What is the last video game you played?

[Wojo 2,453]

Even better!

[Koray Savas 2,251]

Or sneak around with either in your inventory, or carry six armor cuirasses. So?

For some reason I had thought you were saying restriction by weight was a more realistic approach to weapon inventory rather than just two weapons.

The combat in Infinite is brilliant. It's like an awesomely odd combination of tower defense and FPS. I reluctantly bought the Season Pass for it on Tuesday, not wanting to cough up another $20 to the industry's ever growing DLC marketing plans, but ultimately wanting more BioShock before I had even started the game. I liked 2's DLC and I'm sure this one will be better considering they dumped the multiplayer.

I also bought Okami HD a couple days ago, oh and Tomb Raider yesterday as it was Amazon's Deal of the Day.

Too. Many. Games!

Annnnnd EA announced Battlefield 4 with a 17 minute gameplay video. Obviously running on PC, but the facial detail is the most noticeable difference to my eyes.

[A24 4,346]

Shipping to backers should start any day now (late March). So they should turning up in people's homes within a few weeks (possibly a bit later for me, considering international shipping and customs). Regular sales start in June I believe.

Since OUYA is open source, won't it be like a sitting duck for hackers?

[Jay 37,374]

Metal Gear Solid 5 trailer

[Marian Schedenig 8,211]

Since OUYA is open source, won't it be like a sitting duck for hackers?

They can hack their own systems as much as they like (or rather, modify them without need for hacking). The games don't have to be open source, and even if they are, there's probably still ways to keep the network interactions certified (that's something I've been wondering about for a while, actually, regarding open source games in general).

I suppose they could modify the OS to rewrite the network packets their games send out. But then, you can do the same thing on any computer, or even on a console if you just put the code on your router instead of the actual console.

And ultimately, DRM has never been, and by concept will never be, a reliable way to prevent hacking.

Apparently they've started shipping today by the way.

[Henry B 50]

Commercial for the upcoming Star Trek video game:

I love this.

[King Mark 3,631]

I bought Borderlands 2 today for 40$ new.

I was gonna wait for a GOTY edition but it may be a while still

[Wojo 2,453]

On 3/28/2013 at 2:00 AM, Koray Savas said:

On 3/27/2013 at 11:41 AM, Wojo said:

Or sneak around with either in your inventory, or carry six armor cuirasses. So?

For some reason I had thought you were saying restriction by weight was a more realistic approach to weapon inventory rather than just two weapons.

 

Yes, realism is important when running over med packs or drinking water repairs broken limbs and a ruptured abdomen.

 

On 3/28/2013 at 10:59 PM, Henry Buck said:

Commercial for the upcoming Star Trek video game:

I love this.

 

Great commercial. The game looks interesting.

 

But they've been making Star Trek video games since the 1970s. Why does this one merit the subtitle of "The Game" as opposed to some goofy movie tie-in subtitle?

[Koray Savas 2,251]

I bought Borderlands 2 today for 40$ new.

I was gonna wait for a GOTY edition but it may be a while still

It can't be more than a couple months away. I think there's only one or two more DLCs that are coming out, and at any rate, the game was $25 on Black Friday.

[Quintus 5,399]

Yeah I'm surprised he paid that for it. It's permanently discounted here now.

Bought Dead Light off Steam for £2.49. Why on earth did I leave it so long, it's pretty damn good.

[Faleel 5,360]

Commercial for the upcoming Star Trek video game:

I love this.

Great commercial. The game looks interesting.

But they've been making Star Trek video games since the 1970s. Why does this one merit the subtitle of "The Game" as opposed to some goofy movie tie-in subtitle?

There has not been a video game based off a movie called Star Trek that has no subtitles whatsover (Star Trek: The Motion Picture: The Game)

[Wojo 2,453]

I think I realize that, assuming I understand your double negative. Even the 1982 Vectrex game was only called Star Trek: The Motion Picture. It just seems dumb to tie "The Game" in with "Into Darkness" when the movie sans subtitle is three years old. It implies a level of perfection that no Trek game has ever achieved, since there have been depressingly few outstanding games in the franchise. But it also seemed dumb to drop the subtitles with the last film anyways.

There haven't been many Trek movie tiein games, though I probably forgot any from the 80s. Aside from the one I mentioned, there was one for Generations. Klingon Academy served as a prequel to Star Trek VI, but it came out a decade later.

[Koray Savas 2,251]

There was a PSN game called Star Trek DAC that came out with the 2009 film. It was horrible.

[A24 4,346]

OUYA unboxing and software review:

http://phandroid.com/2013/03/29/hands-on-ouya-unboxing-and-software-review-video/

[Wojo 2,453]

Yes, I remember DAC. I skipped it. Legacy left a bad taste.

[A24 4,346]

Even though I'm not a Trekkie, I thought I add this machine to the collection.

[Koray Savas 2,251]

I just finished BioShock Infinite. As perfect as video games can get, and probably one of the most ambitious ones I've ever played.

[Quintus 5,399]

I've sworn to leave it until Ni No Kuni is done with.

[Red 75]

Bioshock Infinite is really, really friggin' good. In a lot of ways it is the best of the first two games while offering something new and absolutely bold. It's got a great score by Gary Schyman as well:

[King Mark 3,631]

I'll put it on my consider list

[Koray Savas 2,251]

Bioshock Infinite is really, really friggin' good. In a lot of ways it is the best of the first two games while offering something new and absolutely bold. It's got a great score by Gary Schyman as well:

Have you beat it yet? I'm still trying to wrap my head around the ending a little bit. The game takes all the best ingredients from the first two games and reworks it in its favor. It's pretty much the ambitious storytelling from the first paired with the great gameplay from the second. The Little Girl harvesting moments are nothing in comparison to the sky-rail battles here though. What's synonymous with the name BioShock for me, are atmosphere and mood. Infinite utilizes those to the same effects as the other games, albeit in a different manner.

Here's my review of the score.

[Quintus 5,399]

FINALLY finished Deus Ex. Only took me two years. Good game 8/10.

Now, Ni No Kuni or Bioshock 3?

[Koray Savas 2,251]

Infinite will take you roughly 10 hours if you play like me (search every corner), Ni No Kuni apparently takes about 40 to get through the main quest.

[Quintus 5,399]

I'm a nook and cranny fps campaign player too, so that's encouraging actually. Plus I've heard this one has far less in the way of branching level design than the other two, which I'm glad of.

[Koray Savas 2,251]

I'd say it's a little bit more streamlined, but there are plenty of areas to search. There's only one section I'd say that branches out a lot, well it at least seems to but I learned that both paths lead to the same destination.

You'll need plenty of lockpicks to find all the Voxophones and other goodies. I think I got 76 out of 80 without any guide or assistance. I know where I probably missed them too, there are a handful of 'side quests' that get tacked on in a certain area but there's no way to change the waypoint to help you find what you're looking for, it always points to the main objective (which I like).

[Quintus 5,399]

Sod it, I'll start it later. I turned the waypoint arrow off in the other games, but I may leave it one this time.

[Koray Savas 2,251]

If it wasn't clear, I meant that I like that it only pointed to the main objective. There is no on or off for it, just press up on the D-pad and a small arrow with fly ahead of you for a couple feet giving you a clue of where to go. I always use those as indicators of where the game wants me to go and then go in the opposite direction.

[Red 75]

Bioshock Infinite is really, really friggin' good. In a lot of ways it is the best of the first two games while offering something new and absolutely bold. It's got a great score by Gary Schyman as well:

Have you beat it yet? I'm still trying to wrap my head around the ending a little bit. The game takes all the best ingredients from the first two games and reworks it in its favor. It's pretty much the ambitious storytelling from the first paired with the great gameplay from the second. The Little Girl harvesting moments are nothing in comparison to the sky-rail battles here though. What's synonymous with the name BioShock for me, are atmosphere and mood. Infinite utilizes those to the same effects as the other games, albeit in a different manner.

Here's my review of the score.

The ending is crazy. They really "went there" with it in ways that I didn't think they would. I doubt it will work for everyone but I enjoyed it, especially upon thinking about it and reading into it afterward. It's something that sticks with you and compels you to replay the game, which I am currently doing. I tried to on 1999 Mode but it was just too hard. For those who don't know 1999 Mode is the difficulty setting above Hard that's unlocked once the game is completed (or you enter the Konami Code in the main menu). It's punishingly, old-school difficult.

[Koray Savas 2,251]

Yeah I heard it was really difficult, but I had little to no problems on Hard. There's a trophy for beating it on 1999 mode without buying anything from a Dollar machine, which in theory sounds easy because I had the gear that made enemies drop ammo more frequently. I rarely had to use those, always saved my money for weapons and vigor upgrades.

I'll give it a whirl eventually, maybe when the DLC is released. Right now I'm trying to get into Tomb Raider, which is not as great as I was anticipating. As for Infinite's ending though, reading up on it did bring some new things into play that I didn't pick up on before. I feel like the blog post I read had some errors though and wasn't full proof in its analysis. Things naturally get complicated when dealing with these sort of plot devices. I wonder how much the in-game choices affect the ending, though.

I tried to choose the 'good' options wherever possible. I threw the baseball at the announcer, I didn't kill Slate, didn't raise my gun when trying to buy the ticket, chose the Songbird pendant as I thought it represented freedom as opposed to the Cage, etc. I think that last one may be the only one that really matters as the trophy for the final battle is called The Bird Or The Cage. Perhaps choosing the cage doesn't grant you the ability to use the Songbird and you have to fight it instead. Tearing into Rapture though was a surreal experience. The entire ending from that moment was just really great stuff. I feel like it accomplished what Assassin's Creed always tried to do.

I had it set in my head that Anna was Booker's wife, but I guess it was just Elizabeth? That's the one part I'm still confused about. He said she died during childbirth and that there was no baby, so unless him calling out Anna during unconsciousness were his other memories bleeding through, it makes sense for her to be the wife.

[Koray Savas 2,251]

The Last Of Us trailer:

BioShock Infinite

The Last Of Us

Beyond: Two Souls

The PS3 is going out with a bang.

[Jay 37,374]

Isn't the new Metal Gear Solid game gonna be for the PS3 as well?

[Koray Savas 2,251]

You mean exclusively? Don't think so.

[Wojo 2,453]

Cool that The Last of Us has a Pittsburgh level.

[Quintus 5,399]

I can't watch that trailer right now, but does it look like Naughty Dog have applied FXAA anti-aliasing to the game yet (if at all)? Because off what I've seen so far those jaggies don't half uglify it.

[Koray Savas 2,251]

What do you mean?

[Bellosh 3,419]

If true, and is what it is. Fuck xbox.

http://kotaku.com/the-next-xbox-will-require-an-internet-connection-to-st-470062456

Like how do people make these decisions?

[Marian Schedenig 8,211]

Here's a scathing, and mostly absurd, review of the OUYA by The Verge:

Ouya review: can an indie console take on Sony and Microsoft?

Only a few valid points of criticism, mixed with nitpicky complaints, a lack of technical skills by the reviewer and a generally gross misunderstanding of the system in the first place. Very little comments on things that actually matter, aside from a comment about apparent lag issues (which have already been contended by other early users, at least as far as issues with the actual system are concerned - individual games may always exhibit all kinds of problems).

In the end, OUYA, at the very least in its present form, is clearly not meant as a competitor for PS3 and XBox in any way. Rather as a console for the, possibly significant, niche of gamers not (or not fully) served by the big consoles and their big budget titles. It makes no sense to review it under that assumption, just as it doesn't make sense to heap serious criticism on the GUI weeks before the official launch (it seems to clearly be in a beta stage at this point) or the number of games in the market. 100+ available titles before the launch isn't bad for a crowd funded startup, even if there's no big exclusive title yet - and I'd argue that the availability of plenty of emulators actually counts as a considerable number of exclusive titles when compared to the big players in the field.

[Wojo 2,453]

Single player games should not require a constant internet connection. Period.

[King Mark 3,631]

If it's true my choice is already made :PS4 all the way

[Quintus 5,399]

I'll be getting a PS4 anyway. However, the more I see of its capabilities the more I'm dialling down my enthusiasm for next gen consoles at all. Seeing the incredible visual fidelity of the BF4 walkthrough (on PC) and then the PS4's version of the Unreal Engine 4 demo has made me realise that the console market's idea of "next gen" isn't really that at all. These consoles are set to be with us for upwards of five years, and yet they can barely match the performance of decent pcs already in existence. That BF4 technology will scale to the consoles, but it simply will not be anywhere near as impressive as it is in the PC demo, noticeably so to the discerning eye. I'm a big Battlefield player, and that's pretty disappointing. I'm already at the next gen with the release of games like Crysis 3 on PC (shite game, beautiful on the eyes), and I'm pretty sure that game would be beyond PS4 when maxed out. That's not the sort of leap I was expecting. More like a step up. I was truly hoping for a 1080p @60fps standard this time around, but apparently the consoles can only muster one part of that. To me it'll be a step down right from the start, since that's already become the standard at which I run most new games. Bioshock Infinite is a breathtaking experience in that regard (I'm near the end, by the way).

The consoles will be technologically outdated well before they're even into their second cycle, and I just assumed it'd be more than that, a greater leap. I'd have paid more for it; it is an investment, after all.

For anyone thinking "it's not about the graphics, it's about the gameplay", well that's not my point at all. Otherwise why even bother upgrading?

[Quintus 5,399]

Bioshock Infinite: 10/10

Imagine if more games told stories as ambitious as this one.

[Red 75]

Ken Levine is one of the few guys in the industry who is really pushing narrative forward in games.

[Quintus 5,399]

It's a huge shame that the console crowd don't get to experience that game's astounding artistry at its full potential, I really feel like the power of the gleaming aesthetic here goes hand-in-hand with the narrative and events as they unfold. It's absolutely a sublime sensory extravaganza as well as a story and character driven one. Maxed out, this game is truly a work of art, and I'm dead serious about that. It's breathtaking in its design, detail and polish: the new benchmark in the medium as far as my own experience goes.

Out of curiosity I dialled it down to Xbox/PS3 (low settings) and the diminishing of its immersive beauty was quite disheartening, it really was. There was an awful abundance of bloom (clearly implemented to blot out a significant lack of refinement in objects in the distance due to shortcomings of console RAM) and the overall lack of clarity throughout the game's many enchanting views was quite a shocking step down.

They should have held out for the next gen.

If anyone has a chance to replay it on a capable pc I absolutely urge them to experience it for themselves, and at 60fps. It'll blow you away. I'm going to start it again next week, and I never play the same campaign twice.

[Brónach 1,302]

Is it necessary to have played any other Bioshock game before to enjoy that one?

[Quintus 5,399]

No. The plot's are unrelated; yet it's further rewarding to those who have played past games.

Newbies will not be lost or confused.

[Koray Savas 2,251]

Ken Levine is one of the few guys in the industry who is really pushing narrative forward in games.

David Cage is without a doubt the biggest one. The guys at Naughty Dog are making it popular too.

[Brónach 1,302]

No. The plot's are unrelated; yet it's further rewarding to those who have played past games.

Newbies will not be lost or confused.

I might give it a shot from the first one, though.

[King Mark 3,631]

The internet is really up in arms over the next xbox possibly "always online" to play single player games

I haven't read one single positive article about it or anywhere or in reader comments. EVERYONE is saying fuck that I'm getting the PS4

If Microsoft goes through with it it will be a massive failure. Only customer base is the current xbox live Gold Membership and kids that like the Kinect games

I also think it may be too late for damage control as people make up their mind

[Koray Savas 2,251]

You're right to an extent, but these are people that actually bother to comment on IGN and other game sites. They are what the industry calls "core gamers," and if Nintendo proved anything with the Wii, is that it's that the casual gamer is where all the money lies. Microsoft seems to be interested in building an integrated home entertainment system, while Sony wants to build a game developer's dream system.

[Quintus 5,399]

More Xbox Live Gold subs use the system to stream movies now than they do to play games. Strange but true. That is the motivation behind MS' change in philosophy.

Personally, I hope the next Xbox, if it is indeed unveiled to be a comparatively underpowered games system cum all encompassing media hub, fails hard. Microsoft needs that lesson. Because they shouldn't be so quick to dismiss or assume the loyalty of the original core audience whom built the brand up into the household name it has become.