It's not the presence of social issues in video games that concerns me. Nier: Automata is probably going to be my top game of this generation, and the Nier games have at least as much LGBT content as Naughty Dog's games, probably more proportionally to the size of the cast of main characters. If you look at the trailers of Nier: Replicant and Nier: Automata, you'll see they are overwhelmingly positive regarding the Like/ Dislike ratio and no one is protesting or typically even bringing up anything about those topics. That's because some of the characters happen to be gay or even intersex in the case of one character, but that is never the most important thing about them or even remotely close to it. 2B's operator 6O has an awkward conversation weeping about a female android she liked rejected her; she is obviously romantically interested in females. So what? It's never mentioned again. She doesn't have the gay story or gay arc about how she is oppressed and being gay affects every aspect of her life and we have to battle against homophobia and doesn't cram in a bunch of political garbage. It's just one aspect of that character that is mentioned and that's it. It's not a big deal because it shouldn't be a big deal. 6O is viewed very positively for her melodramatic and social butterfly personality, awkwardly pushing unwelcome topics like relationships, fashion, and whatnot onto 2B, who amusingly has no idea how to handle them and just wants to stick with maximizing mission efficiency: I've noticed Naughty Dog has increasingly been over the top with obsessions with identity politics in recent years. For example, they had an ongoing thing on Twitter of posting various weird photos about a fictitious "Clodine" romance between the Uncharted characters Chloe and Nadine: This was never mentioned in any past Uncharted games as a part of either characters' histories, yet they kept posting this stuff, which I thought is a curious use of ND's time given the controversies related to the brutal crunch that has ND personnel chained to their desks to meet deadlines. It's one thing to be accepting of everyone regarding race, gender, religion, sexual preference, ect., which I think most people in western industrialized nations generally are now to at least some degree. ND is getting pretty over the top with the virtue signalling and obsessions trying to make sure everyone knows just how much they are not bigots. To me it sounds rather phony and excessive like someone going way over the top trying to convince someone they aren't racist like "Oh, you're black? I have no problem with black people. I'm not racist. I went to school with some black people. They were just as smart as everyone else. I never had a problem with them. I think black people should have the same rights as everyone else. Did I mention I like black people?" It sounds cringey and feigned. Of course bigotry exists in the world, but this isn't the way I would ever interact with the public when someone has questionable or backward views. You're not going to win over anyone or teach anything with this angry tribal approach cursing out potential customers. I don't recall seeing this stuff when Amy Hennig was directing. I had no reason to think they were bigots in the first place and don't need to see them constantly putting on performative displays to show just how wonderfully progressive and free of bigotry they truly are. I've also read a lot of ND personnel have left and described it as a hostile working environment, getting harshly ridiculed and labeled as some sort of bigot if you dissented from them creatively. I don't have any problem with the poster in the gay bookstore in The Last of Us Part II I posted. That book reminded me of something we'd find in the nightmarish "Bedtime Stories" PvC thread. I thought it was a funny picture.
Kind of like the Harry Potter author going around saying everyone is gay or something? That’s fair. It’s really dumb and has nothing to do with anything. Pure pandering. Have you thought of the pairs romantic relationship as a sort of preemptive rule 34? Like if MLP made adult content suddenly to try and control the narrative with neck beards? Would be just as pandering, but maybe weird fan service?
Yeah, that's what I'm talking about, the excessive performative displays people are using to try to portray themselves as being so wonderful and enlightened. I don't see how that is helping anyone they pretend to advocate for. I'd be insulted if that type of obvious pandering was aimed towards me. Just treating everyone fairly and decently makes a lot more sense. Most people are afraid to even talk about these topics honestly anymore because you will get attacked and destroyed by the social media mobs. Instead they put on farcical, pandering displays about how accepting and inclusive they are.
I hear you. I watch a lot of tv these days. But I can’t stand being pandered to. Like EVERY major streaming service has a “black voices” section or something now. And don’t get me wrong, mizzle is a tankid. But where were these movies and documentaries during black history month? Netflix, I think, has always been inclusive (lots of original new foreign language stuff that I can’t stand because I hate subtitles and dubbed entertainment at this grumpy old man stage in my life). But the rest are pure virtue signaling and pandering.
I agree with you guys. 99% of inclusiveness and diversity I see is so people attached to the project can feel good about themselves. My favorite is when I see a TV show that takes place in the whitest corner of Whitesville but there will be a lone non-white or gay co-star out of nowhere. It just makes me laugh because it's tick the box diversity. CBS did a good job with he new Magnum PI. Iconic lead role played by a Hispanic American but it's made to fit properly instead of just meeting a checklist. CBS also had a show called Instinct that did a good job with a gay character. In the end the only way to really show support is to watch. Bean counters don't care about tweets. I bet most SJW types don't because they'll have to actually do something with their time.
I don't recall anyone mentioning that they've played Red Dead Redemption 2. I'm thinking of getting it for the PC but I haven't paid $60 for a game in a long time. Worth it?
It's really poorly optimized by all accounts. I was holding off on it until I upgrade. Might be fine on your 5700 XT.
I've read that patches have helped and that a 1080 can maintain 50 FPS. That's not too bad. Turning down a few setting can probably get it to 60 FPS.
I hated RDR yet still made the decision to buy RDR2, spent forever installing it and getting through the intro, then realised I hated it just as much and uninstalled. Always had a dislike for anything that makes you eat, drink and sleep, don't see the point in playing a game that wants to be a real life simulator.
Same here. It's not how the game runs as it's a technical masterpiece. It's just the game itself. Despite the open world, the plot is linear. Missions are awfully scripted, most missions are: shot couple of bad guys while you maintain your position, change position, repeat. Got like 2 trophies on PS3 in RDR1 years ago and then I put it away. I always thought something's wrong with me. It's not, RDR2 didn't get me either. Which I cannot easily explain as I love open world games, Skyrim, Witcher, Fallout, each Assassin's Creed. Couldn't stand Far Cries and Horizon, though. RDR is more like the two than Witcher.
I've been replaying Horizon: ZD at an easier setting on Pro to get one missing trophy (only missing one between the base game, DLC, and updates) and just enjoy replaying a great game at a more leisurely pace while I await new versions/ upgrades/ sequels. NG+ binds you to the difficulty due to that affecting the economies in the game (so you can't swap just to buy stuff from merchants cheap). I'm not doing more Hunting Grounds challenges on Ultra Hard. I love that difficulty setting but not for those. Only about 1% of people who played this game completed Ultra Hard, and doing more timed Hunting Ground challenges on that setting would be a nightmare. BTW, I noticed only 0.7% of people have completed Days Gone at the highest difficulty setting. I have, but now there is a trophy I don't have for doing it in NG+ from an update. I already did Survivor from a more difficult fresh start. Fantastic.
Halo Combat Evolved on Steam They did an excellent job of porting and modernizing this game. It's very well optimized, the graphics have been nicely updated, and the controls are smooth. This is an incredibly good game that still holds up well almost 20 years later. I still think it's one of the best first person shooters ever made and it was ahead of its time in a lot of ways. Also apparently the MCC did so well on Steam that 343 will be releasing Halo Infinite on Steam.
I'm a decent way into Greedfall on PS4 Pro, which recently became available through PS Now. If you like a Mass Effect-style RPG, the Mass Effect series itself isn't an option due to Bioware imploding but fortunately this is a decent alternative. It has more of a swords and sorcery setting, but it has a very similar style with upgrades and extra detail in dialogue trees and companion stories, including developing loyalty for each. The story is turning out to be more interesting than expected. Combat is unfortunately a bit clunky, but I've opted for a magic build so I don't need as much precision. Something about the animations seems a bit off to me; I think they didn't incorporate motion blur that makes 30 fps feel smoother and more pleasant to view. I think it's actually at a very stable frame rate but feels a lot lower compared to other 30 fps games like Ghost of Tsushima, which in reality probably drops more frames but looks smoother due to effects. A PS5 update to 60 fps would be nice. If Bioware was still in its prime, Greedfall would be accused of being more of a Mass Effect wannabe, but currently it's one of the only options for a similar experience and I'm glad to have it.
I started playing Call of Duty: Modern Warfare's Warzone battle royale mode recently, which wasn't in the game when I got it, and have 5 wins now in duos. This was my first win. I hadn't played a CoD multiplayer since around 2007 or 2008 and had been more of a Battlefield guy for these types of games.
Halo 2 Anniversary Editon on Steam I think they did a good job updating it. I had forgotten how much better the weapons are in #2 compared to CE. The battle rifle is an excellent addition. It’s a great replacement for the inaccurate and underpowered assault rifle from the first game.
I'm actually blown away by Halo 2 the more I play it. I can't get over how good of a job they did of updating and improving it. So far I'd say this is the crown jewel of the Halo collection. They took arguably the weakest game in the original Halo trilogy and improved it to where it might actually be the best now.
Ni No Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch. Surprisingly good. It’s like playing a Pokémon game set in a fairy tale fantasy world that’s in an anime. I very much feel like I’m playing an anime. I’m playing the remastered version on PS4. The story is typical boy saves world fare but it’s got some nice twists and riffs on the theme. Combat is cool. Just when I get used to it and really start ripping through a region they up the difficulty or add a new mechanic to throw me off again. It’s pretty hand holdy though. And especially so in the first 5-10 hours. And the spells outside of battle seem more like solutions to a puzzle than an in game ability. It could be super interesting to play if it were basically Skyrim. But it’s a Studio Ghibli so too bad for that. But for the combat and Pokémon level of creature training it’s very good. The story is nice and the world is tropey but fun. I started it because some article I read said it was like Muramasa (the old Wii game). It is nothing like Muramasa but it is fun. I really miss that game, I was pretty good at it. Might have to dig out the Wii (collecting dust in the closet smh) and find the disc. Also playing Luigis Mansion. Well, I’m watching my wife play and telling her how to beat some stuff and whatnot and jumping on as Guigi when the mood strikes or it gets hard. It’s pretty good. Not quite my thing though. It’s pretty inventive, how they do the rooms. The puzzles are good if not a little repetitive. I feel like a weird germaphobe that got locked in a whore house, vacuuming and black lighting everything. It’s kinda funny.
Hades on Switch. It’s a rogue like Bastion set in hell and Bastion was one of my favorites of years past. It’s real good. I’m not sure how it would play on a pc, but it’s nice on the Switch. I am playing normal mode with aim assist. I might turn that off to see how it goes. But I probably won’t like it as much without really messing with the stick settings. But it’s nice to see a game that gives regular power ups (some persistent some not) but is still beatable with timing and dodging skills. I’ve been playing the spear and chasing Zeus and Hermes powerups for a near invulnerable triple dash that also hits with lightning strikes. It’s a real fun game. Highly recommend after two days of play. +9/10 or whatever means real good game anymore. It’s got a story too. It plays out after your deaths. But it’s fully skippable if you want. I kinda like it. It’s got intrigue. It’s got humor. Graphics get busy but I detect no slowdowns. You guys have the eagle eye for that sort of thing anyways. But it’s a fixed camera which gets a little annoying when your in a tight spot but I got used to it. The action is fast so maybe fiddling with a camera stick would be bothersome. Comparing it to Bastion, I’d say it almost as good so far. However it does seem completely derivative. The combat may be faster, but it’s basically the same iso view with neato weapons. I’m sure most of the weapons will end up being mostly a rehash of Bastion. The powerups are very cool and probably where the game will shine. The story is probably better than Bastion... but it’s not told as well. Bastion had charm and gravitas. Hades has proclamations and voice acting. The setting is Hades. It’s a lot of doom and gloom and known entities. The settings so far has nothing on Bastion. And level design is, so far, kind of a disappointment. I mean, Bastion had some cool assed levels. But so far it’s just rooms that get rearranged. Maybe that’s a rogue like feature, but they could’ve done something with it. I played only a little Transistor. Couldn’t get into it. But Hades is real good so far.
Just got the end credits in Hades. Quite the game. The end scenes were nice. I probably should’ve beaten it a while ago but it’s a lot of fun to see how different builds and weapons play out. I still stand by my earlier assessment that Bastion was better. But Hades is quite good. Maybe a little easy to force certain builds and just spam a button in the middle of each level until you win. Or there was a guy who got a build where he literally didn’t have to press a button. But it is about gods and whatnot so whatevs. Still on standard difficulty with some additional difficulty modifiers to keep obtaining rewards. I might dig out transistor again or try their other game. This is satisfying my Muramasa itch though.
Command and Conquer Remastered I think they did a good job with it. They cleaned up the graphics a bit, but not so much that the games look dramatically different. CnC and Red Alert still hold up well today. Both have strong gameplay, excellent music, and good storytelling. I think the straight-forward nature of the gameplay in the old CnC games is one of their biggest strengths. They are easy to pick up and play but hard to master.