Afternoon all
I have gamed a LOT recently.
I work away from my family quite regularly and, in my down time, I usually do a lot of boxing and powerlifting; alas, I have had the 'Rona, so I've been left isolated and had to fill the time.
This, for me, is when consoles earn their worth 100x over. Rubbish weather, unwell, in need of a day-in, filling the hole that's been left by being away from your young family, etc. Sounds as though I've had a rough time - to the contrary - it's been GREAT
Summary of what I've played and whether you should bother:
GTA: The Trilogy - The Definitive Edition
Quick note: did these all without cheats and focused on the missions only (except jumping off of the big mountain and parachuting in San Andreas).
The remaster itself has some very well polished aspects (the lighting and reflections), and some not so well polished aspects (the character models; a lot of rectangular action going on generally; draw distances still a problem).
The remaster also inexplicably continues to have some game-breaking glitches (i.e., totally exit the game and start again). We all accepted this, back in the days of the PS2, but it is honestly like this remaster wasn't tested by players in some parts.
GTA III
Just not that good a game, really. Strange, considering my memories of it. I think it was just such a revelation, after the 2D games. It deserves to be called a 'Masterpiece' just from how much it revolutionised the series and the ideas it brought and implemented.
GTA: Vice City
Hard to believe this came out just a year after GTA III. It is an utterly, utterly brilliant game. From the very second you begin, the atmosphere, the music, the fashion, the story, all wonderful. Obviously, the game took huge inspiration from Scarface, which I am a huge fan of, so that helps.
It's actually a lot shorter than I remember, but I guess that's because, as a kid, you spend a lot more time causing havoc than actually playing the story.
I always remembered San Andreas as my favourite, but it is without a doubt Vice City, now.
GTA: San Andreas
When Rockstar used to churn out the games as frequently as Marvel movies, but with a lot better quality.
GTA: SA starts a lot more slowly than GTA: VC. It is an incredibly long game compared to the other two, and absolutely huge in terms of its functionalities and maps.
In that respect - that is, that there's just so much to do - I guess it is technically a better game than GTA: VC, but it doesn't flow anywhere near as well and I felt the tedium growing towards the end. Still a great story with a great soundtrack, and I love that Samuel L Jackson voices the main antagonist.
My biggest bugbear: the last mission. I like the gang war / territory concept, but all of these games suck with their shooting mechanics. This isn't too annoying in the former two, because you don't actually need to shoot that much or accurately most of the time. In GTA: SA, however, there is a HUGE reliance on accurate shooting (the bloody RC helicopter mission!!) and in particular that last mission.
Want to shoot that guy right in front of you? Oh wait, he's too close, I'll just point one uzi downwards, into the ground, and another into the sky and shoot like mad.
No reload button (somebody is going to tell me there is and I am going to look like a fool).
The mechanic where you rope gang members in to help you in these assaults on enemy territory: they stand around and do NOTHING until you're dead.
Or what about the fact that you need to shoot four members of opposing gangs to commence a gang war, AND THEY'RE NOWHERE TO BE FOUND.
Dark Souls II
Getting hyped for Elden Ring, I was watching some DS videos on YouTube (I told you, I've been lonely). I adore FromSoft, but DS2 is a game I've just never really been able to entertain. It just felt totally 'wrong' and out of sync with its predecessors and successors.
Being the only one I haven't properly played and completed, I gave it another go. This time, I read a little bit about it beforehand, namely, how you need to level up the Adaptability stat in order to level up the Agility sub-stat.
Agility grants you what you start off with in every other FromSoft game: a roll mechanic that works and has invincibility frames.
Once you do this, the game actually works and it feels a LOT more like a proper DS game.
There is still a lot to hate:
the artificial difficulty conduced by simply slapping a tonne of enemies in small areas, as opposed to well thought-out, challenging enemies;
the weird, almost-cheap-Hollywood cinematic approach they took (feels very out of touch with the other DS games);
the quantity over quality approach: pretty much all the bosses suck with a COUPLE exceptions and there are FOURTY ONE OF THEM.
Continued...
Recently Played Games
posted on 19/2/22
Champers you need to let me know if you want to team up one day. Been sort of occupied with other things but, but been play since it was a mod, then got dragged to PuBG and more recently Warzone. Also if you don't already check out a YouTube channel: FrankieonPC
posted on 19/2/22
Forgot to include Resident Evil Village in the write up!
As a huge fan of RE 7, I was intrigued to see a direct continuation of the story.
I thought it started relatively slowly and I wasn’t overly impressed. I thought there was a distinct lack of puzzle mechanics, which I adore about these games.
The middle act turned that scepticism right around and I was having an absolute blast; if it kept it up, it would certainly be vying with RE 7.
Sadly, the final act didn’t quite meet the lofty standards that the middle part carved out for itself, so I wouldn’t rate it as highly as 7. Ultimately - and understandably - I think they probably rushed it a touch to meet the next gen launch cycle, and cash in on that early money.
It’s still a good game and that middle part is excellent. I’d probably give it a 7/10 (RE 7 being an 8 or 8.5).
posted on 19/2/22
comment by Simon West (U1830)
posted 4 hours, 13 minutes ago
Champers you need to let me know if you want to team up one day. Been sort of occupied with other things but, but been play since it was a mod, then got dragged to PuBG and more recently Warzone. Also if you don't already check out a YouTube channel: FrankieonPC
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Yeah man, once I'm a bit more nimble with my fingers I'd defo be up for that. I also love Frankie's videos too. I'm fairly sure they're mostly scripted but so much great entertainment in them.
If you're not familiar with him yet, check out Gekofish on YouTube. The lad is a scotch egg short of a picnic to put it mildly and his videos have me absolutely howling.
posted on 20/2/22
Wasn't vice city a £20 game that was considered to be an expansion which accounts for its low content level.
Were it to be released today it would have been an expansion pack.
Still a quality game though, and like you said, at the time causing mayhem really increased the play time
posted on 20/2/22
Be very interested to hear how cyberpunk is following the latest update, was so looking forward to that game and haven’t played it yet.
posted on 20/2/22
comment by Mattyp (U8926)
posted 6 hours, 40 minutes ago
Wasn't vice city a £20 game that was considered to be an expansion which accounts for its low content level.
Were it to be released today it would have been an expansion pack.
Still a quality game though, and like you said, at the time causing mayhem really increased the play time
----------------------------------------------------------------------
No, VC was a full price release with massive hype.
posted on 20/2/22
comment by RJC (U17308)
posted 4 hours, 52 minutes ago
comment by Mattyp (U8926)
posted 6 hours, 40 minutes ago
Wasn't vice city a £20 game that was considered to be an expansion which accounts for its low content level.
Were it to be released today it would have been an expansion pack.
Still a quality game though, and like you said, at the time causing mayhem really increased the play time
----------------------------------------------------------------------
No, VC was a full price release with massive hype.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
It was hyped enough for me to go out and buy a Playstation 2 just to play it I can remember that. It was solid too. That remote control helicopter mission on the building site nearly drove me to insanity.
posted on 23/2/22
comment by meltonblue (U10617)
posted 2 days, 21 hours ago
Be very interested to hear how cyberpunk is following the latest update, was so looking forward to that game and haven’t played it yet.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
I watched a few videos the other day of ppl playing the most up to date version, and comparing it with the first patch. The difference is there to be seen and it now looks like the game it once promised to be.
I wish they had given you the option to play it in the 3rd person though like The Witcher. Not a huge fan of first person games as I just cannot fully connect myself to the character I am playing.
I will upload CP again later on in the year and give it another shot. Atm I am currently binging on FromSoftware games and doing another run of Dark Souls 3. I may buy Elden Ring but I feel it's a must that I finish Dark Souls 1 and give DS2 a proper go.
One day I might get a PS5 and play Demon Souls
posted on 23/2/22
Sorry, Melton; I’d love to give you a proper review of Cyberpunk after this next-gen upgrade, but my plans have been spoiled by the majority of my team going on holiday and therefore leaving me to do REAL WORK! The cheek of it!
That means that I probably won’t touch my PlayStation until Friday evening / the weekend, and I’ve had Elden Ring pre-ordered for donkeys (should, with any luck, arrive on Friday).
The review embargo was lifted this afternoon, and it seems to have gotten perfect scores pretty much across the board. I imagine that will be a good month worth of gaming right there!
posted on 23/2/22
comment by rooney_hernandez (U7012)
posted 2 hours, 45 minutes ago
Sorry, Melton; I’d love to give you a proper review of Cyberpunk after this next-gen upgrade, but my plans have been spoiled by the majority of my team going on holiday and therefore leaving me to do REAL WORK! The cheek of it!
That means that I probably won’t touch my PlayStation until Friday evening / the weekend, and I’ve had Elden Ring pre-ordered for donkeys (should, with any luck, arrive on Friday).
The review embargo was lifted this afternoon, and it seems to have gotten perfect scores pretty much across the board. I imagine that will be a good month worth of gaming right there!
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Ha, I’ve got the same at the mo. Everyone’s got so much left to take before the ending of March!
Was reading the reviews earlier too, sounds very very special.