Which games are you currently playing?

[Giant Tope]

After receiving the Humble Indie Bundle from a buddy, I've been slowly working through it. I'm gonna start Penumbra tonight.

[Rather Dashing]

Originally Posted by Elvenmonk

How is the Witcher? I've not heard much on it.

I'd recommend it. It's a great RPG, the Enhanced Edition removes many of my gripes with the original game, and at this point it's only $20. Just be aware that it is a Polish game and that essentially means that dialog can sometimes come off a bit odd at times. But it's a great game with a fun combat system, great consequence system, beautiful graphics, a fantastic orchestral score, and a very solid character-building system. It's not the best computer RPG of all time, but it's certainly better than Mass Effect 2 or Fallout 3. *shudder*

[Elvenmonk]

Well, anything's better then Fallout3. I downloaded the demo and will try it out on Saturday, or tomorrow after work. If I like I'll buy it. I was reading up on it and turns out the enhanced edition they re-wrote the dialouge so it sounds better for American audiences.

DoW2! I lost all my old data, but I forgot what I was doing anyways.

[Rather Dashing]

Originally Posted by Elvenmonk

Well, anything's better then Fallout3.

THANK YOU.

Yeah, The Witcher is definitely a PC RPG for people who like PC RPGs, if you know what I mean. It does kind of go for that sort of "cinematic experience" type thing, but I don't feel like it ever tramples on the actual gameplay of the thing.

[Elvenmonk]

I'm sorry FO3 ain't got nothing on the isometric adventure from FO1/2. I'm a PC and console RPG, amongst other genres too, but I've never cared just aslong as it wasn't restrictive, populated niceley, expansive [but not a barren land (no not my reason for disliking FO3 in FO3 is made sense. In Oblivion however it did not{I say this because I went for 50 minutes without encountering anything you're supposed to kill often})] glitchy/crashy, a decent story, and is fun.

[GuruGuru214]

Originally Posted by GuruGuru214

Watching Terra's credits now. Starting Ventus next. Birth by Sleep: 1/3 complete.

Watching Ventus's credits now. Starting Aqua next. Birth by Sleep: 2/3 complete.

This is going much faster now. Ven took me 5 days total and 25 hours of play time less than Terra's 16 days/75 hours. That puts me 27 days into this game, with 124 hours of play time.

[SunnyGuy]

Wow, you sure took your time with Terra, sure hope you're doing everything on proud mode at least.

[GuruGuru214]

Hell no! That's why it took me so long, I had to completely fill in the reports. As it is, I still have to go back as both Terra and Ventus and beat two arena matches that don't unlock until after you beat the game as Aqua, but other than that I'm all set on those two to unlock the secret end.

Oh, and I spent way too much time screwing around on the Command Board as Terra.

[Rather Dashing]

Super Meat Boy....is making my fingers hurt.

[SunnyGuy]

You should really start on proud with Aqua, even if you'll get your ass kicked at the beginning. Hard. Repeatedly. Aqua may be the strongest overall in the end but my god does she suck at the beginning.

[GuruGuru214]

I'm a firm believer in playing games on standard difficulty.

[Rather Dashing]

I'm a firm believer in taking the "Normal" difficulty in 90% of games and mentally renaming them "I'm A Pussy".

[SunnyGuy]

Yeah, but said standard difficulty in this game is too easy, hell, I don't think I ever died during the whole game until the final battles, and I was completely unaware of command melding for most of the playthrough.

[GuruGuru214]

I'm totally okay with both of the above. I'd prefer to cakewalk through a game than have my ass handed to me repeatedly. That's why video games have gotten easier in recent years, because to most people, losing isn't fun. If that makes me a pussy, so be it.

[SunnyGuy]

Honestly, proud is easy too unless you're Aqua, but that has more to do with Aqua sucking at the beginning, having the lowest HP, or just if you don't meld often than with the actual difficulty.

Seriously, I still found the game to be a cakewalk for the most part in proud with either character.

Also it saves you TONS of hours to get the secret video. Seriously, compare a few more minutes of possible frustration to lots of hours having to complete every single entry in the journal.

[Rather Dashing]

Originally Posted by GuruGuru214

I'm totally okay with both of the above. I'd prefer to cakewalk through a game than have my ass handed to me repeatedly. That's why video games have gotten easier in recent years, because to most people, losing isn't fun. If that makes me a pussy, so be it.

You should feel ripped off. Seriously. You pay for a video game, and you just get the first part. And fuck, "Video Game" is not like "Werewolf", in which each part designates half the equation. It's more along the lines of "Red Car", where the first word is a descriptor for the TYPE of thing that the second word is.

Games are easier now because a game has to be accessible to be successful, and the cheapest way to make a game accessible is to make it easy. This is also the WORST way to make a game accessible. If a game does not have a solid difficulty curve, introducing elements and challenges as the player moves along, providing a steady relative level of challenge to the player....then it's a worthless piece of shit. You aren't playing a game if you always win, you're mashing buttons pointlessly. If every person, no matter how stoned or half-asleep or brainless can surmount the challenge, then why is it at all special or enjoyable when YOU do? Why should that "game" part be there at ALL? By your standards, a game is just a really long video with a pointlessly complicated UI. It's pure tedium at its very worst.

[Icedhope]

Assasins Creed II...

[GuruGuru214]

Originally Posted by Rather Dashing

You should feel ripped off. Seriously. You pay for a video game, and you just get the first part. And fuck, "Video Game" is not like "Werewolf", in which each part designates half the equation. It's more along the lines of "Red Car", where the first word is a descriptor for the TYPE of thing that the second word is.

Games are easier now because a game has to be accessible to be successful, and the cheapest way to make a game accessible is to make it easy. This is also the WORST way to make a game accessible. If a game does not have a solid difficulty curve, introducing elements and challenges as the player moves along, providing a steady relative level of challenge to the player....then it's a worthless piece of shit. You aren't playing a game if you always win, you're mashing buttons pointlessly. If every person, no matter how stoned or half-asleep or brainless can surmount the challenge, then why is it at all special or enjoyable when YOU do? Why should that "game" part be there at ALL? By your standards, a game is just a really long video with a pointlessly complicated UI. It's pure tedium at its very worst.

How dare you make me actually think about the words I've said! But, since you did, I realize that I sort of gave off an attitude that I universally want my games to be easy. This is not the case. In most games, I do want to have to develop the skillset to move forward, I want to have to become good at it. Hell, that's a large part of why rhythm games have become so huge, because of the rewarding feeling of getting better and achieving what you weren't able to before.

In a game like Portal, I want to have to think about what I'm doing and work out the solution. I want to have to scratch my head and spend time thinking about how to get through my adventure games. In some games, I just want to have fun playing with different weapons, seeing what new ways I can find to kill enemies (for example, my cousin is currently playing Bioshock 2 with ammo cheats on so he can kill Splicers by firing Trap Rivets at them, and it's hilarious). And in a game like Kingdom Hearts, I mainly want the story. God help me, I want the ridiculously convoluted story (and no, I don't think he's entirely making it up as he goes, though it does look that way sometimes).

And consider this: if you play this game on Proud Mode, unless you're a hardcore completionist, you're likely to spend most of the game struggling through the main game or level grinding in order to pass a certain part. I know that if I were playing on Proud Mode, I wouldn't set foot in the Mirage Arena, I wouldn't have taken the time to meld and level up all of the commands, and I wouldn't have played all of the mini games. And I can guarantee I would've given up in frustration before ever managing to beat the secret bosses (which I'm not certain won't happen even on standard). The story can be blasted through, but there's so much more to the game, and playing on standard forces you to experience EVERYTHING if you want to get the real ending. I'm not getting less by playing on standard, I'm getting more.

I also believe that if you do play the game on an advanced difficulty, it should be reserved for your second playthrough, and I like that games like Resident Evil 4 don't unlock Professional Mode until you've beaten the game. I may decide to give Proud Mode in these games a try someday, but I would never do it on my first run.

[Andorxor]

Im currently playing Duel of the Planewalkers and Titan Quest

[Jessica]

SMB Galaxy 2, fun but kinda frustrating.
Are on world 6 and tries collecting stars to continue forward.