YaManSmevz Posted December 1, 2022 Author Share Posted December 1, 2022 2 hours ago, serrated-banner9 said: i don't think i have ever seen a video game with the box saying it's compatible with all regions good luck with those .... i should actually continue with my checklist and actually write up the reviews for games i have 100% only problem is that i hate long reviews so it's gonna be a grudge lol Damn, you're an observant dude, haha.. and thanks for the well-wishes! Your reviews don't have to be long if you don't want them to be! You can make them as short as you'd like, honestly if I wasn't so talkative I'd prefer to shorten mine down as well? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post YaManSmevz Posted December 3, 2022 Author Popular Post Share Posted December 3, 2022 (edited) Platinum #81: Call of Duty: Modern Warfare The bullets scream to me from somewhere I've never been the most avid Call of Duty fan - I got WWII for free and am still struggling to find the inspiration to go back and chip away at it, for instance - but it's definitely one of those franchises that can surprise me from time to time. I was curious after hearing about a reboot of the excellent Modern Warfare sub-series from 2007 and decided to keep an eye out for a good sale, eventually seeing a discount that was likely as good as it was going to get. What was Modern Warfare on sale for? Half Captain Price. *hold for boos* Much like with its original counterpart, I was caught off guard with how fiercely Modern Warfare sunk its teeth into me. I found myself playing this for a couple days straight, unable to do much more than just keep pushing on and seeing what was going to happen next. This one, however, is a LOT easier - with the original I remember countless moments where I was reliving the same ten seconds over and over, whereas here there were still challenging moments, but every setback was overcome fairly quickly. Much like its fellow 2019 remake Resident Evil 2, Modern Warfare is a painfully gorgeous game, arguably even more so as it doesn't have the same desaturation issues. We start off sneaking through the woods, and I just gawked at my surroundings while absent-mindedly holding up on the analog stick. I could've gotten sniped off, stepped into a bear trap, whatever, and I wouldn't have cared - I was too busy admiring how beautiful everything looked. Piccadilly Circus comes to mind as a standout where this sensory overload is concerned. It looks fantastic, absolutely nailing the location, but it's the mood that really steals the show here. People are running around all over the place, with terrorists and civilians often difficult to differentiate in a split second (not to mention that those civilians will often wildly run right in front of you as you're aiming at an enemy). Your trigger skills are very much tested here as is your awareness of the surroundings. It's a quick level, but extraordinarily effective at placing you in a catastrophic event as well as underlining the 'modern warfare' in the game's title - sadly, this is just the world we live in now. Modern Warfare has a pretty solid cast, and the classic device of having them all unite about halfway through the campaign still felt like a great and well earned "alriiight!!" moment. I thought the diversity of our group (cue Rufus: "What a crew") was great as well. Having played the original, Captain Price was the early favorite, but resistance leader Farah Karim quickly took that distinction. Her character received so much depth, and given her background it was something I really appreciated. It's very easy for the writing in these games to succumb to war glorification, military platitudes, and ra ra America sentiments, and segments like the one where she's a child and her village is being overrun with the aid of chemical weapons is powerful, and serves the perfect counterpoint. Here is Farah pictured below: Unfortunately though, it exposes how paper thin a character like Alex is. I immediately noticed how quickly they start planting these "what a nice guy!" seeds. It's established that he's been sent to all sorts of places and has seen a lot, yet he immediately becomes uniquely dedicated to Farah and her group's cause, wanting to go above and beyond to help however he can. The "but... but THESE ARE WAR CRIMES!!" and "We are brothers now" moments, along with that ending, just feel so weird. Like bro you've known them for what, a week?? There have been sharper criticisms, namely on the torture segments, but it does make a lot more sense here than in something like GTA V, where it feels tacked on for shock value. Being the recipient oddly gives off less of a gross feeling, and when you are in the opposite end of the situation you're given the opportunity to opt out, which is nice. There's a few iffy areas for sure, but overall I was really impressed with this game. It might be because I'm knee deep in the PS3 backlog at the moment, but playing this and Resident Evil 3 more or less back to back has given me so much eye candy it's ridiculous. Modern Warfare looks great, feels great, and likely will whizz past you as quickly as it did for me. FPS is decidedly not my genre of choice, but this is one I'd recommend gladly! Stray Observations - That opening, with the dude stepping out of the van, about to blow himself up before the title screen silences all the insanity of the scene?? Outstanding. - The quirk where you die and the camera lands awkwardly, like your head got spun around, is awesome. I first saw that in Half-Life and found it so jarring, I'm glad it's become a genre staple. - Guiding the civilian towards escape in the embassy, using the feeds of different cameras throughout the floor, was inspired as hell, I really enjoyed that part. Tense as shit! - Speaking of tense, I thought the house clearing missions were up there with Piccadilly for sure, especially Going Dark. Adding that stealth element made the game feel that much more fresh. - The well definitely seems to have run dry at this point with the quotes you get upon death. I laughed out loud when I saw a Bob Marley quote in a freakin Call of Duty game, it just felt so out of place. "You've got to squeeze your buns." - Richard Simmons THAT Trophy: Liberation One of the things I really liked about this game is that the trophy list seems to have been made with little fun extra challenges in mind, which is exactly how they should be! I loved having to be perfectly stealthy for a few challenges, completing one mission entirely with a pistol and another with eight different weapons, stuff like that was great. And yes, I enjoyed this one as well! It sees you completing four online co-op missions, and it may be Doomsday talking but I've developed a soft spot for that sort of thing. These missions are super punishing though, especially to a noob like myself. Three of the four missions have enemies absolutely everywhere, with one in particular being in this enclosed space with smoke grenades constantly being dropped. Oh, and speaking of Doomsday, those fucking juggernauts are horrible! Modern Warfare, you've been hanging out with GTA V too much, I think he's a bad influence... I'm not a part of the CoD community, so it was unbeknownst to me but this mode is highly derided for its inferiority to previous iterations, and even I can see why. The UI is kind of a pain to navigate, glitches can be pretty prevalent, and Activision's insistence on constantly trying to sell us Modern Warfare 2 is obnoxious. But even with all that, as well as the surprisingly difficult moments, I still enjoyed my time with the online portion. Much like the base game, it was a pleasant surprise! Edited December 3, 2022 by YaManSmevz 9 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CelestialRequiem Posted December 7, 2022 Share Posted December 7, 2022 (edited) On 12/1/2022 at 1:59 AM, YaManSmevz said: That's it, every PS3 game I either played on the 360, never played but wanted to, or found to have a reasonable enough price tag is here. I'm sure the odd PS4 game will still grab me on occasion, but this stack is priority, and will be until it's done. Some of these absolutely terrify me and may end up lost in the sad, dirty sea of incompletion, but that is the plan. Some good stuff here. Especially, like you, many of these were experiences I had engaged with on the Xbox 360. Dead Space is an immediate standout in that regard. Currently going through it myself. I’ll spare you my verbose thoughts with the game, as well as its upcoming remake; though I’ll express that I’m terribly fond of the game, and it was the first title that I had 1000G’d on the Xbox 360. Enslaved: Odyssey to the West, I remember there being a fair amount of controversy when it came to the PS3 port. Because Unreal Engine 3 was not kind to the PlayStation 3’s architecture (though, we were able to witness Ninja Theory improve their proficiency with utilization of the engine, particularly in-game with DmC: Devil May Cry), the PlayStation 3 version got a lot of well-deserved flack. Ninja Theory didn’t do themselves any favors either; I remember distinctly that they said both versions were built “from the ground up”. Not sure who they were trying to fool with that statement. Even before I practiced game development, I immediately questioned that declaration, at the time. Of course, while these games aren’t available on the Xbox 360, the God of War HD Collection is one I remember well -- as God of War HD was my first platinum on my original (American, before I relocated to Japan) account. Classic God of War is a more favorable game compared to its contemporary position (even if there is some personal affiliation due to my profession), in my opinion. The gameplay is more my style, to say the least. The Metal Gear Solid HD Collection I will be eternally grateful for. Supreme ports from the tech-masters in good ol’ Texas. Someday, I’ll pursue the Peace Walker platinum. Christ, that game was impressive on PSP. The console version looks and plays incredibly. ...Unfortunately, the same cannot be said in regards to the Silent Hill HD collection, as I’m sure you’re aware. Pains me to say, but that is the best, and worst thing I have to talk about here as I visit your checklist (spent some time catching up on all of your movement from when you had started it – I lack the elegance to describe the extreme comeback it was in regards to your completion rate, but from seeing your starting point, it is impressive). Even though you’re likely calibrated to the information regarding the HD collection, I still feel the need to warn you. Not only is the collection unfinished with the polish it had on the sixth generation versions, but it’s prone to crashing and freezing – much of it is just simply unavoidable/unpredictable. Functionality will fail for reasons you’d have no reason to suspect – even if it’s something you had done before. Make peace with God that during your 10-Star run, you will fail for reasons outside of your control. ...However, Silent Hill 2 (not fond of Silent Hill 3, so the lack of me speaking about it is out of disinterest for the game) is worth playing – even if the HD version got shafted heavily. Also, an opinion I don’t share often with my peers, but I found the new voice acting to be far superior to the original VOs, and even elevates the game further to experience its director was trying to achieve. Many here may even disagree with that; I concede that it is me who is the outlier in that regard. I do apologize if you’re already aware of everything I had spoken about. I just really adore Silent Hill 2. This statement I won’t spare – I would sooner play this borked port than even glance at its upcoming remake. Pessimism is hard to divorce from realism, at times. I believe that this is going to be the case. -EDIT-: All of this is just to say, I'll be looking forward to reading about these games. Your Manhunt write-up was an incredible highlight. Not only do I love that game, but it is the only Rockstar game that I have enjoyed. In a weird way, I'm jealous that I can't properly engage with the PS4 version. It runs terribly on the PS5, and the whole reason why I got a PS5 was to replace my broken PS4... lol. Edited December 7, 2022 by CelestialRequiem 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YaManSmevz Posted December 7, 2022 Author Share Posted December 7, 2022 1 hour ago, CelestialRequiem said: Some good stuff here. Especially, like you, many of these were experiences I had engaged with on the Xbox 360. Ayyy thanks man! And appreciate you stoppin by? Quote Dead Space is an immediate standout in that regard. Currently going through it myself. I’ll spare you my verbose thoughts with the game, as well as its upcoming remake; though I’ll express that I’m terribly fond of the game, and it was the first title that I had 1000G’d on the Xbox 360. I only played a very small amount of Dead Space on the 360, but I remember loving the atmosphere to death. Very much looking forward to that one! Quote Enslaved: Odyssey to the West, I remember there being a fair amount of controversy when it came to the PS3 port. Because Unreal Engine 3 was not kind to the PlayStation 3’s architecture (though, we were able to witness Ninja Theory improve their proficiency with utilization of the engine, particularly in-game with DmC: Devil May Cry), the PlayStation 3 version got a lot of well-deserved flack. Ninja Theory didn’t do themselves any favors either; I remember distinctly that they said both versions were built “from the ground up”. Not sure who they were trying to fool with that statement. Even before I practiced game development, I immediately questioned that declaration, at the time. Well shit, that's kinda disheartening. It looks and feels alright thus far though, just classic PS3 jank, really. Oh, and that DLC... I completely forgot what a rigmarole buying anything from the PS3 store had become, that was definitely not the most fun way to start playing a game? Quote Of course, while these games aren’t available on the Xbox 360, the God of War HD Collection is one I remember well -- as God of War HD was my first platinum on my original (American, before I relocated to Japan) account. Classic God of War is a more favorable game compared to its contemporary position (even if there is some personal affiliation due to my profession), in my opinion. The gameplay is more my style, to say the least. Nice! That's a great first plat. I haven't touched anything with God of War on it since the second game came out way back when, I'm excited for the nostalgia to slap me across the face. Quote The Metal Gear Solid HD Collection I will be eternally grateful for. Supreme ports from the tech-masters in good ol’ Texas. Someday, I’ll pursue the Peace Walker platinum. Christ, that game was impressive on PSP. The console version looks and plays incredibly. Yeah I haven't heard a bad thing about that collection. Dreading the VR missions for MGS2 but other than that I'm really looking forward to it. I have no knowledge whatsoever about Peace Walker (well I know it was a MGS game on the PSP, so I guess that's not entirely true), but the idea that I can now play it if I so choose is kinda dope. Quote ...Unfortunately, the same cannot be said in regards to the Silent Hill HD collection, as I’m sure you’re aware. Pains me to say, but that is the best, and worst thing I have to talk about here as I visit your checklist (spent some time catching up on all of your movement from when you had started it – I lack the elegance to describe the extreme comeback it was in regards to your completion rate, but from seeing your starting point, it is impressive). Even though you’re likely calibrated to the information regarding the HD collection, I still feel the need to warn you. Not only is the collection unfinished with the polish it had on the sixth generation versions, but it’s prone to crashing and freezing – much of it is just simply unavoidable/unpredictable. Functionality will fail for reasons you’d have no reason to suspect – even if it’s something you had done before. Make peace with God that during your 10-Star run, you will fail for reasons outside of your control. So I've heard? That's been a debated purchase for a long time because of that very reason. The 10 Star run is already pretty damn intimidating without crashes popping up at random, but... as you say, it's very much worth playing even if the available version is rife with imperfections. I have also read about the re-recorded VOs being somewhat divisive, but fortunately I remember very little of this game, so it likely will make little difference to me. Also thanks! It's still very easy for me to forget that people I don't talk to on the regular read these things? I've been very fortunate in having the free time to build my percentage up, there's nothing wrong with a low completion rate but I wanted to try and see how well I could do. Like most of us here, I guess? Quote -EDIT-: All of this is just to say, I'll be looking forward to reading about these games. Your Manhunt write-up was an incredible highlight. Not only do I love that game, but it is the only Rockstar game that I have enjoyed. In a weird way, I'm jealous that I can't properly engage with the PS4 version. It runs terribly on the PS5, and the whole reason why I got a PS5 was to replace my broken PS4... lol. Thanks a lot, man! I'm really glad you enjoyed Manhunt, that's one I wish got more love. I am not glad to hear that you can't play it though? That sucks! I heard someone else talk about how it plays like garbage on the PS5, that's fuckin wack... I'd be looking at the console like you're next gen bro, get it together! 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post YaManSmevz Posted December 30, 2022 Author Popular Post Share Posted December 30, 2022 Yearly Beloved, 2022 Wassap, PSN homies??? Welp, it's that time again. And it was certainly in a rush to get here, wasn't it? Feels like I blinked and December was almost over. Regardless, 2022 was a solid year of gaming - 43 completions, with time for God of War 2 to be #44 in the next couple of days, just one game behind my output last year. A lot of great titles, be they classics or newer releases, and a lot of plats under my belt that I wouldn't have thought possible a year ago. In any case, let's crack open some beverages and get started! First, a few shout outs - we're gonna keep it simple this year and limit it to four. The first three are @DrBloodmoney, @rjkclarke, and @realm722, for always making sure that my backlog is stocked with choice games. Big thanks for leaving your impeccable taste at my disposal, all three of y'all! #4 is my man @kindajustin for being my partner in crime on three games this year (we still gotta get you that Overcooked hundo tho?). Those GTA games we completed are among my proudest gaming achievements, so a huge thanks to you, bro! And now! ?Most Addicting Gameplay? -God of War Somehow I forgot how satisfying it is to play as this primal, savage beast of a man. Whether you're calculating your combos just so or merely button mashing, this thing plays so much smoother than its age would have you believe. -The Hong Kong Massacre It's definitely not perfect, but it's a tough one to put down, that's for sure. Bullet time, bullet dodging cartwheels, and bullet...er, shooting. That's pretty much all this game does, but it's so fluid, so fast paced and chaotic, that before you know it you're on the third chapter. -Batman: Arkham Asylum For when you need more precision to your chaos. Before the rhythm of the combat even clicks, this thing is still an absolute blast. And paired with the light puzzles and problem solving? You didn't see it, but I just gave it two chef's kisses. -Guacamelee! Cool special moves, tactical combat, dimension swapping, even... yes, turning into a chicken. Not a lot more you could ask for, man! -Hitman 3 Is this franchise gonna dominate for two years running now?? ...probably. Everything is just so smooth, and you can do damn near anything you can dream up. It's not even certain what's more fun, doing the outlandish shit or watching the reactions you get! The first of many tight races, but this one goes to Hitman 3! ?Best Music?-The Hong Kong Massacre I admit, it feels like if a cover band for Hotline Miami was a thing, but Professor Kliq ain't fuckin around. These are some jams - they pulse, thump, and groove, and frankly some of these songs belong on the Beastie Boys' instrumental album The Mix-Up, it's that good. It had me consulting YouTube for another hit long after I'd finished it, and really if that don't say it all, I don't know what to tell ya.-Lair of the Clockwork God Tobey Evans, just like his soundtrack's parent game, gets so much deeper than you would ever expect. From the gleeful 16 bit worship to the somber piano pieces fleshed out with intense strings, it's such an impressive trip, and a reason unto itself why more peeps should be playing this game.-Transistor Narrowly beating out its older brother Bastion, this ingenious blend of drum & Bass, Trip Hop, Alt Rock, and Blues is too good to overlook. Which is impressive already, but on top of that, Darren Korb is just a master with chord progressions and layering. If Transistor was completely silent until Paper Boats started at the end though, it would still be nominated. That chorus hitting was one of those moments where I put the controller down and just sat there. Unforgettable.-Guacamelee! Ugh, my heart. Mariachi trumpets and flamenco guitar is my grandmother's music, and it will always be a weakness for me. Mix that with some fun 8 bit electro and a shadowy alternate for every track, and you've got something special. It just makes me smile.-Shredder's Revenge Squeaking by Dex's 90s Industrial-lite at the last minute, my nostalgia ultimately won out. Tee Lopes somehow mimics the old cartoons and arcade games perfectly while making it fresh, and it makes me feel like I'm nine years old kickin it at the arcade again. Pure 90s cheese, I fuckin love it. By a painfully slim margin, Transistor takes it! ?Best Graphics? -Call of Duty: Modern Warfare This one flat out blew me away. I know how commonplace realism has become in games these days, but God DAMN. The immersion is through the roof because of the graphics alone, you're practically there. -Salt and Sanctuary It's the hand-drawn look for me. I love that aesthetic, and it's so well done here, ranging from black and white to full-blown color. Very dark and dreary, even when a splash of blue or pink shows up. And those bosses! Every one of them looks so dope, and helps make the world feel that much more unique.-Transistor Red and her foes all have an excellent design, but it's the world they inhabit that seals the deal. Killer futuristic vibes, and the city feels like it just goes on for days. -The Artful Escape Such a creative and vivid feast for the eyes. There is so much imagination on display here that it can get almost overwhelming at times! -Hitman 3 Much like its fellow nominee Modern Warfare, there's not much more to comment on other than how good it looks, but damn if it don't look good. The levels are as expansive as they are intricate, with such impressive detail. You could just walk through these locations completely ignoring your objectives and still have a great time! As much as I want to lean more towards creativity than sheer graphical prowess, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare comes out on top. It just looks too good! ?Best Voice Acting? -Grand Theft Auto IV There's some serious talent all across the board, but Michael Hollick nailed it as Niko. You can hear his anguish even when he's cracking jokes, and when he gets raging, he riles you up along with him. Just fantastic work! -Batman: Arkham Asylum Mark Hamill and the late great Kevin Conroy doing their thing will always be worth the price of admission, full stop. The calm, stoic Batman exchanging with the manic Joker is utterly captivating every time, but only when these two do it. -Stick It to the Man I can only imagine how much fun the cast had in the booth, every performance is so fucking funny. I don't use words like 'zany' in my every day speech, but it absolutely applies here. Everything is so over the top and goofy, and hearing the actors let loose is such a joy. Possibly the funniest game I played this year? -The Artful Escape Michael Johnston portrays Francis with the perfect level of vulnerability, and that Carl Weathers gravitas just kills. Caroline Kinley's Violetta is the secret weapon though, I love that over it, cool girl energy she brings! -Twelve Minutes For a game like this, the voice acting gotta be in point, and our star studded trio is solid. Willem Dafoe shows multiple sides to the antagonistic cop, and James McAvoy brings so much torment to a gradually more and more tormented role. The talent in the booth damn near carried this game! Batman: Arkham Asylum, there's too much legend in one place for it not to be. ?Best Story? -Grand Theft Auto IV Following Niko Bellic's story of revenge is captivating enough, but we're given two more protagonists with intertwining tales as well! Everything lines up, and the writing never falters, be it the rich plot or complex characters. Possibly the best story this franchise has told. -Bastion We start with a floating civilization meeting its end, beginning to collapse from the sky, and the plot, lore, and characters are all so well thought out that this fantastical premise quickly begins to feel very real. How can you say no to that?? -The Artful Escape An emotional powerhouse. Following Francis from being a suppressed kid trying to please everybody to finally finding the courage to claim his true self and move forward in his life is not a new kind of story, but it's told so well here. One of those stories you walk away from just feeling good. -Sleeping Dogs Much like The Departed, this game captures that paranoia of an undercover cop masterfully. We feel like we're right there with officer Wei Shen, with tense moment after tense moment, and watching him sway closer to his Triad comrades is predictable, but done so well that you don't care. -The Forgotten City A romp in ancient Rome where the hits keep coming. It's tricky to get into the story without giving anything away, but nothing is as it seems, and every twist hits hard. Just enough juice to take the dub, The Forgotten City clinches it! ?Best Playable Character?-Niko Bellic, Grand Theft Auto IV Luis Lopez came close, but this was the right man to go with. Narrative dissonance aside, the evident torment and weariness is played to a perfect degree, as it doesn't overshadow Niko's other qualities. He's funny, and shockingly warm and kind on occasion. Y'know, complex. Almost like a real person!-Farah Karim, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare One of my favorite parts of this game. Farah's story goes a long way towards showing the even uglier side to war that we don't always get from the Call of Dutys of the world, and she's such a brave, courageous character without coming across as a stereotype.-Jill Valentine, Resident Evil 3 I've played her as a protagonist three separate times this year, so you bet your ass she's nominated! In 1, she's the person forced into bad assery, but in 3 she feels fully formed. This is how I like my women, quick thinking and tough. And pointing a gun at me.-Sean Devlin, The Saboteur It's about as cliché as you can get, being too much of a smart ass to take your own story seriously, but Sean makes it so fun. Unlike Nathan Drake, his random musings are actually entertaining to listen to, he's just a funny dude. And the way this man parkours, there's no way he ain't got abs of steel.-Batman, Batman: Arkham Asylum I mean duh. Not an easy call, but... Niko Bellic, come on down! ?Best NPC?-Little Jacob, GTA IV Little Jacob is that dude. Those times where Niko needed some back up, there he was, no questions asked. That thick Jamaican patois, his love of hotboxing every whip he sits in, and those rocket launcher skills get him the nod. Roman was a veeerryyy close second, but Little Jacob never pestered anybody to go bowling. -Rucks, Bastion In a year where I played a game featuring Sir Patrick Stewart on narration, the fact that Rucks is still the narrator of the year says something! Logan Cunningham just oozes this Sam Elliott coolness in this role. And granted, we're pretty much doing all the work, but without Rucks we likely wouldn't have survived long post-Calamity. -Diana Burnwood, Hitman 3 How starstruck was I to see her in the flesh in Hitman 3! The woman behind the man, Diana has played a crucial role throughout the entire franchise, and her moment in this game is a stunner. -Galerius, The Forgotten City Galerius is not just a good dude, but hes as utilitarian as NPCs come. He carries this game on his back, and it's crazy to watch him towards the end of the game as he dutifully sets every crucial moment into motion. What a guy! -Glottis, Grim Fandango Maybe a goofy pick here, but I just loved watching him interact with Manny. Textbook slapstick sidekick, and with a heart of hold to boot! This one was surprisingly easy, there's just no beating Galerius here, man! ?Best WHATATWIST Moment?-GTA IV"Look at you in those fancy clothes, Niko!" I know, by 2022's standards this one is Luke's father levels of played out. But I played this back when it was brand new, and nobody was expecting something like that. Truly ballsy storytelling from beginning to end. -Telling Lies "Water is life." Depending on how early you stumble upon this footage, it can be a minor or major shock, but either way it's still pretty unexpected. Still don't like this guy, though!-Transistor"Don't you do it, don't you dare." The turning point for me with this game, where I went from acknowledging Transistor's absurdly high quality to becoming addicted. An emotional gut punch followed by an immediate restart in New Game+. Now there's a one two punch!-Twelve Minutes"Is that the nanny?" I don't think this game accomplished all of what it set out to do, nor do I think the twist was particularly well advised. But did it get a serious WTF out of me?? A resounding YES.-The Forgotten City"You're back! But you're alone..." There are so many great twists in this game, but this last one truly threw me for a loop. It's not easy to blindside a player so regularly, and to still save the best for last? Bra-vo. Once again, the nod goes to The Forgotten City! ?Most Satisfying Completion? -Grand Theft Auto IV From spending a week on AWP to toiling away at Gold Star for Gay Tony or Fly the Co-op for the online missions... or shooting 200 pigeons, or getting all those stunt jumps, this was a demanding completion, and one I was genuinely scared to attempt! -Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell Blacklist No, playing as grown up Danny Phantom wasn't necessarily difficult, but it was the first time I saw a game's servers going down and went for the platinum before it became unobtainable. I set up a boosting group and got it done the day before the servers were set to shut down... and then they added another month? Still though, it was a cool feeling! -Batman: Arkham Asylum Genuinely thought I was never going to get this one, that those advanced combat mechanics were never going to click for me and this was doomed to be unfinished. So when I was finally able to conquer the combat challenges... man, that shit felt great! -GTA V As demanding as the single player campaign is, that online shit is something else. Namely Doomsday! Those two trophies took months, and I owe a lot to the like-minded lunatics who joined me for that shit! I remember when the last one in our group got the Masterminds trophy, it was like this huge collective sigh. That was a PROJECT, man. -MLB The Show 2019 Another one I just didn't think was gonna happen. I happened upon a boosting group and just thought "fuck it, why not." An agonizing grind? Absolutely. But any time you slay a platinum blocker is gonna feel really good, and my efforts were rewarded with my first UR plat. All worthy candidates, but Batman: Arkham Asylum wins, simply on the grounds of how long I had given up on it. ?Best Game I Been Sleepin On? -Salt & Sanctuary I blame my irrational fear of Soulsborne games! Approached with one with some trepidation, but quickly realized what lore-heavy, hand drawn goodness I'd been missing out on! -Transistor A long journey with this one! Kept hearing great things, eventually bought it, and then ignored it for a long while. Then started playing, wasn't quite feelin it, and ignored it some more. Then, after forcing myself to just make it through the story, everything fell into place, and suddenly I was in love. Sleepin! -Guacamelee! Another example of hearing about how great a game was one too many times. I think the whole Metroidvania tag, which I knew of but wasn't really familiar with, kept me at bay. But now I'm not only wise to what great games these are, but how great the genre is as well! -Sleeping Dogs Here's a silly one - I love open world crime games, but there were too many disappointing GTA knock offs keeping me from giving this one a try. I even played the opening mission on the 360 before bein like "NOPE! I'm good, for no real reason, just decided." DUMB. When I tried it again this year, I was hooked almost immediately. And of course I was, because this game is the shit! -Grim Fandango I'd heard about this one here and there for years, but never really thought to give it a chance. By the time I finally got around to it, it felt fashionably retro? I'm not the biggest Adventure guy, but the story and characters were great, and honestly I should've met Manny Calavera waaayyy sooner! Ended up going with time spent in between discovery and completion, and on those grounds Sleeping Dogs wins it! ?Best DLC?-GTA IV: The Ballad of Gay Tony Giving the famously drab Liberty City a splash of Vice City was an inspired decision, and that's before we get into what great characters Luis and Tony are! We get a new story that lines up with that of the base game, but we also get new mini-games, new radio stations, and new weapons. Dancing? Suavemente? The auto shotty?? Come on now. -Cuphead: The Delicious Last Course One of the most fun, most challenging, and best looking boss rush games I'd ever played got more of literally all those things. New storyline, new bosses, new character, new moves, new items, I mean this was damn near a whole new game! Also, the step up in both illustration and animation can't be overlooked. The insanity that is the final battle? My god. -GTA V: Online Heists Something I wish I'd talked about more in my GTA V write-up, these heists are ridiculously fun. Rockstar saw what a blast we were having with heist missions and it finally dawned on them - why don't we just give them a bunch of those that they can play together? Granted, playing these with randoms isn't always the best time, but when you're playing with homies? Aw man, it's great. -Resident Evil 5: Lost in Nightmares Fans start making comments about how Resident Evil is losing the plot, that there's too much action and not enough horror. So what do they do? Make us a mini-mission that takes inspiration directly from the first two games with the dual player system from the base game. And actually make it good! Sure, Wesker looks like he belongs in Equilibrium more than a Resident Evil game, but the tension and fear factor of the DLC's first 90% is fantastic. -Sleeping Dogs: Nightmare in North Point Hey, you! Did you like Sleeping Dogs? "Yeah..." How would you like to play it again, except this time it's like the Thriller music video? "SHUT UP AND TAKE MY MONEY." ...wait, you have the PS4 version, so it's already inclu- "I SAID TAKE IT!!" Sure, sure. Just play it though, cuz it's fuckin dope. Man, these ain't getting any easier. Legit photo finish here for The Ballad of Gay Tony! ?Best Blast from the Past? -God of War The peak of the PS2, right here! Insane how well this thing has aged (well it's a lil male gazey for 2022 but I mean so is everything) and what a blast this still is to play. A buddy I worked with at the time, who's also a Greek mythology nerd, basically told me on day "drop whatever else you're playing, you need to be playing this." Homie was right?♂️ -WWE Smackdown Vs RAW 2010 Not the best game in the franchise, but the closest I'll come to reliving my obsession with these games back in the aughts. Those silly stories, the creation suites, the pick up and play controls, a simple joy from simpler times. -TMMT: Shredder's Revenge The only nominee released this year, but it belongs here on the strength of being a freakin Ninja Turtles game in 2022! It's such a wonderful homage to the cartoon and arcade games from back in the day, complete with returning voice actors from the era! This thing seriously made me feel like a kid again. -Syphon Filter Much like God of War, I somehow forgot what a great game this is. Surprisingly good gunplay for such an old game, and a pretty solid story - I had forgotten a few of the twists, so it was dope to relive some of those moments! -Grim Fandango This one I actually had never played, but once you put it on it's like taking a bath in 90s gaming nostalgia. I forgot how obsessed computer graphics were with being as 3D as possible back then! Very much a game of its time, though I mean that in the best way possible! And the winner is... God of War!?Best Feels Kicker?-Lair of the Clockwork God Never expected this one to take me where it did. It's so silly and light hearted, but it takes some TURNS, man. One minute you're getting jizz jokes, and the next you're being confronted with mortality and loss. It's somethin else! -Old Man's Journey This one hit me pretty hard, and not just for how reflective it made me feel. The old man's story is pretty powerful, and we learn more and more about him as we follow him on his titular journey. That ending's got a pretty solid punch, too! -Transistor The game's sudden ending hits hard, and unfortunately it's not something you can talk about without spoiling anything. But those who know know, y'know? -The Artful Escape On paper, this one's pretty basic, but in practice it's got a great emotional wallop. It's just so unflinchingly honest, and the sense of yearning, of wanting to be free to be your true self, and the hopeful note we end on is some potent shit. -My Memory of Us For the most part, this game keeps things light hearted, but there are a few moments where the seriousness of what's being referenced come through, and they can be unexpectedly heavy! Then there's the stories of the Polish heroes during the Holocaust... man. Gimme a second y'all, I'm feeling weak. Once again, painfully close. But The Artful Escape just barely pulls ahead of the pack!?Most Charming Indie? -Bastion Bastion hits top marks in three categories - story, gameplay, and music. Just top notch stuff. Did I mention Rucks? -Lair of the Clockwork God If I'd had a Best Surprise category, this likely would've taken it. Both funny and emotional with clever gameplay and great music, like I said before, this one needs more peeps playing it. -Salt and Sanctuary It still blows me away how a married couple put this together themselves. The look is already spectacular, but putting together builds, leveling up, and taking on these larger than life bosses brings it to the next level. And the imagination that went into the lore?? Get the fuck out of here! -Super Time Force Ultra This could've been a basic side scroller deal, but there's so much more creativity applied here. The rewind function is absolutely brilliant, the diversity in the characters (and their impressive silliness) is excellent, and the sense of humor just charmed the shit out of me. -Guacamelee I love the idea of a game so happily dressing itself up in Mexican culture, but it wouldn't mean much without solid gameplay, a unique look, and bad ass tunes. Unfortunately though, as far as I know, no such game exists. What a pity. Count this one as a hard fought victory for Bastion!?Least Best Game?-Godfather II I was pleasantly surprised at how many of my favorite qualities from the original game were present here. So many great new ideas too! I just wish this had been given more development time, but as is? This game is a blast. -The Hong Kong Massacre There are too many issues that keep this one from reaching the top tier, but what it does right is outstanding. The bullet time and dodging mechanics work beautifully together, and running through levels blasting everybody is addicting as hell. -MultiVersus Probably the closest to a successful Smash Bros clone that I've ever seen. There's still lots of bugs to be worked out, at least from when I last played it, but from the roster to gameplay, there's a lot of potential here. -Twelve Minutes UGH. When a narrative snares you up only to fumble its storytelling, it's more than a bit frustrating! Still though, that atmosphere here is solid, the voice work is excellent, and in the very least it's worth a play for the places the plot takes you. -Murdered: Soul Suspect A very well done neo-noir game with dope presentation and a great ghost story type series of side missions. The collectibles are a bit of a drag, but they do contribute to building this world, and the mystery of the story is a lot of fun to follow. The best of the mid tier games? I'm surprising myself here to be honest, I gotta go with The Hong Kong Massacre!?Most Best Game? -Resident Evil Not just one of the best remakes, but among the best Resident Evils and even plain survivor horror games of all time. -Batman: Arkham Asylum Hack and slash, beat em up, whatever it is, it's fantastic. A brilliant combat system, the chance (nay, responsibility!) to play detective, and a story straight out of Batman: The Animated Series. Spectacular game thay deserves every bit of hype it gets. -Grand Theft Auto V Beating out GTA IV just barely, on the grounds of its incredible technological achievement and the fact that I'm far more likely to replay this game's online than IV's, V is just astounding. The litany of things to do both on and offline, the refined controls, the roided out radio, this is about as good as GTA gets, really. -Hitman 3 Just brilliant. Some of the best, smoothest gameplay I've ever seen, some of the most creative levels, and a story that keeps you hooked from beginning to end. It's staggering how much is at your disposal here! -The Forgotten City The ability to hang out in ancient Rome, talk shop with philosophers, and just explore and get a feel for the place? Awesome. Love it. But then add the incredible story offered up here? Fuggheddaboutit! This set a tall ass watermark for time loop games, far as I'm concerned! Two years in a row?? I have to, man... Hitman 3!! Whew, we did it!! What a self-indulgent post, hahaha... but it's done! Thanks to everybody who stuck with me through the whole thing, and honestly thanks to everybody who stops by and reads any of the crap I write - I am super grateful for everybody who drops in and reads the dumb stuff I have to say, thank y'all so much!! As the greased up blind dude from Family Gyy would say, "see you all next yeeaaaar!!!" 15 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DrBloodmoney Posted December 30, 2022 Share Posted December 30, 2022 (edited) Man, stellar end-of-yearing here m’dude! You know I love seeing the winners and nominees (obviously, cause you an me - we’s on so many same pages we might as well be Rosencrantz and Guildenstern!)… …but even if we didn’t agree on Hitman 3, The Forgotten City, Salt and Sanctuary, Supergiant awesomeness, Arkham goodness, Guacamelee… or y’know… virtually everything you said here… …this would still be an awesome line up and a killer way to cap of a great gaming year! Damn dude, I can’t even be sad to see my best girl (and worlds-sexiest-voice-owner) Diana lose the best NPC… …because Galarius is such a mensch, with such a cool mechanic, such a heart… and such a pleasingly round and shiny pate! You’re doubling down on @Platinum_Vice’s unprecedented bid to draw me back to the Call of Duty fold (seriously, I now NEED to check out this Modern Warfare remake!)… you’re reminding me about Lair of the Clockwork God (and my dumb-ass ability to buy games, then forget that I did!)… …hell, even despite the presence on the “Least Best” list, you’ve also bumped 12 Minutes back up my list, because I gotta know what this damned twist is now! A great awards list, a really nicely laid out post… …and a hell of a gaming year! ? Cheers to you sir! Edited December 30, 2022 by DrBloodmoney 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aceterix Posted December 30, 2022 Share Posted December 30, 2022 It's a simple plan, but I really think this could work. 1. We get you on tv as the Sleeping dogs evangelist (in all countries on all stations) 2. Everyone buys a copy, those without a console buy a console and a copy 3. The combined game and console sales pressure everyone concerned into re-igniting the franchise and greenlighting games up until 2300 AD (with a promise to review and extend) 4. All rejoice. The end. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YaManSmevz Posted December 30, 2022 Author Share Posted December 30, 2022 3 hours ago, DrBloodmoney said: Man, stellar end-of-yearing here m’dude! Aayyy thanks homie! So I went over the post and was mortified at how many errors I made.. but then found that I have officially joined the club - PSNP won't let me edit it, I done broke the software! I don't know why that cheered me up, but it did? 3 hours ago, DrBloodmoney said: You know I love seeing the winners and nominees (obviously, cause you an me - we’s on so many same pages we might as well be Rosencrantz and Guildenstern!)… …but even if we didn’t agree on Hitman 3, The Forgotten City, Salt and Sanctuary, Supergiant awesomeness, Arkham goodness, Guacamelee… or y’know… virtually everything you said here… …this would still be an awesome line up and a killer way to cap of a great gaming year! I had to think about that for a moment, but you're right... I think the only time we've disagreed on something was the Resident Evil 3 remake, and even then it's just because I loved the original so much. One day, though... we will disagree. And it will be fierce. ...or amusing, actually probably just that. 3 hours ago, DrBloodmoney said: Damn dude, I can’t even be sad to see my best girl (and worlds-sexiest-voice-owner) Diana lose the best NPC… …because Galarius is such a mensch, with such a cool mechanic, such a heart… and such a pleasingly round and shiny pate! Yo Galerius broke that freakin category! I thought I had such a good match up set, but he's just the perfect NPC! I wanted Diana to win too, man... she's dreamy? 3 hours ago, DrBloodmoney said: You’re doubling down on @Platinum_Vice’s unprecedented bid to draw me back to the Call of Duty fold (seriously, I now NEED to check out this Modern Warfare remake!)… you’re reminding me about Lair of the Clockwork God (and my dumb-ass ability to buy games, then forget that I did!)… Honestly dude, it's a lot of fun, and I'm not even that big of a CoD guy. And in the unlikely event of you not digging it, at least it's super short! I know how backlogs be, but Lair seems to me like it'd be right up your alley. I'm not gonna be like "BUY THIS GAME RIGHT NOW" or anything, but do keep it in mind, especially if there's a good sale. And speaking of sales... 3 hours ago, DrBloodmoney said: …hell, even despite the presence on the “Least Best” list, you’ve also bumped 12 Minutes back up my list, because I gotta know what this damned twist is now! ...again, this one is very much worth experiencing, but don't pay full price like I did? 3 hours ago, DrBloodmoney said: A great awards list, a really nicely laid out post… …and a hell of a gaming year! Cheers to you sir! Thanks again man, I appreciate you? 1 hour ago, Aceterix said: It's a simple plan, but I really think this could work. 1. We get you on tv as the Sleeping dogs evangelist (in all countries on all stations) 2. Everyone buys a copy, those without a console buy a console and a copy 3. The combined game and console sales pressure everyone concerned into re-igniting the franchise and greenlighting games up until 2300 AD (with a promise to review and extend) 4. All rejoice. The end. Dude I'm down?? Sleeping Dogs Awareness Campaign has begun!! 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CelestialRequiem Posted December 31, 2022 Share Posted December 31, 2022 Wow. I did actually read all of this when you had initially posted it, but I'm mostly locked to mobile during this period of travel, and having my my plans intercepted by Southwest Airlines. Whatever temperature it's been back home in Santa Ana, I'm sure it's mildly warmer than the -20°F/-29°C (or whatever the fuck it is in Celsius, I haven't used it since I lived in Japan) here in Denver, Colorado. You completed a lot of games this year, well done. Always cool to a string of productivity within entertainment. I think that's really important. It'd be like starting many movies throughout the year and never finishing them. Even if you enjoyed distracting yourself, use your time of enjoyment effectively. Well, I do, anyway. Everyone else is free to utilize their agency in any manner that they please. On 12/29/2022 at 6:53 PM, YaManSmevz said: #4 is my man @kindajustin for being my partner in crime on three games this year (we still gotta get you that Overcooked hundo tho). Those GTA games we completed are among my proudest gaming achievements, so a huge thanks to you, bro! Hey, well, I'm in the process of attempting to convince him of playing Armored Core: Verdict Day (these attempts are fruitless, though that's all right. Only teasing). Incredibly reliable and him having the constitution and energy to commit to cooperative projects definitely makes him a terribly valuable partner. Good luck with Overcooked, Justin. You'll get it. On 12/29/2022 at 6:53 PM, YaManSmevz said: Most Addicting Gameplay -God of War Somehow I forgot how satisfying it is to play as this primal, savage beast of a man. Whether you're calculating your combos just so or merely button mashing, this thing plays so much smoother than its age would have you believe. We touched on it lightly when I had first stopped by, but I absolutely concur. Many third-person action games of similar style to God of War (even some of my favorites, like Ninja Gaiden) have something that this game doesn't... and that's its incredible camera. Because the player has literally zero control over the camera, every aspect of the game was optimized with the exact same visibility. It's incredible. The new versions of God of War lack this (largely, to the favor of the masses, it seems), but even if I'm not that crazy about the original God of War, I respect a lot of elements about it. I'm glad you enjoyed your time with it. On 12/29/2022 at 6:53 PM, YaManSmevz said: Best Game I Been Sleepin On -Salt & Sanctuary I blame my irrational fear of Soulsborne games! Approached with one with some trepidation, but quickly realized what lore-heavy, hand drawn goodness I'd been missing out on! I'm glad you were able to concede that the fear is indeed irrational ?. I've never played Salt and Sanctuary, though I've played all of the Soulsborne titles. I'm a fan of most of them -- and if you've liked this, then I don't see why you wouldn't enjoy the progenitor titles in the third-dimensional plane. The actual Soulsborne games are strikingly similar to Zelda titles to me. They speak to me as I love it when everything is bleak and fucked up (Christ, Dark Souls doesn't compare to some of the literature I grossly enjoy). That being said, regardless if you may find the games challenging, you should still play them. They're excellent. When the Soulsborne community isn't memeing it up with their "git gud" rhetoric, it's a very helpful community. I myself hop on certain games to aid neophytes treading through Miyazaki's fucked up fiction. Well, not trying to tell you what to do. But you absolutely have what it takes to see the games through. And I won't accept this irrational fear as justifiable when it's painfully obvious that you're beyond the challenge that these games offer. I'm eager for that potential day to stop by here and see it mentioned. On 12/29/2022 at 6:53 PM, YaManSmevz said: -Jill Valentine, Resident Evil 3 I've played her as a protagonist three separate times this year, so you bet your ass she's nominated! In 1, she's the person forced into bad assery, but in 3 she feels fully formed. This is how I like my women, quick thinking and tough. And pointing a gun at me Ahhh, Jill. Yep, I'm terribly fond of her. Have been since I was a stupid-ass kid playing games that I had no business in engaging with. Interesting controversy, this one. I'm a firm believer that good games don't need remakes (remasters are fine, I always advocate for those), but if a game was good when it released, then it's good today. That's how I see it, anyway. ...That being said, I don't like Resident Evil 3 a terrible amount compared to Resi 1/2. So it getting "remade"... yeah, I'll play it someday. The fact that the game was developed by former PlatinumGames staff (talk about this going full circle, lol) it has my interest. I'll check it out, eventually. Something amusing. These Resident Evil games aren't remakes -- they're reimaginings. Capcom has even spoken about this. None of these titles have the "Remake" moniker that the fans use. I understand why it was given that sort of nomenclature -- to easily identify it from the original titles. However, given that Resi 2/3 play nothing like their originals, and don't even really share the original staff of the original titles, calling them "remakes" seems inappropriate to me. It isn't even something like Shadow of the Colossus on PS4 where it's largely 1:1 to the original games -- these are fundamentally different, and don't share a single line of code. Not saying this is inherently a bad thing, of course -- nor am I trying to start an argument. I also refer to them as "Resident Evil (number) Remake" when speaking/referencing these titles. I respect the verbiage for easy of use. I just see them as totally different games. I'm not crazy about Resident Evil 2 Remake, as everything I loved about the original is absent in the new one. Just isn't the same game. ...That might be a good thing for when I play Resident Evil 3. We'll see! On 12/29/2022 at 6:53 PM, YaManSmevz said: -MultiVersus Probably the closest to a successful Smash Bros clone that I've ever seen. There's still lots of bugs to be worked out, at least from when I last played it, but from the roster to gameplay, there's a lot of potential here. Aha, this game! I know so little of it, that whenever I think of it, I think of when you, @Flubberwunked, @kindajustin and I were in a brief Discord call and you were playing this game. I'm glad to hear that despite its (current) barren nature, you found some enjoyment. ...There's something just so dystopian to me about "Here's all of your favorite things, unfitting and ridiculous, perverted into one package". ----------------------------------------------- Dude, this was really cool. I wish I had more to say with the other games you had completed this year, but seriously -- well done on your accomplishments and the write-up. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YaManSmevz Posted December 31, 2022 Author Share Posted December 31, 2022 13 hours ago, CelestialRequiem said: Wow. I did actually read all of this when you had initially posted it, but I'm mostly locked to mobile during this period of travel, and having my my plans intercepted by Southwest Airlines. Whatever temperature it's been back home in Santa Ana, I'm sure it's mildly warmer than the -20°F/-29°C (or whatever the fuck it is in Celsius, I haven't used it since I lived in Japan) here in Denver, Colorado. Ay what's up, man! Life gonna life. Also hell yeah, I love Denver! Family visit, I presume? 13 hours ago, CelestialRequiem said: You completed a lot of games this year, well done. Always cool to a string of productivity within entertainment. I think that's really important. It'd be like starting many movies throughout the year and never finishing them. Even if you enjoyed distracting yourself, use your time of enjoyment effectively. Well, I do, anyway. Everyone else is free to utilize their agency in any manner that they please. Thanks, dude! And agreed 100%. Getting things done definitely makes anything creative that much more rewarding, be it through consumption or production. Oddly enough though I think I was less productive this year due to having more free time - it was easy to take for granted, I guess? 13 hours ago, CelestialRequiem said: Hey, well, I'm in the process of attempting to convince him of playing Armored Core: Verdict Day (these attempts are fruitless, though that's all right. Only teasing). Incredibly reliable and him having the constitution and energy to commit to cooperative projects definitely makes him a terribly valuable partner. Good luck with Overcooked, Justin. You'll get it. Oh noooo I didn't mean to put the homie on blast? He is an excellent boosting partner though, that's my dude. 13 hours ago, CelestialRequiem said: I'm glad you were able to concede that the fear is indeed irrational . I've never played Salt and Sanctuary, though I've played all of the Soulsborne titles. I'm a fan of most of them -- and if you've liked this, then I don't see why you wouldn't enjoy the progenitor titles in the third-dimensional plane. The actual Soulsborne games are strikingly similar to Zelda titles to me. They speak to me as I love it when everything is bleak and fucked up (Christ, Dark Souls doesn't compare to some of the literature I grossly enjoy). That being said, regardless if you may find the games challenging, you should still play them. They're excellent. When the Soulsborne community isn't memeing it up with their "git gud" rhetoric, it's a very helpful community. I myself hop on certain games to aid neophytes treading through Miyazaki's fucked up fiction. Well, not trying to tell you what to do. But you absolutely have what it takes to see the games through. And I won't accept this irrational fear as justifiable when it's painfully obvious that you're beyond the challenge that these games offer. I'm eager for that potential day to stop by here and see it mentioned. Ayy thank man, I appreciate the vote of confidence! Bloodborne and Sekiro are on the list for next year, I've been wanting to play those for a minute. I definitely think you'd dig Salt and Sanctuary, it very much fits the bleak bill (also Zelda, interesting! Hadn't considered that but can see it for sure) 13 hours ago, CelestialRequiem said: Ahhh, Jill. Yep, I'm terribly fond of her. Have been since I was a stupid-ass kid playing games that I had no business in engaging with. Bro, same? 13 hours ago, CelestialRequiem said: Interesting controversy, this one. I'm a firm believer that good games don't need remakes (remasters are fine, I always advocate for those), but if a game was good when it released, then it's good today. That's how I see it, anyway. ...That being said, I don't like Resident Evil 3 a terrible amount compared to Resi 1/2. So it getting "remade"... yeah, I'll play it someday. The fact that the game was developed by former PlatinumGames staff (talk about this going full circle, lol) it has my interest. I'll check it out, eventually. Something amusing. These Resident Evil games aren't remakes -- they're reimaginings. Capcom has even spoken about this. None of these titles have the "Remake" moniker that the fans use. I understand why it was given that sort of nomenclature -- to easily identify it from the original titles. However, given that Resi 2/3 play nothing like their originals, and don't even really share the original staff of the original titles, calling them "remakes" seems inappropriate to me. It isn't even something like Shadow of the Colossus on PS4 where it's largely 1:1 to the original games -- these are fundamentally different, and don't share a single line of code. Not saying this is inherently a bad thing, of course -- nor am I trying to start an argument. I also refer to them as "Resident Evil (number) Remake" when speaking/referencing these titles. I respect the verbiage for easy of use. I just see them as totally different games. I'm not crazy about Resident Evil 2 Remake, as everything I loved about the original is absent in the new one. Just isn't the same game. ...That might be a good thing for when I play Resident Evil 3. We'll see! For the most part we're pretty much eye to eye on this one, with just a few exceptions - I really loved RE3, and I thought that even though a re-imagining, 2019 RE2 did a pretty good job of capturing its 90s counterpart. Definitely some omissions and some new stuff I didn't care for, but overall the "eh, whaddayagonnados" outweighed the "oh COME ONs" pretty heavily, at least for me. 13 hours ago, CelestialRequiem said: Aha, this game! I know so little of it, that whenever I think of it, I think of when you, @Flubberwunked, @kindajustin and I were in a brief Discord call and you were playing this game. I'm glad to hear that despite its (current) barren nature, you found some enjoyment. Oh you're right, I forgot about that! I do apologize, I doubt I was of much good conversation, being mired in the miserable grind of trophy hunting in this game rather than, y'know, hunting genuine enjoyment? This would've been a perfectly fun time had I not been in such a rush to get the trophy aspect over with.. though to hear that the online has grown a bit deserted, perhaps we made the right call! 13 hours ago, CelestialRequiem said: Dude, this was really cool. I wish I had more to say with the other games you had completed this year, but seriously -- well done on your accomplishments and the write-up. Thanks a lot man! I appreciate it. Always nice when you stop by?? 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Platinum_Vice Posted January 1, 2023 Share Posted January 1, 2023 On 30/12/2022 at 9:53 AM, YaManSmevz said: ?Best Graphics? -Call of Duty: Modern Warfare This one flat out blew me away. I know how commonplace realism has become in games these days, but God DAMN. The immersion is through the roof because of the graphics alone, you're practically there. You know what's even more crazy? This game is from 2019!! Yet it's still graphically impressive at the end of 2022! On 30/12/2022 at 9:53 AM, YaManSmevz said: The Artful Escape Does the whole game look this good?? On 30/12/2022 at 9:53 AM, YaManSmevz said: Most Satisfying Completion Congrats on this year, man, you put in the time and came out with some big wins this year. I know you're proud, but I hope you're really proud and have given yourself a big pat on the back. On 30/12/2022 at 9:53 AM, YaManSmevz said: Two years in a row?? I have to, man... Hitman 3!! SO the rumours are true... it really is that good, huh? ? Hey - you know how much I rate this checklist, homes... please don't stop being you. ✌️ On 30/12/2022 at 3:59 PM, DrBloodmoney said: You’re doubling down on @Platinum_Vice’s unprecedented bid to draw me back to the Call of Duty fold (seriously, I now NEED to check out this Modern Warfare remake!)… you’re reminding me about Lair of the Clockwork God (and my dumb-ass ability to buy games, then forget that I did!)… As someone who also has LotCG sitting there untouched, it's kind of nice to have beaten you to a game for once with MW2019. I don't know about playing more than that one in particular, but if you fall down the rabbit hole, I'm sure you'll let us know if any others are as slick as this one. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YaManSmevz Posted January 1, 2023 Author Share Posted January 1, 2023 5 hours ago, Platinum_Vice said: You know what's even more crazy? This game is from 2019!! Yet it's still graphically impressive at the end of 2022! Dude, ferreal. It's an unusually good looking game, to say the least! 5 hours ago, Platinum_Vice said: Does the whole game look this good?? Weeeellllll technically no, but mostly! 5 hours ago, Platinum_Vice said: Congrats on this year, man, you put in the time and came out with some big wins this year. I know you're proud, but I hope you're really proud and have given yourself a big pat on the back. Thanks my dude! Coming from someone who's put down as many big dogs this year as you have, I will take it? 5 hours ago, Platinum_Vice said: SO the rumours are true... it really is that good, huh? I'm afraid so... Hitman 3 is, in technical terminology, dat bitch. 5 hours ago, Platinum_Vice said: Hey - you know how much I rate this checklist, homes... please don't stop being you. Mah man?? 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post YaManSmevz Posted January 2, 2023 Author Popular Post Share Posted January 2, 2023 Monthly Update with Ya Man Smevz December 2022 Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls of all ages, Happy! Mafuckin! Neewww Yeeeaaaarrr!! I hope everybody had a blast this past holiday season, and I'm quite pleased we're all here to kick off another year of gaming and being our best, nerdy selves✊️? So yeah, 2022 is in the books. I did get my #44 and wrapped up God of War 2 on the morn of New Year's Eve (After Islanders got the same treatment last year, this may become a new tradition for me?), but man. One shy of meeting last year's number of completions. The aaagonnnnnnnnah, just kidding. So a great year, but more importantly, how was December? 89.31% Overall Completion (+0.97)547 Unearned Trophies (-51)3.52 Trophies Per Day (+0.01)84 Platinums (+3)Level 380 (+5) World Rank 106,350* Country Rank 28,008* Not bad December, not bad at all! *Just for shiggles, I'm taking note of my rank on the leader boards. This won't be a monthly thing as it's not very important to me, but I found myself nearing the top 100,000 in the world and can't deny getting a lil curious! So we'll check back later on in the year, see how we do. Game of the Month I played the first two God of War games and God of DAMN, I forgot how great these were! So fun, so addicting, and frankly who doesn't wanna be part of a made up Greek myth backed up by a startling faithfulness to the real life mythology we've all been fascinated with since we were kids? Nobody, that's who. As much fun as I had with these games though, this month was always going to Grand Theft Auto IV. Reliving that story was so delightful, and the same can be said of Gay Tony as well. What a DLC! Fuck, what a satisfying completion to achieve! So glad I rolled my sleeves up and tackled this one, man. GTA IV is one of the greats, just the way it is, sorry n shit. Rating the Month Between conquering GTA IV, re-introducing myself to Kratos (and the gods, and a bunch of bare breasted women), and improving literally every profile stat in spite of being the December type busy, I'm pretty damn proud of how this month went down. Only three platinums? Who gives a fuck? December gets five out of five Bowling Dates! January and 2023 Goals Honestly? I wanna just free ball it. I don't want to stress about how I didn't get a platinum this month or that the completion percentage is going down or any of that stuff. I keep track of it because it's interesting to me (also because I'm a monstrous narcissist), not because I want to sweat those things. So.. yeah. I'm not gonna do away with this segment in the monthly update, but I just would like to acknowledge that whatever I do, whatever I don't, it's cool. I'm playing games, and I'm having fun? Gaming Hitlist We shaved him down a lil bit! We're mostly in order of desire to play here. Of the lowest ranked guys, Medal of Honor may move up if somebody I'm cool with reeaally wants to go for all the online stuff, otherwise it's not terribly important to me, as I bought it for Frontline. Fallout: New Vegas I'm equally excited for how dope I've heard the story is and dreading how miserable I've heard the bugs are. Final Fantasy XIII, I do very much wanna play it, but I'd really rather play IX, X, and XII first... we'll see how that one goes I guess. They'll all get played in the end! And that's all my blabby ass mouth got to say? Thanks for reading, and I'm looking forward to another year of PSN shenanigans. Peace! 8 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CelestialRequiem Posted January 2, 2023 Share Posted January 2, 2023 On 12/31/2022 at 1:08 PM, YaManSmevz said: Ay what's up, man! Life gonna life. Also hell yeah, I love Denver! Family visit, I presume? More or less, yeah. A close friend of mine who I essentially consider my brother despite being the only male in my consanguineous family. We lived together for a long time before I relocated to Southern California. The extended stay ended up being a boon despite Southwest fucking my plans up. Glad I had the foresight to bring my work laptop in case something like this happened. ...I also grew fond of Denver immediately. I just moved to SoCal in the summer as you know, and I could easily see myself living there. Maybe if my current employer would be cool with me working out of state... we'll see! On 12/31/2022 at 1:08 PM, YaManSmevz said: Thanks, dude! And agreed 100%. Getting things done definitely makes anything creative that much more rewarding, be it through consumption or production. Oddly enough though I think I was less productive this year due to having more free time - it was easy to take for granted, I guess? Funny how that works -- I can behave in the exact same way. When I map out my tasks and give deadlines in response to what I need to do, it's in response to me feeling like I'm optimizing my time well. ...And then when I have more free time than usual, it isn't optimized appropriately enough ?. I'm at my most unproductive when I have unmitigated free time. On 12/31/2022 at 1:08 PM, YaManSmevz said: Ayy thank man, I appreciate the vote of confidence! Bloodborne and Sekiro are on the list for next year, I've been wanting to play those for a minute. I definitely think you'd dig Salt and Sanctuary, it very much fits the bleak bill (also Zelda, interesting! Hadn't considered that but can see it for sure) I think I may actually own this game on my Switch... Anyway, regardless of that, I'll get played. Ah, man... in my opinion, you're going to start with two of the best ones (another personal favorite of mine is the original Dark Souls, though like DrBloodmoney, I am fond of its sequel and think its divisive reputation is largely unearned). With Bloodborne, I'm still holding out for a potential PS5 version (specifically, a remaster, I do not want this game remade -- I just want it to have comparable performance to its kin). Sekiro I actually first played before release at a Japanese store called Disc Pier. FromSoftware was touring this chain of retail stores and I got to meet some of the designers. I didn't play it fully until I moved back to America. On 12/31/2022 at 1:08 PM, YaManSmevz said: For the most part we're pretty much eye to eye on this one, with just a few exceptions - I really loved RE3, and I thought that even though a re-imagining, 2019 RE2 did a pretty good job of capturing its 90s counterpart. Definitely some omissions and some new stuff I didn't care for, but overall the "eh, whaddayagonnados" outweighed the "oh COME ONs" pretty heavily, at least for me. I can respect it enough to divorce it from the original game. Playing it is a completely different experience. I do think that's acceptable, and actually, appropriate. What would make me happy is having all of these older Capcom games on more contemporary hardware. Then I wouldn't be indirectly forced to only engage with the reimgainings. Good thing I still have the ol' PS-Triple at my side. ...Which looks like I'll be addressing that console here shortly. On 12/31/2022 at 1:08 PM, YaManSmevz said: Oh you're right, I forgot about that! I do apologize, I doubt I was of much good conversation, being mired in the miserable grind of trophy hunting in this game rather than, y'know, hunting genuine enjoyment This would've been a perfectly fun time had I not been in such a rush to get the trophy aspect over with.. though to hear that the online has grown a bit deserted, perhaps we made the right call! Quite all right, friend -- there's nothing to apologize for. I didn't want to get in the way of you and Justin doing what you needed to do. Group voice calls like that can get crowded fast -- and especially if one section of it has different objectives/topics than the other. Not your fault -- and I'm glad we were able to meet then initially. On 12/31/2022 at 1:08 PM, YaManSmevz said: Thanks a lot man! I appreciate it. Always nice when you stop by Definitely. I know very few people here in SoCal. So even having a virtual friend helps me feel a bit more connected to the area. I adored your Los Angeles post from a few months ago, by the way. I lived in Northern California as a child (Sacramento area), and it's quite different from here! ...Largest complaint I have the property prices. ? I do well enough for myself, but it's hard to justify a house worth over a million dollars unless I plan on turning it into an investment tool specifically and not just a place to live. The moment my posts are not welcomed or taxing due to them being verbose, just say the word. ---- Now let's get to the really exciting stuff! 18 hours ago, YaManSmevz said: Monthly Update with Ya Man Smevz December 2022 Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls of all ages, Happy! Mafuckin! Neewww Yeeeaaaarrr!! I hope everybody had a blast this past holiday season, and I'm quite pleased we're all here to kick off another year of gaming and being our best, nerdy selves️ So yeah, 2022 is in the books. I did get my #44 and wrapped up God of War 2 on the morn of New Year's Eve (After Islanders got the same treatment last year, this may become a new tradition for me), but man. One shy of meeting last year's number of completions. The aaagonnnnnnnnah, just kidding. So a great year, but more importantly, how was December? 89.31% Overall Completion (+0.97)547 Unearned Trophies (-51)3.52 Trophies Per Day (+0.01)84 Platinums (+3)Level 380 (+5) World Rank 106,350* Country Rank 28,008* Not bad December, not bad at all! *Just for shiggles, I'm taking note of my rank on the leader boards. This won't be a monthly thing as it's not very important to me, but I found myself nearing the top 100,000 in the world and can't deny getting a lil curious! So we'll check back later on in the year, see how we do. ...Just a moment ago, we were speaking about the consequence of being unproductive due to too much free time -- however, I'd be pleased with these stats myself. I can go for months without playing games (especially if I choose to read over 100 books in a year... need to get on maintaining my GoodReads). Well done. Yeah, all I care about is being on the leader board as a proof of integrity, but I couldn't care less as to where I place. If I'm climbing down, then it'll be with honor. ? 19 hours ago, YaManSmevz said: Rating the Month Between conquering GTA IV, re-introducing myself to Kratos (and the gods, and a bunch of bare breasted women), and improving literally every profile stat in spite of being the December type busy, I'm pretty damn proud of how this month went down. Only three platinums? Who gives a fuck? December gets five out of five Bowling Dates! Before December, the last time I had earned a platinum was in July. If I could average three platinums a month myself... I'd be in much better shape with my backlog. Well done. I personally wouldn't have the constitution to platinum GTA IV. It's impressive -- well done. 19 hours ago, YaManSmevz said: Gaming Hitlist We shaved him down a lil bit! We're mostly in order of desire to play here. Of the lowest ranked guys, Medal of Honor may move up if somebody I'm cool with reeaally wants to go for all the online stuff, otherwise it's not terribly important to me, as I bought it for Frontline. Fallout: New Vegas I'm equally excited for how dope I've heard the story is and dreading how miserable I've heard the bugs are. Final Fantasy XIII, I do very much wanna play it, but I'd really rather play IX, X, and XII first... we'll see how that one goes I guess. They'll all get played in the end! And that's all my blabby ass mouth got to say Thanks for reading, and I'm looking forward to another year of PSN shenanigans. Peace! Oh man... I noticed one of these games got started and I'm excited to read the write-up when it's concluded. Have fun. ...I keep on adding PS3 games myself. I'm obsessed with the console. Even with the PS5, I still look toward the PS3 a great deal. I plan on starting the Silent Hill HD Collection once I conclude Dead Space 3. -- Unrelated, but I noticed you post pictures from animated sitcoms I really like. You wouldn't happen to be a Mission Hill fan, would you? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YaManSmevz Posted January 2, 2023 Author Share Posted January 2, 2023 3 hours ago, CelestialRequiem said: More or less, yeah. A close friend of mine who I essentially consider my brother despite being the only male in my consanguineous family. We lived together for a long time before I relocated to Southern California. The extended stay ended up being a boon despite Southwest fucking my plans up. Glad I had the foresight to bring my work laptop in case something like this happened. ...I also grew fond of Denver immediately. I just moved to SoCal in the summer as you know, and I could easily see myself living there. Maybe if my current employer would be cool with me working out of state... we'll see! Oh no, Southwest? My wife and I usually fly with Southwest where possible simply because in our experience they seem to fuck up the least, but of course there is no such thing as an infallible airline! That's awesome! I hope he's showing you a good time, Denver is wonderful. Especially right now, and even more especially if you ain't gotta drive (that black ice is no joke). I'm happy for you man, sounds like you're living it up! Quote I think I may actually own this game on my Switch... Anyway, regardless of that, I'll get played. Yaas! Quote I can respect it enough to divorce it from the original game. Playing it is a completely different experience. I do think that's acceptable, and actually, appropriate. This is my problem with the newer RE3... it's objectively well made in every regard, and an unquestionably great time. But my love of the original creates this dichotomy where I'm simultaneously thoroughly enjoying the 2020 rendition but stuck on the 1999 one. The TLDR here is that I envy your ability to separate the two, I just can't do it? Quote What would make me happy is having all of these older Capcom games on more contemporary hardware. Then I wouldn't be indirectly forced to only engage with the reimgainings. Good thing I still have the ol' PS-Triple at my side. If only! 3 hours ago, CelestialRequiem said: I know very few people here in SoCal. So even having a virtual friend helps me feel a bit more connected to the area. I adored your Los Angeles post from a few months ago, by the way. I lived in Northern California as a child (Sacramento area), and it's quite different from here! Glad to hear it, my dude? And thank you so much! It's made me really happy to see peeps enjoying the traveling posts I've done, so I'm glad to hear that as well! ...guess I could've just said the first 'glad to hear it' and called it a day then, huh... my bad? Quote ...Largest complaint I have the property prices. I do well enough for myself, but it's hard to justify a house worth over a million dollars unless I plan on turning it into an investment tool specifically and not just a place to live. You ain't lie, man. Wifey and I talk a lot about moving out of state, not out of a dislike or anything (far from it), but just to experience other places for longer than a week at a time. Then we remember that we might have some serious difficulty moving back, property values would have risen who knows how high by the time we'd wanna come back! Quote The moment my posts are not welcomed or taxing due to them being verbose, just say the word. Nah man, don't even trip on that. We good! Quote Now let's get to the really exciting stuff! ...Just a moment ago, we were speaking about the consequence of being unproductive due to too much free time -- however, I'd be pleased with these stats myself. I can go for months without playing games (especially if I choose to read over 100 books in a year... need to get on maintaining my GoodReads). Well done. BruhhHH. I got a GoodReads profile a good few years back (edit: 2015, good lord), but my reading sadly fizzled out. And it wasn't even on a good note - I read Shopgirl, which made me really sad because I love Steve Martin but he clearly injected his own fantasies of being a weird sexdaddy into a novella of average af quality (that's being polite). Then he plays the same character in the movie?? ??? Sorry, I haven't thought about that for a long time! You've inspired me to dust that profile off and see where I was last, I'd like to be anywhere near as productive there as I've tried to be here (and thank you for the kind words, btw). Quote ...I keep on adding PS3 games myself. I'm obsessed with the console. Even with the PS5, I still look toward the PS3 a great deal. I plan on starting the Silent Hill HD Collection once I conclude Dead Space 3. Dude I been kicking myself for neglecting all these great older games. I'm trying very hard to stick with the games I've got lined up, but there's still a chance that "ooh, piece of candy" mentality strikes again? Yoooo lemme know how Silent Hill 2 goes, and if you'll have any tips! That's easily the one I'm most nervous about! Quote Unrelated, but I noticed you post pictures from animated sitcoms I really like. You wouldn't happen to be a Mission Hill fan, would you? Actually no, I've seen that one around but have never given it a watch... but if I've got a new show to binge I'll be a happy man! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post YaManSmevz Posted February 1, 2023 Author Popular Post Share Posted February 1, 2023 (edited) Monthly Update with Ya Man Smevz January 2023 New year, fuck it. Here we are. What is up, all you beautiful people who are kind enough to check in on what my egotistical ass is doing this month! My writer's block has been somethin fierce - the team of writers in my head is clearly still on strike, seeing as I haven't written about a game since December 3rd, but progress is progress so ain't no point in being mad! 89.35% Overall Completion (+0.04)565 Unearned Trophies (+18)3.61 Trophies Per Day (+0.09)87 Platinums (+3)Level 86 (+6) Game of the Month I hit some serious gold this January. Capped off the OG God of War trilogy with the glorious God of War 3, capped off the Beholder trilogy with the passable Beholder 3 (and wept tears of blood over it being decent at best), played the legendary Dead Space, played the classic Altered Beast, and got back into the delightfully dumb fun of Dynasty Warriors 7. And let's not forget about the Medal of Honor reboot! But the winner, far off in the distance, is Red Dead Redemption. Fuck me, what a spectacular game! Rating the Month So I've had this weird habit of deliberately starting a new game when I get close to 90% completion. I kinda don't wanna hit that number til I know that's just where I'll be as a PSN nerd - when I hit 9-0, it will be forever - or I'll never hit 9-0 (apologies, Nat King Cole). But a good month it was! Solid games, solid progress, and a solid bunch of fun had - an easy four out of five MacFarlane Ranches! February Goals I said at the beginning of the year that all I wanna ask of myself and my gaming is to enjoy myself, and I meant it. But last year I completed seven games in February... I gotta at least try to match that! Gaming Hitlist Ugh. We got so close with Medal of Honor!! One mission left for Tier 1 mode, and that's a wrap. I got a good feeling though that I'ma finish up a lotta good shit this month.. it would be in my best interest, seeing as after finishing the Winter challenge I've got a kaleidoscopic one to worry about next? So that's it from my ass! Reporting live from a quiet home with a sleeping wife, I'm ya man Smevz! Edited February 26, 2023 by YaManSmevz 8 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
serrated-banner9 Posted February 1, 2023 Share Posted February 1, 2023 1 hour ago, YaManSmevz said: Gaming Hitlist Ugh. We got so close with Medal of Honor!! One mission left for Tier 1 mode, and that's a wrap. I got a good feeling though that I'ma finish up a lotta good shit this month.. it would be in my best interest, seeing as after finishing the Winter challenge I've got a kaleidoscopic one to worry about next? So that's it from my ass! Reporting live from a quiet home with a sleeping wife, I'm ya man Smevz! you got this. you can do it 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post YaManSmevz Posted February 4, 2023 Author Popular Post Share Posted February 4, 2023 Platinum #88: Medal of Honor Politicians hide themselves away, they only started the war Medal of Honor's 2010 reboot has a unique place among my PS3 completions. I never owned it on the 360, didn't admire its PS3 prowess from afar, or even decide that I needed to play it after reading a list or review or whatever. In short, it's here due to the game's servers going down and the resulting FOMO. I knew that Medal of Honor had some bops back in its day, and figured it may be cool to see this one off. And it kinda was, but not nearly as much as I'd hoped. I ended up enjoying Medal of Honor on that level where it doesn't do anything too badly - it looks pretty good, it's fun shooting stuff, and each mission type is done well enough. There was even the occasional high point that reminded me why I enjoy FPS games from time to time! In particular, I really enjoyed the missions Belly of the Beast and Rescuing the Rescuers. In the former, you're getting bum rushed from the jump, and it's intense. You can barely see where you're shooting, get pinned down by a heavy machine gunner, and at the end all the cover around your team gets slowly destroyed as the enemy keeps coming, with you and your team slowly running out of ammo. In the latter, you're painstakingly taking down overwhelming resistance a handful of yards at a time, aided by the odd air strike. I thought both were a lot of fun, and really well done. The Tier 1 playthrough was fun too. I liked the pressure of a timer and no checkpoints cuz honestly this game is so short and low on difficulty that any additional challenge is welcome, and this is my basic gamer ass talkin! However, the rest of the game is just kinda there, with the first issue being that Medal of Honor clearly wants to be Call of Duty 4. The Middle Eastern setting switch up, the split perspective with different protagonists, even the types of missions were suspiciously reminiscent of the Modern Warfare games, and as a result it feels so derivative and generic. I remember when Medal of Honor was the OG and Call of Duty felt like some new knock off WW2 game, so it was kinda sad to see how the tables have turned. You play as two Tier 1 operators (well actually four but the other two guys account for three missions total), and their teams eventually meet near the end, but it has no effect whatsoever because there's no reason to care about them. The teammates are stock as shit, with a Boston accent standing out the most. Rather than fleshing them out as characters, there's more effort put into making these guys look like bad asses, but it's to the point that it feels needless and unrealistic. In scripted scenes they brutalize enemies who try to sneak up on them with hand to hand combat, or take out five guys at once in perfect stealth (though are comically useless while you're actually playing). On the other hand, you get one scripted moment of taking point where you get knocked out almost immediately, and your team basically clowns on you with one guy grumbling "I just saved your ass." Why we gotta be the punk, huh? There's a plot connecting all our soldiers with a stereotypical General barking shitty orders from his office at your standard capable but overlooked Colonel, and it had a lot of potential but didn't really go anywhere. The writing is just so unimaginative and boring. If you just had the General say "Your units talk the talk, but do they walk the walk" and the Colonel responding "oh, do you have a good view of the war from BEHIND YOUR DESK," it would have the same effect. And the really wack thing is that this is all based on an actual operation from the early days of the war in Afghanistan. There was no reason for it all to feel so dull. It doesn't have to be some profound statement or anything, but surely you can do more with the material than this! The gameplay is alright. It's as linear as a game can get though, to the point where you can't even progress if the game doesn't want you to - none of your characters seem capable of opening a door or climbing a ridge by themselves (they are able to kick down a door on occasion, but only upon request), and waiting for your teammates to catch up is a drag - especially when you're on the timed playthrough. You shoot with R1 instead of R2 (or L2, I don’t wanna disrespect the lefties out there), which drove me nuts, but it's come up a few times with games of this age so I'll just chalk it up to me being bitchy and move on. Other than that, the controls are totally fine. The music is good, but can feel a little overly dramatic at times. I liked how it started up at the end of Belly of the Beast when it feels like your team is fucked, but then (spoiler) it turns out they aren't - the day is saved and 'merica wins - and it robs the mission's end of any emotional punch. And this game really could've used that, cuz as I mentioned before, it's hard to sympathize with these caricatures! After the homie Platinum Vice had great things to say about Medal of Honor: Frontline, it was that one I really wanted to play on this disc over the base game, but I let myself get caught up in unobtainable hoopla and undoubtedly ended up playing the inferior game. I won't deny that I'm still curious, but after getting this plat I couldn't help asking myself how many old first person shooters I really need to play. Going for a soon to be unobtainable platinum has its own thrill, but it's not enough to carry the experience on its own, and if I hadn't genuinely thought I might enjoy this game I would've been pretty damn miserable. There was a lot left to be desired, especially given the name recognition, but Medal of Honor was fun for what it was - a generic FPS that there is no need to ever play again? Stray Observations - The guy on the cover, Dusty, is a useless NPC in two short missions, though I guess his big beard, backwards baseball cap, and gas station sunglasses were just too cool to pass up using him as the mascot. Mafucka looks like Poochie if he was an incel TikToker. - Unsurprisingly, the team aspect feels so much more realistic in the multiplayer mode - when you're moving with a godly player who's taking down enemies left and right, to see him go down in an instant always feels like such a jolt. Something like that would've added a lot to the campaign - there we get one moment where a teammate is human, and he gets grazed on his shoulder. - Whenever NPCs talk to me in a FPS, I always make my character nod. It's really dorky but it gets a laugh out of me. - Towards the end when you find the other team, it's dark and dusty as shit, and all you can see are their names over their heads. When my teammate was like "FRIENDLY!!" I wanted my character to say "no shit bitch, you don't see that blue text over their heads?" - One more thing with the controls - Square reloads, which is totally cool, but it will also send a message to a PSN friend when you pass them in Tier 1 mode, which got annoying. I'm in a heated firefight, and about to peek out from cover to take some fools down. Right before I make my move I go to reload, and the game stops, with a pre-made message popping up addressed from me to some person I played with one time saying "HAY BRO JUST BEAT UR TIME LOL!" Such a needless momentum killer, and who gives a fuck about stuff like this anyway?? THAT Trophy: Multiplayer: Fire Controller Conspicuous Gallantry gets a mention because in all fairness there are some tough spots on the Tier 1 playthrough, but it's never anything that feels insurmountable. The multiplayer on the other hand, that was a bit concerning! Everything is pretty feasible MP-wise (if time consuming), but this trophy requires a particularly strong killstreak, and with so many peeps playing right now who been good at this game since the Obama administration, that's a tall fuckin order! Best way to go for this? Hide around objectives and get kills that way, slinking in between hiding places as best you can, all while hitting objectives yourself with the sharpest eye you can muster. And after you get close to hitting that number about five or six times, say fuck it and join a boosting group? 9 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
serrated-banner9 Posted February 4, 2023 Share Posted February 4, 2023 1 hour ago, YaManSmevz said: Platinum #88: Medal of Honor Politicians hide themselves away, they only started the war Medal of Honor's 2010 reboot has a unique place among my PS3 completions. I never owned it on the 360, didn't admire its PS3 prowess from afar, or even decide that I needed to play it after reading a list or review or whatever. In short, it's here due to the game's servers going down and the resulting FOMO. I knew that Medal of Honor had some bops back in its day, and figured it may be cool to see this one off. And it kinda was, but not nearly as much as I'd hoped. I ended up enjoying Medal of Honor on that level where it doesn't do anything too badly - it looks pretty good, it's fun shooting stuff, and each mission type is done well enough. There was even the occasional high point that reminded me why I enjoy FPS games from time to time! In particular, I really enjoyed the missions Belly of the Beast and Rescuing the Rescuers. In the former, you're getting bum rushed from the jump, and it's intense. You can barely see where you're shooting, get pinned down by a heavy machine gunner, and at the end all the cover around your team gets slowly destroyed as the enemy keeps coming, with you and your team slowly running out of ammo. In the latter, you're painstakingly taking down overwhelming resistance a handful of yards at a time, aided by the odd air strike. I thought both were a lot of fun, and really well done. The Tier 1 playthrough was fun too. I liked the pressure of a timer and no checkpoints cuz honestly this game is so short and low on difficulty that any additional challenge is welcome, and this is my basic gamer ass talkin! However, the rest of the game is just kinda there, with the first issue being that Medal of Honor clearly wants to be Call of Duty 4. The Middle Eastern setting switch up, the split perspective with different protagonists, even the types of missions were suspiciously reminiscent of the Modern Warfare games, and as a result it feels so derivative and generic. I remember when Medal of Honor was the OG and Call of Duty felt like some new knock off WW2 game, so it was kinda sad to see how the tables have turned. You play as two Tier 1 operators (well actually four but the other two guys account for three missions total), and their teams eventually meet near the end, but it has no effect whatsoever because there's no reason to care about them. The teammates are stock as shit, with a Boston accent standing out the most. Rather than fleshing them out as characters, there's more effort put into making these guys look like bad asses, but it's to the point that it feels needless and unrealistic. In scripted scenes they brutalize enemies who try to sneak up on them with hand to hand combat, or take out five guys at once in perfect stealth (though are comically useless while you're actually playing). On the other hand, you get one scripted moment of taking point where you get knocked out almost immediately, and your team basically clowns on you with one guy grumbling "I just saved your ass." Why we gotta be the punk, huh? There's a plot connecting all our soldiers with a stereotypical General barking shitty orders from his office at your standard capable but overlooked Colonel, and it had a lot of potential but didn't really go anywhere. The writing is just so unimaginative and boring. If you just had the General say "Your units talk the talk, but do they walk the walk" and the Colonel responding "oh, do you have a good view of the war from BEHIND YOUR DESK," it would have the same effect. And the really wack thing is that this is all based on an actual operation from the early days of the war in Afghanistan. There was no reason for it all to feel so dull. It doesn't have to be some profound statement or anything, but surely you can do more with the material than this! The gameplay is alright. It's as linear as a game can get though, to the point where you can't even progress if the game doesn't want you to - none of your characters seem capable of opening a door or climbing a ridge by themselves (they are able to kick down a door on occasion, but only upon request), and waiting for your teammates to catch up is a drag - especially when you're on the timed playthrough. You shoot with R1 instead of R2 (or L2, I don’t wanna disrespect the lefties out there), which drove me nuts, but it's come up a few times with games of this age so I'll just chalk it up to me being bitchy and move on. Other than that, the controls are totally fine. The music is good, but can feel a little overly dramatic at times. I liked how it started up at the end of Belly of the Beast when it feels like your team is fucked, but then (spoiler) it turns out they aren't - the day is saved and 'merica wins - and it robs the mission's end of any emotional punch. And this game really could've used that, cuz as I mentioned before, it's hard to sympathize with these caricatures! After the homie Platinum Vice had great things to say about Medal of Honor: Frontline, it was that one I really wanted to play on this disc over the base game, but I let myself get caught up in unobtainable hoopla and undoubtedly ended up playing the inferior game. I won't deny that I'm still curious, but after getting this plat I couldn't help asking myself how many old first person shooters I really need to play. Going for a soon to be unobtainable platinum has its own thrill, but it's not enough to carry the experience on its own, and if I hadn't genuinely thought I might enjoy this game I would've been pretty damn miserable. There was a lot left to be desired, especially given the name recognition, but Medal of Honor was fun for what it was - a generic FPS that there is no need to ever play again Stray Observations - The guy on the cover, Dusty, is a useless NPC in two short missions, though I guess his big beard, backwards baseball cap, and gas station sunglasses were just too cool to pass up using him as the mascot. Mafucka looks like Poochie if he was an incel TikToker. - Unsurprisingly, the team aspect feels so much more realistic in the multiplayer mode - when you're moving with a godly player who's taking down enemies left and right, to see him go down in an instant always feels like such a jolt. Something like that would've added a lot to the campaign - there we get one moment where a teammate is human, and he gets grazed on his shoulder. - Whenever NPCs talk to me in a FPS, I always make my character nod. It's really dorky but it gets a laugh out of me. - Towards the end when you find the other team, it's dark and dusty as shit, and all you can see are their names over their heads. When my teammate was like "FRIENDLY!!" I wanted my character to say "no shit bitch, you don't see that blue text over their heads?" - One more thing with the controls - Square reloads, which is totally cool, but it will also send a message to a PSN friend when you pass them in Tier 1 mode, which got annoying. I'm in a heated firefight, and about to peek out from cover to take some fools down. Right before I make my move I go to reload, and the game stops, with a pre-made message popping up addressed from me to some person I played with one time saying "HAY BRO JUST BEAT UR TIME LOL!" Such a needless momentum killer, and who gives a fuck about stuff like this anyway?? THAT Trophy: Multiplayer: Fire Controller Conspicuous Gallantry gets a mention because in all fairness there are some tough spots on the Tier 1 playthrough, but it's never anything that feels insurmountable. The multiplayer on the other hand, that was a bit concerning! Everything is pretty feasible MP-wise (if time consuming), but this trophy requires a particularly strong killstreak, and with so many peeps playing right now who been good at this game since the Obama administration, that's a tall fuckin order! Best way to go for this? Hide around objectives and get kills that way, slinking in between hiding places as best you can, all while hitting objectives yourself with the sharpest eye you can muster. And after you get close to hitting that number about five or six times, say fuck it and join a boosting group excellent write-up man, so glad you finished it in time, guessing by the stack Dead space next? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YaManSmevz Posted February 5, 2023 Author Share Posted February 5, 2023 11 hours ago, serrated-banner9 said: excellent write-up man, so glad you finished it in time, guessing by the stack Dead space next? Hey thanks a lot man, I appreciate you! And you done guessed right, I fell back in love with Dead Space with the quickness? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post YaManSmevz Posted February 12, 2023 Author Popular Post Share Posted February 12, 2023 (edited) Platinum #83: God of War Despite all my rage, I am still just a rat in a cage In late 2005, I was effectively T-Pain levels of sprung on Rockstar, and my number of new non-Rockstar games were at an all time low. I was on my second or third playthrough of The Warriors when a friend (who incidentally hates Rockstar) gave me this Intervention type moment, bluntly telling me that I needed to play something else. He went on to pitch his own recent gaming obsession, and seeing as he knew full well that I share his fascination with Greek mythology, this was an easy sell for him. I don't think it was more than a few days later that I bought my own copy and promptly fell in love. Before going any further, we gotta give a shout to Platinum Vice's outstanding retrospective of the entire series. It deserves the eyes of anyone who even remotely enjoyed these games! We start by meeting Kratos. He's distraught, he is over the gods, he wants out and he's calling it a day in truly dramatic fashion. And now we find out how he got there - starting with fighting our way across a boat and slaying a fucking Hydra! That got my attention real quick, lemmetellya. It was so impactful that even now in my PS3 era (which is actually the dawn of the PS5 era), playing this game for the first time in over fifteen years still managed to send my ass, it took me right back to that wonderment and joy I felt when this was a brand new experience. Now that's impressive! God of War doesn't just draw from Ancient Greece, it actively feels like a Greek myth itself. The narration is fantastic, teasing us with occasional pieces of Kratos' past as we slice and smash our way through every obstacle. We see how powerful he is, but then learn how he obtained his power through sheer desperation and a selfish inability to accept defeat. We also learn what a pyrrhic victory it turned out to be, with him having to pay a horrifying cost. He becomes a complete monster, but still retains the humanity to torment himself with devastating nightmares over the things he's had to do. And then, when he's led to believe* that redemption is within his grasp, it's swiftly swept up from under him. So when we're back at the beginning, and we see this ash-stained warrior of equal parts rage and weariness, wanting nothing more than to end it all, we really get it. Hell of a story. *I gotta say, I kinda feel for Kratos with the nightmares thing. He's constantly asking "This will get rid of my nightmares, right?" and every time he's told "Well uh, your sins will be forgiven," clearly just glossing this over. So when he does the deed and is like "Whew! No more nightmares, maybe y'all ain't so bad after all" and Athena's like "Whoa whoa whoa, nobody ever said THAT" it's like don't play, YOU KNEW WHAT HE MEANT. Now, does he deserve his nightmares? With. Out. A. Doubt. But he straight up got played, and I love how this was built upon in the second game. As sympathetic as I may sound, let's not forget that Kratos truly is an asshole, and likely was even before his deal with Ares. Kratos is that dude who screams while lifting in the gym and starts fights with complete strangers. And seeing as quite a few baby boys have been named Kratos since 2009, getting cut off by a screaming Kratos in traffic is a sad possibility for us all in the near future! In short, Kratos is a prick. But I never really took issue with this, seeing as it's the crux of Greek mythology. Cronos was a prick, Zeus was a prick, Ares was a prick... these stories are all about people being pricks, and in the end (mostly) getting what's coming to em. After Narcissus drowns or Icarus falls to his death, we may as well have Rod Serling walk over in a chiton and sandals to sum it all up for us! Terrence C. Carson absolutely nails the role of Kratos, and a fun fact I just learned - played Kyle on the classic 90s sitcom Living Single, a tidbit I certainly didn't see coming! His role calls for some serious, gut-wrenching rage, and from his moments of calm dialogue to the anguished shouts and screams during combat, you can tell he threw everything he had into that mic. The look of the game is pretty damn impressive too, boasting some solid level design. Pandora's Temple is laid out so brilliantly (and finding those sketches of the traps was a real treat), and the world around it feels so massive once you arrive. And Pandora's Guardian, while a bit of a formulaic boss, still looks sick as shit. The Path of Hades though, that's where it's at. The fleshy platforms, the bloody rotating columns, those dirty looking blades, it just looks so cool. I fuck with those Hellraiser vibes, man! The score is tremendous and booming, with such an epic quality - and I'm not the biggest fan of using that adjective - that everything feels big and dramatic. I was joking with the homie KindaSabbath about how the choir legit sounds like they're singing "PIECE OF SHIT! PIECE OF SHIT, THAT PIECE OF SHIT!" and even with that, when I was in the zone and handling business, I never had an issue with taking it seriously! Of course, what really kept the rush alive was the gameplay. Having already been a huge Dynasty Warriors fan, I was just expecting some more button mashing goodness - and it kinda is at first, but playing around with the different combos is way too satisfying, and sooner than later you'll actually have to implement some spatial awareness, timing, and blocking, not to mention shuffling through your different weapons and abilities for appropriate situations! At the very beginning with the Hydra, they let you know: "Stop just hitting it, stupid! Look around... what do we know about Hydra's heads... aaaayyyy, light bulb!" Then there's the platforming and puzzles, which are not normally things I especially care for, but they're on point and just as addictive as the combat - which surprised the hell out of me. The room with the saw blades, the area with the tightrope walking (also with blades), maneuvering the Path of Hades (with even more blades), and nabbing those necklaces (actually spikes this time) were weirdly addictive platforming sections. Oh, and the puzzle where you gotta rotate and place the different shaped giant stones? Moments like that make me feel like I'd have a chance doing those puzzles on The Amazing Race or some shit! As far as negs, I guess I'd go with the camera angles. Much like the older Resident Evil games, this could make movement in a demanding situation tricky when going from one fixed camera to another. But yeah, that about it! Revisiting this game was my best hit of nostalgia last year - I somehow forgot how fun and involving this game is. A true classic of the PS2 at the height of its powers, and its ability to stand next to all the other masterpieces getting cranked out around the same time is a feat unto itself. I love the action, I love how the story feels like this dark, depressing mythical tale, and I... well actually I don't love Kratos, but to play as him is a total blast! Stray Observations - "I didn't come back for you." Cold blooded! - There's a lot of breasts in this game. Frankly I was surprised that the elderly oracle Kratos encounters didn't have her tits out as well. AGEISM!! - Best QTE? Killing the Minotaurs. Dear lord, your blade is practically down the damn thing's throat before you put it out of its misery. Savage! - Up to that point, Ares was probably the largest boss I'd ever seen. I knew he was a god, but it was like damn... I gotta beat THAT?? - Love how annoyed that guy outside Pandora's Temple is, like "Oh great, here's another idiot who wants to try and get into the temple and bother me. Terrific." - Burning that poor soldier alive... I mean you knew you were gonna do it the whole time, but yikes! - That poor captain can't catch a break, can he? - I love the Dairy Bastard costume. Not only is it about as goofy as you can get in this setting, but Moo Cow Kratos has got some serious booty. - As self-contained as this game is, I definitely feel there was a hint of possibility for a sequel in the ending - not that he ever does, but Kratos does not look happy in that final bit! THAT Trophy: I'll Take the Physical Challenge By far the toughest thing this game has to offer, and it's almost exclusively because of the requirement to tackle all ten challenges in a row. This is where you'll be grateful if you didn't mash Square the entire game on Easy Mode and hope for the best, because you'll seriously be put to the test in a few spots. Challenge #8 (*belch*) is exhausting as it never seems to want to end, and Challenge #10... well, I fucking hate the Satyrs, I'll leave it at that! Edited February 12, 2023 by YaManSmevz Hercules drowns?? No, it was Narcissus!! Ugh what was I thinking 11 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Copanele Posted February 13, 2023 Share Posted February 13, 2023 Ahh, the classic GoW...still as legendary as before I think the Greek God of War can be reasonably put in the "timeless masterpieces" section of videogaming, because...let's be honest, it's freaking 2023 and those games still impress They are still flawed (no game is without flaw) but that doesn't make them less epic. On 2/12/2023 at 3:57 AM, YaManSmevz said: As sympathetic as I may sound, let's not forget that Kratos truly is an asshole, and likely was even before his deal with Ares. Kratos is that dude who screams while lifting in the gym and starts fights with complete strangers. And seeing as quite a few baby boys have been named Kratos since 2009, getting cut off by a screaming Kratos in traffic is a sad possibility for us all in the near future! Damn, Kratos really sounds like that one hemorrhoid gym yeller ? heard a lot of comparisons for Kratos, but never that one! On 2/12/2023 at 3:57 AM, YaManSmevz said: In short, Kratos is a prick. But I never really took issue with this, seeing as it's the crux of Greek mythology. Cronos was a prick, Zeus was a prick, Ares was a prick... these stories are all about people being pricks, and in the end (mostly) getting what's coming to em. After Narcissus drowns or Icarus falls to his death, we may as well have Rod Serling walk over in a chiton and sandals to sum it all up for us! I think that's why Kratos is a compelling character(well..until GoW3), because of that sweet sweet hubris and critical flaw that every Greek God had. In Kratos' case, he is the type of person who opens a door with his head, only to realize later on that the actual door is 3 m to the left and he was just banging a wall. With tits on it. Cause it's Ancient Greece. On 2/12/2023 at 3:57 AM, YaManSmevz said: - Love how annoyed that guy outside Pandora's Temple is, like "Oh great, here's another idiot who wants to try and get into the temple and bother me. Terrific." "Welcome, champion", said the bored guard, knowing that he will do overtime once again with that pyre of corpses. On 2/12/2023 at 3:57 AM, YaManSmevz said: - That poor captain can't catch a break, can he? There's 3 constants in the GoW series - Angry Kratos, huge bosses and that goddamn captain ? Believe me at one point you will start to play "find the captain reference" in the games On 2/12/2023 at 3:57 AM, YaManSmevz said: THAT Trophy: I'll Take the Physical Challenge By far the toughest thing this game has to offer, and it's almost exclusively because of the requirement to tackle all ten challenges in a row. This is where you'll be grateful if you didn't mash Square the entire game on Easy Mode and hope for the best, because you'll seriously be put to the test in a few spots. Challenge #8 (*belch*) is exhausting as it never seems to want to end, and Challenge #10... well, I fucking hate the Satyrs, I'll leave it at that! I think that GoW1 was the most challenging one to platinum, exactly because of the damn Challenge 10. The satyrs themselves are pretty ok-ish to defeat once you learn their parry moveset...but dear god do they love to glitch through that platform in Challenge 10. I think that challenge was straight up broken. No matter how many God of War reviews I see, I can never get enough nice writing! Waiting for the epic sequel writeup now :> 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YaManSmevz Posted February 13, 2023 Author Share Posted February 13, 2023 38 minutes ago, Copanele said: Ahh, the classic GoW...still as legendary as before I think the Greek God of War can be reasonably put in the "timeless masterpieces" section of videogaming, because...let's be honest, it's freaking 2023 and those games still impress They are still flawed (no game is without flaw) but that doesn't make them less epic. Duuuude that's how it felt when I replayed it last month, I was expecting to be like "well, it's almost twenty years old, we can't expect it to be as good as we remember" but I never had to, cuz it really does feel as good! Timeless is definitely the perfect word. 38 minutes ago, Copanele said: I think that's why Kratos is a compelling character(well..until GoW3), because of that sweet sweet hubris and critical flaw that every Greek God had. In Kratos' case, he is the type of person who opens a door with his head, only to realize later on that the actual door is 3 m to the left and he was just banging a wall. With tits on it. Cause it's Ancient Greece. Yes! I love that they weren't overly interested in trying to get us to be all "aww, poor bb" for him. It's like "see what happens when you just throw temper tantrums and never stop to think what part you may have played in your own misfortune? You bash your head against walls, and you're unable to see the tits for the trees. And for real, you'd think having tits all over the place would cheer him up some! "HATE!! VIOLENCE!! ANGEEEE- ooh, pretty.... wait, what was I saying?" 38 minutes ago, Copanele said: "Welcome, champion", said the bored guard, knowing that he will do overtime once again with that pyre of corpses. You got me??? I was like "I don't remember him saying that!" and went back and watched it on YouTube. He sounds as bitter as I remember though, like if Kratos hadn't solved all the puzzles some guy showing up after Kratos would've been greeted like "GET THE FUCK OUT OF HERE, I'VE GOT ENOUGH BODIES TO BURN ALREADY, YOU DICK!!" 38 minutes ago, Copanele said: There's 3 constants in the GoW series - Angry Kratos, huge bosses and that goddamn captain Believe me at one point you will start to play "find the captain reference" in the games I had completely forgotten about the captain! I felt bad for him in GoW2, at that point they were clearly just fucking with him? 38 minutes ago, Copanele said: I think that GoW1 was the most challenging one to platinum, exactly because of the damn Challenge 10. The satyrs themselves are pretty ok-ish to defeat once you learn their parry moveset...but dear god do they love to glitch through that platform in Challenge 10. I think that challenge was straight up broken. Agreed! I didn't do the challenges when I played this back in the day, so I was nervous as shit going in. I actually thought if you died at all, you'd get reset back to the beginning, like it was THAT strict. I can't tell you how relieved I was to find that wasn't how it is! #10 felt fucking great to finish, I remember when the platform was almost at the point where I could jump I nearly leapt off in the wrong direction by accident. That was a heartstopper? 38 minutes ago, Copanele said: No matter how many God of War reviews I see, I can never get enough nice writing! Waiting for the epic sequel writeup now :> Aayyy thanks my dude! 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Platinum_Vice Posted February 13, 2023 Share Posted February 13, 2023 (edited) On 12/02/2023 at 9:57 AM, YaManSmevz said: Before going any further, we gotta give a shout to Platinum Vice's outstanding retrospective of the entire series. It deserves the eyes of anyone who even remotely enjoyed these games! ??? On 12/02/2023 at 9:57 AM, YaManSmevz said: *I gotta say, I kinda feel for Kratos with the nightmares thing. He's constantly asking "This will get rid of my nightmares, right?" and every time he's told "Well uh, your sins will be forgiven," clearly just glossing this over. So when he does the deed and is like "Whew! No more nightmares, maybe y'all ain't so bad after all" and Athena's like "Whoa whoa whoa, nobody ever said THAT" it's like don't play, YOU KNEW WHAT HE MEANT. 100% this. He got lawyered big time. Complete rookie move on Athena's behalf, though. Gonna go ahead and make an enemy of someone who has nothing to lose and everything to gain, and bestow godly powers upon him, and ensure that he knows it was Athena that betrayed him... and, oh yeah, she knew he was capable and willing to kill a god and that he was a loose cannon from the get-go. Athena thought she was making a pro gamer move but I think we can objectively rule this one as a smooth-brained tactical blunder. On 12/02/2023 at 9:57 AM, YaManSmevz said: Kratos is that dude who ... starts fights with complete strangers. You know what? You're totally right on with this. It's a bright neon sign that a bloke is super insecure when he does that and yet Kratos was the 2000s poster boy for machoism in the gaming world. I didn't see it your way until you put it like that, but yeah, he's got an acute case of Small Dick Energy all the way until he's recast in the reboot. On 12/02/2023 at 9:57 AM, YaManSmevz said: the choir legit sounds like they're singing "PIECE OF SHIT! PIECE OF SHIT, THAT PIECE OF SHIT!" I knew of the GOW2's "pour kettle, pot of tea" but GOW1's "piece of shit" might be even better. ? On 12/02/2023 at 9:57 AM, YaManSmevz said: As far as negs, I guess I'd go with the camera angles. Much like the older Resident Evil games, this could make movement in a demanding situation tricky when going from one fixed camera to another. Aww hell naw, I ain't havin none of that! I LOVE the fixed camera angles in GoW and RE. 7 hours ago, Copanele said: There's 3 constants in the GoW series - Angry Kratos, huge bosses and that goddamn captain Believe me at one point you will start to play "find the captain reference" in the games It's such a great gag. When you first meet him, I thought, "oh! It's like that?" And then seeing the callback in Hades just straight away made me giggle. Maybe it's my brain's interpretation but I think the recurring appearance is literally played for the giggle. ? So good. 6 hours ago, YaManSmevz said: You bash your head against walls, and you're unable to see the tits for the trees. A quote for your next tattoo? Let's make it happen. Love it as always. Edited February 13, 2023 by Platinum_Vice 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YaManSmevz Posted February 13, 2023 Author Share Posted February 13, 2023 38 minutes ago, Platinum_Vice said: 100% this. He got lawyered big time. Complete rookie move on Athena's behalf, though. Gonna go ahead and make an enemy of someone who has nothing to lose and everything to gain, and bestow godly powers upon him, and ensure that he knows it was Athena that betrayed him... and, oh yeah, she knew he was capable and willing to kill a god and that he was a loose cannon from the get-go. Athena thought she was making a pro gamer move but I think we can objectively rule this one as a smooth-brained tactical blunder. Yeahmann. I mean I know it was supposed to be this forbidden thing for the gods to kill one another but surely if you wanted Ares gone that badly you could have come up with a better plan than that! 38 minutes ago, Platinum_Vice said: You know what? You're totally right on with this. It's a bright neon sign that a bloke is super insecure when he does that and yet Kratos was the 2000s poster boy for machoism in the gaming world. I didn't see it your way until you put it like that, but yeah, he's got an acute case of Small Dick Energy all the way until he's recast in the reboot. 100%. I liked Kratos until I noticed how other men were responding to him in that way - he joined the club of characters like Scarface, Tyler Durden, and Walter White where chads will completely ignore all subtext so they can see "a man who don't take no shit." 38 minutes ago, Platinum_Vice said: Aww hell naw, I ain't havin none of that! I LOVE the fixed camera angles in GoW and RE. Haha you're not wrong in the slightest! I was just trying to find something to nitpick really? 38 minutes ago, Platinum_Vice said: A quote for your next tattoo? Let's make it happen. Love it as always. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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