Withywarlock

Table Top Racing technically has long DLC in that it drags out its maps and use of the newly introduced vehicles, but strangely that's the only one I can think of that isn't open world (which today is basically begging for drawn out content). The last time I was surprised by the length of a DLC besides TTR's was Far Cry 3: Blood Dragon, though come to think of it Ubisoft tend to have DLC that outstays its welcome. It's a toughie though; either make something that feels like you're not getting your £15's worth out of it, or make something that gets boring to justify that £15 just in case. An unpopular opinion I realise but I personally didn't think too much of it; it's Skyrim's answer to Oblivion's Shivering Isles but toned down in each regard. It's more Skyrim for those who want it and a decent enough trip down Memory Lane to Morrowind fans, and maybe that's why it did nothing to me. I'd take the other two DLCs, particularly Hearthfire, any day.

On the one hand I think it's a fantastic idea; if you've paid for something you should be able to use it. Video games are essentially the only medium that requires you to have some competency at it. Tabletop games can have as much roleplay or combat as you'd like, and you can still flick through a Choose-Your-Own-Adventure book without consequence. You can't fail to engage in music or a television show or a book quite like you can fail at a video game. So on that side of the coin, I'm with people. On the flipside, what do developers have to do to add difficulty sliders? How much more time needs to be set aside to include difficulty sliders, and to what extent? How low is too low? How high is too high? What does the slider actually change per increment? And ultimately, who am I to suggest/request/demand someone change their artistic vision for me, when I might not even indulge in those features or the game in at all? I like difficulty sliders, but I want them to be good and if they're mandatory they're unlikely to be worth bothering with.

Kart racers. Since my partner's grandparents, who she was very close to, passed away in a tragic motor incident I've not been able to bring myself to have fun with the vehicular destruction that is part and parcel to the genre. She's said she's fine with me continuing to play those games, and that's greatly appreciated, but there's not many that have come out in recent years that are worth playing anyway. My mantle for the fastest racer for the galaxy is ready to be taken.

As Empire rightly says, not as much as a bad script or director. These two aspects are vastly overlooked when blaming poor performances. The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion is one such example: the actors aren't great (their voices, on the other hand, are distinct and well defined) but they're made terrible due to the circumstances they're in, which is having only a handful of people doing thousands of lines of dialogue each (and each named NPC has unique dialogue). When you're paid by the hour, breaks are going to be minimal and only recently have there been advancements in making working conditions easier for actors so they can save their voices and continue to perform.

Looking at the classroom and the webpage, everything about it looks like an expensive meme. The chairs are just about the only thing that make this look believable; comfortable, breathable, and encourage good posture. The Razer headsets, the vastly overspec'd PCs (part of eSport entry appeal is the low-spec requirements?), and neon-glitchy aesthetic makes me think they've wasted a lot of money. On the one hand I hope the school can get its money back for all this expensive equipment, and on the other hand I don't particularly want them to if their students get burned by not being good enough. The only hope I have is that they're encouraging good conduct, like healthy lifestyle choices, physical and mental checkups and work-life balance. There is also the fact that this may prepare them for careers elsewhere in games design, rather than just playing for cash prizes.

I used to think the YouTuber Rags was snobbish for saying 60FPS was unacceptable and that 80 was the bare minimum, wondering how you could notice the difference. And then I got a 144Hz monitor and, while I'm not as snotty about FPS as himself, I wholeheartedly appreciate where people are coming from with the importance of framerate feeling. I mean, I suffered World of Warcraft at 6-15FPS just fine. Maybe 4K will be the next big thing for me.

I think it could... for now, but it's paving the way for intrusive advertisements like them appearing on loading screens, or the possibility of missions being made (perhaps at the cost of the developers' artistic integrity). I'll never forget Disney Skate Adventure where you had to deliver McDonalds foodstuffs and the reward was a pair of clown shoes. How appropriate. This is what concerns me about the idea of Microsoft and Sony introducing adverts to their online subscription services. Paying for the privilege to watch ads, and I can easily see online-only being pushed solely to appeal to advertisers and the revenue they generate.

I'll use just about any dirty trick to win at a game if I get frustrated enough, though this applies strictly to single-player games. There's no way I'm going to risk myself or anyone else a ban or a poor time. You mention BioWare games and I'm with you there 100%: wanding off-screen enemies in Baldur's Gate, or using Stealth to bypass combats in Dragon Age.

Dragon Age: Origins almost shouldn't count because there's few characters which are total paragons of virtue, which makes the stories it tells some of gaming's best. Your party will consist of troubled and unashamed people who each have their cross to bear, and will use it to bludgeon others to save their own skin. Even Branka, the unhinged Paragon who wanted to save dwarfkind from extinction, has had her attrocities recorded in Caridin's Journal. The Darkspawn I'd say are among the most evil creatures, due to the in-universe rhyme that tells of their 'recruiting process'. Quote Hespith who sings it, "the true abomination is not that it occurred, but that it was allowed." Golly, this has me thinking, really what is the most evil character in video games? Branka's a damn good pick though.

One of the best and worst things to come to MMOs is "catch-up systems," wherein after each major patch or toward the end of an expansion you can essentially do minor tasks to be brought near your peers. You're essentially playing less of the game to get equal reward, minus the satisfaction. It's good because it saves time, but it's bad because there's no sense of accomplishment and if you want that sense of accomplishment it's too late because the old content has been nerfed or it takes too long to get a group together for it. For most players, catch-up systems are unnecessary. Why do you need raid-level gear when you don't raid, for instance? I used to be one of those players who felt entitled because I paid the same subscription fee. MMOs are getting better for this though, by introducing content you can do any time, any place, at your own speed and it have no bearing on the highest end content. You can chop down trees to your heart's content and get the Tree Chop Downerer title so long as there are trees to chop down. WoW is abysmal for this though because "it would cost a raid tier," as if raids are somehow a valuable currency to barter with. /rant.

With The Elder Scrolls Online, the big problem is the unlimited inventory space that comes with the subscription, a core function of those who play the game by crafting (and it's as valid a means of progression as combat). Nobody suffers the subscription drawbacks more than the crafters and gatherers who need it to save themselves time. A game I did a Steam review on was Warhammer: Chaos & Conquest, where you have to pay to keep up. It's an unending arms race where you don't really get to play the game because if you do, your shields go down and you're basically a target for farmers. The higher up the rankings you go, the more your warband(?) will require you to pay to follow orders like "attack this clan," "upgrade this building," "put your shields up" and so forth. Such games are attrocious, and I'm doing well to limit my purchases in a similar game, IdleMafia, on mobile.

Nice picks. In the case of the Doom one, that sort of imagery is used a lot. It might've been inspired by AirCel Comics' The Walking Dead back in 1989: ~ Starting with the weird is Croc! Pau Pau Island, the Japanese version of Croc! Legend of the Gobbos. Japan has some interesting ideas for cover art to say the least, especially in the early days of 3D video games. One such example is this: Croc and his Gobbo friends staring aimlessly juxtaposed on a stock image of an island. Given that the game doesn't feature palm trees, the one they're on can't be Pau Pau Island, because 'Pau Pau' is Japanese for 'Gobbo'. Next up is my pick for the good. Warhammer: Battle March, back when Games Workshop were still openly interested in Warhammer Fantasy, whereas now they begrudgingly continue their Age of Sigmar line while video gamers continue to enjoy the original IP. Battle March is the original Mark of Chaos game with Greenskin DLC, as shown here where a Warrior of Chaos and Orc Boy are duking it out. Warhammer artwork always shows these close victories between two forces. Who will win this one? The agent of the Ruinous Powers, or the equally chaotic newcomer to the fray? Finally is the plain ol' bad. Rascal wasn't a good game, and it was below average at best. It's an easy target for the 'meme review format' but its too old to make jokes about that weren't already made themselves. The cover art is one such joke: a boy who's trying to be hip and cool with a plunger gun fending off bubbles filled with angry faces. Is it any wonder it didn't do well?

You've hit the nail on the head. When it will happen I don't know, but I can see it happening with little effective resistance. The relationship between video games and advertisements/sponsers have been long-documented, from Pepsiman to Doritos' Dash of Destruction, from Cool Spot to Mad Max and Monster Energy. We've come a long way from seeing Prototype advertising DC Comics and racing games being plastered with sponsers. For once we can't blame this one entirely on mobile.

On the contrary, I think it's becoming less suitable what with more easily accessible (read: predatory) means of getting money from children and young audiences. Adults are of course susceptible to these things (see gambling, among other vices), but children are far more susceptible to the tricks that seperate them from their pocket/parents' money. If one day my partner and I do decide to have kids, I'd introduce them firstly to older systems and games that lacked this sort of stuff. Call it totalitarian, draconian or heavens forbid gatekeeping, but I'll gleefully take that if it means protecting my potential children from the practices that no longer appall in today's gaming landscape.

I used to collect Playstation One controllers back when I reviewed such products. The NeGCon (which I pronounced as "nej-ee-con" rather than "en-ee-gee-con" like I imagine it was supposed to be) was a weird but practical driving controller, and the oft forgotten Dual Analogue controller is Sony's finest due to its concaved rather than convexed analogue sticks. The Playstation Mouse is easily one of my favourites, especially for use in Broken Sword: Shadow of the Templars, due to its Infamous Goat Puzzle.

I abhor vibration most times, but I like it when it's very slight on a trigger pull of a firearm, though I do like the slight rumble of controls in Mario Kart 8: Deluxe on the Switch. I had hoped third parties would make equally good use of the haptic feedback and vibration as such, but alas, they never really did. It was a fine novelty back when it was first around; the Playstation One did no small amount of marketing in game case's artwork or on the back of manuals. The way it worked was that when you were near an item you could interact with (rubble, a shoe, a smoking gun), the controller would vibrate slightly, in case for whatever reason you missed the audible chime. I think it came off as more natural, like it was an instinct, almost.

Depends on the context. If I'm just playing the game leisurely and I come across a bug I attempt to look up fixes online. Failing that, I ask. If I'm playing it to review however, the note-taking ends there and the review begins. I can only review what the game is, not what it should be. I had to do this with Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War II - Retribution because every faction's campaign died on their arse at the very last mission. Community patches are also one of the reasons why I don't review games that require external help. Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines is one such example, where I frequently had to ask myself 'am I reviewing the game or the patch?' Ultimately I did a Let's Play instead, with the patch, because the game deserves to be seen in its best light. And you know that patch works when the dev's been at it for over 14 years now!

I concur with Fallout, though I find the first game to be the least hopeful. Every joke and pop culture reference is told by horrible people on a cracked, parched backdrop, and it's hard to tell whether one should laugh or cry.

Most of From Software's games appear to be deliberately obtuse, and further more no small amount of their vocal fanbase expects me to eat that up. I'm playing Elden Ring which is much more liberal with its use of paragraphs, but I fail to see why George R.R. Martin was consulted. I'd have added a few extra sentences to make the game intelligable for free. More baffling than that for all the lore videos a lot of it comes down to theory and plain guesswork, which doesn't really help. My theory is the developers put a load of good ideas together and just gave them the same art style so it looks somewhat coherent, but then that loses a lot of the magic of this being 'mythology happening in real time', doesn't it? I had to look it up and apparently Martin's role was not insignificant, but I dunno, this meme holds water.

I'm in a decent enough mood to say more than 'which games?', and say that when a game made in about the past ten years has collectables it's because of a misguided attempt at 'engagement' and getting one's money's worth. This is the result of the 'hours per dollar' mindset that has plagued forums and comments sections for over a decade now, and game devs/publishers aren't complaining with how much money it makes them. It is exhausting to see this in just about most every game I pick up, which is why I've limited my video game time considerably. It's also made the transition to the tabletop difficult, where if I fail to notice loot, that's it, my chance has gone and it aggrevates me that in vidya I can just... y'know, keep looking and it will always be there in the mercifully static digital world. Collectathon fatigue is one of the reasons why I'm grateful when a game is only 30 hours long or whathaveyou. Play enough of such slogs and phrases like 'less is more' and 'too much of a good thing' begin to make sense.

I'm not far into this one, and I'm playing as Ogre Kingdoms which are becoming a bit unmanagable for someone who loves the games but isn't very good at them. But like Total Warhammer 2, it won't appeal to me immediately but it will eventually stick and I'll be fully into it. If I do start a more manageable campaign, I might go back to Kislev per the tutorial. They have axe and gun users, which is the best thing sinced sliced bread. Or dwarves, whichever came first.

There is a remastered version, or rather, as close to a remaster as you can get these days. Alas it's only on PS/Xbox, and Activision-Blizzard keep their cards close to their chest when it comes to stuff related to Crash and Spyro going anywhere else.

It looks neat, I won't lie, but as others have said I can't see it being practical. Side-buttons on gaming mice are stiff enough as is; to try moving with them in a game whilst contending with the main buttons, I'd not bother with it. Thanks for sharing, this is a rather curious piece!

This reminds me of the Fatal Frame and other such obscure Japanese and Korean horror games. I was never a fan of them myself but I loved watching ThorHighHeels' and Wild Potato Industries' unearthing and takes on them. Glad to see the Switch getting another unusual title, even if I don't play the system myself.

How topical: there's to be another Tomb Raider in Unreal Engine 5: https://www.pcgamer.com/new-tomb-raider-unreal-engine-5/ As little feeling as I have for the new Tomb Raiders, I think they suit the Unreal engine, especially for the physics involved in the puzzles and such.