Rax/Maz/Jimbo 2019 Video Game Thread Specatular Spectacular

[Raxivace]

Just a quick update, I did get some Souls time in tonight. Went to the New Londo Ruins and beat The Four Kings. Pretty interesting section despite its brevity. On the one hand, it seems like a strangely sparse and hastily done level, as if the developers didn't have more time to build it out into something more so there's just a ton of vast, empty space. Yet, in a weird way, it really works as it ended up being one of the most atmospheric sections of an atmospheric game. Specifically, I liked how the vast emptiness of the entrance transitions into the claustrophobic interiors and corridors of the building. The ghosts weren't particularly difficult, but it was an interesting new challenge having to fight enemies coming-and-going through walls, ceilings and floors. The Darkwraiths near the end were a bit more of a challenge but still pretty straight-forward (I ended up finding it pretty easy to just circle and back-stab them).

The Four Kings boss seemed to mimic the vast emptiness design of the Ruins, as fighting in pitch blackness was fascinating! I died the first time trying to fight him normally, (got swarmed when the others showed up), but the second time I just 2-handed tanked the thing and healed between each battle.

Now I think I'm going to Darkroot Basin for the next section, but it's been so long since I played the game it took me some time to just research/remember how to get there!

Yeah with the Four Kings I usually just put on what the heaviest armor I have is (Often the Stone Armor you can find pretty easily in the forest, though the Havel set you can get from Anor Londo is good too) and just tank those guys.

BTW are you aware of how to eventually access the DLC?

[Eva Yojimbo]

Well, no DS today because I guess I took a little too much of my MJ-meds (still trying to work out the best dose/combination) and got a little too loopy to game... although maybe playing games high is something I should try some time. Would probably be better to start with a "happier" game than DS, though.

Don't you access the DLC through the back-end of that first Hydra lair?

Anyway, I realized the guide I saw just suggested getting to Valley of the Drakes that way, which I probably could've just done from New Londo Ruins given I noticed it opened to an area with dragons (which I assume is the same place).

[Raxivace]

It's a shame that you can't download P.T. anymore, because I would have told you to try that on your drugs for ultimate spookiness.

Don't you access the DLC through the back-end of that first Hydra lair?

Sort of. There are a few involved steps.

-Go to Darkroot Basin, beyond the waterfall will be a cave with a Golden Golem. Kill this to free Dusk of Oolacile.*
-Go to Duke's Archives, head up the elevator and kill the Crystal Golem for a Broken Pendant.
-Head back to where you freed Dusk of Oolacile in Darkroot Basin. Examine the strange purple cloud.
-From here, you will be teleported to Sanctuary Garden.

*BTW near where you killed the Hydra, and before you examine the "strange purple cloud" IIRC, there should be a summon sign for Dusk. I think she sells you some stuff.

I stole that from a guide online. The one thing I'd add is that if the purple cloud isn't there in step 3, you might have to just quit, and reload your game.

What tends to throw people off though is getting the Broken Pendant from Duke's. How anyone was expected to know that I'm still not sure about, though I feel that way about a fair amount of things in Dark Souls.

Anyway, I realized the guide I saw just suggested getting to Valley of the Drakes that way, which I probably could've just done from New Londo Ruins given I noticed it opened to an area with dragons (which I assume is the same place).

Yeah that's basically a huge shortcut into Valley of Drakes.

[Eva Yojimbo]

^ Yeah, I killed the Golden Golem and freed DoO back when I first beat the Hydra, but I don't remember I picked up the Broken Pendant from Duke's Archives (I'll have to check my inventory). I'm pretty sure I went there after the Hydra so I probably did.

On the one hand I really love the minimalist vibe of the game, and I'm sure that it fosters a great sense of pride in people who figure it out for themselves after a while of not knowing where the hell to go or what to do, and it's probably one thing that's help generate such a huge online fandom around the game; but, on the other hand, this is probably one of those games that I would've quit had I not played it in the age where easy access to internet guides were a thing. I still try to consult them as little as possible so as to not spoil much, but I think there's a middle ground between being completely lost/confused and spoiling everything, like just knowing the basics of where to go next. Plus, there's too many games out there to play to waste too much time trying to just figure out what to do next.

Anyway, I'm not even sure why that guide wanted me to go to the Valley of the Drakes since all I did was kill some drakes and that sleeping dragon. Damn sleeping dragon cost me all my souls/humanity, though, as I died the first time, and then as I was rushing back to Valley of the Drakes I fell down the goddamn elevator shaft after forgetting I had to pull the lever because it was already at the bottom. :| I think the guide wanted me to open that shortcut back to the beginning of New Londo Ruins, but since I had the master key I'd done that way earlier anyway.

After that I made it to the Demon Ruins, which is the first NEW part of the game I've seen in a long while (again, would've had no idea to even go there were it not for a guide; how did I miss this place my first time through Queelaag's Lair?). Fought Ceaseless Discharge, and because that fight was long and rather dull I just called it a night. Looked up later that apparently it's possible to just run him off a cliff if you head back to the fog gate. Wish I'd known that going into it!

[Raxivace]

Yeah, the first time I played Dark Souls I was really frustrated by that aimlessness. I do think its a point in the game's favor that once you know what to do its still fun to just pick up and run, but I wish that first playthrough was a little more guided in the way that, say, the older classic Resident Evil games were (Or uh, "neoclassical" Resident Evil games like RE7 or RE2 Remake are).

I do think its interesting that people seem to like the obscurity in Dark Souls, but still get mad at, say, Castlevania II: Simon's Quest's similar kind of goofy progression.

The only thing of note in Valley of Drakes that I can think of that this guide might have wanted you to get is the Red Tearstone Ring, though its not an essential item (Though it can help make some setups hilariously OP).

LOL, I've done the asme thing with the elevator.

I think I've only fought Ceaseless the "legit" way once or twice. I can't remember if I knew the "lol" way the first time I've played, but most times I just do that and knock him right off.

[Eva Yojimbo]

Well today was basically a clusterfuck. No time for gaming or much of anything as I woke up to the emergency of my parents' DVR randomly deleting recorded shows. After hours on the phone with customer service, they couldn't help and just said they'd send another one. This basically means I'm going to have to watch the weekend's playoff games live (about 7 hours both friggin' days) because I can't record them. Didn't help I woke up late anyway after not getting much sleep and now I'm tired af, but really need to try to stay up to get on a better schedule to watch the games.

Anyway, yeah, I can see criticizing Dark Souls for being a bit too obscure, but I can also see how that's more acceptable in a modern age where so many people game and have a platform to help others by posting guides and videos. Back in the days of Simon's Quest if you got stuck you didn't have many (perhaps any, depending on your age and location) recourse to solve it. Even physical game guides weren't common in those days.

[Raxivace]

Jimbo, I'd like to think God is punishing you for not having beaten Dark Souls already.

[Raxivace]

[Eva Yojimbo]

I don't care to watch the trailer as I'll be buying (eventually) regardless.

Hope I can get back to Souls today. It's been a rough couple of days trying to adjust to a new schedule I had to get on with one day's notice. Not helping that somehow I really hurt my lower back yesterday and am having trouble moving around.

BTW raxi, I was thinking of playing Nier: Automata next (it's one of a few I've narrowed it down to), and I noticed it was part of a franchise that included three Drakengard games and a previous Nier; any of them worth playing? It also got me wondering about if there's some good PS3 games I need to check out that I might've missed and/or that aren't available on the PS store.

[Raxivace]

I don't care to watch the trailer as I'll be buying (eventually) regardless.

Hope I can get back to Souls today. It's been a rough couple of days trying to adjust to a new schedule I had to get on with one day's notice. Not helping that somehow I really hurt my lower back yesterday and am having trouble moving around.

BTW raxi, I was thinking of playing Nier: Automata next (it's one of a few I've narrowed it down to), and I noticed it was part of a franchise that included three Drakengard games and a previous Nier; any of them worth playing? It also got me wondering about if there's some good PS3 games I need to check out that I might've missed and/or that aren't available on the PS store.

What happened? Are you doing okay?

Anyways Nier 1 is worth playing and I actually liked it quite a bit better than Automata despite being less polished in some aspects (Nier 1 is very clearly a budget title). Automata features several characters from Nier 1 anyways in supporting roles, so if you plan on playing both you might as well do Automata second.

I've played a bit of Drakengard 1 and it seems interesting but much, much rougher around the edges in terms of basic gameplay than either of the Niers- I do plan on going back to it eventually but I've been distracted by newer stuff. I think technically Nier 1 branches off from an ending in Drakengard 1 but Nier 1 is perfectly followable without it. I also own Drakengards 2 and 3 but haven't touched them yet.

As for other PS3 games...most of the other ones I would have recommended I think have been ported at this point to PS4. Tales of Graces F was one I enjoyed a lot for its combat (Its story less so) that hasn't left that system yet. If you ever want to play Ico, the PS3 version is the one to go with. Beyond that there are the obvious games like Demon's Souls, MGS4, FF13 games that are exclusive etc.

EDIT: Oh, Deadly Premonition is on PS3 too! That's the best/worst Twin Peaks fanfiction ever written.

[Eva Yojimbo]

Not entirely sure but I think I strained a back muscle working out. I was a little sore a few days ago, but woke up Tuesday and it was hard getting around. Worst pain I ever experienced actually happened several years ago when I went to my back porch to read, sat down in my chair, and (I think) slipped a disc. Sat there for a good 45 minutes in such excruciating pain it hurt to breathe. When I finally got up I only took a few steps before I passed out in the yard, in the mud and rain. Luckily my dad came out to help me up and in to bed, and for the next few days it was really difficult getting around to do anything (going to the bathroom was hard as hell). Luckily, this isn't nearly as bad (it's already much better today), but it seems like when you have back injuries like that they tend to sporadically recur.

Thanks for the info. I either know about or have those other titles. The fact that I missed Drakengard and the first Nier made me wonder if there were some other good PS3 titles that didn't get ports that I missed.

Anyway, I did play some more Souls last night, mostly exploring the Demon Ruins. Beat that Giant Centipede thing, though it was a bitch figuring out I had to lure him to another area to fight him at all. Then I got kinda lost exploring that room with all those giant jumping dinosaurs. Once I finally found the path out of there I fell through the floor into a complete different area and just Homeward Boned back to the bonfire and called it a night. So far I think this is my least favorite area in the game. It just seems huge and empty and there's a ton of running around to get almost nowhere.

[Raxivace]

Yeah Demon Ruins sucks and frankly you're not at the worst of it yet. You will soon come across what is usually considered the worst designed boss in the entire game- frankly I worry you'll throw your back again literally throwing your controller in frustration at your TV when you see what Bed of Chaos is like.

Anyways I hope you feel better.

[Raxivace]

BTW should I just make a 2020 thread at this point?

[Eva Yojimbo]

^ Sure, why not?

[maz89]

(Which reminds me, I need to harass him with some more e-mails to get him back here again).

As long as he's back when the new Taylor Swift album is released I'll be happy. :)

To help me sift through what I missed out on during the last 2(?) years, I searched for 'Taylor Swift' and this is the post I landed on. So, thanks for this marker (.. although I am disappointed there are no Taylor Swift threads discussing any of her recent fantastic five albums**).

There's some interesting discussion before this post on The Witcher 3 and TLOU, stemming from that video that Yojimbo shared (which I liked and thought was insightful as well). I'll get to it later if I have anything to add. I also notice some high praise for MGS2 and it makes me think I should make that the next game I play (but would be a poor use of my new PS5).

But I want to talk about TLOU2, which I finished about a month ago. This is a game that I went into with high expectations, and it had me on the edge of my seat throughout... until its horrible, misguided final third, which laid bare its philosophical problems. If either of you has played it and is in discussion mode, I'll elaborate.

*edit: ok, it looks like we did discuss Lover back in 2019, although I had no memory of it.

[maz89]

BTW should I just make a 2020 thread at this point?

Oh, of course, I see this after making my post.

[Raxivace]

Maz! It's great to see you here again!

You've missed a lot lol.

[Raxivace]

I haven't played Last of Us 2 btw.

[maz89]

Where does it fall in your queue? Would be great to get your thoughts on it.

[Raxivace]

Honestly I wasn't planning on playing it any time soon, especially because it doesn't seem to have been on sale any of the last few times I happened to be on PSN.

Plus I had mixed feelings on LoU1 to begin with, so I never really had much motivation to jump back into that world.

[maz89]

Oh wait, you didn't like the first one? Are there people who don't like the first one? :D

Tbh, if you didn't like it, I certainly won't press you to play it. I'm sure you'll get around to it in a couple of years.

Wonder if Jimbo liked the first one.

[Raxivace]

Jimbo loved Last of Us 1 lol. I think even played it at least twice.

He even played Witcher 3 a second time recently too!

[maz89]

i'm actually all ready to sink 150 hours on Witcher 3 once they release the next-gen version. Dying to make use of my PS5 but offerings are still slim. Looking forward to Horizon and God of War next year.

Did you play Cyberpunk btw? I really enjoyed it. It's not a masterpiece on the level of Witcher 3, but props to CDPR for knowing how to create compelling atmosphere, characters, and story.

[Raxivace]

I did not play Cyberpunk yet. I probably will at some point since I also have a PS5 now.

[Raxivace]

If you dig around either the 2020 or 2021 thread though, you will find that I played Lost: Via Domus which is maybe the most powerful, strongest video game ever made. A game so great Jimbo has sworn never to play it just because of how bad it would make all other video games look in comparison.

[maz89]

Judging by its critical reception, I will presume that you are kidding... err, are you kidding? Then again, I won't be surprised. You've never been one to enjoy the mainstream stuff. ;)

[maz89]

I did not play Cyberpunk yet. I probably will at some point since I also have a PS5 now.

I actually played Cyberpunk on Stadia. Have you heard of it? It's pretty cool in that it lets you play AAA games on any computer or TV (with a chromecast + controller) via the internet. No $800 console required. The future of gaming. Ahead of its time though.

I was changing countries last year, didn't have a console or PC and used it to play games. If you have a subscription, they give away free titles - mostly indie stuff (so it could be to your liking). I recently played Journey to the Savage Planet, a first person action adventure that I thought was a lot of fun.

I also got obsessed with Don't Starve last year. Steam tells me I put 237 hours into the game. In around 3 months. It's super addictive.

Also, played and loved Thimbleed Park. It's a point and click game that could have been made in the 90s (made by the folks who made Secret of Monkey Island), featuring a murder mystery plot in a strange town. It's hilarious and entertaining. I think you'd like it.

[Raxivace]

Judging by its critical reception, I will presume that you are kidding... err, are you kidding? Then again, I won't be surprised. You've never been one to enjoy the mainstream stuff. ;)

Lol. Its not a very good game but its still an interesting one because its clear the devs of that we're going for the type of licensed experience that Telltale Games would soar at just a few years later with Back to the Future and The Walking Dead, but well unfortunately Lost: Via Domus came out several years before either of those were around to use as a working model. So you end up with a weird mix of typical adventure game puzzles, weird classic Resident Evil type of puzzles, and a mishmash of other such things in addition to proto-Telltale story driven adventure where interestingly you're often pitted against classic Lost characters just as often as you're working with them.

Its not well executed (Not even in writing department really. Like they come up with pretty thin reasons at times to have the Losties hate you) but I respect the honest attempt to try and do something cool.

[Raxivace]

I did not play Cyberpunk yet. I probably will at some point since I also have a PS5 now.

I actually played Cyberpunk on Stadia. Have you heard of it? It's pretty cool in that it lets you play AAA games on any computer or TV (with a chromecast + controller) via the internet. No $800 console required. The future of gaming. Ahead of its time though.

I was changing countries last year, didn't have a console or PC and used it to play games. If you have a subscription, they give away free titles - mostly indie stuff (so it could be to your liking). I recently played Journey to the Savage Planet, a first person action adventure that I thought was a lot of fun.

I also got obsessed with Don't Starve last year. Steam tells me I put 237 hours into the game. In around 3 months. It's super addictive.

Also, played and loved Thimbleed Park. It's a point and click game that could have been made in the 90s (made by the folks who made Secret of Monkey Island), featuring a murder mystery plot in a strange town. It's hilarious and entertaining. I think you'd like it.

I've heard of Stadia but I can't say I like idea of these streaming only platforms tbh. I at least need my own digital download.

Haven't heard of any of those games, but I'll look into them.

[maz89]

Lol. Its not a very good game but its still an interesting one because its clear the devs of that we're going for the type of licensed experience that Telltale Games would soar at just a few years later with Back to the Future and The Walking Dead, but well unfortunately Lost: Via Domus came out several years before either of those were around to use as a working model. So you end up with a weird mix of typical adventure game puzzles, weird classic Resident Evil type of puzzles, and a mishmash of other such things in addition to proto-Telltale story driven adventure where interestingly you're often pitted against classic Lost characters just as often as you're working with them.

Its not well executed (Not even in writing department really. Like they come up with pretty thin reasons at times to have the Losties hate you) but I respect the honest attempt to try and do something cool.

I get that, interesting failures can trump blandness.

[maz89]

I've heard of Stadia but I can't say I like idea of these streaming only platforms tbh. I at least need my own digital download.

Yeah that seems to be the consensus of the majority, it seems. And well, I caved into getting a PS5 too. Were you able to get a hand on one easily btw? Was a struggle for me, had to stay up at midnight anticipating the drop from Walmart, which lasted 6 minutes.

Haven't heard of any of those games, but I'll look into them.

I hope you'd heard of Cyberpunk though...

[Raxivace]

It was definitely a struggle to get a PS5. I followed a Twitter account that posted when different sites had them in stock, and got lucky with a link to a GameStop page one day, on the way home from getting my second Covid shot.

Even knowing about GameStop having them in stock, it was still a 20ish minute battle of refreshing and such to actually get it in my cart and buy the dang thing, but it worked.

[Raxivace]

I get that, interesting failures can trump blandness.

Indeed. Not that it would have ever happened, but it really makes me wonder what Telltale would have done with Lost too.

[maz89]

OK, so looks like we all had to go through the same struggle to get a unit, then.

I'm playing Ghosts of Tsushima nowadays. It's set in Japan during the Mongol invasion and features a black-and-white Kurosawa mode, which is pretty damn cool. Gameplay-wise, it's like an Assassin's Creed open-world RPG but with a less watered down, more unforgiving combat system, and a better story, although I haven't gotten very far. It does have one little problem at its core: it lets you play in stealth without being punished in any way story-wise, even though the game acknowledges that this isn't how honorable samurais operate. It's a bit of a disconnect between gameplay and setting/story/character, but whatever. Will share further impressions as I play more of it.

[Raxivace]

I heard about that Kurosawa Mode thing back when that game was new, but that game doesn't sound much like any of Kurosawa's actual movies tbh. Like its probably a good game on its own but it sounded like a weird way to try and give it prestige or something.

I might try and post about some recent stuff I've played if I find the energy later.

[maz89]

Well, it does take place in a setting similar to those that Kurosawa often dabbled in, so it doesn't necessarily feel slapped on to me. More like a no-brainer, given how easy it is to slap on a filter and confirm what everyone is already thinking. I will agree that while the main storyline does not indeed feel like Kurosawa (yet), a couple of the side quests have definitely reminded me of his films - particularly one quest in which you work with a master trainer who learns that one of his gifted students has gone rogue, a story that unfolds with some mystery (I don't know how this ends yet). Since I don't know any other AAA games that pretend to pay homage to Kurosawa, I will take what I can get.

[Raxivace]

I think the problem is that most of Kurosawa's period movies deal with small but significant encounters which really doesn't translate into how most AAA video games are, where you need waves of dudes to mow down at some point. Like even in Seven Samurai, there's still only like 30 antagonists in that movie. There's only one duel really in Rashomon. And so on.

There's probably been a decent AAA game about the "warring states" era of Japan at some point (Even if only because of how popular of a figure Oda Nobunaga is over there), and the movie Kurosawa made about that was Kagemusha which is like one of his least action filled! Can't exactly make that into a video game without really going against the spirit of Kurosawa's version.

[maz89]

Yeah, that makes sense and it explains why I get a hint of Kurosawa in the storytelling for the "small but significant" side quests in the game (although we'll see how the main storyline takes shape). What you're saying leads to one of the main criticisms of the game, which has to do with its open-world, full of things to do and Mongols to kill. That's the bit that takes you out of the fantasy, and brings you back into the 'RPG game'.

[Raxivace]

Where does it fall in your queue? Would be great to get your thoughts on it.

Last of Us 2 is on sale on PSN right now for ten dollars. I ended up buying and might just play it at some point this year now.

I gotta be honest, I don't expect I'll actually like it much but for that cheap a price it might be worth the try. And a lot of people that loved 1 seemed to dislike 2. Maybe the inverse will hold and I'll like 2?

[maz89]

Let me know if you ever get to it. Curious to what you'll end up thinking of it.

Need to check out the HBO show. Everyone seems to be raving about it.

[Raxivace]

I haven't been watching the HBO series but it seems to be fairly popular. Apparently its been making some changes to the story of the game.