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Post by mikegarrison on Jan 16, 2020 16:10:27 GMT -5
Thinking about the game design of Dh2:
The immediate start gives you no weapons or powers and lets you puzzle your way out of a locked room. This leads you to the opportunity to get a sword and the chance to kill or choke a few guards. You also get to make your first lethal/non-lethal target decision.
Then you get a few additional weapon options and the level opens up to a wider design. You still feel like you are on the run with no safe base, but you now have options for investigating apartments, dealing with or bypassing guards, investigating plot points, etc. At the end of the level you gain your safe base.
Then you add powers and increase your weapon options. The next two levels introduce the bloodflies, the abbey overseers, the black markets where you buy your gear, and the city where most of the action takes place. First you work through a city street area, and then you work through a single large mansion structure.
The next level is the one that adds the clockwork soldier enemies and features the building which rearranges it's internal structure based on what levers you pull. It's generally considered the best level in the game, and was a very interesting puzzle.
Then you have another level where you first start in a street situation and work your way into a large single building. This one introduces the witches as opponents.
After that is the level where you have to decide whether to support the gang, support the overseers, or eliminate both. Then you get the mansion where your powers don't work but you replace them with the time travel device. (You can skip the gang and the overseers if you want, by solving a logic puzzle. Otherwise you need to get two different parts of the puzzle solution from the gang and the overseers. If you want all your runes and bonecharms and such, you need to do this anyway.)
By this point you basically have all your weapons and many of your powers (although you never get enough runes to use all your powers, so you are constantly continuing to choose between upgrades). You put them all together and go against the Duke in his palace. He and his double can be in any of five locations (according to what I have read), so you have to explore the palace, find the targets, use the clues they give to figure out who is the Duke and who is the double, and resolve his storyline. You also need to break into his vault, where you get something you need to prevent Delilah from being unkillable.
Finally you go back home with all your weapons and powers and defeat Delilah. This level actually felt like something of an anti-climax, because it definitely was not as complex as the previous three targets and it didn't add any new concepts.
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Post by bbg95 on Jan 16, 2020 16:21:57 GMT -5
Just finished the third chapter of RDR 2. It seem that the general structure is that the gang will set up shop in a place for a while, eventually get into a lot of trouble with the law, and be forced to move elsewhere. One of the gang members (there's like 20, so this isn't much of a spoiler) was killed, and I was amused reading online about how this "affected" people. Personally, I didn't mind the character but also didn't care about them either. Out of the 20 or so, there's only a small handful that I actually care about, and one of them is John Marston, who I know doesn't die because he's the protagonist of RDR. Overall, the game is pretty well-written, probably on par with GTA V or RDR but not on the level of The Last of Us or God of War (even among Rockstar games specifically, I think that LA Noire is the best-written of that studio's games). Gameplay-wise, the game is about the same as before. It's pretty fun, though the missions themselves are not particularly challenging. Most of the times I failed was just taking a wrong turn or something.
Edit: I just failed a mission because "the gang was abandoned." I was standing 10 feet away from the rest of the gang picking out my weapons.
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Post by Wolfgang on Jan 16, 2020 16:34:40 GMT -5
Shadow of Mordor has a lot of peeing guards -- and they actually show the pee. There are also a lot of guards who stare at walls for no reason.
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Post by mikegarrison on Jan 16, 2020 16:40:45 GMT -5
Well, I was wrong when I remembered that Dishonored didn't show the stream of urine. It did, if you were close enough to see it. The urine kind of came from nowhere, though.
Anyway, like I said, that doesn't happen in Dh2, but instead the guards whine about wanting to pee.
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Post by mikegarrison on Jan 16, 2020 18:34:00 GMT -5
Edit: I just failed a mission because "the gang was abandoned." I was standing 10 feet away from the rest of the gang picking out my weapons. LOL. I learned the hard way that when you extract soldiers from XCOM, they can't be extracted if they are in cover. Normally they can never be in cover, but if you have an "alloy SHIV" (a robot with a gun and armor plating), then your soldiers automatically take cover behind it. Which led to me extracting my team and the game reporting that I left some of them behind. (I had to go back to a previous save to undo this.)
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Post by bbg95 on Jan 16, 2020 18:48:50 GMT -5
Edit: I just failed a mission because "the gang was abandoned." I was standing 10 feet away from the rest of the gang picking out my weapons. LOL. I learned the hard way that when you extract soldiers from XCOM, they can't be extracted if they are in cover. Normally they can never be in cover, but if you have an "alloy SHIV" (a robot with a gun and armor plating), then your soldiers automatically take cover behind it. Which led to me extracting my team and the game reporting that I left some of them behind. (I had to go back to a previous save to undo this.) Interesting. That reminds me. I bought XCOM 2 with all the DLC on sale a while back. I've been meaning to get to it. I really enjoyed Enemy Unknown.
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Post by mikegarrison on Jan 16, 2020 18:58:55 GMT -5
XCOM2: You lost the first XCOM. Now you are a ragtag band of fugitive freedom fighters!
XCOM2 Shen's Last Gift: You lost the first XCOM. Now you are a ragtag band of fugitive freedom fighters who have robots!
XCOM2 (War Of The Chosen): You lost the first XCOM. Now you are superheroes fighting against supervillians! (It's fun, actually. You get several new types of soldiers with really diverse abilities, and in exchange you have to face three "Chosen" elite enemy warriors.)
I never bought the "Alien Hunters" DLC, because the reviews said it wasn't worth the money, and I also kind of thought that's how it looked.
Long War 2 (free available mod, not compatible with War Of The Chosen): Completely changes all levels of the game. In some ways more fun, but in other ways far too grindy (kind of like the original Long War, but I thought even more so). I consider the original Long War to be the game that XCOM should have been, but I found Long War 2 ultimately not as fun as War Of The Chosen. Also, it's very hard and I never really learned the optimal way to play it. I never came close to winning it.
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Post by bbg95 on Jan 16, 2020 19:17:41 GMT -5
XCOM2: You lost the first XCOM. Now you are a ragtag band of fugitive freedom fighters! XCOM2 Shen's Last Gift: You lost the first XCOM. Now you are a ragtag band of fugitive freedom fighters who have robots! XCOM2 (War Of The Chosen): You lost the first XCOM. Now you are superheroes fighting against supervillians! (It's fun, actually. You get several new types of soldiers with really diverse abilities, and in exchange you have to face three "Chosen" elite enemy warriors.) I never bought the "Alien Hunters" DLC, because the reviews said it wasn't worth the money, and I also kind of thought that's how it looked. Long War 2 (free available mod, not compatible with War Of The Chosen): Completely changes all levels of the game. In some ways more fun, but in other ways far too grindy (kind of like the original Long War, but I thought even more so). I consider the original Long War to be the game that XCOM should have been, but I found Long War 2 ultimately not as fun as War Of The Chosen. Also, it's very hard and I never really learned the optimal way to play it. I never came close to winning it. I made sure to get all the DLC because War of the Chosen had such positive reviews. I never played Long War because by the time it was released, I had gotten my fill of Enemy Unknown and had moved on to other games. I really haven't played much with mods that completely change games. My favorite mod of all time is the restoration mod for KOTOR 2 that restored a lot of content (primarily cut scenes) that was cut when the game was rushed out the door. Edit: I just watched an overview video of the original Long War, and it does look interesting. Much more complex than the original. Maybe someday.
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Post by mikegarrison on Jan 16, 2020 19:33:01 GMT -5
XCOM2: You lost the first XCOM. Now you are a ragtag band of fugitive freedom fighters! XCOM2 Shen's Last Gift: You lost the first XCOM. Now you are a ragtag band of fugitive freedom fighters who have robots! XCOM2 (War Of The Chosen): You lost the first XCOM. Now you are superheroes fighting against supervillians! (It's fun, actually. You get several new types of soldiers with really diverse abilities, and in exchange you have to face three "Chosen" elite enemy warriors.) I never bought the "Alien Hunters" DLC, because the reviews said it wasn't worth the money, and I also kind of thought that's how it looked. Long War 2 (free available mod, not compatible with War Of The Chosen): Completely changes all levels of the game. In some ways more fun, but in other ways far too grindy (kind of like the original Long War, but I thought even more so). I consider the original Long War to be the game that XCOM should have been, but I found Long War 2 ultimately not as fun as War Of The Chosen. Also, it's very hard and I never really learned the optimal way to play it. I never came close to winning it. I made sure to get all the DLC because War of the Chosen had such positive reviews. I never played Long War because by the time it was released, I had gotten my fill of Enemy Unknown and had moved on to other games. I really haven't played much with mods that completely change games. My favorite mod of all time is the restoration mod for KOTOR 2 that restored a lot of content (primarily cut scenes) that was cut when the game was rushed out the door. Edit: I just watched an overview video of the original Long War, and it does look interesting. Much more complex than the original. Maybe someday. If you play Long War and then you try playing XCOM without it, you cry. Really. It's so much better. But it does get grindy in the late game, especially since you get to know all the available maps by heart. And they really, really, really should have only allowed the Base Defense mission to happen once.
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Post by bbg95 on Jan 16, 2020 19:36:57 GMT -5
I made sure to get all the DLC because War of the Chosen had such positive reviews. I never played Long War because by the time it was released, I had gotten my fill of Enemy Unknown and had moved on to other games. I really haven't played much with mods that completely change games. My favorite mod of all time is the restoration mod for KOTOR 2 that restored a lot of content (primarily cut scenes) that was cut when the game was rushed out the door. Edit: I just watched an overview video of the original Long War, and it does look interesting. Much more complex than the original. Maybe someday. If you play Long War and then you try playing XCOM without it, you cry. Really. It's so much better. But it does get grindy in the late game. And they really, really, really should have only allowed the Base Defense mission to happen once. Yeah, it seems interesting. Though the ~150-hour playthrough estimate...it might not happen for me. I'll probably just play XCOM 2 first.
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Post by mikegarrison on Jan 16, 2020 19:56:44 GMT -5
I have a quirk that might just be my system, but if I install Long War, it works. However, if I have Long War installed and then I launch XCOM2, I can do this -- but XCOM will no longer launch. Completely repeatable. I have to remove XCOM, reinstall it, then reinstall Long War. Then XCOM will launch again.
Anyway, the point here is that I can't just switch back and forth between playing Long War and XCOM2. Somehow they must interfere with each other.
XCOM was not made to be modded, and you can't easily just turn Long War on or off.
XCOM2, on the other hand, was made to be modded. It integrates well with the Steam Workshop and you can get all sorts of mods from there (including Long War 2). You can also turn mods and DLC on and off from a launching panel.
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Post by Wolfgang on Jan 16, 2020 23:00:28 GMT -5
Dying Light
The 4 or 5 times I played this game, I've hated one mission more than any other. I don't dread it but I don't look forward to it either. It's the classic strip-your-character-of-all-his-weapons-and-gear and put him in a pit for a boss fight. The mission is titled "The Pit." LOL!
The Pit fight itself is a two-stage fight:
1. I have to fight hordes of zombies with no weapons. Well, sort of. I can use whatever "weapons" I find in the pit. But all are very low level (like Level 1) weapons like nailed wooden board, a wooden stick, a gas pipe, and a two-handed rebar. The rebar has high(er) damage but it's so heavy that one swing and you have to catch your breath (which means you have to wait for your stamina to build back up before you can swing again).
2. In this second stage, after I kill the hordes, I have to deal with the big boss -- a gigantic zombie monster called a Demolisher that takes several blows to kill. And it only needs a couple blows to kill you. So, lots of running and dodging. If you stay too far away, it'll start throwing things which can hurt you even more. LOL! When it gets low on health, another horde of zombies join the fray. Oh fun!
I just quit out of the game and will resume later at 11:00 PM when I have more time to devote to this mission.
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Post by Wolfgang on Jan 16, 2020 23:05:53 GMT -5
Thinking about the game design of Dh2: The immediate start gives you no weapons or powers and lets you puzzle your way out of a locked room. This leads you to the opportunity to get a sword and the chance to kill or choke a few guards. You also get to make your first lethal/non-lethal target decision. Then you get a few additional weapon options and the level opens up to a wider design. You still feel like you are on the run with no safe base, but you now have options for investigating apartments, dealing with or bypassing guards, investigating plot points, etc. At the end of the level you gain your safe base. Then you add powers and increase your weapon options. The next two levels introduce the bloodflies, the abbey overseers, the black markets where you buy your gear, and the city where most of the action takes place. First you work through a city street area, and then you work through a single large mansion structure. The next level is the one that adds the clockwork soldier enemies and features the building which rearranges it's internal structure based on what levers you pull. It's generally considered the best level in the game, and was a very interesting puzzle. Then you have another level where you first start in a street situation and work your way into a large single building. This one introduces the witches as opponents. After that is the level where you have to decide whether to support the gang, support the overseers, or eliminate both. Then you get the mansion where your powers don't work but you replace them with the time travel device. (You can skip the gang and the overseers if you want, by solving a logic puzzle. Otherwise you need to get two different parts of the puzzle solution from the gang and the overseers. If you want all your runes and bonecharms and such, you need to do this anyway.) By this point you basically have all your weapons and many of your powers (although you never get enough runes to use all your powers, so you are constantly continuing to choose between upgrades). You put them all together and go against the Duke in his palace. He and his double can be in any of five locations (according to what I have read), so you have to explore the palace, find the targets, use the clues they give to figure out who is the Duke and who is the double, and resolve his storyline. You also need to break into his vault, where you get something you need to prevent Delilah from being unkillable. Finally you go back home with all your weapons and powers and defeat Delilah. This level actually felt like something of an anti-climax, because it definitely was not as complex as the previous three targets and it didn't add any new concepts. When does Emily have time to put on her makeup?
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Post by mikegarrison on Jan 17, 2020 0:47:23 GMT -5
Thinking about the game design of Dh2: The immediate start gives you no weapons or powers and lets you puzzle your way out of a locked room. This leads you to the opportunity to get a sword and the chance to kill or choke a few guards. You also get to make your first lethal/non-lethal target decision. Then you get a few additional weapon options and the level opens up to a wider design. You still feel like you are on the run with no safe base, but you now have options for investigating apartments, dealing with or bypassing guards, investigating plot points, etc. At the end of the level you gain your safe base. Then you add powers and increase your weapon options. The next two levels introduce the bloodflies, the abbey overseers, the black markets where you buy your gear, and the city where most of the action takes place. First you work through a city street area, and then you work through a single large mansion structure. The next level is the one that adds the clockwork soldier enemies and features the building which rearranges it's internal structure based on what levers you pull. It's generally considered the best level in the game, and was a very interesting puzzle. Then you have another level where you first start in a street situation and work your way into a large single building. This one introduces the witches as opponents. After that is the level where you have to decide whether to support the gang, support the overseers, or eliminate both. Then you get the mansion where your powers don't work but you replace them with the time travel device. (You can skip the gang and the overseers if you want, by solving a logic puzzle. Otherwise you need to get two different parts of the puzzle solution from the gang and the overseers. If you want all your runes and bonecharms and such, you need to do this anyway.) By this point you basically have all your weapons and many of your powers (although you never get enough runes to use all your powers, so you are constantly continuing to choose between upgrades). You put them all together and go against the Duke in his palace. He and his double can be in any of five locations (according to what I have read), so you have to explore the palace, find the targets, use the clues they give to figure out who is the Duke and who is the double, and resolve his storyline. You also need to break into his vault, where you get something you need to prevent Delilah from being unkillable. Finally you go back home with all your weapons and powers and defeat Delilah. This level actually felt like something of an anti-climax, because it definitely was not as complex as the previous three targets and it didn't add any new concepts. When does Emily have time to put on her makeup? She wears a mask.
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Post by mikegarrison on Jan 17, 2020 19:30:52 GMT -5
One of the little touches that I like in video games but that as far as I can tell, Wolfgang is not impressed with: I have just encountered a scene I had forgotten about from my first playthrough. It's a locked room accessible only by teleportation. You find a dead soldier there, and some items of value in the room. You also find a letter that you mostly don't understand the first time you play the game. It references characters and things you find out about later. But it concludes with a little paragraph where the sender of the letter says she is sending along a flask of special, exotic liquor as a reward for the recipient of the letter, "made from the pomace left over after wine grapes have been pressed". Obviously what was "special and exotic" about it was that it was poisoned.
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