Shagger

Are talking about dedicated fanbases or deluded ones? I ask because it's honestly hard to tell the difference between them anymore. Most long running game franchises and/or the companies behind them have been guilty of incredible cock ups yet still see success and people only willing to defend them. Elitism and genal toxicity also get woven into the threads of so-called "dedicated" fanbases a little to easily as well. I don't want to believe it, but sadly it is true that passion for a video game tends to loosen people's grip on common sense.

Actually, I do know for a fact that J.K. Rowling get paid royalties from this game. An article from Escapist with more details. Onto the politics, and first off please don't refer to that bitch's prejudice as "politics". A budget for healthcare, interest rates, deciding what the appropriate punishment for drink drivers should be, that's politics. People being transgender or gay or whatever is not politics, or at least it shouldn't be. That's just people living thier lives in a way that doesn't hurt anyone. The whole "keep politics out games" thing come up from "Gamers" about the same things, usually referring to inclusion, but they wilfully ignore political undertones, and even overtones otherwise even though they come up all the time. I've said it before, good fiction always mirrors reality in order to connect with real world emotions and provoke real reactions. The social politics of fictional worlds, and not just in games, is the same. Some societies in fiction my be very progressive whereas other adhere more to tradition. Are they patriarchal, matriarchal, a dictatorship or a democracy? There's economies often described, with some societies being more capitalist and some more communist. Are there rich to poor gaps? Then thier is war and conflict and I don't I need to point out why that is a political overtone. These themes are very common themes in fiction and reflect our own world and it's history. If you don't want politics in games, don't play games, or at least not any game made since 1995. You "keep politics out of games" rhetoric is actually very common, but for some reason, so called "gamers" only ever seem to object to politics in games whatever a character is black, gay, female or trans. Something that, like I said, shouldn't even be part of a discussion around politics in the first place. Even Harry Potter itself has themes and world elements, mostly in reference to social class, that's much closer to real and relatable politics than that. Your statement " I just want games to be games and not a political battleground", whether you know it or not, is a lie. The truth is you don't want games to to challenge your politics and remind you of your own prejudices and flaws held within what you believe. The world has to agree with you, and when it doesn't, you avoid it and insist that it's wrong, that what it's saying is not real and should be shunned. Some people think it's wrong to support this game because of how you indirectly financially support a horrible person by doing so, whilst others are happy to support the game and judge it only on it's own merits, and I can understand either perspective. All I've said it that I can't support this game knowing that some of that money, even just a tiny little bit of it, will fall into that bitches pocket because I guarantee you she takes that she takes the success Happy Potter receives as a sign that her prejudiced, ignorant and dangerous views on LGBTQ+ people are being condoned. I'm not saying that anyone who buys this game are transphobic or homophobic by doing so, but you're not a friend to thier fight for what is basic human rights either. It may be a good game, perhaps even a great game and you have the right to enjoy the game without guilt, just don't claim to be a friend to the LGBTQ+ community if you do.

Welcome to the boards. It's always nice to see new people here.

Personally, I couldn't care less about the quality of the game. I'll never buy it because I can't support that horrible, transphobic vulture J.K. Rowling. And before anyone says it, no, buying this game does not support the developers. They've been paid through thier salaries and will see nothing extra if the games sells well. Only the the shareholders, the executives and Rowing herself get a cut from the game sales.

Well, happy belated birthday!

Ninja Theory did something like that with Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice, except it was schizophrenia and psychosis they portrayed rather than depression and anxiety. However, as someone who does suffer from depression I believe it isn't the sort of thing I that would translate into a video game very well. It's not the kind of mental illness that alters one's perceptions or everyday, immediate reactions and behaviour in a way an interactive experience and role play can really show in an engaging way. People who are depressed function perfectly fine like anybody else, they just feel different doing it all in a way isn't apparent from the outside. Suicide or attempted suicide is obviously depression at it's peek, but it's not necessarily something that plagues people who suffer from depression every day. Nor do we spend our time just sitting a dark room crying, it just isn't that obvious. I've heard music that really captures this very well, check out Falling in Reverse, for example: There are also plenty of movies and TV shows that get it as well (There's a lot that as don't as well). There's even some video games through specific characters that capture it well (Like Kate Marsh from Life is Strange), but making it the primary focus of a character and thier story in a video game is something I just don't see working because of the interactive nature. Unfortunatly, you just can't feel what depression is like through a controller no matter how hard a developer might try. Despite it being something that a person can't really know unless they've been through it, it is still one of things that's easer to understand from the outside by observing it from the outside. Nor is it that difficult, it just take a little patience, tolerance and understanding. I genuinely apricate that you want to understand better through video games what it's like, but simple research is a better to learn. The late Chester Bennington talked about it, and he's spot on. It is like having the energy to yourself depleted. Not enough to kill you, but enough to rob you of your will. Many days I wake up I just want to do nothing, say nothing, and most of all, be nothing. Getting myself out to go the the shop and buy milk isn't a chore, it's a goal. Not because I need the milk, but because it's more than I would normally achieve. I don't necessarily want to kill myself, but would be OK with laying there and dying. If that happens, so what. That is what's it's like. Debilitating, but also kind of dull. It's not something that works as an interactive narrative. What would the game mechanics be like? A QTE to get out of bed? A fetch quest to the fridge because you really should eat something, it's been 8 hours? Sorry, but only way to make it work would be to go completely over the top which kind of defies the point.

I've a lot of these videos, including the other vids from ReviewTechUSA (I'll link his PS2 vid below because, holy shit is it bad), and they all say the same things. They can't all be lying, so this is very very poor from DKOldies.

So, episode 4. Very different from the last one. Episode 3 was a big deviation from the game, but this one goes full on fan-service with many nods to the game mixed. But honestly, there didn't seem to be much else to it, this was really little other than a big build up to next episode. It's interesting that that they're exploring the motivations of these raiders through this new character, whoever she is... ...but did they really have to cast such a common, non-threatening person to put in this role? I understand that you don't have to look like Scot Steiner to be dangerous and ruthless, but still. I do like how they are building up this history between this woman and Henry, that has potential and I am looking forward to seeing whare that goes. The one other thing I feel that's worth talking about is the scene between Joel and Ellie after Ellie shoots that raider as there was a very similar scene in the game, but it was done quite differently, and honestly, more effectively. In the show, Joel is sympathetic towards Ellie and self-critical, but in the game he was angry at her, slow to admit he appreciated the help and didn't really care about how traumatic it was for her. That I think worked better because it showed Joel's emotional fragility having to break through in a way that better suits the cold, hardened character he still is a this point rather than him immediately being more selfless and thoughtful. I feel like this episode was about Joel's feelings starting to come through, but by doing this halfway the episode it had less impact and still felt a little sudden. For example, if in that conversation Joel was angry like he was in the game and then had that heart-to-heart with Ellie right before they went to sleep, I think it would have had more impact. So whilst I did enjoy the fan service in this as well as the humour, this was a bit of a slow one and probably my least favourite episode so far, but it is building up to some more action in the next episode, so I'm looking forward to the next one.

If you dare to let you imagination wonder, you might realise with regard to people making such covers for horror games like Resident Evil, well, it could be worse.

Saturday Night Live have done a Last of Us/Mario Kart parody starring Pedro Pascal and it's even more brilliant than it sounds.

Thanks for posting this. The only AC game I remember playing to completion was AC4: Black Flag, so I never really got the full purpose of the Animus and the parts of the story told in modern times all that well. Nor, I admit, did I particularly like them either. I was always more interested in the historical settings and events in these games. It's nice to get a new perspective on this. So thanks for sharing.

This is the second time in a little over two weeks that you have have come onto a thread discussing some related to The Last of TV series and completely ignored the actual subject of thread itself. You first did that on this thread entitled "Bruce Straley Wasn't Credited in HBO's The Last of Us, Calls for Unionization", except you didn't address the situation regarding Bruce Straley, you just had a moan about the plot of a video game that you admit you hadn't even played and how you felt about the first episode of the show. And just like I did then, I'll point out there is a thread to discuss the TV in general set up here. If you want to express your feeling about either the show or the games on threads like this, fine, but please address the specific subject of the thread as well. I don't think that posting on these threads to not address the subject is very fair to the thread author ( @Kane99 in both cases). And to answer you're buried question, the show does change a few things up (especially in the last episode with Bill and Frank) and when they have it's usually been to shows benefit I would argue. Onto the subject, and whilst "Did you play the game?" as well as follow up questions like "Why did/didn't you play it? What did you think of it?" are fair questions to ask these actors because this is an adaptation, what really matters to me is the performance in the end. As such, I don't really care much about his personal gaming habits. Nick did a great job as Bill, and that's what matters to me. It is interesting to know that someone would maintain a certain distance from a certain hobby because thier worried about getting to drawn in. That's not wrong nor right, it's just how he feels, and that's his prerogative.

I know whyThe Last of Us isn't a option, so I'll skip over that and I like to recommend the following: Heavenly Sword: A good and I'd say largely overlooked and underrated story driven hack n' slash PS3 exclusive. It was made by Ninja Theory, the same developer behind Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice and the DMC reboot, and thier strengths are full display in terms of the combat in this game. Dishonoured: An interesting and unique first person action/stealth game whare your approach (whether it be more passive or aggressive) has a direct effect on the environment. Remember Me: This one is something of a hit and miss amongst people, but it's worth a try for anyone. It's a third person action/adventure game from Dontnod (the developer of Life is Strange) with a solid, politically mirrored story. The reson why I sys it's hit and miss is the combat. It's complex and tactically diverse, but can be difficult to use. FFX/X2: Final Fantasy 10 is one of my very favourite games and this remaster with remaster with FFX 2 included is great value and is a great port on any system. I would recommend playing this on PC as first choice or on PS4/XB1 second if possible with better visuals additional gameplay options. The PS3 version is still good, though. Kingdoms Of Amalur: Reckoning: Normally, I would have put this further down in the "Recommend this game, but not on PS3" list, but given that the only option to play this game on more modern platforms is through the loosely called "Remaster" Kingdoms Of Amalur: Re-Reckoning, a game I've torn to shreds on this forum already, by means, play it PS3. It is possible that Re-Reckoning game has been patched, improved and updated since then and that version does include all the game's DLC, including a brand new DLC made specifically for that version, so keep an open mind to playing Re-Reckoning instead. Infamous Series: Fine PS3 exclusives games. with fan combat and karma-based story choices. No PS3 collection is complete without them. Devil May Cry 1-4 (-2): Legendary hack and slash games. Just skip 2, and you'll be fine. Here are games from the list that would I recommend, but not on PS3. Much better to play them on other platforms for reasons I'll explain. Skyrim: You probably know this already, but play this game for sure, just on anything that isn't a PS3. Oblivion: Pretty much the same reason as above. Playing this on PS3 isn't as ill recommended from me as Skyrim because the other realistic alternative in 2023 is PC and that version has it's problems too (No controller support, for example), but I'd still recommend that version first. Dragon's Dogma: A decent western style fantasy RPG from Capcom, but the more recent version of Dragon's Dogma, Dark Arisen, is a far superior version of the game that fixes a lot of the original's problems. I actually hated this game originally and only came to like when it was updated. Here's the games I personally would not recommend. Demons Souls: If you like the "Soulsbourne" style games, fine, but this my introduction to them and hated it with a fiery passion. I then went on to hate every Solusbourne game I've tried since. Even if you like these types of games, there's a remake out for this now, so I little reason to play this version anyway. Two Worlds: It's amazing how games tried to be The Elder Scrolls and failed. To put it simply, it's bad. This barley mediocre fantasy RPG was received very badly when it first launched and is probably even worse to play now. Trust me, it's not worth it. The Risen Games: For full clarity, I haven't played these myself, but I've seen and heard a lot of them, and if the thay are as they appear, they're not great. Here's Angy's Joe's reviews of Risen for example. That's about all I have to offer. The rest of the games I either haven't played or don't have much to say. I hope that helps.

I'll nominate @Reality vs Adventure. Been strong in recent weeks with his contribution.

Maybe I'm being slightly stupid, but I fail to see how the success of TLOU TV adaptation eases or even connects to the concerns the FTC nor anyone else might have over this acquisition. Are they saying that Sony's success the TLOU IP means that they don't need this proposed acquisition to be blocked in order to survive? No Microsoft and Activision, even if that's true that isn't the point. The concern is about Microsoft holding a monopoly of major IP's in the gaming market through this acquisition that would adversely affect consumer choice by essentially forcing people to the Xbox brand to keep playing these games. Sony's sucess with TLOU or any of the IP's they own do nothing to ease those concerns no matter how much money those IPs make. And that's coming from someone who thinks those concerns, although legitimate, are a bit much. Microsoft will still hold a lesser share of the market than Sony even after this acquisition. But Microsoft and Activision, you have got to stop with this deflecting bullshit if you're going to convince people that you're sincere with your commitment to bring franchises like COD to other platforms after this deal. Somebody over at Microsoft and Activision needs to tighten the leash when it comes to thier employees, especially executives, posting stupid shit on social media.

Of course somebody would so something like this. If I were 12, I'd think this was tremendous, but I'm not. Whilst I wouldn't say it's a good look for anyone who buys these things, It's not exactly mature, I suppose it's relatively harmless.

Tributes have been making thier way around the internet and social media for Annie Wersching. The actress, also known for her roles in 24, Star Trek Picard and Enterprise, Supernatural, CSI and The Vampire Diaries, lost her long running battle with the cancer she was diagnosed with in 2020. Annie was 45. She is survived by her Husband and thier three sons aged 12, 9 and 4. Full Story from Vulture. RIP Annie Wersching March 28, 1977 – January 29, 2023 This is so sad. I was a fan of her work not just in The Last of Us, but in 24 as well. Her children are so young as well, my deepest condolences to the family.

Episode three and, well, that was different. Bill's character in the game I felt was a mirror for what Joel would become if he lost what was left of his compassion and became even more bitter. This version of Bill (and, indeed, Frank) was such a change up it's I almost feel comparing them is waste of time. I can't even say if one is better than the other as the role the characters had completely different functions and roles in the respective plots. They both did that very well and this episode really tugged at my heartstrings. Onto the characters in the show specifically, this story about Bill and Frank very much became a side story in this show that really shows how there is love and a capacity for people to feel it even in these most dire circumstances. Bill was very much set to be the bitter, hardened loner that he was in the game, but met Frank quickly and thier relationship immediately began to steer the character to this more social, caring and optimistic place. This is not me saying that this is better in the show, like I said the role and function of the Bill character is very different between the two versions, but it was fantastic and refreshing to see these characters further developed and shown in a new light. It makes a change to see something more romantic and heart-warming after all the drama the show has been so far. This episode did spend so much time focusing on Bill and Frank that there actually was little room to advance the main story, but I don't mind that. TV shows need "filler" episodes to let the characters breath and help build the world they interact with. Still, even though the parts with Joel and Ellie in Bill's town felt a little rushed, it got us whare we needed to be for the next episode that will likely be all about the main plot. The one thing I didn't like is that moment whare Joel explained FEDRA killed people who weren't infected to save space in the quarantine zones because in the game they left the morals about the right and wrong in this situation far more blurry than that. This worked well in the game because it ultimately left the morals of the Fireflies more questionable as well as FEDRA. The show seems to be painting this a little more black and white and don't think that works better. There's obvious reasons to take issue with authoritarian regimes as it is, so that just feel needed. Still, a superb episode, maybe even may favourite so far even though it end up being something of a filler episode.

Maybe Fox News saw this and decided to take it to the next level...

I'll reserve judgement for when (or perhaps, if) we get more precise details about why these negotiations broke down, but I suspect that both sides are to blame. A mixture of pettiness and greed. And as usual, it's the gamers that ultimately loose out. I do hope that Activision-Blizzard's customers get to play thier games again or get refunded.

It's hard to even know what to say. I always considered political extremists, whether they be left or right, to be predicable, but for Fox news, even as infamously hypocritical, stupid and bias as they are, to loose thier shit over this instead other gaming related things they could pointlessly loose thier shit over, they actually have managed to surprise me. This is just a simple, and relatively dull, power saving feature and nothing more. Let me put it this way, I would have never created a topic to discuss this new feature on the Xbox because It's just not that interesting, and I suspect most of you feel the same. A good feature, but a boring one. I just can't wait to see what happens when these sheltered idiots look a little deeper into the rabbit hole to discover games like Tell Me Why, Dragonage, The Last of Us and so on, they'll probably explode.

Contrary to what some areas of the press would have you believe, false allegations in these kinds of cases are very rare. Here's some statistics I pulled from the Official UK Metropolitan Police Website from 2018-2021 assuming that's the last year for witch the figures available, and its pretty alarming: So this means that in total, domestic abuse allegation are flagged as false only 0.017% of the time. When woman are the alleged victims, it's even less at 0.014%. Now I believe in innocent until proven guilty just as much as you do and I know these stats come from a different country (I couldn't find any stats for America as clear as this without obvious bias behind it publication, but anyone can please post.) and I also acknowledge that things can be different if the people in question are higher profile or live in the public eye, but in this case I find it very hard to believe Justin Roiland is innocent here. I believe that partly because he resigned, that's not the action of somebody denying and fighting against these allegations, but mostly because he already pled guilty to this back in 2020. It does help to actually read the articles in posts from time to time; Sorry, but you don't plead guilty to something to them claim you're innocent only when it becomes big news. So no, I don't believe him.

To be clear, I've never read that nor any other article on this kind of thing, nor will I because I like to keep my own thoughts, feelings and reactions to these things sourced only from myself. So whilst I appreciate the article, I won't read it. It is a strange, but very clever reaction to provoke. Willing the character to kill themselves to end thier horror, there's such conflict the emotions and thoughts that the viewer needs to process in that moment. That's what really makes it memorable, by forcing the mind to process this incredibly difficult situation. That's the key to great filmmaking, creating a feeling in the viewer to remember rather than a situation.

I believe you're referring to the PS4 game called Life of Black Tiger, an infamously bad game from 2017 that PlayStation not only allowed on thier store, but actually promoted on thier official YouTube channel. The proof is below Wanna know how infamous this game is? Check out some of these major youtubers covering the game below.

According to what I've seen and researched (Check out this very helpful article from Kotaku), Kojima has flipflopped several times over making more MGS games over the years. There was a time he didn't want to releases MG2, then didn't want to make MGS4 because he was interested in making a game for Wii (No joke, he actually said that. Source.), so I wouldn't actually take what he's said on that too seriously. I do believe that at very least he will never make an MGS game again now, though.