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lastoneout · 2 months

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hi idk if you're a huge kalos fan but how are you feeling about the direct

I haven't watched it yet, but ngl Kalos wasn't my favorite OR my least favorite pokemon game, I was pretty neutral on it overall. My main complaint was how annoying the map was to traverse before you got fly, but aside from that it was fine, introduced some cool pokemon and had a decent plot. Tbh for the next Legends game I would have preferred Jhoto, but eh. It's not a huge deal to me.

My real issue is that it's a little hard to get excited about it when I know how bad crunch is at Game Freak and that despite saying they were reevaluating their tight release cycle bcs like, ScarVi was borderline unplayable at launch and Arceus got abandoned the second they were done with it despite being the most popular game in years....I just have no faith that this game will be good, or at least it won't be anywhere near as good as it has the potential to be :/

I hope I'm proven wrong tho, and I don't think it's wrong to be excited about the game, something something no ethical consumption and I'd be a major hypocrite if I told people to drop any game company that has bad practices bcs almost all of them do, I just can't get hype. I was really, really hoping Game Freak would slow the hell down and stop making new games for a couple of years, put all of their focus on gen 10 and release that maybe in 2026 or 2027, but nope gotta make that money even if the games we release are falling apart at the seams and our devs are working on two or three projects at once.

And like, given the current trend in decreasing quality I'm genuinely unsure if the game is even going to be functional enough to be worth playing, especially since I figure to hit a 2025 release they probably started working on this right after Arceus came out, and there has simply not been enough time to make this game good. Plus there were a lot of points in ScarVi where I legit just wanted to put the game down and stop playing entirely bcs the graphics and glitches and framerate drops started to make me annoyed and dizzy, and once I was done with the main story I lost like all motivation to keep playing(I like finishing my dex, I did it in Sw/Sh and Let's Go and have almost done it in BDSP and Arceus, but I don't care about ScarVi's dex at all), and I haven't even bought the DLC yet. Tbh I'm probably not even gonna pre-order this, I'm waiting till it's out to decide if I want to buy it or not.

Anyway sorry to be a buzzkill, I don't fault anyone for being excited, I've loved Pokemon for more than half my life, it helped me meet my fiancé, it really means so SO much to me, so I get it, but like....I think I love the series too much to get excited for this. Seeing what Pokemon is turning into is just...painful and sad. I hope y'all enjoy it tho, and who knows, I could be wrong, maybe it will be fantastic and super polished and we can all breathe a sigh of relief bcs they got their shit together! That would be nice.

Edit: I do want to say I'm glad it has been 3 years instead of the usual 2, and I'm VERY glad they didn't announce gen 10, but unless the scope of this game is narrow as fuck and they also don't release until like November-December 2025 AND this team was NOT the same team who worked on ScarVi's DLC that is still not enough time to make a game with the scope they've been establishing as their new baseline. TOTK took SIX years to finish. Elden Ring's DLC was built on top of an existing game and it still took TWO whole years just to make it. Most open-world games take a really, really long time. Adding an extra year is great, but they need to be taking a lot longer than that between games. This is a step in the right direction, but it's not enough to inspire confidence.

#pokemon crit #most of the modern gaming industry gets by releasing a new huge game every like 6 years or so #and they're promising shit on the scope of TOTK or Elden Ring especially with that $60 price tag #I just don't think three years is enough time to make a game like that #especially especially since ScarVi's DLC literally JUST came out #and it was a big one

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theloathsometwinkeater · 3 months

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ranking random soulsborne (mostly elden ring) bosses based on how much i like them but my takes are kinda bad

uhh 30 least liked and number 1 is my favorite

30. godskin duo

nuff said tbh. terribly designed boss. from had no idea how to make it hard so they just chucked two enemies in the dumbass room

29. the monkeys from sekiro

boring copy and paste of guardian ape

28. elden beast

elden beast is probably one of my least favorite fights in elden ring. for some reason torrent isnt available in its arena so you have to go chasing after it every time it runs away 😭😭 average int build fight

you could literally give me melania spamming scarlet aeonia, maliketh with 3x his normal health, and the double crucible knights all in the same tiny cramped room and i would still probably like it more than elden beast

the execution leaves much to be desired; especially for a final boss. give me cool insane bloodborne esque attacks not penis dragon spamming elden stars

27. fire giant

i dont like the fire giant fight. yeah im probably gonna get a lot of 'git guds' for this one but he always gmfu. WHEN HE GETS STUCK ON THE FUCKING TERRAIN I START TWEAKING ITS SO ANNOYING

26. ornstein and smough

smoughs fatass ruins the fight for me i srsly cant take him srsly with that goofy ass giggle

25. death rite bird

design is cool but i really dont like the fight

24. night's calvary

:-( this boss couldve been really cool. its so glitchy in game tho

the altus plateau calvary glitch is really funny tho. if youve never seen it essentially it bugs out if you stray too far from its locked spawn point and gets stuck and stops attacking

23. renalla

ehhhh. i hate int builds. plus i think her fight is kind of boring. maybe im biased

22. magma wyrm makar

hes just annoying. i dont like his design. the lore is cool!!

21. orphan of kos

cool bossfight but i still need to git gud so he ranks low bc i keep dying

20. radagon

ugh. first, hes ginger. second, his attacks are insane. third, hes ginger

19. friede & ariandel (i think thats how you spell it)

fun boss in design but the three phases is insane

18. astel

ehhh. i like astel for the design but the fight reminds me of elden beast. lots of running away for like no reason

at least astel has a somewhat enjoyable fight

17. red wolf

i like the dog bc i think its funny it can do fucking magic and wield a sword but the fight is kind of annoying especially if ur strength build

16. mergos wet nurse

very fun lore wise but the fight is so eh

15. sif :(

such a tragic fight. i think it was well designed tbh but since all ds1 bosses are easy as shit he doesnt place as high on my list of liked bosses

14. godrick

godrick is probably one of my favorite fights due to how fucking dumb he is. he literally crawls toward you and throws wind at you. he has to attach a dragon to his arm to beat you and still fucking loses. all those limbs he grafted to give him power just weigh him down and i think thats really funny

13. margit

margit is a very fun first story boss. his moveset is pretty cool and i have his voice line engrained into my skull

12. moon presence

i love this boss mostly bc of the cutscene since the fight is kind of underwhelming

11. divine dragon

i love the music plus the fight is cool. i like the genre of souls bosses that are very sad and pathetic looking

10. mohg

mohg is one of my favorite fights. i love his voice. i love his music. he gets major points for being a lolicon tho #freemiquella #mohglordofbloodisoverparty

9. artorias

I LOVE THIS FIGHT. whole game you hear about this dude and the fight doesnt disappoint imo. i wish they kept his voicelines

8. maria of the astral clocktower

shes so cool. i love her sm

7. LUDWIG

amazing fight

amazing music

amazing lore

what more could you want points off for being british

6. isshin

isshin is VERY cool. i havent played sekiro in a while but i remember enjoying the fight

5. maliketh

his first phase is eh but his second phase is insane

the attacks are so cool and the fact he bounces off his own fucking attack is insane. what the fuck hes so cool

4. midir

very fun fight. yes its hard but you can really feel how angry and sad he is

3. malenia

honestly one of my favorite fights in ER. yes its hard as shit but her design is so cool and her lore is tragic

points off for nuking radahn

2. fortissax

i love the ost and i love just how... sad and tragic the whole fight feels? hes clearly suffering from the deathblight and the fact hes been fighting it off is so cool. even an immortal dragon cant fight off the deathroot which is insane.

radahn

i love radahn so much

seriously it might be my favorite fight in the series

his attacks are cool. his design is cool. his lore is fucking cool. his fight is so cool-- leading an army into battle and charging radahn is my favorite moment. plus the fact he fucking holds back the STARS is fucking awesome what the fuck hes insane

the tragedy of that accidental patch will never not be funny to me. pre-patch radahn wasnt even that fucking hard 😭😭😭 git gud you fuckign loser. pushed fromsoft so hard they accidentally nerfed him

honorable mentions that include some normal enemies (dislikes):

crucible knight duo

god i fucking hate this fight. crucible knights are annoying on their own but this is a whole new level. dungeon isnt even worth it

rykard

hes... fine... but his pool of lava is annoying plus the magic spam

fia's champions

how the fuck is this an actual boss

valiant gargoyles

FUCKKK THIS BOSS.

agheel

his lore is cool and i like that the dragonburnt ruins hollows like... worship him? its kind of cool. but his fight is either just cheesing or chasing him around. plus his moveset is shared by like every dragon in the game

erdtree avatar

literally just asylum demon

castle sol knight

iykyk. fuck this guy

gideon

FUCK YOUUU

rune bears

what the actual fuck. my first playthrough they absolutely clapped my cheeks

black blade kindred

nuff said

godefroy

literally just a copy and paste of godrick

istvan

weirdly hard? his attacks are insane

pets from dark souls 2

ulcerated tree spirit

the fact that its attack is just flailing around in the tiny ass spaces theyre always put in is so annoying. the one in caelid is insane

honorable mentions that i actually liked

ekzykes, borealis and adula

i think theyre cool. yeah they essentially share the same model as agheel but like... magic dragons

plus i feel bad for ekzykes

placidusax

very cool boss. love him

#elden ring #bloodborne #dark souls #dark souls 2 #fromsoftware #fromsoft games #i love radahn #iguys is this real #did i cook

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dumbfinntales · 1 year

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Yesterday I finished God of War: Ragnarök and I have some thoughts. I still have some side content to do, and honestly that’s pretty much the best part of this game. There will be spoilers so don’t read below if you haven’t finished the game. Also this might be a long one.

GOW Ragnarök is a frustrating game. I loved GOW 2018 and it was nearly a 10/10 title, but had some hiccups. I wanted Ragnarök to be the better version, the better game. What makes it frustrating is that it’s both better AND worse. I have never seen a game take so many steps forwards and backwards at the same time. But to start out positive I’ll say what I loved and what they improved upon.

Most obviously: the enemy variety and bosses. 2018 title had a severe lack of enemies and unique bosses, but Ragnarök delivers in spades. There are so many unique encounters and cool mythological beasts to fight. I do wish they didn’t use the Nightmare enemies so much in encounters, but eh, still. The bosses are really fun to fight and are spectacles to behold. I’m also happy to say that the final boss was actually really good this time around! You do battle a certain thunder god at the end, but you end the game with an encounter with the Allfather.

More weapons! Although we only got one new weapon it was still awesome. The Dreipnir spear was so much fun to use and now that Kratos has 3 unique weapons in his arsenal it made the combat feel so good and smooth. There were few new additions to the combat, but it felt as great as ever! I liked the new elemental system, it added a nice spice to the combat.

The exploration and side content are amazing once again and offer small story lines and wonderful character interactions. There’s just something absolutely comfy about going on an adventure to loot some ruins and solve some puzzles while the characters talk among themselves and tell tales. This might sound cheesy, but at times it almost feels like I’m there in the boat listening to their stories.

And of course the characters themselves! Most of them are so wonderfully written and I especially loved Sindri and Brok. I mean they were already great back in 2018, but they’re only better here. All the characters feel like people and some of their interactions are very humorous. Although I have to admit that at times their little “quips” become tedious to listen to. And some jokes are just plain awful, like Sindri trying to come up with a nickname for Atreus and audibly goes “Ugh that was such a bad nickname, sorry Lok’! Oh that one was bad too”.

It all seems fine and dandy, right? Well here comes the frustrating bit. For every good thing and improvement the game does there is something else to drag it down. Let me tell you this, God of War Ragnarök is not a 10/10. Not even a 9/10. There’s just too much shit that drags it down to deserve that, and I hope to GOD that it doesn’t win Game of the Year. I want Elden Ring to take that title because I want the gaming industry to see what kind of games we ought to get. It’s not the end of the world if GOW wins, but by god I’ll dread the future of triple A games.

My biggest gripe of all, this game is designed for idiots. I’m not being patronizing or joking, but the handholding is out of this world. Characters yell out the most obvious shit and constantly ruin puzzle by yelling out the answer for you. In the boss fight with Nidhogg Freya yells directions at you NON-STOP. “Do this” and “do that”, “avoid this attack”, “don’t stand there”, “shield up!” by Christ almighty shut the fuck up. Imagine having someone in real life backseat your every move and you can’t shut them up. That’s this game.

Many bosses are also trivialized since they drop so much HP (could be due to my difficulty as well, but dunno) and if you die you’ll start with full HP while the boss might be at half. There’s no punishment for dying. This game feels like its designed for a very specific kind of person who doesn’t play that many games and just wants to be along for the “ride”.

Another major gripe I have is just how slow this game is. There are more slow walking sections and they’re even longer. There are moments like climbing the Asgard wall or walking around with Odin that could just have been a cut-scene. The Atreus sections just suck. They’re far too long (fuck the forest level with Angrboda) and the combat as Atreus is so limited compared to Kratos. The first time you play as Atreus was perfect! It wasn’t too long and was a nice change of pace. Stretching that to 2 hours of gameplay is insane. Also is it just me, but is there a lot more of those climbing sections in this game? It feels no matter where I go I either have to crawl, climb on a wall or slowly creep through a narrow space which all halt the games pace to a crawl.

This is a personal gripe, but most of the Norse gods feel like wet noodles. The Greek gods had a presence, that of might and glory. Here they’re just some dudes. Odin wasn’t exactly what I expected and what the hell is Freyr even? Sure he’s amusing with his nonchalant party goer attitude, but he’s supposed be a god? Freya herself is also supposed to be a god, but honestly feels like just some lady that knows magic. I only really liked Thor and Heimdall. Thor had the power and presence of a god while also slightly humanized, and Heimdall had the arrogant bluster of a Greek god.

I also feel like the ending felt odd. The whole “ragnarök” thing came and went and didn’t feel as climactic as I expect from a literal apocalypse. I also don’t get Sindri at all. I understand being broken by your brothers death, but he now holds a grudge on Kratos and Atreus due to something no one saw coming. Sindri blames them for his brothers death, even though it was indirect. I don’t know, but it left a sour taste in my mouth. The ending is very open so maybe we’ll see some future GOW titles.

But yeah, this ended up being very long. But I had a lot to say. My final verdict is, it’s a fun game. But it has so much holding it back. Far more than the 2018 title. If you asked me which one I’d rather replay I’d say the previous game. It has its flaws, but they’re not as numerous as here. I was so hoping that Ragnarok was the better title, but alas. This game gets a MAYBE YOU SHOULD HIT THE GLOWING THING UP THERE TO SOLVE THE PUZZLE out of ten.

#god of war #god of war ragnarok #spoilers #a review type of deal

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sluntch · 5 months

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I have a weird take that I need to get out in the world somewhere and this appears to be the best place to do so

Everyone should have their first playthrough of a Souls game be either alone or, failing that, with someone to whom that game is the best in the series.

Let me explain.

--- Disclaimer: This is all just, like, my opinion, man ---

To start this post off, there are a few things I need to get out of the way. Chief among these is that my first Souls game was Dark Souls 2, so I'm a sicko who has absolutely NO nostalgia or overfondness for Dark Souls 1. As such, people who slob all over DS1's knob are total fucking weirdos to me, because I think the game, gameplay-wise, is the absolute worst of the entire series and the lore is, like, mid at best. To a less-important extent, I have neither fought nor beaten Artorias or played the DLC for DS1. To be quite honest, I don't think that matters very much but I know some mfers will be like "BUT HE'S THE BEST THING ABOUT THE WHOLE SERIES" to which I would rebut - then that sucks. One guy in one, fairly small (considering later releases), DLC being the best thing about a series is kinda bleak isn't it? Personally, I think that DS1 is held in such a high regard because it was the higher-profile Second of its Kind, a refined version of what was started in Demons' Souls. People nut over the interconnected world thing too, which is cool but has pretty poor implementation that makes getting anywhere and doing all the backtracking you have to do REALLY tedious. Least important is that I have not, and probably am not going to, ever played Demons' Souls. I just don't have interest in it and the gameplay is probably jankier that DS1 and I already barely have patience for that.

As a side note, Dark Souls 3, despite having what I believe to be some of the better gameplay and some of my favorite weapons, areas, music, and bosses in the series, is just the worst in that it's a fanservice game for DS1 fans and almost exclusively nothing else. Yes, they tacked some DS2 stuff in there as a pity drop for DS2 truthers but it seems to just kinda pretend that DS2 doesn't exist and is just so masturbatory that I almost can't stand it.

Glad to have these off my chest. If you're ready to discount everything I have to say from here on out based on that first paragraph, then godspeed. Continuing.

In looking to take my mind off of my current situation (see older posts for context regarding my cool disease), I decided to turn to comfort vidya games, namely playing through Elden Ring again, something I haven't done in quite a while. I'm remembering how much I love it and my playthrough, which is still going strong as of this writing, is super fun. I'm taking the game much slower than any previous playthrough I've done besides the first (this one is number 5) and am just enjoying being in the Lands Between, readily awaiting the DLC for the game that will likely come out in 2024. One of the things I've always done when I'm playing a game, specifically a game that I don't really need to pay attention to story-wise or sound-wise, I have videos or music or something on in the background. I'm sure many of you do this as well.

[QUICK SIDE NOTE: One of my more nostalgic sensory memories is when I used to do this in my room, during my high school years, playing Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 while watching episodes of Archer in the background. I can see the evening sun coming through my windows and it was such a warm and comfortable environment that I constantly yearn for it again, even though I know I'll probably never have another moment quite like that, carefree and cozy, just doing my thing. Eh. A guy can dream though, right? END QUICK SIDE NOTE]

What I've been having on in the background as of late are the Super Best Friends Play [insert Souls game here] compilations. These playthroughs, with the exception of Bloodborne (Pat and Woolie switching off controls on death, arguably the worst way to play a Souls game) and DS3 (Pat on the sticks and overleveling to the point of ruining the playthrough lol), are in the same format - Woolie, is on the sticks and Pat backseats, providing some context and guidance throughout. initially, for the DS2 playthrough, I was very excited because Woolie's first Souls game was the same as mine! Hey! This dude is playing it in the same order that I did! However, when I watched through it the first time, ALL Pat could do was shit on DS2 and say how much better DS1 was. In subsequent videos and playthroughs, it comes through VERY clearly and notably that this tainted Woolie's view of the entire series and greatly affected the way he interacted with it. On this watch, I formulated the above opinion.

The Souls games are so fucking good that they do NOT deserve to be ruined by someone shouting in your ear about how a different one did things better. Yes, I think DS1 is the worst of the series but even at that point, it's the worst of one of the best series of games of all time, which is still incredibly good. Obviously, the ideal way to play a Souls game is to go in completely blind and do it by yourself. But if you're playing with friends or in your Discord or something or someone is coming over to watch you play (if people still do that. GOD I hope they do), someone in the room should have that Souls game be their favorite. The game gets proper hype and no sole voice in the backseat gets to say some shit about how the fight with Artorias was better or "there's too many dudes in armor" or something about how it's "SO INNOVATIVE" that Gwyn's theme is sad piano plunks instead of epic boss music (which, to be fair, it is but shut up about it already. We get it). It's crazy to me how just one person's attitude like that can poison a perception of a game. For someone playing through them for the first time (people of whom I am EXTREMELY jealous), the initial impression is everything and every person should get to have the joy of playing through them unmarred by negativity about the game they are currently playing.

I don't know if this is anything and I don't think this argument is fully fleshed-out in this post or even really coherent. Just some dumb weird thoughts I wanted to put out there on my favorite game series.

#dark souls #dark souls 2 #dark souls 3 #sluntchposting #elden ring

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haldenlith · 2 years

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So, an interesting thing that I’ve kind of been wondering about, and now have sort of seen happen, is people starting to have a bit of a mismatch with Destiny 2′s gameplay loop. An artist I follow expressed some light dissatisfaction with where D2 is at right now, and said they felt it’d be fixed by the game moving onwards to an entirely new release, Destiny 3. Which, sure, there’s a lot of stuff that could stand to be overhauled in the game, and would, at the very least, maybe make it easier on Bungie to execute QA on.

Except, their issue was with the gameplay loop (and enemy variety), and not the mechanics and general bit of how the game runs. They expressed that they enjoyed the Witch Queen campaign quite a bit, but are now completely uninterested in playing now that they’re done. They’re clearly RPG players. They’re not the type to chase new loot, god rolls on guns, the best stat’d armor, etcetera.

As a matter of fact, they said all this springing from “I just finished Elden Ring.” The gameplay loop is COMPLETELY different.

Getting on to “what I’ve been wondering about”, is that I expect to see more of this happen. Destiny is clearly moving more into being very story driven, which is a good thing, but good, deep, nuanced story doesn’t generally draw the “looter shooter ooga booga loot” crowd. It generally draws players like myself, that only give a shit about story. So the core gameplay loop is... ridiculously boring. There are spikes of interest, with exploration and such (I love exploring new Lost Sectors for the first time, or trying to find secrets and region chests), but after that it’s just.... eh? I know it’s why I’ve been struggling to motivate myself to log in. I finished WQ, and I’m only replaying to grab screenshots of hilarious moments (I want a screenshot of Hal face down in the sand, dangit). I finished the seasonal story, and now I’m just kinda drumming my fingers on my desk, going “I guess that’s it for now... because I’m bored.”

I’m a Warframe player, so I’m used to this, both with the grind to get anything you do end up wanting, and with the content drought of interesting story until the next drop. At least D2′s cycles are WAY shorter, being only a few months versus... a year or two. To that end, I’m also used to just putting a game down and waiting until the next beat (however much it may kill me, because I just want that next fix).

But I can see other players getting frustrated, especially newer ones who will be going in confused and blind anyway. Then, they only get a brief chunk of story and are just... left to do... something. “Now what?”

I’m not saying it needs fixed, or should be fixed, or anything (maybe it does, maybe it doesn’t, that’s not the point). Rather, I’m curious how Bungie is going to address it. Or if they do. It’s an odd little bit of dissonance, I feel, between what they’re trying to do, and the tools they have to do it with. Kind of like having the world’s tastiest vegan lasagna, but it’s being sold at a Mongolian BBQ restaurant. Sure, you’ll get people coming that want it, but that’s all they probably want. The middle of that venn diagram, where people enjoy both items, isn’t going to be particularly large.

Those are just my rambling, wondering thoughts. I do feel it’s going to be better as we move onwards from here, given that we’re charting into unknown territory with dealing with The Witness and The Darkness proper, not just through The Hive.

#haldie rambles #destiny 2 #it is something I've wondered #as Destiny moves more towards having sort of RPG elements to it #and being more story heavy

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teaandgames · 5 years

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The Tea Times - June 2019

It’s June now and that means I have to do this column a bit differently. I could do the usual news stuff but then I’d be ignoring the nine-thousand foot elephant in the room: E3. So, instead, I’m going to devote this section to going through some choice announcements. There are a lot, so I’m only going to mention the ones that interest me directly. In other words: I’m not going to talk about Madden.

You can check out the full list of everything announced here.

The Cast

Microsoft

Bethesda

Devolver Digital

The PC Gaming Show

Ubisoft

Square Enix

Nintendo

Microsoft

“Project Scarlett”, Holiday 2020 - Microsoft are bringing out a new console it seems, which will probably have a snappier title by the time its released. It has the usual marketing bumpf, talking about setting the bar for performance and so on. It does have a few confirmed moves, including an SSD and 8k capability. Presumably, the cost is going to reflect that.

Halo Infinite, Holiday 2020 - “Project Scarlett”’s flagship title, the trailer shows us a man in a spot of bother on a spaceship. Things have gone south but before long, Master Chief is awakened to try and sort things out. I’ve not played many Halo games but the prospect of a custom built engine is very interesting. More exciting, from my point of view, is that it will apparently be coming to PC as well. Maybe it’s time I looked back into the series, eh?

Borderlands 2 Gets Some Free DLC - I’ve talked about Borderlands 3 before, so instead I’ll quickly mention that Borderlands 2 has gotten some free DLC called Commander Lilith & The Fight For Sanctuary. It’s small and fairly slapdash but it’s free and bridges the gap between Borderlands 2 and 3.

Cyberpunk 2077 Launches 2020 - The long awaited CD Projekt RED title has a release date: April 16th 2020. It’s now available for pre-order. Included in the package is one (1) Keanu Reeves, who is a breathtaking man.

Blair Witch, August 30 - One of my favourite films is getting a video game, yay! It’s made by Bloober Team. Oh. They are the makers of Layers of Fear, which was resoundingly ‘meh’. No doubt this game will be force fed jump scares and the trailer does not give me hope. The Blair Witch Project probably shouldn’t be a game in the first place, to be honest, and the less said about the remake the better. Still, Bloober Team did well with Observer, so you never know. Worth a look, maybe, but don’t expect too much.

Gears 5, September 10 - Another series I’m not really into (and actively disliked in the case of the first one) but if it’s your cup of tea, the fifth installment is coming later this year.

Elden Ring announced - FromSoftware’s new Pain-Em-Up has an interesting twist - it’s co-created by George R.R. Martin, author of A Song of Ice and Fire. Presumably so he can put off writing the series some more. It’s an interesting mashup and the announcement trailer doesn’t give too much away. One to watch.

Ori and the Will of the Wisps, February 11 2020 - A sequel to the wonderful and beautiful Ori and the Blind Forest (which I actually need to play more of) is coming out next year and the trailer opens with a big, scary spider. Not entirely what I was expecting but I'll be damned if it doesn’t look good. The movement, and animations, look great too. One to look at if you’re into your platformers.

image

Psychonauts 2 - I never played much Psychonauts but the trailer does a good job of emanating its signature humour, with some tuned up gameplay. It’s 3D platforming, which may be a bit awkward, but it’s Doublefine back where they belong.

Tales of Arise, 2020 - The latest in the Tales series is coming out next year and is coming to PlayStation 4, PC and Xbox One. An extremely popular series, which I’ve had some fun with over the years, this one is apparently going to ‘mark a new beginning for the famed JRPG franchise’. It remains unclear what exactly that means.

Bethesda

DOOM Eternal, November 22 - My biggest ‘must buy’ this year. I’m not sure why it really needs a ‘story’ trailer of all things but it looks fun as hell and I cannot wait to jump back into hell. Looks like Doomguy might be having a bit of a humanity crisis but as long as he can still shoot and hit things, we’re good.

GhostWire: Tokyo - An unusual name for an unusual looking game, featuring disappearing people and a cool looking man with a bow and arrow. Not entirely sure what it’s going to be about, but you need to face down the occult with some spectral abilities. And attack the unknown of course, whatever that means.

DEATHLOOP - An interesting looking game about two assassins that are caught in a loop, killing each other over and over again. Not entirely sure whether this is single or multi-player or what, but the premise is fantastic. Time will tell, I guess.

Wolfenstein: Youngblood, July 26 - A co-op Wolfenstein was a bit of a shock but not unwelcome. Set in 80s Paris, you play as BJ’s twin daughters who are trying to find their missing dad. It’s apparently supposed to be pretty open and it looks just as mad as the previous games. Plus the trailer is set to Carpenter Brut, which is a huge positive in my book.

Fallout 76 - Nuclear Winter - Bethesda are jogging after the departing train with their own Battle Royale game. Not sure who asked for it, but here it is. Given that it’s likely using the same engine, I wouldn’t expect too much from it. It is free though, so you can’t give it too much flak.

Devolver Digital

Carrion, 2020 - There was actually only one Devolver Digital game that interested me and it was this one. It’s a ‘reverse horror game’, which means you control a strange amorphous creature, consuming hordes of screaming scientists, while trying not to be shot. The premise has a lot of potential.

The PC Gaming Show

Shenmue III, November 19 - The kickstarted sequel to the franchise has become the latest to be snapped up by Epic Games, as it’s now an exclusive. This, understandably, annoyed kickstarter backers who were expecting a steam key. I can’t say much on the game itself, as I know nothing about the series, but the sheer amount of ire against it probably isn’t going to do it any favours.

Chivalry 2 announced, Early 2020 - coming Early 2020, the first-person medieval combat game is launching first on the Epic Games store, because what isn’t these days? It looks very pretty but otherwise it’s usual Chivalry fare. For the order, indeed.

Midnight Ghost Hunt - One of the most interesting titles for me, it looks reminiscent of Prop Hunt from Garry’s Mod, only now the props can fight back. Having a chair launched at your head seems like it would be a common risk when you’re a Ghostbuster. It looks very interesting and I do hope I get into the alpha when it launches.

Age of Wonders: Planetfall, August 6th - An interesting looking 4X game that has a faction that rides dinosaurs, which means I’m down already. I have a love for 4X games and this one seems to be a bit more action-packed than most. Definitely one to check out, once I can meet the price tag.

Valfaris, 2019 - A heavy metal infused platformer is one of those things that seems so simple in hindsight that you wonder why it hasn’t been properly done before. The trailer looks decidedly old school and appropriately exciting. The pixel art style looks great and it looks like it’s going to have a cracking soundtrack.

Songs of Conquest - Another game that deeply interests me because of its similarity to the Heroes of Might and Magic series - which is currently being mishandled by Ubisoft. The trailer has a weird poem/song being read over it, which was unexpected, but it looks very promising.

Maneater - Truly, who wouldn’t want to be a giant shark? Maneater appears to give us that opportunity, with a trailer full of shark destruction. Just an announcement at the moment but I’ll be damned if it doesn’t look fun.

Ubisoft

Watch Dogs: Legion, March 6th 2020 - The new Watch_Dogs set in Blighty has a name and a man with a pig mask on. It opens with a shot of Big Ben too, so you know it’s London. It’s also post-Brexit too by the looks of it, given how everything has broken down. The narration is also perfectly British. ‘It’s all gone a bit shit’, is something I’d say. While I’m not a great lover of the franchise, the setting and narration are making me a lot more interested. Plus it features an old woman with a sailor’s mouth and a pistol.

Rainbow Six Quarantine, Early 2020 - In a not-so-strange move, Rainbow Six has gone cooperative again. More strange is that it’s trying to be a horror game, having you and two friends fighting against a mutated alien parasite that infects human hosts. Apparently it will give an unpredictable player-versus-enemy experience, which makes me wonder if it’s a bit like Left 4 Dead’s AI director. We’ll see.

Gods & Monsters, February 25 2020 - An interesting title that gives absolutely nothing away. It’s set in Greek mythology as you fight mythological creatures to save Greek Gods. It looks bloody beautiful but we have no idea what it actually is.

Square Enix

Oninaki, August 22 - There wasn’t much Square Enix-wise that interested me but Oninaki caught my eye. It looks fantastic for one thing. The story also has some interesting notes, being about someone who ushers in ‘Lost Souls’ into the next world. Combat looks fun too, very fast paced and, once again, very pretty.

Final Fantasy XIV: Shadowbringers - While I’m not really a fan of the series, I can’t really just skip past Square Enix’s flagship series. Not knowing anything about XIV, the trailer doesn’t give away too much but it does look remarkably pretty. Watch and see for yourself.

Dragon Quest Builders 2, July 12 - Only played the demo of the first one, but it was interesting. A blend of Dragon Quest and Minecraft, of all things; it all worked rather well. The sequel is bigger and better too, as the very excitable man yells at us in the trailer. While the art style has always struck me as a little creepy, and the narration isn’t doing that any favours, the core gameplay is interesting. You can build things, craft things and hit things. Plus, cars! A demo comes out on June 27th.

Nintendo

Breath of the Wild is getting a sequel - Breath of the Wild set the world on fire, so it was only natural. Less natural is the seeming darker tone of the sequel, which the series has occasionally delved into. As a fan of darker tones, I’m all about this. Hey, maybe I should actually play more of the original.

Luigi’s Mansion 3, This Year - I loved Luigi’s Mansion: Dark Moon, so I’m happy to step back into the shoes of the world’s best Ghostbuster. He’s invited to a hotel, which looks nice but quickly gets full of ghosts. Gameplay seems broadly the same, with a few new moves. You can slam ghosts around as well as fire plungers. And of course, there’s ‘Gooigi’. He’s made of Goo. Why? God knows. It’s professor Egad after all. It does make for co-op, however.

Fire emblem: Three Houses, July 26th - The latest in the Fire Emblem series marches on to the Switch this summer. The story trailer shows old school friends going at it, against their wishes, by the looks of it. It’s all extremely anime. No actual gameplay yet, but I imagine it’ll be usual Fire Emblem fare.

Animal Crossing: New Horizons, March 20th 2020 - This one turned a few heads, being the premier chill-out video game series of all time. New Horizons looks fantastic, and high definition Tom Nook is still fleecing you for every penny you have. You can relax in a tent and craft up tools to help you change your island getaway into an island paradise.

Empire of Sin, 2020 - For a complete change of tone, we have Empire of Sin. Set in 1920s Chicago, you can probably guess what you’re going to be doing. It’s a strategy game where you carve out your own criminal empire, fighting back other bosses while you do so. It looks interesting and comes with turn based combat for when you need to get your hands dirty. I can’t wait to use those Tommy guns.

Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order, November 11th - There’s a lot of potential in Star Wars games and Fallen Order certainly looks the part. Just moving around looks entertaining before you get to all of the lightsaber and force power stuff. Of course, your enemies are about as accurate as they usually are but I’ll be damned if it doesn’t look fun.

Sims 4: Island living, June 21st - Sims 4 has come out with its new big pack which features things such as Mermaids. They make actual dolphin-esque squeaks, which is rather unnerving. My other half has been playing it and it does look rather fun, if seeing mermaids lounge in the bath is your kind of thing.

That’s all for this year’s E3. Join me in July to see what kind of fallout we’ll be getting from these announcements!

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