What video games are you playing?

[Richard W]

Continuing the previous thread as I don't think a new one's been started yet...

I've been quite impressed with Fallout 3. The way the background of the world is developed can be great - the museum levels are quite interesting as museums in their own right.

The AI is good, too. At one point I was shooting a supermutant that was hiding behind a doorway at the end of a corridor, so I dropped a mine a bit further back, and tried to get it to follow me into the corridor. But it retreated, and I couldn't see where it had gone, so I went back to defuse the mine and pick it up again - at which point the supermutant appeared at the top of the stair behind me, having gone around by a different route that I didn't know about, and shot the mine I was standing next to! To be fair I don't know whether the AI did that "deliberately", or whether the mine was hit by a stray bullet, but it had the same effect, and the monster still managed to sneak around behind me rather than taking the obvious, expected route through the door. That's one of the first times I've been genuinely surprised by something a computer opponent's done in that sort of game.

A bit later I was ambushed while watching the show in the museum planetarium and thinking "that's nice", too... that was more the game designer's trap though; distract you then set loose the monsters, but it worked.

Quite educational as well - I didn't know there was a copy of the Magna Carta in the US National Archives until I stole it in the game...

[Rebochan]

I'm flitting between The Sims 3 (which ate Friday) and Knights in the Nightmare for the DS. The latter is part of a loosely-connected series of RPGs set in a series called "Dept Heaven", though this is the first I've played.

So far, it's very, very strange. It's a strategy RPG, but movement and attacking is completely different from any I've played before. Rather than wide open maps that you send your units waltzing across turn by turn, you've got a small map with space-locked units. Instead of moving the units, you're actually controlling a Wisp on the touch screen and using that to drag weapons to the soldiers to activate them and attack. Every turn is measured by a rapidly decreasing clock in which you can perform as many actions as you can. Instead of the units taking HP damage, the Wisp must dodge projectiles being flung around by the enemies, and getting hit drains the timer faster.

To describe this as a "bullet hell" game would be an understatement.

The plot is very odd - I get the impression the game is at least half learning what the plot *is*. So far I'm about 7 chapters in and it seems to have something to do with someone stealing the deceased king's soul while monsters run around and slaughter knights. Incidentally, said Knights are the units you control - after each chapter, you'll see a cutscene telling a short story of the knights you just recruited on the map and usually ending in how they died. Cheerful.

I love the art style - I got it pre-ordered so it came with an artbook, though I won't read it until I've beaten the game lest it drop a megaton bomb of spoilers on my head. The graphics are high-quality sprites.

I've found this a surprisingly addicting game. Assuming I can survive the high difficulty on the normal mode, I'll try and actually *finish* it. Which would be nice because I have a copy of Lost Odyssey sitting on my bookcase waiting for me to finally play it already.

[Mr. Furious]

Originally Posted by Rebochan

I'm flitting between The Sims 3 (which ate Friday)...

I am pleased to report that The Sims 3 is every bit as addictive as the first two installments. I love the level of control of appearance that exists now, as well as the fact that you don't have to go through the rigmarole of going downtown to pick out new clothes.

Overall, I think the playability is superior to both earlier versions, though I'm still getting used to the radically redesigned interface. One really vast improvement is in the quality of the existing houses. I always ended up building my own because I didn't like any of the places that were pre-installed. But there are some very livable houses there now, so I'm cool with it. I'm sure I'll build a giant scary mansion soon enough.

Free will is still a little dicey. Today, I left my Sims alone for a few minutes, and BOTH OF THEM were chatting online even though their hunger, bladder, and hygiene bars were low. WTF, are they me?

[Blatherskite]

Originally Posted by Mr. Furious

Free will is still a little dicey. Today, I left my Sims alone for a few minutes, and BOTH OF THEM were chatting online even though their hunger, bladder, and hygiene bars were low. WTF, are they me?

I made two housemates on my sister's copy of The Sims 3, played with them for a bit with story mode off (which I presumed would stop the passage of in-game time affecting other families in the 'hood). Then I saved and quit.

When I went back to my game not only were my housemates now lovers but they had a toddler named Germaine. My sister plays her family also with story mode off, although even if she didn't it would be a bit stupid for one saved household to be affected by the settings in another.

I had to delete them because they had nowhere near enough money to look after little Germaine. Apparantly in the time it took them to fall in love and have a baby, they hadn't earned any more money, gained more skills or received promotions.

[RichL]

Playing Lost Odyssey on the 360. I tried it last year when I first bought it but became frustrated with it. So I put it back in a few weeks ago and stuck with it. Trying to get all the achievements. Don't know if that is going to happen.

[Rebochan]

The Sims 3 story progression mode is so...wacky.

I've been trying to hook up my first sim, Lorelei Carter (named after my cats) with a rather fetching bishonen sim I dubbed Raido Kuzunoha. I was playing with her first, so I was getting annoyed that she was having trouble getting the reception I wanted. I switched over to start playing Raido and he was still an unemployed bum but he'd already found a Romantic interest. So I told her to just be friends and started playing him for a while, getting him a career and working on Lorelei. But I kept finding I was having trouble with *her* now - and I couldn't propose going steady or getting married. Switched back to her and she'd already gone steady with a grocery store worker against my will!

I made her break up with him. I felt kinda guilty though - the break up sequence is actually pretty heart tugging.

Raido and Lorelei are now going steady

[ARubberChickenWithAPulley]

Originally Posted by Richard W

Continuing the previous thread as I don't think a new one's been started yet...

I've been quite impressed with Fallout 3. The way the background of the world is developed can be great - the museum levels are quite interesting as museums in their own right.

Fallout 3 is very cool. It grabbed me like no game has in a long time. I worked my way through the two expansion packs and am now just trying to explore the world and discover all of the locations.

I just picked up Mass Effect. Looks like another great sci-fi RPG.

And I'm eagerly awaiting the new Monkey Island games coming from Telltale Games in July, as well as the Monkey Island: Special Edition being released by LucasArts this summer.

[Silkenray]

I've been playing Final Fantasy IV: The After Years. It's a 10 or so hour long Wiiware RPG based on the SNES game Final Fantasy IV (originally released as Final Fantasy II in Europe and the States). It costs 800 Wii points. They are releasing new segments of roughly equal length at a cost of 300 Wii points per segment. Each appears to be a stand-alone game, although tied in to the main plot, and you do need to buy the first to play the other episodes.

Pluses:
OMG Nostalgia trip. It's very cool being able to visit areas from the original game with new purpose.
The new lunar cycle system, and the combo system, both add some much needed variety to the standard SNES Final Fantasy turn-based combat.

Minuses:
The plot feels a bit hackneyed. The main character is a bit of a Marty Stu, although not excessively so.
If you don't know the storyline of the original game, this one's won't make any sense at all.

Plusses AND Minuses:
Mechanically, and in terms of overall flavor, it's very true to the original. If you are a fan, this isn't a bad thing. If you aren't, you probably won't like it.

[Richard W]

Originally Posted by ARubberChickenWithAPulley

Fallout 3 is very cool. It grabbed me like no game has in a long time. I worked my way through the two expansion packs and am now just trying to explore the world and discover all of the locations.

Oh, I don't generally like spoilers for games, but one thing I do like to check is whether the game "ends" at a particular point. I usually assume that games these days, especially ones like this, are open-ended and so there's no need to hold off on any particular quests. But I was caught out the other day when Final Fantasy XII actually did end. (To be fair, the plot resolution wouldn't really have let the party stay together, given Ashe has to go off and run a country...)

I assume Fallout 3 is open-ended even after the main plot is over?

[ARubberChickenWithAPulley]

Originally Posted by Richard W

Oh, I don't generally like spoilers for games, but one thing I do like to check is whether the game "ends" at a particular point. I usually assume that games these days, especially ones like this, are open-ended and so there's no need to hold off on any particular quests. But I was caught out the other day when Final Fantasy XII actually did end. (To be fair, the plot resolution wouldn't really have let the party stay together, given Ashe has to go off and run a country...)

I assume Fallout 3 is open-ended even after the main plot is over?

Heh.. that kinda depends actually.

Spoiler below. Kind of a spoiler anyway...:
The original game, without the Broken Steel expansion pack, does end. So if you want to explore the world more, make sure you keep a saved game just prior to beating the Main Quest.. If you purchase Broken Steel, you can load that game, quickly complete the main quest, then have the indefinite open gameplay with the increased level-cap.

[smittykins]

MLB '09: The Show for PSP. Playing as the Yankees, I'm 15-10, and tied for first place with the Red Sox in the AL East.

[Radical Dory]

Regarding melee in Fallout 3 (from the previous thread): In the early part of the game, it's pretty effective, which makes sense as you have limited ammo. However, it gets harder much later in the game when the enemies become tougher (aaaa...Deathclaws!), not to mention you go through armor like crazy from taking blows. The Shiskabob is wonderfully brutal in terms of damage, but makes it virtually impossible to do stealth anything; I keep a Chinese sword and the Tenderizer (special sledgehammer) around for stealthy bits.

I do wonder about the AI sometimes. I once stood outside the Bethesda Offices (er, the one in the game, not in real life), and kept reverse pickpocketing grenades onto raider sentries from a good hiding point behind the remains of a bus. Don't you think after a while someone would notice the massive pile of exploded bodies? Luckily for me, the raiders remained quite dense.

[Richard W]

Originally Posted by ARubberChickenWithAPulley

Heh.. that kinda depends actually.

Thank you for that information... I was too paranoid to carry on playing as I'm not sure how close to the end I am, so it's just inspired me to finally buy some "points" and download the three add-ons. (And The Lost And The Damned for GTA IV). It's going to take ages to download all that lot though, my wireless connection to the XBox seems to have been playing up lately for some reason.

Do I have to start the game again or is it cunning enough to pick up my previous game so I can just continue from where I am? I suppose I can't expect it to do what I actually want it to do. I'll find out, I guess.

[Aimee Evilpixie]

Beyond Good and Evil. I bought this for $10 a year or two ago because I'd heard it was good and it had a strong female lead. Now I want to know why I put off playing it for so long?!

The great irony of my life is that my job as a game developer doesn't leave me with that much time to actually play games.

[ARubberChickenWithAPulley]

Originally Posted by Richard W

Do I have to start the game again or is it cunning enough to pick up my previous game so I can just continue from where I am? I suppose I can't expect it to do what I actually want it to do. I'll find out, I guess.

They're compatible with your previously saved games, so no issues.

The expansion packs are all of very high quality. Operation Anchorage (the first one they released) felt more like an experiment, but The Pitt and Broken Steel are top notch.

[STF]

UFC Undisputed 2009: I'm playing right now as a matter of fact. Fun game with good "feel" to it. The punching/kicking feels heavy and I like the mechanics of it.

[Notebook]

I managed to beat Wild Arms 5. The plot was rather silly and cliche but I still enjoyed it and expected worse since some people at another board I go to didn't really like it. Granted, these are the same people who have some sort of aversion to any game that's not 100% grim and dark and/or involves massive grinding. Plus the western theme is a nice change of pace from the usual medieval settings most RPGs have.

Started up Suikoden 5. Five hours in and I think the main plot is slowly starting to begin. That may sound like I'm not enjoying the game, but I am.

[AdvocatusDiaboli]

Very late to the game here but I finally picked up Left 4 Dead. Lots of fun but enjoyment is almost 100% dependant on who you are playing with.

[Miki Fantastico]

Recently, The Boyfriend was clearing out his cupboard and gave me his old copy of Starcraft. I'm slowly (slowly!) getting the hang of it, though I feel like I'm getting run off my feet since everything happens at once (rather than moving in turns like civilised creatures).

I'm being annoyed by the linearity of the plot (i.e. this is your mission, you do what you're told, no questions answered) as well as the fact that there's no way to repair non-mechanical units, so I just have to stick the heavily damaged ones in a corner of the map and hope they don't get attacked. Missile turrets, however, I couldn't do without.

[DemonWolf]

Originally Posted by Richard W

More-or-less makes sense since there are corpses in various states of decomposition everywhere anyway, but if it's somebody they know, who's clearly only just died, then you'd think they might pay more attention.

Minor NPCs aren't immortal, though - the people that hang around asking you for clean water to drink seem to die of their own accord (even if you've given them clean water). And in my game, I think Doc Thingy the caravan owner has got himself killed in a firefight. He was certainly keen to jump in and start shooting supermutants when walking past Rivet City, and although I didn't see him die, when I ask the guy back in Canterbury Commons about him, he says something about his sadly not having shown up for a while. Everybody in the game's quite used to death and corpses in general, and probably doesn't think much of it even if they clearly have just been shot...

True, but I'd think that in an environment where there are vicious gangs who murder people roaming around that a fresh corpse, especially one that wasn't there the last time you looked, might raise an alarm that there is danger.



I remember playing Medal of Honor: Rising Sun (I think that's the name). I could use my sniper rifle to pick off a Japanese soldier and the guy he was talking to would be like, "Gee, Bob's head just exploded. Oh, well. I guess that happens sometimes." and he'd just stand there waiting for me to reload and take my next shot!