We chat about videogames and videogame accessories.

I might be remembering it wrong, it's been a while, but didn't they basically leave wild pokemon levels the same as in the original game too?
Like, I don't think it would have broken anyone's immersion too much to give us some level 40 wilds to fight with our level 50 pokemon rather than level 16 ones

Especially when it didn't stop them from putting Gen II pokemon in the grass

Uh I don't think anything stopped you from doing them in reverse order if you wanted to (except Blue, but honestly fighting him second from last is how it should be). Landing in Vermilion City makes sense since that's where the pier is, but after that go run off to Seafoam Island for all the game cares.

the latest innovation in being terrible people, now live

you could run bets on how far they can get before it becomes impossible to proceed

The person running it said that if the Safari Zone proves totally impossible they'll look into doing something about it. P sure that's all she said about helping it along though.

That is the stupidest thing ever.

This looks pleasingly bonkers. Lead a mob around ancient Greece and beat up every mythological figure (including the gods).

I dig the art. Gameplay looks a bit like Pikmin.

I bought Earth Defense Force 2025 on release day yesterday. It is awesome, I am having so much fun flying around and shooting bugs with a lightning crossbow.

Guys, so that new Strider game on Steam. I don't know anything about it but it looks kinda cool, i mean it looks just like Strider 2. But i'm afraid it will be terrible judging by the latest Capcom titles. Do you think it's worth checking out?

the two best friends played through an hour of it and it was pretty good stuff plus at that point is when the game Really Opens Up so unless the game shits itself after that it seems pretty good and fun

So, how about that new Humble Bundle?
Picked it up last week, despite already owning Dust: An Elysian Tail and Antichamber.

Guacamelee! was loads of fun; I really enjoyed my playthrough, and I'm probably going to end up getting that third costume out of El Infierno and the last few Orbs in a while. The combat system felt a bit like a fighting game, but with fewer button inputs, and I loved the way the combat skills were used in platforming.

The Swapper was...well, to be honest, it's a little underwhelming in retrospect. As a puzzle game, it's phenomenal, but as a story, it felt really lacking. Spoilers below.

SpoilerShow

Basically The Swapper's whole Deal is that you've got three different characters guiding you through the space station, only they all look the same and have the same voice actor, and in fact, share the same body. This, along with the titular Swapper, is used to raise the question of what exactly "self" is, or whether you're still you after you've switched to a different body.

Except that throughout the game, it's pretty clear that Dennett, Chalmers, and the Scavenger are still themselves, despite all the swapping they've done. Dennett and Chalmers were trapped in the disembodied brains of some poor saps for over a century before the Scavenger found them, and then they all "merged", except not. It's a little confusing. Hell, even after they become part of the Watcher hive mind, their dialogue is still recognizable as them.

Then you've got the ending, where a rescue team arrives to get you out of there, only to realize that they aren't equipped with the proper equipment to deal with the hazard the Watchers presented and that you've been exposed to, and are forced to leave you behind. You've got one opportunity to get out - use the Swapper on a member of the rescue team, and leave him to die in your place.

This would be a conundrum if the issue it deals with wasn't already resolved.

In fact, the endings even reinforce the notion that the "self" is preserved; if you choose not to swap with the man as he walks away, you're left there until you jump down a chasm of your own will. I'm not sure if you can go back to the space station, or even get off the ledge you're on in any way other than jumping down that chasm, but the fact remains that you can stand around as long as you want. However, if you do swap, the man (in your body) can't stop walking before he steps off the ledge to his death. So it's pretty clear what's going on.

Really, the only existential question that The Swapper asks, but doesn't answer, is one that it doesn't really even ask in the first place. Specifically, what the hell are the clones being created with the Swapper? Because, well, your character is a clone of the Scavenger. And...this isn't explored. This isn't even referenced beyond a clip that recreates the beginning of the game, where you're launched off of Theseus in an escape pod. It's a background event, to boot; one that you won't catch unless you're paying close attention. Which, admittedly, is likely at that point, but...it's just really disappointing.

Essentially, I got the feeling that The Swapper wanted to recreate the success of Portal, in terms of both story and gameplay. It got the gameplay bit down no problem - hell, it might even have had better gameplay than Portal - but it didn't quite understand what it was doing in terms of storytelling.

That Humble Bundle, yes. I just got it. I already have Monaco, Fez, Antichamber and The Swapper, so if anybody wants some of those they should let me know.

Monaco is a super fun adventure in stealing and being stealthy and then getting caught and panicking and the mole blowing holes in the wall in a desperate attempt to escape and why did you die there do you know how hard it will be to revive you in that spot and oh shit dogs and WE GOT ALL THE GOLD RUN TO THE EXIT

co-op stealth where it's just as fun getting yourself out of a sticky situation

Is anyone enjoying Starseed Pilgrim?

Dang why is it so hard to give away video games

because everyone here likes video games
so we all bought them already.

you need to find people who don't like video games and give them video games. that's just common sense

I'd be happy to take Antichamber off of you's, kumu.

Awesome okay, that leaves Monaco, Fez and The Swapper.

because everyone here likes video games
so we all bought them already.

I don't have a problem

I CAN STOP WHENEVER I WANT

My friendslist has 14 people who own Monaco, and yet I still can't find a team to clear out the last 4 missions...

Personally I'm not a massive fan of FEZ, but that's mainly just because I'm not into cryptography.

I love cryptography and some of those puzzles were still stupid

The fact that FEZ managed to win even a single award is proof positive that gaming journalism is broken beyond repair.

If you really want to play FEZ, just watch the trailer and listen to the soundtrack once or twice. That way you can quickly see the few decent pieces of the game without suffering through any of the horrible platforming, boring puzzles, or nonstop backtracking that makes up the other 90% of the game.

Okay, but don't say you weren't warned.

Hyperbole (/haɪˈpɜrbəliː/ hy-pur-bə-lee;[1] Greek: ὑπερβολή hyperbolē, "exaggeration") is the use of exaggeration as a rhetorical device or figure of speech. It may be used to evoke strong feelings or to create a strong impression, but is not meant to be taken literally.

Hyperboles are exaggerations to create emphasis or effect. As a literary device, hyperbole is often used in poetry, and is frequently encountered in casual speech. An example of hyperbole is: "The bag weighed a ton." Hyperbole makes the point that the bag was very heavy, though it probably does not weigh a ton.

Go right ahead and play the game if you really want to, I don't actually care.

Someone mentioned Starseed Pilgrim earlier, and...I don't want to play it. At all.

Maybe it's just something with me and the way my brain works, because I see a pretty respectable amount of praise for that game, but...I just despise games that can't be bothered to give the player anything significant to work with.

Admittedly, I only had the game open for about three minutes, but that just really doesn't seem like anything resembling a good way to begin a game. If I get the basics, if I am taught the fundamentals of the game's core concepts, I can begin testing out different combinations and configurations. I can get right to the experimenting with a minimum of fuss. However, if I don't get to know anything, I spend my formative minutes within the game world simply learning how to do entry-level things. My mind begins to get locked into that pattern, and I end up being actively hindered in any efforts to figure out the cool stuff.

It's not fun.

(Incidentally, FEZ does this too, but to a lesser degree.)