Talking Point: What Are You Playing This Weekend? - Issue 508

Baldur's Gate 3

I've just taken Nere's head for Sovereign Spaw. Was a messy beheading from Karlach after a failed dice roll.

Hoping to finish off Death’s Door which has been a revelation for me after a wee gaming slump. Beat the Frog King last night and now working through Castle Lockstone. I have Spider-Man 2 ready to go for my eldest kid on Xmas eve so it’ll be bye bye to the PS5 for the foreseeable 😂

All the best and happy gaming everyone 👍

I'm having a GOTY kind of weekend.
PS5: Alan Wake 2
Series X: Baldurs Gate 3
Switch: Super Mario Wonder

Recently finished: GoWR Valhalla. That was fun! Awesome addition to the base game with a very good expanding on the lore.

Happy holidays!

In the mood for some Yakuza Like a Dragon. Happy holidays!

I’m at the end of like a dragon gaiden. After that’s done I’m not sure what I’ll be playing.

Jade, I have the solution for your no-TV situation. Attach a Switch Lite to your wrist and wear a Long-sleeve, thin cardigan, just enough to see the screen through but not enough to draw attention. The sleeves will cover your joy-con-wielding hands. Wear an Elmer Fudd hat to cover your earbuds of choice, and lastly a pair of glasses with fake sleepy eyes at an angle so that you can look under them to see the device. You’re welcome.

Just about to finish Baldurs Gate 3 - has been absolutely epic, undoubtedly one of the best games I've played. After that I'll move on to Cyberpunk (finally) with a bit of RE4 on the side.

I have 2 free weeks before coming back to work, so: GoW Ragnarok, Valkyrie Elysium, The Pathless and Mafia 2 on PS5.
On Switch Theatrhythm Final Bar Line👍

I just finished Inscryption (which I really liked) so I’ve started up Elden Ring. I’m having a few problems (I wrote a forum post about it) but I think it’s gonna be a good time. My character is a female samurai.

@AgentCooper I finished that recently. I didn’t love it, but I enjoyed all the boss fights!

Final Fantasy 15 in between wrapping presents, seeing family and going to church.

I don’t know why I put FF15 off for so long. I’m 10 hours in and having a blast.

@Zuljaras Loved Clive Barker’s Undying a scary number of years ago (like 24!). Good luck with Sekiro, that game kicked my bum. Never got past horse general guy.

I’ve just platinumed Deaths Door (the umbrella run is pretty darn tough at the end) and replayed Axiom Verge 2, so I’m going to chill out with Octopath 2 and Chained Echoes for a while.

Have a great weekend and Chrimbo folks!

I'm aiming to play through the entire Max Payne trilogy in honor of James McCaffrey's passing while I'm at my parents' for the holiday. Should I finish them, I also have my Switch for Persona 4 Golden.

@Kyushutrail The boss fights are quite lovely, Grandma is a great design, very Ghibli esque. I actually bounced off it a few months ago but reinstalled after having a dip in inspiration. Glad I did as I usually shy away from this kind of challenge so has been really satisfying.

P.S. I just read your forum post and hope you can get to have a good time with Elden Ring, a real shame about the language options. Good luck 👍

This weekend I am playing remnant 2 and I'm really enjoying it. I just love the look of the game and everybody says it's like the souls games but with guns. I can't disagree more as its more like outriders and destiny and I love the procedurally generated levels. Have a smashing Xmas everybody 👍

Horizon Zero Dawn: A pretty great combo of survival and RPG with stealth mixed in for good measure, and one that I can tell will take a while. Aloy is an interesting character study, and I'm sorry I didn't play this sooner.

Merry Christmas everyone! Hope you all have a fantastic time whether you celebrate or not. I hope Santa brings plenty of games!

I bought Asterigos: Curse Of The Stars for PS5, so will be playing that and some Disney speedstorm.

I've got a week off work now but if I spend this weekend gaming my Mrs. will kill me ! So gotta help with shopping, cooking, dad duties etc ...😭 but i will try and find time to relax just playing Starfield and Mortal Kombat on XBX, both slightly disappointing games yet I can't stop playing them.
Have a great weekend all and Merry Christmas 🎅 🎄 to you all and your families
Take care ❤️❤️❤️

@PsBoxSwitchOwner and you dude, Merry Christmas 🎅

@GuttyYZ.....some quality gaming right there

Final Fantasy XI is currently free to play so I'll be trying to get through the Voracious Resurgence content, the final story feels like it's going to be a grand tour of vana'diel and I'm okay with that.

My PS5 is at home as I visit family, so it’s all laptop based - luckily I have the sublimely charming ‘Small Saga’ to finish, and halfway through ‘The Life & Suffering of Sir Brante’ - fantastic writing on both!

Coming towards the back end of BG3 (2nd time through). Just got the final bosses to beat. Family arrive today for Xmas so I won’t have much time for gaming unless I can sneak away for some Portal.

Not much gaming for me this weekend. Maybe a few games of FIFA with my brother after the gift exchange.

Maybe some Just Dance as well. That’s kind of an Xmas tradition in our household 😅.

Happy holidays everyone!

I'm playing way too many things at the minute!! I've reached the svsona boss in Blasphemous 2 but my daughter had grabbed the switch to play animal crossing so that's going to have to wait! Been loving Yakuza like a dragon and Dave the diver too and last but not least, I got to man up and finish Dead Space remake. Hope everyone has a great time at Christmas!!

A lot of Theatrhythm Final Bar Line until Christmas when I can finally start Final Fantasy XVI.

Beyond that I started Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel and The Darkness

marvel ultimate alliance 1 , ratchet & clank trilogy & sonic unleashed on my ps3. been playing my ps3 lately since the ps5 is so mid

Another busy day today, little more shopping, finish off the chores and a family visit. When all is done will be installing Ragnarok again tonight for Valhalla

Still very much enjoying Hogwarts. Barely halfway through its story, mostly doing side missions and collectables along the way. Almost kinda shocked it got completely ignored at the game awards from everything I've played so far

Trying not to demolish to much chocolates and sexy Brewdogs. Have a good one all

Still got Hogwarts legacy to finish which I’m now on the last story mission.
Got side quests to wrap up on FFXVI and two main story quests left to do.
Hoping to carry on with god of war ragnarok

Enslaved: Odyssey To The West!

In terms of visuals, for a game that's 10 years old the game looks remarkable with some stunning art direction and graphics. The PS3 defo struggles at times😂.

And whilst the overarching story is a tad predictable, I'm really enjoying seeing Monkey and Trip's relationship evolve over the course of the game. Some really good acting in this game man. The motion capture is so good!

I will only get a few hours today before the non stop family & friend Christmas stuff starts so will probably play some Prodeus which I have been really enjoying so far. Deffo not usually my thing and I wouldn’t have bought it in a million years but it’s the perfect PS plus extra game.

I have now finished for work for the rest of the year, and I have come to the realisation that my backlog will never go down 😅. I’m currently still playing YS lacrimosa of Dana which has picked up the pace at long last, but I’m itching to play Spider man 2, play the latest Yakuza, go back to Baldurs gate. I have a problem 😂😂.

I suspect there won't be much time for gaming this weekend, so probably a couple of hours with the tekken 8 demo. Have a great Christmas folks!🎅🤘

Im playing Lies Of P chapter 4 and Im hooked fantastic game on par with FromSoftware. Like A Dragon Gaiden, Spider-Man 2

I'll keep on with my second play through of CP2077 and throw in some The Finals matches for good measure

This weeks were quite straining here at the job, it drained my forces so I couldn't play for too long at home. I will try to rest in the holidays, and play Final Fantasy XVI, Yakuza Kiwami 2, Assassin's Creed Valhalla... At least my vacation comes in january, and I need that rest.

Resident evil 4 VR. I think this will be my answer for the next couple of months honestly.

@thefourfoldroot1 Right there with you.

Still on that incredible loop of hunting and crafting wonderful gear in Monster Hunter World Iceborne. Slowing down on Rise till I'm done with Iceborne.

PlayStation VR Worlds (road to Platinum Trophy) and Ghostrunner.

@Hootnoodle The true ending of Ys VIII is beautiful. I love Dana, what a amazing character!! Beaten this game almost a year ago, and have fond memories!!

Think I've almost locked down my Christmas/New year rotation. Took the plunge on Baldur's gate 3 and Alan Wake 2. Got my careers on FM and FC24 running in the background too. Also still chipping away at Ragnarok and finally might splurge on Streetfighter 6, as it's currently on sale. Should keep me busy that lot eh!

Im still playing the incredible the instant classic and one of the best games ever made.and one of the best rpgs ever made in divinity original sin 2 definitive edition.and the other instant classic the excellent one of the best games and rpgs ever made in octopath traveler 2.i will be watching my boston Celtics 💚🖤 play.i will be watching my Pittsburgh Steelers 💛🖤 play.i will be watching legendary sitcoms tv 📺 comedy in Sanford and son.good times.martin.and saved by the bell.word life.word is bond.word to god.word to your mother.word up son

Merry Christmas one and all.
Playing CTR and finally starting Yakuza like a dragon.

Merry Christmas one and all.

Jusant and Prodeus this weekend. Alan Wake 2 from Tuesday (not going to get on it Christmas day, maybe 30 mins when kids go to bed if can stay awake. They'll likely have me up at 5.30 lol

Avatar - Frontiers of Pandora - Im really enjoying the game. Like a lot. Its not perfect,but the world they've created is so amazing and so fun and magical to explore it makes up for a few shortcomings regarding some quests and other minor things imo 🙂

On the Series S I've been enjoying some short sessions of Dying Light, which I picked up in the sale for the son. Still a great game, he loves it too so Im hoping for some co-op sessions over christmas 😀

Obsessively still playing Lords of the Fallen and BG3. I can’t explain how much both live in my brain.

I also started Last Faith as an indie to give myself a breather from those two massive games.

@ApostateMage omg the animation for presenting the head had me rolling 😂😂

As I've finished the legendary Baldur's Gate 3 (finally) 😁 I'm resisting just going head first into a new character on that by playing some Hogwarts Legacy

Created my character last night - Eliza de Vere, chose Slytherin (because green is going to look nicer for my gear) I haven't decided if I'm going to be a total f*** to people, or to subvert the expectations of the house trope. I'm really tempted to save being a tw** for a hufflepuff run, as that just seems like a fun thing to do 😆

I'll see how the story goes and might restart if I don't like being Slytherin, or I don't like how my character fits in. But I really want that green gear 😅😅😅

Maybe some cyberpunk on the side. Depends how much time I actually spend gaming. Might not be much tbh 😆

@TheArt it always gets you, and you think just one more hunt. Then you end up doing 5!

What do you main? My first play through at like 700hrs was with dual blades. My current one is 300+hours on heavy bow gun, sticky build.

I’m behind on Rise and really need to start pushing that.

GTA V for some reason. Must be the hype for the new game. Merry Christmas all

Still going with Cyberpunk on ps5. Lvl 40, reflex and cool build with a bit of net running. Really enjoying the game and I am not usually a huge open world fanatic

This weekend I’m playing Kingdoms of Amular: Re-Reckoning (the remastered version). Somehow, I managed to overlook the original when it released back in 2012 — I was probably consumed by Skyrim. Who wasn’t? But I’m here now and that’s all that matters.

This game is just phenomenal, and may be one of the best RPGs ever made (for me personally). Currently, I got wrapped up in The Teeth of Naros DLC, and it’s been great. I didn’t realize it was downloadable content and I’m not even a quarter of the way through the base game.

Now, don’t get me wrong - as a remaster it’s poorly done, but as a video game it’s very special. Some people might complain that it’s dated, but if you look at its developmental history, which was taking place probably back in 2008 or 2009, it is quite the achievement.

The story is your typical trite in terms of RPGs, but it’s the over-world that’s plastered with environmental stories that brings the world to life. And the game is very dialogue heavy — a typical component in any well realized RPG — and is all fully voiced, adding more texture to it all.

I like how all towns have their own personal stories and hardships they are going through. There are certain conflicts within the confines of their town and it makes it worthwhile to learn about them. Sometimes, it can be daunting maintaining who is who and what is what, but it’s not entirely overwhelming. That brings me to the adventure itself.

I’m thoroughly enjoying the quests. The side stories, although they typically end in the same fashion, are written beautifully. There is a plethora of quests that have made me genuinely laugh and subvert my expectations. And if you like to get the most out of your RPGs, there are several factions that you can join - i.e.; Thieves Guild; Warsworn; Mage, and so forth. It’s designed like Skyrim in that regard.

However, where the game shines brightest is its combat. My goodness; what a system that is under-utilized in not only modern ARPGs, but action games in general. It plays like the original God of War trilogy and Dragon’s Dogma, all the while forging its own identity.

There is so much build variety with weapons, armor, and classes. You are not bogged down by a weight limit or stamina meter, or even a particular class. The game is all about experimentation. Want to be a warrior? Check. Want to be a rogue? Go for it. How about a mage? Absolutely. Better yet, how about being all three? The world is at your oyster and you can play however you like regardless of your skill level.

My only two complaints are: Inventory and density. The game has a loot system similarly to Diablo — you’re constantly picking up new weapons, armors and items, but your backpack can only carry 70 things. Trying to balance everything is a pain. You can upgrade your inventory but it has a minimal effect.

As for density, the game features a myriad of side quests in close proximity to every location you’re at. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but it can become cumbersome when you’re trying to focus on a single quest and get side tracked by talking to NPCs — but that could be my OCD kicking in.

@Generiko1999 I really liked Valkyrie Elysium. Did it light my world on fire? No. But was the combat very enjoyable for what it was? 100%

Cyberpunk 2077

Still working my way through my second playthrough. Still loving my time all over again in Night City.

Sadly I havent even touched GoWR: Valhalla yet as I'm still trying to get through my 1st playthrough in Star Ocean The Second Story R ( as Claude).
I'm on Energy Nede but I'm just feeling a bit fatigued with the game. I still want to beat Octopath Traveler 2 (78 hours in and still not done) before the end of the year. And now I hear that GranBlue Fantasy Relink will have a PS5/4 demo in January 😅 I'm drowning in JRPGs.
Taking the wife camping this weekend so I'll game during the week.

Game on Everybody!

Got my Humanity Platinum last night, great game glad I didn't miss it. Back on GT7 in preparation for VR2!!!

Happy gaming folks!!

@homelesscretin
Enslaved is such a fantastic game which they’d remaster or do a remake of it for current consoles so one day we could get a sequel to it

Just finished dragons dogma (again) and with the big day so close I'm not gonna play anything this weekend as I know santa will undoubtedly give me a game for Christmas so don't wanna start something and get into it. Plus the football ain't half bad this weekend

@PsBoxSwitchOwner Haven't completed Iceborne because I lost my 500-600hrs 1st Save which was mainly heavy sword and insect glaive and a 120hrs thereabouts 2nd save mainly long sword and dual blades, I had my system corrupt, strangely deleted all my saves only. On a 115hrs-ish run now, mainly sword &shield, so cumulatively you could say I have around 800hrs on this hard to put down game.

Uncharted: Golden Abyss (Vita) - Started a playthrough on Normal difficulty taking turns with my son.

Ice Age Village (Windows Phone) - Still doing dailies. My wife has been putting the most time into this.

Plants vs. Zombies (Windows Phone) - Struggling on the Hard fog levels, they're way harder then I remember.

@Mostik
Have fun with the VR2, truly is the best gaming platform I’ve had in nearly 40years of gaming. Don’t miss the Resi games, Moss games, Saints and sinners games, and Red Matter games especially.

Bought Max Payne 3 the other day so probably continue with that on Xbox and still trying to finish Cyberpunk on PS5 so i can start the dlc finally.

Some more Rogue Trader and Cookie Cutter. WRC23 career mode is still broken after the update, fix is expected sometime in mid January. They're not sure that existing careers can be saved. I've put in over 60 hours in mine so I'll wait and see. Sigh.

Bloodborne 2nd run...it was my my 1st FromSoft game 3yrs ago and now after Demon's Souls and recently Elden Ring my 2nd run seems bit easier and smoother for me Of course, I expect DLC will kick my ass as I never played it, but looking forward to it anyway.

I also started Separate Ways for RE4R, but will have to wait until I'm done with BB - I really don't understand how you all can play more games in the same time, simply don't work for me...

However, have a great X-mas holidays and enjoy the gaming if you manage to find some time for our beloved hobby

@Kraven Successfully added to the backlog👍😂

@Dragoon1994 Unfortunately I don't think we'll see a sequel or anything related to the title any time soon. It was a massive commercial failure at the time of its launch.

You say the word sequel and now I'm intrigued. I really hope the game doesn't end on a cliffhanger 😭😭😭

Final Fantasy 7 Remake and WWE 2K23.

For the first time in forever I’m actively playing multiple games.
Avatar Frontiers of Pandora- almost done with the campaign and has been a pretty good time.
Yakuza Kiwami- never played any games in this series and all I can ask myself is why. Feels like the evolution of Shenmue and beat em ups, loving it and bought the whole series.
Wildcard football- I’m really digging arcade style sport games over simulation in my adult years and this is fun to hop in and out of. The wildcard system adds a layer of strategy in online play and now I’m looking at Super Mega Baseball 4. Happy Holidays everyone!

Still playing and enjoying Forespoken!

Sure, theres a little cringe, but theres loads to enjoy too and its much better than common concensus suggests!

Ive had a little look at Stranger of paradise too, and thats more in depth combat than Id imagined, and good solid fun.

Have a great Xmas all..

@homelesscretin
True but Resonance of fate wasn’t a very well known game either and that has a remaster.
I can’t remember how the game ends as I haven’t played it for quite a good a few years now

Chants of Sennaar, thanks to Simon Fitzgerald’s recommendation. It’s as brilliant as the demo promised, and well worth $20.

Also started a new playthrough of Sea of Stars, PS4 edition this time to see if I can get another platinum. I was just going to boot it up for a 50 coin reward in PS Stars, but decided to keep going.

They changed the noise you hear when your piece levels up in Wheels! It used to sound like a bell and now it’s a distinctly electronic beep. It’s a clockwork game in a fantasy world, why does it have to beep?

Probably some MW3 and I’m thinking I want to go grab the plat in the ps4 version of Elden Ring.

@ErrantRob yeah, not a masterpiece but very fun

@Titntin there was too much bandwagon jumping in the hate for forspoken. Most slagging it hadn't played it or only played the demo. It's no masterpiece. It's not likely to be many people who played it's favourite game but it's way way way better than the narrative surrounding it suggests in my opinion

I guess I'll be playing The Witcher Blood & Wine and Baldur's Gate 3 over Christmas. Put 50 hours into BG3 when it first came out but got a bit burned out on it and took a break. Playing the Witcher at Christmas is becoming a tradition for me at this stage. Enjoy the holidays people

Hi there fellow gamers;
This weekend I´ll continue playing my birhtday present Cyberpunk 2077 Ultimate Edition on my Series X and some Street Fighter 6 online matches on my PS5.
Merry Chistmas, enjoy the Holidays and happy gaming to us all

@Zuljaras hey there friend.
Sekiro is great. When the combat mechanics really start to connect with you, with perfect deflections and mikiri counter it feels so good pulling those of that it never gets old.
It also has very fun traversal as well.
And Castlevania will always be one of the most addicting and fun franchise to play. Harmony of Dissonance is another interesting example of that.
Too bad Lords of Shadow didn´t get much love.
Konami needs to get the IPs rights to another developer.....
Formsoftware or Santa Monica Studio. A guy can dream.
Cheers and have a good one

Going through the kingdom hearts series 😁

Well, I’ve just bought Baldur’s Gate 3 but not started it yet…probably won’t be playing anything else for a while…

The past days and weeks have been quite hectic juggling my grocery business and programming the other half of my time. But finally, I get to indulge in playing Spider-Man 2. Yeah, I guess it's about time!

Not a lot of time for gaming this weekend what with the Christmas holiday approaching. But what time I’ve had I’ve been alternating between grinding out the last 15K or so kills I have left in COD: MW3 Zombies and playing the excellent Spider-Man 2. I have to say, the boss fight with The Lizard in SM2 is one of, if not the absolute best, most exciting, well designed, balanced and fun boss fights I’ve come across in almost 15 straight years of gaming and over 260 games! Just THAT good, IMHO.

Well we got ourselves a very festive week eh hehehehe. As for the week well I wrapped up Super Mario RPG this week and snagged this little PlayStation Indie called Eternights so kinda fun on that front. And currently the plan is to try to beat FFXVI tonight after my work shift. With that and some anime catch-up this week it’ll then be to task making all my Top 10 Lists of the year to share with friends. Of course we can’t forget the big day and yes like anyway else even I can’t resist the mood even with some extenuating circumstances. Personally for most of the holiday I’ll be in good old NYC with family. Excited for next week to share the gifts with all of y’all. Otherwise I’m not gonna lie I’m kinda feeling like most people where it’s like eh I don’t really feel like much games seeing as I either beat them or know i won’t be beating them by the end of the year. I guess the games this week will be things like Baldurs Gate 3, Like A Dragon Gaiden so I’m prepared for Like a Dragon Infinite Wealth, Sea of Stars, Granblue Fantasy Versus Rising on the PS5 and games like Star Ocean 2, Persona 5 Tactica, Pokémon Scarlet The Indigo Disk and Trails Into Reverie on switch. Still looking at Dave The Diver. Who knows maybe a mystery benefactor will feel like spreading holiday cheer? 🥺 hehehehe. In anime this week yet another terrific performance by Jujutsu Kaisen, Eminence In Shadow, SHY, Frieren and Spy X Family. Definitely looking at some top 10 candidates there. In podcasts this week it’s GOTY Season so I’m loving the meaty length episodes I’m getting from stuff like Fire Escape, Minnmax, RPGsites Tetracast, Castle Superbeast, Big Think Dimension, Into the Aether, Nextlander and Remap Radio. Of course I always save the best for last and yeah I’m thinking the newest consistent addition to this is gonna be shouting out my awesome retro stoner catgirl friend at twitch.tv/akibread. This holiday season getting to give them hopefully even the smallest boost of support is one of the greatest gifts I can get please y’all go give some love and support if you can. As of writing this journal tonight they’re streaming Fatal Frame 4 if you want some spooky while you’re warm and cozy. As always y’all stay beautiful stay kind stay safe and have a terrific weekend. Merry Christmas. Happy Holidays and Hqppy Gaming.

I'm late for the party since just got the PS5 slim a week ago 😍
GT7 is a must have for me so that's what I'm playing this week-end; also downloaded the demo of Tekken 8 ... that I deleted 10 minutes later; not a fan. Will try demo of SF6, probably will get this one next month.
Good game everyone.

PS5 - Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name

Switch - Super Mario Bros. Wonder

Xbox Series X - Sonic Superstars, Rumble Roses XX

@guardianoftime
Welcome to the club. If you haven't gotten around to it, definitely give Astro's Playroom a try. I've had a PS5 since day one and that game is still one of my favorites this gen. If you're a longtime PlayStation fan, I think you'll especially love it with all the cool little Easter Eggs it packs in.

@Gamer83 absolutely! I already finished it and still finding remaining gems. It's really an excellent game, reminds me a bit of Super Mario Odyssey on Switch but with better graphics and much better controller feedback!
Yep PlayStation fan and owner since the PS2.
Thanks

@Gamer83 planning to get Super Mario Wonder on the 1st of January 😍

Been playing some Sea of Thieves and Tiny Tina's Wonderland with some friends. Really fun times.

Also sneaking in some Splatoon 3

I dedicated the last three months of 2023 to my backlog games, which is huge. 3 days ago I finally finished Devil May Cry 5. 2 days ago I finished What Remains of Edith Finch in one run. Today I started Lost Judgement. Hopefully I will finish within the next two weeks. I might slip some indie games in between during the holiday season. Happy gaming everyone, and happy holidays.

Will only play some boring real life... Next two days are still holidays in my country, so I'll continue playing Immortals of Aveum, also bought Telltales Expanse.

Finals, Judgement and FFI pixel remaster.

@guardianoftime
Cool. Super Mario Wonder is definitely worth it, my favorite game of 2023.