be (though I do find the complaints about clunkiness a bit overstated), it reached highs that no other game that I’ve played so far this year was able to reach.
I personally never found it boring, but of course that kind of thing is subjective. In fact, as someone who is NOT a completionist, it’s one of the only games since the first “Xenoblade Chronicles” where I still felt like wandering around the world even after I had completed the main storyline.
Re: Site News: God of War Wins the Push Square Forum's Game of the Year
“God of War” is the most polished of the top three games and I had a great time playing it, but I think “Red Dead Redemption 2” will have more staying power (for me, at least.) I’ve felt little desire to go back and play the former, while I’m still playing RDR2 two weeks after beating it just for the sheer enjoyment of hanging out in that world.
With that said, they’re both fantastic games, and you can’t go wrong with either.
…And I really need to play “Astro Bot.” I bought it on release day after reading the raves, but I haven’t even opened the case yet. So much to play, so little time...
Re: It's an Interesting Time to Be Posting The Last of Us: Part II Reaction Trailers
@playstation1995
“you do realize theres a lot of people that says the legend of Zelda breath of the wild was trash right.”
And…? I bet a handful of those people have even played the game.
Any acclaimed game is going to face some backlash. There are also a lot of people that “says” “The Last of Us” and “Horizon: Zero Dawn” and “God of War” are trash. They’re in a minority, but they do exist. I’m not sure why that’s relevant though—you like what you like, and it’s clear that a lot of people also love those games. Trying to hold up the existence of negative opinions as some sort of “proof” that a game is terrible is silly—especially in the case of games like “Breath of the Wild” or “God of War” which also received huge numbers of rave reviews.
Judging by reviews from both critics and general gamers, a lot more people—myself included—consider “Breath of the Wild” one of the best games of the current gen, rather than “trash.”
“why don’t you go play Mario..and Zelda and play halo.”
Your response is like a Nintendo fanboy spitefully declaring that someone who doesn’t like “Zelda” should go play “Uncharted” and “Red Dead Redemption 2,” as if playing those games is going to be considered a terrible fate by most gamers. It doesn’t really make any sense.
Re: Sony Censorship Policy Removes Crude Items from Dead or Alive Xtreme 3: Scarlet
@Gamer83
"Nothing good comes from that state."
Well, except some of the greatest films, novels, bands, video games, etc. of the 20th and 21st centuries. And some of the greatest minds of recent times. And technologies you use on a daily basis.
They also singlehandedly keep quite a few parasitic red states afloat, but I guess some may not see that as a good thing.
But you're right - other than being a center for technology, innovation, and art, and apart from being an economic powerhouse that dwarves most countries of the world, and beside the enormous amount of agriculture produced there, and other than containing an astonishing amount of gorgeous scenery, California hasn't really given us much.
It's no Kansas or Mississippi, that's for sure.
Next up from Gamer83: "What have the Romans ever done for us?"
Re: Red Dead Redemption 2 Clips Featuring Assaulted Suffragette Prompt YouTube Controversy
@RoyalD People denying that video games have any connection to sociopolitical reality are far, FAR more of a problem with the gaming community than people who actually understand the importance of context.
I see arguments like yours much more in the gaming community than in, say, the world of cinephiles or classical music aficionados or literature lovers. People in those groups generally understand that art, no matter how great, doesn't exist in a vacuum. It's a product of the environment in which it was created, and people's reactions are also tied to their own times. They don't insist that everything must be completely apolitical and treated with kid gloves.
Certain gamers, on the other hand, really want to have their cake and eat it too. They want games to be respected as Great Art, but whine and cry about "SJWs" and the like when people actually treat games like other art forms are treated.
This is all beside the fact that this whole kerfuffle started when the Youtuber (who almost certainly considers himself an anti-SJW) made things explicitly political in his videos. If you can't see the political news media talking points in his tirades, you're not paying attention.
To put it another way: if you were really worried about people "injecting unwanted political news media talking points" into a game, you'd be aiming your ire at the guy who livestreams himself mutilating suffragettes while spewing Limbaugh-esque vitriol about feminists.
But you're not actually worried about that. You're worried that those darn SJWs are ruining all your regressive fun.
Re: Vampyr Has Been a 'Tremendous Success', Says Publisher
I thought the mixed reviews were justified - the game felt like it could have spent more time in development.
With that said, I still had a good time playing it - and I'm always glad to see a smaller title like this do well, even if the execution didn't always live up to its ambitions.
Re: Dishonored Currently on Ice as Dev Considers Multiplayer Aspects in Future Games
Arkane is one of my favorite recent developer discoveries - Prey and the first Dishonored became instant favorites when I played them earlier this year. I'm saving the second Dishonored for a rainy day, because I'm pretty sure I'll love it.
But yeah... It'd be a real loss if they decided to move away from that kind of great, immersive single player experience.
Re: E3 2018: Odyssey Puts the Ass in Assassin's Creed with Totally Open Romance Options
Same-sex relationships in ancient Greece?! Couldn't they have at least tried to maintain some historical accuracy?
/s