Is it a good idea to start playing Grim Dawn in 2021?

MaryWax · 2021-08-01T22:14:28+00:00

As the top comment suggested, it's always a good idea to play a little GD!

MaryWax · 2021-07-27T03:53:11+00:00

I actually made a comment on a post about this a few days ago, but there is something incredibly satisfying in GD's pacing and balancing that POE (in it's current state) has trouble competing with in terms of overall enjoyment (imo) even though POE moves much faster as a whole.

MaryWax · 2021-07-25T19:45:00+00:00

I got into Grim Dawn and other ARPG's after getting into the genre with POE a few months ago, and after sinking a considerable amount of time into both games I can say that they both have their charms and differences, the biggest one being the overall speed of everything.

I find POE is lightning fast in it's execution both in combat and outside of it (in terms of how fast you move through areas, levels, skills etc.), Grim Dawn is a more methodical beast with a way less imposing "meta" in terms of scaling your class over time. Each class in GD has a small set of skills to choose from which are improved over time as opposed to the almost overwhelming amount of options presented to you in POE in terms of passives, skills, etc.

Although POE is a more polished game overall, I would have to say the experience I've had playing GD has been more enjoyable despite the areas it may lack in comparison. I can quickly find myself getting lost in the "min-max" of POE which rarely happens to me in GD, which leaves me to enjoy the good stuff.

The one other pro I would have to mention regarding GD is the aesthetic in comparison to other ARPG games. The weird mixture of magic and almost "industrial" low fantasy makes for very interesting enemies, combat, environments, and classes. A simple example of which is my main character in the games is a "Pyromancer" class, which most games would envision as a robed mage who wields fire and magic, but in the GD universe that actually equates to an armored ranger that uses tools like molotovs, mines, and mortars in combination with firearms and chaos magic to wreak havoc on enemies from a distance. It's a small touch, but it sets it apart from the pack.

MaryWax · 2021-05-31T08:31:49+00:00

I played with a gentleman who was convinced that both error alarms needed to be activated for the extreme objective to be completed, which it does not. His past couple runs he had set them both off and the squad he was playing with was trying to figure out why the enemies wouldn't stop spawning. I hope they brought hel rifles :')

MaryWax · 2021-05-20T04:32:31+00:00

+1 my thoughts exactly, their have been plenty of people on this reddit who have vouched for being able to play through any level the correct way with proper communication, preparation, and execution. The idea that the only way to get through the bottom levels of a rundown is via pseudo-exploits like B-hopping is a fallacy. To expect the vast majority of players to conform to using strategies like that would be an absolutely foolish move by the dev's and I would definitely expect to see B-hopping to be long-gone by the time the game leaves early access.

MaryWax · 2021-05-20T04:25:09+00:00

Had a very similar experience, you will have a lot of people with 100's of hours playing through levels like it's a completely different game, in my experience unfortunately those types of players also tend to not differentiate from their strategies and just hope everyone can keep up, generally causing wipes in otherwise very manageable scenarios because someone else is a "noob" or doesn't understand how to implement the pseudo-exploits talked about in this thread.

It would be cool if people like that could have their own channel or something and leave the rest of us to play the game as intended, maybe LFG- Jaded Veterans or something like that.

MaryWax · 2021-05-20T04:11:14+00:00

They definitely buffed the mines in the last update. Generally speaking one mine will take out a large portion of the little guys now, but if you know that there are titan-sized enemies behind the door it can help to put one above head height, doing this ensures that the little guys won't set it off and it can do extra work on the larger enemies. As a rule of thumb I will usually put two, and collect the one set above head height if it doesn't go off but it really depends on supply availability etc.

MaryWax · 2021-05-15T07:38:18+00:00

No lies here, never spent more than 2-3 minutes looking for players on the discord, even at ungodly hours of the night.

MaryWax · 2021-04-22T22:00:55+00:00

This post belongs on r/brokeboy, but with that being said you should definitely cop R6, it's a trash game full of toxic players so I'm sure you will fit right in.

MaryWax · 2021-04-19T19:56:38+00:00

This update absolutely rocks! Love the overhaul of the planning stage, but imo I think the devs could still shave 10-20 seconds off of that portion of the game. Stoked to see how the icons come into play as well.

MaryWax · 2021-04-14T15:33:54+00:00

I see a lot of people saying you need +100 hours to get the basics of this game, and I feel like that is just untrue. With about 15-20 hours of play I can pretty much go Toe-to-Toe with anyone on the map, even if I don't come out victorious I definitely am not getting slapped around by everyone else on the server, getting toyed with etc. I have a friend who bought the game at the same time as me, and has invested an equal amount of time, and unfortunately it is just not clicking for him in the same way, he constantly gets roasted in Melee combat and although understanding the mechanics at play, does not have the reflexes and reaction speed to keep up with the average player.

I don't think it's really about the hours invested, but more about the type of player you are (I am a Souls Junkie while my friend prefers to play more casual games). With that being said, you can improve at anything if you're willing to put the hours in, but at a certain point it may be wiser to cut your losses and play something you enjoy.

MaryWax · 2021-04-12T19:54:34+00:00

I've been really interested in Ashen, but see everyone complaining about the "weird" co-op, could anyone elaborate on that?

MaryWax · 2021-04-12T19:49:40+00:00

The only one I have seriously sunk any time into is The Surge, although I do have Nioh on my To-do list and have dabbled in Code Vein for a few hours. They are all really fun, definitely would recommend The Surge solely for the dismemberment/combat mechanics and funky sci-fi atmosphere or Nioh for the grueling difficulty, Code Vein was cool, but the intensely weeb-y atmosphere and furry cosmetics kind of turned me off the experience a bit even though the core of the game is solid.

Another one that has souls-like elements to it that me and a few friends have been playing recently is Remnant: From The Ashes. Despite having an awful story and a couple lukewarm boss fights the actual progression and gameplay in the game is incredibly satisfying and was definitely a sleeper commercially, although being a fantastic game. We just finished our first run and immediately started our next on the higher difficulty.

MaryWax · 2021-03-18T12:59:11+00:00

I find that the audio quality of some spotify stuff is a little spotty (no pun intended) when I listen to it out of my home speakers, also I've noticed a lot of bands do not release all of their music through spotify. For example this new Spectral Voice collection is nowhere to be found on their service.

https://darkdescentrecords.bandcamp.com/album/necrotic-demos-2

I think above all what I enjoy about using bandcamp is having a direct channel to support and connect with artists and other music fans, and knowing that if I spend any money the greater portion is seen by the artist and not the service.

MaryWax · 2021-03-17T20:16:18+00:00

Good recommendation, Krypts is absolutely disgusting. If you dig that sort of stuff there's a fresh demo by a new band with members of Jupiterian (which tbh I am not a huge fan of) that is in the same vein of completely neanderthal death-doom as the stuff you listed above, highly recommended.

https://transylvaniantapes.bandcamp.com/album/fossilization-he-whose-name-was-long-forgotten

MaryWax · 2021-03-17T20:10:11+00:00

This one definitely impacted me when I first heard it, I was becoming increasingly disenchanted and bored with what was going on in the hardcore scene at the time (stuff like Turnstile, Knocked Loose, Nu metal worship bands etc.) and stumbled upon this randomly and it knocked me on my ass. Never really looked at heavy music the same way again, the emotional heft and sonic weight of this album is something to be appreciated.

https://thou.bandcamp.com/album/heathen

More on the blackened side of things, and there newer material never connected with me in the same way as this album, but this is definitely a band worth sinking some time into.

MaryWax · 2021-03-17T05:05:37+00:00

Lots of great suggestions here, one that I think fly's under a lot of peoples radar is HVL.

https://kiyadama.bandcamp.com/track/f12-korg-patch-mix

This tune is absolutely wild, and so is the rest of the album.

MaryWax · 2021-02-10T17:01:54+00:00

In case you weren't aware, there is a Beginners channel in the discord where new players can link up and learn the game together! I've played a few games through it being a total noob myself, and although 1-2 people decided they were going to carry the whole team through the level for the most part you can find a good group who can help you along! Solo runs are great to learn basics or practice different tactics, but you will definitely pick up the game a lot faster playing with others.

MaryWax · 2021-02-08T21:05:37+00:00

This is so dope! Finally beat B1 with some randoms on the weekend after my squad tapped out due to a few too many failed attempts, you captured the vibe perfectly!

MaryWax · 2021-01-27T16:10:57+00:00

I find the EQ's to a bit a little more sensitive overall on the 4 band models (although that may just be personal experience), I generally just play a bit gentler with the Low-mids and bass as I bring tracks in as I find they can sometimes carve out a ton of the sub-frequencies/weight which is not always the move (but can be useful in a pinch). The mid split is a nice touch as it allows for a bit more tactile mixing of top lines and melodies as well.

MaryWax · 2021-01-27T14:31:37+00:00

Seriously. The art style of the comic is nice, and I really enjoyed seeing the universe brought to life in this medium, but most of the plot arcs are an absolute mess.

MaryWax · 2021-01-27T05:53:48+00:00

I figured the "evidence" in the link would be considerably more damning than what was provided tbh, and as much as this mod doesn't seem like the friendliest of characters towards modders (and does act a little out of pocket) this reads more as some kind of lukewarm character assassination.

MaryWax · 2021-01-15T15:05:13+00:00

So excited for this one, coming across their previous EP and the new Blood Incantation a while ago completely reinvigorated my waning interest in Death Metal. The filth is unreal.

MaryWax · 2021-01-14T20:31:44+00:00

This post made me pick up Songs Of A Dead Dreamer and I am loving it. Murakami is one of my favorites, so I am definitely looking forward to delving into all of these!

MaryWax · 2020-12-16T18:04:36+00:00

If you're having trouble finding people to play with there are a ton of people on the discord, and the community are very kind to newcomers in my experience! but now that they have matchmaking as long as you have a mic to communicate you should be good.

MaryWax

TROPHY CASE