What are you playing at the moment?

[Althea]

I'm pretty sure "40 weeks of DLC" doesn't mean DLC every week, but a bunch of mission packs. They announced three to be released until spring. I'm very excited for the one where the Saints go to space lol
Three? The Season Pass was announced, and I think that goes until at least Summer. That is just what's been announced too, we don't know what else they'll announce.

And yeah, at least a year of DLC (http://www.gamepro.com/article/news/222774/40-weeks-of-dlc-for-saints-row-the-third/).

[SirKicksalot]

I bought the Season Pass. It's just a 14 Euros preorder for those three mission packs I mentioned. It also unlocked a couple of cosmetic items.
The mission packs are:

· Genkibowl VII (Scheduled to be available January 2012)
The Wide World of Genki takes over Steelport for a sporting tradition totally and utterly unlike any other.

· Gangstas in Space (Scheduled to be available Winter 2012)
The Saints go intergalactic in this science-fiction misadventure.

· The Trouble With Clones (Scheduled to be available Spring 2012)
Copy-cat killing at its finest.

[DaftPunk]

I just completed first Splinter Cell yesterday,today i am going to start with Pandora Tomorrow,and so on.

[Nalano]

SR3 is definitely a delicious and well baked cake. I'm glad I'm eating it now.

This.

What do I lose by waiting a year to play the game?

I lose playing the game, Unrav.

[vinraith]

I, for one, appreciate impatient people like Nalano. They're the engine that keeps the industry moving, and allow patient folks like myself to buy games years later at steep discounts without the entire industry collapsing. Granted, I don't really do that anymore, but I accrued a nice healthy multi-thousand-hour backlog on this principle, so I'm still grateful.

There's also something to be said for supporting developers that produce games you really enjoy. SR3 wouldn't fall into that category for me personally, but I gather it does for Nalano, and those early sales tend to determine whether we'll see an SR4.

[Nalano]

I, for one, appreciate impatient people like Nalano. They're the engine that keeps the industry moving, and allow patient folks like myself to buy games years later at steep discounts without the entire industry collapsing. Granted, I don't really do that anymore, but I accrued a nice healthy multi-thousand-hour backlog on this principle, so I'm still grateful.

There's also something to be said for supporting developers that produce games you really enjoy. SR3 wouldn't fall into that category for me personally, but I gather it does for Nalano, and those early sales tend to determine whether we'll see an SR4.

I can appreciate that, just as I can appreciate the long-term sales making sure that developers don't just fire-and-forget their IPs, provide support for their releases, and realize that the consumer base is larger than the Day One sales.

[Althea]

I lose playing the game, Unrav.
No, you don't, you just delay it. The game will still be here in a year, and most likely many years from now. If you're comfortable paying full price for the game and the DLC, fine, that's your prerogative, but I think it's just fair to tell people that THQ have got rather ridiculous plans for the SR3 DLC, and some people - like myself and some others here - may wish to delay their purchase until a collected edition is out.

Anyway, back to the topic at hand, I've been playing Just Cause 2 Complete as an early birthday present from my mum (well, it was on sale on GamersGate and I've been on the fence about it for some time). Wow, that was fun! The controls are a bit annoying and I'll have to get used to them, but I've got to say I've enjoyed what I've played so far.

[Easy]

I've been playing Unity of Command (sorta reviewed recently on the Flare Path RPS column) and I'm really enjoying it. It's a very accessible wargame, plays quick (for a wargame), and has a fantastic UI. You can buy direct from the devs only, and I'm glad to be parting hard earned cash for indies that produce such wonderful stuff. Go check it out - http://unityofcommand.net/

There is no demo, but I took the plunge and have no regrets. I'd say it's geared towards "casual wargamers" :)

[airtekh]

I'm partway through a first-time playthrough of Outcast. Despite all I'd heard about it, I was kind of expecting it to have become tarnished with time, and I'm delighted that I've found this not to be the case. I think if I had played this back when it was released, it would have blown my mind.

The gameplay holds up surprisingly well. I'm struggling to find a modern analogue, but it's kind of a Mass Effect style guns n' conversation, but in an open world.

I like the way you can talk to an NPC and have them give directions as to where you need to go, it adds to the exploration element. The devs really made an effort at creating their own world too, it feels very 'alien', despite the aged graphics. There's even an in-game dictionary so you can tranlate what the locals are talking about. The music is absolutely lovely too.

Very enjoyable so far.

[Nalano]

No, you don't, you just delay it.

Three things.

1. Not playing the game is not playing the game (http://xkcd.com/951/).
2. SR3 is a full game without the DLC. SR3 will be an even fuller game with the DLC. DLC is not categorically "ridiculous."
3. As Vinraith has pointed out, you won't get your collector's edition without people like me.

[vinraith]

No argument with the other two, but #1 (which is a great comic, mind) only really applies if SR3 was the only game you had any interesting in playing at the moment. Maybe that's true, I wouldn't know, but I know in my case whenever I defer a purchase it really just means playing some other stuff first.

[The JG Man]

I actually have a list of games I want (inventively called Games I Want) which I split into those to get at first availability and those down-the-line. Because of release windows, it usually means that I can get games I want and will play immediately and get through them or slow down play time (if they're for example a MP focused game like BF3) which means I can come back to the 'later' games when they're cheap. I find it to be a rather good strategy. I've even got it going into next year (granted, only 4 games) so I have a bit in mind. As it stands, the only games I'm getting at release for the rest of this year are Sonic Generations (which I got for the obviously outrageous price of £15) and the re-release of Sonic CD.

Anyhow, to keep this thread relevant, BF3 has been side-lined for more Zelda. After 15 hours of play, the game has gotten a lot better, but it's a real shame it's taken so long to get there. It has, however, really made me excited for Darksiders 2.

[Nalano]

No argument with the other two, but #1 (which is a great comic, mind) only really applies if SR3 was the only game you had any interesting in playing at the moment. Maybe that's true, I wouldn't know, but I know in my case whenever I defer a purchase it really just means playing some other stuff first.

I don't have the million-game backlog as you do. ;)

[Heliocentric]

I don't have the million-game backlog as you do. ;)

Really, why not, played all of the hundreds(thousands?) of classic PC games which are cheaper and more interesting than the latest "AAA" releases? Really now, I can make a list if you'd like :P

[sabrage]

I hooked my PC up to my 50 inch, so I've been enjoying the hell out of Battlefield 3. I still suck, but that's ok.

[Lukasz]

I don't have the million-game backlog as you do. ;)
well then I applaud you for buying games only when you really want to play them.

you are a rare member of a gaming species.

[Nalano]

Really, why not, played all of the hundreds(thousands?) of classic PC games which are cheaper and more interesting than the latest "AAA" releases? Really now, I can make a list if you'd like :P

Because I played those classic PC games when they came out!

Hell, I've bought the original Fallout three times now.

[Drake Sigar]

Really, why not, played all of the hundreds(thousands?) of classic PC games which are cheaper and more interesting than the latest "AAA" releases?
Seen them, played them, shagged them.

[Wizardry]

Because I played those classic PC games when they came out!
All of them? I doubt that very much. Even I haven't.

[TillEulenspiegel]

Because I played those classic PC games when they came out!
Including the entire Quest for Glory series four times (fighter, thief, magic-user, paladin)?

QFG2 and QFG4 are particularly deserving of multiple play-throughs.

[Nalano]

Including the entire Quest for Glory series four times (fighter, thief, magic-user, paladin)?

QFG2 and QFG4 are particularly deserving of multiple play-throughs.

Not interested.

[Wizardry]

I'm not interested in playing any game I've not yet played.

[Drake Sigar]

If Sturgeon's law theorizes 90% of everything is crap, and you dismiss 100% of everything you haven't tried as crap, then aren't you still right 90% of the time? Pretty good success ratio there.

[vinraith]

I'm not interested in playing any game I've not yet played.

There's a fairly obvious step between "never played it" and "played it 4 times."

Much as I love QFG, there are always some classes that I'm just not interested in playing.

To get this thing back on topic, I've been playing a surprising amount of SupCom2, which is just a hell of a lot better than I'd heard. I like it a fair bit more than something like Starcraft 2 (far less fiddly) and the AI is excellent. In co-op and skirmish it's a real blast, though the campaign is shit.

[Wizardry]

There's a fairly obvious step between "never played it" and "played it 4 times."
Good point. For a second there I thought he meant he wasn't interested in Quest for Glory as a series. Apologies Nalano.

[DWZippy]

I've been playing Xenonauts - it's pretty decent, and I would recommend former X-Com veterans pay some money and get in on the beta. He's using beta testers feedback to refine the game, and you get to play a near finished version of the game already, although it's via desura now.

[TillEulenspiegel]

I *was* half-joking, but if you haven't seen all possible paths of QFG2, you're missing out.

Wouldn't play them all in a marathon session, but it makes it well worth revisiting.

[Heliocentric]

Moved a few more % to complete Blocks that matter, it's charming but I think I'm reaching the ceiling of the difficulty. Bought, downloaded and played the demo of Anomaly, very Australian isn't it.

[Heliocentric]

I'm not interested in playing any game I've not yet played.

I was so close to slipping that in my signature.

[Vexing Vision]

I sincerely wish I had more time to play anything but Skyrim and the occasional BloodBowl-match.

But I don't. Even Arkham City is going to suffer from Skyrimitis for a while (I'll play that just before my second Skyrim re-roll as a Thief).

[Tikey]

I'm in a love-hate relationship with VVVVVVV
Only two trinkets left.

[Giaddon]

The holy holiday triumvirate of Skyrim (awesome) Saints' Row 3 (pretty good) and Arkham City (just played an hour so far, but: awesome). Skyrim is probably gonna make me go back to FO3/NV, maybe even Morrowind. But I still have... a mind-boggling amount of hours to go before I'm done with Skyrim.

[Heliocentric]

I'm in a love-hate relationship with VVVVVVV
Only two trinkets left.

Friends don't let friends VVVVVVV

[Pertusaria]

At the moment mainly Binding of Isaac (yeah, I know, still haven't beaten it - I came to the party late and I'm not great at it), which is lovely because I haven't had much time for gaming in the past couple of weeks and Isaac gives short, simple bursts of pleasure.

I also have lots of games partly finished, or never going to be finished but not currently playing, that I intend to go back to - Avadon, Beneath a Steel Sky, Fate of the World, Unepic, the Lonewolf gaming books recast as computer games...

[TailSwallower]

Anomaly, very Australian isn't it.

No, not at all. It features a UK taskforce (as in, in the story they're meant to be British - they refer to themselves as Her Majesty's something or other), and the voice acting also sounds very British.

Though Hollywood Australian accents tend to sound like horrible British ones, so that could be why you'd think that.

But anyway, yeah, been playing a bit of Binding of Isaac and not much else the past couple of days. Unlocked Eve and Cain, but haven't killed Mom yet.

[sabrage]

I picked up Anomaly as well, and while I quite like it I was surprised by how difficult it is. I went with Advanced over Casual but I might step back down out of cowardice. I got to the third mission, saw what a ridiculous number of enemies there were and just closed the game.

Oh well, on to the Tribes Ascend beta. It tried to install AMD CPU drivers on my Intel system right off the bat, so we'll see if I can even get it working.

[BobsLawnService]

Been Kyaking, fishing, swimming and sight seeing with my family for almost two weeks. Can't wait to get back to Skyrim in a few days.

[Ian]

Been Kyaking, fishing, swimming and sight seeing with my family for almost two weeks. Can't wait to get back to Skyrim in a few days.

:D

"You know, in Skyrim I catch fish WITH MY BARE HANDS."

[BobsLawnService]

Yeah, I mihht actually catch something in Skyrim. *grumble*, *grumble*

[Heliocentric]

Beat mom on my 5th life. It helped that between parasite and mom's eye I became bullet hell, lagged the game so hard dodging got easy.

[Nalano]

Spent 52 hours in SR3 and 57 hours in Skyrim. Now going back to BF3 and shooting mans.

[DaftPunk]

Wow,how many hours do you spend playing per day ?


I just completed Pandora Tomorrow this week,hate how game forced you to kill enemies.

[vinraith]

I too am impressed by, and envious of, Nalano's game time.

I'm still mostly just playing the occasional bout of SupCom2, which continues to please and surprise. I'm also tinkering with the Panzer Corps demo, and playing the occasional round of Bronze. I keep talking about getting back into my Portugal game in EU3, or spending more time learning Pride of Nations (which, more and more, looks like it might be my game of the year), but we'll see whether I can actually find a moment to do either.

[Nalano]

Wow,how many hours do you spend playing per day?

I have three computers at home, not counting laptops. One is currently working profitably to convert cassettes to FLACs and allowing me to post here, another is a file server of all previous video/audio work, and the third is my gaming machine. When I'm not out on contract, I'm sitting here padding my posting numbers.

[MD!]

Took a break from Bronze to play lots of duels in Quake Live. (Pretty excited for DreamHack (http://www.esreality.com/?a=post&id=2185206), incidentally!)

Now I'm taking a break from QL to play Bronze again. Just finished the Hittite campaign, which was relatively easy once I got the hang of making the most of my free citadels. A nice surprise after the Assyrian campaign, which I found pretty exhausting and is probably the reason I took a break in the first place. One more to go, and I'm expecting a challenge. It certainly looks like it'll take a completely different playstyle to the previous campaigns.

[Heliocentric]

Wow,how many hours do you spend playing per day ?


I just completed Pandora Tomorrow this week,hate how game forced you to kill enemies.

Made by Shanghai, just like double agent, when I first bought it I got a steady 40fps until the jungle level forced me to play in thermal vision due to sub 1 fps.

But you don't need to kill ANYONE, fyi http://www.supercheats.com/xbox/walkthroughs/tomclancyssplintercellpandoratomorrow-walkthrough11.txt

[Ian]

I think I'm probably just over 60 hours in Skyrim. I was off work last week so took the opportunity to cane Skyrim a bit.

Not a patch on Nalano given his SR3 time too. When did that one come out?

[Drake Sigar]

Spent 52 hours in SR3 and 57 hours in Skyrim. Now going back to BF3 and shooting mans.
91 hours in Skyrim here. I have never been able to divide my attention between two games simultaneously.

[Scumbag]

After picking up Hydrophobia for dirt cheap I gave it a shot.
Has anyone else played this through and if so, does the game get any better then the opening 20 minutes? Not finding this too compelling.

[Heliocentric]

After picking up Hydrophobia for dirt cheap I gave it a shot.
Has anyone else played this through and if so, does the game get any better then the opening 20 minutes? Not finding this too compelling.

The ass whopping RPS gave it scared me away.

[DzX]

After 'finishing' Skyrim [all Guild and main quests complete - vast majority of the map explored - to me that's a Bethesda game complete] after 30-odd hours [32 to be precise] I'm back trying to find something within my vast Steam Library that interests me. It's interesting; when I played consoles primarily games were always new and exciting; I could play games 3-4 times over before getting bored. I certainly completed the vast majorty I owned - yet on Steam, even if I limit myself to a small portion of my games library, I often can't muster up the motivation to actually play the games I'm so excited to buy...

As a result I spent the token amount of Blue coins I had amassed [Gamersgate] on Hamilton's Great Adventure; first impressions are very good - it seems a pretty simplistic puzzle game - a lot of trial and error involved, but it has a lighthearted atmosphere and is ultimately a lot of fun so far.

[airtekh]

After picking up Hydrophobia for dirt cheap I gave it a shot.
Has anyone else played this through and if so, does the game get any better then the opening 20 minutes? Not finding this too compelling.

I bought it a good while ago when it was super cheap, but I only managed to get about halfway through. The choppy performance and repetitive gunplay caused me to abandon it.

The water physics are amazing, and they should have concentrated on stretching that idea as far as they could, rather than throwing in trite third person combat. The best bits I played were puzzles which involved using the water physics to progress further, but they were too few in number.

[Scumbag]

I bought it a good while ago when it was super cheap, but I only managed to get about halfway through. The choppy performance and repetitive gunplay caused me to abandon it.

The water physics are amazing, and they should have concentrated on stretching that idea as far as they could, rather than throwing in trite third person combat. The best bits I played were puzzles which involved using the water physics to progress further, but they were too few in number.

Had a gut feeling it would have been like that. Shame, as the water tech is really, really nice. Just imagining if they put it to use in something like Cryostasis (well, if that had any patches or if anyone ever played it that is).
At 40 mins in I'm going to drop it. The whole thing just feels like some stale timecapsule from 2001 containing a really bad PS2 game. Complete with awful voice acting and scripting, goofy "horror", a cut scene every 20 meters and the feeling some designer went "Hey! Lets try to make a cross between MGS and Tomb Raider." and failed horrificly.

[Sproutmask]

I'm not letting myself have Skyrim until I finish Morrowind, Oblivion and New Vegas. I spent most of last night tooling Morrowind (which I fell out of playing when I started WoW a few years ago, for shame) up with some mods to improve the models and textures. The Morrowind Graphical Extender (http://sourceforge.net/projects/morrgraphext/) is a good start and to access widescreen resolutions, the FPS optimiser (http://planetelderscrolls.gamespy.com/View.php?view=utilities.detail&id=51) seems like the best tool. It also lets you muck about with view distance and a few other things on the fly. Anyway, with a bit of a spit and polish the old game looks as lovely as I remember it seeming when I bought it.

Combined with some texture and model packs (there's a choice of loads on Planet Elder Scrolls) and a ground clutter mod and it's looking spiffy. I managed to preserve my old save games as well and forgot how much I liked my character, a Redguard agent who's a demon with a short blade and something of a hit with the laydeez or so I like to think.

Also nabbed X3 in the Steam sale and I can't decide which one to pile into first.

[disembowelment9]

Amnesia: The Dark Descent & Penumbra: Black Plague occasionally.

[DzX]

Amnesia: The Dark Descent & Penumbra: Black Plague occasionally.

You're a braver soul than I...58 minutes and 8 minutes played respectively! Amnesia is just to scary for me, I couldn't figure out how to get out the first room in Penumbra :P

[MD!]

Just finished the final campaign in Bronze. Now to take on the AI in some skirmishes...
Also playing QL a fair bit, still hoping I might magically become decent at duel one day.
And I'm tossing up which classic Black Isle RPG to try. Another crack at Torment?

[sabrage]

I'm trying to squeeze out Max Payne before my PS3 gets here next week. The game started pretty mundane, but I'm absolutely loving it now. Every battle is a symphony of bullets and slow-motion dives, coupled with unintentionally hilarious animations and death throes. Not to mention the superb storytelling. The hard-boiled noir lines are a bit cheesy, but they're still better written than 99% of the other games out there to this day. The dream sequences are pitch-perfect.

I've been using Steam to organize all my games, and it was really annoying that gulping down a handful of pills (tab) and diving (shift) at the same time brought up the Steam overlay, resulting in my death. I fixed the hotkey for it now, but I died a fair few times to that because I was too lazy to exit the game.

[TillEulenspiegel]

SWTOR beta. It's what I expected in terms of it being a WoW clone with voice acting, but it's not quite as awful as I expected. I'm enjoying it much more than Rift.

If you're in the market for a WoW-style MMO and you like Star Wars, it's the thing to play.

[Pertusaria]

Cave Story +, having been gifted it by a friendly RPSer. I'm not letting myself get diverted by anything else, and since I've no money I'm able to ignore the sales without much regret.

It is a lovely game, but given its difficulty I'm glad I have the motivation of wanting to show proper gratitude by playing the game I was given. Lately I've had far too much of a tendency to hop between games every time one of them gets to a tricky bit.

If I were to criticise I'd focus on the options - I don't think you can turn the music off or change the keyboard set-up. The music is good and I have no problem so far with the keys, so this is minor. It does mean that I'm not playing at the moment, since I'm using my laptop to listen to radio playback.

[Lukasz]

still playing TR1 but it is a bit boring. I fought my first dinosaurs met a huge one too but after I shot him for a minute he run away. maybe he was offended?

Also playing Max Payne. Still as awesome as the day i played it first time in 2002. Yet it is much harder than I remember. Maybe I am not savescumming anymore but some fights are tough and i think i only skipped two painkillers (for having them maxed) while normally i have 3-5 tops in my inventory. and i die quickly.

[Serenegoose]

still playing TR1 but it is a bit boring. I fought my first dinosaurs met a huge one too but after I shot him for a minute he run away. maybe he was offended?

Also playing Max Payne. Still as awesome as the day i played it first time in 2002. Yet it is much harder than I remember. Maybe I am not savescumming anymore but some fights are tough and i think i only skipped two painkillers (for having them maxed) while normally i have 3-5 tops in my inventory. and i die quickly.

The biggest change in MP1 is that bullet time slows max as much as the bad guys - in 2 you slow down only fractionally compared. This means things like bulletdives which worked fine in MP2 are actually a bit of a liability in MP1 and you should stick with basic bullet time as much as possible - especially since in MP2 bullet time recharges as you go and in MP1 it only recharges on a kill, and so requires far more careful rationing.

[Heliocentric]

Strangers Wrath first level, the camera is constantly fighting me, the controls are al over the shop and the graphics flop between beautiful and terrible... I'll hold my opinion on the voice acting because I hated Abe at first too.

It seems quite smart, after some customised controls it'll feel better.

But the 2 weapons + melee and all reminds me of Bioshock 2, you feel powerful and capable. We'll see i guess.

I've also been playing Conviction and trying to decide whether I want to buy a 2nd copy for LAN coop now while its cheap even though my 2nd pc cant handle the game ATM

[agentorange]

Still getting through Morrowind. Finished all the content in Tribunal yesterday; while I liked the general atmosphere and style of Mournhold, I thought the main story was pretty dull, or at least didn't live up to what it could have been. It's this story of royal intrigue and divine forces, yet you basically end up just running to one area, grabbing some items/killing some dudes, then running back to the quest giver, over and over, and the actions never match the grandeur of the surrounding lore. Not to mention the fact that most of the quests drive you into the fucking sewers of Mournhold, rather than taking place in the actual city of magic and light.

Edit: Forgot to add how bloody hard Tribunal is. I was encountering Goblins that were more powerful than the Draemora Lords I was encountering in the base game. Maybe it has something to do with leveled content, I don't know. I ended up resorting to some heavy abuse of the AI, since as a Thief/Assassin I take very few hits.

Started on Blood Moon today, and so far I'm really liking it. It's like a preview of the Skyrim to come, and even without the modern graphics the Nord culture and snowy landscapes make for good adventuring. The quests are an improvement over Tribunal as well (handing out booze to imperial soldiers), or at least the first few are, so hopefully that keeps up.

[sabrage]

Orcs Must Die is a great slaughter simulator. I like the Dungeon Keeper feel of it all.

[Huxleykrcc]

Playing Skyrim like crazy, as much as a college kid can, and loving the hell out of it.

Also dicking around in Thief: Deadly Shadows. Little baffled as to why stealth games were better in 2004.

[vinraith]

Sanctum, Bronze, and SupCom 2, despite loftier goals. I'm having a hard time finding the time for meatier strategic fare right at the moment.

[psyk]

Skyrim, ben there dan that (started and finished today), trine, aquaria

[Heliocentric]

Orcs Must Die is a great slaughter simulator. I like the Dungeon Keeper feel of it all.

Just finished it, the inconsistent behaviour of the bomb kobolds down marks a generally well crafted tower defence brawler. I don't know if I'll go back to finish the rest but it was good while it lasted.

[airtekh]

Having had very few commitments this past weekend, I spent pretty much the entirety of it playing Batman: Arkham City.

I am absolutely loving it; the combat, the stealth, the exploration and the setting just connect seamlessly to create a fantastic experience. I really liked Arkham Asylum, and the devs seem to have just taken that formula and enhanced it tenfold.

Of all the things I like about it, the one thing which I think elevates this over Arkham Asylum is the city itself. It's packed full of explorable streets, rooftops and alleyways all littered with riddler secrets and side missions.

Also, having a large contiguous chunk of land really adds to the exploration experience. Rather than being broken up by loading screens, as was the case in Arkham Asylum, you can soar around Arkham City without your feet ever touching the ground. The verticality of the city is breathtaking, you can swoop down from rooftops to subway in a matter of seconds.

I love how most of the Riddler trophies are actual puzzles now. Some of them are quite tricky to solve, and it actually feels like you're outwitting him rather than just hoovering up collectibles.

I do have one complaint though, and it's that Rocksteady seem to have taken the 'kitchen sink' approach to the game by adding in too much stuff. You're constantly getting upgrades, and the sheer amount of new gadgets and moves you build up is staggering. During combat, you have so many options that it feels a bit overwhelming at times. I often just forgot about all my special moves and gadgets and just stuck with the standard punch and counter attacks.

It's a minor quibble though, and I'd have no hestation in recommending this to anyone who enjoyed Arkham Asylum, it's brilliant. As much as I liked Portal 2, I think I've found a new candidate for my personal GOTY.

[DaftPunk]

I continued on Chaos Theory,i only done first two missions for now. Gonna play third one today.

[The Pink Ninja]

Does anyone know how I can download my Steam games on one computer then transfer them to another computer?

I ask because I'm at uni with infinite net and will soon be returning home to limited net

[sabrage]

If you copy the Steam/Steamapps/Common/ folder from one computer to the other, you should be able to get them to run by reverifying each and every game cache. Bear in mind this is a very, very tedious process if you want to transfer a lot of games.

[Giaddon]

Batman: AC - "Beat" it yesterday but I will keep playing it for a looooong time to to come. Trophies, riddles, challenges, challenge campaigns, side missions, new game+... Seriously, all of my game of the year contenders are actually something like game of the last three years. AC is an amazing game.

L.A. Noire - Wasn't expecting to play this so soon, but the 50% off Steam deal gave me an opportunity to pick it up. I've played the first few cases of the first detective desk (Traffic) and am really enjoying it. I wasn't sure what to expect, going in, with all the mixed reviews and whatnot. But it's a well-produced, intelligent and engaging game. So far. What I didn't know when I started the game was how twisty the cases would get. Again, I'm in Traffic, of all things, and each case I've played has been non-obvious and clever. I'm really looking forward to the homicide desk. As morbid as that is. Another thing it helps to know while playing: the "doubt" option in interviews, which often causes the protagonist to get loud and threatening, was originally called "force." And then they changed the name of the option without changing any of the dialogue. Which is totally crazy. So I just know that the option is called force (I actually think of it as "push" which has a nice maybe-threatening, maybe-inquisitive sound to it), and when the character starts shouting, it makes sense.

And, of course, always already: Skyrim.

[eRa]

Does anyone know how I can download my Steam games on one computer then transfer them to another computer?

I ask because I'm at uni with infinite net and will soon be returning home to limited net

Right click on a game in your library and select Backup Game Files. Copy the resulting folder to an external drive of your choice and run the .exe on another PC, that's it.

And I'm playing Dawn of War II and Bastion (which looks amazing).

[Hensler]

Playing Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots on my PlayStation toy. I know the older Metal Gear games got PC releases, but I don't think this one did. It's certainly one of the strangest games I've ever played, and I've played all of the series going back to the NES days. I think people complaining that Call of Duty isn't a game because it's so linear need to play some MGS4 and sit through a 20-30 minute cutscene, walk 10 steps into the next part of the map and sit through another 20 minutes of cutscenes. Still, fun game, interesting story, and it still looks great even though I've waited 3 years to play it.

[Lambchops]

Binding of Isaac a lot as it has become my "put on some music and have a quick blast for an hour" game.

Also while I'm waiting for my copy of Arkham City to arrive in the post I've been trying to play some of the indie games that have been sitting unplayed for a while. So I've just polished off To the Moon (which I did in one sitting at way too late an hour as I was rather engrossed) and have Limbo and Gemini Rue awaiting me until Batman interrupts.

[Smashbox]

Playing Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots on my PlayStation toy. I know the older Metal Gear games got PC releases, but I don't think this one did. It's certainly one of the strangest games I've ever played, and I've played all of the series going back to the NES days. I think people complaining that Call of Duty isn't a game because it's so linear need to play some MGS4 and sit through a 20-30 minute cutscene, walk 10 steps into the next part of the map and sit through another 20 minutes of cutscenes. Still, fun game, interesting story, and it still looks great even though I've waited 3 years to play it.

It does so many things that I think are Bad in Games™, but I can't help but love it. It's so completely bizarre.

[Herzog]

Red Orchestra 2: Been playing now over 25 hours and getting a feeling for the game. Advancing to upper third of the scoreboard almost constantly. New patches improved performance. But still things left to do for the developers.

The Binding of Isaac: Finished the game 10 times by now. Now trying to finish the game with ???, though I think it will take me a bit longer to complete it. I am not the guy for no-damage runs ;)

Amnesia - The Dark Descent: Got this during the Halloween sale. Only 90 minutes into the game, but damn, great atmosphere. Only can play this in short bursts, but a nice trip!

Darwinia: Only played the first mission and not sure what to think of it now. In the beginning the darwinians reminded me a bit of these little buggers from Leviathan. Anyways will have a look at it again on the weekend.

[Lambchops]

Speaking of Binding of Isaac I'm not usually one to go achievement hunting but now I'm so close to 100 % that it feels rather churlish not to try.

The only ones I haven't got are completing Sheol with Judas (almost did it with an epic run a minute ago, I'd got crap items near the start so basically decided to give up by taking a deal with the devil for the cat with 9 lives thing without any complementary items then proceeded to power through by the skin of my teeth getting to the final boss with my little unicorn and two hearts only to be undone by a bloody leech after getting to its final form), completing Sheol with ??? (almost did this on my first run but it was the first time I'd been there and hadn't figured out the bosses yet, this was also when I managed tto get through the womb without being hit for the one and only time) and completing the caves and depths without damage (former should be doable with the right items, the latter is probably trickiest).

Funny the games that keep you playing really. Why does Isaac keep me playing whlle Dredmor started boring me after a couple of weeks? I just don't know.

[Lambchops]

The Binding of Isaac: Finished the game 10 times by now. Now trying to finish the game with ???, though I think it will take me a bit longer to complete it. I am not the guy for no-damage runs ;)


Haha, nice simultaneous posting about this game.

Stick with it, you'll luck out! I happened to do so on my first playthrough and get lots of soul hearts (can't remember if it was the book of Revelations or just a lucky number of blue stones, think it was the latter). Plus the reward for completion with ??? is worth it.

As for Darwinia, definitely keep playing. One of its strengths is always throwing something new at each level, forcing you to rethink strategies (man, I hated the levels with ants!). It really comes into its own after the first couple of levels and in my opinion only keeps getting better as it goes on. Plus the Darwinians are so cute!

[The Mechanical Aggressor]

Orcs Must Die: The more I play this, the more I like it. When you get to the latter waves in a level and you've got all your traps set up and orcs are dying by the hundreds by being shot, impaled, set on fire, tenderized and the unlucky ones who make it through are thrown back into the same gauntlet of traps, the carnage is glorious.

[TailSwallower]

Well, after grabbing the New Vegas DLCs during the sale I've gotten stuck into NV for the first time since selling it on Xbox and grabbing it on PC. Seems to be some stuttering issues, and that's after I've told it to use all 4gig of ram and have tweaked some other settings, added better textures, etc. So far though it's quite stable and the stuttering doesn't happen that often.

I started off trying to make a run from Goodsprings to the launch point for Dead Money... Yeah, didn't get too far before those huge wasp things took me out. Was hoping they would battle with the Radscorpions that were tailing me like ducklings, but I didn't survive long enough to see if that plan would pan out. Instead I've decided to hang around and do some odd-jobs until I can make the trek. I've already got some Leather Armour, now I just need a half-decent Energy Weapon and some ammo.
Trying not to side with anyone in particular just yet, 'cause I'd like to be able to travel north without having to fight every single Powder Ganger/Legionnaire/NCR Ranger I cross paths with.
Still not sure how likely it is that I'll survive the passage, but it'll be a fun adventure at the very least, and I'll be more inclined to tackle the base-game quests once I've done some DLC and forgotten what those quests are like (my playthrough on 360 was pretty thorough, so there's a few quests I'll simply skip this time around).

ETA: I grabbed Thief III during the Autumn sale because it's a game that I missed first time around and have always been interested in (well, the same is true of all the Thieves). Some technical issues getting it to work and work nicely (what's the deal with the screen constantly brightening and darkening on menus and whatnot?), but hopefully with some more tweaking I'll get it sorted out.

[Jockie]

Just finished Arkham City, I enjoyed it, but the story and writing are nowhere near as good as the first. I won't post any spoilers, but the plot gets a bit tangled in the various machinations of the super-villains and it isn't very cohesive - it doesn't end up as more than the sum of its parts and some of the parts in and of themselves don't actually make sense.

Still, I enjoyed myself and wish I had the drive to complete all the Riddler stuff, but I really don't. I must have done a couple of hundred of them now and there's still about double that left. The long-term fun will come from the challenge maps and rocksteady have managed to make the combat even better this time around, with some awesome new combos, more varied enemies and the chance to switch between two distinct characters who are both fun in their own right. Shame Robin and Darkwing are overpriced dlc.

Grabbed Driver :SF and Dead Space 2 via the Steam sale, so they're my next two to play. Obviously Driver is Ubi, so boo. But they're also Ubi Reflections, which is based in Newcastle, so I can tell myself I'm supporting local business.

[agentorange]

I started off trying to make a run from Goodsprings to the launch point for Dead Money... Yeah, didn't get too far before those huge wasp things took me out. Was hoping they would battle with the Radscorpions that were tailing me like ducklings, but I didn't survive long enough to see if that plan would pan out. Instead I've decided to hang around and do some odd-jobs until I can make the trek. I've already got some Leather Armour, now I just need a half-decent Energy Weapon and some ammo.


Just some advice, I would not rush into Dead Money. Out of all the DLC that is the one which truly requires you have a decent level, something around 20-25. The necessity goes beyond combat.

[sabrage]

My Playstation 3 came in the mail today. I was expecting it to be a nice little diversion from my regular PC play... It came bundled with LittleBigPlanet and Ratchet & Clank, neither of which really appeal to me, so I went ahead and bought Wipeout HD to pass the time until Demon's Souls and Heavy Rain arrive.

Shit. This game is amazing. I loved Pure back on my ol' PSP, but I had kind of forgotten about the Wipeout series in the intervening years. I'm not even a big racing game fan, but Studio Liverpool knows exactly how to sink their hooks in me. Fantastic visuals, rock-solid gameplay, a wealth of content, a deep photo mode, a kick-ass soundtrack... Not to mention that Zone is easily one of the best racing modes ever. If you have a PS3 and you haven't played this game, you are doing yourself a grave disservice. I can say without hesitation that this has already become my favorite racing game, and I wish that there was something like this on PC (I know about Nitronic Rush but it feels a little too arcade-y and shallow for my liking.)

On the PC side of things, I'm still playing Orcs Must Die. One of my Steam friends has been racking absolutely ludicrous scores in this game, leaving me to wonder what the hell I'm doing wrong. The later levels are getting ruthless, and I'm starting to feel like there's not enough strategic options to keep me playing. I hate that the game doesn't really allow you to focus entirely on traps the way it does for combat; I still feel the need to headshot every third orc until I really get my kill zone up and ready. Overall, it's still a fun game, but I think my years of Warcraft 3 have made me a bit too much of a tower defense purist to play the game to its full potential. I feel like there's an illusion of choice between action and strategy, but at the end of the day it's hard to have a fully autonomous trap layout.

I do hope that Robot comes back to PC after this iOS shit they're off on now, though. Orcs Must Die seems like the perfect game for a co-op mode, and I'd love to see what they could do with a full-fledged sequel. My post might've come off as negative, but it's still shaping up to me one of my favorite games of the year.

[DaftPunk]

Still playing Chaos Theory,but i got strange urge to play Manhunt 1 as i recently watched one good slasher movie.

[The JG Man]

I might just accidentally have played Sonic Generations for over 80 minutes. It came in the post and obviously I had to install it...I mean, it only made sense to make sure it worked properly, right...right guys?

I told myself I wouldn't play it until after finishing Skyward Sword, which I'm going to aim to do tonight. But damn if Sonic Generations isn't just a simply fun game. Also, Metal Sonic hard mode to Sonic Boom? So good.

[Lukasz]

well. I beat max payne and I still have TR1 to complete. it is boring tough. buying 9 TR games doesn't seem as a great idea as it seemed back in the shop. even for 20 bucks.
So thinking whether i should play gemini rue (tried 50 min. of it and it does seem really cool) or maybe i should try to install septerra core or play avadon the black fortress.

[Heliocentric]

Still playing Chaos Theory

If you completism includes the coop I'm Heliocentric on steam too and willing to play it serious if you like.

[Ravelle]

Mainly Skyrim for about an hour of 2 a day since I don't have time for anything else which sucks because I barely touched Arkham City and Neglected Dark Souls.

But I manage to slip some Mario Land 3D in when I can.

[Edawan]

I bought the Binding of Isaac in the last Steam sale. I played it for 4 or 5 hours (already!) and I can't get past the third level. :'(

[The Pink Ninja]

So guys, Christmas AAA list show down:

Skyrim

Saints Row 3

Battlefield 3

Or Arkham City?

Which is bestest?

[Nalano]

So guys, Christmas AAA list show down:

Skyrim

Saints Row 3

Battlefield 3

Or Arkham City?

Which is bestest?

I vote SR3, having played all but Arkham City for a quite frankly ludicrous number of hours.

[Wizardry]

So guys, Christmas AAA list show down:

Skyrim

Saints Row 3

Battlefield 3

Or Arkham City?

Which is bestest?
That list makes Skyrim look good!

[thegooseking]

So guys, Christmas AAA list show down:

Skyrim

Saints Row 3

Battlefield 3

Or Arkham City?

Which is bestest?

If you have the remotest interest in Batman, then Arkham City. It has, without exaggeration, the best Joker story I've seen in any medium (though I admit I haven't read the comics).

Otherwise Saints Row 3.

It's kind of close to call. I thought Skyrim was good, but since those two came along, I've hardly touched it.

[Giaddon]

I'd rank 'em

Skyrim
Arkham City
Battlefield 3
Saints Row 3

I'd let your genre preference guide you here. I will say that I think Saints Row 3 is noticeably worse than the other three. It's not bad, but the others are GOTY contenders, while SR3 is a very fun, wacky action game.

[Nalano]

It's not bad, but the others are GOTY contenders, while SR3 is a very fun, wacky action game.

Fun and wacky is mutually exclusive to GotY?

[Serenegoose]

Fun and wacky is mutually exclusive to GotY?

Pretty much. GOTY is where you get your 'oscar bait' games nowadays - except where oscar bait in the movie industry is sentimental crap designed to tug your heartstrings, goty bait is GREY, ACTIONY, AND WITH A STICK LODGED UP ITS ARSE.

[sabrage]

In Batman's defense, Batman was grey, actiony and stick-up-arsey 60 years before it was cool.

[Giaddon]

Fun and wacky is mutually exclusive to GotY?

I wouldn't say so. Those are simply adjectives I would apply to SR3, in an attempt to offer a brief description of the game. Arkham city would also fall into the "fun and wacky" category. Upthread I call Arkham City the most fun game of the last several years.

[Althea]

The Settlers 7
New nVidia beta drivers are out and..... Holy shit the game properly works now holy hell wow I can finally finish it yay yay yay yay yay yay!

Just Cause 2
The rate of progress is so damned slow and in a way I feel like the pacing is poor - I've got more missions to do than I've had before, and I don't know where to start. It also doesn't help that so many aspects of the game feel a bit clumsy. Distances between things are huge and the only real method of long-distance movement is to use the cut-scene riddled Black Market dealer, which gets a bit annoying after a while.

It's good, yeah, but I honestly wonder if I'll complete it within any reasonable time frame. I feel as if it's a game that I'll just pick up and play for an hour or so here and there rather than sitting down to play it. For all its freedom, it's very repetitive.

That said, the quality of it makes me wonder just what the hell R* were doing when they released the IV port.

[Nalano]

In Batman's defense, Batman was grey, actiony and stick-up-arsey 60 years before it was cool.

And also the reason I won't play Arkam Asylum.

[The JG Man]

It's good, yeah, but I honestly wonder if I'll complete it within any reasonable time frame. I feel as if it's a game that I'll just pick up and play for an hour or so here and there rather than sitting down to play it. For all its freedom, it's very repetitive.

That's exactly what I did for that very reason. Nonetheless, I encourage you to do the main 'story' missions. They get increasingly ridiculous/awesome, culminating in one of the most absurd, yet brilliant endings to a game I've ever played.

So, as per my post earlier today in this thread, I've finished Skyward Sword. Here's a mini-review: I think it's a good game, but it is not consistent. There are some great parts and there are some crap parts. There's a good amount of padding; I finished the game in about 32/33 hours, doing only a few side-quests (I gave up on the idea quickly). You could remove, I'm willing to bet, a good 5 hours at least and you'd make a far better game just in pacing alone. The motion controls are good, but the lack of being 100% accurate means they don't fly well enough in my book. They're not as reliable as a button and that for me is not good. Altogether, I also felt the game lacked any...and I'll have to borrow this one from TV Tropes, Crowning Moments of Awesome. There were a few really cool things (two dungeons in particular very extremely fun) but there was no moment that I'm going to remember for a long time. I feel the same of Twilight Princess in that I can only remember a few things, but I don't remember ever being as frustrated while playing that than this.

Incidentally the music, which is lovingly orchestrated, I found rather tame. It's nice to listen to, but bar a couple of small pieces, I can't remember anything. Not through lack of want, I just found it forgettable. There were some nice twists on old favourites, but really Nintendo are still in the shadow of Ocarina of Time. I don't know if I'll ever forget the Gerudo Valley theme, or the Bolero of Fire, or a variety of other things.

Essentially, Skyward Sword disappointed. It was a good game that tried to do things differently, but a lot of those ideas fell flat or never really amounted to anything that wasn't otherwise done to equal quality previously. I'm probably done with the game now. The thought of playing it again and knowing some of the parts that come up are highly uninviting, just like the beginning of Twilight Princess putting me off wanting to play that entirely again.

Contrast with Sonic Generations which I've started speed-running levels on despite not even being half-way through the game. It's just solidly fun. I've found a knack for jumping off levels, but hey, you're up quickly enough and it's just good. The in-game music selector is also a genius idea; replacing Green Hill Zone with the original 16 bit version is quite satisfying, not to mention Chemical Plant with Toxic Cave from Sonic Spinball. It's great!

I've just completed Speed Highway which I didn't 'get', but then I have no nostalgia for it. I imagine the same will be the case for 3 of the remaining 5 levels which I have not yet played. Regardless, I'm surprised I've not been properly disappointed yet with Sonic Generations. It's a good thing.

[The Pink Ninja]

I've not played Skyward Sword, just seen trailers, but it just looks really dated. And not just graphically but it terms of gameplay and design and art and levels and the fighting the voicework and sound...

Just looks like Ocarina of Time with a facelift.

That said some could easily say the same of GTA3 and Saints Row 2 or Morrowind and Skyrim...

[TailSwallower]

Just some advice, I would not rush into Dead Money. Out of all the DLC that is the one which truly requires you have a decent level, something around 20-25. The necessity goes beyond combat.

Ok, thanks for that. My main reasons for doing it where to skip vanilla content for a bit, and because I knew they stripped you of your gear at the start of Dead Money, so I figured I might as well do it before I get attached to anything. But if it's really difficult I guess I'll just kick around for a bit, try and find some areas/quests I didn't spend a great deal of time in on my last play.

[The JG Man]

Just looks like Ocarina of Time with a facelift.

That was Twilight Princess. It was also better than SS, in my humblest of opinions.

[Althea]

That's exactly what I did for that very reason. Nonetheless, I encourage you to do the main 'story' missions. They get increasingly ridiculous/awesome, culminating in one of the most absurd, yet brilliant endings to a game I've ever played.
I've done some of them, but I'll take your advice on board and continue with them.


Ok, thanks for that. My main reasons for doing it where to skip vanilla content for a bit, and because I knew they stripped you of your gear at the start of Dead Money, so I figured I might as well do it before I get attached to anything. But if it's really difficult I guess I'll just kick around for a bit, try and find some areas/quests I didn't spend a great deal of time in on my last play.
Well, you should have a number of safehouses by the time you get ready for Dead Money, so you can safely drop almost everything before you go there. And I'd recommend it, too, because there's some good stuff that you'll want to bring back. I'd suggest finding the marker, then questing until 15-20, go to a safehouse, drop everything (I can't remember if you lose your stimpaks and stuff too, but I could be wrong) and then go back.

But you don't lose anything permanently.

[The Pink Ninja]

Ok, thanks for that. My main reasons for doing it where to skip vanilla content for a bit, and because I knew they stripped you of your gear at the start of Dead Money, so I figured I might as well do it before I get attached to anything. But if it's really difficult I guess I'll just kick around for a bit, try and find some areas/quests I didn't spend a great deal of time in on my last play.

I quickly wandered into Pointe Grosse at a low level in FO3 and got hurt in my bum by inbred banjo playing hicks >:

[sabrage]

I've started up Demon's Souls. I'm of two about it: On the one hand, almost every time I die it feels perfectly justified, and I can't fault the game for killing me. It's almost roguelike in its compulsion and its propensity for YASD(s). On the other hand, and this is what's more surprising to me, I was unprepared for how hard it is. I know that sounds ridiculous, being that Demon's Souls is well known for being hard, but I guess I let my ego (padded by past conquests of "hard" games) get the better of me. This game is ruthless, and it's punishing my every misstep. It's completely engrossing though, and I expect to sink a lot of time into it.

Also starting my second play of Ico, my thoughts on which I'll sum up elsewhere, and playing short bouts of League of Legends (always) and Wipeout HD here and there. I'm putting Max Payne (which I love) and Orcs Must Die (which I love-hate) on the backburner for now.

[Ravelle]

I've started up Demon's Souls. I'm of two about it: On the one hand, almost every time I die it feels perfectly justified, and I can't fault the game for killing me. It's almost roguelike in its compulsion and its propensity for YASD(s). On the other hand, and this is what's more surprising to me, I was unprepared for how hard it is. I know that sounds ridiculous, being that Demon's Souls is well known for being hard, but I guess I let my ego (padded by past conquests of "hard" games) get the better of me. This game is ruthless, and it's punishing my every misstep. It's completely engrossing though, and I expect to sink a lot of time into it.


It's all a matter of learning the enemies attack pattern, once you get the hang of it the game stops being brutal and becomes a challenging puzzle.

I remember in Dark Souls that I died by the hands of the first three hollow soldiers and got pretty upset, then died a lot with mini bosses and me not paying attention, but after you've studied them ( by dying alot ) you'll be able to cruise through the levels with ease. :)

My new character arrived at the spot after 3 hours while my first character took a couple of days. ;P

[DaftPunk]

Still playing


http://miladesn.webs.com/SCCT/splintercell3x2.jpg

[Creeping Death]

Taking a bit of a detour from all the mindless violence I've had in Saints Row 3 and Renegade Ops late to start To The Moon after hearing a lot of praise about it from the RPS guys. I've actually got very little knowledge of the game beyond the basic premise and that it's supposed to be very bittersweet so.. we'll see how it goes!

[db1331]

I just wrapped up SotC (loved it) and am starting Ico now. I'm also in the second dungeon of SS. I'm still plodding through my second The Witcher 2 playthrough, as I desperately want to check out the new dark mode difficulty, but want to wrap up my current game first. I'm on Roche's path this time, and I'm honestly not enjoying it nearly as much as I did Iorveth's. Then there's Skyrim and BF3 of course. Also, my Zelda 3DS bundle is arriving today, so I will be getting my literal Ocarina with a facelift on soon.

I'm also still trying to get through Dark Souls, when I can work myself up to do it. That game is just so oppressive, playing it leaves me physically exhausted. I was trying to describe the game to a friend over drinks the other day, and this is the best I could come up with: You know how in some games, you can tell you are likely to be killed soon because you are facing a giant door, or can hear something big in the next room, and the designers have left you pots or crates full of health and ammo? Dark Souls feels like that all the time, only the pots and crates are always empty.

[Tikey]

I've been playing Serious Sam: The Random encounter. Is a fun little game to spend a few minutes per day.
I've been also playing Alpha Protocol, and I'm loving every minute of it. Few games can have missions that consist only on chatting to a character and actually be engaging and fun.

[Heliocentric]

Still playing


Throw a bottle at his head!!!! Did you see what I said about coop?

[Heliocentric]

The Settlers 7
New nVidia beta drivers are out and..... Holy shit the game properly works now holy hell wow I can finally finish it yay yay yay yay yay yay!

Does the driver play nice with the demo, also which driver is it?

Played most of limbo in one sitting, wow, its fun and dark and kinda unfair but I'm okay with that. Just grabbed onto the leg of a flying bug, that was a mean thing to do.

I've seen obvious "you lose" pitfalls in a few of the puzzles and avoided them, made me feel clever, thank you to the RPS person who gifted me it (I wouldn't like to announce who, seems impolite.)

[Giaddon]

The Settlers 7 demo has been "deactivated" by Ubisoft. That's not a joke.

It is a fantastic game, however.

I am also available for Chaos Theory / Conviction multiplayer.

[Kodeen]

Got in an hour of Serious Sam FE HD last night. It's my first interaction with the series, and I absolutely loved it. The first door I opened had some big-brain guys with actual face textures on them (I'm guessing the developers), but since I was expecting to have to shoot everything that moves, a couple of them got blamo'd. Poor souls.

[Althea]

Does the driver play nice with the demo, also which driver is it?
Don't know about the demo, but it's the latest beta - v290.36

It's cut load times dramatically (I'm talking minutes), the game feels smoother and there's no more of the texture/flickering issue.

[DaftPunk]

Yeah i played few coop missions,and with two guys game lagged otherwise it worked like a charm. Now the real problem are players,because they play this like rainbow six.vegas :s

[LaunchJC]

Mostly DOD:S, I log into Steam wanting to try other things, but damn 24/7 Avalanche calls my name.

also PES5 and BF3 on PS3.

[Hensler]

Don't know about the demo, but it's the latest beta - v290.36

It's cut load times dramatically (I'm talking minutes), the game feels smoother and there's no more of the texture/flickering issue.

The same drivers added minutes to my Battlefield 3 and Skyrim load times. But since most PC gamers right now are playing The Settlers, I guess nVidia need's to support where the money's at :).

[Heliocentric]

Now the real problem are players,because they play this like rainbow six.vegas :s
Generally, given the choice I play like a ninja easter egg hunt, it's like a normal easter egg hunt but with corpses.

[sabrage]

It's all a matter of learning the enemies attack pattern, once you get the hang of it the game stops being brutal and becomes a challenging puzzle.

I remember in Dark Souls that I died by the hands of the first three hollow soldiers and got pretty upset, then died a lot with mini bosses and me not paying attention, but after you've studied them ( by dying alot ) you'll be able to cruise through the levels with ease. :)

My new character arrived at the spot after 3 hours while my first character took a couple of days. ;P

I actually went and made a Royal in Demon's Souls right after that post, and Soul Arrow makes the game waaay too easy (I was playing a Thief before.) I got twice as far in two deaths as I did in the previous 20 on my Thief.

I'd also like to note how totally bizarre the character creator is in Demon's Souls. It's incredibly easy to make a hideous mutant, but the real challenge is making a character that doesn't look like ass. There's also both a male-female toggle option AND a male-female slider, which makes your face fatter the more you get on the "female" side. So weird.

[Althea]

The same drivers added minutes to my Battlefield 3 and Skyrim load times. But since most PC gamers right now are playing The Settlers, I guess nVidia need's to support where the money's at :).
They have? Weird. What are your control panel settings at? Turns out I cut my Settlers load times by setting the anti-aliasing in the 3D settings to application controlled, so I don't know if that'd help. I tried that other campaign (Chronicles of the Open Flame or something?), and I was getting stuttery performance in it, but maybe the map size is causing issues.

[TailSwallower]

I KILLED MOM (and in the game)! Binding of Isaac, obviously.

I hadn't even been able to get up to the final stage yet, let alone face Mom, but I did it last night with Cain, and unlocked Magdalena in the process. I don't much like playing with her, as the extra health makes you reckless.

[Kodeen]

I KILLED MOM (and in the game)! Binding of Isaac, obviously.



That's odd that you posted that, because I finally just did too for the first time. And my Isaac wasn't even that impressive that time around either.

Ah well, time to put this one down for a while. The only thing to look forward to is even harder levels, but I suck at this game enough as it is.

[sabrage]

That's odd that you posted that, because I finally just did too for the first time. And my Isaac wasn't even that impressive that time around either.

Ah well, time to put this one down for a while. The only thing to look forward to is even harder levels, but I suck at this game enough as it is.
The game definitely got a LOT easier after the first time I beat it. Something just clicked and I beat it 4-5 times in a row after the first time. Not to mention the fact that, as you play more, you unlock more powerful items that can in turn be strewn about the dungeons. It's one of the most replayable games I've sunk my teeth into recently.

Man, Demon's Souls goes from malicious to downright cruel after the first boss. I thought I was doing pretty good on that fucking dragon part until I got to the boss after that... Then I just got owned. The other worlds all feature new enemies with 5-10 times as much health as the old ones did. I've completely hit a brick wall. I guess I could keep grinding out souls until I'm strong enough to keep up with the enemies (I've been spending almost all my souls on stats too) but that doesn't sound very fun at all.

[PeteC]

I'll be having a break from Skyrim later to check out the Defense Grid update. A few new game modes apparently. Not sure if there's new maps too.

Quite a nice surprise as I thought they'd be too busy working on CS:GO to show DG any love.

[cosmicolor]

Man, Demon's Souls goes from malicious to downright cruel after the first boss. I thought I was doing pretty good on that fucking dragon part until I got to the boss after that... Then I just got owned. The other worlds all feature new enemies with 5-10 times as much health as the old ones did. I've completely hit a brick wall. I guess I could keep grinding out souls until I'm strong enough to keep up with the enemies (I've been spending almost all my souls on stats too) but that doesn't sound very fun at all.

Make sure you're equipping yourself in the best way to deal with each stage. In Demon's Souls equipment, especially your choice of weapon, can make a huge difference on your experience. For example, in 2-1 having an edged (or magic?) weapon makes a huge difference since the enemies are a lot more vulnerable to that than they are to other types. Blunt weapons such as maces work wonders on the skeletons in 4 and other heavily armoured enemies. World 4 in particular has a great magic weapon if you can survive the enemy guarding it. If you're playing a magic character though, I can't tell you much :P Like if you want an example, when I first tried 2-1 I had the starting mace from the Priest class, which didn't work all that well. Then I got the Crescent Falchion from 4-2 and killed the pickaxe enemies in 2-1 in a matter of seconds.

right now I've been playing more Witcher 2, just coming up to act 3 now. Also playing some King of Fighters XIII which is a great fighting game on the consoles.

[vinraith]

Still having a blast with Sanctum in both co-op and single player. I like tower defense games generally, and this is a good one. Lots of interesting options, lots of pathing control, tons of interesting and weighty strategic decisions and a fairly involved system to learn. The game provides you with tons of information, however, breaking down the performance of each tower on the last wave and overall, giving you intel on incoming monster types and so on, so you're always making well-informed decisions. Being able to directly intervene in a first person shooter sense is great too, and gives you something to do during the waves beyond standing around and watching. Ultimately, if a level was close, you're the deciding factor, and that's just enough action game in my strategy game to make me happy, but not so much as to swamp the strategy. I can only speak for myself but according to end game stats the break down is usually that my tower grid makes 90% of the kills and I make 10%. A 90/10 tower defense/FPS split sounds about right, though I'll note that if you want it to go the other way you could always spend more money to upgrade your personal weapons and less on the grid. Anyway, brilliant little game, highly recommended.

[Juan Carlo]

Starting Fallout 1 for the first time ever. It looks awesome, but I do admit I'm a bit put off by the interface so far. I suffered through "Gothic 1" earlier this year, though, so I've never let a bad interface get me down.

[amusingthebrood]

I rescued my last crewman in VVVVVV last night; I loved it but there is no chance I am going back to collect the rest of the shiny things. Next up, a return to Terraria for the new patch.

[TailSwallower]

Starting Fallout 1 for the first time ever. It looks awesome, but I do admit I'm a bit put off by the interface so far. I suffered through "Gothic 1" earlier this year, though, so I've never let a bad interface get me down.

Are you using the High-Res Patch and other community mods? They don't make a huge difference to the UI, but it is slightly improved - even just being able to use your scroll-wheel to scroll through your inventory can be a big help.

Black Isle did make some improvements to the UI for Fallout 2, but if you can get comfortable playing Fallout 1, then I think it's the better game overall. I used to prefer Fallout 2, but 1 is purer, more distilled.

ETA: Tried some more Indie bundle games last night.
Aquaria didn't grab me at all.

Really Big Sky is brilliant, but they really need to optimise it a bit more, or something, because the lag can be terrible when there's a lot happening on screen.

Eufloria is really interesting and sorta calming and stuff. But it's basically an RTS, and for an RTS the controls/UI are rather bad. Obviously they're trying to keep it simple, but a simple thing like being able to set rally points would make it much less fiddly and would aid in the calming-making.

[airtekh]

Still playing Batman: Arkham City. I've barely had the game a week and I've already put 50 hours into it, or so Steam tells me. Most of that time has been completing the main story, side missions and riddler trophies; but now I'm getting stuck into the combat and predator challenges.It's amazing how Rocksteady have taken their already successful mechanics and improved upon them.

In Combat, 'blade dodge' means those annoying knife guys from Arkham Asylum can be taken out in a single move. The 'weapon break' special move means you can destroy riot shields and stun batons during combat - which is incredibly useful. Being able to counter multiple foes at once is also great fun to watch. There's often so many enemies surrounding you, and you're kicking so much ass that it reminds me of that scene from The Matrix Reloaded, where Neo is fighting a bunch of Smiths.

Predator mode has been improved too. The ubiquitous gargoyles are no longer the safe havens they were in Arkham Asylum. Guards have thermal vision which can detect if you're hiding on one, as well as having the ability to destroy them with gunfire. Armoured guards cannot be taken down silently, so you have to risk the wrath of the entire room to get rid of them. For some reason, the AI in predator mode seems to be really good at surrounding you as well. On more than one occasion I've been discovered and run into a room, only to have the enemies cover both exits and cut off my escape route; the new smoke bomb gadget is perfect for helping you out of these situations though.

Even after I finish these, there's still the 'New game plus', challenge campaigns and the Catwoman stuff as well! This game is crammed with things to do, definitely got my money's worth.

I've been playing a little of the Trine 2 beta, but I think I'm going to wait until it's released to start playing it properly.

When I stop being obsessed with Arkham city, I'm going to start on Alpha Protocol. Got it really cheap in a Steam sale ages ago, and I'm not even sure if I'll like it, but it seems to have a good reputation around here so I'll give it a go.

[Heliocentric]

@Tail where did you stop playing aquaria? It's a lot like Zelda with wide open areas that nothing happens but it has hidden treasures and later on the between dungeon places are challenging too, also dungeons with puzzles and enemies, new abilities and boss battles.

It's worth trying with, the game has a great sense of empowerment like Zelda, but the inherent agility (play with a pad) lends it a touch of an old side stroller flight aim game with only a tiny sniff of bullet hell.

[sabrage]

Yeah, Aquaria didn't really do anything until that first "vision" that shows how the game opens up.

I haven't played video games in over 24 hours, which I somewhat self-consciously admit hasn't happened in a long time, at least a month.

[Heliocentric]

@Tail on alpha protocol, the balance is crap.

Assault rifles are fine if you don't mind killing everyone, pistols are the most overpowered but can do anything, from less than lethal sniping to instant room clearing.

Shotguns and smgs are rubbish and pointless. Noisy, short ranged and you end up running out of ammo.

Close combat is good, but the stealth kills are best, and they can often be performed without a single point in stealth. But the stealth skill can be considered magical invisibility.

[Lambchops]

Yeah Binding of Isaac does get easier (providing you get lucky with items) the more you play as you get more powerful items strewn around. To the point where when it claims "The game is now harder" I noticed no real difference. ??? is hard as nails though if you don't luckout with items.

----

Re: Alpha Protocol

The pistol backed up with stealth is hilariously overpowered. It's definitely the game of so called "average" quality that I've enjoyed the most recently though and well worth playing as it does some things rather well.

---

Re: Arkham City

I'm just getting into it. Amazing how I eased back into the combat naturally after the time since I played Asylum. Definitely like the new tweaks like countering multiple enemies. Like the first game I really love the flow of the combat (something that I think the Witcher 2 was striving for but didn't get quite get it right). Still getting used to moving around big wide open spaces quickly. I like that there's a lot of things to do, although I agree with reviews that say it messes a bit with the tightly delivered progression of the first game. Still it so far looks like a fun playground and I'm looking forward to spending some of this weekend swooing around and bashing together thug's skulls.

[Arona Daal]

Oblivion Complete with mods:
Francescos mods
Darker everything mods
faster arcana 250 mods

Mechwarrior Living Legends

and whenever my corresponding Game-buddies are willing:

Project Reality with the new Mumble

Portal 2 Coop Levels

[TailSwallower]

@Tail where did you stop playing aquaria?

Admittedly I didn't get very far before throwing in the towel. It just really didn't seem to be doing anything interesting, and the controls were naff. I had a 360 controller plugged in and it didn't say anything about it so I assumed I had to M+K.

I just had to float around and sing at shit? And the voice over was boring and a little bit terrible?
Maybe I'll give it another shot if it's really worthwhile, but I was willing to write it off as it was just a bundle game, and as long as there's 1 that you can really dig your teeth into then it's never a waste of money, and at least you're trying new things, even if you don't end up enjoying them.

Anyway, started playing Terraria last night. Was really enjoying it up until the ARGUMENT EXCEPTION ERROR or whatever it was called that crashed the game and lost me all my progress. It was so frustrating that I currently can't be bothered picking it back up again until I can figure out what causes the crash (the steam forums weren't much help when I searched last night).

[sabrage]

Got bored with Ico and frustrated with Demon's Souls, so appropriately enough I'm venting my annoyance on the God of War PS3 re-release. I can't believe it's been 6 years since the first time I played this game... Probably predictably, it's not quite as great as I remembered it being. I hope that God of War 4 does away with the fucking quicktime events. It's not even as cathartic as I had hoped it would be; I'm playing on Spartan (hard) difficulty and apparently all that means is that the enemies have a LOT of health.

On the plus side, the game looks fantastic and the combo system is great. You're never really shoehorned into using the QTE's and when you are you get some benefit (health or mana) out of it. I'm a little surprised how arcade/gamey it feels now, but then it never was the deepest game.

There's no way in fuck I'm gonna be able to stomach God of War 2 (and then 3!) immediately afterward though. From what I recall it was pretty much more of the same.

[Scumbag]

I thought I'd give brink a shot since its the free weekend. I know it has tutorial vids in the game, but a tutorial level would have gone down well. The whole game feels like a lot of noise and fury but has little in the way of feedback as to what is actually happening. The customization options are nice, but whats the point in making a huge custom gun or guy if you have no idea what you are doing with them?
Even if I did get into this, I dont think it can be saved. Tried to convince a friend to give it a go, he replied with something rather repulsive that boiled down to "LOLBRINKno" not because he had played it, not because he knew what was wrong with it, just public oppinion is that of LOLBRINKno and therefore wont even give it a try regardless of if its free or not.

Still being late in playing Oblivion. Loot the entire Imperial city to the point where no shop has anything bar corn or items with no value on the shelves? All is fine, nothing is wrong, 30000 gold to my name and no-one cares. Pick up a peice of corn to pop into a basket I knocked over? "STOP RIGHT THERE CRIMINAL SCUM!"
How did he know my name?

[vinraith]

I just had to float around and sing at shit?

Wow, you didn't play very far. I actually wish it was the game that you dislike, but after a little while of being (to my thinking) a marvelously clever and meditative puzzle and exploration game it abruptly turns into a bullet hell shooter. Bleh.

[Heliocentric]

a bullet hell shooter. Bleh.

You don't play much bullet hell eh? Aquaria is never bullet hell as you can always just swim back a little, even the bosses are generous. But yes, it does become a twin stick shooter with exploring elements. I hate spoiling this but everyone should play the surface. It stirred up my gulf war syndrome from playing Ecco the dolphin.

[vinraith]

You don't play much bullet hell eh?

No, and I suck at 'em. That said I remember the screen being a fair bit busier than you're describing, but it has been a long time.

[Heliocentric]

You get lots of projectiles at times, but you can can even get a jellyfish outfit that gives you regeneration of health. It's not one hit kill bullet hell, that was my point.

[vinraith]

You get lots of projectiles at times, but you can can even get a jellyfish outfit that gives you regeneration of health. It's not one hit kill bullet hell, that was my point.

And I wasn't really arguing with you (or wasn't intending to, anyway) since I'll be the first to admit I'm so unfamiliar with the genre that I don't know the distinctions.

It turns from a sedate and interesting exploration/puzzle game into a "twin stick shooter," which to me is far less appealing. That's all I was trying to say. :)

[Heliocentric]

It turns from a sedate and interesting exploration/puzzle game into a "twin stick shooter," which to me is far less appealing. That's all I was trying to say. :)

I totally agree with you, but I think it remains worthy and a few things like *spoilers start*the "dark depths and the surface (and above into the sky)*spoilers end* are worthy of attention and offer such excellent opportunities in exploration that its wrong to ignore that the game never really stops being about exploring outside of the dungeons, the world just gets more hostile.

Had a great if short game of Sword of the stars with my game mates today, things are so nested and complex right now. The interplay between the various sides is coming together and I know I'm going to have some shocking experiences coming up, no idea what though... That's how they'll be shocking.

[rayne117]

I played a little Aquaria and wasn't really getting it either. It looks pretty enough and I like the ocean setting. If only they could have made it not boring as hell. Got about as far as TailSwallower got.

Playing SpaceChem and wow, I really like the way it makes me think. I have a bad habit of trying to fiddle with pointless things to make them perfect. But SpaceChem gives me something kind of cool to latch on to because you can kind of streamline your project on each and every level. It's like I'm getting a way to cope with the habit by just leaving it in there when I'm done playing.

Though I've only played 90~ minutes so far I've already had this thought...

[agentorange]

Taking a bit of a break from Morrowind; played it for about 2 weeks straight now, and completing both the expansions back to back (liked Blood Moon way more) burned me out. My craving for Resident Evil hit-it happens about twice a year-so I started playing Resident Evil 2 yesterday, and I've nearly made my way through it. The second installment is definitely the easiest, though I never understood why it was the most popular, by far, I personally think the Resident Evil 1 remake and RE3 are the high points of the series. I assume it's Ocarina of Time/FF7 syndrome, where the first one people played ends up being their favorite (doesn't apply to EVERYONE of course).

[SirGeek]

Currently switching between Saints Row 2, Saints Row: The Third, Just Cause 2, Terraria and Serious Sam 3. I have a lot of free time it seems.
I'm really enjoying Saints Row: The Third which has taken the majority of my gaming time. It's not as good as Saints 2 in my opinion, but it's still pretty fun. They seem to have taken out the more fun activities and squished the three gang storylines into one, which I didn't like. However, any game that can make me strive for 100% completion (currently on 99%) can't be all that bad.

[Althea]

That's Just Cause 2 finished. Took about 19hrs, did a bunch of side-missions and so on, and I had a completion of 30.49%. I'll keep it installed so I can dick around in it every so often (the bonus being it doesn't really take up all that room on my HDD), but really I don't think I'll even think about bothering with 100%. That's just too much effort.

[The JG Man]

Completed the story of Sonic Generations last night. Here's what I think:
If you've been a fan of Sonic at any point - get it.
If you're a fan of platformers - get it.

I think it's a really good game. Aside from a couple of technical issues, it's got a good difficulty curve, incredibly replayable and nails the 'fun' aspect really well. I'm fairly certain it shouldn't be this good, but there you go. It also looks absolutely magnificent (so many colours!) and the soundtrack is probably my favourite for a rather long time.

[Tikey]

I've finished Alpha Protocol. Loved it. Didn't find it as buggy as most people claim. The conversations were great. Spy build is very op.
I actually stayed up late playing, I haven't done that since a long time.

[Heliocentric]

I've finished Alpha Protocol. Loved it. Didn't find it as buggy as most people claim. The conversations were great. Spy build is very op.
I actually stayed up late playing, I haven't done that since a long time.

Were you mostly charming, professional or psychotic? They are all good but some of the angrier lines are incredible.

[Lambchops]

Aquaria is lovely, one of the games that nailed what I personally like from exploration in that it was a world that gradually opened up and had lots of secrets to discover but was rarely too overwhelming and all of which served it's purpose in both the tale the game had to tell and in showcasing the benefits of your newly unlocked powers. Plus it helped that the art and soundtrack were both gorgeous.

Plus it actually has much more inventive boss fights than these type of games often offer. I loved it and made sure to explore every inch of it.

[vinraith]

Aquaria is lovely, one of the games that nailed what I personally like from exploration in that it was a world that gradually opened up and had lots of secrets to discover but was rarely too overwhelming and all of which served it's purpose in both the tale the game had to tell and in showcasing the benefits of your newly unlocked powers. Plus it helped that the art and soundtrack were both gorgeous.

Plus it actually has much more inventive boss fights than these type of games often offer. I loved it and made sure to explore every inch of it.

All this Aquaria chatter (like Helio's earlier comments) is making me think maybe I should go back and revisit it. I'm incredibly bad at twin stick shooters of this type, though, so I'll probably just get stuck early-on again.

[The JG Man]

Throwing my hat in for Aquaria, I gave up after about 2 hours of tedium. I didn't really know what I was doing and what I had been doing I hadn't found enjoyable.

Oh, and to keep it on topic, more Sonic Generations. Very close to 100%ing it now, with just one hard mode boss, 4 red rings to collect and 18 side levels. This game is both very enjoyable and has a blistering sound track, possibly my favourite of any game 'this' generation and at the very least, for a very long time.

[sabrage]

I just finished Ico. Been a few years since the first time, I'm surprised how much of this game I forgot. Pretty much a perfect example of a game that I can overlook every flaw in favor of its devastating beauty and superb storytelling. If you haven't played it, you really ought to. Emulate it if you have to.

I'm gonna hold off on Shadow of the Colossus just because I plan to pore over every inch of it (before I just beat the game, I'm talking every inch) and I'm in the middle of a couple games that I'll completely forget about if I start that now. Back to God of War, which hasn't aged nearly as well as I would've expected.

I'd also like to thank Sony for righting the sins of the past (http://www.joystiq.com/2011/09/08/ico-and-shadow-of-the-colossus-has-reversible-boxart-last-guard/).

[Ian]

Been playing a bit of The Wager, and am a bit disappointed that it seems there's not a great deal of replay value in it after a couple of games. :(

[jp0249107]

I'm still on my first game of Distant Worlds: Legends and having a blast. It's everything I've wanted in a 4x space game. Basically GalCiv2 with realtime battles. The only part I don't like about it is the ship customization and the fleet behaviors but those are easily remedied with my own controls. Thanks for recommending the game to everyone RPS!

[TailSwallower]

Goddamn Terraria! Stop stealing my life!

Played some co-op with a friend tonight. Apparently he tried co-op a while back and it was a bit too laggy/broken, but it was practically perfect for us. But Mediumcore became too much of a pain in the arse by the time we hit the Underworld Jungles, so I put all my gear in a chest, started a Softcore character and looted the chest, then deleted the Mediumcore character. Goodbye Steve, you were too good for this procedurally-generated world.

[Ravelle]

Goddamn Terraria! Stop stealing my life!

Played some co-op with a friend tonight. Apparently he tried co-op a while back and it was a bit too laggy/broken, but it was practically perfect for us. But Mediumcore became too much of a pain in the arse by the time we hit the Underworld Jungles, so I put all my gear in a chest, started a Softcore character and looted the chest, then deleted the Mediumcore character. Goodbye Steve, you were too good for this procedurally-generated world.

Started it this week, after playing Minecraft a lot it takes time to get used to the way you craft and build things, especially placing things, coudn't figure out how to place torches, kept using the action button until it stuck somewhere.

[FakeKisser]

Splitting my time between Skyrim and Battlefield 3 right now. There are so many other games I also want to be playing (like Total War Shogun 2), but I don't have the time!

[sabrage]

I just spent about an hour with Zombie Shooter, from that new Indie Gala bundle. It's gleefully, ridiculously violent, it has a decent upgrade system, and it throws a fucking ludicrous amount of zombies at you. Seems a little glitchy, but other than that it's everything I could ask for in a game like this. I just threw on some Botch (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EI67ls-MaMc&feature=related) and went to town. I ended up dying right after I got the Magma Minigun, which is about as awesome as you would expect it to be.

The violence though... It's like Braindead: The Game. (http://cloud.steampowered.com/ugc/649873533897315115/65B426F5754F80288B909AB54F122ABB1636B7FB/)

[icemann]

Finished off Eye of the Beholder last night. That game has been on my todo list to complete for a VERY long time. Very happy to FINALLY have that game beaten.

With that done I've transferred my best 4 characters over to EOB2 and so its now onto that one. Good gaming :). EOB2 seems like a worthy sequel so far (I'm a few hours into it).

[Wizardry]

Finished off Eye of the Beholder last night. That game has been on my todo list to complete for a VERY long time. Very happy to FINALLY have that game beaten.

With that done I've transferred my best 4 characters over to EOB2 and so its now onto that one. Good gaming :). EOB2 seems like a worthy sequel so far (I'm a few hours into it).
Just don't play the third. Or play it with caution and low expectations.

[Edawan]

I started Deus Ex: Human Revolution.
I wanted to go all stealthy but it's almost impossible to not get spotted in the big rooms in the first mission. (I'm sure some people could do it but I really couldn't see how) After dying <too many> times, always after minutes of trying to find a way in, I gave up and used the gun and it was over in a few seconds. Disappointing.

Also, stuttering in all the pre-rendered movies is very annoying.

[Drake Sigar]

Finished off Eye of the Beholder last night. That game has been on my todo list to complete for a VERY long time. Very happy to FINALLY have that game beaten.
You've got me playing again now.

[Scumbag]

I started Deus Ex: Human Revolution.
I wanted to go all stealthy but it's almost impossible to not get spotted in the big rooms in the first mission. (I'm sure some people could do it but I really couldn't see how) After dying <too many> times, always after minutes of trying to find a way in, I gave up and used the gun and it was over in a few seconds. Disappointing.

Are you talking about the one at the Main Sarif plant where you get shot up, thrown through glass and the science team gets killed, or the part where you are augmented and taking on the purity first guys?

[Edawan]

Are you talking about the one at the Main Sarif plant where you get shot up, thrown through glass and the science team gets killed, or the part where you are augmented and taking on the purity first guys?
The one with the Purity First guys.
In the prologue I was trying to protect people so I didn't have any problem shooting the bad guys, but in the first real mission I'm trying to infiltrate the place, not make a blood bath. ;)

[sabrage]

Just finished Zombie Shooter. Five word game review: I killed so many zombies.

Back to God of War

[Scumbag]

The one with the Purity First guys.
In the prologue I was trying to protect people so I didn't have any problem shooting the bad guys, but in the first real mission I'm trying to infiltrate the place, not make a blood bath. ;)

Ah ok. I know a couple of people who tried to stealth through the first bit and got very frustrated.
I found the stealth to be very good. The rewards you get in XP through not being seen, being non-leathal and stealthy were usually far better then that of just running about shooting people. Then again the way the game has heavy power-level bias options which kinda sucks considering its supposed to be about playing how you wish.

[TailSwallower]

Terraria again, this time 3 player co-op.

2 of us were on voice chat and the third guy was just typing at us in game. We told him to go west (as in, left) and then watched as he got increasingly lost, stumbling into the corruption... Eventually we figured out he'd gone right, but we caught up to him.

Biggest problem has been the fact that these guys played a lot back at launch and have some really great gear, whereas I'm still scrounging stuff. Hence I die. A lot. And Darkwingstalker (hey, I just remembered he posts here too) writes shit on every single one of my tombstones. The bastard.
But yeah, fantastic game. If I was playing it solo I'd be going slower and being more cautious with my paths into the underworld, but with three people the tendency is just to dump explosives, flood caverns and generally fuck about. I love it.

And yeah, flooding caverns? So much fun! I managed to flood the underground Jungle much by accident. Well, unleashing a massive underground reservoir was totally intentional, but I didn't realise how far it would flow before it settled. Now, if only the bastard monsters would drown.

[Casimir Effect]

In Terraria the sun rises in the left, so does this make it the east? A question for the ages.

After defeating Sarevok with much difficulty, Irenicus with much fervor and Amelyssan with much righteousness - along a whole bunch of other poor fuckers for XP and loot - I have completed the (modded) Baldurs Gate Trilogy. Had such a great time with it, although BG1 definitely starts to outstay its welcome by Chapter 5 or so. BG2 more than makes up for it though, being as great now as it was then, and ToB is a fun romp where your character becomes godly in power and possibly in name too.

So I've now started on my second run of The Witcher 2 with a Geralt who (I think) sided with the humans in the first game and saved Adda. Looking forward to going Roche's path in Act 2 and already having a great time with it again, noticing a few little bugfixes along the way.
Also been playing Medal of Hono(u)r on the side, the 2010 one that flopped. Actually having a fun time with it, as I do like a scripted manshoot occasionally. Probably not as good as BF:BC2 although the setting makes for some interesting times (while also unfortunately highlighting a pathetic waste of a chance to tell a good story grounded in current events) but I'm enjoying it more than I did CoD4 and than I expected too. Well worth the <£4 from D2D.

[icemann]

Just don't play the third. Or play it with caution and low expectations.

I've heard that alot over the years. I do plan on playing it, but just with lowered expectations. That's if it works fine in dosbox ofcourse.

And as I'm roughly about half way through the 2nd game it's not far away. Man the 2nd games good. Better than the first in my opinion as they fixed alot of what was bad in the first one (not enough keys around occasionally, much harder battles, bigger enemy variety, larger amount of levels etc).

[sabrage]

Aaand scratch Max Payne off the list. That's three games beaten in as many days, something I never do. Echoing previous sentiment about the game, (including my own) it holds up remarkably well considering its genre and age.

[thegooseking]

Well, Bastion's on sale, so I bought it even though I already have it on XBLA and got bored of it quite quickly. I was gambling on the chance that I would enjoy it more on the PC, and you know what? I do. Just goes to show.

Though honestly I think it has more to do with the TV my Xbox is connected to than the Xbox itself, given that I've been playing it on PC with an Xbox 360 controller.

[superfly2000]

Battlefield 3, Minecraft and Neverwinter Nights 1.

[Heliocentric]

Neverwinter Nights 1.

Don't be afraid to skip the original campaign. If you insist on playing it its actually great for multiple player.

You could get some real milage out of playing it in coop. You could use the legendary "3 badgers" building and make it like 15 badgers.

[superfly2000]

Dude....I've been playing NWN1 multiplayer on online persistent worlds for like the last 8 years or so and even been building and hosting a couple of servers myself ;-)

So yeah...I would say it is the best game ever and I virtually never touched the original campaign as I don't like to play single player...

[FuriKuri!]

After polishing off Saints Row 3 I've moved onto Dungeon Defenders (one of the many titles I nabbed in the steam autumn sale). Damn it's some addicting stuff though. Every time I think I'm done with the tower defence genre someone comes out with a new one with just enough of a twist to make it seem fresh again.

This is definately one of the finer examples though, the multiplayer aspect is excellent as well. Just a shame it seems to be quite volatile when transitioning between areas (specifically to the tavern).

[Heliocentric]

Dude....I've been playing NWN1 multiplayer on online persistent worlds for like the last 8 years or so and even been building and hosting a couple of servers myself ;-)
My bad, you never know if someone is about to grab it off gog and dismiss the rather exciting expansion content because of the terrible original campaign.

[Vexing Vision]

My bad, you never know if someone is about to grab it off gog and dismiss the rather exciting expansion content because of the terrible original campaign.

Hordes of the Underdark is one of the best standalone expansions I have ever played in any video-game. I'm actually about to reinstall NWN 1 for Hordes, plus the exceptional fan-made Dance with Rogues 1 and 2.

[Scumbag]

Killing Floor chrimbo do-dad stuff. The new weapons go from a bit pointless (Claymore), the rather overpowered (Combat shotgun) to the much needed (Husk gun) imo. Good old Santa zombies are good fun too, but not patch on the Summer ones.

Aside from that me and another out-of-work friend ploughing through our Steam backlog in multiplayer stuff.

[Althea]

Just finished the main line for Fable 3, which means I've got some side quests, a couple of keys/chests/golden doors and a DLC pack left. Eh, if I'm honest I really, really just don't care. According to the in-game stats I've racked up about 44 hours, and I just don't know if I can stomach more.

[Casimir Effect]

Just finished the main line for Fable 3, which means I've got some side quests, a couple of keys/chests/golden doors and a DLC pack left. Eh, if I'm honest I really, really just don't care. According to the in-game stats I've racked up about 44 hours, and I just don't know if I can stomach more.

Was it actually fun for much of that 44 hours? I ask as someone who enjoyed Fable: TLC o nthe PC a lot, has a nearly unplaeyd copy of Fable 2 on the 360 (no idea why I haven't played it, no time I guess) and heard things about Fable 3 that just sounded like they'd bug me. Such as a silly, convoluted way of getting to any menus/interfaces and loads of annoying mini-games that are pretty much forced on you (music playing, building managing).

[Althea]

I've played two hours of Fable 2. My honest opinion is for you to just forget Fable 3 and play 2. I've compared the number of items/customisations, and Fable 2 wins hands down.

The mini-games aren't exactly forced, I went through the whole game without even touching Blacksmithing, but you can do them for a little bit of extra coinage, which becomes important later on. If you want to get the best ending, you need to earn - I shit you not - 8.5M gold. A lot of the quests/collecting missions feel repetitive, too, and you can't get all the demon doors (of which there aren't many) or weapons without playing with someone else, which is a real dick move by Lionhead.

Really, it's Fable 2 that's been stripped down somewhat. PC players might find something of worth there - it is there, buried somewhere - but if you have Fable 2 then likely you're not going to find anything much in 3.

[sabrage]

Nightsky is rather good. Very relaxing atmosphere and some great physics-based puzzles. I like it.

[SirKicksalot]

I started Bully, played for like 40 minutes. I didn't have any expectations, but so far I'm very impressed by the music and overall atmosphere, bewildered by the writing (Dan Houser is a hack) and I'm very annoyed by the English class. The controls kill it - and I'm playing with a controller.


Arkham City finally arrived today...

[Althea]

After finishing Fable 3 and Just Cause 2 in the past week, I turned my attention to The Witcher tonight on a whim. I was in Act 3, and now I've gotten to the start of Act 4.

I've got to say I'm quite enjoying it, but sometimes I feel like I'm a little lost or that I've screwed up in places, but this evening I have enjoyed what I've played. I'm looking forward to finishing it, and I may continue playing it until I get Skyrim and/or Anno 2070.

[Casimir Effect]

Cheers, maybe I'll finally get on Fable 2 over xmas, I have a feeling I got it as a present last year. I guess the problem is my couches are kind of crap so playing 360 games aren't that appealing. Plus having a flatmate who almost lives in the lounge means everything would become a group activity.

With The Witcher 1 you probably will fuck up side quest after side quest and certain parts of the main quest too. It's a consequence of so many being tied together or the game not really telling you what to do next in some cases (& don't get me started on the damn quests where Mr Such-A-Dick will only see you between 11pm and midnight). But you're in the fun part of the game. I always find Act 2 the worst with that damn swamp. If I had my way all swamps would be banned.

[Jonith]

At this moment in time i've been playing Orcs Must Die, Bastion and like almost everyone else on Steam, Skyrim, and they are all great games. I also appear to have some sort of multitasking superpower which allows me to play 3 games at one time with full concentration....

[Althea]

With The Witcher 1 you probably will fuck up side quest after side quest and certain parts of the main quest too. It's a consequence of so many being tied together or the game not really telling you what to do next in some cases (& don't get me started on the damn quests where Mr Such-A-Dick will only see you between 11pm and midnight). But you're in the fun part of the game. I always find Act 2 the worst with that damn swamp. If I had my way all swamps would be banned.
The swamp is what drove me nuts a bit. Yaren Bolt was someone I had to finish a quest with, but he buggered off somewhere so I couldn't. I agree about the quests, though. I wasn't sure what to do in order to trigger the end of Act 3, but as luck would have it Siegfried came to my rescue for two quests in one go. Yay!

[coldvvvave]

BF3. Now, when everyone is lvl50+ game actually turned to be interesting, just running around with your best gun doesn't work, teamwork is more important than ever and planes do usefull stuff when competent player flys them( remember how people used to complain that planess are like snipers in TF2?). I even returned to normal servers because Hardcore stopped being entertaining.

[Doodier]

Skyrim, for quite some time now. And as I was really entertained by the Dark Brotherhood quest line I wonder if you'd reccomend me some other game like this but maybe little bit more complex? Something that really needs planning of the operation and not just: you wait till' she/he/it goes to bed, lock one pick and kill her/him/whatever.. Maybe Assasins Creed? What can I say - I enjoy stalking people but one day I took an arrow in the knee so my DB carrer was over..

[Anthile]

Skyrim, for quite some time now. And as I was really entertained by the Dark Brotherhood quest line I wonder if you'd reccomend me some other game like this but maybe little bit more complex? Something that really needs planning of the operation and not just: you wait till' she/he/it goes to bed, lock one pick and kill her/him/whatever.. Maybe Assasins Creed? What can I say - I enjoy stalking people but one day I took an arrow in the knee so my DB carrer was over..

Try the Hitman games or for some more stalking instead of killing, the Thief games.

[Doodier]

Anthile: Should I start by the first one to catch the story or is there one that stands higher in gameplay than the others?

[Ian]

In the Hitman series? The story's not important enough to worry about playing them all I wouldn't say. I've never even played the first one. If you're not fussed about the graphics then I'd say Silent Assassin (the second game) and Blood Money (the most recent one) are the "must play" entries in the series. If you want to play the best one first then go for Blood Money.

The opening of the first level of Silent Assassin was one of my revelatory gaming moments. Plonk you down on top of a hill with some binoculars looking at your target from outside the grounds of his villa. And I was like, "Oh.... do I take it from here?"

[sabrage]

Anthile: Should I start by the first one to catch the story or is there one that stands higher in gameplay than the others?

I played a bit of the first Hitman the other day, and that game is hard as hell. I ended up shutting it off not because of that, but because the fonts are literally impossible to read at higher resolutions.

I've been plowing through God of War lately. Yet another game I have a love-hate relationship with. On the one hand, the game has an excellent combat system that rewards parrying and precise timing. On the other hand, it's horribly unbalanced in that only the first spell and weapon you get are really useful. Again with the environments: the sense of scale and setpieces are awesome, but hampered by the invisible walls and fixed camera. The puzzles are great, but the quick-time events suck ass. The difficulty is spot-on (playing on Hard mode) but PAUSING THE GAME IN THE MIDDLE OF A BOSS FIGHT THREE QUARTERS OF THE WAY THROUGH THE GAME TO TELL ME HOW TO DO A QUICK-TIME EVENT IS NOT JUST TERRIBLE GAME DESIGN, IT'S INSULTING TO MY INTELLIGENCE.

:/

[Kodeen]

Currently doing a second playthrough of Gothic. Going to join the Sect camp this time.

[SirKicksalot]

Arkham City, having more fun playing as Catwoman than as The Goddamn Batman.

[agentorange]

Been getting back into Frozen Synapse, after uninstalling it in a fit of pitiful rage after losing one too many games a few months ago. Joined the RPS League and have been doing alright so far, about 1:1 the past couple games; not having the same luck with random online matches though, especially when I get matched up with people with 10 times the amount of wins as me. Going through the single player as well, and while some of the set ups are interesting, fighting the AI doesn't have the same titillation as fighting other people.

Also been getting deep into Solium Infernum - completed 2 games so far against the AI, won both which means the AI must be real shitty. Think I'm ready for taking on some more organic demon competition. (if any of you want to get a game together, pm me)

[Scumbag]

Feeling bad, playing STALKER with AMK.

[Oak]

Finally finished Serious Sam 3, I alliteratively admit. The last level feels incredibly long and exhausting, and the boss himself is tough going as well, yet soon after it was over I popped into a random co-op game and, before I knew it, played through a sizeable chunk of the campaign all over again. Where the game proper is a shooter that plays like an arcade game, co-op actually is an arcade game. It is insane and magnificent.

[sabrage]

I've beat 4 games this week... Just finished God of War.

[Althea]

After finishing The Witcher: Enhanced Edition this morning, I've moved onto The Witcher 2 (About bloody time - I bought it when it came out). Now I've pushed into it a little, I liked it more than I did at release, plus that tutorial is good for explaining things but on the whole I found it a bit of a crappy experience as it teaches you to do things that you might not learn for some time.

I am liking TW2 so far, but I'm also finding it a bit annoying. The controls and changes seem to have been done for the sake of it rather than for any real benefit - the improved UI is both better and worse, for example. The combat takes a little while to get used to but I'm sure I'll be fine with it as time goes on. I am half-wishing it was done similar to TW1, however, as I think a more polished engine/visual experience would have worked just as well, but what do I know? :p

[Drake Sigar]

After finishing The Witcher: Enhanced Edition this morning, I've moved onto The Witcher 2 (About bloody time - I bought it when it came out). Now I've pushed into it a little, I liked it more than I did at release, plus that tutorial is good for explaining things but on the whole I found it a bit of a crappy experience as it teaches you to do things that you might not learn for some time.
I died near the end of the tutorial and was really surprised when it threw me out to the menu screen and insisted I start over. Bugger that.

[Althea]

I died near the end of the tutorial and was really surprised when it threw me out to the menu screen and insisted I start over. Bugger that.
Oh, I did too. I died very quickly, but if it's any consolation to you or any others, I've put two or so into the game since then and not died once. The tutorial is, like many before it, not really representative of the game but it does teach you a few things.

[Fumarole]

Been getting back into Frozen Synapse, after uninstalling it in a fit of pitiful rage after losing one too many games a few months ago. Joined the RPS League and have been doing alright so far, about 1:1 the past couple games; not having the same luck with random online matches though, especially when I get matched up with people with 10 times the amount of wins as me. Going through the single player as well, and while some of the set ups are interesting, fighting the AI doesn't have the same titillation as fighting other people. The campaign can be repetitive but some of the end missions are absolutely worth it if you can make it that far. I won't spoil anyone's experience by stating what the missions are but trust me, they can be just as exciting as playing a human.

[Drake Sigar]

Oh, I did too. I died very quickly, but if it's any consolation to you or any others, I've put two or so into the game since then and not died once. The tutorial is, like many before it, not really representative of the game but it does teach you a few things.

It's just... the sheer audacity. No game should outright tell you "sorry, you're not good enough to complete this tutorial." You would expect to have as many tries as you want, rather than be rudely booted to the menu screen.

[Althea]

It's just... the sheer audacity. No game should outright tell you "sorry, you're not good enough to complete this tutorial." You would expect to have as many tries as you want, rather than be rudely booted to the menu screen.
That's a fair point.

[Casimir Effect]

I'm also wandering through the Witcher 2 (second playthrough) and have gotten a decent way into Act 1. Having a great time with it although I really do have to pay attention during the combat. A battle against 4 nekkers can be tough if you don't use every trick Geralt has, and I just discovered the Endrega Queen is way out of my league right now. It's so damn good though. Now I just have to decide if I want to try getting Geralts newly-acquired tattoo removed - the perils of drinking.

Also just played a bit of Capsized, which is surprisingly fun. The amount of different options you have at your disposal makes that game great: standard movement, jetpack, energy grappel thing, repulsion blast thing, or a combination of all to help you fly across the level.

[Skalpadda]

Just finished Trine 2 and it was good playful joyous fun. The story is about as forgettable as the one in the first game and it still does some of that annoying "I'm gonna keep spawning in monsters for a while" (though at least they enter the scenes in entertaining ways now and there's more variety, not skellingtons over and over) but neither gets in the way of how fun it is to navigate the gorgeous game world and come up with solutions to puzzles.

I'm really surprised they're only charging 13€ for this, considering I've paid more for far less polished games with less content. Anyway, I can heartily recommend it if you want some platform-puzzling fun :)

[Drake Sigar]

Arkham City initial impressions:

Yay, Catwoman is Therese/Jeanette!

Oh my god her lines are bad. And not in a good way.

Fuck Windows Live. How DARE you waste ten minutes of my time in a world where I should have access to digital products instantly.

[Althea]

I'm really surprised they're only charging 13€ for this, considering I've paid more for far less polished games with less content. Anyway, I can heartily recommend it if you want some platform-puzzling fun :)
That's £12 here. I'm going to get the £18 edition, just for the sake of it (but also the soundtrack). Everyone else should, too!

[sabrage]

I don't know what to make of the God of War series. On the one hand, I've never kicked so many puppies in my life. On the other hand, the cutscenes seem to suggest that this game takes itself seriously. What?

Anyways. I started both Max Payne 2 and God of War 2 today. They both suffer classic sequelitis, but whereas that made me put down the former right away it's oddly endearing in the latter. What's odd is that while GoW2 does nearly everything "bigger and better" than the original, I think I preferred that to this one and I couldn't really explain why. Maybe it's the boss fights... I usually love boss fights in games, but this one has been really pissing me off. Or maybe it's the balance issues... I always steamroll the lesser enemies in the game, but there only seems to be health items after the incredibly easy battles. Then the game throws 2-3 hard battles at me in a row and I get stomped. I'm really happy it let me turn off the hints and tutorials right off the bat though; more games need to do that.

Whatever it is, there's no way I can stomach God of War 3 immediately afterwards like I did with this. I'm excited to play it just to see the scale they pull off, but I'm gonna need a break. The violence never gets old, it's the fact that Kratos bellows every single line at the top of his lungs that wears thin.

And is it odd that I was finding Max Payne 2's writing pretentious by the end of the first mission, but I can put up with God of War's self-import? I guess it's because Max stands in stark contrast to its predecessor, where the other is business as usual.

[Skalpadda]

That's £12 here. I'm going to get the £18 edition, just for the sake of it (but also the soundtrack). Everyone else should, too!

Oh, I hadn't seen there was a collector's edition. Pretty sure it wasn't there when I pre-ordered, but I see you can upgrade the steam version, so that's cool.

[Rauten]

Yay, Catwoman is Therese/Jeanette!

Wowowowowow hold it there, buddy. Catwoman is what?

This is relevant to my interests.
Please, explain in further detail, if it's not much of a bother.

[Drake Sigar]

Wowowowowow hold it there, buddy. Catwoman is what?

This is relevant to my interests.
Please, explain in further detail, if it's not much of a bother.
Same voiceactor.

[Lambchops]

@ Sabrage

I disagree on Max Payne 2, I really liked it. Sure it's hammy but that's part of the appeal. The action is more finely honed and stylish looking than in the first game, there's some hilarious set pieces it's basically the first game but bigger and while not necessarily always better I found it thoroughly enjoyable. Plus it ditched the annoying platform trail of blood nonsense that was such a pain in the arse in the first game.

[Anthile]

I played Kitchen Cleaning 2011 today. What I thought would be a small and casual game quickly turned into a hardcore survival horror experience. The art style evokes not only the works of Carpenter but also those of Cronenberg. It's ridiculously hard at times and after a while it simply felt like work. I made it to the penultimate stage (The Fridge) and ended up romancing the coffee machine. Graphics are okay.
All in all I wouldn't recommend it.

[Heliocentric]

Anthile you didn't give a score, how can I compare it with other games on metacritic.

[Anthile]

Well, it wasn't the worst game I have ever played and it can only be indirectly linked to the rigged Bolivian elections of 2007, therefore I give it a 9/10.

[Casimir Effect]

Bullshit! Bathroom Cleaning 2009 got a 9.5/10 from IGN and yet this newer, prettier and therefore better version gets a lower mark? Corruptions! Lies! Biases! I am enraged you are dragging down my Metacritics!

Kitchens are bigger than Bathrooms so this game should get a bigger mark. Can't deny the truth!

[SirKicksalot]

I don't know what to make of the God of War series. On the one hand, I've never kicked so many puppies in my life. On the other hand, the cutscenes seem to suggest that this game takes itself seriously. What?

Anyways. I started both Max Payne 2 and God of War 2 today. They both suffer classic sequelitis, but whereas that made me put down the former right away it's oddly endearing in the latter. What's odd is that while GoW2 does nearly everything "bigger and better" than the original, I think I preferred that to this one and I couldn't really explain why. Maybe it's the boss fights... I usually love boss fights in games, but this one has been really pissing me off. Or maybe it's the balance issues... I always steamroll the lesser enemies in the game, but there only seems to be health items after the incredibly easy battles. Then the game throws 2-3 hard battles at me in a row and I get stomped. I'm really happy it let me turn off the hints and tutorials right off the bat though; more games need to do that.

Whatever it is, there's no way I can stomach God of War 3 immediately afterwards like I did with this. I'm excited to play it just to see the scale they pull off, but I'm gonna need a break. The violence never gets old, it's the fact that Kratos bellows every single line at the top of his lungs that wears thin.

And is it odd that I was finding Max Payne 2's writing pretentious by the end of the first mission, but I can put up with God of War's self-import? I guess it's because Max stands in stark contrast to its predecessor, where the other is business as usual.

I thought God of War 2 ruined everything that was good about the first game in the first five minutes and is one of the worst sequels of all time. I liked GoW1 until the designers had a brain fart and the final two hours turned to shit. I especially liked the obvious Harryhausen influences and it had some moments of pure genius (the desert part or when Ares throws the column all the way to Kratos). It also wrapped up perfectly.
I like Dante's Inferno more than GoW anyway *shrug*


On-topic, still playing Batman AC. I turned off DX11 as the game runs three times slower and looks exactly as on DX9. Can't wait for the next Catwoman section...

[sabrage]

I liked GoW1 until the designers had a brain fart and the final two hours turned to shit. I especially liked the obvious Harryhausen influences and it had some moments of pure genius (the desert part or when Ares throws the column all the way to Kratos). It also wrapped up perfectly.

Really? I loved the whole Pandora's Temple part, and the jawdropping environmental art is why I play anyways. I think both games start off pretty shitty, and eventually find their stride. I definitely prefer the original, but I wouldn't go so far as to call it "one of the worst sequels of all time." Not with Devil May Cry 2, Invisible War, (I've actually played this and not the original... It's still shitty) and countless Sonics and Tomb Raiders battling it out for that spot.

Wow, I have to admit, I wasn't expecting much from Cryostasis. I mean, I was expecting my $2.50 worth, but this game is amazing. Walk into a room filled with ice. Flashback to the room originally filling with water, showing how it got this way. Brilliant. As is the health mechanic. It ran like shit at first with everything cranked to high, but now that I've toned the settings down a notch it's running just fine.

Wow, Killzone 3 Limited Edition came in the mail and I can't believe how big this thing is. Just wanted to share this:
http://i.imgur.com/N0Lzol.jpg (http://i.imgur.com/N0Lzo.jpg)

[DzX]

Just started playing Warhammer: Space Marine after the sale on the THQ Digital store. I'm enjoying the sheer level of carnage and the massive scope of the game; having just completed Chapter 3. Gameplay variety leaves much to be desired though, or so I've heard, I'm hoping it's not the case. That the game consists of nothing more than what I'm currently doing, killing many of 'Orks' in gruesome ways, is somewhat worrying since I'm already getting a little bored with the sheer number and similarity of encounters.

[Lukasz]

Septerra Core. Linear, no real sidequests and has very simple combat mechanic. its alright enough for me to want to finish it.

[LordHuggington]

Clocked about 10 hours on Dungeon Defenders. It's not a bad game, and it's fun thrashing legions of goblins and whatnot. Unfortunately, my friends all play on PS3, so I've not been able to play with them. Still decent fun, though, but it is starting to feel a little grindy in the never ending search for mana crystals. Also have started playing Orcs Must Die. Really enjoying that. The pace is great, and swinging from being worried that I have enough traps in place to fend off the orcs early in the level, to being mildly smug as I KNOW I have enough traps at the end of the level, and enthusiastically begin tearing into the horde is great fun. =D

[gganate]

I've been playing Stalker Clear Sky with the Complete Mod in honor of GSC's closure. Before that, I plowed through Serious Sam 3. Waiting for my Christmas present of Skyrim.

[cosmicolor]

I bought Lands of Lore off of GoG due to the sale so I've started playing that, just picked up Timothy. I like how there's some sort of smooth scrolling in that game compared to the few other Dungeon Master-esque games I've played, feels less jarring to me somehow.

[icemann]

Lands of Lore: Guardians of Chaos I assume? That game is outstanding if your into dungeon crawlers. Better than any of the Eye of Beholder games (and that's saying something).

I played through that a few years ago. Good times.

[sabrage]

SO I realized, looking at the games sitting on my shelf, that before today I only ever owned 5 First-Person Perspective games on consoles in my entire life: Half-Life (on PS2, borne of necessity,) Halo 3 and Reach, Oblivion, and Borderlands (which I have never even played.) Yet since I got my PS3, I grabbed 3 more just to catch up on some exclusives...And I realized that I actually hate first-person games on a controller. It just feels incredibly unnatural to me and I do not like it at all. I'll get over it to finish the games, but this is a mistake I vow not to make again. It was even making me a little nauseous, the way the camera didn't feel like it was lining up with my movements. Never felt very strongly about it in the past, but all of a sudden it's very obvious how inferior a gamepad is for this type of game.

God of War 2 has a whole lot of shitty bosses. Why do they all have to have 5 fucking stages with no bloody checkpoints? I wish every game had Bayonetta's bosses... There's a game that gets it.

[cosmicolor]

Lands of Lore: Guardians of Chaos I assume? That game is outstanding if your into dungeon crawlers. Better than any of the Eye of Beholder games (and that's saying something).

I played through that a few years ago. Good times.

It's the 1&2 pack so I'm going through the Throne of Chaos, yeah. Apparently the second game isn't quite as good but I think I'll try it first before judging.

[Roufuss]

I just finished Planescape: Torment for the first time yesterday. At its release, I got up to Ravel but I guess my younger self either couldn't get past her or couldn't get past the walls of text (I'm pretty ashamed of him, but his loss I guess.)

Amazing game.

Before that, I had a Postal marathon. Postal 1 is a horrible, horrible game. Postal 2 is actually a lot of fun but that expansion pack may be even more horrible than Postal 1.

[airtekh]

Just finished Trine 2, which was very enjoyable. It's similar enough to the first game, but there are some differences to how it unfolds.

There seems to be less focus on combat (you only engage in occasional fisticuffs with goblins) and more on the puzzles. The puzzles themselves are much better than in the first game. They require much more thought and use of some new game mechanics as well as the game physics.

It's paced better as well. The first game had you solving puzzles and fighting skeletons almost simultaneously, whereas here it's more clear what needs to be done: Combat section, Puzzle, Puzzle, Combat etc

Must have a look at the co-op when I get the chance.

[SirKicksalot]

Yet since I got my PS3, I grabbed 3 more just to catch up on some exclusives...And I realized that I actually hate first-person games on a controller. It just feels incredibly unnatural to me and I do not like it at all. I'll get over it to finish the games, but this is a mistake I vow not to make again.


If one of those games is Resistance 2, play it on easy. It's actually fun that way.
If you're playing the Killzones... well, my condolences.
The one advantage of controllers is that you can walk as slow as you like.

I'm currently downloading DNF with the brand new expansion, as I'm too lazy to use the DVD for installation. I hear the expansion is actually much better than the base game... Will see tonight.

[Casimir Effect]

Finished Capsized and thought it was an excellent little game. Will definitely go back and play it again on a harder difficulty at some point. Better action in that game than in most 3D shooters.

[Vague-rant]

Finished Stealth Bastard- What a brilliant free little game. I was going to download extra levels, but I feel like the original 28 would be marred by weaker fan ones. Makes me eager to see Tom Francis's game.

Also, finished AC Brotherhood. Surprisingly, I preferred it a lot more than 2.

And all the while Baldur's Gate remains unfinished. I think it's chapter 5, but I really ran out of steam. It feels like I'm resting waaay too often to try and heal up and get spells, and I feel if I just stick to the main quest I'm going to be even more handicapped if I carry my character through to the second game. So on the rare occasion I play, I'm grinding though side quests, which are a bit hit and miss.

[The JG Man]

Pretty much 100%'d Sonic Generations. Still got two achievements to get, one just being running through all the levels and putting down an official time and the other to do with the final boss. I won't really fuss with the latter, but the game's so damn fun to play that the replayability of the levels causes no concern for me. I actually recommend it to platforming fans; it's a solid title.

[Casimir Effect]

And all the while Baldur's Gate remains unfinished. I think it's chapter 5, but I really ran out of steam. It feels like I'm resting waaay too often to try and heal up and get spells, and I feel if I just stick to the main quest I'm going to be even more handicapped if I carry my character through to the second game. So on the rare occasion I play, I'm grinding though side quests, which are a bit hit and miss.
I just did a Trilogy playthrough and found it exactly the same. BG1 really drags on a bit and by the time the city of Baldur's Gate opened up I was getting restless. In the end I got an FAQ just so I knew where all the quests were to minimize pointless wandering, blasted through them all in a night and then went back to the main plot. Luckily the plot will keep rolling forward from the Iron Throne investigation onwards so things pick up momentum again. I did end up saying a big 'fuck you' to Tales of the Sword Coast though as I just wanted to get to BG2.
Baldur's Gate 2 is where the magic happens. Playing it again made me remember just how much I love it, and it has aged like a single malt.

[sabrage]

If one of those games is Resistance 2, play it on easy. It's actually fun that way.
If you're playing the Killzones... well, my condolences.
The one advantage of controllers is that you can walk as slow as you like.

I started the first one on Hard, and I'm definitely feeling like that was a mistake. I've always wanted to try something like Razer's Nostromo (http://store.razerzone.com/store/razerusa/en_US/pd/productID.221675100), but I just don't feel like it has the functionality and versatility of a keyboard.

[Heliocentric]

Also, finished AC Brotherhood. Surprisingly, I preferred it a lot more than 2.


Ass creed was a prototype, Ass Creed 2 was the real thing, but brotherhood was the bizarre mix tape with so much duct taped on it just worked.

[Althea]

My "Now Playing" consists of two titles - Skyrim and Anno 2070.

Hurrah for long games!

[vinraith]

I'm still playing a bit of Sanctum in both single and multiplayer. It's quite possibly my favorite tower defense game of all time, in that it's a marvelous mix of meaningful strategy and careful geometric layout combined with a genuinely fun action element to try (and usually fail) to make up for your strategic foul-ups and/or integrate yourself meaningfully into your otherwise automated defense plans. Hunting for easter eggs is fun too, damn this game has some beautiful levels to get lost in and fall off of.

In anticipation of the winter break, I'm trying to get rolling on New Vegas again with the newly updated Project Nevada (with patches) and all the DLC. I'm really looking forward to this, but am mostly just fiddling with settings trying to get it set up the way I want it, and trying to figure out if I need any mods beyond PN.

I also have it in my deranged head to finally learn how to properly play Pride of Nations over this break, as it looks outstanding. I do wish they'd make good on their promise to create some intermediate-length campaigns, however, the grand campaign is seriously daunting.

[Nalano]

God help me, I'm thinking of reinstalling Simcity 4 and adding about seven years' worth of mods to it.

[sabrage]

I think I'm done with Nightsky. Despite it being one of the most innovative and interesting puzzle games I've played in a good long time, it's really pissing me off. I don't care if the puzzles are hard, but it's annoying as hell that it doesn't checkpoint on every screen. I hate having to re-do the same two puzzles just to fail on the third and have to restart again. It's an exercise in tedium I'm not really willing to take right now. Maybe I'll come back to it (I've finished a little more than half of the "worlds) but probably not unless a better checkpoint system is patched/hacked in. It's like the Warp Zones in Super Meat Boy.

Might just stop playing Orcs Must Die, too. The game wants so badly for me to use the combat abilities, but I don't find them very compelling or fun. But most of the levels can't be cleared within par/without leaks with just the crossbow, so my attempts to beat the game as an almost pure tower defense keep getting foiled. I had one level where an ogre decided to walk up stairs and kill all my archers.......... My friends consistently get higher scores for using the combat abilities as well, which irks me in ways I can not explain.