While I 100% believe the devs when they say 30fps is their preferred option, I still will pick the 60fps option if it's available. As I find it increasingly more difficult to go back to 30fps with every 60fps game that I play. I've been completely spoiled
Bloodborne is easily the best Playstation exclusive that I've played. The only games that would even come close for me are Jak 1, Shadow of the Colossus and Ni no Kuni. But I'd still argue that BB is better than any of those at the end of the day and very easily better than FF7. That game has aged like milk
Wow, I was not expecting this. Last time I heard about sales figures for Sekrio it was sitting around the 2.5 million mark if my memory serves correct. I don't understand how we got from 2 mil all the way up to 10 mil especially when considering most games sell the bulk of their copies in the first couple weeks of launch
As much as this dissappoints me as someone who actually enjoyed the Callisto Protocol, I can't really say I blame him. I mean, the way the media just panned and sh*t all over his game for no good reason I can't say it's too surprising him wanting to leave. Callisto definitely had its issues don't get me wrong, but it wasn't anywhere near as bad as game journos made it out to be. At some point you probably have to wonder if it's personal
By going off some of the comments it's pretty clear that many of you haven't actually played Wild Hearts lol. Otherwise you probably wouldn't be writing it off so casually. That's a real shame. Wild Hearts is easily one of the best games I've played this year. It actually introduced some pretty interesting and innovative mechanics that would have worked really well in a proper Monster Hunter game
@Bentleyma I actually just played through Sonic 06' for the first time last year lmao. I figured it was more than likely just as bad as everyone said it was, but I had to know for myself for some reason
@Slippship I mean I really liked Immortals Fenyx Rising, don't get me wrong. I even think it's slightly underrated if anything. But more fun than Breath of the Wild? 😅
I think you've surpassed a hot take, this is a smouldering take
Regardless if these rumours are substantiated or not, I could definitely go for a Bloodborne remaster right about now. It would help wash the taste of Elden Ring out of my mouth
Star Wars Jedi Survivor is a fantastic 9 out of 10 game dragged down to an 8 (or possibly even a 7) because of its poor technical performance. It's no where near unplayable like how it is on PC, but it's still not great either. There's very frequent frame stuttering and screen tearing in performance mode, but technical issues aside this is a truly excellent sequel. It takes the already great foundation established in Jedi Fallen Order and expands on it to create something truly special. I agree with everyone else in that this (and Fallen Order) are the best pieces of Star Wars related content since before the Disney acquisition
@grapetrap I appreciate your appreciation but technically it's not really hyperbole if I meant what I said, and in this case I absolutely did mean what I said. Unless of course, you're implying that I'm being disingenuous. Which I certainly don't think you are, making such accusations is clearly beneath either one of us
@KundaliniRising333 Yeah I mean don't get me wrong the game performs absolutely terribly lmao. Even with VRR enabled I still get noticeable frame dips and still some screen tearing. This is not at all acceptable for a AAA release. I'm mearly trying to make the best out of a bad situation
@KundaliniRising333 VRR will still smooth out inconsistent frames even if it's not properly supported. I have VRR enabled whenever I play Switch docked for example and it does wonders despite it not having any "proper support". As with Jedi Survivor I've definitely had noticeably less screen tearing with the VRR enabled but I still do get noticeable frame dips though
@grapetrap I'm not trying to be dismissive. The reason I don't connect with Jin or Aloy is not from a lack of trying. I never go into games, or any other media for that matter not wanting to like the protagonist. As I played both Ghost of Tsushima and Horzion Zero Dawn to completion, as well as the sequel, Forbidden West. But during that entire run time nothing stood out to me as likeable or memorable about either of those characters. And like I said, it's certainly not from a lack trying
Sure, they both have various traumas that they've gone through, like you said. But trauma and character traits aren't necessarily one in the same. For example, bad things happen to lead characters all the time, Just look at Nathan Drake. By the end of Uncharted 4 the man has absolutely gone through the wringer. Between his relationship with Elena and him finding out about his long lost brother, it's a lot for one man to go through. But just because he's been through some sh*t is not the reason I like him. I like him because he's a suave, charismatic, swashbuckling adventurer. To put it more simply, I like his personality. Not his trauma.
What you've described about Jin and Aloy, are all things that they've been through. Not defining traits or characteristics. Being an outcast isn't a personality, it's a trauma. And trauma isn't enough for me to grapple onto a character, I need something a bit more. I think what Jin is going through is a bit closer to what I'm referring to. Being torn between two conflicting life choices is definitely compelling stuff, but even after rolling credits I still feel like what happens to Jin is far more interesting than anything he's said or done himself. That's cool if it's good enough for you, but it's not enough for me.
And as far as the ludonarrative dissonance is concerned, you'd be wrong in thinking it doesn't also apply to Jin or Aloy. Jin and Aloy kill hundreds, if not thousands of people by the end of their respective games. I know Uncharted is the popular series to slap the ol' ludo narrative title onto, but this criticism applies to most video games. It's not exclusively an Uncharted thing
@grapetrap I wouldn't necessarily go that far, I think a piece of wood has far more personality than either Jin or Aloy.
Lol jokes aside, I'm glad at least someone was able to get something from them, I certainly wasn't. It's hard for me to when I remember what an actual good protagonist can be like. Cal, Jin, and Aloy have absolutely nothing on protags like Leon Kennedy, Commander Shepard, or even Nathan Drake. At the end of the day we're all entitled to our own opinions, but in my mind there is absolutely no comparison
I'm probably alone on this but why even bother with a DLC if it's over a year past the base game? I mean, I imagine most people have already moved on at that point. It makes more sense to work on an actual sequel or perhaps something else entirely. I just don't really get the point
@Matroska I actually kind of wish that Cal was a bit of a tw*t honestly. That way he'd actually have some character.
Obviously I'd prefer him to be likeable over being annoying, but the way he is now (Or how he was in Fallen Order) is completely devoid of any personality. He's yet another boring modern video game protagonist in the likes of Aloy or Jin Sakai. Just nothing to him, really. Just a wet blanket of a character that won't offend anyone but no one will love either
Releasing 2 lengthy, Action RPGs right alongside one another maybe wasn't the smartest business move? Although Koei Tecmo only developed them, I believe they both had different publishers so maybe it couldn't be helped.
That being said though its a shame so many are sleeping on Wild Hearts. If it weren't for the RE4 remake, Wild Hearts would easily be my GOTY. It's a genuine Monster Hunter competitor that holds its own against, and even surpasses its inspiration in some cases.
Out of a list of gripes I have with Elden Ring, a lack of content is not one of them. My main issues with Elden Ring being the copy and pasted bosses, the boring side duneons, lousy rewards, and a genuienly awful endgame that quite frankly feels rushed. Now, a DLC could certainly learn from some of these mistakes, I won't lie, but the base game will be forever tarnished (pun intended). I'm happy for those excited for it, but this will probably be the first FromSoftware DLC that I skip. The end game just left too sour of a taste in my mouth. I'm looking more forward to Armored Core
@heyalright Yeah and there's nothing wrong with that. You can have that preference, that's totally fine. Just like how someone can prefer the way The Last of Us or RDR2 tells their stories over something like Dark Souls or Elden Ring. There's no right or wrong answer on how to convey a narrative. Whether that be traditionally or non traditionally. But my point was that just because ER's narrative is told by non traditional means doesn't necessarily equate it to quality, even if that is your personal preference. In my humble opinion, the quality of the narrative should be measured by....well, the quality of the narrative. And not by whether or not its told in a cutscene. At the end of the day a good story is a good story. Be that through dialogue or an item description
@heyalright Those are all descriptors of how ER's story is non traditionally told, not of how it's compelling or good. A story can be vaguely or indirectly told and still not be a very good one. Not to say Elden Ring's story is bad necessarily. But nondirect storytelling is simply one method of which to convey a narrative, and not a direct indicator of quality.
Right now I'm somewhere between a 7 and an 8 leaning towards an 8. Hogwarts suffers from a lot of same issues that HFW did. That being yet another safe, by the numbers, check box open world game. Call me a hypocrite, but where I think Hogwarts succeeds where Horizon didn't is its ability to still surprise you. Hogwarts has consistently had new things to show, introducing new mechanics pretty late into the game actually. Hogwarts does a good job of holding its cards close to its chest while making smart decisions like introducing flying fairly early on. Something I think Horizon could have benefited from. (Waiting right up until the end credits to introduce such a crucial mechanic did that game no favors if you ask me) But at the end of the day I think Hogwarts Legacy is yet another fairly safe open world game that is however elevated by its absolutely fantastic world and setting. This is just as good of a Harry Potter game as Jedi Fallen Order was a Star Wars game. Not a masterpiece, but still pretty damn good.
@Judal27 Yeah that was my biggest complaint with Rise honestly. The overall reduced damage from monsters combined with the increased mobility just made the game way too easy imo. Luckily they somewhat rectified this with the release of Sunbreak but it sucks I had to wait an entire year just to get there.
I suspect we'll never truly return to the series roots in terms of difficulty but hopefully MH6 is at least a little bit closer to something like MH World. I'd be fine with that
@Nepp67 Call it what you want I just don't get why Dead Space gets a pass when other games clearly don't. It's not even just Callisto, Days Gone got slammed for being buggy as well among many others. Yet Dead Space is one of the buggiest AAA releases I've played in years and somehow it has an 89 on Metacritic. Sorry if I can't help but find that somewhat humorus. But honestly the Dead Space Remake is almost unanimously loved, I wouldn't let the words of a single naysayer bother you too much.
I like how all the reviews just conveniently leave out all the bugs and glitches in the remake. I've had the game crash on me multiple times, fail to load on boot up, forcing me to close the game manually from the PS home screen. I've even had a weird camera bug where the camera got stuck on the save station but I could still move Isac around but the camera wouldn't follow him. Between the negative critical reception of Callisto and the overwhelmingly postive reception of Dead Space I am convinced EA paid off the vast majority of outlets
I can't quite put my finger on it but there's something not quite right about this remake. I don't know if it's the graphics or the lighting or what but after playing The Callisto Protocol last year, that looked and felt more like Dead Space to me
@Akurusu Do you have a source for that? I'm not saying I don't believe you, but I've been following that site for a couple years now as I was under the impression it was purely unbiased. If it is in fact as biased as you say I'd like to get some confirmation so I can avoid using it in the future
@Mega-Gazz Sure it did, it added a brand new weapon, a new playable character, new enemies, new bosses, new locations and environments, you can traverse all of the nine realms now. There's plenty new in this sequel outside of the story. God of War 2 didn't reinvent the wheel when it came out. It was just more of God of War 1 but refined. They already reinvented the franchise with GoW 2018, there was no reason or need to go back to the drawing board so soon
Well I think we all knew it would come down to these two. I suspect there might be some hurt feelings at the exact placement here but I'd like to remind everyone that at the end of the day these are two phenomenal, and exceptional video games. Regardless of which one you prefer, God of War Ragnarok or Elden Ring, it's important to know that we as gamers win by getting both of these incredibly high water mark titles. And either one of them winning Game of the Year is a huge W in my book
Dunking on this game has gotten me into a lot of hot water in the past but oh well, I don't think Forbidden West belongs anywhere near the top 10. It's not a good game, and its especially not a good sequel to Zero Dawn. Story complaints aside (of which I have many), It follows a "what if we made it bigger" design philosophy when it should have followed a "How can we make it better" one.
It should have focused on making a smaller, more dense world filled with unique side content and more significant gameplay improvements. Being able to climb on more sections of the environment is a step in the right direction. Adding the hanglider from Breath of the Wild is a step in the right direction. Adding a flying mount is a step in the right direction. These are all additions that are good in a vaccum but they don't solve the core root of the problem. Guerrilla is still playing catchup with a genre that has evolved and left them behind. It's not 2015 anymore. We need more than endless map markers and fetch quests to make our open worlds interesting. We need fun and engaging traversal options and some actual player choice.
It's clear most of the effort went into making a vast open world that was nice to look at and not enough into the content that actually inhabits that world. The Ubisoft-style copy and paste objectives just aren't good enough in 2022. Not when we have games like Breath of the Wild and Elden Ring. Horizon Forbidden West is an open world game of a bygone era, an era that Guerrilla Games doesn't seem to realize has left the station. It's a shame to see such a clearly talented studio go to waste making such bland, and boring games. Hopefully that talent ends up going to better use in the future
Yeah I gotta give this one to Sony Santa Monica. The cards were seemingly stacked against them as many wondered if they could even follow up on a game like GoW 2018. And despite the odds they somehow actually managed to pull it off with a game that I believe to be even better than GoW 2018, as debatable as that may be. Elden Ring on the other hand launched with some pretty significant technical issues I recall. It didn't even run at 60fps on either of the next gen consoles and had some pretty horrible pop in
As good as Elden Ring's art direction is I also can't shake the feeling that it's also incredibly samey. For example Bloodborne has a very unique gothic flare, the streets of Yharnam are undieniably Bloodborne. Where as Sekiro is far more colorful by comparison and has a distinct feudal Japanese setting. Elden Ring by comparison just looks like Dark Souls with the brightness slider turned up. If Elden Ring had been called "Dark Souls 4" I'd be far less critical but being a brand new IP I'd expect more visual distinction from their previous titles
Sonic Frontiers is the best worst game of 2022. I definitely played better games this year but not ones that I had more fun with. Sometimes pure fun is more important than polish or quality. Sometimes!
It may not look like a PSP game necessarily but it definitely still feels like one. From the hallway-like level design to the repetitive mission structure I just don't think this remaster holds up very well at all. And thats not to mention the extremely cringe dialogue. I'm sure someone who grew up playing the original will enjoy this remaster but as a newcomer I didn't get much out of it. 6/10
@somnambulance Well right exactly. It's not at all that different from the original despite being remade from the ground up. Which is why I don't blame anyone for thinking that Part 1 is a remaster, its an easy mistake to make. It just begs the question as to why Sony greenlit this project in the first place. (Money. The answer is money.)
Horizon Forbidden West should be nominated for the worst story of 2022. As it completely killed any and all of my interest in the franchise going forward
Comments 417
Re: Mini Review: Trepang2 (PS5) - Great Run-and-Gun Shooter Misfires Its Attempts to Be More
This game looks incredible, I'll definitely be picking it up. We need more FEAR-likes!
Re: Alan Wake 2 Has a Performance Mode on PS5, But It's Been Built as a '30FPS Experience'
While I 100% believe the devs when they say 30fps is their preferred option, I still will pick the 60fps option if it's available. As I find it increasingly more difficult to go back to 30fps with every 60fps game that I play. I've been completely spoiled
Re: Alan Wake 2 Has a Performance Mode on PS5, But It's Been Built as a '30FPS Experience'
@Ravix I wonder how many people will actually fall for this comment. 10/10 bait
Re: Community: Push Square Community's Best Game of All Time Has Been Decided
Bloodborne is easily the best Playstation exclusive that I've played. The only games that would even come close for me are Jak 1, Shadow of the Colossus and Ni no Kuni. But I'd still argue that BB is better than any of those at the end of the day and very easily better than FF7. That game has aged like milk
Re: Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice Slashes Through 10 Million Copies Sold
Wow, I was not expecting this. Last time I heard about sales figures for Sekrio it was sitting around the 2.5 million mark if my memory serves correct. I don't understand how we got from 2 mil all the way up to 10 mil especially when considering most games sell the bulk of their copies in the first couple weeks of launch
Re: Resident Evil 4: Separate Ways (PS5) - Ada Wong Fronts More Sublime RE Action
@DrVenture69 I hate to be "that guy" but separate ways released in all versions of RE4 except for the Gamecube version
Re: Callisto Protocol's Glen Schofield Announces Departure from Striking Distance Studios
As much as this dissappoints me as someone who actually enjoyed the Callisto Protocol, I can't really say I blame him. I mean, the way the media just panned and sh*t all over his game for no good reason I can't say it's too surprising him wanting to leave. Callisto definitely had its issues don't get me wrong, but it wasn't anywhere near as bad as game journos made it out to be. At some point you probably have to wonder if it's personal
Re: Rumour: Wild Hearts Support Is Being Slashed Just Seven Months After Release
By going off some of the comments it's pretty clear that many of you haven't actually played Wild Hearts lol. Otherwise you probably wouldn't be writing it off so casually. That's a real shame. Wild Hearts is easily one of the best games I've played this year. It actually introduced some pretty interesting and innovative mechanics that would have worked really well in a proper Monster Hunter game
Re: Ultraviolent, Ridiculous FPS Trepang2 Spills Blood on PS5 in October
Another october release......
...........Yay.......
Re: Armored Core 6: Fires of Rubicon (PS5) - Great Mecha Action at Times Feels Stunted
@Reptilio I was thinking the exact same thing. Massive AAA games like these don't just appear out of thin air.
Re: Talking Point: What Are You Playing This Weekend? - Issue 478
@Bentleyma I actually just played through Sonic 06' for the first time last year lmao. I figured it was more than likely just as bad as everyone said it was, but I had to know for myself for some reason
Re: PlayStation Showcase Finally Announced for 24th May
OK it's finally time, Knack 3 here we go!!
Re: UK Sales Charts: Nothing on PS5, PS4, Can Compete with Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom
@Slippship I'm not exactly speaking in riddles or meming here. What is there to not understand? 🤔
Re: UK Sales Charts: Nothing on PS5, PS4, Can Compete with Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom
@Slippship I mean I really liked Immortals Fenyx Rising, don't get me wrong. I even think it's slightly underrated if anything. But more fun than Breath of the Wild? 😅
I think you've surpassed a hot take, this is a smouldering take
Re: Oh No, the Bloodborne Remake Rumours Have Returned
Regardless if these rumours are substantiated or not, I could definitely go for a Bloodborne remaster right about now. It would help wash the taste of Elden Ring out of my mouth
Re: New Star Wars Jedi: Survivor Patch Is Out Now, Focuses on Bug Fixes
@Flaming_Kaiser Tell me you have no idea how game development works without telling me you have no idea how game development works
Re: Poll: What Review Score Would You Give Star Wars Jedi: Survivor?
Star Wars Jedi Survivor is a fantastic 9 out of 10 game dragged down to an 8 (or possibly even a 7) because of its poor technical performance. It's no where near unplayable like how it is on PC, but it's still not great either. There's very frequent frame stuttering and screen tearing in performance mode, but technical issues aside this is a truly excellent sequel. It takes the already great foundation established in Jedi Fallen Order and expands on it to create something truly special. I agree with everyone else in that this (and Fallen Order) are the best pieces of Star Wars related content since before the Disney acquisition
Re: Star Wars Jedi: Survivor (PS5) - Fantastic Sequel Is Bigger and Better in Every Way
@grapetrap I appreciate your appreciation but technically it's not really hyperbole if I meant what I said, and in this case I absolutely did mean what I said. Unless of course, you're implying that I'm being disingenuous. Which I certainly don't think you are, making such accusations is clearly beneath either one of us
Re: Star Wars Jedi: Survivor PS5 Patch Promises Improved Performance and Crash Fixes
@KundaliniRising333 Yeah I mean don't get me wrong the game performs absolutely terribly lmao. Even with VRR enabled I still get noticeable frame dips and still some screen tearing. This is not at all acceptable for a AAA release. I'm mearly trying to make the best out of a bad situation
Re: Star Wars Jedi: Survivor PS5 Patch Promises Improved Performance and Crash Fixes
@KundaliniRising333 VRR will still smooth out inconsistent frames even if it's not properly supported. I have VRR enabled whenever I play Switch docked for example and it does wonders despite it not having any "proper support". As with Jedi Survivor I've definitely had noticeably less screen tearing with the VRR enabled but I still do get noticeable frame dips though
Re: Star Wars Jedi: Survivor PS5 Patch Promises Improved Performance and Crash Fixes
@mus422 Performance mode with VRR enabled is still better than quality mode IMO. But not everyone has a VRR compatible TV so, your mileage may very
Re: Star Wars Jedi: Survivor (PS5) - Fantastic Sequel Is Bigger and Better in Every Way
@grapetrap I'm not trying to be dismissive. The reason I don't connect with Jin or Aloy is not from a lack of trying. I never go into games, or any other media for that matter not wanting to like the protagonist. As I played both Ghost of Tsushima and Horzion Zero Dawn to completion, as well as the sequel, Forbidden West. But during that entire run time nothing stood out to me as likeable or memorable about either of those characters. And like I said, it's certainly not from a lack trying
Sure, they both have various traumas that they've gone through, like you said. But trauma and character traits aren't necessarily one in the same. For example, bad things happen to lead characters all the time, Just look at Nathan Drake. By the end of Uncharted 4 the man has absolutely gone through the wringer. Between his relationship with Elena and him finding out about his long lost brother, it's a lot for one man to go through. But just because he's been through some sh*t is not the reason I like him. I like him because he's a suave, charismatic, swashbuckling adventurer. To put it more simply, I like his personality. Not his trauma.
What you've described about Jin and Aloy, are all things that they've been through. Not defining traits or characteristics. Being an outcast isn't a personality, it's a trauma. And trauma isn't enough for me to grapple onto a character, I need something a bit more. I think what Jin is going through is a bit closer to what I'm referring to. Being torn between two conflicting life choices is definitely compelling stuff, but even after rolling credits I still feel like what happens to Jin is far more interesting than anything he's said or done himself. That's cool if it's good enough for you, but it's not enough for me.
And as far as the ludonarrative dissonance is concerned, you'd be wrong in thinking it doesn't also apply to Jin or Aloy. Jin and Aloy kill hundreds, if not thousands of people by the end of their respective games. I know Uncharted is the popular series to slap the ol' ludo narrative title onto, but this criticism applies to most video games. It's not exclusively an Uncharted thing
Re: Star Wars Jedi: Survivor (PS5) - Fantastic Sequel Is Bigger and Better in Every Way
@grapetrap I wouldn't necessarily go that far, I think a piece of wood has far more personality than either Jin or Aloy.
Lol jokes aside, I'm glad at least someone was able to get something from them, I certainly wasn't. It's hard for me to when I remember what an actual good protagonist can be like. Cal, Jin, and Aloy have absolutely nothing on protags like Leon Kennedy, Commander Shepard, or even Nathan Drake. At the end of the day we're all entitled to our own opinions, but in my mind there is absolutely no comparison
Re: Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree Development Is Further Along Than You Might Think
I'm probably alone on this but why even bother with a DLC if it's over a year past the base game? I mean, I imagine most people have already moved on at that point. It makes more sense to work on an actual sequel or perhaps something else entirely. I just don't really get the point
Re: Star Wars Jedi: Survivor (PS5) - Fantastic Sequel Is Bigger and Better in Every Way
@Matroska I actually kind of wish that Cal was a bit of a tw*t honestly. That way he'd actually have some character.
Obviously I'd prefer him to be likeable over being annoying, but the way he is now (Or how he was in Fallen Order) is completely devoid of any personality. He's yet another boring modern video game protagonist in the likes of Aloy or Jin Sakai. Just nothing to him, really. Just a wet blanket of a character that won't offend anyone but no one will love either
Re: Wild Hearts, Wo Long Were 'Successful', but Koei Tecmo Sidesteps Sales Numbers
Releasing 2 lengthy, Action RPGs right alongside one another maybe wasn't the smartest business move? Although Koei Tecmo only developed them, I believe they both had different publishers so maybe it couldn't be helped.
That being said though its a shame so many are sleeping on Wild Hearts. If it weren't for the RE4 remake, Wild Hearts would easily be my GOTY. It's a genuine Monster Hunter competitor that holds its own against, and even surpasses its inspiration in some cases.
Karakuri > Wirebugs
Re: Elden Ring, Dark Souls Director Becomes Second Game Dev to Make Time's 100 Most Influential People List
@tallythwack Do you not praise the sun.....?!
Re: Scars Above (PS5) - Ambitious Sci-Fi Adventure Fails to Launch
"Mom, can we get Returnal?"
"We have Returnal at home"
Returnal at home:
Re: Elden Ring DLC Confirmed as Shadow of the Erdtree Expansion Is Announced
Out of a list of gripes I have with Elden Ring, a lack of content is not one of them. My main issues with Elden Ring being the copy and pasted bosses, the boring side duneons, lousy rewards, and a genuienly awful endgame that quite frankly feels rushed. Now, a DLC could certainly learn from some of these mistakes, I won't lie, but the base game will be forever tarnished (pun intended). I'm happy for those excited for it, but this will probably be the first FromSoftware DLC that I skip. The end game just left too sour of a taste in my mouth. I'm looking more forward to Armored Core
Re: God of War Ragnarok Cleans Up at DICE Awards, Elden Ring Takes Game of the Year
@heyalright Yeah and there's nothing wrong with that. You can have that preference, that's totally fine. Just like how someone can prefer the way The Last of Us or RDR2 tells their stories over something like Dark Souls or Elden Ring. There's no right or wrong answer on how to convey a narrative. Whether that be traditionally or non traditionally. But my point was that just because ER's narrative is told by non traditional means doesn't necessarily equate it to quality, even if that is your personal preference. In my humble opinion, the quality of the narrative should be measured by....well, the quality of the narrative. And not by whether or not its told in a cutscene. At the end of the day a good story is a good story. Be that through dialogue or an item description
Re: God of War Ragnarok Cleans Up at DICE Awards, Elden Ring Takes Game of the Year
@heyalright Those are all descriptors of how ER's story is non traditionally told, not of how it's compelling or good. A story can be vaguely or indirectly told and still not be a very good one. Not to say Elden Ring's story is bad necessarily. But nondirect storytelling is simply one method of which to convey a narrative, and not a direct indicator of quality.
Re: Elden Ring Has Sold a Whopping 20 Million Copies Since Launch
Despite my overall mixed feelings on Elden Ring, it's good to see FromSoftware finally get the sales figures they deserve.
Re: Poll: What Review Score Would You Give Hogwarts Legacy?
Right now I'm somewhere between a 7 and an 8 leaning towards an 8. Hogwarts suffers from a lot of same issues that HFW did. That being yet another safe, by the numbers, check box open world game. Call me a hypocrite, but where I think Hogwarts succeeds where Horizon didn't is its ability to still surprise you. Hogwarts has consistently had new things to show, introducing new mechanics pretty late into the game actually. Hogwarts does a good job of holding its cards close to its chest while making smart decisions like introducing flying fairly early on. Something I think Horizon could have benefited from. (Waiting right up until the end credits to introduce such a crucial mechanic did that game no favors if you ask me) But at the end of the day I think Hogwarts Legacy is yet another fairly safe open world game that is however elevated by its absolutely fantastic world and setting. This is just as good of a Harry Potter game as Jedi Fallen Order was a Star Wars game. Not a masterpiece, but still pretty damn good.
Re: Wild Hearts (PS5) - A Fast-Paced, Thrilling Alternative to Monster Hunter
@Judal27 Yeah that was my biggest complaint with Rise honestly. The overall reduced damage from monsters combined with the increased mobility just made the game way too easy imo. Luckily they somewhat rectified this with the release of Sunbreak but it sucks I had to wait an entire year just to get there.
I suspect we'll never truly return to the series roots in terms of difficulty but hopefully MH6 is at least a little bit closer to something like MH World. I'd be fine with that
Re: Original Director Glen Schofield Thanks Motive for Faithful PS5 Dead Space Remake
@Nepp67 You can confirm it's not one of the buggiest AAA games that I'VE played? How could you possibly know that?
Re: Original Director Glen Schofield Thanks Motive for Faithful PS5 Dead Space Remake
@Nepp67 Call it what you want I just don't get why Dead Space gets a pass when other games clearly don't. It's not even just Callisto, Days Gone got slammed for being buggy as well among many others. Yet Dead Space is one of the buggiest AAA releases I've played in years and somehow it has an 89 on Metacritic. Sorry if I can't help but find that somewhat humorus. But honestly the Dead Space Remake is almost unanimously loved, I wouldn't let the words of a single naysayer bother you too much.
Re: Original Director Glen Schofield Thanks Motive for Faithful PS5 Dead Space Remake
I like how all the reviews just conveniently leave out all the bugs and glitches in the remake. I've had the game crash on me multiple times, fail to load on boot up, forcing me to close the game manually from the PS home screen. I've even had a weird camera bug where the camera got stuck on the save station but I could still move Isac around but the camera wouldn't follow him. Between the negative critical reception of Callisto and the overwhelmingly postive reception of Dead Space I am convinced EA paid off the vast majority of outlets
Re: Dead Space (PS5) - Faithful Remake Brings Back a Classic
I can't quite put my finger on it but there's something not quite right about this remake. I don't know if it's the graphics or the lighting or what but after playing The Callisto Protocol last year, that looked and felt more like Dead Space to me
Re: Poll: What PS5, PS4 Game Are You Most Looking Forward to in January 2023?
@Lord_Beerus_87 Yeah I really enjoyed The Callisto Protocol despite the mixed reception. It's got me looking forward to Dead Space Remake forsure
Re: Elden Ring Dominates God of War Ragnarok in GOTY Awards, Breaks The Last of Us 2's Record
@Akurusu Do you have a source for that? I'm not saying I don't believe you, but I've been following that site for a couple years now as I was under the impression it was purely unbiased. If it is in fact as biased as you say I'd like to get some confirmation so I can avoid using it in the future
Re: Game of the Year: #1 - God of War Ragnarok
@Mega-Gazz Sure it did, it added a brand new weapon, a new playable character, new enemies, new bosses, new locations and environments, you can traverse all of the nine realms now. There's plenty new in this sequel outside of the story. God of War 2 didn't reinvent the wheel when it came out. It was just more of God of War 1 but refined. They already reinvented the franchise with GoW 2018, there was no reason or need to go back to the drawing board so soon
Re: Game of the Year: #2 - Elden Ring
Well I think we all knew it would come down to these two. I suspect there might be some hurt feelings at the exact placement here but I'd like to remind everyone that at the end of the day these are two phenomenal, and exceptional video games. Regardless of which one you prefer, God of War Ragnarok or Elden Ring, it's important to know that we as gamers win by getting both of these incredibly high water mark titles. And either one of them winning Game of the Year is a huge W in my book
Re: Game of the Year: #3 - Horizon Forbidden West
Dunking on this game has gotten me into a lot of hot water in the past but oh well, I don't think Forbidden West belongs anywhere near the top 10. It's not a good game, and its especially not a good sequel to Zero Dawn. Story complaints aside (of which I have many), It follows a "what if we made it bigger" design philosophy when it should have followed a "How can we make it better" one.
It should have focused on making a smaller, more dense world filled with unique side content and more significant gameplay improvements. Being able to climb on more sections of the environment is a step in the right direction. Adding the hanglider from Breath of the Wild is a step in the right direction. Adding a flying mount is a step in the right direction. These are all additions that are good in a vaccum but they don't solve the core root of the problem. Guerrilla is still playing catchup with a genre that has evolved and left them behind. It's not 2015 anymore. We need more than endless map markers and fetch quests to make our open worlds interesting. We need fun and engaging traversal options and some actual player choice.
It's clear most of the effort went into making a vast open world that was nice to look at and not enough into the content that actually inhabits that world. The Ubisoft-style copy and paste objectives just aren't good enough in 2022. Not when we have games like Breath of the Wild and Elden Ring. Horizon Forbidden West is an open world game of a bygone era, an era that Guerrilla Games doesn't seem to realize has left the station. It's a shame to see such a clearly talented studio go to waste making such bland, and boring games. Hopefully that talent ends up going to better use in the future
Re: Game of the Year: Best PS5, PS4 Developer of 2022
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Re: Game of the Year: Best PS5, PS4 Developer of 2022
Yeah I gotta give this one to Sony Santa Monica. The cards were seemingly stacked against them as many wondered if they could even follow up on a game like GoW 2018. And despite the odds they somehow actually managed to pull it off with a game that I believe to be even better than GoW 2018, as debatable as that may be. Elden Ring on the other hand launched with some pretty significant technical issues I recall. It didn't even run at 60fps on either of the next gen consoles and had some pretty horrible pop in
Re: Game of the Year: Best PS5, PS4 Art Direction of 2022
As good as Elden Ring's art direction is I also can't shake the feeling that it's also incredibly samey. For example Bloodborne has a very unique gothic flare, the streets of Yharnam are undieniably Bloodborne. Where as Sekiro is far more colorful by comparison and has a distinct feudal Japanese setting. Elden Ring by comparison just looks like Dark Souls with the brightness slider turned up. If Elden Ring had been called "Dark Souls 4" I'd be far less critical but being a brand new IP I'd expect more visual distinction from their previous titles
Re: Game of the Year: #7 - Sonic Frontiers
Sonic Frontiers is the best worst game of 2022. I definitely played better games this year but not ones that I had more fun with. Sometimes pure fun is more important than polish or quality. Sometimes!
Re: Poll: What Review Score Would You Give Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII Reunion?
It may not look like a PSP game necessarily but it definitely still feels like one. From the hallway-like level design to the repetitive mission structure I just don't think this remaster holds up very well at all. And thats not to mention the extremely cringe dialogue. I'm sure someone who grew up playing the original will enjoy this remaster but as a newcomer I didn't get much out of it. 6/10
Re: Game of the Year: #9 - The Last of Us: Part I
@somnambulance Well right exactly. It's not at all that different from the original despite being remade from the ground up. Which is why I don't blame anyone for thinking that Part 1 is a remaster, its an easy mistake to make. It just begs the question as to why Sony greenlit this project in the first place. (Money. The answer is money.)
Re: Game of the Year: Best PS5, PS4 Story Game of 2022
Horizon Forbidden West should be nominated for the worst story of 2022. As it completely killed any and all of my interest in the franchise going forward