VideoGame_Discussion

I have to beat the again, which means one of two games: Super Mario Bros. or Zelda II: The Adventure of Link. Both are legit picks, but I had a long car trip to my bro’s and back, so that made the choice obvious this time.
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Always a fun time. Only got five GOs this time, so I did better than last month.

My #6 is Alan Wake's American Nightmare

https://photos.app.goo.gl/Ekq475uTYVezCg3j8

Progear through Capcom Arcade Stadium 1 for PS5. I’m glad I never have to play this one again. Fun shooter, but if you don’t like bullet hell it wouldn’t be for you.

I finished mobile earlier than most years. I completed the base game of Scribblenauts Remix.
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It's mostly a repackaged Super Scribblenauts for mobile, but with a fraction of the stages and no level builder. The rest of the stages seem to be in the $1 DLC pack. It's annoying that you have to switch your control configuation to move the screen, and you can't really rotate objects. But it's passable if you don't have a DS handy.

I finished Dredge on Switch. (Saw both endings, which is thankfully made easy to do.) I did all the quests, found all the fish and got all upgrades. Really cool game, especially considering I wasn't really sold after playing the demo last year.

#6 DiRT 5 -

My first for PS5. Was the free PS5 upgrade of the physical PS4 edition so it's a PS5 game in my eyes. This is my favorite racing game of the last few years. Just perfect type of arcade control. And out of this world crazy tracks and weather conditions. Beautiful snow, bright days, dark nights, aurora borealis, fireworks, rain, racing on ice. Dawn, dusk. Dusk on lap 1, dark night on lap 3. Rain on lap 1, beautiful sun breaking through light rain on lap 3. Just beautiful artistry, and the off road dirt racing is fudging fun.

This is my second time completely beating the carreer mode. Probably around 200 races. First on xbox series x, and now after selling my XSX I wanted to play it again on PS5, and add it physically to the collection, it deserves it's place on my shelf.

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Game #5 of 2024
Travel The Words on PSVR2

Would this count towards Brain Teaser badge? It's a word search game.

PizzaTheHutt wrote:

I'd say so. It is a brain teaser, after all.

7th in the books - 2nd on
Solar Ash
Badge: Likely counting toward Girl Power since it was a female lead, but might be adventure so Hyrule maybe, will see.

I gave this a write up in the 'recent scores' thread a couple of days ago and gave it a 7/10 and I'd say it either stayed there or slightly improved thanks to the story. In my earlier write up I noted that the camera stunk and it didn't get better but the game was still enjoyable thanks to the world, story and how it ended. I picked up on some clues to the ending along the way and wasn't disappointed. For a world where there was literally only you and 4-5 others to interact with, the 'world building' was interesting and in that 'recent score' post I said I didn't think I would seek out the 4-6 collectable things in each of the regions. However, b/c they were logs from prior characters on the basically same journey as you, they became worth it for the whole picture and thus I sought them out. I did use a online guide to find a few and then the final region's powerup (given for finding all things in the zone) was an ability to show the other caches when you scanned, so the final 2 were easy to get. It would've been nicer to have that powerup a little earlier but eh. I had, on my own, found the set in an earlier region that gave me faster booster refills, so that was more useful and in finding the rest, none of the other powers were all that useful IMO.

Anyhow the game was solid, I put 10 hours in and got both endings by redoing the final bit and that was worth the little bit of time to do so. I see there's a speed-run type of achievement to beat it in under 3 hours. That's not for me, plus the story and world is why I played; speedrunning would bypass that, and then I'd have to deal with the somewhat buggy camera and by extension, controls - no thanks. I do think it's worth a play for a more chill game and story, especially if you put it on novice (easy) to give you more time to hit all of the weak points on the bosses (which I did). Even on easy, no boss went down on all 3 phases in 1 go without failure for me. With the overall vibe, I enjoyed not getting really frustrated trying to beat them on that easier or more lax setting.

Playing and beating this, I certainly didn't feel as 'burned out' with gaming like I said in a post a few days ago. This wasn't 'the cure' but it was an overall enjoyable experience. Not sure what I'll move onto next, hopefully something enjoyable or I should do a better job of just abandoning crappy games... and not going for the You're Winner badge -

I beat my high scores on Jetpac and Lunar Jetman both on xbox 1

My #7 is Control.

https://photos.app.goo.gl/ZyzNXP5VSHSNjWmC7

#4 down: RoboCop: Rogue City on PS5. I'd like to count it toward the 2nd Amendment badge. This is a little rough around the edges and campy, but it genuinely made me laugh out loud a couple of times. One time, I shot someone in the head, and he shouted "Oh! My head!" There are a few different endings depending on your choices, and some of the decisions along the way impact other characters' endings. The graphics were decent, and the guns aren't anything special, but the impact from shooting feels good with the haptic feedback. In general, the shooting mechanics were solid, and the gameplay was pretty fun (although I had to get used to the slow bulky movement, since you are, after all, RoboCop). Overall, it's a decent game and would probably be even better if you knew more of the backstory about RoboCop (which I did not).

The first 2 Robocop movies were pretty campy and 100% a product of the 80's movie scene I'm interested in that game, but am not in a hurry to pick it up, even though I did rather like the movies back in the day. We won't speak of the dumpster fire that was RC3... the remake from a few years back was okay, but didn't have the same feel.

I can’t wait to play the new Robocop game. I loved the Terminator one they did so I’m sure I’ll enjoy this one.

I’m going to sell or trade mine very soon if you’re interested. I just have a few more trophies to finish up.

TalonJedi87 wrote:

Bleed_DukeBlue wrote:

Sounds good. Hit me up when you’re ready to part with it. Thanks!

OP updated! I've now started posting in the leaderboard section, so you can compare and compete.

Thanks! Just one small correction. I have three system clears (PS5, PSVR2, and Anbernic 35xx).


SupremeSarna wrote:

Number: 1
Full Title: Sniper Elite 4 + Season Pass
Platform Played:
Collection: N/A
Native Platform:
Original Platform:
Applicable Badge: Days Gone (1/2, Proof)

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails...

I certainly didn't plan on this one taking 50+ hours, and it wouldn't have had I realized that some of the collectibles are locked behind co-op only Overwatch levels. If anyone is interested in doing those, please reach out. I came to this series late but really enjoy it. I'm glad 5 has crossplay so I can play with family members.

Game #6 of 2024
Pixel Ripped 1995 on PSVR2.

My #8 is Control: All DLC

8 down, 2nd on
Binaries
Badge: Puzzle I suppose, it's more of a skill based vs wrack your brain - tempted to claim for Grown-Ass Man b/c it is challenging

This is another that was on my Wishlist for a good while and I then opted to purchase it after getting some funds from Ren2k for winning some of his 40th bDay bash celebration. Basic premise is you control 2 (or later multiple) balls at the same time with 1 input and can basically only move left or right and jump to get those balls into their goals. 98% of the time there are different colored balls which need to land in their color matched goals as well as obstacles to avoid that are also color matched - such that the blue spikes won't hurt the orange ball and vise-versa. There are 101 levels and a few nearly wrecked me, especially some of the 3+ ball levels, but also you basically focus on just 1 ball (at least I did) most of the time, so you're giving inputs trying to control that ball, whilst another ball rolls right into a spike - it's mind bending, but was satisfying to beat.

Only 3.6% of players even unlocked all 101 levels, 3.5% beat all levels and of course they time you and give out S, A, B, and U ratings for your times. I joined the group that beat every level faster than the B ranking times (only 3.2%). I had to replay a handful that I initially beat on U and improved those. I ended up with only 34 S ranks, 58 A (or better, so including S) and basically 43 at B rank. I didn't push too hard to increase my times except for some earlier levels to get S as I wanted above 33% and then the afore mentioned U levels. I will leave this installed for a bit and might seek to improve more level's times, but I won't likely redo all 43 that I've got B times on to get them faster - I just don't care and it was frustrating enough at times, but it was also one of those 'retry immediately' style of games, so it was too easy to just keep trying... a lot. 1 level I failed 220 times before getting it and it was about the only level where I got even over 100 to like 150 failed attempts in a row. Worst thing about that level is that it wasn't that dang difficult but my timing was bad and a good bit of those were from not getting positioned just right from the start to not die on the very first jump, so a lot were under like 2 seconds to failure.

I beat YuGiOh master duel on the xbox1

And I already went back and improved my time rating on 10 levels in Binaries - have 10 less B's now and 3 more S's. I was 34|24|43 S|A|B and am now 37|31|33. I was only trying to improve my earlier B ranked levels and got 10 improved and pretty much improved all levels I tried to. I like that breakdown better as now I have the most S ranks of the 3 vs. before was more Bs... Now I'm not sure how many more I'll look to improve upon since I've simply got more than enough games to get to. Plus most of those 33 B's are more challenging.

#11
Horizon Forbidden West

This one has been in my backlog for almost 2 years, since it launched back in 2022 so I figured it was time to bring the ol’ girl home and beat it. First off this is a gorgeous, breathtaking game. It superseded the visual fidelity of the first game tenfold thanks in part to its performance mode which makes it run at a fluid 60fps. The lighting is also breathtaking as is the character models. The Decima engine it’s running on is pretty astounding minus some hiccups here and there I’ve noticed such as some glitches with some enemies falling thru the environment and such but it’s such a minor inconvenience in comparison to the amount of eye candy present at mostly all times. Secondly as much as I enjoyed my 30 hours or so with the game it’s honestly just more of the same from the first installment with some minor tweaks here and there such as new mounts to override and weapons to craft but it’s basically an enhanced experience from the first game and that’s mostly fine to me. If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it I typically say. But with that being said I just wish the game wasn’t so packed to the brim with tedious side quests and errands. It really is just mostly samey missions just to pad your skill points and experience and level up to hit the max level cap of 50 quicker. While I did most side missions and a few errands towards the latter half of the game I decided to focus on the story and finish it and I’m glad I did because it was starting to lose it’s focus for me doing every side quest and errand that I came across I mean. The only side quest that I really thought was fully fleshed out was overriding those Tallneck beasts like in the first game. Each of the 5 you get to override were unique in their own way and each Tallneck you override is done so in a different way which I truly appreciated. The acting was pretty solid as usual and the story was a bit more expansive this time around but of course it leaves an open ending which hints at a third and possibly final game in this would be trilogy. I just hope we see more diversity in mission variety in a 3rd game and perhaps they can flesh out the flying mounts a bit more. I’d love to have flying mounts with the ability to use my weapons while airborne. That would be wicked cool. Overall if you’re a fan of the series I say give this one a go, just try your best to stay focused and not get too overwhelmed by the expansive map and dense list of side missions they throw at you.

Game #7 of 2024
Max: The Curse Of Brotherhood on

I guess I'll use this along with Songs For A Hero to earn the Hop 'n' Bop badge.

One last crack at Binaries - again only looked at the B's and got to 43|32|26 - basically 6 Bs increased to Ss and 1 B -> A... and I've uninstalled it.
Happy to have more/less made a 2nd pass at all of the B's (with several I only gave a single shot or none to b/c I recall how frustrating they were to even complete). I increased what was initially nearly 50 Bs or Us to now only 26 Bs and no Us.
Time to move on.

Slickriven wrote:

Have you beaten it five times? You could get a badge if you did.

#7 Hyperdimension Neptunia ReBirth 2 -

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first for Vita. Having played VII on Switch, and part 1 on Vita. I continue my quest to beat the original trilogy on Vita. This one was a little weak compared to the first. Mainly because the theme song for EXE drives changed (reasoning is it stars the sisters and not the main godesses). Still happy to have played it. But part 1 and 3 will probably stay in the collection. But part 1 and 3 start the song at the perfect part when you do an EXE drive. Nana naNAAAAAAAAAA!!

Shown here
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4LjNPaj1des

SupremeSarna wrote:

No, there's 101 levels, I beat all the levels before claiming it, then went back 2-3 times to improve several level's times by replaying them. I was seeking to improve my times after initially focusing on simply beating each level. I didn't replay every level, since some were bonkers and not worth getting frustrated over by chasing a faster time.

A few more small updates, starting with another run at the Retro Talkshop Thread's Game of the Month.

Number: 2
Full Title: Sonic Adventure DX: Director's Cut
Platform Played: Windows
Collection: N/A
Native Platform: Windows
Original Platforms: Dreamcast
Applicable Badge: N/A

After years of thinking that Sonic Adventure had a single adventure that could be played with any of the six characters, my big revelation after playing it on GameCube was that each character had its own bespoke adventure with its own dramatically-different play style and ending. The story threads just happen to step on each other's toes on times. With that in mind, I loaded up Sonic Adventure DX on my Steam Deck (which plays fine, despite it being marked as "Not Playable" in the Steam Store) and started the Tails campaign.

Tails completes levels and earns emblems by beating Sonic to the finish line. Considering Sonic is the fastest mammal alive, I didn't see how that was feasible, until you realize that Tails can fly and most of the levels in Sonic Adventure are vertically progressive. Tails almost felt like cheating in that regard, as he could skip huge chunks of the level simply by flying from checkpoint to checkpoint and bypassing most obstacles and choke points. The lack of a homing attack made boss fights slightly less precise, but nothing unreasonable.

After that, with Tekken 8 only days away, I thought it was time to revisit its predecessor.

Number: 3
Full Title: Tekken 7
Platform Played: Windows
Collection: N/A
Native Platform: Windows
Original Platforms: Xbox One, PlayStation 4, Windows
Applicable Badge: Street Fightin' (1/2)

I played through Tekken 7 on PlayStation 4 shortly after its release, and it barely registered in my memory. Despite getting the game's platinum trophy, I barely remembered anything from the game's story mode aside from its ending and the enormously-frustrating boss fights. Even when a DLC characters smashed my two favorite franchises together, I barely revisited the game. (It's not the only fighter with Tekken and Final Fantasy characters these days, anyway.)

To refresh my memory and brush off the cobwebs, I booted up Tekken 7 again - this time on Windows - to play through the game's story mode. I don't know if repeated patches made the game easier, or I just got lucky locking opponents with walls, but getting to the end was a much faster process. The special post-credits fight against Akuma, however, remains ridiculously difficult.

As the countdown to Tekken 8 continues, I'll be booting up another earlier Tekken game - Tekken 5 - to play through its story mode for the first time since 2005. That's if Vampire Survivors doesn't continue to distract me. That game needs government regulation....

#8 Mortal Kombat XL -

and my first for PS4. Since selling my XSX and moving forward with PS5 only I am playing some games for Playstation that I previously played on Xbox. I love all of the new Mortal Kombats starting with MKX. MKX really brought me back and made me a Mortal Kombat fan. Even though the newer ones are still great. I still prefer this darker look. I hope they return to this style again some day.

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#5 down: Mystical Mixing (PS4). I would like to count this toward the Now You’re Playing With Plastic badge, as I played the entire game on my PlayStation Portal.

This is an odd game in which you mix ingredients to create creatures who then farm resources for you which you use to create more complicated monsters and build buildings that help you farm more. Eventually, you unlock portals to new lands where you farm more resources. I got through all of the worlds and got the platinum trophy.

Virtuaverse and Werewolf the Apocalypse on Switch. Never would have gotten through the former without a guide. The latter is a brief visual novel with several endings, I assume. I definitely got a bad one.

Bleed_DukeBlue wrote:

As the creator of that badge I'll say that were I running this still I wouldn't count that. The Portal isn't really a non-traditional controller IMO, but more of an additional means to play PS5 games. It's more akin to playing a WiiU game via the screen pad. I intended that badge to be for controllers like light guns, dance/track pads, steering wheels, fishing rods, etc.... But this is Sarna's show now, so it's his decision.

@Bleed_DukeBlue Slickriven makes a good point. You should play something with a more specialized/gimmicky controller to earn that.

It’s not a big deal to me either way. I have a bunch of non-traditional controllers. (That badge was actually my idea originally. I pitched it to @Slickriven back in the day.) I am a little confused what y’all would consider the Portal then though. Is it a system? Because I definitely wouldn’t consider it a traditional controller, so I’m not sure what else it would be (if it's not a non-traditional controller).


SupremeSarna wrote:

Bleed_DukeBlue wrote:

Does it have its own exclusive library?

Nope. That’s why I thought it made the most sense to call it a non-traditional controller.

SupremeSarna wrote:

@Bleed_DukeBlue I'll have to think about it, then.

#9 King's Quest IV -

#9 and 1st for PC. Brought out my new blu tooth keyboard to use with the Legion go. I don't think I've ever beaten most of the King's Quest game, so it's nice to finally be able to say I experienced them.

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#10 King's Quest V -

Also beat King's Quest V. The voice acting sound like it was done by the director and a bunch of friends. It's bad. Which is funny because the next game in the series has really good voice acting. But it was a fine game to play. I love these sorts of games so even less than stellar elements are accepted in some cases! This one I could put away the keyboard since it was point n click. no direction buttons needed!

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