StaceyPowers

Why do some games take up so much hard drive space while others take up so little? Sometimes I am surprised, as it seems like games that I would expect to be massive given their graphics, etc. or the sizes of their environments are fairly small. What factors make the biggest difference?

Can you think of any quests that were side quests, but felt like they should be part of the main questline for a game? An example I would give would be the quest about the retirement district in The Outer Worlds.

Are there any cannon endings in video games that bug you? Which ones, and why?

What games feature silent protagonists that to you still felt like they had their own distinct identities rather than just being a stand-in for "you" as the gamer? To me, Jack and Delta in the BioShock games felt distinct from me. So did the cat in Stray.

How many months/years do you wait around for a game you want to go on sale before you just decide it is not going to happen and you grab it at full price? I realize if you can buy it on a physical disc you might just grab it used eventually, but this isn’t applicable with digital.

One of my friends mentioned trying to sketch out how she wants her No Man’s Sky base to look, and that she also has done spreadsheets for her resource management. Do you ever write/draw plans like this for games you play?

Do you ever game and do other stuff at the same time, like work or homework? If so, what games do you find work best for this sort of multitasking? I used to play MUDs and work on homework as a teen, but all the games I play now are too active/demanding for multitasking.

To those who game online with friends, how do you overcome scheduling challenges, especially if you work different hours and days or you live in different timezones?

I was having a really bad day the other week, and found the only thing that made me feel safe and okay for a few hours was to log into my friend’s Minecraft world. When we were young, her house used to be the place I feel safe, but she lives across the country now. I was surprised by what a big help her Minecraft world was for getting me more centered again. Does anyone else here find that virtual environments have a therapeutic effect on you?

Are there any games where you regularly engage in microtransactions? Which games, and how do you feel about it?

When it comes to customer support, which developers and publishers have you found to be the best and worst to deal with?

I have a PS Plus membership for the first time ever courtesy of a friend. Tbh, I never paid much attention to PS Plus since I’m not really into subscriptions, but since I have it, what are the best things to do with it to get the most out of it?

Do you think the sewage smell affects the taste in a negative way? Or do you just manage to ignore the smell once you are drinking it? If you drink it slowly, does it help to avoid the crash? Which flavors gave you that chalky after-feeling? Which ones had a smoother after-feeling? I don't know why, but this made me laugh.

I have resolved the issue by not dying.

That worked out well in Skyrim, actually. But don't get me started about the time I caught vampirism in Oblivion. It nearly ruined the game for me.

Same here. I have a permanent blue filter on my laptop for my migraines. But they usually back off at night when I game. If they don't, I just play something that doesn't involve being outdoors in-game in daylight.

I’m always looking for new sugar-free drinks to try while gaming, so I’m very interested! At a glance at the product pages, it looks like their ingredients are exactly what they say they are: amino acids, vitamins, etc. That makes me think that not only would these work great as energy drinks, but also would be pleasant to drink when I am feeling under the weather. @Withywarlock Very insightful review (I'd expect nothing less). Now I am so curious if the "Stealth" flavor actually has any licorice notes in it (I actually love licorice, so that'd be amazing).

Do you sometimes play a game for years before realizing you can do something in it? Like last night, after 3+ years of Oblivion, I finally realized you can pick up objects and position them like you can in Skyrim (not just put them in your inventory or drop them).

If you focus a lot on exploration in games, do you frequently find solutions/keys/etc. before you know what they are for?

I just finished Stray, which has a number of “puzzles” that reminded me of figuring things out in old point and click adventures a bit. In fact, they didn’t really feel like “puzzles” to me—just exploring the environment and seizing opportunities. It made me curious. What actually makes something a “puzzle” in a game? Is it subjective at all?

What video game(s) have helped you most through rough times in your life? I think for me it is BioShock. I was badly injured a few years ago and in bad pain most of the time for many months. I stared playing BioShock after it happened, and it persuaded me that good things could still happen in my life and it had not been 100% bad since the injury (feeling much better now).

I know two people who are unable to play most shooters because the gun effects trigger their seizures/visual sensitivities. Is anyone else here affected by this? I feel like games should just have a option to switch off these effects.

What are some games or sections of games where you can take a totally pacifistic approach and avoid killing anything at all?

I wanted to start a thread for sharing excellent video game analysis videos. To kick things off, I will share this amazing mathematical analysis of the ending of Stray (SPOILERS, obviously):

What has made you cry hardest in a video game? For me it was the ending of Stray.