StaceyPowers

When fights are designed so you need a specific system of tactics to win, do you usually manage to figure them out yourself, or do you have to look them up?

Can you usually tell what your difficulty settings are without looking? I lost patience with a fight in Dragon Age: Veilguard the other night, and checked my difficulty settings, expecting to find they were on standard/normal. I found I’d been playing on “hard” all along. That really surprised me, as I have to play most DA games on casual to get through them. I reduced to “standard” and beat the fight.

What are some of the most reassuring games you’ve ever played? My top pick is Outer Wilds, for its story, which I never want to give away, so won’t say anything about it. I also find TLOU games reassuring, just the whole idea that even in a world like that, building a meaningful life with rewarding relationships is still possible.

What are some relatively obscure games that played a significant role shaping the mainstream video game industry? My example would be old school text-based MUDs from Iron Realms Entertainment. So far as I know, those were some of the first games that pioneered the detested freemium/pay-to-win model.

What are some games that made large changes to their endings post-release? Fallout 3 comes to mind, with the addition of the Broken Steel DLC. So does Mass Effect: 3, which patched the ending to fix some things.

I feel this is complicated, because there are two issues at hand: norms and ethics, and they overlap, but not entirely. I feel that a society that is inclusive is an ethical one, and thus games should always promote inclusivity, or at least avoid exclusion. The thing is, exclusion usually is the direct result of a social norm, and that current of exclusion running through society is always going to be there. So I would say it is best to adapt in ways that reflect basic ethical behavior, rather than necessarily adapting to modern sensibilities. Today's sensibilities may still largely reflect inclusion, but the way things are going, tomorrow's may very well reflect hate. I hope that if that is the case, developers will do what they can to resist.

No idea. I think my earliest gaming memories involved Tetris, but I don't know how old I was. Probably like 5.

I think it depends on if you're an NPC or the protagonist. If you're an NPC, you're basically screwed, lol. But if you're the protagonist/player character, radiation heals your broken limbs and stuff. Not bad at all.

Haha, yeah. As someone who finished the original Oblivion not that long ago, I can say the upgrade to the graphics is dramatic to say the least.

I'm not sure it counts, because by the time I bought it, I had high hopes that I'd love it, but Outer Wilds. The reason I'm mentioning it is because I usually shy away from puzzles in games, and the whole time loop concept sounded fatiguing and frustrating to me the first time I heard of Outer Wilds. But it wasn't at all, and I did end up loving the game.

That sounds so interesting! I will look it up.

Has anyone played this yet? I'm really curious about it.

Honestly, I think every game I've played through to completion falls into this category. I don't get bored that easily. I usually try to rotate through the games I am actively playing every week. But sometimes I get so into a game that I forget to do that, and play for a month before rotating to the next.

Frustrating for me. But this is because I am not honestly a very good gamer, lol. If a game has permadeath, that just means I will never be able to finish it. The closest I've come to getting through a game relatively unscathed is BioShock Infinite, where I think on my most recent playthrough I only died a handful of times.

For me, the answer is always Zork.

I know! That was such a cool feature! I also kind of appreciated how much time and work were involved with gaining full access to everything in the mage's guild. It actually felt like an accomplishment when I finally could do everything I wanted there. Not yet! I am also very excited about it. Especially for Shivering Isles.

If someone who has never played video games before asks you where to start, what games do you suggest? I realize it varies depending on their interests, but are there some games you tend to default to? I often suggest Skyrim, because all these years later, it is still beautiful and impressive, especially for a new gamer, and offers a low-pressure environment and game type to learn a bunch of different things.

Are there any games or levels you would say are both relaxing and tense at the same time? That is how I feel about Echoes of the Eye in Outer Wilds. The dreamworld on the ship in that DLC is beautiful and relaxing for the most part. But having to sneak around in the dark and deal with the jump scares is anxiety-inducing.

I keep hearing about Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 being an amazing game, but I know so little about it. Has anyone here played it yet? I would love to hear your impressions!

What games or franchises are the worst of the worst with having too many exhausting bullet sponges? My answer would be pretty much every Bioware game.

Are there any questions in video game stories/worlds you don’t expect to ever be answered, and you wish the writers would just tell the answer to? For me, I don’t think we’ll ever get any more Mass Effect: Andromeda games (which despite enjoying the game, I’m fine with), but I was left wanting to know the answers to all the unanswered questions at the end of the game.

Yeah, that'd be great! Thank you! Seasons sounds awesome.

What are some video game trailers that made you laugh? I’ve found both the trailers for The Outer Worlds 2 very funny.

2025 has been, let’s just call it an “interesting” year. I think a lot of us probably feel overwhelmed by bad news on a lot of days. I remember seeing on Reddit when Oblivion Remastered came out the same day as the announcement trailer, so many people expressing joy and relief at some good news for once. If you could have any piece of good video game news this year to make you feel better, what would it be?

What lighting, if any, do you prefer while gaming? Daylight? Artificial light? No light outside the screen? I don’t like gaming during the day, it’s immersion-breaking for me. I like gaming at night with all the lights off except for some colourful, dim LEDs.