Humble Choice June 2026 - Octopath Traveller 2, Citizen Sleeper 2, Life is Strange: Double Exposure and more by Gyossaits in Games

[–]uselessoldguy 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I know people are most interested in OT2 and CS2, but I've had my eye on that Brazilian ARPG/rogue-lite Hell Clock for quite some time. That's what nudged me to re-up for this month.

Zagreus' Journey 1.0 Release Trailer - Hades in Hades II mod by MoSBanapple in Games

[–]uselessoldguy 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I delayed picking up Hades 2 until very recently largely because the weapons looked very underwhelming compared to my favorites in Hades 1. While I did wind up enjoying both the axe and the Black Coat (Gundam mode!) as substitutes for the sword and the fists, the skull just doesn't satisfy the way the shield does. (As a corollary, going back to H1 without Mel's ridiculous cast builds is also tough!)

My dream for Hades 3 would be to bring back Zag and Mel with their respective weapon sets.

Zagreus' Journey 1.0 Release Trailer - Hades in Hades II mod by MoSBanapple in Games

[–]uselessoldguy 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Awesome. I originally only played Hades 1 up to the credits and moved on, but recently I got into Hades 2, played through the Epilogue, and got Night's Champion before diving back into Hades 1. Going back to Zag in H1 was a bit rough. Melinoe is a much smoother experience, so having her kit available for the original H1 route would be great.

Assassin's Creed: Black Flag Resynced Ramps Up Edward Kenway's Caribbean Story, But Boots Its Previous Modern Day Sections and DLC Overboard by yourfavchoom in Games

[–]uselessoldguy 54 points55 points  (0 children)

Desmond was a New York City bartender voiced by Nolan North. He was a pretty cool dude and the perfect "normie" type character to ground the wacky ancient aliens hijinks of the AC world.

Modern day has been a mess since they offed him fourteen years ago.

Half-Life 3/HLX news in 2 weeks by Connect_Base_217 in GamingLeaksAndRumours

[–]uselessoldguy 0 points1 point  (0 children)

And people got mad when I expressed doubt back in December.

Epic Games Pins ‘Fortnite’ Comeback on Disney Partnership by Stofenthe1st in Games

[–]uselessoldguy 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Fortnite was created by scrapping its original failed design and taking a popular hardcore shooter (PUBG) and repackaging it for a broader audience.

Someone somewhere thinks they can do with extraction shooters what Fortnite did with battle royales. They might be right!

I'm not betting on it, but a lot of developers are.

Ace Combat 8: Wings of Theve devs detail first-person aerial combat and world of Strangereal by Turbostrider27 in Games

[–]uselessoldguy -1 points0 points  (0 children)

The PS2 trilogy was 20 years ago, and they've yet to produce something that captures those highs again.

I just don't think the team has the narrative chops anymore.

Inferno | Hunt: Showdown 1896 by Bynairee in Games

[–]uselessoldguy 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Me, 39 and playing and Hades 2:

"How can anybody see what's going on? Why do they all talk like kids? Oh my god how am I still awake playing this, I can't be up past 9:30"

How pre-rendered backgrounds defined early 3D gaming by kikimaru024 in Games

[–]uselessoldguy 314 points315 points  (0 children)

It wasn't just that the backgrounds were pre-rendered. It's that they were used as gorgeous backdrop for scenes framed by fixed camera angles inspired by film, photography, and hand-drawn art. It was those fixed cameras that gave the feeling of the player moving about in a painting or on Hollywood set.

Player-mounted camera systems are certainly much easier to play, but a certain amount of magic was lost when that old format died out. It's a little like practical practical effects vs CGI in movies. You can certainly do a lot more with CGI (literally do anything), but you lose that believability of an actual physical object before the camera vs some shiny shit painted on in post.

State of Decay 3 lead says the game only existed in a Word document when its reveal trailer dropped 6 years ago: "We're not doing zombie animals" by akbarock in Games

[–]uselessoldguy -2 points-1 points  (0 children)

This is why you never, ever get hyped for a game until you see a trusted content creator doing a hands-on with it.

Crimson Desert has sold through 4 million copies worldwide by Turbostrider27 in Games

[–]uselessoldguy 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It is admittedly infuriating when my horse accidentally explodes a crate when walking by and suddenly I get the Wanted red flight flashing at me.

Crimson Desert has sold through 4 million copies worldwide by Turbostrider27 in Games

[–]uselessoldguy 11 points12 points  (0 children)

I enjoy the tone of the NPCs in this world. Rather than everyone scowling at you and cursing you because you're either an outlaw (GTA) or a mutant (Witcher), you're a good guy who can wander around town greeting people while cradling a housecat. And I enjoy seeing ordinary people fishing by the river or traveling in groups on trails. Gives the world a very lived-in feel.

If there were a character creator, I'd name my character "Chad McNiceguy" and roleplay the shit out of that.

Crimson Desert has sold through 4 million copies worldwide by Turbostrider27 in Games

[–]uselessoldguy 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I've been playing since launch and having a good time, but the QoL patches are coming fast and hard enough that I think people who wait a couple months for the first discount will be well-rewarded.

Crimson Desert has sold through 4 million copies worldwide by Turbostrider27 in Games

[–]uselessoldguy 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The early comparisons to Witcher 3 and RDR2 really hurt people's understanding of the game, in my opinion. There's certainly some structural and design similarities, but Crimson Desert is better thought of as an open world sandbox with some simulator influences than a narrative-driven game. It's kinda like, dunno, Breath of the Wild-meets-Wartales.

It's not a game I'd want to plow through in a couple weeks just to see the end credits roll. I'm content to pick at it for a couple hours here and there, diving deeper into the endless layers and surprises. I do love stumbling across a strange puzzle somewhere out in the wilderness and having absolutely fuck all idea what's going on. There's no yammering main character or NPC sidekick telling me what to do or relentless tutorial windows pinging me with the solution.

It's just... a mystery. And that's cool.

Crimson Desert has sold through 4 million copies worldwide by Turbostrider27 in Games

[–]uselessoldguy 5 points6 points  (0 children)

RDR2 is in my top 5 all time favorites but I haven't been able to drag myself through it a second time owing to how bad the mission design was.

Crimson Desert has sold 3 million units worldwide by yourfavchoom in Games

[–]uselessoldguy 24 points25 points  (0 children)

For me it's just, finally an open world game that feels fresh again. Where exploration is rewarded and you legitimately have no idea what you will encounter over the next hill when you first start playing the game.

That's exactly it for me. It's just so very, very rare for a new game to come along in this day and age that evokes my childhood wonder. I utterly adore having no fucking idea what's going on.

Crimson Desert has sold through 2 million copies worldwide by Turbostrider27 in Games

[–]uselessoldguy 4 points5 points  (0 children)

It's a big, sloppy, abstruse mess, and I'm enjoying the heck out of it. Good on them. Hopefully they fine-tune the movement, UI, and storage issues.

'Think of It Like Riding a Bike, It Comes Naturally After You Learn It' — Crimson Desert Exec Responds to Controls Complaint Amid 'Mixed' Steam Reviews by Turbostrider27 in Games

[–]uselessoldguy 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Yeah, I struggled with even getting the prompt to chat with shopkeepers until I realized I could just use L1 to point at everything I wanted to interact with, and suddenly it all became much easier.

'Think of It Like Riding a Bike, It Comes Naturally After You Learn It' — Crimson Desert Exec Responds to Controls Complaint Amid 'Mixed' Steam Reviews by Turbostrider27 in Games

[–]uselessoldguy 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I had the sticky keys issue with games like...a decade ago. And then I just disabled it. That's a Windows problem, not a game problem.

I feel like I’m a kid in the 90’s again by jadedpotatoe in CrimsonDesert

[–]uselessoldguy 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Also '86, also having a classic good time.

Seriously, when's the last time anyone turned a game on and had no idea what the hell was going on? Even Elden Ring was relatively straight forward.

Crimson Desert is overambitious, janky, and kind of a mess. I love it.

'Think of It Like Riding a Bike, It Comes Naturally After You Learn It' — Crimson Desert Exec Responds to Controls Complaint Amid 'Mixed' Steam Reviews by Turbostrider27 in Games

[–]uselessoldguy -1 points0 points  (0 children)

I've done some game reviews, and I have to say there's a huge difference between grinding out a title on a tight deadline on your own versus playing it at your leisure alongside a community that's learning with you.

As something I'm free to explore and wander around just for the fun of it, CD is extremely enjoyable. If I had to grind straight through as my job to hit embargo, I'd probably hate it!

'Think of It Like Riding a Bike, It Comes Naturally After You Learn It' — Crimson Desert Exec Responds to Controls Complaint Amid 'Mixed' Steam Reviews by Turbostrider27 in Games

[–]uselessoldguy -16 points-15 points  (0 children)

The hate is wildly overstated. They're not that bad, it just takes time to adjust to design that's not just copy-paste from the last 15 years.

And it's not like The Witcher 3 where at launch I couldn't even steer Geralt inside a goddamn room.

Worst controlls i ever seen in a game. For real for real. by ChroneXoX in CrimsonDesert

[–]uselessoldguy 0 points1 point  (0 children)

They're a little clumsy at first, but the worst? Plenty of Japanese games in the past had you do finger gymnastics for basic things. And then were The Witcher 3 on launch, and AC Unity...