The Videogames Tab

Bought a couple of things in the PSN Easter sale - The Bioshock collection and both the Outlasts.

The only Bioshock game I've completed is the first one so this'll be a good opportunity to remedy that. I originally tapped out half way through Bioshock Infinite (the only things I remember are unsatisfying combat and one of the best openings I've ever seen in a game) and never even tried 2.

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"Critics are like eunuchs in a harem; they know how the Tatty 100 is done, they've seen it done every day, but they're unable to do it themselves." - Brendan Behan

It's film related...

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Virtual Reality chatter on a movie site? Got endless amounts of it here. Reviews over here

Yeah, I wrote a little about Game Dev Tycoon awhile back. I think 95% of the time they're really fun for 5-6 hours and then I stop playing them for a few years, and maybe dust them off when I've more or less totally forgotten how to game their algorithms.

Definitely update us on how that goes. Simulators are kind of nice in their general predictability time-wise, and the ability to pick them up and put them down in irregular intervals if necessary, so it's always good to have a couple ready to go if they're decent.

I agree that they're really good if you play them in bursts. Typically I'll play one pretty often for a couple of weeks, and then I'll take a break until I got the itch again. I've taken a several month break from Game Dev Tycoon...which means it's almost time for me to dive back in.

I'm gonna try to dive into Software Inc. sometime this weekend, and I'll post what I think about it after I have some hours into it. Same deal with the others I listed.

More men saying numbers here, confirming that the upcoming Dark Souls remaster looks sweet as...



I've been playing a lot of Dark Souls 1 recently, mainly trying out different character builds in preparation for the remaster. It's a special, special game.

Downloaded Trackmania Turbo. Been wanting to get it, so interested in seeing how it plays.

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"A laugh can be a very powerful thing. Why, sometimes in life, it's the only weapon we have."

Suspect's Reviews

Once again, I am waaaaaaaayyyyy late to the party, but I just finished up Portal 2!



Really great game. The last third was especially fun, with all the gels and some great comedy. Perhaps just slightly on the easy side, but I am guessing many of the community chambers will offer a bit more challenge. Any recommendations as to which of those to try first?

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Huh, I thought I'd written more about Portal 2 but I'm having trouble finding much in here. Ah well. Anyway, yes, love it, about as much as the first (people will argue with me, and fair play, but my general response is about size/scope and degree of difficulty factoring in heavily. AND THAT ENDING).

I can't recommend any community maps because the ones I played are probably not at the top of the list now anyway, even if I remembered them. But you're right, anything near the top is very challenging and/or very creative, so definitely dive into that.

If you're on PC, there's a great fan-made mod called Portal Stories: Mel free on Steam. I found the puzzles to be more challenging.

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Yeah, I started that a few weeks ago. Pretty hard! Actually maybe a little too hard, in the sense that even early levels are tough enough that you have to step away and come back. That ramp-up in difficulty is an underestimated part of the beauty of the "real" Portal games, because by the time you're on really difficult puzzles you're hooked and willing to tough it out. If you get to the "I just need to step away for a bit" point early on, too easy to just not come back.

Ah, excellent. Will check it out, thanks!

Hey there's a neat video game coming to Steam early access a week from today:

SPYPARTY

https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2018/...-years-100000/
https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/201...e/#more-531737

Currently $15 if you buy it off the site (and I recommend buying it off the site even after Early Access because you'll get forum access sooner that way) but will be $25 after the SEA launch.

http://www.spyparty.com/

Played it for hundreds of hours, and thought about it for at least twice that while not playing. At least a hundred more actually getting to conventions and teaching the game to others because I love it so.

There might be another fan around here too.

Yeah they're probably sick of me talking about it by now. But you're right, coming to Steam definitely deserves a post, since a lot of people won't buy a game until it's available there. Some people won't buy Early Access, either, and this was both! On April 12th it'll at least only be one of those things.

Looking forward to getting my code sent to me.

I bought (a very early version of) this game in 2013 and have spent around 10 minutes in it. This will soon change.

I'm curious about how guys like Chris Hecker survive financially during the long development cycle. Does he code for other people? Drive a cab in the evenings?

Anyway, against my better judgement, I bought Far Cry 5. Having not played anything in the franchise since FC 3, it felt like time.

Yeah, leaps and bounds since. I think the last time you played there was absolutely no new art, maps or characters? There's 10 new art maps and 21 new art characters now (!). And a couple new missions, IIRC.

He's actually been pretty candid about this. Here's a talk from IndieCade where he breaks some of it down (ignore the part where he says, three years ago, that the game might be out in two years ):


And here's a very recent Ars Technica article that talks about it, too.

Basic answer is he had money and stock options saved up, the burn rate is reasonable since he does all the non-art stuff himself, and he's sold 24,000 copies directly on his site at $15 each.

Thanks.

Yeah, his overheads must be minimal even compared to other smaller Indie games but his dedication must be off the scale to stick with it for this long. I can remember him showing it on Giant Bomb in something like 2011, then he came back in last week to announce the Steam launch. I hope it does well.

You know one game that Chris Hecker can buy without worrying about it eating into his savings?

Crusader Kings 2, that's what! It's free on Steam all weekend and I urge anyone with even the slightest interest to pick it up - I think it may well be the best strategy game I've ever played, and this dawned on me after I murdered my dim-witted firstborn in order for the throne to pass to his more able sibling, this protecting my bloodline.

Link

There are literally a million expansions and bits of DLC for the game (not free) but the basic experience is more than enough for people to decide if it's their thing or not.

Yeah, he's said that the flip side of this perfectionism is that he basically has infinite attention span IF he thinks the idea is really good. I imagine for most people there's just a hard cap of 3-4 years for one game, though, which has corresponding advantages about getting the thing out the door.

Heck of an endorsement there for CK2. I will check it out today. Thanks.

The learning curve is a little steep, but nothing compared to Paradox's other mainstay, Europa Universalis. My main tip would be to start in Ireland and pretty early on in the timeline - There aren't that many other lords to conquer and the superpowers tend to leave you to your own devices.

After SpyParty every other skill curve is a brief walk up a slight incline, as far as I'm concerned.

I'm sure I'll eat those words this evening, though.

Start in Ireland, the man in Ireland says. I see how it is.