What are you playing this weekend?

FFX starts slow, but it has my favorite story of the single player games.

I’m at the beach this weekend, but when I get back I’ll probably fit in some Ninja and Dragoon leveling in Final Fantasy XIV.

Redherring wrote:

Nostalgia trip with Final Fantasy X. Can’t decide if this is amazing or terrible. It’s probably both.

I’m on the side of; meh. It didn’t ruin the FF series. I just didn’t enjoy the direction Square Enix took the series.

For me so far just some Star Fleet II playtesting but I also hope to get in some Motorstorm: Pacific Rift in as well.

I think I just played the saddest deckbuilder I've ever played, Iris and the Giant. The story is told in a very simple manner, but manages to make an emotional impact. It also plays a little differently than many card games, in that you also need to manage the geometry of new enemies entering the area where they can attack, and possibly be attacked. It may be beneficial to not kill one enemy to prevent another from getting into position.

One other difference is that cards are used up when played, and it's game over if you run out of cards, so deciding when to take cards vs abilities during 'level up' becomes an important choice, along with whether you want to burn a card to get some loot along the way. I know this may turn some people off - it did me at first, but I didn't find it too unpleasant.

It also has persistent unlocks between attempts to 'win' a campaign, and the ability to equip special abilities and allies between runs. While I didn't enjoy it as much as Slay the Spire or Monster Train, recommend trying it. I'm pretty sure I got this in a Humble Choice or something, so many people may already have it. I didn't expect too much going in but was pleasantly surprised. I didn't enjoy the art style but liked the game enough to continue.

Your text to link here...

I was playing the co-op game Operation: Tango but we seem to have hit a bug at the end of a very long and demanding level that, when we searched for it online, many people have experienced but no one has a solution to so it looks like we’re moving on to The Ascent a cyberpunk, twin stick shooter.

Hermph.

I played 17 minutes of Final Fantasy X-2.

Um.

Let’s forget that ever happened, shall we?

back to Final Fantasy X.

Probably trying to finish off Nobody Saves The World before the new PS Plus services hit next week and I have a smorgasbord to try out!

Redherring wrote:

I played 17 minutes of Final Fantasy X-2.

Um.

Let’s forget that ever happened, shall we?

back to Final Fantasy X.

Aw, you should give X-2 another shot. The job system (aka dress spheres) is fun to play around with. And seeing Yuna without the weight of the world on her shoulders is really nice. To each their own, though.

This weekend I'm going to try pushing hard in Kingdom Hearts Re: Chain of Memories. There are things I like about it, but also things that make it a slog, so I want to not let it sit unplayed for too long.

I'll also continue leveling Ninja in Final Fantasy XIV, and will play Path of Exile with some friends.

Possibly sticking to Fantasy Life while I'm getting tattooed over the weekend. Might do some Inscryption when I get home, if I have the energy.

Aside from (finally) driving back home (and hopefully being able to stay there for more than 2 weeks, but that's TBD), I plan to start Trails of Cold Steel III. And possibly beat Golf Club Wasteland.

I'm back to Valkyria Chronicles 4 after a two year hiatus. I am shocked to remember as much as I do!

I'm still plugging away at Triangle Strategy, on my second playthrough. I'm able to skip a lot of dialogue so things are moving a lot faster than the first time through. My goal is to get it done before the end of the month and when the new club games kick off, but I absolutely have to be done by the time Xenoblade 3 comes out.

Oh and there is new Orcs Must Die DLC so Spikeout and I will be likely playing that. The game is noticeably crisper in the visual department and very smooth gameplay wise on PS5.

Looking to spend some time with Nox Archaist. This is basically a modern day take on Ultima 3, 4, 5. It was even programmed on the Apple //e and runs within a Apple // emulator.

For me this brings back lots of memories as my first computer was an Apple //e and the third game I had for that system was Ultima 3. That game completely blew me away and kicked off my love for computer RPGs.

I was only was able to play about 40 minutes of it and it feels just like I remember those games. Even has the NAME, JOB, JOIN conversation options. Can not wait to dig in to it this weekend.

It's on sale on GOG right now. But man I want the boxed collectors edition big time ($109) Will have to get that at some point.

Fired up Black Book as a Steam Deck experiment. Really squinting at some of the fonts and icons on that screen, but it might be worth it for the ability to pick up and play a location in a quick session. I'm so close to the end that I should just finish it.

Mass Effect 3 is also due to come off its break.

And I'm extremely interested in Neon White. It looks like Ghostrunner multiplied by Aeon Drive and soaked in anime, which is so far up my alley I'm getting its mail delivered to me.

Still making my nostalgic way through Suikoden. Man, what a weird mix of user-friendly and user-unfriendly it is. There are like three different ways to make random battles go by quicker, random encounter rates are very manageable, and dungeons are short and breezy. On the other hand, there's no world map, and when someone tells you where you're supposed to go next (e.g. "south of here is the Village of the Guys Who Will Advance the Plot"), they tend to do it exactly once, in non-repeatable dialogue, so if you miss it, screw you.

In addition to Neon White on the Switch, I will likely be exploring the the library on the updated PS Plus. I already installed Assassin's Creed: Valhalla, which also downloaded my 40 hour save from when I played on the Xbox a year ago. Pretty nice.

Continuing with Horizon: Zero Dawn. Think I’m about half way through now. The latest Dragon Age trailer has me thinking of doing a replay, so I might download Origins and start that up, but we’ll see.

Crawley wrote:

Looking to spend some time with Nox Archaist. This is basically a modern day take on Ultima 3, 4, 5. It was even programmed on the Apple //e and runs within a Apple // emulator.

For me this brings back lots of memories as my first computer was an Apple //e and the third game I had for that system was Ultima 3. That game completely blew me away and kicked off my love for computer RPGs.

I was only was able to play about 40 minutes of it and it feels just like I remember those games. Even has the NAME, JOB, JOIN conversation options. Can not wait to dig in to it this weekend.

It's on sale on GOG right now. But man I want the boxed collectors edition big time ($109) Will have to get that at some point.

Damn you Crawley! I doubt I'll have the patience for a full playthrough, but I have too many good memories of Ultimas 3-5 not to give it go for $12.

Other than that, I shall be building up my base in the GWJ modded minecraft world.

Been playing a bunch of Criminal Girls, Trails in the Sky SC and Lufia.
Edit: Death trash as well. It feels like OG Fallout 1.
Orbital Bullet is a good.

Still going through Motorstorm: Pacific Rift. These tracks are insane and I love it. It might be taking over the slot for favorite racing game in my heart.

Also playing a bunch of demos. I should have predicted that.

I Was a Teenage Exocolonist
Flight of Nova
Keylocker
Naiad

Veloxi wrote:

Still going through Motorstorm: Pacific Rift. These tracks are insane and I love it. It might be taking over the slot for favorite racing game in my heart.

I played the heck out of the Motorstorm games on the PS3, good times!

So, while I'm here, here's what I'm playing/played this weekend:

Going Medieval
I’ve been building farms and fortresses and training an army of raiders in this fun medieval colony sim - currently in early access.

Hero’s Hour
I’m enjoying this turn-based strategy RPG. Semi-auto real-time combat works well and it has enough depth to keep me busy while still being a chilled time.

The Solitaire Conspiracy
I picked this one up for £2 on sale. It’s by the devs of Thomas was Alone (great game!). I’m a Spymaster using solitaire espionage to save the world!

[edit] All Mike Bithell Games are currently 80% off on Steam until 23 June (Thomas was Alone/The Solitaire Conspiracy/Volume/Subsurface Circular/Quarantine Circular)

Also played a couple more Next Fest demos that I enjoyed:
- Summoners Fate
- Dice Tribes: Ambitions

I’m thinking of something turn-based for this afternoon, perhaps continuing my game of Hard West or Lock ’n Load Tactical Digital

Happy Father's Day, UK father's! I've been playing Elden Ring and Chivalry 2.

It's been a Diablo fiesta this weekend. Lazy Saturday afternoon grinding starting a late-season Monk in Diablo 3. I decided to start an Assassin and follow a leveling guide for the first time in Diablo 2: Resurrected. And doing the usual dailies in Diablo Immortal and losing a fair of steam with the game as each day passes.

Also bought and finished TMNT: Shredder's Revenge. Great nostalgic fun. Very short but there's replay value here with the harder game mode and mastering all of the stages if I so wish.

Made good progress in the excellent Psychonauts 2 and some progress in the less excellent but still good Dragon's Crown. Played a few rounds of Quake Champions as always, and went through the first three stages of TMNT: Shredder's Revenge - my first day 1 purchase in years - and had a great time!

Went back hard last week on previous Fallout installments. Playing Fallout 4 on XSX. 4k and 60 fps is nice. I actually never finished it even though I put in 105 hours in 2015. Never really played any of the DLC as well.

Playing the new Orcs Must Die 3 DLC with Spikeout. We’ve nearly five starred the levels on normal difficulty and will soon move on to trying to five star them on the highest difficulty which, at the moment, feels like it’ll be an insurmountable level of challenge but we’ll have fun throwing ourselves at them for as long as it takes.

Also, hopefully, more of The Ascent with Shymlark which is a game that has won me over completely with it’s astonishingly detailed world. The game has the most successful evocation of a cyberpunk world I’ve experienced in any medium (although I’ve never really read any of the books which I intend to do now.) I can’t imagine the work it took to flesh out those areas and the areas you can see above and below you but it brings me so much pleasure to witness it. Incredible.

Higgledy, I would strongly suggest you start with “Neuromancer”, which while not the first Cyberpunk book was early, and the first one to take the SF world by storm. And for atmospheric Cyberpunk games, it’s hard to beat Cloudpunk, which is fully immersive and just… full of wonders for folks who like the setting. It’s also an indy. Basically you are a person who was able to live out of the big city, but is now down on their luck in a hyper-Capitalist world (of course) and is at an inflection point in their life where things could go up or down. They deliver goods for a bottom-feeding, near-criminal company when the bottom falls out of their life again.

After Neuromancer, I’d recommend some Neal Stephenson, “Snow Crash”. Almost as famous and just as wonder-full as Gibson’s work, but markedly different in tone and style. Then a course of Warren Ellis’ bracing graphics books - I hesitate to call them “comics” because they are highly political and in some ways prescient of our current dystopia - “Transmetropolitan”. Then jump to a very modern version of Cyberpunk with Ian MacDonald’s “Luna: New Moon”, which is set in what should be a Libertarian industrial paradise on the Moon…

Three genius books no Cyberpunk fan should even consider not reading.