Hawke64

Sekiro Went as expected. I am surprised that there was no option to kill him after he admitted to setting the MC's home and master on fire. It took some time, but the Chained Ogre was defeated. Ironic. The shield bearer was still alive at the end of the battle - the boss' sight and aggro range were much farther than the others'. And at this point I turned around and decided to go and meet a giant snake rather than this elderly lady.

The later games are much more demanding in terms of reaction time. The aspects that appeal to me are the level and boss design and the variety of builds (even if I end up playing a sword&board who occasionally grabs the sword with both hands or uses a bow). The former is much rarer in other genres, except immersive sims. --- Sekiro I started a new playthrough, promptly got defeated by the archer-samurai boss (Ginichiro?), and proceeded with the main story. For some reason the game tried to overheat my "new" GPU (got some time ago, but started using actively only now). After playing with the settings, I limited the FPS to 40 in the NVidia control panel and the hot spot temperature remained under 70C. As mentioned above, I like the level design - Sekiro is as close as it can be to a 3D Metroidvania. I tried to go and meet a headless mini-boss early and discovered a path to the Devil's Bell, but got burnt before reaching it and reloaded. I also got through most of the Hirata Estate, except the final battle - I could not defeat the ninja boss without upgrades. The bandit leader took several attempts, including clearing the area around and splitting the aggro with the samurai ally. Though, I still detest the open combat and the controls (the MC flinches easily and cannot look straight even when target-locked). I hope to be patient enough to get to the final boss/younger Owl battle without decreasing the difficulty. Still, this mod looks most delightful: https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1713602236

After replaying The Outer Worlds fully, I discovered* that the civilians in Byzantium do try to run away, though not quite far. *It was after I chose the Attack option while looting a certain companion's parents' house. So, there was not much space to run and definitely nowhere to hide (the NPC survived the encounter, but it was interesting to watch).

The Outer Worlds I expected to see a low-int option here. Though, landing on Cascadia is much faster than going through Roseway. I had just enough Stealth skill to pickpocket the armour. End-game spoilers

The Outer Worlds. (Some parts were written during the week/before I finished the game for the third time). It has occurred to me that there is a lot of flexibility in the narrative structure - the player can reach a lot of quests from different points. Some, such as the power generator in Edgewater, are quite straightforward, but they still support the player being murderous. Reed Tobson is the bottleneck which the player unavoidably faces. He starts his dialogue right when you exit the elevator, giving you the information to proceed to the other settlement and the powerplant. Unless he is shot at before entering his office. In which case, the information can be taken from his body and the terminal. On the other hand, there are cases where the quest NPC do not appear before the relevant quest has been taken, such as the bounties from the sheriff in Edgewater. This particular quest chain can lead to lonely targets sitting among corpses, should the player visit the camps in advance. I can’t quite recall where I got the NavKey for the Groundbreaker, but I do remember Welles calling. For Monarch, the next large location, there are MSI and the Iconoclasts. For Sanjar, the items can be obtained before meeting him. For Gresham, the first NPC, Catarina does not appear before the Iconoclasts send the player there. It is explained by Catarina delivering supplies on request, not having a store set up. Consequentially, the next quest requires the items obtained from her, thus, the progression is linear. Unless, of course, one just kills the Iconoclast leadership, successfully completing the main part of the story on Monarch. At this point, the lines come together as the UDL gunship crashes onto the surface. The requirements for the ship to appear is to deal with MSI and the Iconoclasts in any manner. Additionally, if the information broker is approached before these quests are completed, he will just inform the player that he cannot transfer the intel required to Welles. I am yet to break into Byzantium, but I assume that the flexibility comes from the main quest giver there - Welles or Akande. I might be mistaken, since I have not followed the Board quest line. If my blog goes live today, I have just noticed that the civilians in Byzantium do take cover when combat starts. --- I have finished my low-int playthrough without crashing into the sun/central star of the system. By going only for the main objectives and companion quests and trying to limit looting (I kept running out of ammo in Edgewater, then I just kept running away from the enemies, so it got better), it took 8 hours. The previous run took 32 hours. I can't say that the ending was worse (I skipped the Iconoclasts' quest line by killing Graham and Zora). Having low Stealth and Dialogue skills was somehow less satisfying than having low combat skills - fewer choices in quests, more combat. But I did defeat RAM in open battle (well, I kited the boss into the first room and kept it knocked down with companions' abilities), so that's something. --- On Dark Souls 2. I consider it to be the best in the series: it is very comfortable to play with keyboard and mouse there are several paths to choose from (all semi-mandatory, but still) rolling requires stat investment to be viable the bosses can be revived on the same NG cycle teleportation to any bonfire is available (would prefer to have a more interconnected world, but with several quite linear paths, it is good enough) there are some light differences between NG cycles there is poise and the game's speed/required reaction time is generally adequate (it became much worse in DS3 and later games) I can't quite recall the foes' exact movesets, but the hitboxes attached were quite different, so it was good. Regarding the weapons, the appeal of the 2H weapons was in the ability to break poise. I used mostly katanas or long swords, so cannot tell how effective it was. I do hope that it is clear that the points above are very subjective. I also have no intention to try to get all achievements due to the farming required.

Finished The Outer Worlds, while aiming for the more peaceful outcomes (still shot Rockwell without talking). I suppose, everything about the game has been said already, so in the context of Avowed releasing soon (2025?), I am unsure if I should hope for more gameplay depth. The shallow systems work with the satirical narrative, but more complexity for a high-/dark-fantasy epic would be welcome. As well as the less focus on the combat, which is not particularly satisfying* - something smaller, but with more immersive sim elements or stronger story branching. Regarding the environmental storytelling, on one hand, there are party members' cabins with items placed very thoughtfully, then there are level-scaled modern guns or Adreno on the Hope in the areas unused by UDL. So, as mentioned, smaller and with higher attention to details would be preferred to RNG. I guess, I have seen worse itemisation in Divinity: Original Sin 2, but that one was the worst - level-scaled colour-coded RNG'ed faceless trash with no story significance appearing in random crates (it got somewhat better in the D&D game - the unique equipment could be kept throughout the game, but there still was a lot of literal trash). *I can't tell if repeatedly failing to notice being hit in the back is an UI issue or just my low perception. I don't think that there are clear indicators of the direction where the damage is coming from and the first-person view does not exactly help. So, I am very happy that Avowed offers the third-person camera option. Still, TOW was good, because of the quality of writing and world building, not the combat or itemisation. The character creation and development systems were serviceable.

The Outer Worlds So at this point I decided what to do with Rockwell. Considering the increasing body count of the party (how many random guards and pirates, not to mention the wildlife, were dead because they were at the wrong place at the wrong time), the party could be quite desensitised to violence. And there were no negative consequences, mechanically or narratively, for it. Quite the opposite, in fact, - loot and XP. I like the environmental storytelling, though, I would like the companions to comment on it. That's a quite direct explanation of the just-world fallacy. He had some sense. Got a fancy hat. The ability to kill NPCs at will without loudly announcing it is greatly appreciated. I was trying to avoid harming the sprats. One somehow got into the elevator, so I reloaded. It would be great to be able to avoid accidental combat more easily and have more feedback for choosing not to murder random lizards.

You can just throw a Bonfire Ascetic into the bonfire next to the boss room after killing Vendrick. It will respawn also the Watcher and the Defender, but you should be able to dismiss the summons and feather out at the start of Nashandra's battle (same for Aldia, the summons tend to burn during the second phase either way). This method also works for NPC quest lines (with some restrictions, but I do not remember at what point it becomes impossible to do so) and allows to get NG+ boss souls in NG. If I am not mistaken, some of the merchants have their inventory updated (I got the Butterfly set from the armourer in Majula), but not all. The partial difficulty increase is limited to the respective area and it was slightly different from the actual NG+ in the vanilla DS2 (e.g. no Freja appearing earlier, no additional red phantoms with the Lost Sinner). However, it carries over to the next NG cycle, so one must be careful. --- The Outer Worlds. Finished Monarch. Some thoughts on the area's main quest. Reached Byzantium. The streets are covered in trash, a lot of buildings are locked down, and the service bots are dusting holes in the walls. I've been thinking about Encased while playing. In particular, the non-combat skill checks and the writing for the low-int PC (I cannot tell if it was ableistic or not, so not commenting on that aspect). It feels like Encased had more options and supported more playstyles (a certain companion quest in TOW had an unavoidable battle against a mantiqueen, while my PC had the highest combat-only skill at 20), including a fully implemented non-lethal path, with the PC being reasonably motivated to avoid killing most people in-character. Also a low-int PC had most dialogues adapted, with several exclusive to them options available. As far as I know (haven't tried yet, will update if incorrect), TOW has fewer. On the other hand, TOW is more coherent in terms of narrative (the quality of writing is undoubtedly higher in TOW) and gameplay systems, even if, as mentioned, the systems are less developed. Though, I do like that I have only 4 slots (2 weapons and 2 armour pieces) to equip for each companion.

That's a lot of particle effects. Also, the cat is very cute.

The Outer Worlds It would probably look nicer with better lighting, but still. I am happy to share that the cow and the human survived my visit. Also now one of the companions looks like a candy or a pride flag (the armour was possible to pickpocket without killing the hostile NPC). A different set, but the colour scheme the same as for the other Rizzo's set. The story acknowledges the level architecture. Somehow, Sanjar is one of the most likeable NPCs.

One should not underestimate the appeal of power and numbers going up. So, there are, at least, Good, Best, Board, and Chaotic Murderous (must try all those cool guns) paths for the story. I think, In terms of combat gameplay, the FPS aspect encourages the ranged combat or chasing the foes with a melee weapon while getting shot at. The stealth is there, but since creating corpses gives XP to invest into skills, not killing hostile NPCs (which are already described as aggressive, be it raptidons or marauders) is hard to explain. They also interfere with looting by attacking the party, while sneaking is rather slow and it is harder to see some of the loot in stealth. I can't say that more corpos being terrible adds anything new to the narrative (Edgewater did just that well enough), but more varied examples are fine and mostly fit the story. Though, the pacing somewhat breaks - I played the DLC shortly before the point of no-return, so it was rather odd to do freelance contracts when the Hope colonists and Welles needed saving. (I am aware of the date of the post. I was looking for input for a story choice between a Good and the Best outcomes. An achievement said that the Best outcome was the preferred one).

GreedFall 2 | Early Access Overview Trailer Greedfall 2 is RTwP, though I am concerned about the performance. Otherwise, Spiders do make something close enough (but not on the same level) to Bioware. Their games have been mostly technically solid (either tactical or fast enough; on the other hand, rogues/consumables users have been OP) and the stories have had only one major weird drama plot twist per game (e.g. the gates in the frozen city in Bound by Flame; splitting the squad was clearly impossible /s). I am curious how the story is going to work to logically lead to the start of GF1, though if I am not mistaken, the communications with the island were scarce, so it is possible that GF2 will end at the same time as GF1 without the plot lines affecting each other, especially if the MCs are in different continent cities. It would be great if the saves were transferable, of course. --- Edit. https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/greedfall-2-developers-call-a-strike-over-working-conditions-lack-of-gender-equality-and-parity-and-global-mismanagement I hope that the employees will achieve adequate working conditions and fair salaries. Considering that the developers are based in France, it should be the likelier outcome.

Thank you for the clarification. It is quite early in the game, so I agree that getting the next Owlcat game before progressing with WotR at least to Dresen (Chapter 3, I think) might be inadvisable. --- The Outer Worlds. Monarch. Trying to find an in-character reason for doing the side quests before finding the information broker and saving the Hope. Sanjar is persuasive and MSI is the only likeable corporation, thus, one must help them? On another note, the area is rather large - there are 3 settlements and quite a few combat encounters. I guess, the red rocks are supposed to serve as walls, considering that even when jumping from above, the PC slides from them. Edit. I suppose, for the in-character motivation - there is no point in saving the Hope colonists if the colony itself is on the brink of collapse. They would just die a bit warmer.

Shadow of the Road | Announcement Trailer Judging by one of my old Steam posts getting random replies, the game is closer to a turn-based tactical stealth game, rather than a full CRPG, but I might be wrong. So, while I am not particularly interested (unless full stealth/no kills is an option), it might be good for the fans of the genre.

WotR did not have a tutorial village, the tutorial took place in a city overrun with demons. Kingmaker had a castle, then some wilderness with small inns and sort of a village (I think, it required at least a few hours to get there). I have played RT for a bit, but the setting and the combat are somehow unappealing, so the playthrough is progressing rather slowly. I do like Owlcat, but the combination of their usual combat density (possibly a bit lighter) and the combat being turn-based is not exactly the best one. --- The Outer Worlds. I have recovered my save files and reached Monarch the normal way (tried running from Cascadia successfully, then reloaded). Seen the first 100+ (142) Persuasion check, so considering reinstalling the game. Then again, some 100+ skills are interesting. --- Spellchecking does not seem to be working in the browser (despite the setting being turned on), so I am trying to pay more attention to what I am typing.

Soulstice Some combat screenshots. Though, they were taken at the end of encounters. There were some environmental hazards and quite a few large/teleporting/summoning foes. I don't think that it could take more. End-game spoilers (gore).

Enotria: The Last Song - Gamescom 2024 Trailer The video shows mostly the combat, with a boss' intro cut-scene. The boss looks unusual (as far as an armoured lion/chimera can be unusual). I am curious how generous the parry timings are.

The experience with the Iron Passage does sound frustrating, but I am glad that it was positive overall. Killing the blue Smelter Demon used to allow to use the regular Smelter's soul to forge the blue sword, by the way. Not sure if it was changed in the SotFS edition. The Iron Ivory Crown DLC co-op area is widely regarded as the worst area in the Dark Souls trilogy, but the density of the foes is different from the Iron Passage. I was using the summons as meatshields and dismissing them before the fog gate during my playthroughs. About the co-op area (spoilers for the area; I assume you might want to read them after finishing it): About the boss battle (it is a DPS race and, if done incorrectly, it can end painfully after a certain point): Also (not related to the co-op area), if you would like to get the frozen knight armour set, farming the knights might be preferable before killing the final boss of the DLC.

Soulstice At that point, I forgot how to counter the berserk state. Story and boss spoilers.

Soulstice. I think I have reached the late-game (counting by the codex entries, 22 of 31). I like the combat - it is responsive and mostly readable enough, with a lot of unique automatic abilities for the spirit companion/secondary protagonist, and 8 distinct weapons for the main character. There have been no puzzles, only some traversal and combat challenges. I like less that the weapons have very few special moves, cannot chain combos between different weapons, and were granted at random points during the story. The analogue of the DMC Devil Trigger (DT) is achieved by building up the style gauge, so the DT here can be used only in combat and it is not possible to save up before a boss. Speaking of, there are quite a lot of different enemy types, but very few bosses (as far as I can tell, 5-6). The bosses of the earlier chapters return as regular foes later on. The story is reasonably straightforward, with the protagonists' logic understandable, and the protagonists themselves likeable (the line upon entering the Monastery was the best). The things I dislike are relatively small annoyances - any mandatory timed traversal challenges with poor camera angles (so it is hard to see whether the next platform is within reach), the inability to have the HP always shown (it is either hidden or "contextual"), the story starting rather slowly in repetitive locations (it gets better later on).

No strong feelings about the HUD (I would move the mini-map to the lower right, but that's about it), but first-person melee tends to be unpleasant. The subtitles having the speaker's name and a background are most welcome.

But you can So, very good.

https://www.ea.com/en-gb/games/dragon-age/dragon-age-the-veilguard/news/pc-features No Steam Family Sharing, though, as far as I can see. Also, I am curious if it is possible to completely disable the grass and the foliage.

Soulstice I used Discord to share the images, so they might not last. The MCs.

Soulstice. I have reached Chapter 9 and the first unique boss. The previous two were mini-bosses, it seems (they have "Defeat N to unlock the next entry" in the Codex and I have met one of them again). I like that new systems and enemies are introduced quite often and that the MC is mostly either stoic or berserk (also the armour and the sword visually remind of the manga of the same name). The NPCs are rather nice (not annoying) as well so far. I guess that at the end the MC will destroy the corruption of the knight order, while keeping own demonic powers, as self-sacrificing would mean no sequel with the same protagonist. I like less that the shop/level up NPC just gives the weapons (got 2 more) and that the areas last a bit too long (the city walls, then the lower city) and hard to navigate (too monotonous and there is no map). I did not learn the attack patterns of the foes due to the magical block working from any distance against most enemies, while the need to use it is clearly communicated (the block button -the exact key bound!- appears on the enemy or in its direction if it is off-screen), so I do not have to look at the animations. Which brings me back to the unique boss - the thing had quite a few unblockable attacks and I had some issues with dodging them. So, the first death. Considering how long Cerberus in DMC3 took me to defeat, I probably should have chosen a higher difficulty. I have also switched to the keyboard only, because the camera can be rotated very rarely, so no point in using the mouse. The platforming with the fixed camera angles and variable depth perception was of variable satisfaction.