What are you playing?

[aine]

<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="aine" data-cid="197927" data-time="1465057736">Steam Controller is 30% off now and I'm wondering if I should give in and get it. I've been wanting a controller for some more casual gaming for a long time now, but I'm wary to get the Steam one because I never got to use it or even hold it for a minute.</blockquote>It's 30% off again during the Summer Sale, but now it's also price matched on amazon.com. With amazon's free shipping and free returns it's a good way to try it out risk free. I'll give you a hands-on review next week.


<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="JoshuaJSlone" data-cid="197931" data-time="1465064930">However, one of the top reviews linking to a video where one of the controllers' designers is talking about future revisions makes me want to wait for version 2.</blockquote>I lost the link now but I read a Valve rep's comment on reddit that while a revision is being considered it certainly won't be out for another couple of years.

[JoshuaJSlone]

Ahh, I didn't see it was down on Amazon, too--I ended up ordering one on the Steam sale. When bundled with another game it came down to only $30 so I went for it, but was a bit put off when it later showed $7 for shipping too.

[Vikitty]

The third Zero Escape game is out next week, and I am hella excited.

[aine]

On the very off-chance that someone who matters will ever read this I wanted to go on the record and say that the Steam Mobile Authenticator is the most infuriating and ridiculous piece of shit ever invented.

[Ap2000]

[quote="aine"]
On the very off-chance that someone who matters will ever read this I wanted to go on the record and say that the Steam Mobile Authenticator is the most infuriating and ridiculous piece of shit ever invented.
[/quote]
 

It's pure cancer and effectively killed the marketplace for most people.
Card sales have been going down and are at around 1/5th of what they used to be before the horrible 2 week hold.
 
All they want is fishing for phone numbers.

[JoshuaJSlone]

My Steam Controller arrived. It certainly is an interesting design, and there are a huge amount of customization options, so I've really barely scratched the surface it feels. I'll say that it didn't take long to discover some things that either I didn't know about the controller, or had forgotten and don't come across well in pictures. 1) One of the shoulder buttons is GameCube-style, with both analog movement and a digital click at the end. Awesome. 2) Right and left grips have a big button on the back, too, where most people will have their middle and/or ring fingers. 3) Unlike the Xbox controllers that have become the PC standard, this does allow tilt controls. 4) Each of the two big touch pads can also be clicked down, so simply resting your thumb on them doesn't necessarily activate it.

I've only tried setting up my own simple controls for Ms. Pac-Man and StarCraft. Not amazing, but neither did I expect my first attempts with such random games to be so. Not sure what games are considered real showpieces for this thing.

[aine]

My Steam Controller arrived on Tuesday too. Some quick notes after a few hours of playing around with it:
 
- It can be customized to an almost absurd degree. You can assign different function and behaviour to every input on it. The biggest showpieces being of course the touchpads which you can set to emulate a mouse, a mouse emulating a joystick, a trackball, a D-pad with like 4 different sub-modes itself, a mouse scroll wheel, etc.
- This is both a blessing and a curse due to both a learning curve as well as the pure hassle and the time you need to spend fine-tuning it for each game (each control, especially the analogue ones, can also be fine-tuned to an absurd degree).
- BUT, a better solution is to load one of the presets provided for each game by other users (I think you need to be in Big Picture Mode to see that). You can see how many people use each preset, it's usually a safe bet to grab the most popular one and then only if necessary adjust it to your needs.
- The Big Picture Mode on-screen keyboard that you use with both touchpads and triggers is surprisingly efficient for what it is and took me almost no time to get used to.
- Build quality and ergonomics seem pretty good. I never used any other controller for a longer time though so I can't really compare.
- I only used it wireless and I didn't notice any input lag, but I probably wouldn't know since I don't play any time-critical games where fractions of a second matter (like online shooters or MOBAs I suppose).
 
How it worked in a couple of games I tried:
 
Fallout 3 - I'll need to revisit it because it was the first game I tried and as I said I have practically no previous experience with other controllers so I was very clunky with it (but still not as bad as a reviewer from a certain website while showcasing the new Doom game). I play it in FPS mode and it worked all right with the right touchpad emulating the mouse and the joystick being the WASD. It's not ideal however, there simply are not enough controls accessible at once, eg. under your right hand (the "mouse") you only have 3 buttons (two triggers and the "paddle" on the back). In my bog-standard 5-button mouse I have, obviously, 5 buttons AND the scroll-wheel, all of which I can use seamlessly. Anyway, because of that, even with a config that makes most sense you can't seamlessly do some things that I take for granted and consider essential when playing with KB+M, such as jump while looking around - in my config jump is under the A face button which you also press with your right thumb, meaning you need to stop using the right touchpad for mouse-look when you want to jump. I tried shuffling the controls around to have jump activated with one of the inputs under my left hand, but because all inputs are taken I only seem to have made it worse in the long run. I don't get how people could stand playing FO3 and New Vegas on consoles, but that's another story really.
 
Sleeping Dogs - if you don't know it then think GTA just set in Hong Kong. Standard third-person view gameplay. I completed it with KB+M before and I was happy enough with it. There was a bit of awkward keyboard mashing when trying to get some bigger combos in during fights, but I got used to it. It's probably just as awkward with any controller. The part where KB+M was lacking the most was driving due to no analogue inputs. I didn't get to the point where I can drive yet while playing with the controller (I finished the game long ago and my saves are gone), however just running around and doing some simple fights feels natural and comfortable. I wouldn't say the controller is superior to KB+M (except for the driving stages), but it's just as efficient and you can get more relaxed and comfortable with it on the couch.
 
Jet Set Radio - I tried playing it before with KB+M and it was unplayable garbage, even though in theory the PC port supports it. Now with the controller it's finally playable. It's definitely one of those games what you just can't play without a controller. But this is where I run into trouble assessing the Steam Controller - is it the controller that sucks, or is it me that sucks at playing the game. Or maybe it's a matter of getting used to both using a controller and to the game's mechanics as well. It took me a couple of hours to even complete the game's tutorial and I probably just gave myself a blister on my thumb while doing so. Though to be fair the tutorial is a <a class="bbc_url" href="https://youtu.be/oS5GbMmfP6g?t=339" title="External link">pretty nasty casual filter</a> and looking at the achievement stats very few players actually completed it. I'll need to try the regular game mode some more, but right now a voice in the back of my head tells me I would have spent those 5 hours better by practising on my guitar than skating around Shibuya...
 
I'll need to give it some more time before a final verdict and before deciding if I'll keep it. It's definitely a usable and solid piece of hardware. If I kept using it I'd probably get fully used to its quirks and shortcomings. It's just a shame I can't compare it to X360 or XBone controller which is what most PC players probably have if they do have a controller. Maybe I should order the XBone one and see how I feel about it in comparison, and then hope amazon won't get pissed off when I return one or the other or both of them.

[JoshuaJSlone]

Jet Set Radio originating on Dreamcast, I'd think its standard controller play should map to the Steam controller well. The only thing the DC controller had that Steam Controller doesn't is a regular physical d-pad, but I don't recall that getting heavy use anyway.

In non-PC, I started up Tokyo Mirage Sessions ♯FE. Liking it so far, but 3 hours in it's still at a point where it keeps shoving exposition and bits of tutorial down my throat (interspersed with a couple decently sized dungeon areas), so I'm still waiting for the training wheels to come off.

[nimrahwt]

I bought a new Xbox360 because my old one died (RRoD) orz
+ got Assassin's Creed III, very confusing if you haven't played the other parts >.<

[JoshuaJSlone]

The emptiness of Pokémon Go in a rural area reminds me why I got so into homebody activities like video games and computers in the first place.

[al kusanagi]

I was shocked when I saw our tiny little downtown has 4 gyms and 20+ Pokestops about a mile from where I live. Absolutely nothing in the other 3 directions though.

[Elpis]

I don't have pokemon go, but from what I've read online, there's a lot of stuff near where I live, so if I do get it, I should be pretty good to go.

[Elpis]

Well, apparently there's a new Layton game coming out. I really don't know how to feel about this, it could either be really good or really bad...

[JoshuaJSlone]

I think I've lost track of where the Layton series is trying to go. After the two trilogies there was that Layton Brothers mobile game. Then Level 5 announced a "Layton 7" which sounded very different and I'm not sure has went anywhere? Then this.

[Ap2000]

If anybody wants a free Steam copy of Nidhogg:
humblebundle.com/
gift?key=
f2hmw7EndZGtrFqS
 
Have fun, it's a great, tense multiplayer game!
 
EDIT:

And here's Spec Ops: The Line. It's actually quite shitty, but hey, it's free:
<div>humblebundle.com/</div>
<div>gift?key=</div>
<div>nC6xVcDUcRpGNKKF</div>

[JoshuaJSlone]

I've been playing a lot of No Man's Sky in the past week. For a game with a bajillionzillion planets it gets repetitive way sooner than it should, but it's still interesting enough to hop around learning alien languages, naming planets silly things, and finding new upgrades for myself or my ship that I think I've got a lot of hours of it left in me.

The profanity filter has prevented my fun once. I had a solar system where I was giving all the planets cat-related names, but "Yurushite Nyan" wasn't allowed, presumably because it contains "shit".

My Steam screenshots.

[Ap2000]

<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="JoshuaJSlone" data-cid="199711" data-time="1471704271">I had a solar system where I was giving all the planets cat-related names, but "Yurushite Nyan" wasn't allowed, presumably because it contains "shit".</blockquote>
I think the solar system was trying to tell you something. lol

[aine]

Shadow Warrior Classic Complete is free on GOG right now

[Ap2000]

Who thought Playstation 4 PRO was a better Name than Neo?
The most boring and lame crap name you can come up with for a console.
 

I'm thinking about getting the new version sometime next year to play Bloodborne, The Last Guardian, Yakuza 5 & 0 and Persona 5. Plus, whenever the new Valkyria Chronicles comes out.
 
That is, if the JRPGs don't get a PC release date until then.
 

[JoshuaJSlone]

Code names always have more leeway to sound cooler than the end version. I think we can count on Scorpio ending up with a boring name, too, though it will be hard to surpass the boring of "One". I just wish we could hurry up and be told the real boring name of the NX, though.

It is nice being in a time when more JRPGs are showing up on PC. The PC version of the original Valkyria Chronicles found quite a bit of success, so it would surprise me to see the new one not end up there too. No history of it for Yakuza or Persona, though.

[JoshuaJSlone]

As recently stated in a spam topic I recently picked up a (refurb) N3DSXL to play late 3DS games in style before my portable interest are possibly eclipsed by NX next year. Also since no rumors of NX say anything about stereoscopic, this may be The Best stereoscopic portable gaming machine for a long time, unfortunately.
 
That being the case, I'm now playing Bravely Second. If you liked the first, you'll like this one. If you didn't play the first, it's a series that feels more like oldschool Final Fantasy games than the actual Final Fantasy games made during that franchise's most recent half. Right down to sharing things like item and spell name conventions. Turn based battling with extra tricks, like the ability to bank up a characters' turns for use later, or alternately to use them in advance and be left defenseless for a while after. Job system largely like FFV.
 
But what Bravely Second has that Bravely Default didn't is lots of Ba'al puns.

[aine]

17 new games added on GOG Connect. Grab them for the next 6 days!

You know, the thing where if you have the game on your linked Steam account, you also get it for free on your GOG account. This time I only got two.


<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="JoshuaJSlone" data-cid="200563" data-time="1474824358">That being the case, I'm now playing Bravely Second. If you liked the first, you'll like this one.</blockquote>I bought Bravely Default a while ago but I can't get myself to start playing it. The 70+ hours to beat it is putting me off. And knowing myself and comparing my times for other games reported on HLTB, I often take about 1.5x the All Playstypes Completionist time, so I may well be looking at 200 hours with this one.

I actually just hit 200 hours in what I promised myself to be a quick playthrough of Fallout 3 GOTY. I could have finished a long time ago, but it bothered me too much that I completed the base game and all DLCs and still didn't visit about 80% of the marked locations on the map. Not that there is much in a lot of them, and the fact that the map could well have been 1/4 of the size it is without much impact on the game and that the remaining 3/4 is for the most part an unconnected bloat just goes to show how badly designed game it is.

[JoshuaJSlone]

For games like Fallout 3, I don't mind the unconnected bloat. Enough space to wander in and run across new things, without feeling like an implausibly crowded and meticulous wasteland.

[Anderei]

I'm playing Shin Megami Tensei: Apocalypse. This story is bonkers, it's great.
 
I've also started Bravely Second but it got shelved because I've got too many games that distracted me. I'll probably pick it up again soon.
 
[quote="aine"]
17 new games added on GOG Connect. Grab them for the next 6 days!


You know, the thing where if you have the game on your linked Steam account, you also get it for free on your GOG account. This time I only got two.


 
<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="JoshuaJSlone" data-cid="200563" data-time="1474824358">
That being the case, I'm now playing Bravely Second. If you liked the first, you'll like this one.
</blockquote>
I bought Bravely Default a while ago but I can't get myself to start playing it. The 70+ hours to beat it is putting me off. And knowing myself and comparing my times for other games reported on HLTB, I often take about 1.5x the All Playstypes Completionist time, so I may well be looking at 200 hours with this one.


I actually just hit 200 hours in what I promised myself to be a quick playthrough of Fallout 3 GOTY. I could have finished a long time ago, but it bothered me too much that I completed the base game and all DLCs and still didn't visit about 80% of the marked locations on the map. Not that there is much in a lot of them, and the fact that the map could well have been 1/4 of the size it is without much impact on the game and that the remaining 3/4 is for the most part an unconnected bloat just goes to show how badly designed game it is.
 
[/quote]
 
That 70+ hours is probably including all the sidequests. There's a certain point in the game where something very silly happens (that I won't spoil because it's huge to the story) but that part especially takes long if you do the extra stuff, which is pretty unnecessary.

[Elpis]

The new 3ds came and I'm liking it so far. I got Earthbound for the virtual console which I'm finally getting to enjoy along with Bravely Default and OoTime 3D.


I know a bit about the thing that takes a long time. I just know that it's going to suck when I get there.

[Anderei]

Skip all the available side quests when it comes and it'll save you time. They're just variations of what you've already done with very little differences. I also turned encounters off speed through that part.

[JoshuaJSlone]

I got River City: Tokyo Rumble for 3DS. Same series as River City Ransom, and really the only one that plays similarly to the original that's been released outside of Japan (other than its GBA remake). As a huge fan of the NES game it feels very familiar, though in this game stats progress by characters leveling rather than buying items to increase stats permanently. It's also clearly meant to play on nostalgia, with familiar settings, music, and characters from past games in the Kunio/River City series. Even the graphical style is NES-style sprites fighting on simple 3D backgrounds.

[Ap2000]

I saw that game on the eShop and was immediately interested, but I'll wait for a sale.

[aine]

I finished my Fallout 3 playthrough and uninstalled it. I also uninstalled New Vegas while I was at it. This is the first time in some 8 years that I don't have any Fallout installed and I feel a bit naked without it. But I feel burned out with it too, I'll need a year or so break before I get to Fallout 4. Should be just about right for a GOTY edition to come out and go down in price.

I'm finally playing Alien Isolation now, which I actually planned to do right after release. It's scaring me shitless even thought I'm a life-long Alien fan. Or maybe it does exactly because of that. The audio design is phenomenal, it makes you want to crawl into the tightest space and stay there forever. I'm having a hard time playing it in a proper horror game setting (low lights, headphones), first time a game has done that to me since The Suffering ages ago.


In portable news, I have to take half a star off my Spirit of Justice rating. I was so excited about it being just pure unblemished enjoyment compared to Dual Destinies, but of course Athena had to fucking show up right at the start of the 2nd case. If you played DD I'm sure you can figure out the spoiler.
 
<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="Anderei" data-cid="200670" data-time="1475021158">That 70+ hours is probably including all the sidequests. There's a certain point in the game where something very silly happens (that I won't spoil because it's huge to the story) but that part especially takes long if you do the extra stuff, which is pretty unnecessary.</blockquote>
Ah thanks. I'll probably remember this conversation whenever I get to it.

[Vikitty]

I just bought a early access beta called Tales of Grindea. It's a standard RPG reminiscent of Tales of Mana. The gimmick is that enemies respawn constantly so it's an endless button mash. I love it.