The Videogames Tab

Tools    





2022 Mofo Fantasy Football Champ




All I need is a rug now.

EDIT: I also found a copy of Alien 3 for Genesis at a pawn shop this past week. I was playing that this morning and that game has aged really well, and omg, I swear getting the component cable was worth the 7 month wait. That Xenomorph sprite is even more terrifying

What games u got for that 64



You ready? You look ready.
keep the n64 its good for ur memories
Good for my wallet, too. I almost sold it when I sold my Genesis.

What games u got for that 64
NBA Hangtime
Diddy Kong Racing
Goldeneye
Super Mario 64
Zelda: OOT
Mario Kart 64
Star Wars Episode 1: Racer
Wave Race 64 (recently acquired)

A few of those are nicked carts. I was kinda a N64 kelpto as a kid.

But my childhood is defined by the NBA Hangtime's announcer voice.

"Nothing but the bottom of the net!"
"He's on FIRE!"
"He puts up a brick!"
"GOAL TENDING"


And Diddy Kong Racing is the definitive N64 racer. I will die on that hill.
__________________
"This is that human freedom, which all boast that they possess, and which consists solely in the fact, that men are conscious of their own desire, but are ignorant of the causes whereby that desire has been determined." -Baruch Spinoza



A system of cells interlinked
When I first started playing Cyberpunk 2077, I came into it with the impression that i would be playing a game that was a blend of The Wither 3 story and quest system, dropped into a futuristic GTA template. While I was in some ways correct, what I didn't expect was one of the best immersive sim style gaming experiences I have ever played. I guess it makes sense that CD Project Red would have also borrowed from stuff like Deus Ex, but for some reason, those games have been off my radar since the most recent Deus Ex title, which was quite a few years ago - I was under the impression that genre had sort of faded away. I recall a developer talking about how those games were a huge amount of work to develop, as each room or mission area etc. had to be scrutinized and balanced for a variety of different solutions, builds, and play styles, and that the games didn't have a massive fan base to bring in the sort of financial return game studios are looking to accrue these days.

So, imagine my surprise when I started getting deeper into the skill trees and realizing the depth of the character skill system, the variety of builds and therefore approaches to each obstacle and mission. There is nothing groundbreaking here especially novel here, but like Deus Ex and its ilk, you can hack, sneak, use technical skills to break and enter, poison, blades, assume control of cameras and turrets or just come in blasting in a really direct manner. This game is pretty impressive on a design front, and couple this with some really excellent writing and story beats, and I think it is at this point in its development, a pretty successful game. I am especially impressed with some of the friendships and relationships the main character acquires as the story moves along, and there have been several memorable scenes that packed a good emotional punch.

That said, I think this game's reach does exceed its grasp. The enemy AI is a bit on the dumb side, and while it responds well to frontal attacks with firearms, it can't seem to mount much of a threat or present any defense to the more stealthy styles of play. I can generally just hide and completely melt through entire groups of enemies with a strategy centered around quickhacks, and the enemies pretty much never locate me. The boss battles present a bit more of a challenge, but these tend to take place in a closed arena without places to hide, and I can still do devastating damage with the quickhacks while simultaneously peppering the boss with a variety of direct attacks. I have yet to die to a boss, and really, they barely get a chance to damage me. Not sure what could have been done here, aside from delaying development even longer than it already was, and even then, perhaps this game studio just doesn't know how to build challenging AI, as it seems like they would have patched it in by now.

I have the difficulty set to hard, and I think I will max it out to very hard next time I play to see if that helps, but I am not sure what that changes exactly. Anyway, really enjoying the story stuff and exploring the detailed city and outskirts, but I think I just need to accept that all the encounters will just be minor speedbumps or diversions to break up the game play a bit.

__________________
“It takes considerable knowledge just to realize the extent of your own ignorance.” ― Thomas Sowell



2022 Mofo Fantasy Football Champ
Good for my wallet, too. I almost sold it when I sold my Genesis.

NBA Hangtime
Diddy Kong Racing
Goldeneye
Super Mario 64
Zelda: OOT
Mario Kart 64
Star Wars Episode 1: Racer
Wave Race 64 (recently acquired)

A few of those are nicked carts. I was kinda a N64 kelpto as a kid.

But my childhood is defined by the NBA Hangtime's announcer voice.

"Nothing but the bottom of the net!"
"He's on FIRE!"
"He puts up a brick!"
"GOAL TENDING"


And Diddy Kong Racing is the definitive N64 racer. I will die on that hill.
Diddy is awesome. I like Mario Kart by a smigeon but it's close

One of these days I need to go back to Ocarina of Time. It's probably up there for greatest game ever.



You ready? You look ready.
Diddy is awesome. I like Mario Kart by a smigeon but it's close
I got both the unlockable characters in Diddy Kong Racing, but didn't finally beat the game until I pulled it out in college one weekend and beat that final race on the first try. I gotta say, that was the most impressive gaming feat I ever pulled off because that last race is hard AF and I hadn't played in over a decade.

Then I found out after beating it you get a second Adventure mode where the tracks are reversed, so I got another 20 hrs of gameplay ahead of me.



2022 Mofo Fantasy Football Champ
Oh yeah I remember the reversible tracks so great

I'd say Ocarina or Castlevania Symphony of the Night are the next retros I want to retackle.



there's a frog in my snake oil
Yep agree with all of this (Including the hacks being OP, as you mentioned before . There is at least a bit of variety out there though, so chopping and changing to novelty ones can be a choice. And stuff like the blinding ones at least feel suitable for industrial espionage and that )

I would say that one 'arena boss' did slam me though. A melee zombie lass with blades for heels. She would just close the distance incessantly, leaving no time for meaningful hacks, and with my melee skills undercooked I lost a fair few duels there...

They had left a way in the environment for you to get some distance and cheese to victory, but it took me a few bewildering VR deaths to figure that out
__________________
Virtual Reality chatter on a movie site? Got endless amounts of it here. Reviews over here



The Bib-iest of Nickels
I recently bought the Dead Space remake and, ahem, SpongeBob: Cosmic Shake. I beat Dead Space and enjoyed myself a lot (but felt very much ready to move on). It is a great videogame, but it does become repetitive in some instances and the zero-gravity areas can be a little awkward. As for Cosmic Shake, ... that's, uh, not great, but I'm enjoying it (I actually found it for half-price and wanted something stupid fun to play).



That elusive hide-and-seek cow is at it again
Returnal
(minor update)

I'm still at it! Well, at least every other day. Since my last post, I've made it to the Biome 2 boss fight and got it down to a third of its health in its final state before biting the dust. Of course I had to start over from Biome 1, but whatever. I've MOSTLY learned that area and can handle myself well enough against all but the swarm of batty kamikaze things. The good things about beating the Biome 1 boss is that, if you find the gateway to Biome 2, you can just jump through and move on. Side note: I recently learned that Phrike is pronounced "freak." I found that nugget of trivia watching a 45-minute speed run of the entire game that a few reps from the development staff narrated. Fun stuff to hear their reactions. My second attempt at the Biome 2 boss ended with me accidently jumping off the platform into the abyss below.

This game is great. Biome 2 is SO much easier than 1, as it's mostly open desert space, where as Biome 1 was dark, platform-based, and with very little room to run around in some rooms. I fall. A lot. So my guess, Biome 1 was more or less a demo staging ground to show off gameplay and/or a means to weed out players. Why that would be, I have no idea, as it's just such a wonderful game with a ton of replay value given its procedural staging.

One last thing. Now that I've opened Biome 2, I have access to a daily challenge from within the ship console. Basically, you get one run every 24 hours to make it through Biome 1. You don't have to confront Phrike, but you are handicapped with random disabilities and are assigned one weapon for the entire level. So far, I've completed all runs I've attempted. For completion, you earn 5 Ether (rare'ish currency) and get a spot on the daily leaderboard. Last night, though, there were less than 200 players total. Given the game released in 2021 AND that you must clear Biome 1 before having this option (I imagine a LOT of players rage quite well before that point), I suppose that's not bad. Still, I hate to see those low numbers. Eh, I landed the top 20th spot so I feel a false sense of accomplishment there. Yay!?
__________________
"My Dionne Warwick understanding of your dream indicates that you are ambivalent on how you want life to eventually screw you." - Joel

"Ever try to forcibly pin down a house cat? It's not easy." - Captain Steel

"I just can't get pass sticking a finger up a dog's butt." - John Dumbear



The Bib-iest of Nickels
Returnal
(minor update)

I'm still at it! Well, at least every other day. Since my last post, I've made it to the Biome 2 boss fight and got it down to a third of its health in its final state before biting the dust. Of course I had to start over from Biome 1, but whatever. I've MOSTLY learned that area and can handle myself well enough against all but the swarm of batty kamikaze things. The good things about beating the Biome 1 boss is that, if you find the gateway to Biome 2, you can just jump through and move on. Side note: I recently learned that Phrike is pronounced "freak." I found that nugget of trivia watching a 45-minute speed run of the entire game that a few reps from the development staff narrated. Fun stuff to hear their reactions. My second attempt at the Biome 2 boss ended with me accidently jumping off the platform into the abyss below.

This game is great. Biome 2 is SO much easier than 1, as it's mostly open desert space, where as Biome 1 was dark, platform-based, and with very little room to run around in some rooms. I fall. A lot. So my guess, Biome 1 was more or less a demo staging ground to show off gameplay and/or a means to weed out players. Why that would be, I have no idea, as it's just such a wonderful game with a ton of replay value given its procedural staging.

One last thing. Now that I've opened Biome 2, I have access to a daily challenge from within the ship console. Basically, you get one run every 24 hours to make it through Biome 1. You don't have to confront Phrike, but you are handicapped with random disabilities and are assigned one weapon for the entire level. So far, I've completed all runs I've attempted. For completion, you earn 5 Ether (rare'ish currency) and get a spot on the daily leaderboard. Last night, though, there were less than 200 players total. Given the game released in 2021 AND that you must clear Biome 1 before having this option (I imagine a LOT of players rage quite well before that point), I suppose that's not bad. Still, I hate to see those low numbers. Eh, I landed the top 20th spot so I feel a false sense of accomplish there. Yay!?
I am excited about Returnal, but I have never went through with starting it. Dead Cells was my videogame life for a little while, and I really dug Hades, Dandy Ace, and millions of other rogue-likes I've played. Gotta check it out!



That elusive hide-and-seek cow is at it again
I am excited about Returnal, but I have never went through with starting it. Dead Cells was my videogame life for a little while, and I really dug Hades, Dandy Ace, and millions of other rogue-likes I've played. Gotta check it out!
This has become a recent favorite if mine. Controls are VERY tight and remind me a lot of CONTROL, if you've tried that one. The entire game of Returnal is randomly generated including level room order, enemy spawn location, number and types, and loot drops. It's insane.

As noted in the previous post, the first level is brutal with very little explanation as to what is going on. Seems to be a turn off for some, but it really has paid off in learning the game mechanics now that I'm in the second level. For context, it took me just north of 20 hours to find my way through, completely, and to beat the boss of Biome 1. I started posting about this game a few pages back. Some updates with video gameplay.

I totally recommend this one. Same for CONTROL. Just a great game.

*EDIT*
Great avatar, btw!



The Bib-iest of Nickels
This has become a recent favorite if mine. Controls are VERY tight and remind me a lot of CONTROL, if you've tried that one. The entire game of Returnal is randomly generated including level room order, enemy spawn location, number and types, and loot drops. It's insane.

As noted in the previous post, the first level is brutal with very little explanation as to what is going on. Seems to be a turn off for some, but it really has paid off in learning the game mechanics now that I'm in the second level. For context, it took me just north of 20 hours to find my way through, completely, and to beat the boss of Biome 1. I started posting about this game a few pages back. Some updates with video gameplay.

I totally recommend this one. Same for CONTROL. Just a great game.

*EDIT*
Great avatar, btw!
That's a rogue-like, haha. Same with Hades, Dead Cells, etc., but Returnal is obviously a more Triple AAA title for it.

I haven't played Control, but I own a copy of it. I've beaten Quantum Break a few times over now and Alan Wake twice (it actually has a sequel coming out and DLC that crosses over with Control)



That elusive hide-and-seek cow is at it again
Returnal
(slight updates)

Referenced in an earlier post, this is my most recent encounter with Ixion, the end boss of Biome 2 (this character reminds me so much of Raziel, from PS1's Soul Reaver: The Legacy of Kain). It goes without saying that I die, but at least I made it to its third and final form.

The fire patterns from Ixion are gorgeous! Though, they are very easy to get disoriented in. Particularly considering that you must strafe, jump, and dodge the pattern on a platform. I accidently jump over the edge I think twice in this clip. Derr.... Still, this was my third encounter with Ixion, so I think progress is moving so much faster as compared to Biome 1 which, now, feels easy in comparison to my first 20 hours of play. I have NO idea how I survived form 2.

This clips starts having jumped through the shortcut gate to the last leg of Biome 2. It has been a while since I've made it this far, so I'm a bit out of sorts at first. You see I mistakenly take the nearby portal and land in a FUBAR situation where I port right into a next of those evil kamekazi bat thingies. Luckily, I'm able to port RIGHT back out before getting hit. You can see the red triangles getting all cranky in the lower-right mini map after making the initial jump.


This gateway (unlocked having encountered Ixion in a previous run) allows you to skip the mountain path of Biome 2.

The next clip is a sample Daily Challenge run. This is more or less an abbreviated run through Biome 1. I'm not sure if more Biomes become available in time, as I've yet to clear Biome 2 (see above). In these challenges, you are given a random weapon with predetermined stats, a set of random handicaps and bonuses (shown on screen, top-left), and a free ride through the Biome. Weapon upgrades do not seem to be available during a challenge run. You start at the ship and go until you find the gateway to Biome 2, the Crimson Wastes. As far as I can tell, there are no lock-down rooms as with normal runs and you do not have to fight Phrike.

Your score is determined by kills, picking up loot, and the time it takes to complete the run. Points are deducted for damage taken. Your current score is on a rolling display, top-right of screen. Multipliers are added depending on loot pickups. Once complete, your score is tallied and your user ID is placed on a leaderboard.


Last night's Daily Challenge run.