[Hocknose]

Started "Grim Dawn" a couple of days ago, and I have to say that I'm having a blast.

I'm a huge ARPG fan and play a lot of Diablo 3. Thought I would try something else while waiting for the next season. Have played quite a bit of Path of Exile and Torchlight 1&2 but no other ARGP after Diablo has sucked me in this much.

Anyone else play it?

[Tiste Simeon]

Apt, on 29 December 2015 - 07:53 PM, said:

I think it might be a question of intent. I believe that Assassin's Creed and other Ubisoft games like Farcry, The Crew, Watch Dogs, etc. are built around catering to collectible and unlocking enthusiasts. I would bet a dollar that Ubisofts user data tells them that people who play Assassin's Creed actively seek out and collect the items scattered across the world, so that's what they focus on.

A game like the Arkham Knight, even though it is open world, is still much more narratively focused. There's a ton of Imfamy side missions and a billion Riddler collectibles but the game wants you to focus on the story.

Hence: Shadow of Mordor! Takes the best bits from both games!

[Aptorian]

True, by the way I wonder if we're going to see Shadow of Mordor 2 this fall? Warner Brothers seems to like 2 year development windows.

[Tiste Simeon]

A quick Google search reveals a lot of places seem to think it is definitely happening but nothing on when that might take place...

[Gothos]

So I've been asked by Apt to give my impressions on Elite: Dangerous.

Well, so far I've only scratched the surface of this game, most of the time I still fumble with the controls (like engaging afterburner instead of disengaging UI to look around the cockpit to my panels), but overall I think soon the rookie rookie time will be over.

What I can say so far, is this: this game is pretty much a scaled down (ship-wise), more immersive EVE online with, perhaps, less repetitive content. Moving the camera from outside to inside the ship makes a tremendous change. I bet if I had a thrustmaster or x52 it'd be even more so. I can't say much about the game world or dynamics just yet, but I have a few things to say here:

1. Watch the goddamn tutorial videos. I'd have spared myself from a lot of frustration if I did that straight off the bat (instead of being hopelessly outmatched in one of the tutorial missions).
2. Right after you watch the tutorials, go ahead and go into controls and REBIND A AND D TO ROLL LEFT/RIGHT AND THE MOUSE TO YAW LEFT/RIGHT. Seriously. Do it. Your psychiatrist will thank me.
3. THEN do the tutorial missions. They're pretty straightforward if you've watched the videos. Only after that (ok so you can skip the Incursion missions imo) go into the game proper.
4. Missions won't do much handholding. My first one was an assassination (for a hefty 97k creds), it only pointed me to the right star system and gave me an ETA when the target will be active. I then had to myself figure out how and where to find him/her and actually find him/her near one of the numerous energy signatures within the system. Another mission I got asked to deliver some material to the station - they didn't specify how or where I should get it, I just got the conditions and time limit.
5. Docking and launching is fun. For now at least. It's neat that they make you do it.

I have a few days off coming up starting tomorrow, so I'll give this game more time as it deserves. Will keep in touch.

NOTE: I do NOT have Horizons. I just got the base season 1 game on a steam sale.

This post has been edited by Gothos: 05 January 2016 - 07:12 AM

[Aptorian]

I wanted to hear your impressions because I'd heard that the in the long run feels a bit lonely. That really, mostly, you're playing Euro Truck simulator in space, if European truck drivers also moonlighted as bounty hunters and pirates.

I want to playe Elite Horizons when I eventually get a VR Headset. Supposedly it's a great VR experience. Specifically because the cockpit works well to create the illusion of you sitting in a chair flying a spaceship.

[Gothos]

I tried out the old Oculus Rift at my buddy's house with some VR-specific space exploration demo and I can say it makes a HUGE difference. Especially with a thrust/stick controller that pretty much mirrors what you have on screen. So that would be awesome.

As for lonely... why not, I guess? I used to just love exploring the outer systems in games like Freelancer anyway, and I think exploration is what I will end up doing in the end.
But yeah, I guess you could say ETS in Space
I've had my share of multiplayer games I guess.

[Maark Abbott]

Up to Kidnap on TMA. Never really liked this mission the first time round; by contrast, the one after (Casing the Joint) was probably my favourite level from the first go-round (Masks was also good but the whole 'don't alert anyone' thing in CTJ made it more fun to me).

[Gryllen]

Hocknose, on 03 January 2016 - 01:19 PM, said:

Started "Grim Dawn" a couple of days ago, and I have to say that I'm having a blast.

I'm a huge ARPG fan and play a lot of Diablo 3. Thought I would try something else while waiting for the next season. Have played quite a bit of Path of Exile and Torchlight 1&2 but no other ARGP after Diablo has sucked me in this much.

Anyone else play it?

Have been on and off it for quite some time. Currently working through second difficulty (elite) with my poison witch hunter (occultist/nightblade)

[Aptorian]

Is Grim Dawn out of early access?

[Gryllen]

Apt, on 05 January 2016 - 04:17 PM, said:

Is Grim Dawn out of early access?

Not yet. Official launch is in february but it's 'content complete', so all quests, items, difficulties and so on are in.

[Aptorian]

Eh, I generally avoid early access as much as possible. I'll play it when it's ready.

[Gothos]

Allright so a bit more about Elite now...

Well, it could well be said that it is indeed like ETS in space with moonlighting as hitmen and stuff. Now, don't get me wrong, I wouldn't say this means I'm saying the game is bad, it's not on its own bad, but... the time investment needed here is considerable. As I've already grown out of WoW's time-consuming madness and feeling a general fatigue from games lately, I don't think I'll be delving much deeper into it right now. I wouldn't recommend buying this at full price, though I can't say about Horizons - maybe neither. Unless you're that kind of guy.

Now, I've been exploring today and I must say that at least the stars are fucking magnificent to behold. Celestial bodies also make a grander impression than in EVE in general, that much is true. But my gripe is that getting any real good profit from it compared to bounties in the early game is going uphill on your knees, backwards, with your legs tied together. Maybe it's intended for early game progression to involve more combat, I don't know, but... hm.
Also the sheer size of that galaxy of theirs is both spectacular AND could be a major liability - it takes SUCH a long time to even get to the outer, more profitable and interesting exploration regions on the ridges of the galaxy that you can seriously feel dispirited. It doesn't help that decent exploration ships and loadouts cost a bloody fortune compared to what you're making early, so...... yeah, I'd like to play that game if I'd be out there on the rim, perhaps pioneering stars not touched by anyone yet (I doubt that at this point of the game's lifespan, but maybe...?), but I simply can't be arsed to get through the slog of getting there.

All in all, this could be for you if you've got time on your hands and are willing to accept the metagame.

[Mentalist]

Finished the Dracula Campaign. It is a VERY well-done campaign, quite interesting.

I discovered a bug in the last 2 missions. Not sure if this is because I have so many saves and "replays", or if it's due to the heavily scripted nature of the last 2 scenarios, but whenever I'd save the game during a siege sequence (or even during a regular B&D sequence in the last mission), the AI would stop attacking me, turning a tense fight into a cakewalk. This was especially annoying in Mission 4 where at one point you need to kill 500 enemies to progress, and the AI stopped spawning units.

It's not as much of a problem as it could've been, since this is mostly a practice run, but still.

Now I have to move on and finish Sforza. Another defence mission, sigh.

[Maark Abbott]

Halfway (I think) through Soulforge. Just finished the beacon. Painful mission so far.

[Bpesons]

I haven't really played many video games since Thief. Nothing I've seen since has been able to hold my interest. Have you tried any of the fan missions? Dark loader I think was what loaded them? They're good, really good some times.

[Bpesons]

Is there any way to play Thief on a macbook?

[Maark Abbott]

If you can get Steam on a macbook then maybr. Not sure. I avoid macs like they were burricks. I'll look into the fan missions I think... finally finished Soulforge. That level was a bloody pain.

[Mentalist]

Sforza 3 was anticlimactically easy. Despite what the hints say, you actually have access to Fire Ships. And in The Forgotten, Fast Fire Ships KICK ASS. Which made dealing with the Venetian fleet when it arrived a bit of a joke.

Sforza 4, just like 2 is a "fixed force, but not really, because you occasionally get more resources to recruit extra troops"-type scen. Played through most of it, but let my hero die in the last battle. Oops.
Also took a look-see at the Steam Workshop for the game. Grabbed the Indian architecture mod (pretty!), and a couple of extra campaigns.

I think I'll be wrapping up with AoK HD this month, as this Sat i'll be among other things compiling a "to play" list to address my enormous backlog.

[Tiste Simeon]

The Last of Us is insane! Brilliant, beautiful, terrifying, heart wrenching and utterly insane! I need to stop for breathers all the time...