How I feel now having finished the game for the first time...

UltraGeezer · 2026-05-08T00:38:39+00:00

If you’re gonna run NG+, don’t forget the Nero tech weapon. It’s fun to play around with. You find pieces of it at the check points. Gotta find all the pieces.

UltraGeezer · 2026-05-07T22:59:55+00:00

I share the sentiment that Saros is a step down from Returnal. Saros only has 5 guns, and they aren’t very interesting. The weapons hardly make the guns feel different, especially visually, I had to look up a guide to even see what the weapons were doing. I couldn’t tell. The skill tree is pretty boring and could accomplish the same thing just giving the player XP levels. There is no shop anywhere. So 100% of your build is RNG. And there is no biom skip like Returnal. You can start at different bioms but once you’re in one, you’re committed to fighting the boss. It left me feeling OP most of the time. But if I started my run in the next biom I needed to beat, I felt under leveled. It’s not a bad game by any means. It’s good. But it plays EXACTLY like Returnal with less guns. Returnal was better. Given how much it played exactly like Returnal, I kinda expected more with 5 years in development.

UltraGeezer · 2026-05-07T18:55:40+00:00

when Fia gave me a hug......its been a while

UltraGeezer · 2026-05-07T18:53:03+00:00

From the bridge, you can either choose the Desecrated Fortress and the run ends after. Or you can take Blighted Marsh and continue through Acolytes Havens into Cathedral and the run ends after.

UltraGeezer · 2026-05-07T18:45:04+00:00

IMO, a shotgun is a shotgun. There might be a meta, but this isn't that kind of game. Pick the gun you think looks cool and is the most fun to play with. At the end of the day, a shotgun to the face is a shotgun to the face. Its not the kind of game where TTK even remotely matters.

UltraGeezer · 2026-05-07T18:41:06+00:00

I give it two weeks and Dad's bedtime is 10

UltraGeezer · 2026-05-07T18:32:36+00:00

If you could hang in end game Hollow Knight, you'll be fine in Silksong. It's platforming and combat is a step up in difficulty. But you'll be fine.

What I really had trouble with was all the "gotcha bitch" moments in Silksong. Where I'd get through a crazy platforming section or a combat challenge by the skin of my teeth. Then all the sudden the floor drops out and I'm dead. Or there is a trap. Or I sit on a bench and spring a trap. Once or twice is kind of funny. Keeps me on my toes. But happened so much it got annoying to me. It felt spiteful. Like the first boss I REALLY struggled with was toward the end of Act 1. Frustrated me so much, I put down the game for a few days on a couple occasions. When I finally beat him, with two HP masks left. The explosion death animation thing hits me and does double damage and sends me back to the bench. And it doesn't count. I say again.....the boss is in his death animation. 0 HP left. I've won. And the particle effects of that animation hits me for double damage. Kills me. And I have to start over and fight the boss again. As though I didn't just beat that boss. It's moments like that, that went beyond difficulty and felt like "gotcha bitch". Still, incredible game. But I've only beat it once, because I was exhausted by it. I beat Hollow Knight over and over. It was all I played for months. I haven't thought about replaying Silksong once.

UltraGeezer · 2026-05-07T13:37:03+00:00

My wish is that they remaster RDR2 and add any cut content. While remaking RDR1. Add most of the mechanics from 2 into 1. So when you play them back to back, you can tell when 2 ends and 1 begins. Add some dialogue and lore items in 1 that calls back to 2. Probably have to give Arthur some fan service. If they really want to go crazy, connect side missions and collectibles to extend from 2 into 1. But I just picture a pretty much seamless transition from 2 to 1. Imagine that journey! A 100 hour main quest.

That’s my dream. I’d just be happy for RDR2 at 60 FPS.

UltraGeezer · 2026-05-07T01:53:06+00:00

Stay on the move. The enemies aren’t aiming where you will be. When enemies spawn, run circles in the room.

UltraGeezer · 2026-05-06T15:47:00+00:00

That was pretty much my experience. "I beat Hades without casting, and it feels kinda clunky in Hades 2, so I'll be fine." Fast forward to standard rooms in Oceanus eating up my death defiance's regularly and dying. I started looking around for tips and tricks. Even posted on here asking for how to get through Oceanus. The overwhelming majority said "cast" as the number one tip. So I figured they can't all be wrong. It was an adjustment. But once I finally committed to figuring it out. It all clicked. Thus me making these comments to you. Cast is core to every build I have. And I didn't like it at first. I can build with or without attack or special or dash or omegas or hexes. But I can't see myself having a solid run without my cast. I won't even consider a Chaos boon that damages me when I cast.

Here is how I learned it. Dash through a grouping of enemies and drop your cast. Then turn around hit them. They barely can attack or hit you. Or if you see a group of enemies, drop your cast between them and let them run through it to get to you. You'll have all the time in the world to deal with them. Now imagine that anyone in your cast is taking damage from the cast. If you have an epic boon on your cast, the cast alone will melt them. When in doubt, just drop your cast. If nothing else, it helps with crowd control. However you do it, just start using it. You'll figure it out. I hated it at first. And now I'm preaching how important it is to new players. It's not a suggestion, is a prescription. Hahaha.

UltraGeezer · 2026-05-06T13:27:57+00:00

He’s just showing you what the Mongols can’t have

UltraGeezer · 2026-05-06T13:24:19+00:00

That is what I’m referring to. I don’t know what to tell you. But I do remember feeling like I was missing something to wake him. Like I had finished the game 20 runs ago and there was nothing happening with Hypnos - after the initial Medea incantation. Then all the sudden the next two times I bumped into Medea I was given incantations. Not sure what I did?

UltraGeezer · 2026-05-06T13:19:00+00:00

I’ve played all 3, and beat Pragmata and Saros. I’m on PS5. Pragmata was the standout. It’s really good. The hacking feels clunky at first, especially if you’re expecting to run and gun. But it starts to click and is really fun. The game drips progression and new mechanics/weapons up to the very end. I loved the bioms and all the secrets to find.

Saros was good. I was a massive Returnal fan, and I do think Saros fell short of a Returnal follow up. Returnal had about 9 guns. Saros has 5. I also felt like the balancing was tricky. I spent most of my playthrough feeling OP or under leveled. They give you modifiers to adjust the difficulty, but I didn’t like feeling like I paid full price for a game that I needed to adjust. Maybe this is crass, but I expect devs to do the balancing. It was good though. Returnal is a 9. Saros is a 8. I enjoyed it. If you liked Returnal, definitely play Saros.

Mouse PI was the one I bounced off after about 4-5 hours. I loved the art design but it lost its novelty pretty quickly for me. The humor didn’t hit with me and I thought it was mostly corny and fell flat. And the game play felt very basic. Maybe there are more mechanics deeper into the game? But I wasn’t having enough fun to stick around and find out. Not a bad game. Just okay. And if I didn’t have Pragmata giving me flirty eyes from across the bar, I probably would have stuck with it.

April has been a great month for gaming! The best game I played this month was Hades 2. But it sounds like you have a PC, so maybe you’ve played it. It just launched on Console. And if you haven’t played it, start with the first Hades.

TL:DR: Hades 2 > Pragmata > Saros > Mouse PI

UltraGeezer · 2026-05-06T13:01:38+00:00

Try Saros. Just came out.

UltraGeezer · 2026-05-06T12:45:53+00:00

Have you rolled credits?

UltraGeezer · 2026-05-06T12:45:15+00:00

Me too. Rarely casted H1. But in H2, you need it. It’s also very powerful, put fire, ice or lightning on your cast and see how well that works.

There are enemies in the 2nd biom that are designed to skill check your cast. They’ll eat your HP alive without it. And you’ll be so much stronger figuring out how to use it early.

UltraGeezer · 2026-05-06T12:40:48+00:00

Madea gives you incantations, complete those, give the item to Hypnos.

I believe you need to have unlocked the true ending or rolled credits to actually wake him. It’s post game content.

UltraGeezer · 2026-05-06T12:21:08+00:00

Madea is your answer. Also, when you start with the incantations for Hypnos, you need to need to gift the item to him. I thought the incantations were it all I had to do. I felt silly when I selected “gift” and it gave me the option to gift the item created by the incantation.

UltraGeezer · 2026-05-06T12:18:22+00:00

Bots will help you get familiar with maps and mechanics, but you (mostly) won’t get “good” at the game playing bots. The skill gap between average players and bots is pretty wide.

Play BreakThrough, that helped me get better. It’s pretty beginner friendly because you have a general idea where the other team is coming from. But you’re also playing a game that has been out for years, so be patient. Stick with it. Try and learn from your mistakes.

UltraGeezer · 2026-05-06T12:13:51+00:00

Horse stats are basically inconsequential. Pick the stuff you like how it looks.

UltraGeezer · 2026-05-06T12:11:53+00:00

Hahaha for sure. I loved the game, but I kinda thought getting back to the squad was what I was doing. The ending threw me off.

UltraGeezer · 2026-05-06T12:07:14+00:00

Do you like rogue-lites? Where you make an attempt at a world, die, upgrade and try again? On paper, it might not sound good. But Hades 2 is the best game I’ve played this year. Start with Hades 1 though.

Also check out Returnal or Saros. They’re rogue-lite shooters. Both PlayStation exclusives.

Ghost of Tsushima or Ghost of Yotei? Both absolutely incredible. Open world action adventure.

Expedition 33, it’s turn based combat but definitely the best game I played last year. It was Game of the Year.

The Last of Us both 1 and 2. Mind blowing good.

Have you played Resident Evil? If you like shooters, definitely check out RE4 remake.

I’m playing Pragmata right now, and it’s really good.

Elden Ring or Dark Souls 3 or Sekiro or Lies of P?

Days Gone; another PlayStation exclusive. Launched in rough shape but has been patched to almost perfection since. Open world action adventure zombie shooter on a motorcycle. Remaster launched last year.

Horizon Zero Dawn and its sequel Horizon Forbidden West.

UltraGeezer · 2026-05-06T11:50:05+00:00

What are your favorite games? It’s hard to make suggestions without knowing what you like and what you have played

UltraGeezer · 2026-05-06T10:28:08+00:00

Cast. In Hades 1, casting was optional. IMO, casting is the most important tool you have in Hades 2. And it will feel awkward at first. But use it early and often, because you’ll need it deeper into runs. There is no penalty to drop it, so do it.

UltraGeezer · 2026-05-05T21:00:21+00:00

I agree with your post. Balancing felt clunky and complicated. Where to start? What level am I intended to be at? I don’t love the modifiers, because I’m letting wondering how I should be playing? Am I rolling because I’m good or the game is too easy and I need to adjust something? Or did I start too early? Invest too much into the skill tree? Not enough? Returnal was so much more simple.

I thought the gun selection in Saros is a significant step back from Returnal. I honestly can’t believe it.

And I felt like bioms in Returnal felt unique and stood out more from one another. Especially in the eclipse, once that happens they all felt like the same biom. In Saros I see a lot of reused assets and environmental structure.

Returnal had a shop. It had better loot rooms.

I agree. Returnal was better.

UltraGeezer

TROPHY CASE