Video Games Thread!

[modernwizardry]

Rented Dead Island for PS3 on the Redbox and I'm really impressed. It's the best Zombie Apocalypse game I've played. It's similar to Far Cry and Fallout 3.

I'm about 4 hours in and 10% complete on the story and it's pretty much open world. The nice thing is there are not a billion zombies like in Dead Rising. It's much more survival oriented and I get a real sense of danger when traveling on the resort island. In Dead Rising you could take on hordes of zombies with ease but in this game 3-4 zombies at times can pose problems. You have to be much more strategic in Dead Island. So far I've only fired a gun once and the combat has mostly been with melee weapons. You gain xp and leveling up let's you spend skill points so you can customize your character.

I'm sad to return this to the redbox but I will certainly be on the lookout for a used copy...

Also, I'm picking up my copy of NHL 2012 tomorrow. So very stoked to charge a goalie and knock his helmet off.

 

[DuchessOfDork]

The game my hubby is working on was just released for beta a few weeks ago:

https://wrathofheroes.warhammeronline.com/

It's free to play if you're interested! He also just bought Space Marine for PS3, and it's reaaaaaally good.

 

[ApolloFC]

Playing Battlefield 2 and Counterstrike Source. I was a huge TFC player since `00 but thats dead now and TF2 just isn't the same now especially with fake player counts so you think you're going into a 32 player server but theres only like 18 people in there. I still play it but in small doses before uninstalling it for a few weeks at least.

I'm also playing a little bit of Assassins Creed II and Portal II. Console wise: when I'm bored I'm working on completing Super Mario 64. I've gotten somewhere like 80 stars but never the full 120 or 140 w/e it is. Got the NES, SNES, Dreamcast, Gameboy (only have about 30 minutes in 5+ years on that :\), and N64 of course.

 

[AeonicSlumber]

Just finished Deus Ex HR and Final Fantasy 13. Pre ordered Super Mario 3D Land and the Ico/Shadow of the Colossus HD collection. So amped for both of those!

 

[booB]

I've become a massive fan of the Assassin's Creed series. This series is SOOOOO multilayered and well-written, and a treat for conspiracy theorists and history buffs alike. Subsequent installments of the series see the game becoming less and less linear and side quests becoming more integral to the overall story. The upcoming game, Assassin's Creed: Revelations, looks to continue this trend, while reintegrating more of the awesome Middle Eastern architecture and scenery of the first game (believe it or not, Renaissance Italy starts to look a bit same-y and boring after a while).

Also looking forward to Zelda: Skyward Sword, Diablo III, and Grim Dawn (from the makers of Titan Quest). I am considering picking up the latest Madden as well, especially since I haven't played a Madden game since 2000 and I think I'm about due.

I started playing The Witcher 2, and what I played of it was great, but the insane difficulty and learning curve, not to mention the insane hardware requirements, put me off the game temporarily. I plan to go back to it whenever I have 725462387523978 hours to myself, whenever that is. This and the Mass Effect series are kind of in the same boat for me; I'm very engrossed in their stories, but the gameplay is very difficult for me (or perhaps I just don't understand the interface).


I've also been playing quite a bit of some very addictive indie games:

Terraria, a side-scrolling sandbox game where you mine and harvest ingredients, which you then use to craft everything, mundane and magical, that you need to survive, fight monsters, and explore your world. I've never played Minecraft, but I'm told this game is sort of like a 2D, action-RPG version of that game;

Recettear: An Item Shop's Tale, which puts you in the role of -- what else? -- the proprietor of a Zelda- or Final Fantasy-esque "Item Shop". Buy your stock from wholesale suppliers or go dungeon-delving to find treasure, then sell it to adventurers for a healthy profit. This game gets a little cutesy and girly in spots, but the gameplay is great and highly addicting.

 

[booB]

Just finished Deus Ex HR and Final Fantasy 13. Pre ordered Super Mario 3D Land and the Ico/Shadow of the Colossus HD collection. So amped for both of those!

Is Ico getting a re-release? For what system? I've always wanted to play it.

 

[jaimek]

I've been in a loop of Civ V, Mass Effect 1 & 2, Dragon Age 1 & 2, and Portal 1 & 2 since last spring. I played the intro to the Witcher because so many people say good things about it (and I like epic storylines where the choices you make have an impact later on), but the mechanics were driving me batshit. Same with with the original Assassin's Creed - have it, started on it, annoyed with it. I'll go back to them both soon enough.

Found a version of Alpha Centauri/Alien Crossfire that is supposedly revamped so it'll work with Windows 7, but I have been unable to get it to cooperate, much to my annoyance. That is my favorite of *all* the Civilization type games, ever, and my fondest hope is that Sid Meier will either write a sequel or rewrite the original for current hardware.

Played the demo of Bastion, which is ridiculously cute, and I LOVE the narrator. I might get the full version at some point.

I've been off my Warcraft addiction since June, but I'll probably drop back in around November for the anniversary.

 

[AeonicSlumber]

Is Ico getting a re-release? For what system? I've always wanted to play it.

PS3. Team Ico is a Sony first party dev and would never make games for any other platform.

 

[RagePSV]

Still playing Madden 2005 on my Xbox 1.0. Love me some franchise mode.

 

[TheLongshot]

Lately it has been a lot of Ratchet & Clank, since I just picked up the original trilogy in GameStop's B2G2 on PS2 games. Also, my son wanted me to put in A Crack In Time tonight.

In other games, I've finished off Costume Quest and I'm working to finish off Lego Harry Potter. Maybe then I can go back to some of my heavier games (Persona 3, Valkyria Chronicles, Uncharted 2, Nier)

 

[spag]

I haven't had time to play anything for a while. I was messing around with Minecraft, just for something kind of mindless to do. I have some back games I haven't played. Portal for example. I bought it for $2 or something during a Steam sale, and never got to it. I've wanted to get one of the zombie games, left for dead or dead island.

I used to spend most of my gaming time with racing games, but for some reason, just haven't been that into them lately.

 

[booB]

I played the intro to the Witcher because so many people say good things about it (and I like epic storylines where the choices you make have an impact later on), but the mechanics were driving me batshit.

The Witcher is one of my all-time favorite games. (The books are pretty good, too -- at least, the two which are currently available in English.) If you're familiar with the first Neverwinter Nights game, the engine is the same, though slightly modified, in favor of action play rather than turn-based play. The timing-based combat mechanics are a little hard to get used to at first, but you get used to the timing, and combat becomes relatively easy about halfway or so through the game; this could be a detriment for some action gameplay fans, but for me it has the effect of allowing me to focus more on the story.

I should mention that I played it entirely in isometric mode, like a Diablo-style game, and that I didn't really use signs all that much; Aard for stunning and Igni for setting undeads on fire, with the very occasional Quen sign for when I want to get somewhere quickly and relatively unscathed. Axii and Yrden signs were basically useless to me. (But then, I also don't tend to play magic-users often in RPGs, opting more for melee-oriented characters whenever possible.)

Same with with the original Assassin's Creed - have it, started on it, annoyed with it. I'll go back to them both soon enough.

Assassin's Creed can be frustrating when you're trying to flee from opponents. The "sprint" button (aka "legs" button) is the same as the "climb" button, and if you sprint too close to a ladder or other climbable surface, Altaïr tends to jump on them instead of running straight ahead. This can be alleviated by temporarily letting go of "sprint", or just being careful, but this isn't always easy in the heat of the chase. The camera can get out of control at times; there have been moments where I had to quit playing because I would start feeling nauseous. (In the interest of full disclosure, I had been playing for 2-3 hours straight at the time. )

Other than that, I can't think of anything frustrating about the gameplay. It plays just like a standard platformer (a la Tomb Raider, Prince of Persia).

Played the demo of Bastion, which is ridiculously cute, and I LOVE the narrator. I might get the full version at some point.

This demo frustrated the hell out of me, particularly due to the control scheme. I didn't try it on my game pad, because it is only compatible with Xbox controllers (a disturbing new trend I'm noticing in PC gaming!), and I didn't feel like downloading a hack just to try out a demo of a game I probably won't have time to play.

 

[AeonicSlumber]

Lately it has been a lot of Ratchet & Clank, since I just picked up the original trilogy in GameStop's B2G2 on PS2 games. Also, my son wanted me to put in A Crack In Time tonight.

In other games, I've finished off Costume Quest and I'm working to finish off Lego Harry Potter. Maybe then I can go back to some of my heavier games (Persona 3, Valkyria Chronicles, Uncharted 2, Nier)

All of the PS3 Ratchet games rule. The writing in them is good enough for TV/movie/whatever. I definitely chuckled many times. The last one in the series has some really fun puzzles too.

 

[sava_freak]

Ive been playing Brink on the Ps3 ... Little King's Story on the Wii, and Inotia3 on my phone..

 

[Dominick_7]

Just League of Legends on PC, Halo Reach on 360.

 

[Cheiron]

I'm playing League of Legends a little bit. I enjoy the occasional match.

Playing some Amnesia: The Descent. Insane game.

Recently bought Demon Souls. I haven't really started yet, but beautiful game.

Finally finished Fallout... really good game. I sure do take my sweet time with these games though

Games I own that I still need to finish:
Dragon Age: Origins, GTA:4, Red Dead Redemption, The Witcher

I'm looking forward to Elder Scrolls: Skyrim, Gears of War 3, Battlefield 3, Hawken, Planetside 2, Tribes Ascent, The Secret World, and maybe Star Wars: The Old Republic.

 

[Dominick_7]

The game my hubby is working on was just released for beta a few weeks ago:

https://wrathofheroes.warhammeronline.com/

It's free to play if you're interested! He also just bought Space Marine for PS3, and it's reaaaaaally good.

As someone whose been in the animation field this looks pretty cool.

I've been in a loop of Civ V, Mass Effect 1 & 2, Dragon Age 1 & 2, and Portal 1 & 2 since last spring. I played the intro to the Witcher because so many people say good things about it (and I like epic storylines where the choices you make have an impact later on), but the mechanics were driving me batshit. Same with with the original Assassin's Creed - have it, started on it, annoyed with it. I'll go back to them both soon enough.

Found a version of Alpha Centauri/Alien Crossfire that is supposedly revamped so it'll work with Windows 7, but I have been unable to get it to cooperate, much to my annoyance. That is my favorite of *all* the Civilization type games, ever, and my fondest hope is that Sid Meier will either write a sequel or rewrite the original for current hardware.

Played the demo of Bastion, which is ridiculously cute, and I LOVE the narrator. I might get the full version at some point.

I've been off my Warcraft addiction since June, but I'll probably drop back in around November for the anniversary.

Have most of these. LOVE the Civ series! They've been on sale on and off at Steam, last week even for real cheap too. Have yet to play Mass Effect 2, but the maps seem so big they can tend to make me feel overwhelmed.. I get lost in my house practically as I have a horrible sense of direction so they sometimes make me feel like crying in a corner lol. Thank God for GPS.

I'm playing League of Legends a little bit. I enjoy the occasional match.

Playing some Amnesia: The Descent. Insane game.

Recently bought Demon Souls. I haven't really started yet, but beautiful game.

Finally finished Fallout... really good game. I sure do take my sweet time with these games though

Games I own that I still need to finish:
Dragon Age: Origins, GTA:4, Red Dead Redemption, The Witcher

I'm looking forward to Elder Scrolls: Skyrim, Gears of War 3, Battlefield 3, Hawken, Planetside 2, Tribes Ascent, The Secret World, and maybe Star Wars: The Old Republic.

Don't know several of these, but Lol is awesome. Wonder what the new game mode will be like. Definitely looking out ofr Battlefield 3, but I heard they were still in beta like 1 month before release..:/ Always wanted to check out Dragon Age. You play it on Xbox or PC? Also you going to do Battlefield on console or pc? The Old Republic may be good as well. Hear good things about Red Dead.

 

[Cheiron]

LOL: Dominion looks to be a king of the hill type of mode. Arathi Bason'ish for the WoW folks.

I play Dragon Age on PS3. When I got it my computer was old, and it works really well on the PS3.

I'll play Battlefield on PC. I only play shooters on consoles when that is it he only place it is offered.

Red Dead is neat. But I only played it for a couple hours, and then put it away. I do that a lot with these sandbox games. I like their concept, but I feel massive guilt sitting down for several hours at a time to play them.