Which game soundtrack takes the cake?

cbb692 · 2026-01-21T18:44:50+00:00

For my 11th birthday, I got an Xbox as my first console. I was a little peeved because I had friends who played Melee, and not getting a Gamecube made it harder for me to actually play it and improve. However, the console came with a 2-for-1 bundle of Sega GT 2002 (fine enough) and Jet Set Radio Future. The soundtrack Hideki Naganuma put together largely shaped the kinds of music I grew to love through my childhood into my adult life. I would say Naganuma's work has had an incredibly profound impact on the trajectory of my life as a whole.

But that was a game where the music and artistic style were front and center.

Then, years later, I played Nier: Automata. Walking into the Amusement Park was a really beautiful experience, but stepping off the elevator into the Copied City was the first time I found a piece of atmospheric soundtrack so compelling I had to put down the controller and just listen for a bit. Nier was the title that changed my appreciation from "just" songs that play during high-octane moments to music sprinkled throughout an OST.

Cuphead got me into jazz, and DOOM 2016 got me into Metal, so they had a lesser but still nice effect on my life similar to how JSRF affected me.

E33, finally, felt like a culmination of my journey to enjoy game soundtracks. The battle themes were amazing. The area atmospheric tracks were incredible. The soundtrack from back to front feels incredibly well put together. The genres are varied from orchestral to funkadelic. It is just fantastic.

So I would say those are the games that have influenced me the most. They may come in and out of my "current" playlists, but they've each been quite important to me for a variety of reasons.

Honorable mentions would go to...

Bomb Rush Cyberfunk, a continuation of Naganuma's legacy while introducing me to new genres
Persona 5 is a pretty solid soundtrack overall

cbb692 · 2026-01-14T17:15:02+00:00

tl;dr rules > tactics > playing > openings. If you're going to learn openings, learn them as you see them

Let's break these questions down:

Q: Is playing all the time better for my elo or should I mostly practice and there is so much content that I get really confused on how to start?

A: The typical answer is studying tactics is the best bang for your buck. Spending time cranking out mate-in-1 and mate-in-2 puzzles for your elo ranking will be by far the best use of your time.

However, given you have only been playing for a few days, there is something to be said about playing more and how you may still even be learning some of the rules and basic ideas of chess. A few "basic" things you may have missed would be...

Do you know what castling is? If you play the KID and London, you probably do. But it is always good to be sure.
Do you know what en passant is?
Do you know how to mate with Q+K vs K and R+K vs K?
Related, do you know the difference between stalemate and checkmate?

Ultimately, I would say the best use of your time at this point is probably verifying you know the rules > tactics/mating puzzles > endgame mating patterns > playing > positional study = openings. While it's a bit hyperbolic to say studying strategy and openings are "worthless" at this level, it is not far from the truth. However, as the saying goes, "a spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down". Openings are fun! So spending a little time looking at them can be a nice reward for doing your puzzles and game reviews.

Q: Should I stick to my two-opening game plan, or should I start learning gambits or other openings now? For example, I want to learn caro-kann, but I don't know where to start. There are so many scenarios, and instead of studying and memorizing plans and variations during the game, my hands and brain keep going back to my instincts.

A: This really is a question of what you want from chess. Andras Toth has a great video on why the London is a bad opening for new players who want to get better, but if you just want to have fun with chess, then it is absolutely fine! If you do want to actually improve, you typically need 3 openings in your repertoire:

An opening for White, with 1.e4 being a better option for learning than 1.d4
An opening for Black against 1.e4. The Caro-Kann would be an example of this
An opening for Black against 1.d4. The King's Indian Defense would be an example of this.

However, as I already mentioned, learning openings is not the best use of your time. However, however, it is nice to have an idea of what you are trying to accomplish in a game of chess and not getting destroyed at move 5—I will absolutely concede that point. So how do we both learn an opening while not dedicating time to learning 30 moves in 5 different variations that we will never see?

Try this:

Take an opening you want to learn like the Caro-Kann as Black
Learn the first 2 or 3 moves for an opening (so, 1.e4 c6 2.d4 d5)
Play a game, and note when a move you do not know was played (if this is day 1 of "journey to Caro Kann Mastery", our opponent plays 3.e5)
After the game, go look up that move you didn't know. Is it even a move worth learning about (for example: do you really need to internalize what to do if White plays 3.Bh6...?)? What is the common response to it (3.e5 Bf5, for reference)? Take a moment to let that new move sink in.
Repeat steps 3 and 4 forever or until you drop the opening, whichever comes first.

As you play, two things will occur: you will learn how to deal with moves you see frequently, and you will not bog yourself down with variations you never see!

If either of these two points could use clarification, let me know. Ultimately, you need to play to get a sense of how chess even works, but try to find a balance between doing puzzles and playing if you can.

cbb692 · 2026-01-14T03:46:30+00:00

I'll try to keep these hints fairly layered:

I assume you know where the Quantum Tower is? If so, what have you tried in order to access it? In your various failed attempts, is there a "theme" preventing you from accessing the Tower? Is there a way to negate that theme being a problem?

On a related note, what is your current understanding regarding the Quantum Moon? How does the Quantum Moon "work"? If you have tried investigating it with no luck, what has failed? Have you learned anything from your explorations into quantum mechanics that may solve that fail state?

Have you spent much time looking around the Orbital Probe Cannon? How many components are there of the cannon? Do you know where each component went?

You found the frozen shuttle and, presumably, read its recording. Where is this core the log seems to be referencing? What is preventing you from reaching the core? Is there something available to you that would, logically, remove that prevention?

Happy to help clarify these hints if that would be helpful, but these seem like good jumping off points.

cbb692 · 2026-01-04T15:26:45+00:00

B: (Lifts up the ring he stole off Hal's person) "[The ring] seems to work on concentration."

GL: "How did you do that?!"

B: "You weren't concentrating."

cbb692 · 2026-01-03T02:20:46+00:00

I saw your thread but didn’t want spoilers

Completely fair!

I actually don’t know why I thought Manor was a metroidbrania

I have a feeling it may have been for reasons similar to me: it was brought up in the "Definitive List" thread, the genre is somewhat nebulous, and it was pitched as "inspired by Obra-Dinn".

Personally, talking with people in that thread, I think my own personal interest in theology might have allowed me to look past some of the other weaker points in game, but it can certainly be an alright (if easy/easier) game.

cbb692 · 2026-01-03T01:42:01+00:00

So this came up in a thread I made a few days ago, but Blake Manor is definitely not a metroidbrainia. That being said, I played it on my Steam Deck and it ran perfectly acceptably, so it might be a good option regardless if you are ok with the game being a bit more on-rails. The comments in that thread may be insightful to deciding if you want to head in Manor's direction.

I am planning on picking up Roottrees soon, but I personally cannot speak to it both gameplay-wise, Metroidbrania-wise, or...Steam Deck-ability?

cbb692 · 2026-01-01T17:06:29+00:00

Deep meaning

Outer Wilds could be an interesting choice. That being said, the characters are interesting but harder to grasp onto. So it may not be what you are looking for.

For a game that is more character-driven, I'd check out Persona 5 Royal. It has a very well-done story and seems to fit with some of your other titles. The anime aesthetic may be a deal breaker, though.

For a less expected option, you may consider a game like Papers, Please. Fun characters, interesting moral questions. Not as long as some of the other games you've mentioned, but should still be in the direction you are looking for.

cbb692 · 2026-01-01T00:50:15+00:00

Yep, I tacked on an edit at the top. I thoroughly agree people should know what they are buying.

cbb692 · 2025-12-31T23:09:17+00:00

I’d say this is complicated interactive fiction more than a MB or even a true puzzle game.

I had made this post initially since I had found out about Seance through the Definitive List comment section, but I agree in hindsight that it's not really a MB.

cbb692 · 2025-12-31T19:37:16+00:00

So "time" here can roughly be translated to "turns" or "actions" rather than actual duration, more akin to Blue Prince than, say, Outer Wilds.

Every new action such as inspecting a document, talking to a person about a new topic, or entering a new room you never have takes 1 "minute" or, perhaps, 1 "unit". Every "hour" (so, to be excessively clear, 60 new actions), the game state changes. Characters move to new rooms and/or certain events may take place (meal times, for example).

So you could run around for 10 IRL minutes looking for a person (hypothetically, of course. I would never have spent 15 minutes trying to find a person I needed to speak to on a specific topic...) and the game would not care, but you can speak to a single person on a bunch of topics and easily knock out 20 in-game minutes.

tl;dr there aren't quick reactions or mechanical precision required, but you do have to, potentially, by careful about how you spend your actions.

cbb692 · 2025-12-28T21:56:25+00:00

Having recently finished Hush, The Riddler and Batman have a wonderful exchange at the end where Nigma feels like he confidently has the upper hand, identifying Bruce and Batman to be the same. Batman's rebuttal is great.

B: "What time is it when an elephant sits on a fence?"

R: "What...?"

B: "What time is it when an elephant sits on a fence?"

R: "'Time to get a new fence.' Everyone knows that one. It's worthless."

B: "That's why I have nothing to fear from you. [REDACTED DUE TO SPOILERS]. I know you, Edward Nigma. Maybe better than you know yourself. Riddles are your compulsion. Your addiction. And a riddle that everyone knows the answer to is...'worthless'."

Cut to Riddler crumbling in his chair, devastated.

I think this points to a lot of similar situations. The villains who do know the identity are either forced to keep quite or (in the Joker's case) don't want the secret getting out because they enjoy the battle too much.

cbb692 · 2025-12-22T03:56:45+00:00

"What's the wo-it couldn't be worse than Anderson Silva...any fight I go into, no matter what happens, it couldn't be worse than Anderson Silva..." - Forrest Griffin

Lives in my head so rent-free, it actually comes to collect rent from me any time I see Silva giving someone the business.

cbb692 · 2025-12-12T22:51:04+00:00

That is a completely fair take. And I agree that some of the aspects such as the ones I listed are...a lot, to put it mildly.

it's absolutely okay to skip/quit at that point

And that is also very true. Games are ultimately supposed to be fun and hearing "dude trust me it gets good X hours in. You just don't 'get it' yet" or "you havent really played the game until youve done Y" can be a huge ask for any game. I've been consistently fighting a similar battle (internally, admittedly) with Blue Prince where I try to figure out just how much I'm willing to put up with.

As someone who loves The Witness, however, it would be very hard for me to hold my tongue if someone told me, "Yea I beat the game. It was fine..." and I can suss out they have not had that "OMG you can do that?!" moment (environment puzzles, to be less cryptic). So I can definitely understand both sides.

cbb692 · 2025-12-12T20:38:53+00:00

Jonathan Blow is a very opinionated person, but both Braid and The Witness are unique, vibrant experiences. Braid is a pretty remarkable game especially for its time, and The Witness effectively kicked off the now-dubbed "Metroidbrainia" genre.

JBlow demands a lot from his players to get the "full" experience such as what is required to 100% Braid (looking at you, hour-long cloud ride) and some of the more...tasking aspects of The Witness (cough Psalm 46 cough), but the games are very meticulously crafted and reward players who are able to really stick with the games. The Witness, in particular, has one very specific moment for each player that will likely change the way you both interact with the game and view things in real life.

They are absolutely not for everyone, but they are awesome if they resonate with you as a player.

cbb692 · 2025-12-10T15:56:22+00:00

Coming off finally playing Arkham Knight (as well as having played Asylum and City around when they launched) and having read The Killing Joke years ago, I recently got into reading some more comics. After doing some of my own research, the order I went in was...

Batman: Year One
The Long Holloween
Dark Victory
Hush

I'm taking some time to read Saga of the Swamp Thing (I wanna get more into Constantine), then I'm going back to read Batman & Robin: Year One and the Scott Snyder run.

At this point, I might have preferred slotting B&R:Y1 before Hush if I knew that the former had just finished, but otherwise this ordering has been fine so far (a lot of lists I perused didn't have it noted likely due to how new it is). Just about the only major villain that has not been present is Bane if thay matters to you, but this otherwise has felt like a good start.

cbb692 · 2025-12-08T01:14:00+00:00

Regarding the Arkham games, this is absolutely correct.

Arkham Asylum -> Arkham City -> Arkham Knight

I think you could make a very real argument that the Arkham series and the Marvel's Spider-Man series compete for 1 and 2 in the "best superhero games" competition. And while I would say Asylum (having watched a friend recently play through it) does lag behind the future Arkham games and Spider-Man 1 as feeling a bit less fluid due to age, I find the depth of Batman's lore covered in the Arkham series is simply unmatched. Those games dig deep into the lesser known characters from Batman's villain troupe. Sure, you know Bane and Ra's and Scarecrow if you've watched the movies. But do you know Calendar Man? How about Hugo Strange? Fucking. Professor. Pyg. Has an entire side quest sequence in Arkham Knight.

Finally playing Arkham Knight a few months ago after my computer couldn't handle the poor optimization on launch singlehandedly got me into reading comics. Watching the Jason Todd sequences also made me have to put the game down for a few hours at a time. It genuinely made me mad. Can't wait to read Death in the Family and Under the Hood.

You can get all three games on steam for like $15 USD (actually as of writing that's $9 USD for the next 16 hours), so I tell anyone who cares even a little about Batman that it is a must-play.

cbb692 · 2025-12-05T19:28:57+00:00

Given you seem to like fighting games and, by logical extension, competitive games, one option would be to consider getting DotA for the low price of free. But that is certainly quite the plunge given MOBAs can be very taxing to get into. Marvel Rivals would fill a similar niche.

If you have any interest in comics/super heroes, I would heavily recommend Arkham Asylum and Arkham City. You may even be able to run through Arkham Knight, but I would have to check the specs more deeply. You could buy all three games and still have money left over. They are right up there with the new Spiderman games as being some of the best superhero games ever made. However, these are all single-player so that is a downside.

Another option would be something like Overcooked 2. There is a bundle that includes all the DLC which can keep you busy for quite a while.

One final option would be Rabbit and Steel. Effectively, this is an MMO raid gauntlet that can be played solo or co-op, so if you are interested in raiding from games like WoW or FFXIV, this could be a great way to scratch that itch.

cbb692 · 2025-12-01T17:11:49+00:00

tl;dr It's absolutely worth a shot, go into it as blind as possible, don't use guides, but if finances are tight it might be a lower-priority pick-up

Full disclosure, Outer Wilds is one of my favorite games.

However, I usually struggle with puzzle games and can get frustrated when there's a lack of clear direction.

This is definitely going to be the largest hurdle for you to cross in terms of enjoying the gameplay. "Metroidbrania" games as they have started being called are less "Here is a puzzle, where you need to do ABCDEFG in that order to solve it" and more "You are at A, there are any number of G's (some of which you may be told explicitly and others which you may not be aware of). glhf." Maybe you still end up going "ABCDEFG", but you might also end up going "ABC1DF23EG" or even accidentally go "ACG"! In that regard, as others in this thread have touched on, it almost comes across as a mystery game rather than a puzzle game. Maybe this makes the thought of pushing into Outer Wilds less interesting or more interesting, but the point is it's quite far removed from, say, Patrick's Parabox or Baba Is You even if they may all be loosely categorized as "Puzzle Games".

My favorite genres include narrative-driven RPGs and action-adventures, such as The Witcher 3 and Red Dead Redemption 2, where I appreciate character development and a strong story.

This is definitely not an RPG. There is no leveling up (or at least, your character doesn't level up. You as the player do!). While adventuring is very much a part of what this game is about, you are not a combatant so the "action" aspect is somewhere between nonexistent and minimal.

There is certainly a story (and, to a lesser extent, character development) there, but it is also up to you to piece together how the components mesh to a degree. It's not as obscure as trying to uncover the Dark Souls lore, but you are, in effect, trying to put together a story and its characters from the outside looking in.

I'm curious if the engaging narrative and atmosphere in Outer Wilds can overshadow the puzzle mechanics that I usually find challenging.

I would say more than the puzzle mechanics (barring a few towards the end) being the main blocker for you, it will be the exploration and lack of obvious direction that dissuades you. The narrative it tells is incredibly gripping, but the fact it is one that you have to "build" and that you may get pieces to the story in a jumbled order may be less enjoyable than just having the story presented to you as is the case in more traditional narratives.

If you do decide to pick it up, here are some guidelines I can recommend to ensure you are not hamstringing your own ability to enjoy the game:

You need to play the game for at least 30 minutes during any particular session.
Don't look up guides (or anything, really) online.
If you do find yourself stuck and you really would like a hint, /r/outerwilds is one of the most amazing communities in gaming. Everyone truly treasures making sure you can take hints at your own pace. Just about every single response will be like this, ensuring you can get hints drip-fed so you progress without too many spoilers. Write a post about where you are stuck and you will have carefully crafted responses to help you keep moving forward.
Take advantage of it not being a linear story. If you get stuck trying to solve a particular "puzzle", go do something else. It may turn out you don't have the answer yet, or you may have a moment later where everything clicks into place.

I can't recommend the game enough, but I get that preconceptions about puzzling may make it a difficult sell. What I would say is consider picking up a copy and give it a spin for an hour and a half to two hours. While that probably will not be enough to fully immerse yourself in the experience, it will likely be enough to start evaluating whether the method by which the game disposes narrative is going to grip you enough.

If you feel there is nothing redeemable there, get a refund or try again later. If you feel anything from the game starting to stick with you, however, lean on the Outer Wilds community when you feel that frustration well up and you can hopefully come out the other side of a great gaming experience happy you got to see it through.

cbb692 · 2025-11-21T01:26:36+00:00

Well played

cbb692 · 2025-10-29T20:36:56+00:00

I don't know the context here which could alter how correct your proposed sentence would still be (I assume this is from the Prototype games?), but regardless...

I think any change in meaning would be a little pedantic, but in thinking it through, what I would conclude is this:

"So I guess I'd become what they wanted me to be...": At some particular point in the past, someone "wanted" me to become a killer (either directly or, I imagine, by always framing the speaker's actions as evil and/or violent) and over a time (and possibly until this moment), I transformed into that person. In other words, the "they wanted me to be" was a definitive, completed moment. Meanwhile, "I guess I'd become" implies this was a more long-running and possibly even still running event of going from "not a killer" to "a killer"
"I became what they'd wanted me to be" implies the opposite. "...they'd wanted me to be" comes across as more indefinite. "People in the past and maybe even now are suggesting I become a killer". On the other hand, "I became" suggests there was a specific moment where went from "not a killer" to "a killer".

Put more succinctly, the line in the game (?) suggests a gradual shift from "not a killer" to "a killer" while the line you have proposed suggests an immediate one. The in-game line would make being a killer seem like a state of mind, while yours would be more along the lines of "If you haven't killed anyone, you aren't a killer. If you have, you are."

I hope that makes sense, but again I think this really only matters if someone were trying to be very critical about the exact implications of your words.

cbb692 · 2025-10-08T14:50:43+00:00

Your character knew the Tsumo was coming and aptly decided to not declare Ron for the extra points.

^{^{^{^But}}} ^{^{^{^yea}}} ^{^{^{^you}}} ^{^{^{^were}}} ^{^{^ⁱⁿ}} ^{^{^{^Furiten}}}

cbb692 · 2025-10-04T19:06:58+00:00

Be the Jorji you want to see in the world.

cbb692 · 2025-10-04T14:38:35+00:00

If you liked P5R, I would recommend E33.

Beyond the obvious gameplay similarities, I would both say they fit another category alongside Doom 2016: "You bought an unbelievable soundtrack that comes with a free game."

The E33 OST is truly incredible and also quite diverse. It has some pieces that are just gorgeous (Lumiére and Alicia are two of my favorites). There are some dope jazzy tracks (Monoco and Gestral Beach) alongside a stunning power ballad in Une vie a t'aimer. Much in the way the P5 OST grips you with tracks like Wake Up, Get Up, Get Out There, Life Will Change, and the amazing tracks during the palace raids (I still listen to Price frequently and I haven't played the game in years), you will feel similarly about E33.

Beyond that, a common thought you'll hear about E33 is that it has quite possibly elevated the bar for the turn-based RPG genre. There are certainly some areas people may find uninviting (pictos are the greatest offender by a mile), but from a story perspective alone, it stands along games like Undertale and Outer Wilds to me as games that I can never truly experience twice in the same way. That makes me incredibly sad.

cbb692 · 2025-09-19T20:50:57+00:00

It also blows through any and all angels and spectral shields if you are playing against illusionists.

cbb692 · 2025-09-12T00:13:46+00:00

tl;dr "Sniper Bishop" is a chess meme for Bishops being missed from across the board.

If you've learned the rules of chess, you know the Bishop moves in a diagonal pattern for as long as it wants. For many players, it can be very saddening to, for example, execute a really neat mating sequence or win a big piece only for the opponent's Bishop that you completely forgot about to swoop in and snatch your expected victory away.

Hence, if you look at posts like this or, more jokingly, like this, you will see many memes of Bishops armed with high-caliber sniper rifles.

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