wildcat_kickz

Great to see AC on the charts. I'm like 50 hours in, but have barely advanced the story 😂. If you give me a base-building mechanic, that's where all my time is gonna go. Same thing happened in Fallout 4.

Something also to note is that Sony still has it's legacy storefronts available, while both Microsoft and Nintendo have abandoned them.

@Oz_Who_Dat_Dare I totally get that - I'm not a rich man, so I definitely know that money is tight right now.

But on the flip-side, games are much more expensive to make now, so in order to justify that expense, they need to charge more, leveraging mtx's to make up the difference.

The one thing that I constantly have an issue with, though, is the notion that mtx's are some sort of burden on every consumer. There needs to be some sort of personal accountability with regard to restrain in buying extra stuff in games.

I play CoD, which has hefty microtransactions, but I don't buy any of them, so I'm actually getting wayyy more value than I did 10 years ago, when they would sell you map packs. They give that stuff for free now because it's being subsidized by whales.

I know people don't want to hear it, but $50 in 2005 is $83 today. Even with a price hike to $80 for a game, games are cheaper than they were in 2005.

Just some food for thought.

@Majin_Deicide Game prices aren't really tied to how graphically impressive a game is or what hardware it's running on. The jump from $60 to $70 was long overdue, from an inflationary perspective, and since the jump from $60 to $70, high inflation in the 2020s has completely wiped out any tangible gains that first $10 increase would have had for companies. $80 seems about right for what AAA games should cost nowadays.

For context, a game that cost $60 in 2005, when games jumped from $50 to $60, would cost $100 in today's money. We're actually getting games cheaper than we did in the PS3 generation.

@DennisReynolds Totally agree! The setting alone makes it fantastic. So far, Origins is still my fav, but I haven't finished Shadows yet, so that might change. Definitely top 5 already, though.

Seems interesting, but I didn't see any killer apps. The problem Nintendo has is that for 3rd party games, nothing they show will impress compared to what is already possible with Sony and Microsoft hardware. And just about all the 3rd party announcements were just ports of games that have already been released.

Even most of their 1st party announcements were ports of Switch 1 games. They need to show more for me to even think about picking one up.

@graymamba Ubisoft needed right-sizing badly, so the fact that Shadows wouldn't save the status quo is neither surprising, nor a bad thing.

While I'm not wild about Tencent increasing its ownership over Ubisoft, I think the restructure is long overdue.

I imagine Shadows will be vey profitable for Ubisoft, far exceeding the dev and marketing budget. But that doesn't change the fact that Ubisoft is too big and needs to reduce its headcount.

Glad the game is performing well. I'm certainly enjoying my time with it! It's no GotY contender or anything, but it doesn't need to be. The game was clearly designed to cast a wide net, so I doubt many people will think Shadows is amazing, but it's a damn good time. Playing as Naoe is some of the most fun I've had sneaking around in AC.

Never really played Oblivion (started a few times, but never got far). I started with Skyrim and found it really hard to go back, so if this true, I'll be excited to dive in and see what all the fuss is about!

Frogwares keeps on delivering for their fans! Their games are quintessential "Eurojank," but with so much heart, it's really hard not to thoroughly enjoy their games. I'll definitely be playing through this again in anticipation of the sequel!

If this is just a physical edition collection, I don’t really see the big deal. It’s like WB doing the Arkham collection or AC games constantly coming out with new bundles.

Internet haters: stand down.

@Oram77 Joel was right. Abby was right. Neither were right.

To me, that's the whole point. From each of their perspectives, they have valid justification, but from a dispassionate observer, violence solves nothing; "dispassionate" being the key word.

Live action Zelda just seems so weird to me and Avi Arad doesn't exactly have a stellar film record.

I expect something super weird like having Mark Wahlberg being cast as Ganon or something...

Edo Period, let's goooooooo! Rise of the Ronin, AC Shadows, GoY. Fans of this setting are eating good,

So, does this mean that Ubisoft will try to sell the remaining properties?

@Johnnycide Fair deal. Sarcasm is pretty hard to discern in comments. And I've seen wayyy wilder takes made in earnest on this website.

@Johnnycide I don't buy the "laziness" argument. This is Naughty Dog. If they wanted hair on the protagonist, that's what they would have done. This is an artistic choice.

If you don't like playing video games with bald protagonists, that's your choice. Seems a bit silly to me, though - like saying "I don't talk to people who wear red shoes."

Developers are only as good as their last game, so Rocksteady has a lot to prove with this one.

@Khayl Genuine question: Is Neowiz the developer or the publisher? I was under the impression that Round8 was the dev team, but I may be wrong.

@AhmadSumadi hot damn! Hail to the king!

@AhmadSumadi I can't overstate how much I love that game. I think I've put over 500 hours into it over the years... 2 platinums and working on a third. 😁

Despite the rough 2077 launch, CDPR remains my favorite developer. Witcher 3 is the GOAT and 2077 is a close runner-up.

Very happy to hear that they're sticking with what they know best.

We all knew the reports of Japanese outrage were way overblown. I'm sure there are inaccuracies (the same as literally every other AC game), but nothing egregious. Japanese gamers just want a fun game to play. The same as the rest of us.

Blood boil, indeed!

A-holes really do ruin everything for the rest of us. It takes a serious amount of egotism and selfishness to do something like this.

Oof. Well, at least we get a trophy called "Dead Don't Ride." Never understood why the went with "Days Gone." The working title "Dead Don't Ride" was sooooo much better and original.

@breakneck I wonder how much of the story has been written with clear expectations of wins/losses. I have a suspicion that it is all too easy for Arrowhead to crunch numbers based on active users to calculate exactly how hard/easy to make objectives to create the outcomes they want for the narrative.

@OldGamer999 I have a suspicion it will be a month or two before we see that patch come through.

I've only played Shadow Fall, but had a great time playing through the campaign. Remasters would be very welcome, though if I had to choose one, I'd rather a Resistance collection.

I've been consistently impressed by how this game looks, but will this game be a banger or a glorified tech demo? I'm keeping a close eye on this one, but until people get their hands on it, I will remain cautious.

Just checking in again to say how pleased I am that the votes are edging towards the (correct) opinion that this is From Software's best game. 😜

Top 3 GOAT, best From Soft, give me a sequel. Easy answers, all.

Edit: I think I've beaten this game at least 6 times and have put hundreds of hours in. Bar none, it is the best setting From Soft has ever created, best lore, best combat, etc., etc.

Elden Ring doesn't hold a candle to Bloodborne. Sorry, not sorry.

Not that I have any investment in their relationship, but glad to see these two on screen together again. I heard they had a falling out when they tried doing a YouTube show. Maybe this is just professionally burying the hatchet, but nice to see either way.

Oh, right. They're talking about a video game. Yeah, I'm buying it for sure. All 3 Indiana Jones movies are amazing, so it's nice to see the franchise get some love.

Well deserved! Shadows is an amazing game. Easily, the most stunning open world I've seen since RDR2 and maybe even surpasses it. I've spent so much time just wandering around the landscape, taking in the sights.

Naoe's move set is also the best that AC has had since Unity. So effing good.

While I don't mind Yasuke in the game at all, I haven't seen any narrative beats that really justify his place in the game. It's a small complaint from my perspective, but I'm sure no one will make a big deal out of it....

This will have to wait, as I begin my descent into AC Shadows, but this has intrigued me for a while. As an American, I'm really happy to see a game like this take place outside of the US.

I'm also super stoked that Rebellion continues to be a shining light in the increasing shrinking independent developer scene.

@Cornpop76 I totally get what you're saying - if you're gonna do it, do it for real. That said, I just don't really understand people being put out by a completely optional feature, as if it's mere inclusion is an affront to their existance. It's kind of like real life: if you're heterosexual and don't approve of homosexuality, you still could technically choose to be in a homosexual relationship. You just choose not to. People can do the same in this game.

@MrPeanutbutterz This is actually my mentality, too. I played TLoU2 for the first time when the remaster came out. I was absolutely blown away, but it was just so emotionally draining that I don't know if I'll ever play it again. I think watching the next few seasons of the HBO show is the closest I'm gonna get.

@PuppetMaster The romance options in the latest Assassin's Creed games are largely superficial, regardless of whether the relationship is hetero or homosexual. They don't really add to the story, as a whole, but may deepen your connection to the characters within, as you have more agency over who you want to spend time with. It's just flavoring on top. It may not be transformative, but in conjunction with a bunch of other smaller touches, it adds up to a more immersive experience. Either engage with the mechanic or don't. It won't really change anything.

I don't think you were intending it this way, but the way you phrased your initial question felt like it was insinuating that a homosexual relationship's inclusion in a game was something that needed to be defended, as opposed to a heterosexual relationship, which wouldn't even be a blip on anyone's radar.

Is the entire relationship mechanic just flavor text to the game that can be largely ignored? Certainly. I just don't think it would be any different, whether the relationship is homosexual, heterosexual, or something in between.

@Hoodie718 You're comment (#55) is spot on, especially given what is considered "appropriate" for the game is being dictated by modern, Western values. I'm on record being rather critical of DA: Veilguard and I stand by it, mostly because of the bad writing, but the idea that nonheteronormative individuals didn't exist in the past or can't exist in a work of fiction is laughable. This is brought even more to light due to the fact that (while I haven't played Shadows yet at the time of writing this comment), I'm assuming this "non-binary" character (which is a modern term), is probably a wakashu, a "third" gender in Japanese culture during the Edo period.

@DennisReynolds To be honest, I don't remember that quest 😂I totally believe you though. That game was so huge, more than half has been completely flushed from my brain.

@Icey664 Not really, actually. Feudal Japan had a sort of third gender, usually reserved for young boys, but it wasn't that simple. That third option was called Wakashu. I won't go into great detail, but this third gender had a sociological role and wasn't restricted to heterosexuality.

@heavyartillery56 They only said that Yasuke was a real historical figure, not a samurai. Their games are always based around history, but they've always taken incredible liberties with history. This has been true since the series' inception. The Assassin and Templar feud is not real. They have never claimed it's real.

If you're going out of your way to distort reality to defend online trolls, then that's your choice, but, dude... come on.

@heavyartillery56 Dude, what? They never claimed that. PSA: the Animus doesn't exist.

People are so effing stupid online and so eager to be upset about something. The outrage economy is the absolute scum of online culture.

@DennisReynolds The biggest red flag in Odyssey that I saw early on suggesting that Cassandra was the intended protagonist was that Alexios' run/walk cycle was the same as Cassandra. It looked really weird that his animations were all designed for a female rig. The only "male" animations I saw in that game were taken straight from Origins, which seemed only to trigger when holding a torch. Hopefully, they haven't been that lazy this time, though first impressions look promising. I suppose I'll find out for myself, this evening.

Yeah, this AI Slop is out of hand on the PS store. Sony may claim a position that they're just enabling more creators to get their products to market, but these AI titles are predatory and damage the reputation/sales of legitimate, hard-working creators.

Sony should be ashamed.

Very excited to play this tomorrow. By far, the best looking AC game to date.

I am curious if it's a typo that 40fps only has standard RT. If extended RT is only available for 30fps, why would anyone bother with the 40fps mode, even if your TV supports it?

@lazarus11 @AhmadSumadi I don't consider myself a sensationalist, but I was supremely disappointed in Veilguard and not really for those "pressure point" issues. People have different thresholds for what they can stomach, in terms of groan-worthy dialog. I have a relatively low threshold for that, which is why I typically don't like JRPGs either. Veilguard, to me, felt like a Western JRPG, if that makes sense.

@reddevilcat Yeah, I suspect Veilguard was just targeting a younger audience, which didn't include us. It definitely has the "Saturday Morning Cartoon" kinda vibe.

Regarding Shadows, I'm more optimistic. Given the fact that you can still play as a native Japanese women, you can still have that experience. For me, I think I'll enjoy playing as Yasuke just fine and will relate to his experience as a stranger in a strange land.

@Uromastryx @breakneck @Frmknst BG3 requires a little more imagination on the part of the player than most video games. I think it's better to think of BG3 as a digital manifestation of D&D, rather than a standard video game. The fact that they translated almost all of the ruleset from 5th Edition into the game is really impressive and the amount of branching narratives, secrets, and optional content is staggering.

From a video game perspective, yeah the gameplay isn't that great. But from a playground for the mind perspective, it's peerless.

@reddevilcat I also didn't really care for Veilguard, but I can sort of see why reviewers were kind to it. Devoid of all context, it's a technically sound and beautiful game. But I found the writing terrible and tonally just completely different from the previous games.

If someone was just jumping into Dragon Age with Veilguard, I can see them liking it. But for fans of the series, like us, it felt like a total disappointment.

At the end of the day, reviews are just opinions and you're being very pragmatic to wait for audience reactions. Nothing wrong with that!