RANDOM VIDEO GAME NEWS

[Humanoid]

That screenshot is probably a literal fifty shades of grey.

[Humanoid]

Humble Bundle has finally added a listing of all the individual keys you own but have yet to redeem. I know I had some, but not 50+, that was ...illuminating.

[Nordicus]

Over the top weapon designs, generic hack n slash action game, only appealing might be setting, but for me its not enough. In short

I put way more effort into this than I should have, but whatever. I await the first smartarse drive-by comment with no proper content, as that's kind of how things tend to be

 

Weapon design

 

The weapon designs are kind of an (unfortunate) escalation starting way back in Demon's Souls, where most weapons were quite normal with the exception of some explicitly unique and magical ones that weren't easy to find. It has hit a peak here, where the director also wanted to hold back on the quantity of different weapons and give them more uniqueness in gameplay features. So there's an explanation for it, but it might still be a turnoff regardless.

 

Combat

 

Now, regarding the hack n slash comment, I need to talk about the Souls series, and Bloodborne is an explicit spiritual successor to these games. Souls games have a more "simulationy", I guess I'd call it, approach to combat in general.

There's much heavier and much more accurate feedback to blows. Attacks hurt, both you and your enemies will have to watch out for individual blows, and these attacks will much more often than not have distinguishable, non-instant animations with accurate hitboxes and enemies will not have their feet slide towards you in order to do an attack and make sure it hits. In Bloodborne, there are these witches who might lose their balance if you roll into them because they're old and frail.

If you, let's say, step left just an inch to just barely dodge a downward axe strike, then the game will give you that inch (this was admittedly not done as well in Dark Souls 2 where a few enemies might unnaturally turn around mid-attack in order to make sure you're hit if you're strafing them. It was an issue that people brought up a lot, because previous games did it so well).

 

Compared to all other action RPGs, Souls game enemies are glasscannons, but they will also not allow themselves to be hit. They might hide behind shields and counter attack after your weapon has bounced on their block, they might seek to stay at a distance where strafing and getting a back attack is difficult, they will put the pressure on you, forcing you to block and dodge, expending your stamina so you don't have the energy to attack safely.  The enemies will react to your playing much better than in most games where only your position would matter, as in just determining how far AI would need to walk.

Button mashing and attacking an opponent relentlessly is also ill-advised. You commit to every attack so enemies can often easily hit you between blows if you time it badly or your weapon is straight up too slow. When you use up all your stamina on an all-out assault, if enemy was somewhat tough or prepared, then your defensive options are limited to simple walking, and then you will pay for your carelessness if the enemy isn't dead yet. Heck, if you do one move predictably over and over, the more agile enemies will actually parry and riposte you, possibly killing you in a single blow.

 

And that's just talking about Souls combat in a non-descript environment. Your surroundings are hugely important in Souls gameplay. Traps, ambushes, dangerous (and advantageous) falls, and walls deflecting your wide swinging attacks. Dark Souls is the kind of game that will put a narrow, man-wide corridor with a visible pressure plate on the floor that triggers a dangerous arrow trap behind you, and at the far end of the corridor, behind a corner you can see the tip of a sword waving up and down. How will you attempt to survive this portion if there's an enemy just waiting to get you stuck in the trap?

The area design and enemy placement are important, and there's barely any filler, where you'd fight same enemies over and over without any variety. It's basically a proper 3D Castlevania. I have many of the fights and their placement downright memorized.

 

See this picture of Dark Souls 1? Falling from those rafters is equally deadly to you and the enemies, and you can absolutely just simply walk off the edge to your death. If you're good enough at melee, or think for a second and pull out a ranged weapon, you'll make it easily.

This is not your generic hack n slash with repetitive rooms of enemies you need to clear. This is not a game where you lost because of high damage numbers (most of the time), or not getting the X and Y combo, this is an action RPG where you often lost because you weren't thinking, weren't patient, or you panicked.

 

Setting

 

Now, the setting is definitely appealing, but director Miyazaki could probably make any setting interesting. Souls games are generally great at making worlds dark, melancholic, desperate, unsettling and terrifying in mood. There's the lighting, lack of music outside bossfights, echoing footsteps, ambient sounds, great scenery outdoors, often decayed and wild environments with exception of places that're supposed to look high class, area-appropriate enemies, dialog of crestfallen, mad or miraculously cheerful NPCs, and environmetal storytelling in loot placements. There's RNG only in enemy drops and even in those cases, they drop appropriate things, and when someone drops a very odd item, it's for a reason. Rats drop Humanity items more than other enemies? That's because rats eat human corpses and humans tend to, no surprise, contain actual, physical, humanity in Souls universe.

 

So, Bloodborne will likely contain all of these good aspects of Souls games (and others that I didn't mention), and make it feel new again with a completely fresh setting and a much bigger twist on previous mechanics than there has been between Souls games before. That is why people are so excited

Edited September 18, 2014 by Nordicus

[Chilloutman]

Yeah I i know souls games even tho I am not huge fan them, combat in them was really nice and demanding however its not what I seen in bloodborn so far. It much more looks like Dantes Inferno than souls game. You pretty much mentioning souls games and not bloodborne even tho I understand it should be some kind of follow up. Souls game have 'ralistic' vibe to combat. Hard to do same with half ton hammer swings which looks like its made from paper

 

Deep Down looks much more like Soul games than this

Edited September 18, 2014 by Chilloutman

[Labadal]

Yeah I i know souls games even tho I am not huge fan them, combat in them was really nice and demanding however its not what I seen in bloodborn so far. It much more looks like Dantes Inferno than souls game. You pretty much mentioning souls games and not bloodborne even tho I understand it should be some kind of follow up. Souls game have 'ralistic' vibe to combat. Hard to do same with half ton hammer swings which looks like its made from paper

 

Deep Down looks much more like Soul games than this

Souls games were very realistic with characters wielding weapons twice as big as themselves.

[Nordicus]

Yeah I i know souls games even tho I am not huge fan them, combat in them was really nice and demanding however its not what I seen in bloodborn so far. It much more looks like Dantes Inferno than souls game. You pretty much mentioning souls games and not bloodborne even tho I understand it should be some kind of follow up. Souls game have 'ralistic' vibe to combat. Hard to do same with half ton hammer swings which looks like its made from paper

They have made it a bit more aggressive and quicker by making you wear generally lighter stuff in Bloodborne, and throwing away shields entirely to give you a proper dash and ranged weapons. If this were Dante's Inferno, your character could swing their weapons infinitely, roll out of the animations when they wanted, and even most basic combos would be very crowd control heavy.

 

And honestly I do not agree with the hammer swing comment, at least if you're trying to make a comparison to older games. They were always a bit out there with the big weapons. The animation's perhaps a little quick with the hammer, but your character still looks like they can barely swing it, and can only do so by wrenching it off the ground.

 

Deep Down looks much more like Soul games than this

Deep Down is much more like Dragon's Dogma to be honest. Edited September 18, 2014 by Nordicus

[Chilloutman]

 

Yeah I i know souls games even tho I am not huge fan them, combat in them was really nice and demanding however its not what I seen in bloodborn so far. It much more looks like Dantes Inferno than souls game. You pretty much mentioning souls games and not bloodborne even tho I understand it should be some kind of follow up. Souls game have 'ralistic' vibe to combat. Hard to do same with half ton hammer swings which looks like its made from paper

 

Deep Down looks much more like Soul games than this

Souls games were very realistic with characters wielding weapons twice as big as themselves.

 

Sorry didn't played it much, but at least in first 1-2 levels my character have some reasonable realistic looking equipment

[Keyrock]

New trailer for Fatal Frame 5, now with added hazubendo!

 

 

I swear, if this doesn't get localized for North America, so help me, I'll...  get really mad, pout quite a bit, and maybe write some angry emails. 

[HoonDing]

There's a colossal squid in the lake, yes?

[Chilloutman]

I quite like anime but god I hate that japan/korean pop

[HoonDing]

It's an acquired taste.

[HoonDing]

Forget #GaiderGate, much more amusing indy gaming drama coming right up: http://www.pcgamer.com/2014/09/18/grimoire-heralds-of-the-dark-exemplar-developer-threatens-trademark-trouble-for-new-grimoire-fps/

[Oner]

http://store.steampowered.com/agecheck/app/292120/

FF XIII on Steam

Edited September 19, 2014 by Oner

[Galomtala]

From Alpha 9 (with nearly no content) to v1.0 (with almost no content) in a blink of an eye. Double Fine makes it possible.

 

http://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2014/09/18/double-fine-early-access-spacebase-df9/

 

Double Fine have announced that development of Spacebase DF-9 is coming to an end and the development plan listing planned features has been removed. The Steam Early Access page has been updated to state that version 1.0 is due for release. It “will be its final major update”, according to the recently updated development plans page. The previous version of that page contained hundreds of features that “might possibly” be implemented at some point. Today’s update makes it clear that any future implementation will be in the hands of the users rather than Double Fine themselves, thanks to a full source code release. 

[Guest Slinky]

From Alpha 9 (with nearly no content) to v1.0 (with almost no content) in a blink of an eye. Double Fine makes it possible.

What you mean with no content? Lack of campaing or such? I don't think they ever promised anything more than a "base builder" and it isn't exactly full priced either.

 

Only thing I personally still hoped to see in the game was some kind of planning mode where you could place stuff down without actually building them before you give the go ahead, but I think the game is already awesome as it is.

[Keyrock]

Off-screen Bravely Second gameplay

 

 

I wants it.  I wants it!

[HoonDing]

 

A hundred million SJWs would be twittering out in terror if they weren't occupied with #GaiderGate

 

Never change, Nippon.

[Labadal]

Off-screen Bravely Second gameplay

 

 

I wants it.  I wants it!

You want it. I need it.

[Tale]

Forget #GaiderGate, much more amusing indy gaming drama coming right up: http://www.pcgamer.com/2014/09/18/grimoire-heralds-of-the-dark-exemplar-developer-threatens-trademark-trouble-for-new-grimoire-fps/

I feel like I'm going to regret this.

 

"#GaiderGate?"

[Amentep]

This news had passed me by but I heard it mentioned on the Fergus MattChatt linked elsewhere - http://forums.obsidian.net/topic/68559-feargus-urquhart-on-kotor-ii-nwn-ii-fo-new-vegas-matt-chat-part-4-final/

 

Douglas E. Smith, creator of Lode Runner has passed away. Loved Lode Runner back in the day, spent a lot of time playing it. RIP.

 

https://news.yahoo.com/douglas-smith-creator-1980s-pc-160102650.html

[kgambit]

 

I feel like I'm going to regret this.

 

"#GaiderGate?"

 

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=umDr0mPuyQc

[rjshae]

This news had passed me by but I heard it mentioned on the Fergus MattChatt linked elsewhere - http://forums.obsidian.net/topic/68559-feargus-urquhart-on-kotor-ii-nwn-ii-fo-new-vegas-matt-chat-part-4-final/

 

Douglas E. Smith, creator of Lode Runner has passed away. Loved Lode Runner back in the day, spent a lot of time playing it. RIP.

 

https://news.yahoo.com/douglas-smith-creator-1980s-pc-160102650.html

 

Played it so much that I had Lode Runner dreams. Weird, huh? Anyway, sad news.

[GhostofAnakin]

 

A hundred million SJWs would be twittering out in terror if they weren't occupied with #GaiderGate

 

Never change, Nippon.

 

Why is that girl only wearing a string bikini?

[Nonek]

 

 

A hundred million SJWs would be twittering out in terror if they weren't occupied with #GaiderGate

 

Never change, Nippon.

 

Why is that girl only wearing a string bikini?

 

 

Why is Snake not?

[ManifestedISO]

I want to cancel my pre-order for Disney Marvel Infinity 2.0 after reading two successive poor reviews, but there is no option for cancellation on In-Store Pick-Up at GS. A half-assed Minecraft with no variety of gameplay seems to be a compound issue for the game. At least I didn't order the mad-expensive Collector's Edition. The weird thing is that, Game Informer is part of the Game Stop network. I pre-ordered with GS, but after reading the GI review, it's curtains on my interest.