Wormerine

I don't think class system makes much sense for a single player game. A starting kit yes, but classes mostly work well in party settings. Limited races are a shame - while it would be tricky to properly represent Aumaua or Orlan, that also could be very fun. I do look at the trailer and feel PoE3 would be so so much more exciting, but at the same time it is not PoE3. It is Avowed, and while it is in the same universe it is a different game. I am more worried by the tone of the trailer. It feels like a very generic power fantasy and to me it lacked character. Original teaser had a neat tone, very PoE-like. This one could be anything

Playing Lies of P demo. It's pretty chunky - I am over two hours in, and it is still going. It's pretty good. Not FromSoftware level of great, but good. Combat animation aren't quite as smooth as I would like, and they have a lot of snap attacks (long windups, and very short swings) making attack memorisation necessary. It is very cut&dry with it's animation recovery - I sometimes feel like it prevents me from blocking after an attack for longer than neccessary. Probably the main criticism so far would be enviroment. It's a nice looking game, but at least opening few sections have been very samey. If you would show me a screenshot it is likely I wouldn't be able to tell where it was taken. Game as also been fairly linear - the levels loop around "bonfires" but there isn't many nooks one could explore. Still, quite impressed so far. I killed a man and took his donkey hat.

I mean, it’s day 1 on GamePass. Will be checking out demo later - buzz seems to be very positive. I don’t think it matters if the studio is independent or not, as long as they release a game worthwhile of the price. CDPR and Larian are also independent and operate in the premium price range. I know nothing of the devs so don’t know what to expect. It always looked too good to be true, but it seems it might be solid afterall.

While Sands of Time remake is stuck in development hell we are getting what seems like 2,5d one, riffing on the original. Aside the "music" choice, it looks decent

The world wasn't created for the DE. First it's been a table-top campaign, which than turned into a novel, and than it turned into a game.

Finished watching the thing yesterday - this is a decent summary. Among wild accusations Josh Sawyer and Larian are mentioned as potential parties who were in contact with Kurvitz about illegally selling the IP. JS denied the allegations but Larian didn't comment. Nothing of substance, but likely an interesting bit to folks here. The exact timestamp is 1:59:30 The impression I got is that both parties seem to have valid grievances but also are being dishonest. It seems the DE2 could happen with one of the side have up their stakes in NewElysium but at this point it seems rather unlikely. Kurvitz was open about wanting to do the sequel - not continuing the story of Harry, but doing another story in the universe. The whole dispute is about him loosing control over the world he created.

You mean sous vide? Apparently it is great, as you can't overcook the meat. It just takes crap ton of time.

I don’t think I ever had a proper steak. I mostly eat food I make myself, and and steak always felt like something that is too expensive and very easy to ruin so I stick to more fool proof dishes. Also I don’t think I could batch cook steak and microwave it throughout the week, so just a significantly too much hassle.

I didn't finish it either yet. That said as I am interesting in the situation it's been interesting so far. The first half an hour has been explaining history of the shareholder situation of the company who is who, and what are the exact accusations. I mean it is not even remotely close to the longest video on youtube that I watched edit. The video contains interviews with key figures and employees at ZAUM, which at least provides various perspectives on the issues.

I would find it difficult to rate things that were "the worst" in ME3 - too much is fighting for the no 1 spot. Kai Leng, however, is just a nice self-cointained piece one can point toward to as being crap from start to finish. I would count kid as well, though I think there is some merit in the concept itself (Shepard struggling with his PTSD) even if it is handled ineffectively.

Nah, it’s couple hours (3-4?) long stand alone campaign.

No complaint about baby sitting little sister? Did you play Minerva's Den DLC? I remember liking it better than the base game.

Can you pay for a convenience of having more active sidequests?

That was... 14 years ago?

All I can think of is:

Ah, Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart got steam page and releases in 8 weeks. Did I miss the announcement? Cool. I wonder how well will PCs handle the rift gimmick. It seems like a feature tailor made for PS5 uber SSD system.

Ah yes. That was more or less the reason I bounced off Masquarade on my first attempt, and never were particularly fond of the game, even though I think it is great. I find the vibe of the game rather offputting. Nightclubs were the worst.

Yeah, I downloaded it and it wait to be fired up. From what I understand it is Limbo/Inside kinda of a game - more about tight experience than gameplay.

I have been playing it on and off (mostly off) since it released. I think I am on the 4th protagonist now. The game isn't terrific, but I can't help but be fond of it. I heard WW was initially meant to be more procedural than handcrafted, which explains a lot of generated content. I enjoyed my first protagonist well enough, but I feel game gets stale quickly. There really isn't much reason to interact with sandbox, and combat is a bit too hecktic to take advantage of each character's unique abilities. I try to vary upmy playthrough, but too often I default to what seems to work the best. It's a messy title, but I find it very pleasant to play every once in a while. I am probably on a verge of jumping back and doing another storyline. edit:

I heard it’s good so I would be all up for good port/remake. However, it is Konami, and as far as I know we don’t even know who is working on that exactly, aside from some internal people. I won’t get my hopes up.

Homeworld3 has been delayed to February 2024. Good, that gives me a bit of time to finally finish Deserts of Kharak, and do a full playthrough of Homeworld 1&2. For a games I have enjoyed a lot so far, I can't seem to get things rolling. https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/homeworld-3-has-been-delayed-to-february-2024 Eilte Dangerous folks are making a Warhammer RTS: https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/elite-dangerous-devs-are-making-new-warhammer-rts-age-of-sigmar-realms-of-ruin

Styx, yes. Those are honestly one of the better stealthem-ups I played in many years, but they have their shortcomings. They are still a powerfantasy, and that's something a Gollum game should avoid I think. Probably the closest comparison to what I would want a Gollum game to be would be Hellblade - not in terms of individual systems but overall concept. A narratively driven adventure focusing on mind state of the protagonist, with gameplay elements serving as narrative medium, rather than entertaining game systems in themselves.

It is much more interesting to me than running as an Aragorn-knockoff and slaughtering orcs in Shadow games. Gollum is an interesting character with a unique skill. With a strong vision and direction it could make for an interesting, narrative experience. Not an easy sell, even if pulled well, that’s for sure.