Cassylvania's Miserable Little Pile of Platinums

[Mori]

Two more suggestions: The Pedestrian and John Wick Hex.

 

The Pedestrian is a short puzzle game and John Wick Hex is a.. strategy game?

[Cassylvania]

14 hours ago, Briste said:

Well most of the games on there that I've played, you have too....except for all the Final Fantasy's....I'll recommend The Forgotten City, which is only like 10 hours ish I think and I enjoyed quite a bit and is something I think you'd like enough. I'll also echo the Spider-Man Miles Morales and Final Fantasy 7 Remake since I really liked both of them as well.

 

Added. I probably would've played it this month anyway.

 

12 hours ago, Taruta13 said:

Have you tried Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom? The PS5 version is now on the PS+ catalog. I really enjoyed that game and got into it after seeing a Games Done Quick runner called Tinahacks(who runs an GDQ Hotfix showcasing RPGs, my favorite genre, by the way) ran an any% version on an unpatched Switch version.

 

Added. Looks like it has some pretty good reviews, for a series I've never checked out.

 

6 hours ago, Rally-Vincent--- said:

Are there 24 games you don't already? Asking for a friend.

 

That depends. How many Assassin's Creed games are there?

 

5 hours ago, Mori said:

Two more suggestions: The Pedestrian and John Wick Hex.

 

The Pedestrian is a short puzzle game and John Wick Hex is a.. strategy game?

 

I can add the first one, but I actually bought John Wick Hex on a sale last year.

 

Sneaky, sneaky... Trying to slip four games onto my list. I'll allow it. After all, this Pedestrian game would save me from the super long RPGs that you know I'll rant over.

 

I believe that puts us at 13 games.

[Mori]

23 minutes ago, Cassylvania said:

I can add the first one, but I actually bought John Wick Hex on a sale last year.

 

Sneaky, sneaky... Trying to slip four games onto my list. I'll allow it. After all, this Pedestrian game would save me from the super long RPGs that you know I'll rant over.

 

Just want to make sure you'll get your 24 games ?

 

That are the games I played and thought suit your event. 

I might have more, haven't looked further into it yet but I'll stop for now. ?

[DrBloodmoney]

Cassy, looking on the catalogue, and based on stuff not on your profile as far as I can see, I'd personally recommend looking at:

 

Dandara: Trials of Fear Edition (includes the DLC, and is WICKED AWESOME!)

Tetris Effect (yes, it's tough, but there's so much game in there, it practically justifies year of PS+ Extra on its own!)

Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom

The Quarry

The Forgotten City

The Pedestrian

The Garden Between

Inside

Observation

Through the Darkest of Times

Returnal

Telling Lies

The Surge 2

Matterfall

Prey (Has some DLC, but it's good and worth the extra cost)

My Friend Pedro

Minit

 

All of those I think are somewhere between good and great - and while we rarely agree on the merits of any game, I fiigure there has to be a least a couple in there we would see eye-to-watery-gaming-addled-eye on! ??

 

Edited May 13, 2023 by DrBloodmoney

[Cassylvania]

2 hours ago, DrBloodmoney said:

Cassy, looking on the catalogue, and based on stuff not on your profile as far as I can see, I'd personally recommend looking at:

 

Dandara: Trials of Fear Edition (includes the DLC, and is WICKED AWESOME!)

Tetris Effect (yes, it's tough, but there's so much game in there, it practically justifies year of PS+ Extra on its own!)

Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom

The Quarry

The Forgotten City

The Pedestrian

The Garden Between

Inside

Observation

Through the Darkest of Times

Returnal

Telling Lies

The Surge 2

Matterfall

Prey (Has some DLC, but it's good and worth the extra cost)

My Friend Pedro

Minit

 

All of those I think are somewhere between good and great - and while we rarely agree on the merits of any game, I fiigure there has to be a least a couple in there we would see eye-to-watery-gaming-addled-eye on! 

 

Alright, I think this puts us close to 24 games... Some of these were already suggested, I'm tempted to say no to Inside if only because it isn't a "new" game to me, and I can't include The Surge 2 because I already own it (sad, I know -- I'm sure everybody was looking forward to my review of that one). I also own Prey for some reason. I couldn't include it anyway because the rule is that I can't pay for any of these games. That's not to say, of course, that I'll never play any of these games. This is just me trying to justify a PS+ Premium subscription by playing 12 "free" games. I'll still be playing other stuff in the meantime, including stuff from my backlog.

 

Let's recap where we are...

1. FFVII Remake
2. Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart
3. Spider-man: Miles Morales
4. Chorus
5. Yakuza 0
6. Returnal
7. The Quarry
8. Lost Sphear
9. Oninaki
10. Observation
11. The Forgotten City
12. Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom
13. The Pedestrian
14. Dandara
15. Tetris Effect
16. The Gardens Between
17. Through the Darkest of Times
18. Telling Lies
19. Matterfall
20. My Friend Pedro
21. Minit

So, we need three more. It's OK if we go over 24. We could either cap it at a higher number or eliminate a few games. We'll have to think of a fair way to go about that. For now, I'm willing to say 30 games might be a better cap. That gives ten people a chance to nominate three games.

[Rally-Vincent---]

Through the Darkest of Times has some bugs (not the trophies, but some missions, at least in the EU version). Shouldn't be too big of a problem, though, if you roll it. I am playing it right now to prepare the next milestone. I like it, although the replay value could be higher.

[grayhammmer]

Blasphemous

Ghost of Tsushima

Life is Strange 2

 

Two of these I have played and highly recommend, and the last would finish up the "Life is Strange" series for your profile.

[realm722]

I figure it'd be criminal if I didn't throw at least a few games out there... what I'm doing to see what to recommend you is looking at this catalog of PS+ subscription games, comparing the top ranked games on my thread, and just checking to see if you've played them or not. 

 

Dead Cells (welp I see that's already on your profile)

Ash of Gods: Redemption (admittedly a grind, but if you ever want to scratch that Banner Saga itch and can overlook some difficult controls (at least to learn at the start), I think you can enjoy this. Me and @Briste have super lengthy reviews of the game in case you want a decent road map)

The Forgotten City (add it a 2nd time on your last. It's that bloody good)

Desperados III (you may have told me you already purchased this... I forget tho. Get on them Shadow Tactics Cowboy Edition)

Jotun (boss rush game. if you're in the mood to get your ass handed to you)

Paradise Killer (OKAY CASSY THIS IS MY LEGIT BEST RECOMMENDATION, pls review it. I'm on an island as being one of like 7 people who've played it on this website. It's relatively short, narrative-focused, put on your detective hat and have fun)

 

I'll stop there. If you have to select just one, take PK. 

[Cassylvania]

4 hours ago, grayhammmer said:

Blasphemous

Ghost of Tsushima

Life is Strange 2

 

Two of these I have played and highly recommend, and the last would finish up the "Life is Strange" series for your profile.

 

I can add Blasphemous and LiS2, but I believe GoT has online DLC trophies. I'm not totally against that (and it is a game I want to play), but that just adds a complexity that I don't know I want to deal with during this event or whatever you want to call it. My hope is to 100% each game in a single month on my own time.

 

41 minutes ago, realm722 said:

I figure it'd be criminal if I didn't throw at least a few games out there... what I'm doing to see what to recommend you is looking at this catalog of PS+ subscription games, comparing the top ranked games on my thread, and just checking to see if you've played them or not. 

 

Dead Cells (welp I see that's already on your profile)

Ash of Gods: Redemption (admittedly a grind, but if you ever want to scratch that Banner Saga itch and can overlook some difficult controls (at least to learn at the start), I think you can enjoy this. Me and @Briste have super lengthy reviews of the game in case you want a decent road map)

The Forgotten City (add it a 2nd time on your last. It's that bloody good)

Desperados III (you may have told me you already purchased this... I forget tho. Get on them Shadow Tactics Cowboy Edition)

Jotun (boss rush game. if you're in the mood to get your ass handed to you)

Paradise Killer (OKAY CASSY THIS IS MY LEGIT BEST RECOMMENDATION, pls review it. I'm on an island as being one of like 7 people who've played it on this website. It's relatively short, narrative-focused, put on your detective hat and have fun)

 

I'll stop there. If you have to select just one, take PK. 

 

Well, fittingly, I can only select one -- and it's PK. I own Ash of Gods, Jotun, and Desperados III. However... I own Desperadoes III on physical disc. There might be a loophole there where I could sell the unopened copy if I roll it, thereby making it eligible for the event. If I accept it, that puts us at 25 games.

 

Keep the recommendations coming. I might need to think of some way to trim the list down if it gets too big. One possibility would be to start with games that are either really long or really short (or really hard or really easy), but I don't want you guys to think I'm a cop-out. We could also drop the games that don't have a platinum. Seems a bit arbitrary, but I don't always review those.

 

I notice nobody is nominating the only game I haven't played in a certain series that begins with a Y and ends with an s...

[Puppeter04]

Minit, Inside and The Pedestrian were games I played this last 2-3 months, AND WHAT A EXPERIENCE.

 

I recommend that you don't ignore them, especially Inside (famous triad: Inside, Limbo and Little Nightmares) because its a game that leave you with a face like "what the hell happened here? I need answers" and even tho you'll get all trophies before actually finishing the game, keep playing, I know you will but just in case. Because that ending... damn.

 

The Pedestrian would put you in your place, intelligent-wise, so try not to play it too late at night as I did cuz I haven't felt more stupid in my whole life. But It also has a great unexpected ending. 

 

And Minit, 3h of pure pixel fun, tho it can get frustrating. Oh and Telling Lies, strong narrative, I also 2nd that one. 

 

You have my thoughts of these games on my trophy checklist if you need a lil bit more! 

 

 

Edited May 14, 2023 by Puppeter04

[Cassylvania]

4 hours ago, Puppeter04 said:

Minit, Inside and The Pedestrian were games I played this last 2-3 months, AND WHAT A EXPERIENCE.

 

Hmm... Well, I guess one thing I could do is just play all these shorter or plat-less games on my own. Maybe I'll do that this month, while I continue working through my active games. It can be like a prelude to the main event. Or a last ditch effort to justify this year's PS+ subscription...

[JEDI_BROTHERS]

2 hours ago, Cassylvania said:

 

Hmm... Well, I guess one thing I could do is just play all these shorter or plat-less games on my own. Maybe I'll do that this month, while I continue working through my active games. It can be like a prelude to the main event. Or a last ditch effort to justify this year's PS+ subscription...

If you have ps plus premium the syphon filter series is very straight forward, pretty much beat the game. Only the first has miscellaneous trophies, which are super easy. Jumping flash is a fun and short one, Loco roco midnight carnival is fun and short. If not I'd recommend trying out dragon ball z kakarot, the far cry games, Mortal kombat 11. 

4 minutes ago, JEDI_BROTHERS said:

If you have ps plus premium the syphon filter series is very straight forward, pretty much beat the game. Only the first has miscellaneous trophies, which are super easy. Jumping flash is a fun and short one, Loco roco midnight carnival is fun and short. If not I'd recommend trying out dragon ball z kakarot, the far cry games, Mortal kombat 11, habbuchi 

Also if you do end up playing the far cry games that have online trophies I would be willing to help, just beware that from 4 on has paid dlc. 

 

Also for premium: Heavy Fire, hot shots golf 1 and 2, super stardust portable, star wars the force unleashed 1 and 2, all of the Infamous games are gems, 

 

Sorry if I name one you have, I only saw to about 2021 in your games so if I say one you have I apologize 

[Cassylvania]

56 minutes ago, JEDI_BROTHERS said:

If you have ps plus premium the syphon filter series is very straight forward, pretty much beat the game. Only the first has miscellaneous trophies, which are super easy. Jumping flash is a fun and short one, Loco roco midnight carnival is fun and short. If not I'd recommend trying out dragon ball z kakarot, the far cry games, Mortal kombat 11. 

Also if you do end up playing the far cry games that have online trophies I would be willing to help, just beware that from 4 on has paid dlc. 

 

Also for premium: Heavy Fire, hot shots golf 1 and 2, super stardust portable, star wars the force unleashed 1 and 2, all of the Infamous games are gems, 

 

Sorry if I name one you have, I only saw to about 2021 in your games so if I say one you have I apologize 

 

Interesting picks. I suppose if I'm trying to justify a PS+ Premium subscription, I should be playing some PS+ Premium games. I'll have to do some research into these games, though. I've never heard of Syphon Filter, Jumping Flash, or Loco Roco. Any MK or Dragon Ball Z game is iffy. 2D fighting isn't really my genre of choice. If I was going to do another Far Cry game (I did Primal and liked it), I'd probably do 4. But yeah, I saw it had online trophies and also the one is unobtainable right now? Not sure.

 

The rest I don't know about either. I played two inFamous games and liked them. Not sure how many more are in the series. I like golf games. Hm... I dunno. What do you guys think is fair? If someone nominates more than three games, should I include them all or be allowed to pick from the list? I could just pick the three that look the most interesting to me, but then that removes some of the RNG aspect of this event. I kinda like that I could end up with a game I never would've selected on my own.

[Rally-Vincent---]

Syphon Filter is an espiongae action game. Back then on PSOne, it was well worth playing, along with its two sequels. You have to make exceptions if you play it today. Nostalgia is such an exception. A challenge may be one as well.

[Mori]

1 hour ago, Cassylvania said:

Interesting picks. I suppose if I'm trying to justify a PS+ Premium subscription, I should be playing some PS+ Premium games. I'll have to do some research into these games, though. I've never heard of Syphon Filter, Jumping Flash, or Loco Roco. Any MK or Dragon Ball Z game is iffy. 2D fighting isn't really my genre of choice. If I was going to do another Far Cry game (I did Primal and liked it), I'd probably do 4. But yeah, I saw it had online trophies and also the one is unobtainable right now? Not sure.

 

The rest I don't know about either. I played two inFamous games and liked them. Not sure how many more are in the series. I like golf games. Hm... I dunno. What do you guys think is fair? If someone nominates more than three games, should I include them all or be allowed to pick from the list? I could just pick the three that look the most interesting to me, but then that removes some of the RNG aspect of this event. I kinda like that I could end up with a game I never would've selected on my own.

 

I'd say let @JEDI_BROTHERS pick 3 of his recommendations that fit your requirements. Imo you could also just add them all to the pool and get crazy.

 

Dragon Ball Z Kakarot is RPG and not a 2D fighting game iirc.

Far Cry 4 online is busted atm.

[JEDI_BROTHERS]

6 hours ago, Cassylvania said:

 

Interesting picks. I suppose if I'm trying to justify a PS+ Premium subscription, I should be playing some PS+ Premium games. I'll have to do some research into these games, though. I've never heard of Syphon Filter, Jumping Flash, or Loco Roco. Any MK or Dragon Ball Z game is iffy. 2D fighting isn't really my genre of choice. If I was going to do another Far Cry game (I did Primal and liked it), I'd probably do 4. But yeah, I saw it had online trophies and also the one is unobtainable right now? Not sure.

 

The rest I don't know about either. I played two inFamous games and liked them. Not sure how many more are in the series. I like golf games. Hm... I dunno. What do you guys think is fair? If someone nominates more than three games, should I include them all or be allowed to pick from the list? I could just pick the three that look the most interesting to me, but then that removes some of the RNG aspect of this event. I kinda like that I could end up with a game I never would've selected on my own.

Syphon filter is like the ps1 version of a spy espionage video game. It's a solid game, the controls are iffy at first. 

 

Jumping flash is a short 3d platformer, some even credit as one of the first in the genre. It's less than 2 hours and is actually not too bad, but it's aged graphically for sure. 

 

I didn't have issues with far cry 4s online a few weeks ago when I did it. I'll have to look into it and update you .

 

Dragon ball kakarot is an open world rpg and is 3d so if that makes a difference it's worth mentioning at least. 

 

Infamous festival of blood, second son, and first light are all great games. I'm pretty sure they're all ps plus at some point too. 

 

But in reality I don't mind if you pick the three or I do. If you do I'd recommend looking up gameplay before hand. If I pick it just give me an idea of what you like and dislike in a game and I'll do my best to make it appealing 

[pelagia14]

On 5/14/2023 at 1:09 AM, realm722 said:

Paradise Killer (OKAY CASSY THIS IS MY LEGIT BEST RECOMMENDATION, pls review it. I'm on an island as being one of like 7 people who've played it on this website. It's relatively short, narrative-focused, put on your detective hat and have fun)

 

I'll stop there. If you have to select just one, take PK. 

 

....I just pulled up the stats on Paradise Killer and I'm really surprised to see how few people have played it on Playstation thus far - especially with it's recent inclusion to the PS+ Catalog! It was on my Steam list for ages, so I've been looking forward to playing it!

 

On 5/14/2023 at 2:03 AM, Cassylvania said:

I notice nobody is nominating the only game I haven't played in a certain series that begins with a Y and ends with an s...

 

Despite having only gone through a fraction of your trophy cabinet thread, I already know that you are strongly committed to the series (without even knowing much about it, lmao)! If you need an formal 'suggestion' to add it to the big shiny spin-wheel, then I'll officially throw Ys IX: Monstrum Nox into the ring. ?

[Cassylvania]

14 hours ago, JEDI_BROTHERS said:

But in reality I don't mind if you pick the three or I do. If you do I'd recommend looking up gameplay before hand. If I pick it just give me an idea of what you like and dislike in a game and I'll do my best to make it appealing 

 

Easiest thing to do would be to check out the first post in this thread. I have all the games I played organized by genre. For the most part, the more games you see in a genre, the more I like that type of game. I think the one exception to that is shooters. There are a lot of them there and I don't really care for the genre. If I ever platinum DOOM Eternal, I'm going to go off on them in my review.

 

Beneath that, I also have my favorite games on my profile.

 

I'm tempted to say maybe we should exclude PS1/2/3 games from this event. Maybe in the future, we can have a wheel of random retro games. It just kinda goes against the spirit of this event because I may or may not have an emulator that may or may not allow me to play older games at a much reduced cost. Our main goal here is to try to maximize the value from a PS+ subscription.

 

2 hours ago, pelagia14 said:

Despite having only gone through a fraction of your trophy cabinet thread, I already know that you are strongly committed to the series (without even knowing much about it, lmao)! If you need an formal 'suggestion' to add it to the big shiny spin-wheel, then I'll officially throw Ys IX: Monstrum Nox into the ring.

 

I'm going to regret saying that...

 

The joke being that I hate on the series, despite everybody else loving it. Not much different than Kingdom Hearts, I guess... At least I liked a couple of the KH games.

Edited May 15, 2023 by Cassylvania

[JEDI_BROTHERS]

2 hours ago, Cassylvania said:

 

Easiest thing to do would be to check out the first post in this thread. I have all the games I played organized by genre. For the most part, the more games you see in a genre, the more I like that type of game. I think the one exception to that is shooters. There are a lot of them there and I don't really care for the genre. If I ever platinum DOOM Eternal, I'm going to go off on them in my review.

 

Beneath that, I also have my favorite games on my profile.

 

I'm tempted to say maybe we should exclude PS1/2/3 games from this event. Maybe in the future, we can have a wheel of random retro games. It just kinda goes against the spirit of this event because I may or may not have an emulator that may or may not allow me to play older games at a much reduced cost. Our main goal here is to try to maximize the value from a PS+ subscription.

 

 

I'm going to regret saying that...

 

The joke being that I hate on the series, despite everybody else loving it. Not much different than Kingdom Hearts, I guess... At least I liked a couple of the KH games.

Ah I gotchu. I'm gonna have to actually play the ps4/5 games on the service since most of the ones I've played are the classics lol 

[Taruta13]

23 hours ago, pelagia14 said:

Despite having only gone through a fraction of your trophy cabinet thread, I already know that you are strongly committed to the series (without even knowing much about it, lmao)! If you need an formal 'suggestion' to add it to the big shiny spin-wheel, then I'll officially throw Ys IX: Monstrum Nox into the ring.

 

Hey, if you are going to throw in Ys IX, I am going to one-up you and throw in Ys VIII: Lacrimosa of Dana in to outbid you! I started this for my KYC list and found it very pleasing. (Of course, redact this statement if you already platted this game, Cass. I am lazy and tired and did not check your profile. )

[Cassylvania]

On 5/16/2023 at 9:46 AM, Taruta13 said:

Hey, if you are going to throw in Ys IX, I am going to one-up you and throw in Ys VIII: Lacrimosa of Dana in to outbid you! I started this for my KYC list and found it very pleasing. (Of course, redact this statement if you already platted this game, Cass. I am lazy and tired and did not check your profile. )

 

I did beat Dana. The only one I haven't played is Ys IX, which I figured someone would recommend.

 

Alright... Here's our list as it stands.

1. FFVII Remake (pelagia)
2. Ys IX: Monstrum Nox (pelagia)
3. Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart (Mori)
4. Spider-man: Miles Morales (Mori)
5. Chorus (Mori)
6. Yakuza 0 (Grotz)
7. Returnal (Grotz)
8. The Quarry (Grotz)
9. Lost Sphear (Baker)
10. Oninaki (Baker)
11. The Forgotten City (Briste)
12. Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom (CJ)
13. Dandara (DrB)
14. Tetris Effect (DrB)
15. The Gardens Between (DrB)
16. Through the Darkest of Times (DrB)
17. Telling Lies (DrB)
18. Matterfall (DrB)
19. My Friend Pedro (DrB)
20. Desperadoes III (DrB)
21. Minit (DrB)
22. Blasphemous (grayham)
23. Life is Strange 2 (grayham)
24. Paradise Killer (realm)
25. Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot (JEDI)

So, a few things to note. I decided to remove all games that don't have a platinum (Inside, Observation, and The Pedestrian), which I will play outside of the event. I also decided to remove any game that isn't on PS4 or PS5, since I have other ways to play retro games. Far Cry 4 looks unobtainable right now. Mortal Kombat 11...yeah, that's not happening. I'll keep DBZ since it's an RPG, even though I've never seen the show.

 

I haven't done a lot of research into these games, but I kinda like it that way. Most of them at least have a trophy guide.

 

Up to you guys if you think we should put more games on the list. Like I said, I think 30 would be just chaotic enough to be fun. 24 is doable, but we'd have to remove one. There's also not an even distribution of picks. If we get a few more, we might have to remove a couple from Doc.

Edited May 19, 2023 by Cassylvania

[JEDI_BROTHERS]

16 minutes ago, Cassylvania said:

 

I did beat Dana. The only one I haven't played is Ys IX, which I figured someone would recommend.

 

Alright... Here's our list as it stands.

1. FFVII Remake (pelagia)
2. Ys IX: Monstrum Nox (pelagia)
3. Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart (Mori)
4. Spider-man: Miles Morales (Mori)
5. Chorus (Mori)
6. Yakuza 0 (Grotz)
7. Returnal (Grotz)
8. The Quarry (Grotz)
9. Lost Sphear (Baker)
10. Oninaki (Baker)
11. The Forgotten City (Briste)
12. Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom (CJ)
13. Dandara (DrB)
14. Tetris Effect (DrB)
15. The Gardens Between (DrB)
16. Through the Darkest of Times (DrB)
17. Telling Lies (DrB)
18. Matterfall (DrB)
19. My Friend Pedro (DrB)
20. Desperadoes III (DrB)
21. Minit (DrB)
22. Blasphemous (grayham)
23. Life is Strange 2 (grayham)
24. Paradise Killer (realm)
25. Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot (JEDI)

So, a few things to note. I decided to remove all games that don't have a platinum (Inside, Observation, and The Pedestrian), which I will play outside of the event. I also decided to remove any game that isn't on PS4 or PS5, since I have other ways to play retro games. Far Cry 4 looks unobtainable right now. Mortal Kombat 11...yeah, that's not happening. I'll keep DBZ since it's an RPG, even though I've never seen the show.

 

I haven't done a lot of research into these games, but I kinda like it that way. Most of them at least have a trophy guide.

 

Up to you guys if you think we should put more games on the list. Like I said, I think 30 would be just chaotic enough to be fun. 24 is doable, but we'd have to remove one. There's also not an even distribution of picks. If we get a few more, we might have to remove a couple from Doc.

That's a good list. I don't blame you for not doing Mortal Kombat lol those games can be a pain. I might have to make a list like this for myself so I don't have a hundred games I start then forget about 

[Taruta13]

11 hours ago, Cassylvania said:

I did beat Dana. The only one I haven't played is Ys IX, which I figured someone would recommend.

Okay, forget what I said. Knowing you, I had a feeling you platted the entire series. I haven't played Ys since the old SNES days back when I thought Ys 3 was fun. (Back when I was in college and just came of age. ) Three hours of Dana slapped me in the face (like Laxis did to Adol when he walked in on her bathing ) and yelled at me for not even trying this series. (Ys Origin was being a jerk and sitting in the closet sucking its thumb. )

 

I dunno if there are five more games on PS+ Extra that haven't been covered by this list unless you want to go dank and get visual novels or something.

Edited May 19, 2023 by Taruta13

[gruffiiti]

My suggestions would be..

 

Thymesia

Guardians of the Galaxy

Moonlighter

[Cassylvania]

3 hours ago, gruffiiti said:

My suggestions would be..

 

Thymesia

Guardians of the Galaxy

Moonlighter

 

Added, added, and...has DLC? I can add if the DLC is free.

 

Alright, time to get this one off my chest.

 

Platinum #383 - Doom Eternal

 

You know, there was a time on this account when I'd start a new game and see it all the way through without any major breaks in my playtime. You've probably noticed that's not the case anymore, with me only playing major titles like Elden Ring and Hogwarts Legacy for a single day before moving on to something else. That's not to say I didn't like those games or they didn't hold my interest (obviously, that's not true for a Souls game)... I think I just get overwhelmed with games that have so much to take in. They call it sensory overload or something. I kinda blame Doom Eternal for this. In fact, I blame Doom Eternal for a lot. There's a reason I've been referring to this game as "DUUM" in Discord for the past year. Unlike the other games I mentioned, I didn't like this one at all.

 

Let me start by saying I've never played a Doom game before. I've heard of the series, of course, and I knew the basic premise. I knew it was all about demon slaying and gore and heavy metal. That just screams "early 90's" to me and that's a good thing. My issue has always been that I've never played the older games, so I don't think I could appreciate them now compared to someone who grew up with the series. The only reason I even considered playing this game was because I heard it was really good and that it modernized the formula that made it so popular. If I could find interest in something like this, I could go back and play those older games and see what I missed out on. You Doom aficionados will have to tell me where this ranks among other games in the series, but...really? People enjoy this?

 

I'll try not to be an asshole for a second. The soundtrack is good. The graphics are too. Those are the things that appealed to me when I was watching reviews. This looked like an action-packed experience. I thought this was going to be the kind of game I'd constantly need a break from because otherwise my head would explode. Instead, I needed those breaks because this was a miserable, BORING experience. I do not get it, guys. Forget the multiplayer or the multiple playthroughs. It's not the trophies that are clouding my judgement, as it has been with past games. The core concept of this game is so mind-numbingly dull that I'm convinced I must be playing it wrong.

 

Let me tell you what you do in this game. During the entire campaign, there are only three situations you will ever find yourself in: combat, platforming, and trying to figure out how to get to the next combat or platforming section. I'd say you'll spend an equal amount of time in each situation, so we can call this game 33% action, 33% platformer, and 33% "puzzle" (although, realistically, they should all be in quotations). It somehow drops the ball on all three.

 

The combat should be this game's main selling point, but it might be the worst of all of them. They should call this game Ammo Pickup Simulator because you're going to constantly be out of ammo. It reminds me of money in Tropico 6. Remember how I complained about having to wait around all the time while your balance was in the negative so you could get back to playing the game? Somehow, someone thought it was a good idea to apply that to a first-person shooter. Most demons are sponges and most of your weapons can't hold very much ammo, so you'll spend most of the battle running around and hoping to find more. How do you get ammo if you can't find any? I hope you remember how to do the Foul Play. Join me now in the advanced version: do the Doom Eternal!

 

L1 + triangle + square + hold R2. L1 + triangle + square + hold R2. L1 + triangle + square + hold R2. L1 + triangle + square + hold R2. L1 + triangle + square + hold R2. L1 + triangle + square + hold R2. L1 + triangle + square + hold R2. L1 + triangle + square + hold R2. L1 + triangle + square + hold R2. L1 + triangle + square + hold R2. (Remember to hold your excitement.) L1 + triangle + square + hold R2. L1 + triangle + square + hold R2. L1 + triangle + square + hold R2. L1 + triangle + square + hold R2. L1 + triangle + square + hold R2. L1 + triangle + square + hold R2. L1 + triangle + square + hold R2. L1 + triangle + square + hold R2. L1 + triangle + square + hold R2. L1 + triangle + square + hold R2.

 

There. I got you your platinum.

 

For those of you who haven't played the game, what am I doing? Why, I'm maximizing the loot you get from killing enemies. You press L1 to throw an ice grenade, which freezes enemies. You press triangle to set them on fire, and then square to chainsaw them, which is an insta-kill. This gets you a bunch of ammo and health (which you'll also need, since Doomguy burns through HP just as quickly), which you mostly utilize on fodder enemies. From here, you just empty all your clips until it's time to refill again, which will take about ten seconds. Expect to do this for about twelve waves per map times about twelve maps. I believe that's called a gross, which is a fitting term for a game where the most disgusting thing every level is the size. Why are they so damn big when you're doing the same thing every time?

 

And don't you "But Cass" me! This game is made to look a lot more complex than it is. You have up to eight guns, which each have several upgrades and modifications, two different kinds of grenades, your flamethrower, your blood punch, a sword that kills almost anything in one hit but the ammo is super rare, and something called Glory Kills, which allow you to auto-kill a flashing enemy. All of this is intended to make your head spin, but most enemies have a single weakness, so combat is really just about exploiting that while you try to dodge enemy fire. The floating testicles, for example, blow up when you toss a grenade in their mouth. The brain spiders don't like when you destroy the turret on their back. The fat ogres probably don't like being shot in the stomach. (I don't know if that's actually their weak point, but it glows and I really couldn't care less because most everything dies to a few rocket launchers.) It gets a bit trickier with this one enemy that you have to stun, but you can only do that when you're a certain distance away from him. If you're too close, he'll shoot you with a shotgun. If you're too far away, he'll throw an axe at you. But if you're just right, he'll flash green for a second and you can parry Mr. Goldilocks. That's the only time when this felt like an actual game. Of course, it's annoying because you're moving, he's moving, and you're likely being shot at from other enemies, so it's like trying to do PvP in Dark Souls while getting ganked by skeletons.

 

I don't want to say enemy variety in this game is bad, but the situational variety in which you face the enemies is bad. Every wave is basically the same. You're just running around in a small area while shooting. Sometimes you can bounce or swing across things to reach other areas, but the only purpose of doing this is to create some distance between you and the enemies. It doesn't fundamentally change what you're doing or add some new creative element to the gameplay. The only combat sections that feel unique are when a trap or hazard is introduced. Again, think about Dark Souls (or hell, even Skyrim), when you're able to use the environment to your advantage. The difference is those games are doing it constantly. I can think of so many situations in those games where I had to navigate around the enemies and the environment at the same time. In Doom Eternal...uh, there's one section where you can drop a spike trap on some enemies. There's another where platforms sorta move down into lava over time. Of course, neither of these works well because the game wasn't designed with the environment in mind. They want to just put you in a room that loops around itself and spawn a random number of enemies to attack you. You can even break the AI by leaving the spawning area. Enemies don't know what to do, so they'll just stand at the boundary and wait for you to return, like some sort of sad little puppy. It's pretty rare for the game to allow you to do this because most combat sections will keep you trapped in a certain area until you defeat everybody, but it just shows you how shallow the gameplay actually is. Worse still, your biggest danger in combat is getting cornered, but it only ever happens if you get stuck on an enemy or a group of enemies in a small area, which is mostly RNG. I had some sections I could play through flawlessly and then other times where I'd go from full health to dead in a matter of seconds because I got caught between an ogre and a hard place.

 

I don't think I've ever been more depressed by a map than I was in this game. I'm normally opening in-game maps every few seconds to look for collectibles. You have to do that in this game, but the main reason I kept opening the map was to see how much of the level was left. It was always a painful amount. And guys, what I've described so far is the best part of the game. It gets worse from here.

 

The platforming is pointless. I don't know why this is a thing in a first-person game. Doomguy has a double jump and eventually a double dash. You need to utilize these in tandem to reach some rather tricky areas. I can't imagine anybody finds this fun. I think the devs just threw it in to give the player a bit of reprieve from the combat. I appreciate the sentiment, but it doesn't add much and it just makes replaying the levels tedious. If Doomguy falls, you lose a little bit of health or armor and get to retry instantly. I found some of the grab physics to be spotty too. Sometimes Doomguy would miss a crossbar that was right in front of him and other times he'd grab onto a wall that he was nowhere near.

 

The final third of the game is the thing I hate most. Not knowing what to do next. There are so many sections of the game where you'll be scratching your head because it's not clear which way is forward. Sometimes there's a climbable wall that you don't see or a hidden button you have to press, but I'm pretty sure it's not intended to be a puzzle. This doesn't strike me as a game that wants you to have to think. Or maybe it does because the UI is absolutely FLOODED with information. I do think it's kinda neat that your rechargeable ammo (e.g. grenade, flamethrower, chainsaw) is tracked near your crosshairs, as well as in the corner, but it does make the screen look like a bit of a mess. I also don't know why the font is so small by default. How can anybody read anything? I have a 55" TV and I had to squint. The good news is this game has a TON of customization options in the Settings, so you can adjust it to your liking. I liked changing the color options.

 

Is this the worst game I ever played? No, but I thought it failed at the things it set out to do. I try my best to judge games based on what they're trying to be, not necessarily what I like, which is sometimes a hard thing to separate out. I'm admittedly not the biggest FPS fan in the world, so it's probably easy to dismiss me as a hater, but I can't be the only person out there who thought this game was boring. ME. The person who likes watching virtual potatoes grow. If I'm finding your gameplay dull, something has to be wrong.

 

Oh, the story is dumb too, but I'd be insulted if it wasn't. There is one scene I kinda liked. In an early mission, you take control of an enemy to recover a weapon for you. When you bring the weapon back, your point-of-view switches back to Doomguy and you can kill the enemy you just mind-controlled point blank with it. I don't know if that really counts as a cutscene, but it's pretty badass and funny. The rest of the story is ass and not funny. I feel like they were trying to make a plot when there doesn't need to be one.

 

You're looking at...I don't know, the guide says 30 hours to platinum, but I was probably closer to 50. These levels are long. You also probably have to play through the game twice. The second time through, you need to play on Extra Lives mode, which I don't think allows you to replay levels, meaning you'd need a second playthrough anyway if you miss even one collectible. (I was actually forced to replay a level during my first playthrough because the game glitched out on me and wouldn't let me fast travel. I ended up having to replay most of them anyway because I didn't realize the challenges were required.) I think I actually preferred my second playthrough because I was rage playing by that point. I let my hatred for the game fuel me all week long. I think that's how you're supposed to play. You're supposed to be angry. You're supposed to be pissed off at how many enemies there are and how much more the level there is to play. I became like a god. You remember that one weekend about five years ago where I banged out all the hardest stuff in Arkham Knight in the course of like two days? This is the closest I've gotten to reaching that zen-like state again. I was simultaneously seeing red and dead inside. That's probably not healthy, but imagine if I could harness that power for good. If I could just capture all my rage in an energy bottle and consume it when I need it, we might never again see these lulls in my gaming activities. If only I could be so grossly incandescent.

 

I don't know what the difficulty would be. Maybe a 5 normally and a 3 with rage-in-a-bottle. I hear the DLC is harder, but there's a better chance of me paying for House Flipper's overpriced DLC than this.

 

The only way this game is getting a 5 star review from me is if I'm grading out of 10. This game is so mid that it should be a sin.

Edited May 19, 2023 by Cassylvania