The Backlog Check-in Vol. 216: 2/19/22: Elden Ring Edition

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canedaddy
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Re: The Backlog Check-in Vol. 216: 2/19/22: Elden Ring Edition

Post by canedaddy »

argyle wrote: Thu Feb 24, 2022 1:57 am I've heard several people say that Elden Ring is both the hardest & easiest From game yet, just depending on how you choose to play it. Regardless I'm gonna play it & find out for myself. I absolutely love their world building and very unique take on dark fantasy, so I'm hoping this is one I click with (like Bloodborne, which up to now is the only SoulsBorne game I've finished).
That's the only one I've finished too. And yes, I called in help on one boss that was driving me insane. I'm not ashamed, and it didn't feel out of place to me... we're talking about a game where players leave each other messages and whatnot. ;)

Is there any word on whether Elden Ring is a lot better on PS5? If not, maybe I'll just buy it for PS4 and play it after I finish VC4.
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jfissel
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Re: The Backlog Check-in Vol. 216: 2/19/22: Elden Ring Edition

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argyle wrote: Thu Feb 24, 2022 1:57 am Speaking of their games...J, I know you like to watch the GDQ stuff, did you see the guy run Sekiro blindfolded this year? If not, you need to look that one up - it's amazing.
I did not watch any of the videos from the most recent GDQ. I don't have experience with any of their games, but that sounds crazy and I'll make sure to give it a watch now.
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isthatallyougot
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Re: The Backlog Check-in Vol. 216: 2/19/22: Elden Ring Edition

Post by isthatallyougot »

crimson_tide wrote: Wed Feb 23, 2022 6:16 pm Izzy...I love you bruh. I buy every Bandai Namco game. I ain't touching them Dark/Demon Souls borne things. I tried Bloodborne. I just can't. I tried Demon's way back. I ain't doing it. Nope. I refuse. They are too much...
Love you too brother. But ya gotta do you! :)
argyle wrote: Thu Feb 24, 2022 1:57 am I was dabbling with RDR2 a little more the past couple of nights or so just to have something to play until Friday. For some reason, I just have the hardest time wrapping my head around the controls in that game. Everything just feels "clunky" to me - I fumble with the controls when trying to do almost anything. Not sure if it's me or the game or what. Then last night I was walking around the first town you're in and just messing with the antagonize button. I insulted 3 different people, then it pops up that I'm wanted for "disturbing the peace". Huh? I'm sorry, but I don't want to live in a world where it's illegal to tell someone they're a moron. :P
No, I agree that the controls are far from intuitive. I'm about 80 hours in and I still screw up sometimes. I was riding through Van Horn last night and an npc interaction popped up and I meant to greet/interact with him, but I accidentally pulled out my pistol and shot him, lol. Whoops! :P But they've become far more comfortable with time though. They could really use a redesign imho, but you get used to it.

I had a really weird experience last night too. I found this absolutely gorgeous pure white Arabian horse in the mountains, and I *had* to have it. (I really loved my horse who I've bonded with over many hours, another brown Arabian with black mane I named "Spirit".) Anyway, I lassoed this beauty and brought her to a stable and I switched over my saddle because I wanted to ride her and create a bond. I named her "Mystic" and we went out riding. That first evening with Mystic, I had gotten off to explore on foot a little and was going to set up a camp. She was only a short distance away, and I got a message that she was badly injured and needed assistance or she would die. So I looked at her icon on the map, and went to the icon, but Mystic was not there...spooky. I tried whistling for her, and looked *everywhere* around that area, but she was not to be found. Finally I got the message that she had died. So now, I was a distance from where she was supposed to be, and I got the message that I could retrieve my saddle. I went to where that icon was and there was no saddle - not anywhere. So I think what happened is that Mystic appeared only to lead me back to my "Spirit" companion. ;) I eventually made my way back to a stable and my saddle with all my gear was available to put back on Spirit. I guess I am destined to be with my Spirit partner, so I won't fight it.
Phaseknox wrote: Thu Feb 24, 2022 10:23 am It definitely plays clunky, heavy and sluggish which was one of my complaints with it. Another one of my complaints was with how easily that you become wanted in towns, if you look at someone the wrong way you become wanted and the law is on you instantly. I also disliked how if you shot someone in self defense you were wanted for murder. The wanted system is too sensitive, and unrealistic. The game overall failed to really click with me in general, and I found it to be a little disappointing compared to the first game. I liked it enough to finish it, but that was about it.

Yeah press or hold are seemingly arbitrary oftentimes and have no necessary reason to be one over the other. Lining yourself up to pick up items can be finicky. It surely has some things I would change, but in the grand scheme of things, the world and the cowboy fantasy are just so incredible that most of the gripes are so small, relatively speaking - for me anyway. I've played about 80 hours and last night when I checked I'm only 30% done with the story. I don't know how long I'll play, but it will probably be quite a long time.
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argyle
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Re: The Backlog Check-in Vol. 216: 2/19/22: Elden Ring Edition

Post by argyle »

There is absolutely no question that RDR2 is a great game, but there are things about it that I'm just not sure I can get past personally. I'm kinda tired of the wanted system in any game, period. A big part of that is developers just don't seem to have really evolved it very much from when it was introduced (afaik) back in GTA3. I don't just mean R*, I mean any dev that uses it. You would think that by now they could implement more rational AI decisions into it. Bethesda games are at least as bad - can we agree that if I pick up an item in someone's house or shop, the appropriate response is NOT to immediately try to murder me?

One thing about RDR2 that's inarguable is the fact that it is drop-dead gorgeous. I mean just stunning. AFAIK it didn't get any kind of next-gen enhancement, but you wouldn't know that just by playing it.

I'll definitely let you guys know what I think of ER - I'm hoping it really clicks, because I want an open-world fantasy game like that to really get into. And yes, the Sekiro blind playthrough is just as unbelievable when you're watching it. I didn't make it nearly this far when I played it, but I've seen ppl on YouTube fight the monkey (I won't say more than that, in case anyone here still plans on playing it) and it looks like a REALLY tough fight. This guy absolutely destroyed it. Just unreal.

"When I was ten, I read fairy tales in secret and would have been ashamed
if I had been found doing so. Now that I am fifty I read them openly. When I
became a man I put away childish things, including the fear of childishness and the
desire to be very grown up.” ― C.S. Lewis

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isthatallyougot
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Re: The Backlog Check-in Vol. 216: 2/19/22: Elden Ring Edition

Post by isthatallyougot »

argyle wrote: Thu Feb 24, 2022 12:53 pm I'll definitely let you guys know what I think of ER - I'm hoping it really clicks, because I want an open-world fantasy game like that to really get into. And yes, the Sekiro blind playthrough is just as unbelievable when you're watching it. I didn't make it nearly this far when I played it, but I've seen ppl on YouTube fight the monkey (I won't say more than that, in case anyone here still plans on playing it) and it looks like a REALLY tough fight. This guy absolutely destroyed it. Just unreal.

I'm eager to hear your impressions. I'm not sure how soon I'm going to get it. I'm waiting to see if my hardware will be adequate for how I want to experience it. I'll watch some youtube benchmarks with my hardware after it's been out for a while. I don't really want to upgrade my hardware right now, especially given the market (stupid miners :P), but I'll do it if necessary for this game.

Edit: And I still have to get to Sekiro. I know it's different from Soulsbourne, but FROM have earned my blind trust. I'll do it one day. But blindfolded, yeah, there's some real crazy people out there. :P
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Phaseknox
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Re: The Backlog Check-in Vol. 216: 2/19/22: Elden Ring Edition

Post by Phaseknox »

canedaddy wrote: Thu Feb 24, 2022 11:20 amIs there any word on whether Elden Ring is a lot better on PS5? If not, maybe I'll just buy it for PS4 and play it after I finish VC4.
The only real differences between the PS4 and PS5 versions seem to be that the PS5 version is somewhat higher resolution and higher frame rate in performance mode. I watched a gameplay video of the PS4 version, and it looks and runs really good.
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canedaddy
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Re: The Backlog Check-in Vol. 216: 2/19/22: Elden Ring Edition

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Good to know. Thanks for the word.
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