Dreakon13

Honestly looks better than I remembered/expected. I'm sure certain aspects of the games may feel dated (or very dated), but maybe I spoke too soon when I implied newcomers need to keep expectations so low. I dunno. All I know is I'm really excited for it! EDIT: I wonder if Gamestop would let me preorder a PS4 retail copy ASAP. I don't see it on their site yet.

I'll probably end up preordering Donkey Kong, but it'll kinda depend on how long God of War (PS4) lasts me. I've been without a good game to really focus on or get excited about for most of the year (Zelda was cool but way too open ended, the enthusiasm to keep going just isn't there). Considering gaming is the one hobby that I've never really grown out of, and with the winter dragging on FOREVER and keeping me from the outdoors (snow and ice in mid-April ffs)... it's been a pretty slow and uneventful 2018 for my free time thus far. It'll be nice to have several cool new games in a row coming out here. Seeing as I'm up at 6AM working basically every morning (including weekends and holidays), put in my 8+ hours from 9ish-5ish, then usually have something work related to think about or do most evenings... my mind could certainly use some desperately sought after distraction. Been more burnt out and frazzled than usual lately. ... In other Switch news... for the collectors out there... Limited Run Games next releases will be Flinthook and Mercenary Kings next Monday (April 23rd) at 10AM EST. They aren't expected to actually ship until August apparently, but they're made to demand and the ability to purchase them will stay open until May 7th. So you'll have about two weeks to actually make an order before the opportunity is gone, if interested. https://limitedrungames.com/products/switch-limited-run-2-mercenary-kings-preorder https://limitedrungames.com/products/switch-limited-run-2-flinthook-preorder As well as a collectors edition box including both games above and a bunch of extra goodies. (This is limited to 3,000 copies however first come first serve.) https://limitedrungames.com/products/switch-limited-run-1-thimbleweed-park-big-box-edition-preorder (Apparently they haven't updated the link, the URL says Thimbleweed Park but it'll take you to the new one.) I'm actually interested in both of these. Have a feeling I'll be in on most LRG Switch releases until I get tired of it, cant afford it, or until they start getting too obscure with the JRPG's and visual novels like they did with the PS4.

The problem isn't that people discuss their opinions, it's the ferocity in which those opinions are presented/discussed... and how much of those opinions are based in reality (ie. people making judgments on games they haven't played, based on reviews they probably haven't read).

I agree completely with this, beautifully put. Which is why I tend to put more stock in critic/press reviews these days over the "user review" section on any given site or streamers/YouTubers. For whatever that "stock" is ultimately worth. The unfortunate thing with games versus other entertainment mediums, new AAA releases in particular, is that they're expensive and usually time sinks (even the 30+ hour single player games). You really want to know its something you'll like, and that it really is what the marketing says it is, before you invest your time and money into it... so trying to put myself in other peoples shoes, I can understand the skepticism and even hostility around reviews and marketing and the cycle of deception/disappointment in new releases. Should strive to be better than angry and aggressive with everything though, drawing conclusions too hastily, patience and a little respect to our fellow gamers/developers can go a long way. Something the gaming community has monumentally failed to do since the inception of social media.

I think people tend to be a little too knee-jerk in their reactions to games (myself included at times). When a game comes out to rave reviews and 10/10's across the board, there are people (in this thread even) who immediately think "OMG paid reviews, the game is blowing up too much, the sheeple must be wrong, there's no way its that good"... which is no less dangerous/naive than the people they criticize for being convinced a game is amazing solely because of the reviews. In both cases, these people are making snap decisions having never even touched the game and are letting their review bias, developer bias, platform bias and/or genre bias, run the show. The lesson here is to take all reviews with a grain of salt, no matter which side of the fence you're on. You have no idea if a game is good or bad, objectively or subjectively, until you've played it for yourself (and even then it doesn't make you judge jury and executioner, all you know is if you like it). All a review can do is give you one persons perspective, and that's all our opinions on a game amount to as well.

I don't think there's any guarantee that Jesus sitting in that room means he agrees with everything Maggie was saying. Which wasn't even "lets go kill Negan" or "lets overthrow Rick" FWIW... just saying that they're going to show Rick he was wrong in a dark/ominous way. So if there's some sort of "civil war" coming, I'm hoping that it happens at least sorta organically. Though whatever happens, please don't drag it out forever. Long enough to let things happen naturally, but short enough that we aren't watching 10 full episodes of filler/unnecessary plot threads by the end. EDIT: Though I just rewatched the scene and Jesus was sitting there with a smirk and a nod to what Maggie was saying. Dunno WTF to make of that, makes no sense. EDIT 2: Maybe we won't see anything about this little uprising for a little while, since Maggie talks about "biding their time". Maybe the next arc will come around quickly, and Maggie/Daryl turning the screws on Rick/Michonne will just add wrinkles at the worst possible times, and slowly build to something more. I wouldn't mind a serious differing of opinions among main characters in Ricks group for a change, feels like its been a while. Maybe even going back to season 2 and Shane. Everyone has been so damn agreeable about most things. Had hopes for Morgan with his pacifist mode, and then his 'clear' mode, but he barely moved the needle outside of a skirmish or two.

I feel like this post is not adequately acknowledging that the gaming community (the vocal part of it anyways) has far more hate, vitriol and aggression... than it has "too many people loving their favorite games too much". Case in point, spend about 10 minutes on any comment section on any gaming site (or any site period) or the Steam discussion boards. 😑 EDIT: Heck, even if I didn't agree with it, I'd take some pleasant conversation about what makes The Last Of Us a fascinating game over defending some jerkoffs right to chime in with "tlou fucking sucks because its practicaly a movie come fight me irl" every other post to get a rise out of people and/or a laugh with their equally jerkoff friends.

AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!! All I'll say, is that those of you without nostalgia on your side (ie. playing them for the first time)... they're rough games. I'm confident when I say they probably haven't aged well at all and expectations should be VERY tempered going in. I'll be enjoying the hell out of them though. Might even get some junk food and stay up all night playing like the good ol' days. YES! Even better!!

I mean, as I alluded to before... I don't think gameplay, story and presentation are mutually exclusive concepts. In fact, I think it's the games that do all three well (or better than 'well'), mix them so seamlessly and compliment eachother that tend to garner the most respect. With a few exceptions for various reasons that I may or may not agree with. 😁

There are plenty of games that get 6, 7, 8 out of 10. You just don't hear about them as much because they are simply "good" versus something better. I'll give you that presentation is probably the biggest factor in Naughty Dog games... but the "polish" that goes into that presentation creeps into the gameplay and story as well. In all my days I haven't found a third person shooter that plays as well as Uncharted. Spec Ops: The Line for example is a TPS heralded for its story... but it's embarrassingly mediocre gameplay-wise. More third person shooters than not find themselves closer to Spec Ops than Uncharted in that regard. Maybe it's my bias, but I also feel like the writing and dialog comes more naturally in Naughty Dog games as well... it's corny, but in a good way, and blends the fun and the serious well. Put it all together and you have games that hit from every angle and worthy of the praise IMO... even if they aren't doing anything too daring creatively. Personally, given the rise of social media and the importance people place on "unbiased" user reviews over critic reviews, the tides have turned. User reviews tend to be the knee-jerk cow-towing to public demand because everyone wants to be popular and "fighting a cause" (which usually means high ratings for games from developers with supposed consumer-friendly business practices, and bitching about everything else)... and critic reviews tend to view things more objectively without obsessing over nit-picky things.

Or maybe the games are just really good?

I mean, the whole "if I haven't played it, it isn't real" approach is all well and good... but I don't think it's a stretch at all to say from interviews, trailers, gameplay clips, etc... that the game is going for a certain cinematic narrative approach similar to that of The Last of Us. Right down to the kid and the father figure. Whether the quality is there, that we'll have to wait and see (it certainly seems promising though to this point).