Hope they'll still give the upgrade by the time I get a 5. Out of all the play at home initiatives giveaways, I think this game is my favorite. Honestly, if they're giving away a free PS5 upgrade for Subnautica, it actually puts buying the new one on the back burner for me, as it sounds like it's just more of the same.
I've been playing the first game for about 4 hours, time largely spent in painstaking character creation, reading through the codex and getting familiar with the Old Normandy again. Plus the first combat mission, which I won't say anything about so as not to ruin it for newcomers.
It really does look so much better than I remember it. Everything got a nice spit polish. The combat is a bit old-school, but as I remembered how to use the weapon and power wheels, it started to feel very nostalgic in a good way. It's not an action game, and by todays standards the combat is pretty simple, but still good fun and combat isn't the reason to start this series in the first place.
I had forgotten the guy's voice who reads the major codex entries, and hearing it again was fun. Perfect voice for the job. And the soundtrack might be the best in gaming.
Only issues I've had so far have been very minor sound issues. When a NPC is speaking, occasionally one word will go silent and it'll be fine after that. It's minor, though.
So far, it's been everything I thought it would be, except the graphics are even better than I expected from watching some of the before/after videos posted. Those just don't do the game justice compared to seeing it up and running on your bigscreen. Cheers!
Blackwood Crossing looks interesting, I'll look for a sale on the PS Store and give it a try. Days Gone, I tried twice. Bought it when it was first released and tried it again when PS+ gave it away to see if I liked it any better after the patches, but I just couldn't get in to it.
@TheRedComet @HotGoomba That makes good sense. I can't imagine they'd be ordering any new chips for PS4, so they must have had a pretty decent stockpile of them on hand. Makes sense to make with what you've got.
Maybe there's an obvious reason for this that I'm overlooking, but if the chip shortage is the main hurdle in getting more PS5's out there, I don't understand why they're still making 4's.
After reading your post, I just went and looked up a video on it. It looks pretty cool! Space Diablo! Looks XBox only, but that's ok, I'm buying one for Starfield anyway. Thanks for the heads up! I'll keep my eye on it.
I remember the expansion going on sale for I think 7 bucks, so I bought it. Then, like a week or 2 later they announced they were going to give it away.
I wouldn't mind seeing a Sunset Overdrive 2, if they coupled it with what they've seemed to learn over their last few games. Subtract a little obnoxiousness, add some characters you care about, etc..
Looked interesting, then the video put me to sleep. It won't be anything like Disco Elysium. It's not a Role Playing Game. It's more like a point and click adventure using an old role playing engine. I'm starved for Science Fiction, just not this starved.
"You most definitely are, it is more akin to an experience or art." Yes. Or a mood, or even a frame of mind, which is where good art takes you. I have lots of respect for what TCR did in Esther. It wasn't about mashing buttons, and really I don't even know that you could call it a game. They were just able to set such a perfect tone...it was a demonstration of mastery. Music, visuals, monologue, all coming together to do exactly what they wanted it to.
I hope 60fps doesn't ruin it, sort of like 'colorizing the classics', lol.
Good chatting with you, and I'll let you know what I think of Rapture, although it may be a few months since I just finished pre-downloading the Mass Effect Trilogy, which I look forward to re-living in one go over the foreseeable future!
Thank you much for the skinny on Rapture. I think I've found a space in my make-up for games like these, just have to be in the right mood/frame of mind to enjoy them. Sometimes, you just want to sit and let the game play itself and take a break from all the action. I played Dear Esther at a time when I was burned out by what I was playing, and it was almost therapeutic in nature. I'll pick up Rapture and see if it does the same. The price is right, and I feel like you're almost getting something besides a game with The Chinese Room. Thanks again!
Thanks again for responding! I think I'll make the tough choice of what to delete tonight and go ahead and preorder. This feels like possibly the safest preorder out there, and who knows how hard Sony's servers will get hit on release day. Hope you enjoy it as much as I know I'm going to!
Me too. From past burns comes future wariness, I guess. I hope it's a great game and you're right, it LOOKS fantastic. Can't remember from before, but I think one of the founders has a history in animation, so if there's an area the game should excel in, it would be that. I hope we're both pleasantly surprised!
I'm mildly excited for what comes next for the team, but how about a reality check? Kena is this studio's first game, and while it looks promising, we have no idea if it will hold up over the course of a whole game.
I HOPE it's good, and I wish them well, but I find it slightly comical how hard people have fallen for this game considering it's being done by a team with literally no track record whatsoever.
Not a problem at all! And whilst you may be self depreciating, you are definitely not what I would call slow!
Just had another thought on blocking. If you like using a shield, learn to shield bash, too. If timed right, it will interrupt a strong attack and stagger your opponent. Very useful in close quarters!
Any more questions, just @ me! Any of these old threads will do, I think, and pushsquare doesn't seem to mind!
Artistry, indeed! After I finished it, I was impressed enough to look into The Chinese Room and see what else they've made. Have you ever played Everybody's Gone to the Rapture? I've seen mixed reviews/thoughts on it, but I've seen it on sale for as low as 9 bucks on the playstation store, and I think I'll pick it up as soon as it's on sale again.
Love to hear your thoughts if you've played it, and as for Dear Esther, best $2.99 I've ever spent!
As if I wasn't excited enough, you are NOT helping the time fly by any faster! I've been looking forward to this ever since it was first announced. How are you downloading it? Did you preorder? Come to think of it, if a preorder lets you download it now, I might go and do that. Is it downloadable, but unplayable until a certain time?
Yes, it definitely was a walk-a-thon, not really any interactivity to it, but it was short and at least remained interesting to me. I've played through it twice, but haven't done it with dev. commentary on yet. I'll give that a try.
It's weird. The game engine was not at all what I'd call state of the art, but the memorable vistas they produced with it were truly amazing. The caves were my favorite caves of any caves I've ever walked through in any game, and games seem to have a thing for caves in general, so that's saying something!
Hmm..that's a bit troubling that it's not showing up. Are you looking under Hide? It's a separate sub-menu from leather. It should show up, even if it's darkened out due to lack of materials. (Leather, leather strips) Not like you'll ever make a hide helmet for practical purposes (leather helmet is better, anyway), but I don't know. Maybe head back to Riverwood and see if the blacksmith there is still amenable?
Blocking, as I understand it, works by using stamina, and will block most if not all damage from fast attacks. On strong attacks, it's better to get out of the way, if you can. A strong attack will break your block. Also, if using a shield, block will negate more damage than if using a two handed weapon.
This game used to turn a planned 2 hour session into an 8 hour marathon for me without even realizing how much time had flown by! I was lucky enough to retire at 50, but this game wreaked havoc with my sleep time back in my working days!
Good taste! I think I've played each of them 2 or 3 times back when they came out, but I've never played any of the dlc, and I'm led to believe that some of it is outstanding. I can't wait to string the whole series together back to back to back! I hope they've found a way to streamline planetary mineral scanning, as I thought that (In ME 2 in particular) was the only dark spot on what was otherwise shining gaming nirvana.
I think the most important thing in any game, no matter the genre, is it's ability to suck you in and make you lose track of the real world. It sounds like this one has done that for you. I think I'll give it a shot, it sounds interesting!
Lighthearted Joking Mode: ON
Though, not sure if I can trust your judgement, as a person who plays games they don't like twice!
It's had me curious, 'cause on the outside, it just looked like a trucking sim, yet in this post and a few threads before it, it seemed like some people were really into it. I might give it a shot in the future, but in 3 days, the Mass Effect trilogy arrives, and that's going to be where it's at for me for the next month or so. It's been so long since I played the originals, I hope the remaster lives up to memory!
cont. from above (first time it's ever told me my post was too long!)
You're talking to everybody, and that's good! Unlike Cyberpunk, most of these folks have something to say, and many will end up leading to quests.
I'm glad you are enjoying it! I've played probably close to a hundred open world games, and Skyrim is my undisputed favorite out of all of them. It just keeps getting better as you play it, like no other ever has. Hope you stick with it!
I've been studiously following every rumor I can find about Starfield, and I'm convinced it's going to be announced at E3, and many are saying it will release this year in time for Christmas, with some adding some time (early 2022) for covid. I hope the rumors are true, because I've been waiting ten years to dive back into a Bethesda single player open world! Unfortunately, I don't think Starfield is coming to PlayStation. I will buy an XBox for this game alone. That's just how highly I think of Bethesda single play. So, one game for $570. If I end up putting the thousands of hours into it that I did for Skyrim, money well spent as far as I'm concerned.
Yeah, the perks can be overwhelming at first. The various trees are fun to read through, though, and I found myself looking ahead at the ones I'd want later, and choosing somewhat based on that. Smithing is a great one, as you'll eventually want to get the one that lets you improve magical weapons. Did you go through the smithing tutorial in Riverwood? Also, at least the way I played, one of the armors is always a good bet (I went light armor).
As far as health, mana, and stamina, I just always went with distributing my points equally between all three. It's easy to overlook stamina, but each time you pick it you're gaining five pounds of available carry weight, and that almost always ended up being the thing I wanted more of. Speaking of carrying weight, by now you probably have an inventory filling up with mountain flowers, potions, and the like. You're probably not 100% sure what's important to keep or not, too. If you haven't visited the Jarl at Dragons Reach Keep in Whiterun yet, you may want to consider it. Doing so leads to the opportunity to buy your first house, and the castle's Steward will sell you furniture for it, such as chests, shelves and the like. All of these chests are pretty much bottomless, and once you furnish your first house, you'll have enough empty chests and dressers to organize your goods as you see fit, as well as have your own alchemy lab. Can't remember exactly what the house costs, but start saving so you have a good place to stash ingredients, ore, etc.
Is it worth it to spend money on training? I'd say no, at least not early on. After you've gotten higher level, and have some disposable cash, you might meet and join up with some unsavory people who sometimes want you to do some unsavory things! One of these things is pickpocketing, and in the first half of the game, this was the only thing I found it necessary to spend money on for training. I was never in the habit of pickpocketing the locals, so this skill never developed on it's own for me. If you look at the pickpocket perk tree, you'll notice that not very far up it is a choice that lets you carry more stuff, and since that was the only important thing on that tree for me, that's how high I took it, and never needed any more from it. Later in the game, when you are truly godlike, if you bought the special edition, you can pretty much level up forever. When one of your skills reaches 100, you have the option to reset it back to 15, and get all the perk points you invested in it refunded to spend elsewhere as you please. I can't stress enough how great this is!! Not only does it keep you from getting so godlike that the game becomes uninteresting, but it lets you then spend some perk points in things you were curious about but didn't want to waste points on. For maximum enjoyment, even though you may not want to give up your hard earned gains in a particular skill, as soon as you hit 100 you ought to go ahead and reset it. Even though it drops to 15, you can build it back up, and since you got it to 100 first, ahead of all the other skills, you'll probably build it back up reasonably fast. This was when I really started spending money on training, to train these back up. You can only train a maximum of 5 points per level, and late game, levels come more slowly, so this was a good way to return to at least a level of competency in these skills.
Game of the Year? I don't mean this sarcastically, I really want to know...what kind of game is it? Is there more to it than driving loaded trucks through snow? What am I missing here?
Upon re-reading what I wrote, I would hold off on going to Azura's shrine till I was at least level 15 or 20. Just remembered there's a hairy part to it where you can die pretty easily, and if you didn't have a save going in, it can be frustrating.
Bretons rule! I've played one in every Elders Scroll game, because you're better with magic and have built in magic resistance.
I love the favorites, too, especially the left and right d-pad acting as a quickswitch. Had a melee weapon on one and the bow on the other. Also, don't neglect bow skills. At first, you will suck with it, not even able to kill deer before they run away. But when fighting dragons later on, you'll be glad for any advancements you've made with it.
Bleak Falls Barrow! I saw one guide refer to it as 'baby's first dungeon', lol..but I love how involved some of the underground levels get. I'm guessing you talked to the shop keeper in Riverwood?
One more clarification from what I wrote earlier...I said if you have an empty grand soul gem and soultrap a mudcrab, you'd fill the grand with a petty soul. To try to clarify, anything you cast soultrap on will fill the smallest gem able to accomidate that creatures soul available in your inventory. So if you have an empty petty soul gem and an empty greater soul gem, soultrapping a critter will fill the smaller one. It's only if you don't have any empty smaller ones in your inventory that you have to worry about filling larger ones with smaller souls. God, it sounds complicated, even to me as I write it, but it's not. It'll come naturally, and even if you say, fill a common soul gem with a petty soul, it's no big deal, and you can still use it to charge weapons or whatever. It's just that you could have squeezed more out of it. When I play, I like to keep about 5 empty soul gems of each size in my inventory, just in case. They don't weigh much, so why not?
I'm jealous of you, really. I wish I could go into Skyrim again without knowing what was going to happen, and rediscover all the great things the game has in store for you!
If you want any more unsolicited advice, all you have to do is mention the game, and I can't help myself!
The whole series has some of the most innovative level design in modern gaming. It's a real shame these didn't sell better than they did. I'd heard they (Arkane) have given up on this series due to poor sales, and that's a travesty. I hope long term word of mouth can lead to enough sales for them to revisit Dishonored. If not, I hope at least they'll try another single-player series like it, instead of what they're doing now. They make such good levels that the joy for me is seeing what comes next, instead of a game where you die and play the same level over and over.
Enchanting uses soul gems. One of the best early spells to get is Soul Trap. Even early on, you can use it on mudcrabs and the like. Cast it on them before you kill them, and if you have an empty soul gem in your inventory, it will become filled with their soul. This full soul gem can then be used to recharge magical weapons, or if you have sacrificed a few weapons or pieces of armor at an enchanting station, which is how you learn their enchantments, You can use the gems to enchant your own weapons and armor. Be careful, because different creatures have different size souls, so if you have an empty Grand Soul gem, and cast soultrap on a deer or mudcrab, you'll fill that gem with a petty soul, which is a waste. It should all become apparent as you play, since it's not introduced right away, but if not, ask me.
By now, under your miscellaneous tasks, you might have one that says pay a visit to the shrine of Azura. When you feel comfortable doing this, it gives you one of the best relics in the game, Azuras Star, a re-usable soul gem. But DON'T do what the lady at the shrine wants you to do, or it will only work on animals, which use very common soul gems anyway. Take the other option, and it becomes The Black Star, which lets you use it on bandits and the like, who have Grand Souls. This may not make sense now, but once you figure it out, you'll be glad you did!
If you have a blessed weapon, if memory serves me correctly, that's just one of many enchantments a weapon can have. Once you reach the king to warn him about the dragon, you'll meet his mage. In this room is the first enchantment station you will encounter, and much of what I'm saying should start to make sense.
In Cyberpunk, you're getting there! I actually found Westbrook and the Badlands to be the most tedious ones to clear, working from the outside in towards City Center, which went the fastest. I liked all of it though, really, especially as long as I was taking my time and not trying or caring to rush things.
A last word on enchanting, at first it seems horrible to sacrifice your weapons and armor, but each time you do, it drastically raises your enchantment skill, along with teaching you the enchantment, and no matter what you sacrifice early on, you'll eventually find better later. Have fun!
Comments 1,191
Re: Play At Home Game Subnautica Can Be Upgraded to PS5 Version for Free Starting Today
Hope they'll still give the upgrade by the time I get a 5. Out of all the play at home initiatives giveaways, I think this game is my favorite. Honestly, if they're giving away a free PS5 upgrade for Subnautica, it actually puts buying the new one on the back burner for me, as it sounds like it's just more of the same.
Re: Hands On: Mass Effect Legendary Edition Is a Massive Upgrade That Plays Better Than Ever
I've been playing the first game for about 4 hours, time largely spent in painstaking character creation, reading through the codex and getting familiar with the Old Normandy again. Plus the first combat mission, which I won't say anything about so as not to ruin it for newcomers.
It really does look so much better than I remember it. Everything got a nice spit polish. The combat is a bit old-school, but as I remembered how to use the weapon and power wheels, it started to feel very nostalgic in a good way. It's not an action game, and by todays standards the combat is pretty simple, but still good fun and combat isn't the reason to start this series in the first place.
I had forgotten the guy's voice who reads the major codex entries, and hearing it again was fun. Perfect voice for the job. And the soundtrack might be the best in gaming.
Only issues I've had so far have been very minor sound issues. When a NPC is speaking, occasionally one word will go silent and it'll be fine after that. It's minor, though.
So far, it's been everything I thought it would be, except the graphics are even better than I expected from watching some of the before/after videos posted. Those just don't do the game justice compared to seeing it up and running on your bigscreen. Cheers!
Re: Mini Review: Call of the Sea (PS5) - A Pretty But Predictable Puzzler
@Flaming_Kaiser
Blackwood Crossing looks interesting, I'll look for a sale on the PS Store and give it a try. Days Gone, I tried twice. Bought it when it was first released and tried it again when PS+ gave it away to see if I liked it any better after the patches, but I just couldn't get in to it.
Re: PS5 UK Stock Was So Bad in April Even PS4 Outsold It
@TheRedComet
@HotGoomba
That makes good sense. I can't imagine they'd be ordering any new chips for PS4, so they must have had a pretty decent stockpile of them on hand. Makes sense to make with what you've got.
Re: PS5 UK Stock Was So Bad in April Even PS4 Outsold It
Maybe there's an obvious reason for this that I'm overlooking, but if the chip shortage is the main hurdle in getting more PS5's out there, I don't understand why they're still making 4's.
Re: Beautiful Desolation Is a Story-Driven Sci-Fi Game Set in South Africa
@PhhhCough
After reading your post, I just went and looked up a video on it. It looks pretty cool! Space Diablo! Looks XBox only, but that's ok, I'm buying one for Starfield anyway. Thanks for the heads up! I'll keep my eye on it.
Re: All DualSense PS5 Controller Colours
It's good to have a guide for this, I was lost.
Re: Reminder: Get Horizon Zero Dawn for Free Until Tomorrow
@rpg2000
I remember the expansion going on sale for I think 7 bucks, so I bought it. Then, like a week or 2 later they announced they were going to give it away.
Re: Reminder: Get Horizon Zero Dawn for Free Until Tomorrow
Gee, I know I'm in the minority here, but um...I already have this game.
Re: Hands On: Mass Effect Legendary Edition Is a Massive Upgrade That Plays Better Than Ever
Already downloaded and ready to go! Countdown to lift off: 12 hours 55 minutes. Er, T-minus, or something.
Re: Insomniac: 'Nothing Really Stopping Us' Working on Sunset Overdrive
I wouldn't mind seeing a Sunset Overdrive 2, if they coupled it with what they've seemed to learn over their last few games. Subtract a little obnoxiousness, add some characters you care about, etc..
Re: Beautiful Desolation Is a Story-Driven Sci-Fi Game Set in South Africa
Looked interesting, then the video put me to sleep. It won't be anything like Disco Elysium. It's not a Role Playing Game. It's more like a point and click adventure using an old role playing engine. I'm starved for Science Fiction, just not this starved.
Re: Dreamy PS5 Controller Colours Cosmic Red, Midnight Black Announced
Don't spend a lot of gaming time admiring my controller. Do these make my dude shoot better or run faster? No? Oh well.
Re: Mini Review: Call of the Sea (PS5) - A Pretty But Predictable Puzzler
@themightyant
"You most definitely are, it is more akin to an experience or art."
Yes. Or a mood, or even a frame of mind, which is where good art takes you. I have lots of respect for what TCR did in Esther. It wasn't about mashing buttons, and really I don't even know that you could call it a game. They were just able to set such a perfect tone...it was a demonstration of mastery. Music, visuals, monologue, all coming together to do exactly what they wanted it to.
I hope 60fps doesn't ruin it, sort of like 'colorizing the classics', lol.
Good chatting with you, and I'll let you know what I think of Rapture, although it may be a few months since I just finished pre-downloading the Mass Effect Trilogy, which I look forward to re-living in one go over the foreseeable future!
Re: Mini Review: Call of the Sea (PS5) - A Pretty But Predictable Puzzler
@themightyant
Thank you much for the skinny on Rapture. I think I've found a space in my make-up for games like these, just have to be in the right mood/frame of mind to enjoy them. Sometimes, you just want to sit and let the game play itself and take a break from all the action. I played Dear Esther at a time when I was burned out by what I was playing, and it was almost therapeutic in nature. I'll pick up Rapture and see if it does the same. The price is right, and I feel like you're almost getting something besides a game with The Chinese Room. Thanks again!
Re: SnowRunner Keeps on Truckin' with Russian Space Rocket Expansion
@TheDudeElDuderino
Thanks again for responding! I think I'll make the tough choice of what to delete tonight and go ahead and preorder. This feels like possibly the safest preorder out there, and who knows how hard Sony's servers will get hit on release day. Hope you enjoy it as much as I know I'm going to!
Re: Kena: Bridge of Spirits Team Already Planning for Next Game
@NoxAeturnus
🤞 (fingers crossed)
Re: Skull & Bones Won't Come Into Port Until April 2022 At the Earliest
Also, to me it seems looking forward to Ubisoft games is akin to getting all excited for a root canal.
Re: Skull & Bones Won't Come Into Port Until April 2022 At the Earliest
@PegasusActual93
Hah! Was going to post exactly this! Glad I read 'em first this time!
Re: Kena: Bridge of Spirits Team Already Planning for Next Game
@RBMango
Me too. From past burns comes future wariness, I guess. I hope it's a great game and you're right, it LOOKS fantastic. Can't remember from before, but I think one of the founders has a history in animation, so if there's an area the game should excel in, it would be that. I hope we're both pleasantly surprised!
Re: Kena: Bridge of Spirits Team Already Planning for Next Game
I'm mildly excited for what comes next for the team, but how about a reality check? Kena is this studio's first game, and while it looks promising, we have no idea if it will hold up over the course of a whole game.
I HOPE it's good, and I wish them well, but I find it slightly comical how hard people have fallen for this game considering it's being done by a team with literally no track record whatsoever.
Re: Knockout City to Celebrate Launch with a 10-Day Free Trial on PS4
Read between the lines. That's ten days to find enough people to play with. After that? Guess time will tell. Pass.
Re: Talking Point: What Are You Playing This Weekend? - Issue 375
@Jimmer-jammer
Not a problem at all! And whilst you may be self depreciating, you are definitely not what I would call slow!
Just had another thought on blocking. If you like using a shield, learn to shield bash, too. If timed right, it will interrupt a strong attack and stagger your opponent. Very useful in close quarters!
Any more questions, just @ me! Any of these old threads will do, I think, and pushsquare doesn't seem to mind!
Re: Mini Review: Call of the Sea (PS5) - A Pretty But Predictable Puzzler
@themightyant
Artistry, indeed! After I finished it, I was impressed enough to look into The Chinese Room and see what else they've made. Have you ever played Everybody's Gone to the Rapture? I've seen mixed reviews/thoughts on it, but I've seen it on sale for as low as 9 bucks on the playstation store, and I think I'll pick it up as soon as it's on sale again.
Love to hear your thoughts if you've played it, and as for Dear Esther, best $2.99 I've ever spent!
Re: SnowRunner Keeps on Truckin' with Russian Space Rocket Expansion
@TheDudeElDuderino
As if I wasn't excited enough, you are NOT helping the time fly by any faster! I've been looking forward to this ever since it was first announced. How are you downloading it? Did you preorder? Come to think of it, if a preorder lets you download it now, I might go and do that. Is it downloadable, but unplayable until a certain time?
Re: SnowRunner Keeps on Truckin' with Russian Space Rocket Expansion
@ankehuber
Thanks! I hope so too!
Re: Sony Has More Than 25 PS5 Exclusives in Development, And Almost Half Are New IP
@MatthewJP
Kojima is now working with xbox, I think.
Re: Mini Review: Call of the Sea (PS5) - A Pretty But Predictable Puzzler
@Flaming_Kaiser
Yes, it definitely was a walk-a-thon, not really any interactivity to it, but it was short and at least remained interesting to me. I've played through it twice, but haven't done it with dev. commentary on yet. I'll give that a try.
Re: Mini Review: Call of the Sea (PS5) - A Pretty But Predictable Puzzler
@themightyant
It's weird. The game engine was not at all what I'd call state of the art, but the memorable vistas they produced with it were truly amazing. The caves were my favorite caves of any caves I've ever walked through in any game, and games seem to have a thing for caves in general, so that's saying something!
Also loved the slow-motion freefall at the end.
Re: Talking Point: What Are You Playing This Weekend? - Issue 375
@Jimmer-jammer
Hmm..that's a bit troubling that it's not showing up. Are you looking under Hide? It's a separate sub-menu from leather. It should show up, even if it's darkened out due to lack of materials. (Leather, leather strips) Not like you'll ever make a hide helmet for practical purposes (leather helmet is better, anyway), but I don't know. Maybe head back to Riverwood and see if the blacksmith there is still amenable?
Blocking, as I understand it, works by using stamina, and will block most if not all damage from fast attacks. On strong attacks, it's better to get out of the way, if you can. A strong attack will break your block. Also, if using a shield, block will negate more damage than if using a two handed weapon.
This game used to turn a planned 2 hour session into an 8 hour marathon for me without even realizing how much time had flown by! I was lucky enough to retire at 50, but this game wreaked havoc with my sleep time back in my working days!
Re: SnowRunner Keeps on Truckin' with Russian Space Rocket Expansion
@TheDudeElDuderino
Good taste! I think I've played each of them 2 or 3 times back when they came out, but I've never played any of the dlc, and I'm led to believe that some of it is outstanding. I can't wait to string the whole series together back to back to back! I hope they've found a way to streamline planetary mineral scanning, as I thought that (In ME 2 in particular) was the only dark spot on what was otherwise shining gaming nirvana.
Re: SnowRunner Keeps on Truckin' with Russian Space Rocket Expansion
@ankehuber
I think the most important thing in any game, no matter the genre, is it's ability to suck you in and make you lose track of the real world. It sounds like this one has done that for you. I think I'll give it a shot, it sounds interesting!
Lighthearted Joking Mode: ON
Though, not sure if I can trust your judgement, as a person who plays games they don't like twice!
Lighthearted Joking Mode: OFF
Re: SnowRunner Keeps on Truckin' with Russian Space Rocket Expansion
@TheDudeElDuderino
It's had me curious, 'cause on the outside, it just looked like a trucking sim, yet in this post and a few threads before it, it seemed like some people were really into it. I might give it a shot in the future, but in 3 days, the Mass Effect trilogy arrives, and that's going to be where it's at for me for the next month or so. It's been so long since I played the originals, I hope the remaster lives up to memory!
Re: Talking Point: What Are You Playing This Weekend? - Issue 375
@Jimmer-jammer
cont. from above (first time it's ever told me my post was too long!)
You're talking to everybody, and that's good! Unlike Cyberpunk, most of these folks have something to say, and many will end up leading to quests.
I'm glad you are enjoying it! I've played probably close to a hundred open world games, and Skyrim is my undisputed favorite out of all of them. It just keeps getting better as you play it, like no other ever has. Hope you stick with it!
I've been studiously following every rumor I can find about Starfield, and I'm convinced it's going to be announced at E3, and many are saying it will release this year in time for Christmas, with some adding some time (early 2022) for covid. I hope the rumors are true, because I've been waiting ten years to dive back into a Bethesda single player open world! Unfortunately, I don't think Starfield is coming to PlayStation. I will buy an XBox for this game alone. That's just how highly I think of Bethesda single play. So, one game for $570. If I end up putting the thousands of hours into it that I did for Skyrim, money well spent as far as I'm concerned.
Re: Talking Point: What Are You Playing This Weekend? - Issue 375
@Jimmer-jammer
Yeah, the perks can be overwhelming at first. The various trees are fun to read through, though, and I found myself looking ahead at the ones I'd want later, and choosing somewhat based on that. Smithing is a great one, as you'll eventually want to get the one that lets you improve magical weapons. Did you go through the smithing tutorial in Riverwood? Also, at least the way I played, one of the armors is always a good bet (I went light armor).
As far as health, mana, and stamina, I just always went with distributing my points equally between all three. It's easy to overlook stamina, but each time you pick it you're gaining five pounds of available carry weight, and that almost always ended up being the thing I wanted more of. Speaking of carrying weight, by now you probably have an inventory filling up with mountain flowers, potions, and the like. You're probably not 100% sure what's important to keep or not, too. If you haven't visited the Jarl at Dragons Reach Keep in Whiterun yet, you may want to consider it. Doing so leads to the opportunity to buy your first house, and the castle's Steward will sell you furniture for it, such as chests, shelves and the like. All of these chests are pretty much bottomless, and once you furnish your first house, you'll have enough empty chests and dressers to organize your goods as you see fit, as well as have your own alchemy lab. Can't remember exactly what the house costs, but start saving so you have a good place to stash ingredients, ore, etc.
Is it worth it to spend money on training? I'd say no, at least not early on. After you've gotten higher level, and have some disposable cash, you might meet and join up with some unsavory people who sometimes want you to do some unsavory things! One of these things is pickpocketing, and in the first half of the game, this was the only thing I found it necessary to spend money on for training. I was never in the habit of pickpocketing the locals, so this skill never developed on it's own for me. If you look at the pickpocket perk tree, you'll notice that not very far up it is a choice that lets you carry more stuff, and since that was the only important thing on that tree for me, that's how high I took it, and never needed any more from it. Later in the game, when you are truly godlike, if you bought the special edition, you can pretty much level up forever. When one of your skills reaches 100, you have the option to reset it back to 15, and get all the perk points you invested in it refunded to spend elsewhere as you please. I can't stress enough how great this is!! Not only does it keep you from getting so godlike that the game becomes uninteresting, but it lets you then spend some perk points in things you were curious about but didn't want to waste points on. For maximum enjoyment, even though you may not want to give up your hard earned gains in a particular skill, as soon as you hit 100 you ought to go ahead and reset it. Even though it drops to 15, you can build it back up, and since you got it to 100 first, ahead of all the other skills, you'll probably build it back up reasonably fast. This was when I really started spending money on training, to train these back up. You can only train a maximum of 5 points per level, and late game, levels come more slowly, so this was a good way to return to at least a level of competency in these skills.
Re: SnowRunner Keeps on Truckin' with Russian Space Rocket Expansion
@TheDudeElDuderino
Thanks, dude.
Re: Valve Boss Gabe Newell Hints PS5, PS4 Projects Could Be Announced This Year
Deep drive to left center field! Going...going...gone! Grand Slam Homerun!!
Re: Mini Review: Call of the Sea (PS5) - A Pretty But Predictable Puzzler
@Flaming_Kaiser
I actually loved Dear Esther, and I'm not even sure why. Walking through the caves was hypnotic, though.
Re: SnowRunner Keeps on Truckin' with Russian Space Rocket Expansion
@ankehuber
Game of the Year? I don't mean this sarcastically, I really want to know...what kind of game is it? Is there more to it than driving loaded trucks through snow? What am I missing here?
Re: Electronic Arts Sets the Date for This Year's EA Play Live Presentation
Will it have in-broadcast purchases?
Re: PS Plus Shares What It Does Best in New Live-Action Advert
YAY!! MARKETING!!
Re: Talking Point: What Are You Playing This Weekend? - Issue 375
@Jimmer-jammer
Upon re-reading what I wrote, I would hold off on going to Azura's shrine till I was at least level 15 or 20. Just remembered there's a hairy part to it where you can die pretty easily, and if you didn't have a save going in, it can be frustrating.
Bretons rule! I've played one in every Elders Scroll game, because you're better with magic and have built in magic resistance.
I love the favorites, too, especially the left and right d-pad acting as a quickswitch. Had a melee weapon on one and the bow on the other. Also, don't neglect bow skills. At first, you will suck with it, not even able to kill deer before they run away. But when fighting dragons later on, you'll be glad for any advancements you've made with it.
Bleak Falls Barrow! I saw one guide refer to it as 'baby's first dungeon', lol..but I love how involved some of the underground levels get. I'm guessing you talked to the shop keeper in Riverwood?
One more clarification from what I wrote earlier...I said if you have an empty grand soul gem and soultrap a mudcrab, you'd fill the grand with a petty soul. To try to clarify, anything you cast soultrap on will fill the smallest gem able to accomidate that creatures soul available in your inventory. So if you have an empty petty soul gem and an empty greater soul gem, soultrapping a critter will fill the smaller one. It's only if you don't have any empty smaller ones in your inventory that you have to worry about filling larger ones with smaller souls. God, it sounds complicated, even to me as I write it, but it's not. It'll come naturally, and even if you say, fill a common soul gem with a petty soul, it's no big deal, and you can still use it to charge weapons or whatever. It's just that you could have squeezed more out of it. When I play, I like to keep about 5 empty soul gems of each size in my inventory, just in case. They don't weigh much, so why not?
I'm jealous of you, really. I wish I could go into Skyrim again without knowing what was going to happen, and rediscover all the great things the game has in store for you!
If you want any more unsolicited advice, all you have to do is mention the game, and I can't help myself!
Re: New Noclip Documentary Details Development of Dishonored Series
The whole series has some of the most innovative level design in modern gaming. It's a real shame these didn't sell better than they did. I'd heard they (Arkane) have given up on this series due to poor sales, and that's a travesty. I hope long term word of mouth can lead to enough sales for them to revisit Dishonored. If not, I hope at least they'll try another single-player series like it, instead of what they're doing now. They make such good levels that the joy for me is seeing what comes next, instead of a game where you die and play the same level over and over.
Re: Talking Point: What Are You Playing This Weekend? - Issue 375
@Jimmer-jammer
Enchanting uses soul gems. One of the best early spells to get is Soul Trap. Even early on, you can use it on mudcrabs and the like. Cast it on them before you kill them, and if you have an empty soul gem in your inventory, it will become filled with their soul. This full soul gem can then be used to recharge magical weapons, or if you have sacrificed a few weapons or pieces of armor at an enchanting station, which is how you learn their enchantments, You can use the gems to enchant your own weapons and armor. Be careful, because different creatures have different size souls, so if you have an empty Grand Soul gem, and cast soultrap on a deer or mudcrab, you'll fill that gem with a petty soul, which is a waste. It should all become apparent as you play, since it's not introduced right away, but if not, ask me.
By now, under your miscellaneous tasks, you might have one that says pay a visit to the shrine of Azura. When you feel comfortable doing this, it gives you one of the best relics in the game, Azuras Star, a re-usable soul gem. But DON'T do what the lady at the shrine wants you to do, or it will only work on animals, which use very common soul gems anyway. Take the other option, and it becomes The Black Star, which lets you use it on bandits and the like, who have Grand Souls. This may not make sense now, but once you figure it out, you'll be glad you did!
If you have a blessed weapon, if memory serves me correctly, that's just one of many enchantments a weapon can have. Once you reach the king to warn him about the dragon, you'll meet his mage. In this room is the first enchantment station you will encounter, and much of what I'm saying should start to make sense.
In Cyberpunk, you're getting there! I actually found Westbrook and the Badlands to be the most tedious ones to clear, working from the outside in towards City Center, which went the fastest. I liked all of it though, really, especially as long as I was taking my time and not trying or caring to rush things.
A last word on enchanting, at first it seems horrible to sacrifice your weapons and armor, but each time you do, it drastically raises your enchantment skill, along with teaching you the enchantment, and no matter what you sacrifice early on, you'll eventually find better later. Have fun!
Re: PS Store Sales Charts: Returnal in the Top Five After One Day on the Market
@lolwhatno
Talk to @Turismo4GT, I sense a real profit opportunity here!
Re: PS Store Sales Charts: Returnal in the Top Five After One Day on the Market
@Turismo4GT
Due to the current cat shortage, your cat will be ready in early 2023. Thank you for your patience!
Re: PS Store Sales Charts: Returnal in the Top Five After One Day on the Market
@johncalmc
You're right. Cat, then.
Re: PS Store Sales Charts: Returnal in the Top Five After One Day on the Market
If you haven't eaten in a month and I serve you dog, you're going to love dog.
Re: Sony Reiterates PS5 Stock Shortages Won't Go Away Anytime Soon
@ApostateMage
Can't you just stack them?
Re: Talking Point: What Are You Playing This Weekend? - Issue 375
@KingPev
Me too. Can't wait to see it on PS5. Congratulations on finding one, by the way!