I notice you didn’t put Twilight Princess on your ‘would work well as a first’. That was the first and only one I tried at length, when the Wii was new and I was trying new games on it.
I remember an open world, no sense of what I should be doing, just having no interest in what anything looked like or what anyone said. I’d say none of the games appeal to me aesthetically or in subject matter, so there’s probably no point really talking to me about them at length. But I wondered, if because Twilight Princess wasn’t on your list, you thought it was particularly unfriendly in any way? I have no sense. I just know I didn’t like it and it also reminded me of a bunch of Square games that gave me a similar feeling – that I was expected to be interested in the lore before I even began. Then characters started saying stuff and I didn’t care because they never made me care. Vagrant Story (a very different game) was incomprehensibly repulsing to me in the same way.
I think the last M&M mainline game that I really got into was VI. I blasted through that game obsessively. It was closely connected to Heroes III, in some way, if I recall.
Or closer than Adventure of Link and Ocarina of Time are to one another, anyway.
Yeah, M+M VI was a sequel to HOMM 2 and sets up some stuff that pays off in HOMM 3; M+M VII likewise follows on from the events of HOMM 3, and sets up one of the HOMM 3 expansions. For a plot-light series, it’s pretty well done!
M+M X is set in a different world - the Heroes franchise got reboot somewhere after I lost track of it, and it follows along with those changes - and it’s also got tile based movement and is strictly turn-based, so in some ways it feels like a throwback to the earlier games. If you liked VI, though, VII is much of a muchness albeit with some upgrades. And VIII uses the same engine too, which definitely starts to feel a bit long in the tooth but the “play as monsters” gimmick is actually pretty fun.
When I did some replays recently, though, I and II actually wound up being my favorites. It’s hard to go too far wrong!
Yup! That is a good chunk of the fun - and indeed, the intended gameplay, since you can only save at inns and death can come relatively quickly. But dying after mapping a bunch actually means you’ve made good progress so it feels much less frustrating.
Ghostwire: Tokyo. It is one of those open-world collectathons, but the level of environmental detail is really impressive. It takes place in a sort of afterlife limbo, so a lot of the gameplay is centered around exploring abandoned buildings while encountering supernatural enemies. It is basically urban exploration crossed with The X-Files.
I have that downloaded, but I have yet to play it. I sometimes have trouble getting into first-person games, but I feel a lot of goodwill toward Shinji Mikami and Tango Gameworks.
I feel like the gameplay would of probably been better in 3rd person. There are a lot of platforming sections that are made slightly annoying by the face that you can’t always see where you are in relation to your surroundings. Plus, you can customize your outfit, despite the fact you never see yourself outside of cut-scenes.
Playing “Detroit: Become Human” on PS4. Love the story and choices whereas the “gameplay” e.g. being told to turn the analog stick in a half circle or tap the x-button repeatedly hasn’t much to do with gameplay but I simply ignore that and enjoy the story.
I’m still at it with TotK! I’ve discovered that all of my Breath of the Wild horses are available at the stables. It was nice to be reunited with Epona (she looks nothing like the Ocarina of Time Epona) again. I decided to investigate the blizzard to the northwest but hit a wall after the low temperatures became too extreme. There is an armor set that offers adequate prediction, but it costs two thousand rupees That may as well be a million, so I’ve headed east to do battle with swamp lizards.
I have three added hearts and two stamina upgrades. With more paraglider range and the ascent ability, I feel very mobile. I’ve been able to make my way to almost anywhere I’ve wanted to go.
My IF vacation will end soon; I will begin the capital-N Next capital-G Game by the end of the week, I think. Meanwhile, immersing myself in TotK has been a remarkable experience.
I don’t remember how cold it is there since it’s been a while since I was in that part of the game, but I know one thing you can do to warm yourself in those cold environments is fuse a ruby to your weapon or shield, since they contain the power of fire. It should be able to keep you adequately warm, even when you aren’t holding the weapon/shield out. You just need to have it on your back at the very least. And it won’t use any durability while doing so.
Rubies are definitely rare though, so it’s understandable if you may not want to do that, but it’s a neat detail to keep in mind just in case!
I played “Secrets of Raetikon.” I think I drew the wrong idea about its implied theme…
Open for spoilers
I put more weight on the “nature red in tooth and claw” theme than the “effect of technology on nature” theme that the developer said he was going for.
The developer’s comments makes it clear that the two themes are definitely meant to stand in contrast to one another. However, the technological theme is too much in the background IMO.
That said, the game has a palpable feel of violence which meshes well with the twist ending. I’d say the ending works as a genuine, mechanics-based plot twist rather and is far less cheap than some have accused it of.
The world is also very well designed. Lots of landmarks, and even when there isn’t a landmark, each place looks a bit different despite its low-poly style.
Highly recommended though, 4.5/5. One one hand I’d say you should know absolutely nothing about it before playing. However, I’d suggest going in knowing that there’s a shock ending … that’s what I did. If I didn’t, I wouldn’t really have paid attention to the mechanics that hint at it.
That sounds really interesting! I like the visual design in particular. I wish it would have received a console port, since that’s how I do most of my gaming (I do a bit of turn-based stuff on PC). I think that this game was right on the cusp. Today, controller games (and many others besides) tend to land on consoles eventually. Thanks for sharing some details!
Despite putting a lot of time in, I only have one ruby, I think. I have a ton of opals. Perhaps because I’ve been hanging out with the Zora? Most of the Rito domain and climb skyward only requires one tier of cold protection, but there’s a point (conveniently near a shrine) where a second level of protection is needed. Since my foods/elixirs are only one tier (as are my pants!), I can’t go any further. Surely, there will be some tier two ingredients in the rocky/volcanic regions.
I busied myself with the Zora instead, and that proved very enjoyable! The platforming in low gravity was great fun, and the puzzles in the water temple were just right. I was a bit frustrated with the boss, though, as I had to spend nearly all of my rupees on arrows (how will I ever buy the Rito armor?). Still, a good, tense fight that made good use of Sidon’s abilities!
I’m north of Castle Hyrule now, just exploring and looking for shrines/caves.
Same here! I think the devices and abilities make for better sandbox play. This game is a blast.
That sounds really interesting! I like the visual design in particular. I wish it would have received a console port, since that’s how I do most of my gaming
The developers have just released another game called Gibbon: Beyond the Trees on console…I haven’t played it yet but I plan to. I hear it is fairly short though, like the dev’s other games (Raetikon and And Yet It Moves).
