Shagger

Whilst I'm limited in the amount of good things I can say about Dragon's Dogma, the character creation system, even for an RPG, is unveiled. Gender, height, weight, visual age, facial features, skin colour, hair colour, hairstyle and even the BMI, there was nothing you couldn't change for both your character and your main pawn, meaning you got to play with the brilliant system twice! The character customization even had gameplay effects, it was truly brilliant. It's a shame the rest of the game didn't hold up. This extends to weapons an armour as well,and whilst I have to admit the system isn't as easy to use to customize apprentice of items as the character itself, it makes up for that by offering so many options. The best armour custom system though, that's tough because so few games offer a good system, but FFXIV was pretty cool. You could do a lot of different things, but it took resources that were tedious to gather.

Like I said to @m76 already, Ellie and Dina's relationship and this incident with this blatant bigot is not the bulk of what I'm referring to. I'm more referring to Lev's story arc that makes more of a statement in its own way. Get back to me then tell me after you've beat the game that the developers haven't made their viewpoint on that issue 100% clear, whether you agree with them or not. That's not a critique, like a said, it's part of a developer's creative liberty to express a social/political viewpoint, but just because you agree with and/or sympathize with the statement, doesn't mean it's not a statement.

Game development isn't baked per slice, believe us mere mortals who are not involved with software engineering when I say we get that. When this demo went viral, the developer took to social media to apologize for the "flaws", so we're obvious not dealing with EA Sports who are happy to say "At least it's not a 1 out of 5". The fact the developer actually respects the craft enough to care and produce something as good as this is at such an early stage is what presents the potential here, something a hell of a lot better than the "pinky promise CGI, send money now" approach.

Wow, I have to say that's a very elegant, intelligent and mature take on matter. So much I'd never considered. I thought @m76make a fantastic point that I believed was unarguable, but you took you it on and I could almost feel myself becoming even more enlighte... Nope, you ruined it.

You can adjust the search parameters in the drop down menu of the search bar even if you are on a specific sub-forum or topic, but still, it's an easy mistake to make and no harm done.

@m76 Actually, there has been. Merging threads.

Well, the title says it all. The original Division is free to install and keep through UPlay for next few days. I'm not sure what worth this game will have because it's been out for so long, but it's free. Anyway, here you go.

It's not perfect, but it is a hell of a lot better. I'd say it's, at the very least, stable. Of course, there's still no better version of the game than a heavily modded version on PC, with the XB1 second because that version is also a little more mod friendly than the PS4 version.

We're humans. Incisors, canines, eye's at the front. As much as some people would want to deny it, we're predators. Violence is part of what makes us, whether we want to believe it or not. Anger, aggression and danger are exhilarating because it's part of our base instincts. A desire to cause suffering is a different matter, that's a mind gone wrong or emotions out of control, but that doesn't change the fact violence is empowering and pleasurable because of what we are. That's where video games come in. Every good video game, regardless of genre, has one thing in common, the empowerment factor. Whether it be defeating the great, soul devouring Dragon Alduin in Skyrim, becoming a war hero in COD, becoming a superhero in Spider-Man, ruling the underworld as a feared crime boss in GTA or lifting the Champions League trophy in FIFA, if a game doesn't make you feel like you're more than what you are, it's failed. Taking lives and causing harm are amongst the most powerful things a person can do, but thankfully most people don't want to cause others to suffer. Yes, we're predators at our core, but we're also sentient and compassionate with morals and laws to guide us around our most base, violent instincts. Violent video games provide a safe, harmless outlet to embrace those instincts and enjoy that primeval rush. Speaking personally, I don't think violence on its own is an appealing thing, it's disturbing actually, but violent video games provide a safe, harmless outlet to indulge in those base instincts that we all have and there's not a damn thing wrong with that.

This is great, but there is a rather baffling catch. The games are only available until "approximately March 31st 2021". What's the point of only having these games as an exclusive to help sell both itself and a console only available for six months as opposed to having this game sell itself and the console for years to come? I suppose what they're thinking is only offering the games for sale for six months they'll temp more people to buy a Switch during the launch period of the PS5 and XBSX, but forcing fans to choose between spending money on a Switch and next-gen, people are going to choose next-gen. You can tell this is from the same idiots who thought making the NES Mini and SNES Mini in limited quantities was a good idea, and they lost potentially hundreds of thousands, if not millions of sales because of it. Stop it, Nintendo. This idea of limiting availably to increase short term demand does not work out better in the end, it only pisses people off.

Oh look at the fun way they've spelled "Phoenix"!... ...yeah, I'll pass.

Could you please provide some examples of this? I can't think of a specific character or game that fits that pattern. I can definitely imagine such things being annoying and in poor respect to the intelligence of the audience, but I personally don't recall seeing it happen myself outside of something specific and indigenous to the story. You are 100% correct on how Ellie and Dina's relationship was portrayed in that game and no, I don't see the inclusion of LGBTQ characters as political at all, I'll leave that to morons. I was just making the point that some people (as in the aforementioned morons) did see it that way and it became political because of their own, selfish prejudices, not because it actually was a statement. What you are not correct on is the game not having LGBTQ social/political themes in it, and l'm not even focused on Ellie and Dina when I say so. You're right, their relationship was portrayed in a realistic, subtle manner that wasn't shoved in one's face. There is some limited bigotry put on display with regard to them, but I was mostly referring to Lev. For spoiler reasons I'm not going to go into any more detail than that, but as someone who's played the game, you'll know what I'm on about. Lev's struggles and the way the society he's grown up in for being who he is a very potent theme, a vital part of his story arc, and a very deliberate example of the kind of reflections of reality that I spoke of earlier. I obviously agree what the game subtly states about his rights, but whether one does or one doesn't agree the game makers and writers make how they feel about it quite clear and that's their right to do so without being accused of imposing some kind of agenda. So that's why this part doesn't really make sense. In an ideal world, it would, but that's not the world we live in. You can't separate stories that you find relatable and can feel passionate about from reference to real world social and political issues, no matter how metaphorical, vague or subtle they are. Even if creators are blatant about it, like with Wolfenstein or BioShock Infinite, that doesn't automatically make it a bad thing and it certainly doesn't automatically spawn bad games. Social politics, especially from the perspective of the individual, are always more complex than just left and right, so the expression of it is inevitably more complex as well. Whether I agree or not with what the creators feel about the subject at hand, I always defend their right to creative liberty. The problem with most people is that they will only defend a creator's creative liberty when they agree with the statement and not otherwise, and brings us right back to what is the main concept of the "too political" card, hypocrisy.

I always find this statement fascinating because it's impossible to say that without coming out of looking, at least to some extent, like a hypocrite. Video games are an entertainment media. Even when it's a work of fiction, it's still something from the imagination of someone living or has lived in our reality, so no matter how far the fantasy goes, there's always at least reflection of reality because there nothing else to inspire it. Because if that, and this is especially true if any game telling a story, it's pretty much impossible to avoid real world social and/or political issues if you want to create something compelling and relatable. You can't a GTA game free of politics because it's a crime SIM. You can't have COD (or similar) without politics because it's themed around war and conflict. You can't have any game that karmic or moral choices without politics or social ideology either. There's very little you can do that doesn't involve politics or social in any fiction worth a damn, and only becomes a problem when an individual decides it is. Take yourself, for example. I remember you very recently speaking a lot of praise about The Last of Us Part II, and deservedly so, it's a great game, but there's a lot of modern social politics in that game, more specifically with regard to the LGBTQ themes in it. They're 100% wrong of course, but there are people who consider that "too political". The truth is that there homophobic prats, but that's not the point. The point is that would you have been so happy with the if the the game had demonstrated a positive stance on BLM? Something you've criticized? That's the problem with the "too political" card. It's only played by people when a game promotes a social ideology or makes a social/political statement that they don't like, but would offer no complaint or maybe offer praise when it's a ideology or statement they do like or agree with. It's hypocritical, self-centred and goes against a creator's right to freedom of expression.

Pretty much spot on. The gameplay improved in pretty much every way. As aforementioned, went to greater detail in my review, but the issues the games has doesn't really stem from the story itself, more from the way it was told. The original didn't find strength in the unique aspects of its story, to tell the truth it wasn't that unique a story, but it was told with such great pacing that really engrossed you in so easily. The Second game actually does have a more unique, challenging narrative, but it's told in a more jarring and less fluent manner. I can understand why they did it the way they did, and it does work, but not without cost. Still, it's a brilliant game, of the very best this generation, and in what honestly has not been a great year for big, story-centric games.

I really wouldn't worry about that. You fit in here, and it's not like you fit and contribute despite being a retro gamer, I'd say you fit in and contribute because you're a retro gamer. Yes, this isn't specifically a retro gaming forum and the majority of people here talk mostly about current games, but that doesn't mean you should doubt that you belong here. I think I speak for everyone when I say your valued here, more than you know.

I have my Facebook and Twitter. Not much more to say other than follow me, or they will never find your body.

s something I actually agree. The key to realistic looking characters is imperfection. Not that Abby, Ellie, Dina nor any of the other woman in that game are unattractive, I'm simply saying that the imperfections is what makes characters visually unique, human, identifiable. However, I will always defend the notion that a character does not need to be ugly to be identifiable unless it's something very indigenous and specific to the story, it's all about the perceived personality and their behaviour. I set the same standards with really good-looking characters as well. Take Aloy; ...a truly amazing young woman who looks great, but that's also to trained her whole life to win "The Proving". A rite of passage to test soldiery, athleticism, stamina, skill and strength. It would not make sense if she had the body of some lazy asshole riding a scooter. So obviously, she has the body of an athlete. The game designers can hardly be blamed for the simple fact that is attractive. The standards of character development should not only suit the character, but also make sense otherwise. So, in the interest of fairness, I have to admit Velvet Crowe does not look like a formally 16 yo girl, starving in a dank pit for three years, despite being an actually brilliant character; I hate to admit it, but there are definitely double standards.

Well, that's an alarming connection to make. First, you'll never find a 5yo with a DDD rack (It's a thought that's as disturbing as it is confusing and I don't want to even attempt to picture it) and just because somebody offers that kind of attention to an obviously sexualized character does not make that individual is a pervert. All it means is that character is obviously sexualized. My Avatar on this forum is Velvet from Tales of Berseria, a character I love, not because her default costume has her "stuff" half hanging out, but because she's great character. If there is someone out there who's only interested in Velvet because of how she's presented then... yeah, I do feel a need to tell them to grow up, but it's still not their fault the developers designed her that way. I don't mind a character being sexy, I just prefer it when he/she is also a fleshed out, real character. One does not have to be pug ugly to be relatable, even if that is more realistic.

That Lara Croft literally made the cover of Playboy, and I can totally understand why. It wasn't the pixelated tits, it was because the character being a fantasy treading closer to a young man's reality that any other character had in mainstream media. A hot, empowering, witty, big titted, smart action heroine that was way more relatable to the 90's geek than any movie or TV show had even got close to at the time. That's what gave her appeal, that's what made her attractive, not just the design (And mean design, I do mean what was in the minds of those that created her, graphical limitations aside) that was ultimately meant to have sex appeal from day one. The new Lara is way deeper and more complex, and she needed to be. She's still as smart and determined as the original Lara Croft, but with a greater sense of vulnerability and maturity. She just feels that much more real and fleshed out. The design is still that of a beautiful young woman, but not a fantasy like the old Lara was intended to be. Sorry, but you're wrong. Whilst I personally would not list the old Lara as a bad protagonist, more a product of her time, the new Lara is by far superior.

Ironing. It's not that I find it unpleasant or dull, it's that I flat out can't do it. Trump will come out as transgender before I ever successfully remove all the creases from a shirt.

Played this a few years back with another community, even ran the official guild for while. I wonder if this is a good time to get back into it.

Right now my PC gaming done on a laptop, but I could I would definitely have at least two monitors. Having one for the game and another show benchmarks, social media, discord ect would be so helpful.

I could honestly pick out any one of these main cast members from FFXIII and unleash one hell of a rant; But there is one that stands out, even amongst this motly crew of douche. I. HATE. THIS. GUY. Snow is an irresponsible, selfish, self-righteous, egotistical, arrogant, ignorant prat that the game tries to pass off as a selfless hero! (Warning, Some minor spoilers ahead) Right the start of the game, he gets a load of innocent civilians killed, then the next time you see him he is hi-fiving his buddies and declaring himself a hero as he rides off to rescue his already doomed girlfriend like he's Captain America. A quick point before I move on. A hero is confident, inspirational and charismatic, but also selfless, thoughtful and humble, usually even anonymous. Even if they have earned the right to call themselves a hero, they don't. Snow is none of those things. Back to the point though, our "hero" getting those innocent people killed. Any remorse? Regret? A lump in his throat? No, of course not, he was only thinking of Sarah (The GF), the only lump he had was down the front of his trousers. While travelling through Palumpolum with Hope (Whose mother was one of the aforementioned civilians who died because of Snow), he's completely oblivious to the fact Hope hates his guts because he's to focused on "being the Hero". When Hope does eventually confront him, only then does he actually show some remorse. Eh, no Snow, you don't get to feel bad about what you did only when poor little you has to face the consequences, that's not how it works. He's pretty much the same, carefree, annoying douchebag the entire game. All the main characters in FFXIII are there their own brand of terrible, but Snow is the worst. And when you're the worst protagonist in FFXIII, that is a very strong case for the worst video game protagonist of all time. Even being played by Troy Baker couldn't salvage this waste of pixels. Thank about that.

You can't go wrong with the nerd. James Rolfe is gold. As well as AVGN (AKA, Cinemassacre), I really enjoy ReviewTechUSA, ChannelAwesome, Kathleemms (She's a much smaller channel and doesn't upload as much as she used to, but I still love her content), Angry Joe (I don't always agree with his opinion, but his reviews are superb) and Angry Centaur Gaming (or ACG).

Holy shit! I know that's over several years, but still. If I spent that kind of money on a game she'd rip my head and feed it to the seagulls! With the exception of a couple of collectors editions, the most I've spent on a game would be for said game and maybe some expansions, probably about the equivalent of $100-$120 at the most.