The Backlog Check-in Vol. 123: 5/9/20: May SUCKS!!!! Edition

[Phaseknox]

Played: The Witcher III: Wild Hunt

Finished: Nothing

Playing: The Witcher III: Wild Hunt

I'm still playing The Witcher III, and enjoying it a little more now than I initially was. While I liked it from the start, it didn't really grab me like open world action RPGs usually do. I was finding everything to be rather middle-of-the-road for the genre. I admit that I tend to prefer dark fantasy, high fantasy and sci-fi when it comes to RPGs, and despite including some fantasy elements the overall aesthetic of the world is grounded in historically accurate medieval times which isn't very exciting IMO. Also, it seems like a good majority of the side content is monster hunting/killing which doesn't really interest me considering how much of that there is to do in the main storyline and traversing the world. I prefer side quests in RPGs to be a diversion from the main story quests which usually boil down to fighting a bunch of monsters through a dungeon type area, and reaching a big boss monster at the end.

The story and characters have really hooked me at this point, and I'm enjoying the core gameplay and combat as well. The environments are also really nice looking offering a lot of detail and impressive lighting and weather effects, but they're not as interesting as the type of environments offered in dark fantasy, high fantasy and sci-fi RPGs IMO. I really like to explore the worlds in those types of RPGs, but I'm pretty much sticking to the main story path in this one since there's not much to see off the beaten path other than fields/forests/swamps/wilderness, caves and villages.

In other news, May sucks for games. I looked at everything scheduled to come out this month, and there's nothing good IMO.

[isthatallyougot]

I finished up SOTC remake and had a great time with that.

I'm still playing Curious Expedition on PC and I started up Bulletstorm on PS4. So far it's a fun FPS that seems like it will be a good ride. (Oh, and I'm still playing Harvest Moon Tale of Two Towns, but I don't mention that anymore. )

[jfissel]

Finished: Nothing

Now Playing: Yakuza Kiwami 2

Added to Backlog: Nothing

Current Backlog: 34 games

I'm nearing 30 hours in Yakuza Kiwami 2 and I'm probably 55% done with the story. Also, the Cabaret side stuff is finished - my girls dominated those other clubs!

[Phaseknox]

I'm done playing The Witcher III, it's just not for me. It's a fairly boring game IMO, all that I've been doing is talking to villagers in villages and fighting monsters in forests. That's pretty much the game in a nutshell based on what I've played of it. There hasn't really been anything exciting happening in it, it's just a lot of horseback riding, talking to NPCs and fighting monsters within a generic looking medieval world.

The gameplay and combat actually aren't THAT good. Horseback riding is extremely clunky, character movement is somewhat loose/sloppy and combat has a delay feeling to everything which isn't good since all of the enemies are fast and furious. Also, the loading after you die is excruciatingly long. It's easily some of the longest loading that I've experienced in ANY game, and that's NOT an exaggeration. It's actually one of the reasons why I'm quitting, because I don't have the patience to sit through ridiculously long load screens each and every time that I die.

Just like with The Witcher II, I find this game to be overrated. I'm not denying that it's a good game because it is, but I don't get the whole game of the generation thing. Open world action RPGs are one of my favorite genres, and this is one of the less enjoyable ones that I've played. The story and characters are pretty good and it's fairly impressive from a technical standpoint, but as far as the actual game itself and fun factor are concerned it's lacking IMO. I just don't find it very fun to play, and isn't being fun to play the whole point of games?

[isthatallyougot]

Just like with The Witcher II, I find this game to be overrated.

I thought you loved The Witcher. In my mind I remember you praising it back in the day, although maybe it was the first entry, or maybe I'm misremembering altogether.

I've never played any entry in the series, although I have the first two on Steam.

[Phaseknox]

I thought you loved The Witcher. In my mind I remember you praising it back in the day, although maybe it was the first entry, or maybe I'm misremembering altogether.

No, that wasn't me. I never played the first game since it's PC only. I played the second game on Xbox 360, and found it to be good but not great. It was one of those games that I just didn't quite understand the universal praise that it received from both critics and gamers alike, and the same is true for The Witcher III as well. It's better than the second game, but I still don't get what all the hype is about.

In other news, I started playing Rage 2 because I wanted to play something that I knew was fast paced/minute-to-minute forgoing a drawn out cinematic story and convoluted/tedious menu item managing/tinkering in favor of pure raw unabashed gameplay.

I'm actually more impressed with it than I was expecting to be based on the lukewarm reception that it received back when it came out. It looks, sounds and plays really good. Also, the main protagonist has a voice which is a nice change of pace from playing as so many silent protagonists in games recently. It adds a lot to the experience when your character actually speaks. It gives them personality, and makes them seem like an actual person instead of a generic avatar.

The game itself is light on story, but big on gameplay which is what I'm in the mood for right now. The best way to describe it is the first Borderlands with more realistic graphics. It's a post apocalyptic open world FPS with a Mad Max vibe. You're given just enough incentive to travel the wasteland, and kill lots of bandits and mutants. The core gameplay is visceral with rock solid shooting mechanics, and the progression system is great with cool abilities, skills and upgrades to unlock.

While it's possible that its gameplay loop could become repetitive, I'm definitely enjoying my time with it right now. It's the natural evolution of the FPS genre IMO, and it's fun to play.

[crimson_tide]

J, I did so ridiculously well in Yakuza kiwami 2's cabaret club it made the remainder of the game a joke because I was so rich. Zero trains way too good for what they present in 2 . Unfortunately, they changed the formula way too much in Lost Paradise. There's also this bizarre mission structure and the girls are very particular to recruit. The minigame also plays way too differently from the Yakuza games. It just didn't jive and I stopped halfway through. Shame, I really like that minigame over dating at the cabaret club.

Played: Lost Paradise, Gargoyles quest

Beat: Lost Paradise

This week: Spidey DLC

Bummer Witcher 3 didn't grab you, phase. I remember you really dig action RPGs in particular. I still have it downloaded. It might go though, I have a hankering to play Injustice games for some reason. That's why I am also going through the Spidey dlc, takes up almost 70 flipping gigs! I kinda wish it had just been part of the actual game. It's fine, just not necessarily worth being not part of the main game. Also, Silver Sable is back. Ugh, of all the brilliant things that game did to reinvent characters, Sable was not a shining example. At all. Oh well, we will see what happens...

Wait, j...Yakuza 7: hype level? After the last trailer, I cannot flipping wait! Everybody is super judgy because of the turn based combat but I trust these people to make it work. Plus after ALL the Yakuza games, Judgment, Lost Paradise...can we please let them try something new? They've earned it. I think this is going to be dang good, son!

[Phaseknox]

Bummer Witcher 3 didn't grab you, phase. I remember you really dig action RPGs in particular.

Yeah, action RPGs are one of my favorite genres. With that said, I posted about quitting The Witcher III right after rage quitting it due to dying a few times in a certain area and having to sit through extremely long load times each time. But I think that I might give it another chance (I didn't delete my save) because I was somewhat enjoying it, and I especially like the story and characters.

[Phaseknox]

I was going to get back into The Witcher III again, but I can't pull myself away from Rage 2. It's similar to Ghost Recon: Wildlands in that it's just a pure fun unscripted action packed gameplay experience each and every time that I play it. The story is pretty much paper thin just there enough to give you a reason to shoot ****. The things that really make the game are its graphics, gameplay/combat and progression system. The graphics are really impressive with a lot of detail to everything, and great lighting effects. The core gameplay and shooting mechanics are really solid, some of the best that I've experienced in an FPS. And the progression system is one of the best that I've experienced in a game in general. But most of all, the game is fun to play. The shooting combat is fast paced/visceral, and the abilities/powers that you get are awesome. You feel like a badass super soldier.

A lot of reviews stated that the game world is rather empty without anything going on in it, but that's not entirely accurate. While it's not bustling with activity, you definitely come across some side stuff while exploring that you would have otherwise missed if you stuck to the straight and narrow path while traveling. Also, reviews complained about the town areas being somewhat lifeless and the NPCs in them lacking personality, but that's not entirely accurate either. While they're not extremely lively, they have some life to them and some NPCs can be chatty especially the mission givers. This isn't an RPG, so the towns aren't a big part of the experience. They basically exist to shop, and get side missions.

While I can see the potential of this game being more than what it is which is essentially an open world FPS, I also kind of like that it keeps things a little more basic in terms of its design. It allows for it to do the things that it does really well without a lot of other things getting in the way and bogging it down. More story and characterization would be nice, but it still works with what it offers.

This review pretty much sums up how I feel about the game:

[isthatallyougot]

The story is pretty much paper thin just there enough to give you a reason to shoot ****. The things that really make the game are its graphics, gameplay/combat and progression system. The core gameplay and shooting mechanics are really solid... But most of all, the game is fun to play. The shooting combat is fast paced/visceral... You feel like a badass super soldier.

Sounds like what I'm playing right now - Bulletstorm. If you haven't played it, you might enjoy it. I'm having a great time with it.