LazBro
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Post by LazBro on Mar 1, 2021 11:25:21 GMT -5
Nioh 2 has more systems than any action game I have ever played. I thought Code Vein was busy, but this is just hilarious. I'm not disliking it, but the sheer "stuff" of it all is repelling me somewhat. It is also very hard, but that goes with the territory.
What Nioh 2 and, to a lesser extent, Code Vein have revealed to me is just how simple the Souls games are. Like it's funny that they're famed for their complexity, when compared to something like Nioh 2 where you have: - Your standard light and heavy attacks, block, dodge, stamina meter and health recovery item. Though it's finite, no estus. More like Demon's Souls.
- 8 distinct weapon types, each with their own full combo lists and skill trees
- 3 stances for every weapon type that can be changed on the fly and offer different move sets, range, damage and stamina consumption
- A choice of Yokai form with its own move sets and abilities, and which charges on its own meter (probably a skill tree too, but I haven't earned a point yet)
- Special attack timing for different stagger results, differing also by weapon, stance and Yokai form
- Active stamina recovery mechanic (like Gears of War's timed reloads) - Enemies that frequently create fields which hinder your damage and stamina recovery - The ability to dissipate those fields through said stamina recovery mechanic - Special Yokai attacks which can be used in human form and which help charge your Yokai transformation gauge (these special attacks also have their own gauges) - Standard XP-based stat leveling, but with something like 5 different stats which influence weapon damage, based on the weapon - MASSIVE skill trees, including one for each weapon type (with sub-trees by form stance) as well as fighting ... style? Honestly I don't even know - Skill tree points coming from a variety of sources: through leveling, through use of certain abilities or weapons, etc - A full loot system more akin to Diablo than Souls, with regulars, rares, exotics, random drops - A bananas shop system in which you can "offer" (sell) your equipment to a shrine in exchange for points toward items in the shop, some of which can be set to auto-purchase whenever you rest
- Shrine "gifts" which you purchase and which are boons that provide a benefit while you play a level, such as increased XP or item find - Oh and those boons can be improved by finding little spirits out in the levels - Synergy bonuses for armor sets which confer special benefits when wearing multiple pieces of a single set (they're GOOD benefits too) - And I can't really speak to it, because I haven't unlocked it yet, but I know that there's a full blacksmith system, and what a surprise, it's a fucking lot
Meanwhile, Dark Souls is just run up and stab, stab, dodge, stab, block, stab. You can barely engage with Dark Souls at all. You can play it as a pure action game, as I do, and you can beat it pretty easily. Nioh 2 feels ... not that way. I guess you could compare it to Sekiro in that it is much more insistent that you learn and play by its rules. Though Sekiro is a much simpler game.
Now to be clear I'm not saying there's anything wrong with Nioh 2. I'm just not sure this preponderance of mechanics is right for me. I'll keep banging my head against it though.
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patbat
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Post by patbat on Mar 25, 2021 11:52:05 GMT -5
Demon's Souls 2020: I got in a couple hours' playtime last night. I have to admit, I was originally very skeptical of the art style change, but in motion it totally works. So far I am still more fond of the original chamber-orchestra score than the new full-orchestra score, though.
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patbat
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Post by patbat on Mar 27, 2021 23:15:55 GMT -5
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patbat
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Post by patbat on May 18, 2021 0:30:53 GMT -5
It's rare that I see a meme targeted so squarely at me Attachments:
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LazBro
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Post by LazBro on May 25, 2021 9:01:04 GMT -5
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Invisible Goat
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Post by Invisible Goat on May 29, 2021 23:04:52 GMT -5
Queen Yharnam is slain and the platinum is mine  |
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patbat
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Post by patbat on Jun 10, 2021 15:41:02 GMT -5
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LazBro
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Post by LazBro on Jun 11, 2021 7:48:29 GMT -5
I won't know how to feel until I see real, uninterrupted, non-stylized gameplay. This trailer shows some in-engine combat, sure, but I want something like that Demon's Souls Remake gameplay trailer. Just a solid 15 minutes of "this is how the game plays."
It looks cool and all, but I can't tell how Souls-y it is.
ETA: Watching it again just now, I didn't really give enough credit to the bits around 1:22. That really looks like Souls combat to me. Excite.
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LazBro
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Post by LazBro on Jun 11, 2021 9:50:16 GMT -5
And I feel like I have to mention this salty boi. It seems to be less overtly horror themed this time around. It's still dark, it's still grotesque, but it's less ... I dunno, crapsack? There's nothing in this trailer to rival the Village of Smiles or Red Hall of Cages for sheer "ugh"-ness.
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Post by The Thanksgiving Goblin. on Jul 28, 2021 14:34:55 GMT -5
can any of the fake fromsoft fuccbois of tif do THIS!?
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LazBro
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Post by LazBro on Nov 4, 2021 10:21:37 GMT -5
Elden Ring gameplay preview (it takes awhile to get going, you'll want to skip ahead)
Of course this is a day one purchase no matter what, but I got to say it looks kind of ... slow maybe? Could have just been the build, but animations seemed a little sluggish to me, compared to something like Dark Souls 3.
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Post by The Thanksgiving Goblin. on Nov 4, 2021 18:21:41 GMT -5
big ocarina vibes
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Post by The Thanksgiving Goblin. on Nov 4, 2021 18:48:11 GMT -5
anyone gonna cop?  |
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Invisible Goat
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Post by Invisible Goat on Nov 6, 2021 23:17:00 GMT -5
Demon's Souls is bruuutal and not in a way I'm enjoying that much.
I've run the loop where you spawn at the Tower Knight archstone and kill those 2 blue-eyed knights several dozen times at this point because it's the only reliable way to farm grass and souls for buying hardstone shards.
There are seemingly a couple dozen different upgrade paths? Like I just wanna do a basic strength build so everytime I'm lucky enough to get an upgrade material it's pretty much useless.
Armor Spider was a bit of a roadblock until i figured out I kind of needed to use a shield once i got in close, then it was easy. But Tower of Latria/Prison of Hope was absolutely miserable. I managed to scuffle my way through though, beat the boss, and went back to 2-2 and that might be my least favorite level in Souls. Was lost for literal hours and made no progress.
Tried 4-1 after that and was having such an awful time with the very first group of skeletons that I went back to farm shards until I ended up with a +3 bow and +6 Bastard Sword. After that I did cut through the rest of the level fairly easily and beat the gimmick but kind of fun boss on the first try. So maybe I am over some kind of hurdle now. I realize I just jinxed myself.
Oh and the boss runs. FUCK the boss runs.
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Post by The Thanksgiving Goblin. on Dec 19, 2021 20:24:49 GMT -5
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LazBro
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Post by LazBro on Jan 17, 2022 12:30:01 GMT -5
Mitchriz beats Sekiro in two hours while blindfolded.
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patbat
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Post by patbat on Jan 18, 2022 15:27:22 GMT -5
Mitchriz beats Sekiro in two hours while blindfolded.
This makes me so fucking angry OMG |
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LazBro
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Post by LazBro on Feb 25, 2022 8:51:19 GMT -5
I'm in the camp of "accessibility features are good, difficulty is a real limit to accessibility for people, and having an 'easy' mode doesn't hurt the players who don't choose to use it. Calm down."
I'm also in the camp of "it's okay for things to not be for everyone, it sucks when the reason for that is something like color-blindness or limited mobility, but in the end the creators have the right to make the thing they want to make exactly the way they want to make it, even if it means deservedly taking shit for it. Video games are not a civil service."
I'm also in the camp of "difficulty is an intrinsic element in what makes Souls games fun, if you weren't forced to play on its terms, to learn its rhythms and patterns, to bang your head against that wall until you "git gud", you'd be left with a beautiful but mediocre action game. The reason it is popular, the reason it is beloved, is because it's hard in a fun way .... but my first camp still applies. Calm down."
I'm also in the camp of "guys, they're really not that hard."
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Post by The Thanksgiving Goblin. on Feb 25, 2022 9:03:38 GMT -5
my stance is "they probably should have an easy mode, but they don't."
also what are the archers in anor londo on easy mode
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LazBro
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Post by LazBro on Mar 1, 2022 10:48:37 GMT -5
I looked up a recommended Elden Ring game route on Fextralife, which has always been my go-to for FromSoft wikis.
Here I was banging my head against Stormveil when I had never even been to the Weeping Peninsula or East Limgrave / Mistwood. I think this may actually be an issue I have with the map system. I know that Stormveil Castle is the first Legacy Dungeon and therefore intended as a major roadblock. You're supposed to explore first. But what else it is, is on the map. When exploring, I find myself going right up to the edge of what's on the map, then thinking, "beyond here must be way harder" and I turn around. So I cleaned up West Limgrave and Stormhill as best I was able and then headed for the Castle. Yowza. Not ready. Not even a little.
Finally caving and accepting the use of a game route - just the outline, not the walkthrough, literally a numbered list of the order in which to take on each area of the game - gives me a deep sense of peace. The game's not any easier for it, not really, but it relieves the stress of feeling like I'm doing it "wrong," which was agitating me much more in the open world Elden Ring than in prior Souls games. Likely in part because going far afield takes longer in Elden Ring. It always feels like there's so much more to lose.
To its credit, though, calling Elden Ring an open world game doesn't feel quite right. The pacing of the world and the intricate design of many of the optional areas still feels like souls to me. It's just a souls game where some of the rooms are really big.
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LazBro
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Post by LazBro on Mar 1, 2022 10:50:52 GMT -5
Also geez louise the XP grind feels slow.
I know they're pacing it out over a much longer game, but it's a crawl man.
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Invisible Goat
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Post by Invisible Goat on Mar 1, 2022 11:45:02 GMT -5
I looked up a recommended Elden Ring game route on Fextralife, which has always been my go-to for FromSoft wikis.
Here I was banging my head against Stormveil when I had never even been to the Weeping Peninsula or East Limgrave / Mistwood. I think this may actually be an issue I have with the map system. I know that Stormveil Castle is the first Legacy Dungeon and therefore intended as a major roadblock. You're supposed to explore first. But what else it is, is on the map. When exploring, I find myself going right up to the edge of what's on the map, then thinking, "beyond here must be way harder" and I turn around. So I cleaned up West Limgrave and Stormhill as best I was able and then headed for the Castle. Yowza. Not ready. Not even a little.
Finally caving and accepting the use of a game route - just the outline, not the walkthrough, literally a numbered list of the order in which to take on each area of the game - gives me a deep sense of peace. The game's not any easier for it, not really, but it relieves the stress of feeling like I'm doing it "wrong," which was agitating me much more in the open world Elden Ring than in prior Souls games. Likely in part because going far afield takes longer in Elden Ring. It always feels like there's so much more to lose.
To its credit, though, calling Elden Ring an open world game doesn't feel quite right. The pacing of the world and the intricate design of many of the optional areas still feels like souls to me. It's just a souls game where some of the rooms are really big.
Yeah, same experience here. I didn't look up a guide/route yet and hope not to because I'm enjoying the terrifying exploration a lot, but Margit pushed my shit in forever before I gave in and had to explore further east. I realized they put the steles on the map once you get within a decent distance of them, so you can make a beeline for them, open up the map, and then hopefully find doable challenges on it. Though I still haven't been to the peninsula and at this point i'm waaay north of Stormveil after beating that. It's hard up there but i got a ton of smithing stones so my boring-ass longsword is at least +9 or 10 now. |
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Invisible Goat
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Post by Invisible Goat on Mar 1, 2022 14:20:27 GMT -5
Oh wow, seems like the Peninsula is like the first place you should go. I'm killing everyone in one hit. Definitely made things harder for myself by not finding this.
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Post by Deleted on Mar 5, 2022 14:12:36 GMT -5
Mt. Gelnir miniboss spoilers
Might drive straight into a brick wall at 200mph after this one
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LazBro
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Post by LazBro on Mar 8, 2022 14:46:51 GMT -5
I pretty much only have time to game on the weekends, which makes it hard for me to keep track of what I'm doing in a game, especially an open world game where conceivably I could be stopping at any point of grace for any reason, and there's no significance to my stopping there. I forget where to go next, where I have and haven't cleared, etc.
Anyway, I restarted because I felt like it and have been having a lot of fun. Cleared out Limgrave East and the Weeping Peninsula. Castle Morne was a cool map, though I wish it was longer. I didn't expect it to be Legacy Dungeon length or anything, but still ... longer. The lead up to the Leonine Misbegotten was awesome.
I believe I'm ready to go to Stormveil again. How many tries against Margit on my 2nd go round?
Happened upon my first Deathbird. What the fuck, man?
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patbat
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Post by patbat on Mar 8, 2022 19:04:20 GMT -5
Killed Margit on my fourth try, EZ
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LazBro
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Post by LazBro on Mar 9, 2022 13:33:59 GMT -5
There's a no-death speedrun by Niko Bellic at just over 2:32.
I won't wait to finish the game to watch lore videos (it will be weeks and potentially months at my rate), but I am avoiding speedruns.
The open world and horse really do change things though. Like, if you just grind out 3 sites of grace as fast as possible to get the horse, you can go grab your first 5 or so Golden Seeds and a few sacred tears in the next 10 minutes probably, without having to fight a thing. There will be some dicey bits, but you can do it. And those are just the ones I know about. I'm sure thee are way more up in Liurnia where I haven't explored yet but are not gated in any way but the challenge of getting there. Same goes for smithing stones and other resources as well of course.
Will every new game of Elden Ring start with a 15-minute overworld dash that leaves you much more powerful than when you began?
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Invisible Goat
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Post by Invisible Goat on Mar 9, 2022 22:30:26 GMT -5
I've beaten 4 demigods now and I love how after drilling into you that there are 5 of them, when you reach this point Gideon suddenly mentions oh yeah there's a bunch more of them. I've done enough of the various caves/catacombs/tunnels at this point that I really don't feel the need to do any more. Hopefully i'm not missing out on important items that way. One of the drawbacks of going with such a gigantic world is I guess they have to reuse assets like that. But on the other hand all of the "legacy dungeons" are pretty much just as good as the very best Souls levels of the past. I'm in the middle of one now and pretty much entirely lost. Seems like at least 3 main paths to follow. The proper bosses are astounding as ever. Last 2 demigods have maybe been focused on spectacle more than being fun fights but hoo boy that spectacle. Last one took me 26 tries. Maybe my favorite yet though has been part of Ranni's questline, which I'll admit i looked things up to make sure I wasn't missing steps, but I'm glad I did because there's a ton of content to it and I never would have figured it out on my own. |
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Post by The Thanksgiving Goblin. on Mar 10, 2022 12:27:07 GMT -5
re-rolled as a samurai because i felt i wasnt getting anywhere as prisoner / mage and like 3 hours in i find the glint sorceries lady and the dragon techniques shrine
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Post by Deleted on Mar 10, 2022 14:59:11 GMT -5
Honestly feel like the Elden Ring lore, despite being written(outlined?) by a vaunted fantasy writer, is a bit too abstract this time around compared to past entries where even if certain elements were deliberately left open to interpretation you'd still understand what was happening in the world around you. Item descriptions would eventually lend gravitas to boss fights or areas you'd previously only read about as if they were just aspects of the greater mythology and not things you actually expected to encounter. Not to mention I think even simple premises like "you want to find out why this region is so fucked up" from Demon's Souls or "you're a complete nobody who eventually gathers the resolve to sacrifice yourself for the sake of humanity" from Dark Souls are more compelling impetuses for the plot than "you want to collect the tropey macguffins and become a mega powerful guy."
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