This thread will attempt to provide a place to discuss past/present/future PC gaming deals. While mainly focusing on Steam games, any standout sales may also be presented. I will not be updating every Daily/Weekly/etc. sale. The tools to help individuals become a smarter shopper will be provided below.
See this POST for links to store sale pages, threads of interest and other tools to help you become a more informed PC game shopper.
Nice! Got boxed copies of both from Best Buy using GCU and Visa checkout. Knowing BB, I should get them a day early. Not that it really matters, as they're just codes and it'll take me a month to download them anyway. Too bad only the SE store carries the physical version of NieR. Guess I'll get it from GMG.
Back then, video games were played on big sheets of colorful fiberboard and, instead of controllers, we used little pieces of plastic that could stand upright. Sometimes your big brother would throw the whole thing across the room though because some things never change.
The respawning guard posts really made me feel like I was in a warzone, and the setting was pretty interesting. I thought the healing mechanism was novel, and the guns and vehicles were great. It was open-world before the genre was done to death, and there weren't many AAA open-world FPS at the time. The buddy system was a bit silly though.
Far Cry 3 was great in its own way, but nakedly game-ier, and the story was brain-dead. Far Cry 4 was just too damn similar to 3. Biennial sequel syndrome.
I think buying the retail copies is the best way. Not just GCU, but being able to return if the early word is it's a crap port or super buggy. Also, the price of the first game seems to be going up quite a bit. Glad I kept mine.
Too bad there aren't many games getting that anymore
The respawning guard posts really made me feel like I was in a warzone, and the setting was pretty interesting. I thought the healing mechanism was novel, and the guns and vehicles were great. It was open-world before the genre was done to death, and there weren't many AAA open-world FPS at the time. The buddy system was a bit silly though.
I had issues where I couldn't progress in the game b/c of some bugs that the game had. Sometimes, when saving "Buddies", the game wouldn't register that you finished a quest when you did. So, if you talk to the guy at Mike's Bar - yeah, nothing happens...so you couldn't progress further.
Best off reloading old saves, if you had any sitting around. Luckily, I did.
Respawning outposts was fine. Outposts respawning once you've walked 5' away is a bit much.
But, really, my main gripe was the malaria mechanic which added nothing but annoyance to the game. That could have been removed entirely without missing much. Agreed though that the vehicles, the shooting and the fire mechanics are great. Was great to fire through the jungle with your .50 cal and watch the foliage fall away.
FC4 didn't bother me. It wasn't anything innovative but it solidly build on the mechanics from FC3 and improved them in pretty much every way. And meeting the warlord-turned-arms merchant and finding blood diamonds for him was fun
When did Pi Day become a thing? My email inbox is filled with stores touting Pi Day discounts. This the first that I'm hearing of this. Either I missed a memo that were all gonna start doing this this year, or this has been going on for a couple of years and it's just now breaking into the mainstream.
When did Pi Day become a thing? My email inbox is filled with stores touting Pi Day discounts. This the first that I'm hearing of this. Either I missed a memo that were all gonna start doing this this year, or this has been going on for a couple of years and it's just now breaking into the mainstream.
When did Pi Day become a thing? My email inbox is filled with stores touting Pi Day discounts. This the first that I'm hearing of this. Either I missed a memo that were all gonna start doing this this year, or this has been going on for a couple of years and it's just now breaking into the mainstream.
When did Pi Day become a thing? My email inbox is filled with stores touting Pi Day discounts. This the first that I'm hearing of this. Either I missed a memo that were all gonna start doing this this year, or this has been going on for a couple of years and it's just now breaking into the mainstream.
When did Pi Day become a thing? My email inbox is filled with stores touting Pi Day discounts. This the first that I'm hearing of this. Either I missed a memo that were all gonna start doing this this year, or this has been going on for a couple of years and it's just now breaking into the mainstream.
How many did you get? I wish I would have ordered more too.
Also, played the prologue and Case 0 for DR4. Enjoying it so far, though I will see if I can up the graphics a bit to get rid of the pixels. Haven't really gotten into the meat of the game to say whether it's as bad as people say.
I'm half tempted to sell one, but I'd probably regret it some day when the plastic on my other two OG Pulse Elites (I got one shortly after they came out and then a refurbished unit, which was around $70, from ebay about 6 months ago) have completely broken and I can't get another replacement wireless headset that works as well.
Assassins creed is the best of the series. MysterD refutes all of his complaints about it in his argument against it.
Cut and paste missions: every single AC game, and nearly every video game for that matter.
Back 1/3 has too much action and not enough stealth: funny, since they pretty much abandoned stealth after the first game and turned it into an action hack and slash series.
Combat was half baked: the high/low marionette combat of the first game required far more precision than the parry->stab combat that followed.
Altair was uninteresting: the game wasn't about Altair, it was about Desmond and his part in the present time conflict still brewing between the assassins and templars. Being part of a brotherhood of badass assassins was compelling enough to bridge the story of Desmond and his ancestors. Not moving the series to present day and giving the actual basis of the game the resolution it deserves was a massive mistake.
Hyped to no end: I don't remember a whole lot of hype, and that's back when I used to follow games a lot more closely. I bought it without much knowledge because it looked cool.
So to sum up:
MysterD's problems with AC1: half baked combat, too much action, uninteresting character, cut and paste missions, too much hype,
"Features" of AC2 and beyond, Best of series per MysterD: combat devolved to parry stab, almost all action/little stealth, uninteresting character, cut and paste missions, all hype.
I tried to play some DR4 MP with Carlmundo and it was going pretty well until I jumped on a lawnmower and started mowing down zombies. My game crashed after like 3-4 kills. And I should say it wasn't going that well. We tried to find a public game and it would never join. It would just put us in a lobby with some french guy who had his mic on and was presumably complaining about not being able to get into a game and it froze on Carlmundo there. Finally let us in when he did a private game. I said it might need some work on PC and Carlmundo informed me it's been out for months on the Windows Store - doh! He did mention that no one bought there so hopefully with a bigger player base they will fix it on Steam.
We both agreed it's not as good/fun as DR3 was, at least initially. I have to say though, I get all warm and fuzzy playing as Frank West again and going back into Wilamette Mall, so I guess the devs knew they could skate by on nostalgia.
AC2 became more than an open-world stealth game, from the jump of the game - and pretty much set the tone for the rest of the series. First thing you're pretty much doing - punching people in the face, as a Young Ezio, getting into fights. The tone was set pretty early: this was going to be more than a stealth game.
AC1 never needed to become a action-fest, given how it went for most of the game until the last 1/3rd. You could play that as a stealth title throughout most of the game. Basically, the back 1/3rd - it became another game entirely.
Desmond was NEVER interesting. His sections were NEVER worthwhile. Only thing that could've made him interesting is after all his time in the Animus, he gained all of the powers of the previous Assassins.
Though, in AC3...
...they killed Desmond off. Problem is that by killing him off, they never replaced him w/ someone interesting to take his place, as the dude in the Animus learning all the powers of previous Assassins + all of the secrets about the past.
The problem w/ AC1 was the cut + paste was much more apparent b/c you were forced to do a few side-missions before you could attempt a main mission. And b/c a lot of NPC's were cut + paste that said the same exact lines that were voice-acted over + over when you did their side-missions. Basically, it had all the problems of cut + paste galore of any Global variable dialogues tons of characters in Morrowind. Later AC games, eh - you never needed to do a ton of side-stuff; you could stick to the main stuff, for the most part and you'd be fine.
I think Ezio (AC2 Trilogy) + the Frye Twins (AC: Syndicate) are some of the more interesting characters in the AC series. Altair, eh - he was just following orders; nothing special about him. Nothing special about Desmond, either - since they never did much w/ him, as a character; and especially w/ how AC3 ended.
I tried to play some DR4 MP with Carlmundo and it was going pretty well until I jumped on a lawnmower and started mowing down zombies. My game crashed after like 3-4 kills. And I should say it wasn't going that well. We tried to find a public game and it would never join. It would just put us in a lobby with some french guy who had his mic on and was presumably complaining about not being able to get into a game and it froze on Carlmundo there. Finally let us in when he did a private game. I said it might need some work on PC and Carlmundo informed me it's been out for months on the Windows Store - doh! He did mention that no one bought there so hopefully with a bigger player base they will fix it on Steam.
We both agreed it's not as good/fun as DR3 was, at least initially. I have to say though, I get all warm and fuzzy playing as Frank West again and going back into Wilamette Mall, so I guess the devs knew they could skate by on nostalgia.
I just played about an hour of Shovel Knight and for some reason remembered these posts. Y u no like?
The game is pretty fun for me. Charming presentation and simple controls. Definitely shades of Zelda II: The Adventure of Link (downward thrust attack) as well as Castlevania and Mega Man. I dig it. If I had to criticize anything the enemies are fairly simple, both visually and mechanically. Overall it feels like $9 well spent, especially with the other campaigns.
Also played some Stardew Valley last week. Seems like an amazingly crafted game. I found it quite charming and addictive. However, I don't know if I have the energy to continue and invest 30-40 hours when I could spend that time reading about game deals or rapid cycling games in Idle Master to get card drops.
Ezio is a terrible character and person. He is the assassins equivalent of Lawrence Phillips at Nebraska.
The assassins signed him on based on raw talent while overlooking his missteps, poor character, and moral compass that pointed emphatically down.
Sure he racked up all kinds of accolades and the assassins pulled off the national championship while he was there, but we all know the truth about his wretched life.
I'm pretty sure Ezio's motivation to do anything worthwhile in one of the games was to the red headed librarian.
I just played about an hour of Shovel Knight and for some reason remembered these posts. Y u no like?
The game is pretty fun for me. Charming presentation and simple controls. Definitely shades of Zelda II: The Adventure of Link (downward thrust attack) as well as Castlevania and Mega Man. I dig it. If I had to criticize anything the enemies are fairly simple, both visually and mechanically. Overall it feels like $9 well spent, especially with the other campaigns.
Also played some Stardew Valley last week. Seems like an amazingly crafted game. I found it quite charming and addictive. However, I don't know if I have the energy to continue and invest 30-40 hours when I could spend that time reading about game deals or rapid cycling games in Idle Master to get card drops.
The best thing about Shovel Knight is it broke me of my Stardew Valley habit.
I broke down and got the Humble with Stardew and put 36 hours into Stardew over 4-5 days and I'm only about 1/3rd "through the game" (I think you get a "high score ending" at 3 years and I'm about 1.10 years in). Once Shovel Knight went on sale I got it and completed the main/first campaign but haven't had the same draw to play Stardew since for some reason.
I guess Shovel Knight was the methadone to Stardew's heroin.
I just played about an hour of Shovel Knight and for some reason remembered these posts. Y u no like?
The game is pretty fun for me. Charming presentation and simple controls. Definitely shades of Zelda II: The Adventure of Link (downward thrust attack) as well as Castlevania and Mega Man. I dig it. If I had to criticize anything the enemies are fairly simple, both visually and mechanically. Overall it feels like $9 well spent, especially with the other campaigns.
Also played some Stardew Valley last week. Seems like an amazingly crafted game. I found it quite charming and addictive. However, I don't know if I have the energy to continue and invest 30-40 hours when I could spend that time reading about game deals or rapid cycling games in Idle Master to get card drops.
I had just had a run of frustrating deaths. Admittedly, this is at least partially caused by me sucking at the game. But it's also not really my type of game anymore. I think I've come to a point in my life where I should just avoid games with giant spike pits.
I did manage to beat the game, but I kinda doubt that I'll ever go back and play it.
EDIT: I did have a good amount of fun playing one of the levels though. I can't remember what it's name was, but it was the one where you could transform lava into flubber.
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