What are you playing?

[kurosagi01]

Some Need For Speed Payback screenshots.

 

[StrayKAT]

Rise of the Tomb Raider has QTEs at the end. I missed one and because I'm on Survivor Extreme, I have to replay about 30 minutes worth to get back to it. There's been four or five points this game has been very, very frustrating and all of them were due to bad game design (basically QTEs without being obvious so you have to guess what key you're supposed to push when and should you fail, game over).

If Tomb Raider was 5/10, Rise of the Tomb Raider is 6/10. It's better, but barely.

Tough crowd. Neither one of them are that mediocre to me.

 

[EntropyZ]

Tough crowd. Neither one of them are that mediocre to me.

I played the first reboot, it was okay, slightly less enjoyable on higher difficulties. But the game was half of stuff already in other third-person based games. I didn't need a review to tell me that the next game would be more of the same, it's not a game for everybody. While it tries to keep the fans of the franchise happy, there's a lot of stuff that panders to the larger demographic of gamers.

Certainly above average, but nothing groundbreaking since it just ticks the boxes on a criteria list and that's it.

There's the argument of "well if you want a game that has "this mechanic" done better go play "that" game then. I like games that combine all of the elements together to create something that is multi-faceted, I guess is the word? But the Tomb Raider reboot games either aren't trying those extremes or all of the gameplay is spread too thin on the surface and it just seems like another AAA title that doesn't set itself apart that much.

How much of new Assassin's Creed games can be directly compared to the Tomb Raider reboot series I wonder, I haven't played anything other than the original game, but from videos I've seen they quite a bit in common. I guess that's just the DNA that runs down the line, so to speak.

A game might do one thing really well, but everything else might suffer because of that.

 

[StrayKAT]

I played the first reboot, it was okay, slightly less enjoyable on higher difficulties. But the game was half of stuff already in other third-person based games. I didn't need a review to tell me that the next game would be more of the same, it's not a game for everybody. While it tries to keep the fans of the franchise happy, there's a lot of stuff that panders to the larger demographic of gamers.

I don't disagree with any of that.. but it's still better than mediocre. At least to me, mediocre is a shitty game that merely "works" (isn't outright broken.. I'll reserve lower ratings for those).

 

[Keullo-e]

The Legend of Dragoon (PS1)

Oh boy, haven't played this for about 16 years, so it feels like a totally new game to me, don't remember about the plot very much. I remember that I got to the last disc, but never completed the game. Still using the same controller as back in the day, about 6 hours playtime and I started yesterday.

 

[FordGT90Concept]

While it tries to keep the fans of the franchise happy...

It does? Seems to me like it's a Metroid game with Tomb Raider branding except Metroid never did anything particularly annoying like stealing control from the player on a regular basis.

I don't disagree with any of that.. but it's still better than mediocre. At least to me, mediocre is a shitty game that merely "works" (isn't outright broken.. I'll reserve lower ratings for those).

Bugs? Yeah, crashed twice (both times while at a campfire and it did not save), was running during a hard hang too (still not sure what that was about), I've had to reload checkpoints several times in order to reset gamebreaking issues.

TL;DR:
1) Bugs
2) Poor game design (still kept some QTEs but didn't actually put it on the screen except for once, stealing focus away from the player, camera forced into perspectives that are disorienting for the player, and unbalanced combat)
3) Crashing
4) Stupid controls (like having to zoom twice using different keys to lock)
5) Boring, predictable, totally forgettable story
6) Lootboxes

I finished it and I take it back, 5/10 at the best. Forgot about lootboxes.

 

[EntropyZ]

It does? Seems to me like it's a Metroid game with Tomb Raider branding except Metroid never did anything particularly annoying like stealing control from the player on a regular basis.



I finished it.

I think that's enough that you were able to finish it considering how you felt about it. I guess that's all one can ask for. Roast noted.

I remember me trying to play on a higher difficulty, but I didn't enjoy the game that much. By the time I beat a few areas the feeling was creeping in that I was playing the same damn thing. There's nothing dynamic about the game. Same enemy and item placements, nothing is different the second time you try it. I didn't feel like continuing to replay it.

I love having replay value of some sort, I always praise a game that is ever changing and you can find things 3-10 years down the line while replaying it to find something new.

Even something as linear as Resident Evil 4 or 5 has a new game+. That alone can warrant a second or maybe even third replay just to get the ultimate unlocks. Though if you didn't like the game already, one might not even try and just uninstall after getting the ending.

Some games can drag on for too long and without being refreshing, you keep thinking to yourself "when is the damn end of the game?". I've had these sort of moments but quite rarely.

 

[StrayKAT]

I don't remember crashing once, but ymmv, I suppose. Definitely not going to dispute your own experience. And content wise, I think they set out what they intended to do.. so it wasn't broken on that front either. This is one of the biggest pet peeves for me in games, and Tomb Raider isn't guilty of it. It's why I'll knock an otherwise fairly playable game like Mass Effect 3 - because I know what they originally intended for it... and that wasn't it.

 

[FordGT90Concept]

I remember me trying to play on a higher difficulty, but I didn't enjoy the game that much.

Combat was piss simple on the hardest difficulty (maybe used healing 15 times in the entire game, 80% of those in the final fight where you can get surrounded and the remaining 20% was when I *really* didn't want to replay an area again). It's the lack of checkpoints that's stupid so when you fail those hidden QTEs (only one was combat related, the rest were environmental without warning/indicators/direction), you got to do a crapload to get back to where you were.

By the time I beat a few areas the feeling was creeping in that I was playing the same damn thing.

Because the game has no replay value.


I edited post putting in a list. Thinking back, it's much worse than I give it credit for. I still have to do some expansions to do for it.

 

[rtwjunkie]

Tough crowd. Neither one of them are that mediocre to me.

Agreed. ROTR is a 7.5 to 7.9 in my book.

On another note, I have finished We Happy Few. Pretty much played it with all three characters as homicidal maniacs.

The game basically pushes you that direction anyway. Sure you can sneak, and there are non-lethal weapons, but I learned early on there are zero penalties to just eliminating all these hateful people in the game. And your crimes are only line of sight, so elimate witnesses and move on with all your loot to complete your objective!

 

[Canon]

Agreed. ROTR is a 7.5 to 7.9 in my book.

On another note, I have finished We Happy Few. Pretty much played it with all three characters as homicidal maniacs.

The game basically pushes you that direction anyway. Sure you can sneak, and there are non-lethal weapons, but I learned early on there are zero penalties to just eliminating all these hateful people in the game. And your crimes are only line of sight, so elimate witnesses and move on with all your loot to complete your objective!

I'm still waiting to come back to this, I got as far as the city (forget the name) for the first time and can't reach the first objective without being beaten to death

 

[StrayKAT]

Agreed. ROTR is a 7.5 to 7.9 in my book.

On another note, I have finished We Happy Few. Pretty much played it with all three characters as homicidal maniacs.

The game basically pushes you that direction anyway. Sure you can sneak, and there are non-lethal weapons, but I learned early on there are zero penalties to just eliminating all these hateful people in the game. And your crimes are only line of sight, so elimate witnesses and move on with all your loot to complete your objective!

I think I'll get it next month. Don't laugh, but I may just get it through MS' store too. I already have a handful of titles I like through there.

 

[EntropyZ]

I finished up with Homeworld: Cataclysm. It was good and just the right kind of challenge. Even for a game in the 2000-ish era. It didn't end up as something that's difficult as some say about 90-00 era games.

I do however remember getting stuck on some of the early missions when I was young, for someone who barely knew English, some of those games simply cannot be beaten due to language barrier as it is crucial to understanding mission objectives.

Anyway, by the time the ending cinematic and credits rolled on I was wanting more... I really liked how you just start as a measly "mining party" and then you slowly build up around this skeleton ship and research more powerful technologies and build a fleet that just steamrolls over Carriers and SuperFrigates like they're made of paper. It was beautiful to watch, especially when the units can be customized with your own personal color scheme.

I think I might be ready for HW2, but I should probably rest a little. Because I remember when I started the Remastered collection I when I finished the original game and I started HW2 immediately after that, I stopped playing for some reason and don't remember exactly why. I think I might have just needed a to take a "brain vacation" or something.

I've also reached the end of a 3rd playthrough of S.T.A.LK.E.R CoC. But there's an urge to continue on for some reason. I think the Zone that gotten to me. I pick a different faction but I always end up changing to Ecologists just so I can avoid some fights. Although if I did take followers from another faction, they get shot at and all I can do is watch them get put down like dogs, I sometimes even try to prolong the fighting by reviving everyone just to see who will come out on top.

I think I'm sticking with the game until I get tired of it completely and let it sit on the hard drive until I feel like replaying again. I could break the cycle by trying out something new, but it's like being homesick and you go back to it even though you've gone on this path a lot of times before.

Still mustering the courage to complete Forsaken, DOOM (2016 - Nightmare difficulty), Dishonored, Resident Evil 7, StarCraft II: Mass Recall and BioShock.

Edit: Finished Dishonored this morning with low chaos. Ehh the ending was about as I expected. At least I'm finally done with the game after 2 years.

I have a job interview tomorrow, maybe it's not the best time to think about games right now.

 

[rtwjunkie]

This was fun.... Those lasers also moved fairly quickly, so in addition to crouching and jumping, you had to do it quickly and keep moving.

The always sarcastically nice bobbies.

Ollie was the most fun to play because he was wacked already from the war. Everyone hates him and the feeling is mutual.

Some of Ollie's handiwork.... Several adjacent streets look the same. Morning came and Bobbies appeared to begin investigating, which consisted of looking and worrying.

EDIT: Revised pictures to smaller. I put up the big ones accidentally the first time.

 

[FordGT90Concept]

Finished Rise of the Tomb Raider: Blood Ties. For basically being a walking simulator, it was pretty good. Loved that they put the manor music from Tomb Raider II in there. Sad there's no Winston to bump-fart. Reminds me that the reboot takes itself way too seriously.


I'll probably do Lara's Nightmare tomorrow.

 

[StrayKAT]

Reminds me that the reboot takes itself way too seriously.

That I agree on. It's written by a woman btw.. who takes her seriously and wanted Lara to be a lesbian to boot. Not that I have anything wrong with that direction for stories, but it's like... this is the one of more cheesy (albeit beloved) franchises in gaming history.. up there with Mario and the rest.. and specifically made for horny teen males. This was made during the Voodoo era.... when "boobies" were a specific and unapologetic selling point. It wasn't meant to be a drama or even a serious action story. edit: Hell, I'm not even sure Indiana Jones was meant to be taken seriously either. It was intentionally pulpy.... sans the boobies.

 

[FordGT90Concept]

This was made during the Voodoo era.... when "boobies" were a specific and unapologetic selling point.

More like they didn't have a big enough pixel budget to ad nuance so they exaggerated the chests of females to differentiate them from males. Pretty much all games of the era did that.

It wasn't meant to be a drama or even a serious action story.

The Witness is more like classic Tomb Raider than Tomb Raider/Rise of the Tomb Raider was/is. Tomb Raider was a puzzle game first, action game second. That fact was lost in translation long ago.

 

[StrayKAT]

More like they didn't have a big enough pixel budget to ad nuance so they exaggerated the chests of females to differentiate them from males. Pretty much all games of the era did that.
=.

Dude... she's extremely well endowed. No way that was a mistake.

And then when they got a chance to remaster (Anniversary) they went a step further and added jiggly physics.

 

[FordGT90Concept]

Tomb Raider I, II, III were made with the same engine that didn't have much polygon budget. After that, instead of making the chest less pointy by taking the inside diameter of the arc, they used the outside diameter. The result was making Lara ridiculously endowed and they stuck with it until the reboot.

 

[StrayKAT]

In any case, I'm not overly against it.. unlike Feminist Frequency or something, I think Lara Croft is a standout, "strong" female lead.. and not merely there for the "male gaze". I just wanted to point out it's lighthearted origins.. and the crowd of gamers that was popular back then (and still popular.. even if ignored. One just has to look at the Skyrim modding community to see that gamers' minds are still in the gutter lol).

edit: I like Skyrim's vanilla look btw! Just saying..

 

[FordGT90Concept]

Among the first, Lara Croft was. It was repulsive how the reboot degraded that character into a whiny little girl....

Did you notice the physical size of women in Rise of the Tomb Raider compared to their male counterparts? It's like they used 6'4" for male models and 5'0" for female. It looks so ridiculous how all the men in the game lord over all of the women. Women tend to only be a few inches shorter than their male counterparts. Add in the fact that this is supposedly a secluded tribe of humanity, it's beyond ridiculous.

It's like the reboot does *everything* it can to weaken and desexualize women. It's so backwards not only in terms of the character, but reality too.


Yeah, TES has always striked a nice balance between the sexes. Namely, it starts from the foundation that players can be anything so as a function of player agency, they don't make either sex overpowering nor underpowered. That is translated to all NPCs (friend and foe alike).

 

[StrayKAT]

Among the first, Lara Croft was. It was repulsive how the reboot degraded that character into a whiny little girl....

Did you notice the physical size of women in Rise of the Tomb Raider compared to their male counterparts? It's like they used 6'4" for male models and 5'0" for female. It looks so ridiculous how all the men in the game lord over all of the women. Women tend to only be a few inches shorter than their male counterparts. Add in the fact that this is supposedly a secluded tribe of humanity, it's beyond ridiculous.

It's like the Reboot does *everything* it can to weaken and desexualize women. It's so backwards no only in terms of the character, but reality too.

Hehe... I can't say I noticed. I'm already 6'5" myself actually. Story of my life. But I love tall women... wish there were more of them.

 

[FordGT90Concept]

Just look at a cutscene of Jacob talking to Sofia or Lara. They don't even come up to his chin. He's always looking down at them. Same goes for Konstantin and Ana or Jonah and Lara. This is literally the only game I ever noticed it in; it's that glaringly lopsided.

 

[StrayKAT]

Just look at a cutscene of Jacob talking to Sofia or Lara. They don't even come up to his chin. He's always looking down at them. Same goes for Konstantin and Ana or Jonah and Lara. This is literally the only game I ever noticed it in; it's that glaringly lopsided.

Well, she still kicks ass.. so I wouldn't say it's exactly weak.

The one thing I do find myself agreeing with Sarkeesian is outright "helplessness".. the damsel archetype (which Lara definitely doesn't live up to). She rightly points out the bad trend of that in games (and other stories). I don't think it needs to be entirely rid of though... some people do need saving. And I don't agree with all of her examples. It's like she doesn't even play all the games she criticizes. I remember she railed against Dragon Age Origins in particular... the City Elf story, where they get kidnapped and there is attempted rape in the origin story. But she was disingenuous and only played a male City Elf. The female City Elf is a badass. She's Beatrix Kiddo from Kill Bill... in fantasy form.

edit: Sorry, a bit off topic. Lara is still cool.. but maybe it would help if she was a 5-10-ish athletic type of hero.

 

[FordGT90Concept]

Well yes, but none of the art reflects that. It's like the art department completely forgot who they were modelling. Even the writing is overtly emotional and not cold-hearted badass. They surround the pile of corpses in Lara's wake with flower wreaths. The disconnect between everything in the reboots is so...striking. They want to reimagine the character as something else entirely and the characters actions betray that goal.

I mean, if you look at the original Lara Croft and try to create a backstory leading to it, it makes far more sense that Lara turned depression from her mother's death into anger, ended up at military camp (probably SAS) where she got her combat chops, and when her father died as well, it developed into "the world is mine" attitude--not this cushy, fluffy stuff the reboot is dumping on us. How does someone pampered for their childhood end up killing hundreds of men and romping through ancient bones? This is not the modus operandi of a social elite turned adventurer; it's the trademarks of a possessive psychopath.