Videogame Discussion Thread

Am I the only one excited for the 3DS release of DQ7? One of my favorite PS1 games ever and it's arriving today. I'm sad about the move from orchestral tracks in Japan to MIDI tracks in the US release due to licensing but I don't mind that much given how awesome the original was.

 

The first Dark Souls 3 DLC is looking very interesting. If you're a fan of the series who keeps up with its lore, then the gameplay previews from TGS will get your gears turning for sure. Kinda surprised they showed BOTH of the DLC's bosses. So don't watch it if you don't want those spoiled.

Yes, there will only be two bosses, which kinda surprised me. However both battles seem to involve multiple opponents and rather interesting dynamics from the looks of it. Fifteen new weapons isn't too shabby either, though I was hoping for more than simply four new spells, especially given how lackluster sorcery and miracles have been in this game.

I've pretty much finished NG for my second character, and I plan on leaving it at the end state without going into NG+. That way I can just farm some covenant rewards or missing armor sets while I wait for both DLCs. I learned the hard way from Bloodborne (which obnoxiously forces you into NG+ after the final boss) that the DLC can be a "real" nightmare on higher difficulty levels. Still feel a sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach every time I see that bastard Ludwig.



Also, while I wait for the DLC, I decided to give Destiny another chance. I played it for a few months after launch but was too underwhelmed by the empty world to care much; which bummed me out, 'cuz I've always felt Destiny had really good lore. Just a shame more of it wasn't in the game but rather compiled on a website. With Taken King and Rise of Iron however, it feels like the game world has been fleshed out a bit, and a lot of the improvements I've read about sound good. Decided to go with the collector's edition which bundles all the DLC (including the newest expansion) and is thus a more cost effective option. Also I get to level up a character to lvl40 cap apparently, buuuut... I still have to play thru the vanilla campaign again to get actual experience points and unlock gear? There's this new system called "light" that just completely baffles me at this stage. It's like your gear's level, and the cap on it is like 380 or something absurd?

TBH all the changes to Destiny have left me utterly bewildered for the time being. Have no idea what I'm doing.

 

While I wait for the Dark Souls 3 DLC, I've gone back to the original Dark Souls. I just can't get enough of these games, even when I'm feeling slightly burnt out on them. They've just ruined gaming for me in that sense; I've been dividing my time between Dragon Age Inquisition, Fallout 4, and now Destiny. And yet I find myself thinking "gee, I could sure go for some Dark Souls..."

I'm a hopeless addict. Since the new DLC is centered around The Painted World, I figured I'd do a run of the first game with Priscilla's Lifehunt Scythe.

I've realized one of THE most important things for me in determining my attachment to a game is the world and lore it presents. I'm not even talking about the storyline which may or may not coincide with said lore; Destiny for example started out with barely any story whatsoever, but it had excellent lore, so I refused to give up on it entirely despite it feeling empty and soulless at first. Thankfully that lore isn't just kept on a separate website now, but has been integrated into the game itself more with recent expansions. The world is more interesting now. Still has some ways to go though, IMO.

I just like building characters and collecting weapons and items, and I like doing so in an interesting world with interesting characters and a history with its own mythology. That's why I'm so hooked on the Souls series: it's an RPG which uses these things as rewards for exploring and taking risks.


On a semi related note... Why can't I enjoy videogames during the day? Playing at night into the wee hours of the morning is so much more satisfying to me for some reason. I'm weird.

 

I've played the original Dragon's Dogma, but it never really clicked with me for whatever reason. I think it might be because it was going for certain MMO-ish elements? Unless I'm just remembering wrong? I just don't like that kinda thing, particularly when it comes to combat and how party systems work. It makes Dragon Age: Inquisition a less enjoyable experience for me than it honestly should be.

There's a definite narrative going on in Souls games, it's just more in the background rather than presented outright to the player. Which works for that style of game IMO. Though the narrative in Dark Souls 3 is definitely more overt compared to its predecessors, for better or worse.

I know what you mean though: you like games where the story is the primary motivating factor for the player, and the main reward is finding out what happens to the characters. I like a good central storyline too. However if a story is going to eschew the benefits of simplicity in favor of a more complex narrative, I have to have a certain degree of freedom within said narrative, or I tend to feel disengaged. Games like Deus Ex, Dragon Age Origins, Mass Effect, or the Persona series strike a good balance for me.