General gaming discussion

Jordan 199

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122151752#Comment_122151752

I do love a nice lookin' wagon. Your last sentence in your post gave me a good laugh in fairness 🤣

OptimusTractor

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122151647#Comment_122151647

That has the coolest/greatest selection of vehicles in gaming.

PixelPlayer

Nixxes have knocked it out of the park again with their PC port of Ghost of Tsushima.

It took me maybe 10 mins of trying out a few settings to find the optimal setup for my PC. Everything just works without a fuss and it runs buttery smooth.

The only thing spoiling it for me is the latest AMD drivers causing occasional crashing. You need to downgrade to the previous drivers.

The game of course is a Sony template game. Just like an AC game, it follows a tried a trusted Sony template. It suits me for now, but I definitely feel my head could be turned if something else comes along.

Zero-Cool

Top tier human rights here.

https://twitter.com/MrTLexify/status/1792359586693030387?t=Wi_zqZoG1lgI7IJ7MtO34A&s=19

Penn

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122159383#Comment_122159383

Did they get the platinum in Astro's Playroom though? Only then will we know if they're a true hardcore gamer.

Retr0gamer

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122159383#Comment_122159383

No armoured core or kings Field. Nothing but a fair weather From fan.

Retr0gamer

Have had a lot on lately and had been doing a lot of travelling. It's really run me down so during a break from all the shenanigans I decided I just needed something dumb to play and it just so happened that Activision had a sale on. Decided to buy and play Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare. I heard it's actually a good call of duty campaign and the reviews were too harsh on it.

I've come to an epiphany about call of duty campaigns. They're absolute **** garbage. Or should I say they've become absolute garbage because I used to like the infinity ward campaigns until Modern Warfare 2 came out.

I've managed to pin down what I don't like about them and it's all down to mission and level design. The old infinity ward games had great variety in there missions. The set pieces were great but it wasn't just spectacle, they changed up the gameplay mission to mission. I still remember those missions that had you defend from waves of troops and just as you got comfortable the tanks would roll in and have you scramble for an anti tank solution. The original games trench clearing at the assault on brecourt. The recreation of the taking and Defense of Pegasus bridge. The SAS missions in COD4.

Modern call of duty on the other hand replaces set pieces with spectacle. You're just in one big long corridor playing whack a mole with enemies and then something will blow up or crash spectacularly in the background or overhead. Ultimately with all the pyrotechnics your still in a tube full of chest high walls and a side area to flank. And it's this over and over again. It's nauseatingly boring. Pure empty carb gaming.

What's so frustrating is that CoD campaigns used to be so good. I loved infinity wards work since I played MoH allied assault but their CoD work was stellar. We haven't had a fps like that in a while with the exception of Respawns incredible Titanfall 2 which gave a taste of how good infinity ward were at a set pieces based fps game. And it looks like EA won't let them create another one.

Anyway, rant over. CoD is shite unless there's an actual decent one Ive yet to play?

Potential-Monke

I reckon it's more a case of they've done everything already so what's left to do? Taking a chance on something different (IW/AW) automatically brings hate for not being the usual, and doing the same thing over again has proven to not work as good either (MW remakes). We enjoyed the early games because no one else had done it for us. It was all new, exciting. Now, it's all been done. Same craic just a slightly different sheen. Surprised they're still doing campaigns tbh. CoD lost me (as a regular yearly purchaser since MW1 days) after WWII, felt like they were going backwards and we'd just be doing the same all over again. And I believe I was right.

Titanfall has far more scope as it was never based on reality so has nothing to compare it to. IW/AW were the closest and not liked by everyone (I assume because it was far harder to get the 40+ kill streaks that were all the streamer rage at the time). If memory serves me correct, the AW campaign was better received anyway (Kevin Spacey may have messed that one up now though). I always preferred the IW and subsequently Sledgehammer produced stuff, and most people seemed to prefer the Treyarch ones which I just couldn't understand.

Regarding the campaigns not being as good, it's a hard one. To make a yearly game with a good campaign every year, and not re-do what was already done which they've tried and failed at… now BlOps5 is set during the Gulf War. A bit more modern at least, but I already know it's gonna be "Merica, fuk yeah" and full of cliches. It's a good chance to recapture the MW1 days, but they'll pretend it's all realistic up until the season 1 pass drops. They're not making CoD for us anymore, they're making it for the ADHD twitch/tiktok generation and it shows. But that could also just be grumpy aging me giving out that games aren't made for me anymore…

Retr0gamer

The CoD controls still hold up and their insistence on rock solid 60 fps and reduced lag puts them way ahead of everything else on console so I think we some actual effort put into designing a good campaign that they could make something great. I don't think it's a case of running out of ideas but as you said the reduced dev time and management interference from Activision probably doesn't help.

And then you have Titanfall 2 failing at retail not helping.

Penn

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122160744#Comment_122160744

I can't comment specifically on the last ten years or so of CoD campaigns, but in a way the mission design is similar to what Rockstar have done with GTAV and RDR2, where it forces you into exact paths to provide set-pieces rather than gameplay. It needs you to go through a particular door because there's going to be a planned explosion and enemies are going to come through. It forces you into exact spots to see the spectacle of something going on in the background. It's designing for experience rather than player agency.

It's why as much as I'm obviously looking forward to GTA6, I'm also apprehensive for the main story. So many of even the smaller missions in GTAV were so planned out that it could feel on the rails. You have to go down this alley because a garbage truck is going to come out of a side alley and nearly hit you. Even simple car chases, they'd often make the other car rubberband and boost off ahead of you if you got too close because you hadn't reached where the end cutscene was supposed to happen.

Retr0gamer

I think that's a separate issue entirely. I feel the old call of duty games managed to mix set pieces and spectacle really well while keeping the gameplay compelling.

I do agree with grand theft auto as well where the missions all put the game world into a scripted instance and its slowly made the missions less and less interesting. I didn't mind it too much in rdr1 but rdr2 is awful, especially how it punishes the player thinking outside the box and looking for flanking opportunities. In rdr1 this only affected me in one mission.

Zero-Cool

Trotting around Mexico in RDR 1, it has me craving to play RDR 2 right after it. I know I'll have to deal with the over abundance of unnecessary game systems and lack of fast travel but 1 has me reminded of the fantastic job Rockstar did with the characters, world and stories and i really want to go back into that. I was thinking i might go low honour Arthur Morgan but knowing the story already, i don't think I'd be able to do it.

Jordan 199

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122162328#Comment_122162328

Nicer wagons in RDR2 😉

So did you do any horse shoe throwing and play the dangerous five finger fillet yet?

Zero-Cool

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122162370#Comment_122162370

Man the horse shoe is tough, feels random every time i throw it. The five finger fillet is tough as well to get a balanced rhythm between going slow enough to not cut yourself but fast enough to beat the timer. Been really enjoying poker though.

Exclamation Marc

Which should I do first...

RDR2 epilogue (never got more than a couple of missions in)

Or RDR 1…

Luna84

RDR2 epilogue. I'd say as 1 starts off with you wondering what happened previously.

PixelPlayer

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122162328#Comment_122162328

I consider the over abundance an intentional feature by design, you either get it or you don't and I suspect you might be one who gets it.

But either way, you're not forced to do anything. Cooking, fishing etc is all optional. There is fast travel but imo if you are playing the game as it should be played (at a slow, relaxed pace) then fast travel is not something you'll use very often and when you do use it as intended it's actually more like slow travel rather than fast 🙂

Zero-Cool

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122162836#Comment_122162836

Oh i get what they're going for but it's jarring playing RDR 1 at the moment and realising how handy little quality of life aspects it has over 2 where i can jump on and do a few missions in my limited gaming time. I think they just tipped the scales too far into the realism side and lost a lot of the fun gamey side.

Zero-Cool

This has been a day 1 buy for me since they first showed it and it sounds even better now. Love the procedurally generated crimes each shift brings and looks to be done good variety but that will be the key, at what point do the same crimes keep popping up. Really looking forward to this.

https://youtu.be/lrl5JpN60QY?si=YO0lPZfTJbxysgZn

Mr Crispy

ACAB, but yeah, have been looking forward to it too.

Luna84

Still playing Grounded. I've put in at least 48 hours or more didn't look up the official time on the Xbox. It's a good game and I'd say I'm very close to the end but loads still to do. I had all level II equipment and had to go to all the hassle of collecting new parts to get level III armour and weapons. The amour is optional but I need a level III axe and hammer to progress. There are collectables and mini optional bosses to do if you wanted but all optional. I have collected as much as I can find but still more to do. Done two optional bosses but the others were too difficult but I can always go back to them.

CatInABox

Hellblade 2 reviews are coming out, 5/5 from eurogamer. Looks like MS might finally have an essential game.

Retr0gamer

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122163935#Comment_122163935

Xbox is still the only place to play ninja gaiden black and ninja gaiden 2 😎

Retr0gamer

A reminder not to buy anything kingdom hearts when it comes to steam.

johnny_ultimate

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122163935#Comment_122163935

A very mixed bag of reviews. Eurogamer one is a bit of an outlier. A lot of so-so 5-6 reviews out there too from the more reputable outlets. Seems they’ve scaled back the interactivity even more from the first game. The RPS review caught my eye:

“I like Hellblade 2, and without wishing to sound churlish, I'd definitely give it a whirl if I had a Game Pass subscription. But in a month that's included Animal Well and Crow Country and Cryptmaster and Little Kitty, Big City and Dread Delusion and Indika and Lorelei and the Laser Eyes, dropping fifty notes on this shiny but safe sequel just seems daft. Amid such a cornucopia of imagination, Hellblade 2 needed to be more than just more Hellblade, to elevate the ideas of the first game and build them out. But for all its technical wizardry and narrative worth, more Hellblade is exactly what Hellblade 2 is.”

https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/senuas-saga-hellblade-2-review

That said, sounds like an increasingly rare graphical milestone - a real moment in the sun for UE5, or rather bleak caves as seems be the case here :)

Retr0gamer

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122163935#Comment_122163935

metro game central review is a bit worrying. Thought the originals portrayal of mental health issues was really poor and just the usual tropes presented with some technically excellent sound design, seems this one suffers from the same thing.

johnny_ultimate

https://www.rte.ie/culture/2024/0520/1450224-new-fund-announced-to-help-irish-indie-video-game-developers/

Good to see initiatives like this pop up on the likes of RTE!

As an aside, recently found out that one of this year’s Seamus McNally grand prize nominees - Anthology of the Killer - is from an Irish developer going by The Catamites. Seems very particular - drawn in the style of a comic zine - but have seen plenty of people say it has amazing writing akin to something like Disco Elysium. It’s actually nine different games available for free on itch.io, but I’ve been waiting til they’re out in an anthology bundle - which seems to be imminent. https://thecatamites.itch.io/anthology-of-the-killer

Retr0gamer

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122164170#Comment_122164170

I remember fighting with Irish politicians to bring something like that in when the UK had floundered and reneged on a similar thing there.

It's good that they are finally doing something but it's 10 years too late. Hopefully it can kickstart some more indie development here.

Potential-Monke

Picked up Rise of the Ronin yesterday. Only played up to the first area in the open world, so not too much played, but its rough. The statements that it feels like a last gen game are legit. It probably doesn't help I'm coming from the well made and smooth Stellar Blade, but it feels like a massive drop in quality considering both are PS5 exclusives (for now) released around the same time. You'd think Shift Up have the history of games behind them, and that Team Ninjas is a first attempt.

There's a level of jank, and the target of 60fps in performance mode doesn't always reach it and its noticeable. Its still too early to comment on the gameplay, so far it's usual Soulslike affair, no doubt it gets harder but not as bad as other Soulslikes so far. Having an option to drop it down a difficulty will probably be utilised!

It also sounds like non-Japanese people doing bad Japanese accents, even though they all appear to be Japanese IRL. And it's rushed a bit. I'll give it another while, but I don't think Team Ninja games are for me. Initial impressions make it hard to think this is a game from a studio with such a strong back catalogue, like maybe they were out of their depth? Then again, still very early to make a final decision.

Re: the game dev thing, €15k is not a lot, and that's the maximum amount per team. A great start, but it needs to be more.

PixelPlayer

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122164107#Comment_122164107

I find the conclusion in that review slightly annoying to be honest. How do other recent releases have any bearing on whether a game is good or not? Our "fifty notes" (also irritates me!) are competing with lots and lots of things, whst is your point? I'd "drop fifty notes" on Domino's pizza for me and the missus ffs.

Its also slightly in contrast to the content of the review which sounds like a really good game. It's as if he was going to call it a good game until he got influenced by others on some pre-release discord channel.

I think everyone knows if you want a combat game or open world or any other type of game other than a Hellblade game then you're looking at the wrong game. Again, whst is your point? Go play something else so, it doesn't make this a bad game just because you are in the mood for an open world combat game.

I'm even getting irritated trying to find the words to explain what annoys me about his conclusion.