General gaming discussion

Retr0gamer

It's not a bad list in fairness.

The Raging Bile Duct

What are the markers on the map in that Matrix interactive trailer about? I went to a couple but I couldn't figure what they were there for.

The Matrix thing was class, that moment where you realise "****, this is all the game engine!"

Markitron

Forgotten City is easily the best game I have played this year.

Homelander

It's amazing how out of touch with the wider market I've become as I've gotten older. I still play a lot but mostly the same handful of online games all the time. I've never even heard of the majority of the games on that list.

The Forgotten City looks very cool.

JimBurnley

+1 for Forgotten City. I was intrigued but half expecting it wouldn't be my cuppa tea. How wrong I was, absolute genius game design

pixelburp

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117791698#Comment_117791698

To reply to my own post from August! So People Make Games did a follow-up article on their original investigation, which included their travails trying to communicate with Roblox themselves over the issues raised (whose reaction to the first video was to request it be deleted)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vTMF6xEiAaY

EoinMcLovin

https://twitter.com/Xbox/status/1470393152997511170?s=20

https://youtu.be/AJYsA1jXf60

https://youtu.be/yT_i6hXf9WU

https://youtu.be/yappZvmxcP8

https://youtu.be/CC65DNzxyxU

https://youtu.be/z2d6IMBS8oY

https://youtu.be/O1h--43R8Oo

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Potential-Monke

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118313543#Comment_118313543

I think they lead you to statues/plaques where you can read more about the tech in use.

Retr0gamer

Heads up, free game from Nicalis related to Cave Story is up on steam for Christmas for a limited time for the price of FREE!

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1812280/Cave_Storys_Secret_Santa/

Grab it while you can.

wotzgoingon

Is that not free to play rather than free game?

Retr0gamer

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118318063#Comment_118318063

Nope, it's a free game. No micro transactions. Probably only Cave Story fans will get the most out of the game and I'm not sure if it's good or not. But it is a free complete game.

dreamers75

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118311260#Comment_118311260

Its actually pretty good tbh

johnny_ultimate

Inscryption isn’t particularly obscure surely? It got a lot of buzz when it was released back a month or two ago.

I’ve played the first two hours or so of it. Rest assured, it’s more interesting and unusual than a mere rogue-like deck builder :) It’s by the Pony Island creator so there’s more going on than the surface level ‘game’.

Potential-Monke

Sorry, should have clarified. It probably is popular, but it being a deck building game I would immediately forget anything to do with it. Not my style in the slightest. Just behind turn based.

pixelburp

Would be the same. As soon as someone says "deck builder", I just tune out. I just don't see the point of video game cards; wouldn't be interested in the physical version, let alone digital. The whole genre just seems a bit retrograde; would be as if someone made a video game of subbuteo (there's one for the oldies)

Penn

Generally wouldn't be into card/deck type games either. Gwent in The Witcher 3 was about as much as I've ever enjoyed one, but even then I don't know if I could bring myself to play the full versions of Gwent they released, as part of what I enjoyed was the simplicity of Gwent as a side game.

Retr0gamer

Well just because it's a card game and not for everyone doesn't mean it's not game of the year material. I'd be one that would be put off by deck builder games as well but strangely the ones I have played have been amazing. Stuff like Baten Kaitos, SNK vs Capcom Card Fighters, Slay the Spire and even that stupidly addictive Triple Triad in FF8 have been some of the most mechanically satisfying games I've ever played. A good card based system can be simple yet hugely satisfying and strategic. It's kind of not fair to dismiss it, although I've been guilty of that in the past when I just didn't get western RPGs.

Retr0gamer

This upsets me as it's one of my favourite games this year and got totally ignored by the press.

johnny_ultimate

I would recommend Inscryption to people who aren't usually fans of deck builders - and I'd include myself in that cohort. While I've only played a bit of it so far, the game is out to **** with you in some delightful ways. There might be a (surprisingly decent, albeit demented and bizarre) card game at its centre, but rest assured the developer is willing to break the rules and fourth wall to mess with you :)

pixelburp

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118323944#Comment_118323944

Never said it's not Game of the Year, Decade or whatever. Think we should all be used to the idea now that games genres - and whether or not they sing to you - rely on that emotional engagement that doesn't always exist. It's not always a rational decision whether a genre works for someone or not - and that's OK. you'd think someone who won't STFU about Ace Combat 7 would know this 😉

Jordan 199

^ Did you ever play Ace Combat 7?

Retr0gamer

I firmly believe that nobody can dislike Ace Combat 7 if they actually played it.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118239569#Comment_118239569

You would think that they would save money by not having to pay anyone to create new stories...

Same story every generation told with a different shell on top of it.

Samus/Link need to get the same weapons. Link needs to meet the same people etc etc

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118324237#Comment_118324237

Link saves the princess from an evil pig.

Mario saves the princess from an evil dragon.

I'd sure love to be the guy who gets paid to be the lore writer for Nintendo!

pixelburp

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118324169#Comment_118324169

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118324202#Comment_118324202

No, because it's a genre that I just don't have any interest in, ala deck-builders; which is kinda my point. Fair enough if a deck-builder is Game of the Year; it just ain't for me 🤷‍♂️

Penn

I'd definitely be willing to try a deck-builder, but I'd definitely need to know more about this particular one before trying it. From what I've read there are rogue-like elements in it, and like JU says the game possibly f*cks with you a bit.

Retr0gamer

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118324348#Comment_118324348

I thought so too. Totally ignored the series myself. I just remember total biscuit saying how nothing came close to the series when it came to minute to minute thrills and excitement. Then when Ace Combat 7 came out John Linneman was waxing lyrical about it and I decided why not and took a punt on it. Total Biscuit (RIP) was right, it's a total thrill ride. I always dismissed it because I equated it to po-faced flight sims but it's a beautiful dumb and exciting action game with tricky to master but very satisfying controls (if you go for the realistic controls, the arcadey ones actively work against making the game exciting).

TL;DR unless you've tried the previous games and didn't like them you should check it out in a sale. I think it will surprise you like it did me.

Retr0gamer

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118324237#Comment_118324237

It's like complaining that every action movie is a variation on the monomyth.

As I said in the Elden Ring thread, story is the least important aspect of a game. Sure most Nintendo games (not all, they do some fantastic storytelling in some games) are pretty simple but that's all they have to be. It's just an incentive to give the player a goal. The gameplay around them is what changes and Nintendo are probably the best in the business at this end. It doesn't matter if the story is basically the same in a mario game when the core experience and gameplay is totally different. The difference between Mario Galaxy and Odyssey is massive compared to the difference between uncharted games or Farcry games. So I kind of find the argument that Nintendo produce nothing but the same stuff completely ridiculous and out of touch with reality when there is some much variation in their games within the same IP and consistently each generation they produce more new IPs than any other platform holder or publisher.

And ask yourself do most videogame stories progress beyond more than iterations on the monomyth?

pixelburp

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118324420#Comment_118324420

LOL. Lord, it's like those people who insist that no, seriously, Succession is really amazing TV show YOUGOTTAWATCHIT; and I'm like 🤷‍♂️ ok dude. It's not my speed, the trailers have shown it as something I just don't care for but ... sure. I'm happy you love it, and sweet you think the world and its mother will love it just as much but again ... ala Deck Builders. Obama shrug GIF. 🙂

It's funny how Indie games have really dived into them as a mechanic; I guess they're relatively cheap and "simple" to code, while requiring less investment of time and design resources. Heck you could do a basic deck builder with HTML & JS if you wished and would look as good.