I don't think I've ever wanted a game to be truly and utterly great as much as I am actively praying for STALKER 2 to be an absolute year-defining masterpiece.
Coelacanth
joined 1 year ago
Ocean House Hotel really is a phenomenally well designed level. Pretty sure it was given an award of some kind for level design back in the day. Excellent combination of mood, tension and atmosphere with well timed jump scares. I imagine it still would be pretty spooky even for players accustomed to newer games, but back in the day it really was unbelievably scary the first time through.
The first game is a buggy mess (literally unplayable without an unofficial patch) with awful janky combat and a last third of the game that was hugely rushed and devolves into endless terrible combat sequences... But it's still one of my favourite games of all time. I love the dialogue, the writing, the humour (though some of it is dated). But more than all that, it is a game that nails the atmosphere better than most recent games (Cyberpunk does similarly though). The graphics might be old, but the rainy streets of Santa Monica are as moody as ever if you boot up the game today, and the soundtrack still slaps.
Unlike you, I lost all hope when the project was transferred to another studio. Rik Schaffer himself said in an AMA on Reddit IIRC that according to him the heart and soul of the project left with Brian Mitsoda, and I'm inclined to believe him.
Bloodlines never got a cult following for its gameplay. What made me hyped for the sequel was that they actually got Mitsoda and Schaffer back on board. Judging by this trailer, nothing of the vibe of either the original or the old version of the sequel remains (first trailer for comparison), and I would be better off booting up Dishonored again rather than buy whatever this is.
I'm interested. I do wonder if the attribute system of D&D 5E will provide enough granularity for the voices in your head. I'm also definitely seeing more of an "what if Disco Elysium, but D&D?"-vibe rather than merely inspiration. For me personally that means this game will start as an uphill battle simply due to how similar it is, but ultimately the only thing mattering will be the quality of the writing.
The lawyer imp sounds amusing, though when you start thinking too much about stuff like resurrection magic the internal logic of the world usually starts falling apart. But maybe they're leaning into that.
I'll definitely check out the demo.
That's fair, yeah. I played it with M+KB but have heard many others complain about awkward controls on a gamepad, and can imagine it isn't ideal.
Fair enough on Divinity: Original Sin, but it won't really be a factor in Disco Elysium due to how it plays (or reads, rather). If you're interested in DE just give it a shot and treat it as an interactive novel (which is what it is, really). The camera won't be a factor in that game, trust me.
Agreed about Neverwinter Nights, BG2 was (and remains) one of my favourite games and I remember being super hyped for NWN. Being an earlyish transition to 3D really did hurt it visually, much the same as how Final Fantasy VI has aged much better than VII graphically.
The big letdown for me though was the cut down party size. BG2 was defined by the companions and party banter and I recall NWN feeling extremely lacking in comparison.
The post BG2 hype combined with the move to 3D and the very heavily advertised campaign builder probably built very intense hype though, so it wouldn't surprise me at all if NWN sold extremely well despite not having as lasting of a legacy as BG2 for example.
There are so many new games I want to experience before doing replays, but I'm super tempted to go back to New Vegas after all the incredible mods that have come out the past year and a half (when I played last).
It's a shame because I generally agreed with most of Ebert's opinions and still miss him as a taste guide for getting an idea of what movies are worth my time. But video games can definitely be art.
I definitely understand that. These days I hate playing games if I can't get them on GOG.
Tough call since they're kind of diametrically opposite each other as RPGs go.
Disco Elysium is an interactive novel. If you treat it as such and delve into it committing to their fail-forward design philosophy and unafraid of picking weird dialogue options it is incredibly rewarding. I have not been moved like I was by DE by any other videogame.
Pirating or buying is a coin flip. I hate that Kurvitz, Rostov and Hindpere were forced out of the company and the IP stolen from them. Still, they were not the only ones in the studio working on the game so buying it still gives some money to some of the creators. I think you can justify either decision morally. And yes, the Final Cut is the version you want.
Joshua Sawyer too I think?