2012 Video Games Thread

[mckerney]

Originally Posted by Honolulu_Blue

Sweet sassy molassy.

This week is out of control for video game releases:

X-Com: Enemy Unknown
Dishonored
Episode 4 of "The Walking Dead"

(Blood Bowl: Chaos Edition - just had to throw this in there since I'm buying it. It's only $10 if you already own prior editions, you get 3 new teams and a new single player format, however, it still has the same old sucky AI and annoying multiplayer issues).

There's also Retro City Rampage coming out tomorrow and then Hotline Miami in another two weeks after that.

[JetsIn06]

Goodbye money.

Just got Dishonored and FM2013 on Steam.



Edit:

Dishonored pre-loading. Woo!

[Groundhog]

I refuse to buy the latest Blood Bowl expansion, considering I just play vs the CPU. They shafted me with that terrible Dungeonbowl release that makes it, what, 8000 shoddy releases in a row for that terrible studio?

[Abe Sargent]

Blood Bowl expansion?

[Groundhog]

Chaos Edition. Bunch of new teams, including some invented ones that will still have no concept of what turn it is, or that it's probably best to save that 5+ dodge for the final move of your turn, rather than the 1st.

[Neon_Chaos]

Originally Posted by Groundhog

I refuse to buy the latest Blood Bowl expansion, considering I just play vs the CPU. They shafted me with that terrible Dungeonbowl release that makes it, what, 8000 shoddy releases in a row for that terrible studio?

Love the marketing line for it...

It's the same game as BloodBowl, BUT IN A DUNGEON!

[Honolulu_Blue]

Originally Posted by Groundhog

I refuse to buy the latest Blood Bowl expansion, considering I just play vs the CPU. They shafted me with that terrible Dungeonbowl release that makes it, what, 8000 shoddy releases in a row for that terrible studio?

The single player AI is attrocious. I play some multiplayer and enjoy it. If this game had decent AI, I would play it all the time. Cyanide is a horrible studio. They make garbage and have ruined two very promising IP's in "Blood Bowl" and "Game of Thrones".

[Groundhog]

Originally Posted by Honolulu_Blue

The single player AI is attrocious. I play some multiplayer and enjoy it. If this game had decent AI, I would play it all the time. Cyanide is a horrible studio. They make garbage and have ruined two very promising IP's in "Blood Bowl" and "Game of Thrones".

I've played I think one game of Blood Bowl online, but really, considering how much longer everything takes, I'd rather just play fumbbl.

At least we have the fumbbl option for the Bloodbowl IP, where as what they did (or did not do) with that Game of Thrones IP... yikes. I literally played Game of Thrones: Genesis for 5 minutes, and the RPG, which I thankfully did not buy, is of a similar calibre by all reports.

I actually think the best thing they ever did was the Chaos League game that got them in trouble with the Games Workshop in the first place.

[Peregrine]

I'm playing Dishonored so far and really like it - it's a really slick game, really beautiful as well, and has a lot of really neat stuff to it - tons of lore like in Skyrim, there are tons of books you can read, and other notes and lore items, which really lets you get a better feel for the world. So far I'm playing a stealthy style which is a lot of fun.

[Honolulu_Blue]

Originally Posted by Groundhog

I've played I think one game of Blood Bowl online, but really, considering how much longer everything takes, I'd rather just play fumbbl.

At least we have the fumbbl option for the Bloodbowl IP, where as what they did (or did not do) with that Game of Thrones IP... yikes. I literally played Game of Thrones: Genesis for 5 minutes, and the RPG, which I thankfully did not buy, is of a similar calibre by all reports.

I actually think the best thing they ever did was the Chaos League game that got them in trouble with the Games Workshop in the first place.

I agree that even the multiplayer has issues. The biggest problem is finding and connecting to a game. That stupid coin spins forever and ever and ever and then just randomly disconnects. Blood Bowl is a great game and everything good about the PC game is a result of the core game, anything Cyanide tried to do on its own is pretty much terrible.

As for fumbbl, I just could never get into it for some reason. Just didn't click for me.

[MizzouRah]

Originally Posted by Peregrine

I'm playing Dishonored so far and really like it - it's a really slick game, really beautiful as well, and has a lot of really neat stuff to it - tons of lore like in Skyrim, there are tons of books you can read, and other notes and lore items, which really lets you get a better feel for the world. So far I'm playing a stealthy style which is a lot of fun.

Picking this up today for the x360.

[MizzouRah]

Does anyone remember this game? Probably one of my favorites of all time..

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neuroma...8video_game%29

[hawk4669]

Originally Posted by MizzouRah

Does anyone remember this game? Probably one of my favorites of all time..

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neuroma...8video_game%29

Yep. Loved it. A lot.

[MizzouRah]

Originally Posted by hawk4669

Yep. Loved it. A lot.

Me too.. I saw a listing on ebay and it brought back many memories. I was really into this game.

[mckerney]

http://gamingbolt.com/stars-of-barat...ncept-art-leak

Rumors about a space game being developed by Valve are in the news again.

[jeff061]

Valve is the type of company that will allow pet projects to grow into 50% baked games before deciding it won't work and cancelling it. I'll believe it when I see it on Steam .

[JonInMiddleGA]

Fucking piece of shit Borderlands 2.

New patch installed, Gearbox swears that didn't cause the problems but for whatever reason(s) users have lost rank (but kept achievements preventing them from regaining their rank), lost golden keys, lost earned skins ... or, in my case, had their character save disappear entirely.

Well, actually it's still there ... the fucking piece of shit fucking game just won't fucking acknowledge its existence.

I only played the p.o.s. to amuse my kid anyway (he likes co-op mode, I'm his only reliable playing partner) but having suffered through tedious ass game play with most fucked up map navigation system in all of gaming, I'm none to fucking happy about having wasted 15 hours of my life only to have it randomly disafuckingpear.

[thesloppy]

Borderlands maps do blow chunks. I can't count how many times I've struggled to get to part of a map, only to realize that one squiggly line there means I can't get through from this part of the map, and have to stumble blindly to the other corner of the map, hoping it isn't the same situation.

[TroyF]

Originally Posted by JonInMiddleGA

Fucking piece of shit Borderlands 2.

New patch installed, Gearbox swears that didn't cause the problems but for whatever reason(s) users have lost rank (but kept achievements preventing them from regaining their rank), lost golden keys, lost earned skins ... or, in my case, had their character save disappear entirely.

Well, actually it's still there ... the fucking piece of shit fucking game just won't fucking acknowledge its existence.

I only played the p.o.s. to amuse my kid anyway (he likes co-op mode, I'm his only reliable playing partner) but having suffered through tedious ass game play with most fucked up map navigation system in all of gaming, I'm none to fucking happy about having wasted 15 hours of my life only to have it randomly disafuckingpear.

My Borderlands 2 impressions:

1) the map sucks ass
2) I love the story, jack is one hell of a fun bad guy
3) as a single player, the game just does not drop great loot most of the time
4) The second time through is just painful. I grinded through to level 40 and just gave up and downloaded a cheat to level up and a save with most of the orange weapons and shields. I wasn't going to kill the warrior two hundred times in hope of a legendary weapon. I will play most of the add ons, and I just don't want to spend three hundred hours maxing out my level. The game is fun, it isn't that fun
5) loved the tiny tina character
6) back to the story, I thought it mixed really fun pop culture, humor and some incredible moments of sadness very well.


I like the idea of the mchro character, but I'm not spending all the time grinding out another character to even 40.

It paid for itself already, but the game certainly has some major flaws.

DLC comes out this week. I'll be traveling and then the FM pre release should be Friday or Saturday. I doubt I'll play this much for awhile.

[mckerney]

Originally Posted by TroyF

2) I love the story, jack is one hell of a fun bad guy
...
5) loved the tiny tina character
6) back to the story, I thought it mixed really fun pop culture, humor and some incredible moments of sadness very well.

I'd been looking forward to the story since I learned Anthony Burch was writing it and Ashly Burch was doing a character (brother and sister who do Hey Ash, Whatch Playin', Ashly did the voice of Tiny Tina and has also done some work writing for Vavle), their work certainly lived up to the expectations I had for it. I haven't finished it yet but I'm about 35 hours in and the story and humor have really been the high points for me so far.

Borderlands 2 and The Walking Dead stand out as the best writing for games released this year, with Home and 30 Flights of Loving also standing out in terms of story telling.

[SirFozzie]

H/t to SackAttack, who brought this deal to my attention:

Amazon.com: Absolutely Great Square Pack [Download]: Video Games

$10 for the Just Causes, Deus EX+DLC, and a bunch of other stuff

[mckerney]

Originally Posted by SirFozzie

H/t to SackAttack, who brought this deal to my attention:

Amazon.com: Absolutely Great Square Pack [Download]: Video Games

$10 for the Just Causes, Deus EX+DLC, and a bunch of other stuff

Either Just Cause 2 or Deus Ex:HR would be well worth that price, the bundle is an absolute steal. SupCom 2 and Hitman: Blood Money are both pretty good games while Quantum Conundrum feels a bit lacking at times but it's still an enjoyable first person puzzle game (the lead developer on it was Kim Swift, a member of the Digipen team that joined Valve to make Portal).

[mckerney]

Anyone picking up Just Cause 2 might want to keep an eye on the multiplayer mod. It's currently in development and not available at the moment but it has open beta weekends every so often.

JC2-MP

[mckerney]

Project Eternity by Obsidian Entertainment — Kickstarter

Project Eternity has about 50 hours to go and has raised $3.15 million including PayPal backing, so it looks like there's a decent chance it will hit its final stretch goal of adding a second major city to the game.

[bhlloy]

I'm absolutely stoked about that project. Seems like the level of interest blew their expectations out of the water. A win for good old fashioned single player gaming if you will.

[stevew]

Anybody really, maybe too excited, about the concept of slaughtering Redcoats? I have never been much of an Assassin's Creed fan, but I may pick this one up.

[Crapshoot]

Originally Posted by bhlloy

I'm absolutely stoked about that project. Seems like the level of interest blew their expectations out of the water. A win for good old fashioned single player gaming if you will.

Yup. And Obsidian writes the best games (KOTOR 2's writing put Bioware to shame), and that makes me happy. I'm a contributor, and given how they got screwed on Fallout 3 NV, I hope this route is something they do more often.

[mckerney]

Originally Posted by stevew

Anybody really, maybe too excited, about the concept of slaughtering Redcoats? I have never been much of an Assassin's Creed fan, but I may pick this one up.

I'm looking forward to playing it, but won't be getting it around release. I've picked up all the other AC games when they were $20 or less, will probably do the same with this one. Like the series, but I still need to finish Revelations and there's just been too many other releases lately.

You get to kill redcoats and confront a Templar George Washington. Don't really have a problem with the concept, but it seems a bit weird since I'd thought Washington was portrayed as being on the side of the Assassin's in previous games.

[chadritt]

I believe the Templar Washington thing is not part of the games actual main plot, just an alt universe type mission.. Though you do apparently kill Americans as well as the British

[MizzouRah]

Dishonored... wow

Early impressions.. knocked out about 2 hours and I'm very impressed with this game. My initial thoughts were to just kill everyone, but I'm really digging the stealth, put to sleep and hide the body tactic too.

Wonderful breath of fresh air and something I really needed. The game really makes you survey the area a bit and then think about how you want to go about getting to the next area. Game is FANTASTIC thus far and very well done. Not too hardcore, but yet you really feel like an assassin with some cool powers/tools to go about your destruction. What's also great, is the game lets you decide on what to do, I'm sure those of us who have the game each do things a bit differently.

This will be a game I finish pretty quickly as I don't want to stop playing.

[mckerney]

Originally Posted by MizzouRah

Dishonored... wow

Early impressions.. knocked out about 2 hours and I'm very impressed with this game. My initial thoughts were to just kill everyone, but I'm really digging the stealth, put to sleep and hide the body tactic too.

Wonderful breath of fresh air and something I really needed. The game really makes you survey the area a bit and then think about how you want to go about getting to the next area. Game is FANTASTIC thus far and very well done. Not too hardcore, but yet you really feel like an assassin with some cool powers/tools to go about your destruction. What's also great, is the game lets you decide on what to do, I'm sure those of us who have the game each do things a bit differently.

This will be a game I finish pretty quickly as I don't want to stop playing.

I've been going for no kills too, and taking it very slowly doing so. Also trying to do every possible objective so after about 4 hours I'm halfway through the first mission.

[sterlingice]

Being sick, I've put a good 15 hours into Xenoblade Chronicles (Wii). Curious if anyone else has given it a go.

SI

[MizzouRah]

Originally Posted by mckerney

I've been going for no kills too, and taking it very slowly doing so. Also trying to do every possible objective so after about 4 hours I'm halfway through the first mission.

Yeah me too.

[mckerney]

[Matthean]

A look at Act III for Path of Exile. I got tired of keeping up with the character wipes so just waiting for it to be released.

Diablo Meets Final Fantasy VII In This Ambitious Action-RPG

[TroyF]

OK, I keep hearing how Dishonored is an incredible game. I'm sure it is and this is not a post questioning that. I need some help though. . . I hear you are supposed to play as an assassin. How does an assassin have "non lethal" ways to accomplish missions? Doesn't the very deifinition mean you kill people?

I will get the game on a price drop sometime later this year, I'm just curious about that questions.

[mckerney]

Originally Posted by TroyF

OK, I keep hearing how Dishonored is an incredible game. I'm sure it is and this is not a post questioning that. I need some help though. . . I hear you are supposed to play as an assassin. How does an assassin have "non lethal" ways to accomplish missions? Doesn't the very deifinition mean you kill people?

I will get the game on a price drop sometime later this year, I'm just curious about that questions.

It means not using lethal measure for everyone up until you get to the target. You'll come across guards or other enemies on your way to your target or other objectives and can use methods other than killing to deal with them.

[MizzouRah]

Originally Posted by TroyF

OK, I keep hearing how Dishonored is an incredible game. I'm sure it is and this is not a post questioning that. I need some help though. . . I hear you are supposed to play as an assassin. How does an assassin have "non lethal" ways to accomplish missions? Doesn't the very deifinition mean you kill people?

I will get the game on a price drop sometime later this year, I'm just curious about that questions.

What mckerney said. The premise is more death = more plague. You kill your targets and you can kill anyone you want, but you are rewarded for being non-lethal up until the target. I actually kill many people so I'm sure that might hurt me in the long run.

It's a fascinating game though, takes me a lot of time just going through certain areas, especially as you get more powers that change the way you go about getting around. I have the power that if you sneak kill someone, they turn to dust, so I use that a lot.

[mckerney]

Originally Posted by Crapshoot

Yup. And Obsidian writes the best games (KOTOR 2's writing put Bioware to shame), and that makes me happy. I'm a contributor, and given how they got screwed on Fallout 3 NV, I hope this route is something they do more often.

Now up to $3.47 million with 20 hours to go.



I like that they'll be able to write something without needing publisher approval, should allow them to do some things they wouldn't be able to do otherwise. I know in Fallout one of the first locations you went to there was a feud between a sheriff and a mobster who runs a casino that you have the opportunity to chose sides on. The way it was originally written if you sided with the sheriff he'd impose martial law on the town, while the gangster would cause the town to flourish as a trading center to keep his business good. Interplay forced a change not wanting that sort of moral ambiguity of killing the sheriff leading to a good result.

[TroyF]

Originally Posted by mckerney

It means not using lethal measure for everyone up until you get to the target. You'll come across guards or other enemies on your way to your target or other objectives and can use methods other than killing to deal with them.

Ok, that makes sense, so your main mission is still to kill someone. Thanks for the explanation.

[Crapshoot]

Originally Posted by mckerney

Now up to $3.47 million with 20 hours to go.



I like that they'll be able to write something without needing publisher approval, should allow them to do some things they wouldn't be able to do otherwise. I know in Fallout one of the first locations you went to there was a feud between a sheriff and a mobster who runs a casino that you have the opportunity to chose sides on. The way it was originally written if you sided with the sheriff he'd impose martial law on the town, while the gangster would cause the town to flourish as a trading center to keep his business good. Interplay forced a change not wanting that sort of moral ambiguity of killing the sheriff leading to a good result.

Huh - didn't know that. I've heard good things about NVN anyway, and I should probably pick that up.

[JAG]

Originally Posted by mckerney

Now up to $3.47 million with 20 hours to go.

Reading what they want to do and who will be involved in making it, I'm really excited for this one.

[Peregrine]

Originally Posted by TroyF

Ok, that makes sense, so your main mission is still to kill someone. Thanks for the explanation.

It's basically just set up so you can do it however you want - currently I am doing it nonlethal - there are even nonlethal options for your final target. But I am mainly doing it because I think it will be fun to play through again doing full lethal, just to see the different endings of the game.

[MizzouRah]

Originally Posted by Peregrine

It's basically just set up so you can do it however you want - currently I am doing it nonlethal - there are even nonlethal options for your final target. But I am mainly doing it because I think it will be fun to play through again doing full lethal, just to see the different endings of the game.

There are so many side missions too, that it takes me a long time to get to the real mission at hand.

[Crapshoot]

Obsidian's Kickstarter + Paypal campaign ended at over $4M. What do you know - let demand speak directly, and quality can come through! Its not all AAA and indie.

[Atocep]

Project Eternity is the first thing I've kickstarted and it was a no-brainer. The amount of content it appears this is going to have is staggering. It sounds like this is going to ship Baldur's Gate II + Expansion in size.

[bhlloy]

So now we've paid, what's to stop them taking the 4 million and moving to the Cayman Islands? Not suggesting they'd ever consider that (they seem like a great company), but even with the best of intentions projects fail and money gets spent badly, and I imagine not all of the kickstarters have their track record.

[mckerney]

Originally Posted by bhlloy

So now we've paid, what's to stop them taking the 4 million and moving to the Cayman Islands? Not suggesting they'd ever consider that (they seem like a great company), but even with the best of intentions projects fail and money gets spent badly, and I imagine not all of the kickstarters have their track record.

There's certainly a risk that the project won't work out as intended, which is why it takes a team with the track record of this one to raise this sort of funding through a source like Kickstarter. Chris Avellone, Josh Sawyer and Tim Cain have worked on games that are considered absolute classics like Planescape Torment, Baulder's Gate, Icewind Dale and Fallout, along with numerous other games that are beloved for their storytelling and writing even if they were some flaws with the games as a whole that kept them from being classisc (KOTR 2, Arcanium, V:TM – Bloodlines, Alpha Protocol, Fallout: New Vegas),

And sure it might be risky for fans to pool together $4 million to help fund a game like this, but it's not likely to see a group like this be able to make this kind of RPG if the fans did not.

[Fidatelo]

I still feel like there should be an expectation of profit on Kickstarter. I don't mind the idea of funding games that publishers wouldn't touch (or to keep publishers from touching them), but I don't see why the backers shouldn't be treated like proper investors and given the possibility of receiving payouts should the project ultimately succeed.

[Crapshoot]

Because Backers aren't investors - and that comes with a whole host of problems / regulations (Jobs Act issues, etc etc). I am essentially telling a company that hey, if you produce this game, I am willing to pre-pay for it at a discount (Ie, I think the game will retail at 40-50 bucks) - essentially, demand exists for it.