“I Just Think They're Neat.” Like What You are Playing

[Neo Skimbleshanks]

Was in the mood for that sandbox game where you were a guy who could just climb up walls and absorb people's appearances, summon rocks from the ground, whatever, and decided to get the most recent entry, so I picked up Infamous: Second Son from Gamestop along with two other games. It's really hitting the spot; it's just fun to sort of wander around with superpowers and just do some undemanding map chores. Very 2014 demand that you use the touchpad if it kills you, but on the other hand, not asking you to do anything challenging with the touchpad. Not a problem for me! I thought it was weird you couldn't steal people's appearances (...via brutally absorbing their entire bodies) here; wasn't that fun, but also there's this new binary morality system and if pressed I can't actually go evil in games. Well, the superpowers are very fun anyway, and if my violence is color coded blue for noble, all the better.

Anyway, I've since realized I was thinking about Prototype and I think there is no reason for me to buy the Prototype collection bc I have too many games and already impulse bought a few more because Gamestop had that B2G1F deal, but I might do it. Anyway, Infamous: Second Son Fun. The people (me) demand new entries in both of these franchises even though I guess it's not gonna happen...

 

[Olli]

They should do a crossover

 

[Octopus Prime]

Here to confirm the surprising news that the Guardians of the Galaxy game is, in fact, really good

 

[jpfriction]

Here to confirm the surprising news that the Guardians of the Galaxy game is, in fact, really good

I just started playing it too. The fact that there is a mechanic where you huddle up and give the team a pep talk in the middle of a fight is bonkers, I love it.

 

[Becksworth]

Astalon: Tears of the Earth is pretty nifty. Glad I gave the full game a shot because I was luke warm on the demo.

 

[Octopus Prime]

After... like... a decades worth of everyone trying to make a game like Dark Souls, with Deaths Gambit someone finally, finally made one I love.

The difficulty, compared to other Souls-em-ups is pretty fair, not easy by any stretch, but manageable, maybe comperable to, say, Order of Ecclesia.

The punishment for dying is harsh but, again, MUCH more forgiving than typical for the genre; wherever you die you leave behind a Phoenix Plume (the equivalent of an Estus Flask) as opposed to any money or getting a semi-permanent stat loss, and they remain on the map until you retrieve them. If they're somewhere you can't get them, you can just pay to have them restored to you (but it's expensive).

Getting items that increase the games background lore isn't just helpful for letting you appreciate the games backstory; each piece you find that pertains to a boss also gives you a damage bonus against that boss (and I think also gives them new attacks? I'm not sure).

Game also lacks the pervasive sense of hopelessness you'd expect from the genre; Death itself is kind of a snarky goofball, none of the characters are necessarily happy about their situation, but they're pretty obliging about it. Also, it just looks nice.

Also, one of the character classes plays a lot like Mega Man, but with dodge-rolling and parrying

 

[lincolnic]

After... like... a decades worth of everyone trying to make a game like Dark Souls, with Deaths Gambit someone finally, finally made one I love.

The difficulty, compared to other Souls-em-ups is pretty fair, not easy by any stretch, but manageable, maybe comperable to, say, Order of Ecclesia.

The punishment for dying is harsh but, again, MUCH more forgiving than typical for the genre; wherever you die you leave behind a Phoenix Plume (the equivalent of an Estus Flask) as opposed to any money or getting a semi-permanent stat loss, and they remain on the map until you retrieve them. If they're somewhere you can't get them, you can just pay to have them restored to you (but it's expensive).

Getting items that increase the games background lore isn't just helpful for letting you appreciate the games backstory; each piece you find that pertains to a boss also gives you a damage bonus against that boss (and I think also gives them new attacks? I'm not sure).

Game also lacks the pervasive sense of hopelessness you'd expect from the genre; Death itself is kind of a snarky goofball, none of the characters are necessarily happy about their situation, but they're pretty obliging about it. Also, it just looks nice.

Also, one of the character classes plays a lot like Mega Man, but with dodge-rolling and parrying

I'd never heard of this game before, but now I'm super interested in checking it out. Thanks for the writeup!

 

[Paul le Fou]

I went down my Switch library/backlog list and picked up Golf Story on a whim, and I kind of love it? The golf mechanics are fun enough, and turning it into an RPG with neat little twists and fun writing pays off. I rate it Very Enjoy.

 

[Bongo]

I picked up Metal Wolf Chaos XD in the Steam sale, and this game is as fun as they say. This game has meat, y'know? I'm really bad at it, but it's quite forgiving, allowing attentive players to improve, because the levels (dense, plentiful, and probably very quick to replay) are full of side objectives and score-attack elements. There's tons of guns but there are still meaningful tradeoffs involved when choosing your loadout. It's got good thumbfeel, especially for an early-2000s console shooter. And, of course, the particular way in which the writing is a foreign exoticist's fever dream cartoon pastiche of American politics only hits weirder in 2021, in a good way.

 

[jpfriction]

I just started playing it too. The fact that there is a mechanic where you huddle up and give the team a pep talk in the middle of a fight is bonkers, I love it.

Gamora will not put her stupid sword away even when she is wandering around the ship or sits down. They didn’t really plan for that so it’s clipping through everything and makes it look like she’s just stabbing shit and herself left and right.

Good game.

 

[Octopus Prime]

Yeah, it’s really true to the character

 

[Octopus Prime]

So I was waiting for a sale on Fuga: Melodies of Steel, and it finally got one, and I eagerly tore into it. It’s a spiritual sequel to Tail Concerto and Solotorobo, but with… a great deal less whimsy.

A negative value of whimsy.

It is literally about child soldiers in Nazi occupied France (well, “Berman” occupied “Pal Collo”, where everyone is and speaks French, but that’s about as subtle as the allusions get) being given a super tank powered by the souls of dead children.

It swings sharply between Lackadaisy Cats and The Childrens Crusade. It’s maybe the most tonal whiplash any video game has ever presented me with.

The game part itself is pretty fun and easy to grasp; it plays something like a roguelite, where each chapter has you progressing along a part of the countryside, finding randomly assigned stops full of enemy troops, resources, or branching paths on your way to the chapters boss. Sometimes you stop to modify and uograde the tank, or build up their relationships with one another (keeping compatible units assigned to the same station gives status boosts and unlocks limit-break style attacks).

Each kid is capable of using one of three types of cannons (one accurate, one strong, one middlin’) in addition to bespoke special abilities and even as early into the game as I am there’s already been evidence that the games going to get pretty tricky about mixing things up with them (one enemy type is too powerful to take any reasonable amount of damage from anything but the missiles, but missiles won’t do more than dent it if you don’t use the weaker Machine Guns ability to break armor, all the while it’s taking big bites out of your own health).

The video game part is very good, the art is amazing, and I would recommend it, with the caveat that the game is very upfront that it is very literally about the machine of war being oiled with the blood of the innocent.

 

[Sarcasmorator]

Finally started FF7R Intergrade and I'll tell ya, when that logo popped up with that music playing over that vista of Midgar it stabbed me in the goddamn heart. It was like I was 18 again for a few seconds.

 

[Octopus Prime]

I was kind of expecting Voice of the Cards to be a deckbuilder RPG, something more in the vein of Steamworld Quest than Slay the Spire, but still something in that tone.

It is not that. It’s a regular DQ/Early FF style RPG that uses a playing card visual motif, and also Yoko Taros sensibilities.

His narrative sensibilities, not the other kind.

 

[MetManMas]

Beyond a Steel Sky is a good game. Some of the things I have done so far:

Spoiler: A FEW PUZZLE SPOILERS

- Scared off some hungry birds with a firecracker
- Tricked another bird into flying into an electric fence
- Stole a dead man's ID data
- Had a (stolen) scanning tool turned into a hacking device
- Stole an active cargo robot's battery
- Pretended to be said dead man for his wife at her request to fool a higher-up checking in after his two-week hiatus
- Talked about art with a dapper robot
- Saved a girl on a precarious ledge
- Ruined a father's day at the museum to appease his daughter who absolutely did not want to be there
- Wrecked up an exhibit area based on the previous game to get some old address data, get back my old robot friend's databoard, and escape without being spotted

 

[ArugulaZ]

Dang, Goof Troop for the Super NES is surprisingly good! I was not a big fan of the cartoon upon which it was based, but this is probably the first Disney Afternoon video game that's better than the show that spawned it! The control's a little sticky, but the action's got just the right blend of resource management, cleverly utilized items, and Sokoban-inspired block shoving, keeping you coming back for the next stage... and the next one... and oh crap, it's two hours later. I had to pull myself away from this one with a crowbar.

 

[FelixSH]

It probably helps, that the gameplay has absolutely nothing to do with the show. But yes, it's a fun game.

 

[Violentvixen]

My spouse has been playing The Forgotten City on Gamepass, and it's been a fun thing to watch and we've bounced ideas for what to do next and how to solve things off each other. Highly recommended on Gamepass! It's also on Steam but as it's quite short (5 hours maybe?) I think $25 is a bit too much. If it goes on sale I'd recommend it on Steam too.

 

[Beta Metroid]

Late to the party, but Mrs. Metroid got me Luigi's Mansion 3 for Christmas! I'm only a short way past the first boss so far, but it's everything I hoped it would be so far: extremely charming, offering satisfaction for even simple tasks, and brimming with atmosphere. Polterpup just kind of wandering nearby in the vicinity, being generally helpful, but also selling the illusion it has a mind of its own, is an absolutely wonderful feature. The whole game is a nice reminder of just how...fun the Mario universe can be.

I never played Dark Moon, but I do miss the "Press A to Mario" feature from the original Luigi's Mansion, and Luigi's commentary on every single mundane object you come across (which was probably not a realistic addition in a game of this scope, but it just reminded me how it's one of my most appreciated aspects of the original).

 

[Sarcasmorator]

My spouse has been playing The Forgotten City on Gamepass, and it's been a fun thing to watch and we've bounced ideas for what to do next and how to solve things off each other. Highly recommended on Gamepass! It's also on Steam but as it's quite short (5 hours maybe?) I think $25 is a bit too much. If it goes on sale I'd recommend it on Steam too.

It was recently on sale on Epic, so along with the $10 coupon I think I got it for under $9.

FF7R continues to be great. They went so hard on this game. Every chapter has its own unique theme and battle music, usually riffing on something you already know? They didn't have to do that! And yet.

 

[MCBanjoMike]

I never played Dark Moon, but I do miss the "Press A to Mario" feature from the original Luigi's Mansion, and Luigi's commentary on every single mundane object you come across (which was probably not a realistic addition in a game of this scope, but it just reminded me how it's one of my most appreciated aspects of the original).

You can still press a button to Mario! I think it's down on the d-pad?

 

[Sprite]

I’ve been really enjoying Absurdle, a rip-off of Wordle that cheats. You guess a word and it weeds out any possible words with those letters from the pool. I love deliberate and open trolls like that.

 

[Mogri]

Vampire Survivor is a game that dares to ask, "What if Hades was Smash TV?"

 

[JBear]

Vampire Survivor is a game that dares to ask, "What if Hades was Smash TV?"

Several of my friends are into it right now. "You are the bullet hell" is a helluva pitch, even before you add the not-Castlevania skinning.

 

[Mogri]

The only caveat is that it's EA. I've already burned through all of the unlocks (but not all of the meta-progression). Even so, it's super addicting in its current state.

 

[Torzelbaum]

Several of my friends are into it right now. "You are the bullet hell" is a helluva pitch

A bullet helluva a pitch?

 

[Sarcasmorator]

It came through a bit in the original, but Aerith in FF7R is an absolute chaos muppet and it is hilarious.

Though it is also a bit heartbreaking that part of the reason seems to be that she knows the future, so she's in "here for a good time, not for a long time" mode.

 

[MCBanjoMike]

For all of its faults, that was one thing Crisis Core got right - Aerith was clearly a troublemaker in that game, in a way that the butchered script of FF VII never really managed to communicate. It's nice seeing her act like that in Remake, it feels like I'm being proven right about something that nobody else believed for a long time.

 

[Sarcasmorator]

I really liked Crisis Core! It's been so long since I played it that I can't really remember what she was like in it, though. A lot of sass came through even in the original, though; I never quite got why she was seen as this pure angel by some people.

 

[Paul le Fou]

Vampire Survivor is a game that dares to ask, "What if Hades was Smash TV?"

Several of my friends are into it right now. "You are the bullet hell" is a helluva pitch, even before you add the not-Castlevania skinning.

Thanks guys, now I'm playing it too