The Obligatory Forum Video Game Thread.

[ContraBardus]

In other news, there's a gameplay trailer for Mad Max being released on Monday. Could be interesting, not sure about this game though. Has high potential of suck, but also high potential for awesome. We'll see.

[Endemoniada]

More or less done with the Steam Sale now. I managed to get System Shock 2, both the original Deus Ex and HR, along the "Missing Link" DLC (I wish I had waited for Deus Ex and gotten it in the six dollar bundle with the other stuff, but oh well), and both Portal games plus The Final Hours. I still have about three dollars left in my Steam wallet, but I think I'll save it in case FF7 ends up being 75% off. Otherwise, I'm done until the next sale, unless something really good comes along that my computer can actually play. I would have liked to have another twenty dollars, so I could get some of the GTA games, Bioshock, and a few others, but I'm happy with what I have.

 

Update: Nevermind FF7, Half Life 2 is in a flash sale for only $2.49!

[ContraBardus]

 

Well, I'm more interested than I was before. It looks really nice and shiny with graphics and stuff. Dig the tune as well.

 

Still not sure about the game itself though.

 

Interesting to note, that the voice actor is now Australian as per the original films. It had originally been cast to an American VO.

 

It's got more of my attention than it had before. This looks like in game stuff, but nothing that really tells much about how the game will work, how expansive it will be, or any of that sort of thing.

[ContraBardus]

http://abobosbigadventure.com/fullgame.php

 

 

Seriously. I can't remember the last time I died so often in a video game because I was laughing too hard to play.

 

 

It's free BTW, and completely evil.

[ContraBardus]

Playing the GTA IV DLC. I finished GTA IV and thought it was a great game, but I never did get into any of the DLC. I've modded it to make it a bit prettier and maxed out the settings and it's very nice.

 

Well, as nice as GTA gets anyway. I forgot how funny the game could be. I spent all this time modding it, and about a half hour after starting I ended up sitting my character in front of the television in the game for a couple of hours and watching 'Republican Space Rangers', a PBS style documentary parody, and some Anime parody with a very long winded name that was just wrong. The radio stations have given me a few chuckles here and there as well.

 

[ContraBardus]

Some screenshots of Brutal Legend. This game is worth it just for the soundtrack.









And Alice Madness Returns. Which just looks awesome...















 

[gall]

This seems like the wrong place for this...

[ContraBardus]

This seems like the wrong place for this...

 

It was in TOT originally, but was moved here due to 'the possibility of thread replies becoming overly large'.

[gall]

 

This seems like the wrong place for this...

 

It was in TOT originally, but was moved here due to 'the possibility of thread replies becoming overly large'.

 

 

Is there more space in this section because that doesn't make any sense from a webhosting standpoint unless there are some strange limits on this host or this forum software sucks that bad.

[BendyLine]

I don't get why this is a deal. I mean, if you're gonna complain about the forum, how about all the arbitrary ways things are pinned? There are a bit too many pinned topics IMO, and it clutters up the sub forums. That's much more annoying than a video game topic in a slightly wrong forum. (Personally I like it here, because this is one of the forums I tend to check regularly.)

 

My PS3 is about to bite the dust, so I preordered the GTA5 bundle. It's coming out just in time for my birthday. Good times. 

[ContraBardus]

 

 

This seems like the wrong place for this...

 

It was in TOT originally, but was moved here due to 'the possibility of thread replies becoming overly large'.

 

 

Is there more space in this section because that doesn't make any sense from a webhosting standpoint unless there are some strange limits on this host or this forum software sucks that bad.

 

 

You'd have to ask the admins. That's what the post from the admins explaining why it was relocated said. I don't really care one way or the other. I think it could fit in either section to be honest, it is a bit off topic in relation to the board on the whole, but is also a lifestyle type thread, so either or. I might think it a bit odd if it was in the Lion's Den or Science vs. Religion sub forums, but this is as good a place as any.

[ContraBardus]

Xbox 1 continues to be a horrible deal. Microsoft again announces restrictions on the console. Not near as restrictive as before, and honestly not surprising.

 

Xbox Live Gold membership will be required to access Skype, Smart Match [which makes sense as it's required for multiplayer anyway], and the Xbox DVR function. It's also revealed that the Xbox 1 DVR will record gameplay video at 30fps @ 720p. A very underwhelming announcement to say the least.

 

In other news, Bioshock returns to Rapture in two future DLCs. They've also confirmed that you'll be playing as Booker in the first DLC titled 'Buried at Sea', which apparently chronicles the fall of Rapture before the events of Bioshock. On a very interesting note, it's also been confirmed that the second episode in the two part DLC will have you playing as Elizabeth. It's not clear whether you'll be playing as her through the whole second DLC or if she'll be sharing the spotlight with Booker, though it does sound a lot like you'll be spending the majority of the second half in her shoes as opposed to his currently.

 

 

I'm really looking forward to this.

[phillie]

Has anyone purchased and played the game: "Papers, please"? I've read some reviews online, but I wanted to see if there were some other opinions on the game.

[traveller2]

still playing Fallout 3.Just started 'the last of us'..On the PC I play alot of older stuff;spell-force ,halo combat evolved.

[BendyLine]

Fallout 3 was a pretty major addiction for me about four years ago. I probably put more hours into that game than just about any other game ever, and that's saying something. Still, there were things I didn't do. 

[ContraBardus]

Fallout 3 was a pretty major addiction for me about four years ago. I probably put more hours into that game than just about any other game ever, and that's saying something. Still, there were things I didn't do. 

 

Most Bethesda games I play through once right after I get them without doing anything to them, and then I mod them a bunch and play them again...several times.

 

Fallout 3 was like that, and I honestly couldn't tell you what was in the original game and what was stuff I modded anymore. Me talking about Fallout with someone usually goes something like this:

 

"Well, there's this really great gun in...no, wait... Was that a mod? I think so? I'm not sure. You're on your own." or "What? There isn't a forty foot tall radscorpion with a rocket launcher for a tail guarding that place? Are you sure? Maybe it was one of those four story tall supermutants that shoot laser beams out of their eyes then...no? Are you sure? I remember something really big there. No, much bigger than that. Those things are barely one story tall. I had to use a chain railgun to kill it because it took too long with just a fatman. Huh? What do you mean there's no such gun? It's in the secret level under the Museum of natural history that's modeled after the third level of Doom 2. Are you sure? No way, I've got screenshots..."

[ContraBardus]

Just finished Saint's Row 4. It was fun. I'm sure I'll be playing through [mostly] the whole series again. I've still got Saint's Row for my 360. It's nothing spectacular, but sadly the only game in the series not available on PC. I'll probably start with SR 2 when I do and just skip the first game. It's not a bad game, but essentially a GTA clone with a slightly more skewed sense of humor and a silent protagonist. I already know all the important plot points from the game anyway, SR 4 brings up most of them. Probably not anytime soon as I've still got plenty of other games to play at the moment. Castlevania Lord of Shadows Ultimate Edition for PC is probably the next game I'll play through. I've got Amnesia A Machine for Pigs coming, plus I've got GTA V pre-ordered and I'll be spending a while playing that so I'm not likely to get into SR again for a bit, but sooner or later I'm sure I will. It's...well, it's Crackdown. It's funnier than Crackdown, but it's totally Crackdown. There's other stuff thrown in of course, but the bulk of gameplay is Crackdown. Crackdown was good and I'd say this is better if only for the humor element and a far greater variety of shit to do. I suppose the powers are a bit more varied and the controls are a little easier.

 

Let me say this now, it's absolutely not for Children. Most of the people who would read this would probably know that, but just in case. Do not let children play this game, it's worse than Grand Theft Auto and revels in it's excess and adult humor. It's completely over the top, from sex toy weapons, to missions involving prostitutes, to a mission in which your character plays a dancing minigame in a strip club 'Magic Mike' style. This is mature subject matter in every way, gloriously cartoonish, but still very adult. It's not the least bit original, but it's too much fun to care. It's a very different game than Saint's Row 2 and 3 gameplay wise, but retains it's adult sense of sarcastic self aware humor.

 

There are a lot of short stand out moments that break the 'Crackdown' gameplay up. I loved the FPS parody opening and the Nuclear Missile scene was epic. The song playing during the spaceship escape scene got a chuckle from me. It was hard to play at first because of the reflex action in my neck that song causes in pretty much everyone from my generation. Queen's Bohemian Rhapsody has a similar effect for pretty much the same reasons. All sorts of Sci-fi references are involved, from the obvious such as the Matrix, to the awful such as Chronicles of Riddick, to the obscure such as They Live. It's a nonsense ride that's lots of fun with characters that can carry the narrative through the parts that make no sense easily.
 

I've heard people say that the soundtrack is horrible, but it's not. I enjoyed the music quite a bit, though I admit that I didn't listen to the radio stations much. The music picked for the setpiece moments was top notch and got a laugh out of me more than once.

Don't be a wuss and cheat in this game. They make it easy to do, but you quickly become so overpowered that there's no point to it. You don't need to cheat, you'll be laying waste to the entire city within the first hour of gameplay. Seriously, once you gain certain powers you're pretty much the God of Death.

 

You can upgrade cars to make them tougher and faster, as well as cosmetic changes. I've not gotten fully into it yet and I don't believe every vehicle can be upgraded, but most anything you can steal from a standard NPC can be pimped out so to speak. I've not bothered to try with the military or offensive vehicles. I'm putting my respect and money into other things at the moment. To be honest though, vehicles are pretty useless outside of missions that require their use. Some of the enemy vehicles are kind of neat. I've only used them within missions, but there are the usual assortment of tanks and helicopters, but also a few alien vehicles that are fun to run around in for a bit.

You can save any vehicle you get into by saving it with a hotkey and have it appear whenever you want. No more waiting for a delivery. Just open your menu, select your desired vehicle, and off you go. Any upgrades you perform are saved to these vehicles as well. Once you get a 'copy' of every car, there's no more need to bother NPCs for their rides outside of doing it for the lulz.

Plus, it makes it easier to deal with the military before you get your superpowers pumped up enough. If they start calling in tanks, just make your own tank appear and you're suddenly on equal footing. I've found that to be a bit unnecessary as I'm never wanting of a rocket launcher. The Alien version never runs out of ammo and simply has a cooldown period after a set amount of shots. I really only used vehicles a handful of times at the very beginning of the game and ignored them completely for the bulk of gameplay. There's really no good reason to use them at all once you get the basic set of powers.

It's mindless fun, and it is fun, but it also has no original ideas. That seems oddly intentional. It's as if Saint's Row has decided to become the National Lampoon/Scary Movie/Not Another Movie series of video games. I mean that in a good way at the moment. The earlier entries into those film series as opposed to the crappy shovelfilm crap that is currently being put out from them.

It's stupid, but entertaining, and that's all I really want from a Saint's Row Game at this point. I'm getting what I expected, no more, but that's not really a bad thing considering it's only been a short time since 3 was released.

There are, of course, tons of pop culture references, including some I didn't see coming. Good character development, the story is so so, but the characters carry it through. Dialogue is a strongsuit of the game and there are some great interactions. Quite a few laugh out loud moments, though I could have done without my 'Boss' screaming 'Oh Yeah!' as if he was the damn Koolaid Man every time he picked up one of the code fragments. There are a few issues, but overall the positives overshadow them. The ending was less than a surprise considering how the game opened, though there is an interesting bit at the end of the credits. There does seem to be room left open for a SR V as well, but it's enough closure to tie a neat bow on the end of the series as well. There aren't really any dangling threads. Plenty of room for further parody of Sci-fi in a future title though. I doubt this will be the final game, especially considering how well it's sold so far, but it won't exactly upset me if it is.

I am left wondering what sort of future DLC will be released, I doubt it will be 'after game content'. Enter the Dominatrix is one of them, but there's another as yet to be announced gameplay DLC being released later. I suspect there may be one or two more beyond that as well considering the amount of DLC for SR3.

I recommend it, but only if you've played SR 2 and 3. A lot of the game won't make a hell of a lot of sense if you haven't, not that it does anyway. It's very self aware, but tons of fun. Aside from a few stand out segments, it's mostly a Crackdown clone, but in a good way.

[ContraBardus]

Just finished Journey. It's a downloadable game on PSN and a Playstation exclusive. It was the shortest epic game I've ever played. Worth every penny I paid for it. Very peaceful and I ran into seven different players over the course of the game. It lists who you ran into at the end. It's a bit strange realizing how much communication you can do with one singe button and a single tone. It's desolate but not bleak. Anyway, I highly recommend picking it up and chilling out with for a while it if you've got a PS3. It was quite beautiful and the music was haunting and epic.

 

You start the game in a vast desert alone. In the distance is a mountain. You just go there, sometimes you meet other players, but there's no chat. All interaction is done with a singe button that creates a single musical chime. It's amazing how much you can say with just that much. You can ignore them or travel with them helping each other out along the way. There is no way to grief other players and it took me a little bit to realize that these weren't NPCs but actual human players I was traveling with. It's very cool how they did it.

 

It's one of those games that definitely qualifies as a work of art. Well worth experiencing at least once. If you've got a PS3 you should play this. It's not about being difficult or really anything than experiencing the trip it takes you on. It's got a zen like quality to it and it's very peaceful, though it does get a bit bleak for a short time near the end, it becomes very breathtaking at the final stretch.

 

Seriously, this is one of the most beautiful and memorable games I've played in a long time.

 

Flower is another game I recommend for peaceful and zen like gaming that can only be played on the PS3. It's quite beautiful as well and more about the journey than challenging you. There's nothing more to it than flying around as a breeze and making flowers bloom. No time limit, no enemies, just floating around a vast landscape and making it bloom in an amazing visual journey. Though, Journey is a bit more focused. Journey is the better of the two, but Flower is unfocused and just plain pretty. Like flying around a colorful painting making it more beautiful as you play.

 

These two games are great examples as games as art. I could easily see both being featured in an art gallery, they're just that good.

[LifeCycle]

It's official. Just pre-ordered my PS4.  So long XBone!

[ContraBardus]

Got Castle of Illusion.

 

Some may remember this from the Sega Genesis. It was one of the best platformers available on the system and is one of the reasons Disney built a reputation of quality side scrolling platformers such as Ducktales, Magical Quest, and Aladdin. This was a stand out title and hasn't lost a thing in the transition. If anything, it's actually been improved. There is a narrator that provides the story Bastion style as you play and the voices are provided by their current Disney VO actors.

 

The remake that is available on PSN, XBLA Arcade, and PC [i've got the PC version] is better than the recent Ducktales remastered, and that's saying something. It retains it's charm and quality but updates the graphics and sound to modern levels of quality. I had more fun with this than I did with the recent Rayman and Ducktales. It's a top notch platformer that should not be missed.

 

It retains the classic side scrolling gameplay of the original and updates it with short 3D segments similar to Mario 64. For example, the hub world is a 3d castle where you unlock doors after collecting a set number gems. It works well and is seamlessly integrated into the game. Another sequence where Mickey has to run from a giant apple that begins chasing him Raiders of the Lost Ark style, has had the perspective changed so it is now a segment where the mouse runs towards the screen.

 

It shows off how great a platformer can be, the bulk of the gameplay is pure side scrolling goodness. The 3d segments aren't overly long and enhance gameplay rather than seeming tacked on. They tie together the levels much better than the old cartridge version did.

 

This is one of those timeless titles that anyone will enjoy playing. It's good enough to keep the interest of a younger crowd and won't turn off those who are old enough to have played the original. It's very nostalgic, but modernized for today's audiences.

 

This is a top notch high quality game that should not be missed by anyone. Seriously, check this out. Especially if you're familiar with the original. It's a great remake, one of the best I've played yet and worth every bit of the price for admission.

[ContraBardus]

It's official. Just pre-ordered my PS4.  So long XBone!

 

Great. I'm not getting either for a while, but it will be a PS4 when I do get around to it.

 

My PC is good enough for now, and I want a few exclusive titles and a price drop before I bother with it.

 

Hope you enjoy it. I'm positive I'll have one eventually, it's just a matter of how long before it's worth it for me.

 

Thinking of nabbing a Wii U soon. It's cheap as dirt and there are a few games I know I'll play, such as the upcoming Zelda, and some of the already released Mario titles. At the current price point it's worth it just for the few stand out first party titles for the system at this point. I never would have bought one new and I'm not particularly impressed by the tablet controller, but there are enough of those Nintendo titles that I think it's worth a purchase at the discounted price point. I'm not really interested in 3rd party games for it anyway, so I could care less that several companies don't develop for it. I doubt I'll save the console by buying one now, but I enjoy playing several of the first party titles enough that I think I should nab one soon. Not in a hurry or anything, but that's likely to be my next major gaming purchase. A PS4 probably won't be worth buying for me for another year or two.

 

Also got Retro City Rampage. It's cute, well not really, but it's given me a few chuckles so far. It reminds me of an 8 bit top down Saint's Row. It's more parody and homage to the old top down GTA games and the NES. I got it on PSN because it was dirt cheap with PS+ recently. I've still got a membership for the next several months with them, but I likely won't pay for another year until I end up with a PS4.

 

Plenty to keep me occupied until Amnesia A Machine For Pigs and GTA V come out in a few weeks. Once I get my hands on GTA I'll probably be playing it for a month. Though I'll probably bully my way through Amnesia between sessions to break things up so I don't get completely burned out on GTA.

 

Plus, I've got Ducktales and Darkwing Duck to watch now. I picked up the boxed sets because they were cheap as well, and I'm going to watch through them over the next month or so. The whole series isn't out for either show, both are missing one more boxed set's worth of episodes. Though, it's currently unknown if those sets are ever going to be released or not. It will still be worth it to watch through it again. I watched through Animaniacs and Pinky and the Brain a few years back when I picked up the complete series for both of those shows and it was totally worth it. I'll be in nostalgia land for quite a while over the next few weeks, it will be pretty awesome.

[ContraBardus]

Steam unveils new controller for Steambox and PC and it looks pretty awesome.

It has two trackpads with heptic feedback of some kind, they also function as buttons and can be clicked. There is a touchscreen in the middle with the traditional ABXY buttons placed on each corner of the central screen. The touchscreen is also a clickable button using scrolling to select menu items and then clicking the screen button to select to help prevent the accidental input that is often associated with touchscreen interfaces.

There are four shoulder buttons and two larger buttons underneath, as well as three other buttons below the screen that appear to function as start, select, and another longer button that I'd guess functions like a spacebar.

It will support every game in the Steam Library according to Valve with actions and hotkeys on scrollable/flickable menus in the touchscreen interface.

I wants it.


http://www.ign.com/articles/2013/09/27/valve-announces-steam-controller?zeta_id=136094099&utm_source=Monday%20newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=9.28+US+ONLY_20450_1121253_1121293&utm_content=136094099

 

It's compatible with Steam Machine and Steam OS and will come packed with the console, but it's actually being developed separately and is intended as a PC controller and you don't need Steam Machine or Steam OS to use it.

It natively emulates the keyboard and will work with any PC game. As I understand it the controller can be programmed any way you want using software similar to Xpadder that comes with it. It will also come with presets for every Steam game available.

It's supposed to provide more control options than a standard gamepad and provide as many options as a mouse and keyboard control scheme in a handheld gamepad.

Supposedly the trackpad and feedback make it about as accurate as a mouse for aiming and provide more fine movement than an analogue stick. It uses some sort of electromagent feedback system that is supposed to have such a high frequency that the two touchpads could actually be used as speakers. Valve claims that the technology can be used to simulate the feeling of using a dpad or buttons using the touchpad providing the feedback that current touchpad technology lacks to improve functionality and accuracy.

It sounds pretty epic and may replace my current Hydra and Naga control scheme if it does everything it claims to do.

I am a little skeptical of the trackpads. They're supposed to be super high quality and the feedback is supposed to aid with accuracy. I've had experience with touchpads on laptops though and they kind of suck for games. I think a lot of that has to do with placement and the fact that a lot of them are cheap and not extremely responsive. Not to mention the lack of any sort of physical feedback makes them less accurate than a mouse.

If this thing pans out, it could be epic and change the future of gamepad controllers in much the same way as the PS1 Dual Shock controller did. If it performs well enough I could see console versions of this thing popping up easily. However I don't expect we'll see that for a little while if it does happen.

One change I'd like to see is a closer grouping of the XYAB buttons. I'm not sure how well having them on the corners of the touchpad will work. I'd like to see them close enough that they could be reached easily with a thumb for example. There are enough other buttons that it may not be an issue though, so it may not be a real concern and just something that only seems like it might be better at first glance.

Here's a better image that's closer to what the final model will look like. As I understand it this is basically complete and the Steambox beta testers will be getting them with the consoles. According to the official page there are sixteen buttons on the thing, plus the trackpads and touchscreen. Half the buttons are accessible without taking your fingers off the trackpads.

Steam Controller

It's still far enough away that there may be other changes to the design, but the images in this post are probably pretty close to the final version.

As far as I know they haven't nailed down a release date for this thing yet and only suggest that it'll be sometime next year. No official price point either.

I'm kind of a collector of peripheral oddities so I'll probably end up getting one, but it does have the potential to be the next big thing in controllers. I'm also a bit skeptical of that. We don't know if it will actually do what Valve claims at this point, but if it works as currently advertised it could be the next big evolution in gamepad technology.





I honestly doubt I'll buy a Steam Machine, but I'm pretty sure I'll have one of these. I've already got my PC hooked up to my television anyway and my PC is by far more powerful than it has any hope of being. My Steam games run better on my PC hardware to begin with and I've no use for a device that streams games from my PC to my television anyway. I'm already running Linux anyway along side Windows 7 and Windows XP on separate HDD.

 

There's no good reason for me to care about the console. This controller is another matter though. It may end up just another oddity in my collection, but could turn out to be an epic gamepad as well.

[LifeCycle]

This whole Steam Machine thing is fascinating to me. They definitely want to challenge the console world with their own, individual and different approach to "living room gaming." I think it will take a while to catch on and even longer to influence the console gamers to come on over to the dark side. But it does fill a nitch - even if it's a small one.

 

I think they have more planned and the details of the Steam Machine and what they're really capable of doing will come in time. I'm sure some pretty awesome stuff is on the horizon.