Video Game Reviews: What Are You Playing?

[nate]

I didn't buy the first Battlefront and won't be buying the second one for the same reason.  Even the first one cost you $200 in order to play all the DLC that was available within the first couple months.

My GTX 970 died so I bought a new 1080 that came with a free copy of Destiny 2.  Looking forward to trying it out.

[mulwin444]

2 hours ago, nate said:

I didn't buy the first Battlefront and won't be buying the second one for the same reason.  Even the first one cost you $200 in order to play all the DLC that was available within the first couple months.

My GTX 970 died so I bought a new 1080 that came with a free copy of Destiny 2.  Looking forward to trying it out.

Yeah, I bought the digital deluxe edition way after release for like $25 (?) because my kids were really into Star Wars at that time and wanted to play it together so the price point wasn't  painful but I can't imagine paying full price ($70 for the deluxe edition at launch I believe plus another $50 (?) for the season pass) for no SP campaign and "decent" multiplayer.  Talk about cashing on nostalgia.  The game was rightfully praised and criticized for the right reasons but "Battlefront II" was DICE's/EA's chance to put those issues in the rear view mirror with a flawless release.  Instead, the reaction is worse because they are blatantly not acting in good faith and are being called out for it.  Despite what happens from here on out, this will be part of the game's legacy and could impact other similar future releases from EA/DICE/Motive/BioWare/Respawn as, according to reports, EA is trying to find ways to add this monetizing to every game they are going to put out in the future.  Additionally, besides the "loud" criticism in the community regarding these practices, Activision/Blizzard made $3.6 billion on microtransactions last fiscal year so they are probably not seeing much incentive NOT to stop the practice.    

[nate]

 

[Brandon]

gta is the same, but at least feasible to play on your own and not spend real money if you don't want to. but during a quarterly business conference call they said they make a million a day on in game purchases. it's basically changed their business model. with all the money coming in they kept dropping a ton of free content for the past however many years.

interested to see how they handle this with red dead.

[UndertheHalo]

i got the battlefront game cause i love running around and playing star wars shit.  a lot of the heat is fair and valid.  EA fucking sucks.  But they have responded to at least some of the criticism. Its really not that difficult to get Luke and Vader.  I think I raised the 15k credits in like an hour and half, 2 hours maybe ? if you play the challenges and objectives its not that hard.  I usually play an hour or 2 in the evening before i got to bed.  So it took me 2 nights.  That was with all the bonus credits and shit though.  We'll see how long it takes to raise another 15k.

As far as the game itself.  Look, if you want to run around in a legit looking star wars battle, its great ! Yesterday i played a battle that was in the 3rd prequel.  I think its the wookie home planet.  It was a lot of fun to do that.  So, if thats something that will entertain you, you'll enjoy the game.  Its not a competitive shooter though.  As far as I can tell, the weapons all feel the same within the class.  For example, the storm trooper rifle, feels exactly the same as the battle droid rifle.  Same for the other classes.  The distinction seems to be class based only.  Which is 2 bad because theres like a million guns in the game.  Maybe i need to just unlock more of them ? Which brings us to the loot box problem.  its lame as fuck.  What an awful way to unlock new shit. Anyway, thats the big complaint right.  The whole game is built to make you spend more money.  its like star wars candy crush in that way.  Which is too bad. 

The best thing imo is the starfighter mode.  Vastly improved over the 1st one.  Anyway, like I said.  The game has its issues, but if you want to run around in the star wars universe.  you can have plenty of fun. 

Edited November 17, 2017 by UndertheHalo

[Blarg]

It took you so little time because they already adjusted the player reward times. It used to be a minimum of 40 hours of play time per character unlock.

[Blarg]

14 hours ago, Brandon said:

gta is the same, but at least feasible to play on your own and not spend real money if you don't want to. but during a quarterly business conference call they said they make a million a day on in game purchases. it's basically changed their business model. with all the money coming in they kept dropping a ton of free content for the past however many years.

interested to see how they handle this with red dead.

They will probably make you buy bullets or you can enjoy the satisfaction of personal achievement by running around with a folding pocket knife to stab people to see if you can earn some. 

[Jobu]

On 11/16/2017 at 5:40 AM, nate said:

I didn't buy the first Battlefront and won't be buying the second one for the same reason.  Even the first one cost you $200 in order to play all the DLC that was available within the first couple months.

My GTX 970 died so I bought a new 1080 that came with a free copy of Destiny 2.  Looking forward to trying it out.

Wuss...

http://www.pcgamer.com/watch-this-guy-play-destiny-2-on-an-integrated-intel-gpu/

 

[UndertheHalo]

17 minutes ago, Blarg said:

It took you so little time because they already adjusted the player reward times. It used to be a minimum of 40 hours of play time per character unlock.

Right, I had read that before.  It’s good that at least on some level they’re responding to criticism.  The game is fun and worth playing if you’re a fan of Star Wars. 

[UndertheHalo]

On 11/16/2017 at 5:40 AM, nate said:

I didn't buy the first Battlefront and won't be buying the second one for the same reason.  Even the first one cost you $200 in order to play all the DLC that was available within the first couple months.

My GTX 970 died so I bought a new 1080 that came with a free copy of Destiny 2.  Looking forward to trying it out.

I think you’ll enjoy Destiny 2.  I love it and am really looking forward to how the game develops.  Destiny 1 after taken king was like a different game. So a lot of the criticism was fair with that game.  I enjoyed it and did cough up the money but it was lame. Destiny 1 at launch was guilty of lacking content.  But I don’t think that’s true in Destiny 2.  There’s plenty to do in the game right now.  I don’t mind buying expansions if there is significant new content being added.  So hopefully it follows the same trajectory as the 1st one as far as expansions. 

[UndertheHalo]

Figured you guys would get a kick out of this with all the battlefront 2 drama. 

 

Edited November 23, 2017 by UndertheHalo

[Brandon]

ps store dropped early Black Friday today. a bunch of games and movies heavily discounted. might grab nba2k since it's $40.

[mrwicked]

i want to get the new snes classic.

i have the nes classic and played it a couple times. was a blast to school my 8 year old nephew and teach him the tricks to mike tyson's punch out. 

[nate]

41 minutes ago, mrwicked said:

i want to get the new snes classic.

i have the nes classic and played it a couple times. was a blast to school my 8 year old nephew and teach him the tricks to mike tyson's punch out. 

Just get a raspberry pi and set it up with retropi.  costs the same and has 500x the games.

[The Dude]

Personally, i'm fed up with the "loot crates"/gambling boxes. Its widespread in the gaming industry now and only seems to be getting worse. its as if they build games around crates and microtransactions these days.

Yeah i guess its nice that EA made some changes for BF2, but come on, they knew what they were doing. This isn't their first rodeo. It took gamers a very short time to notice how fucked the economy in the game was and yet, the company who designed and has been working on the system for the last two years didn't intend for it to come out the way it did? Sorry, that's BS. They thought they could get away with it and gamers weren't having it. 

I know its not just EA, but they've got to be the leader in gambling crates, i swear every game with their name on it has crates in it. Hell, they changed the gearing system in the MMO i play(a Bioware/EA product) in the last year, after 5 years of a perfectly fine gearing system where you would earn a token from doing whatever group content which you would then turn in for the gear you wanted or needed to a random loot crate system. It destroyed the community,  it got so bad they they were forced to merge 20 servers a couple weeks ago, down to 5.

[mulwin444]

So, Video Game Peeps, what are your top 10 games this year.  In no particular order:

1)  Mass Effect: Andromeda - Put the most hours into this one overall.  As a Mass Effect and BioWare fan, it definitely scratched the "SciFi RPG" itch but wasn't as realized in terms of narrative and character development as the original "Mass Effect Trilogy", the "Dragon Age" series, or their "Star Wars: The Old Republic" MMO.  However, if does posses some of the best combat and main narrative set-pieces they've ever done.  At $19 for the game, there is really no reason to not give it a shot.

2)  Horizon: Zero Dawn - Some open world games are just, well, open, with lots of busy stuff to do like the more recent Assassin's Creed games, while others bring something new, compelling and different to the table.  Guerrilla games have done the latter with this one and its a lot of fun.  Although the main protagonists choices are somewhat limited in comparison to more tradition RPGs, the story and world are interesting enough to keep you engaged and the combat is definitely a plus.  The game is sold now at a discount with the first DLC included and  worth the investment.

3)  Wolfenstein II - I don't normally go for "First Person Shooter" experiences but nostalgia got the better of me and grabbed this one when it came out...glad I did.  The combat is brutal, visceral and fun while the characters and story keep you emotionally engaged.  I enjoyed it so much I got the "The New Order/Old Blood" combo pack to fill in the blanks and allow more time in that universe.  While not as good as "Wolfenstein II", they are worth playing and, right now, you can get all three games under $50.

4)  Assassin's Creed: Origins - After the fun I had with "AC: IV Black Flag" and look forward to future installments of the franchise with much anticipation.  However, "AC: Unity" was an almost unplayable buggy mess at launch while "Syndicate", while different, didn't have compelling protagonists and old London Town's map suffered from side-quest-itis.  AC:Origins, though, a step back in the right direction.  Not only is it visually stunning, especially when the XBox One X is paired with an UHD 4K TV, the game mechanics, characters, and focus have all been revamped to revitalize a decade-old franchise despite the over-reliance at times to fill out the map with side diversions.  I've seen some solid deals on XBox Live for this one so I'd pick it up if you have an interest.

5)  Persona 5 - I've never been into JRPGs, never played a Persona game, and the only game I've ever played by Altus - "Catherine" - had mini-puzzles that made we want to throw my controller through my TV so it was with great skepticism that I read the sterling reviews.  Still, when the price was right, I gave it a shot and was glad I did.  The game is quirky, stylistic and fun as you alternate between a mundane, daytime existence to a alternate nighttime dimension filled with conflict and danger where characters and story are emphasized.  I can't say it's for everyone but it won me over and I definitely recommend it.  

6)  Cuphead - This one caught my eye during its XBox E3 announcement last year due to its unique retro art style and seemingly plat-former sensibilities.  Everything about this one shines - the music, the play, the visuals - its a winner with its only drawback being it can be a little too difficult at times so, yeah, if you grab this one be prepared to die a lot.  Still, it's a blast and worth the $20 download.

7)  Nier Automata - I took a look at the main character on the box art and my first impressions were "WTF is this Japanese teenage boys' fapping feverdream?".  Looks were deceiving in this case as, underneath the engaging combat and world, is some solid storytelling.  Definitely one of the more unique gaming experiencing I've had in a while.

8)  The Evil Within 2 - After it was announced that Shinji Mikami, the creator of the "Resident Evil" series, was doing something new in the survival horror genre with the first "The Evil Within" title I was pretty excited.  Ultimately, though, the game turned out to be more "nice try" as opposed "wow" to the point the announced sequel didn't really hang in my radar.  Maybe it was lowered expectations but I felt this one was leaps and bounds better than its predecessor and gave me renewed hope for the series.  

9)  Resident Evil 7 - Speaking of "Resident Evil", after some rather forgettable entries into the series since the phenomenal "Resident Evil IV", you almost forgot that Capcom was still capable of creating survival horror worth your time but this one brings the series back to the creepy thrill of its previous entries.  

10)  South Park: The Fractured But Whole - If you liked "Stick of Truth" and just "South Park" in general, this is the game for you.  It has everything you'd expect from the South Park creators along with an engaging RPG and combat system.    

I don't have a PC or a Switch so I can't speak to any games on those platforms but I have heard amazing things about "Divinity: Original Sin II", "Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wold", and "Super Mario World" as well.  

[Blarg]

Where do you find time for all these games?

[mulwin444]

4 hours ago, Blarg said:

Where do you find time for all these games?

I just have the internet, no cable TV, so the kids and I will play games instead of watch TV.  Wife is the odd one out...she has her Korean Soap Operas 

[Blarg]

If you have the internet you have free TV options. 

[mulwin444]

18 minutes ago, Blarg said:

If you have the internet you have free TV options. 

Yeah, we have Roku, Chromecast, Firestick, etc if there something we definitely have to watch.  Just seems we've run into some solid games this year.  2018 has some titles like Anthem and Red Dead Revolver 2 to keep me occupied as well haha 

[nate]

I have just been playing Overwatch when I have free time.

I have PUBG, Destiny 2 and Fortnite but haven't tried any of them out yet.

[mulwin444]

1 hour ago, nate said:

I have just been playing Overwatch when I have free time.

I have PUBG, Destiny 2 and Fortnite but haven't tried any of them out yet.

Since you're a fan of Overwatch, PUBG, Destiny 2, etc, curious of your take in regards to the recent microtransaction/Paid DLC controversies that have sprung up, with each game obviously having their own "issue" (Overwatch had some push-back regarding the cost of their Overwatch League "skins", Destiny 2 has had issues related to Bungie  manipulating XP and locking content behind paywalls, PUBG is having issues with hacking/cheats and potential for their own lootboxes).

Obviously, due to the IP, EA and Battlefront II have been in the news the most, but monetization is a big subject in terms of how video game publishers are trying to generate more profit on their games post-release, so-called "games as a service", in an effort to keep them alive.  EA's response to the controversy, at Disney's insistence, was to suspend it's lootbox economy and, at the same time, EA also noted to investors that suspension of microtransactions will not impact their economic projections for the game.  To me, it's rather contradictory to introduce an in-game economy hoping to generate revenue while at the same time claiming its almost not deemed to have an impact on your bottom line at some point. Additionally, I'm not sure how you could not consider it gambling in some form when you pay money for a lootbox that may or may not give you the item you are looking for through the purchase.  I know some have compared them to buying a pack of cards at a store but you actually have the option to buy the whole set outright if you want in lieu of buying packs and chancing duplicates.

My own experience with this was when I bought the digital Super Deluxe edition of Mass Effect Andromeda and, as part of the package, it came with 25 weeks worth of their "Elite" boxes, with 1 box dropping weekly.  I remember opening these boxes and getting about 60% duplicate items, lots of common, some rare, and 1 or 2 upper tier/legendary items.  That's roughly 200 items in those "Elite" boxes with around 1% return that wasn't general maintenance items or repeats.  Consequently, I've never bought any lootboxes for that or any other game that wad tied to random chance.

Just curious of your thoughts as a fan... 

 

[Blarg]

Speaking of loot boxes and Destiny 2. I having been getting pretty much duplicates of exotics since the start. The DLC drop back a few months ago produced a couple new exotics but for the most part it is the same items repeated. 

I don't have a group of raid people to try and exploit the multi-player team raids so I'm probably locked out of those items. So I've only been able to see about half of the weapon or armor options in my inventory, of which I only use about six items split between two characters. 

[nate]

5 hours ago, mulwin444 said:

Since you're a fan of Overwatch, PUBG, Destiny 2, etc, curious of your take in regards to the recent microtransaction/Paid DLC controversies that have sprung up, with each game obviously having their own "issue" (Overwatch had some push-back regarding the cost of their Overwatch League "skins", Destiny 2 has had issues related to Bungie  manipulating XP and locking content behind paywalls, PUBG is having issues with hacking/cheats and potential for their own lootboxes).

Obviously, due to the IP, EA and Battlefront II have been in the news the most, but monetization is a big subject in terms of how video game publishers are trying to generate more profit on their games post-release, so-called "games as a service", in an effort to keep them alive.  EA's response to the controversy, at Disney's insistence, was to suspend it's lootbox economy and, at the same time, EA also noted to investors that suspension of microtransactions will not impact their economic projections for the game.  To me, it's rather contradictory to introduce an in-game economy hoping to generate revenue while at the same time claiming its almost not deemed to have an impact on your bottom line at some point. Additionally, I'm not sure how you could not consider it gambling in some form when you pay money for a lootbox that may or may not give you the item you are looking for through the purchase.  I know some have compared them to buying a pack of cards at a store but you actually have the option to buy the whole set outright if you want in lieu of buying packs and chancing duplicates.

My own experience with this was when I bought the digital Super Deluxe edition of Mass Effect Andromeda and, as part of the package, it came with 25 weeks worth of their "Elite" boxes, with 1 box dropping weekly.  I remember opening these boxes and getting about 60% duplicate items, lots of common, some rare, and 1 or 2 upper tier/legendary items.  That's roughly 200 items in those "Elite" boxes with around 1% return that wasn't general maintenance items or repeats.  Consequently, I've never bought any lootboxes for that or any other game that wad tied to random chance.

Just curious of your thoughts as a fan... 

 

I honestly don't have much of an opinion on it.  Overwatch and Hearthstone are the only games that I have invested time into that had that system.  For Hearthstone it was pretty annoying just because any time you look up a deck online there would be cards you don't have, so you either have to invest a lot of time doing the daily/weekly quests or you have to spend money and hope for good RNG.

Overwatch just uses the loot boxes for purely cosmetic stuff which I really don't care about so it doesn't bother me.

Overall I think micro-transactions are a pretty shitty system for consumers, I mostly avoid games that rely heavily on them, just like the games that come out with new DLC every other month like the Battlefront games.  You pay $60 for a game and then have to invest another $100 over the year just to keep playing it.  I got Destiny 2 and Fortnite for free, otherwise I wouldn't have spent money on them.  PUBG was only $30 and it looks fun.  Maybe I will play it some day.

[mulwin444]

3 minutes ago, nate said:

I honestly don't have much of an opinion on it.  Overwatch and Hearthstone are the only games that I have invested time into that had that system.  For Hearthstone it was pretty annoying just because any time you look up a deck online there would be cards you don't have, so you either have to invest a lot of time doing the daily/weekly quests or you have to spend money and hope for good RNG.

Overwatch just uses the loot boxes for purely cosmetic stuff which I really don't care about so it doesn't bother me.

Overall I think micro-transactions are a pretty shitty system for consumers, I mostly avoid games that rely heavily on them, just like the games that come out with new DLC every other month like the Battlefront games.  You pay $60 for a game and then have to invest another $100 over the year just to keep playing it.  I got Destiny 2 and Fortnite for free, otherwise I wouldn't have spent money on them.  PUBG was only $30 and it looks fun.  Maybe I will play it some day.

Apparently PUBG is a fun "Battle Royale" multiplayer that functions best on PC but they are patching it pretty quickly on XBox One.  I may grab it at some point but am less inclined to pick Destiny 2 until Bungie works out the big changes to the Eveverse and post-release DLC content they've announced recently.  As for Overwatch, as long at your not paying for a competitive edge through the lootboxes, that's fair.