What game are you currently playing?

[BelgarathMTH]

I have been playing The Elder Scrolls Online over the holiday period and plan to post a few of my impressions in the next few days when I have more time.

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I'm playing a Khajit Nightblade named Felis'nocturnus. It's a beautiful world to explore and a lot a variety in gameplay, quite the experience.

Here she is. More details soon.

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Ah, great to hear you found time to give it a try! I'll be very interested to hear your impressions.

 

[m7600]

Got nostalgic for Arcanum today for some reason.

 

[Skatan]

Started Disco Elysium yesterday.

 

[Chronicler]

Got a Guild War coming up tomorrow in Granblue.

It's a recurring event where you're in competition against another guild to see how can kill the most/strongest monsters within a timeframe. Goes for about a week. Incredibly lucrative, actually a source of frustration for a lot of players, because some of the most central rewards in the game are tied to it, and it kind of incentivizes you to play more than you might actually want to, since some of the most important rewards are basically tied to your ability to put in more hours than the group you're competing against each day.

Anyway, the point I'm getting to is that it looks like my guild's gonna be more actively engaged in this one. Last few guild wars I've mostly been on my own out there. We're a low pressure guild, and I value that about us, so people kind of come and go as work or school takes them away from the game or they reach a point where they're having less fun. But I'm excited to have some more people to play with this time.,

 

[Nimran]

I got inspired to play Neverwinter Nights 2 for the first time yesterday. I’m getting some serious ideas for character creation.

 

[BelgarathMTH]

Lately I've been running a paladin through original Baldur's Gate 1. I was inspired by that D&D paladin figure I was gifted that I showed in another post, and also I got hit with a desire for some nostalgia. There are so many little charming and quaint elements of it that I think are largely forgotten now with all the shiny revisions that have been released over the years. There are a lot of "inconveniences" too, that probably most players wouldn't put up with nowadays. Still, I'm having a lot of fun with it. I'll probably export the character to original BG2 if my interest holds out. I'm already feeling stirrings of wanting to run paladins through NWN2, WoW, and parts of Elder Scrolls Online. Also wanting to do an IWD run before winter's over. So many games to play, so little time.

 

[Cahir]

I'm still continuing my Assassin's Creed: Valhalla run and I'm still having a ton of fun. Gameplay wise I'd put it on top (as I described in Assassin's Creed thread) and the main story is getting better and better. There is a ton of content in the game, not only places to visit, but many different activities to do. I'm a little over 100 hours in the game and I still discover some new things to do. Despite the setting not being as appealing as in Origins and Odyssey, I'd say it's the best AC game (at least from the last trio, I still remember Ezio trilogy fondly) I played. And despite playing over 100h already, Ubisoft Connect says I progressed just 35% of the story. Considering all 3 official DLC's plus crossover with Odyssey, I'm confident I'll hit 200h with ease.

 

[Urdnot_Wrex]

Lately I've been running a paladin through original Baldur's Gate 1. I was inspired by that D&D paladin figure I was gifted that I showed in another post, and also I got hit with a desire for some nostalgia. There are so many little charming and quaint elements of it that I think are largely forgotten now with all the shiny revisions that have been released over the years. There are a lot of "inconveniences" too, that probably most players wouldn't put up with nowadays.

Yay for themed runs! Especially since that cool figure motivated you.
However, considering our most recent discussions about ethics in games and also BG3 and its companion choice, I have to ask:

How does it feel to be a paladin in the old Baldur's Gate 1? It was less forgiving originally than the later versions, and one situation at the beginning expecially comes to mind: The fact that the game basically forces you to recruit Xzar and Montaron, unless you're ready to be slaughtered by Tarnesh.
I know we had that discussion when I did my first minimal reload in BG:EE, with a roleplayed paladin, and we agreed that a paladin can't just judge (or even kill) anyone who pings red on Detect Evil, but should give the benefit of the doubt and judge them by their words and actions.

That doesn't change the fact that you need to cooperate with two evil companions or be ready to die. Doesn't that bother you?
And if it doesn't, how is it different from having to escape from mindflayers in the company of a good guy who made the bad choice of a pact with a cambion, or with a Cleric of Shar who doesn't act against you?

Except, of course, that we tend to be more lenient towards what we know and remember fondly, which is completely valid, but I'm still curious how you feel about that particular encounter, for example, if you try to look at it neutrally and imagine yourself playing for the first time.

With that said, have fun with your paladin runs and ignore my curiosity if you don't feel like discussing.

 

[BelgarathMTH]

Yay for themed runs! Especially since that cool figure motivated you.
However, considering our most recent discussions about ethics in games and also BG3 and its companion choice, I have to ask:

How does it feel to be a paladin in the old Baldur's Gate 1? It was less forgiving originally than the later versions, and one situation at the beginning expecially comes to mind: The fact that the game basically forces you to recruit Xzar and Montaron, unless you're ready to be slaughtered by Tarnesh.
I know we had that discussion when I did my first minimal reload in BG:EE, with a roleplayed paladin, and we agreed that a paladin can't just judge (or even kill) anyone who pings red on Detect Evil, but should give the benefit of the doubt and judge them by their words and actions.

That doesn't change the fact that you need to cooperate with two evil companions or be ready to die. Doesn't that bother you?
And if it doesn't, how is it different from having to escape from mindflayers in the company of a good guy who made the bad choice of a pact with a cambion, or with a Cleric of Shar who doesn't act against you?

Except, of course, that we tend to be more lenient towards what we know and remember fondly, which is completely valid, but I'm still curious how you feel about that particular encounter, for example, if you try to look at it neutrally and imagine yourself playing for the first time.

With that said, have fun with your paladin runs and ignore my curiosity if you don't feel like discussing.

That bit does gnaw at my conscience. If I was playing EE, (I have a paladin run going in that, too), I would be a cavalier, and the Horror spell wouldn't be an issue, so the choice would be easier. In the BG2 engine, there is also a chance to hit through Mirror Images, making that also less of an issue. Although I have done the Tarnesh fight where he still could beat me with his Magic Missile barrage after Horror and Mirror Images don't work, if I got bad dice rolls and couldn't heal fast enough.

My compromise was to RP that my character isn't the "lawful stupid" type of paladin, and also considers it part of his honor to respect people's privacy. "Innocent until proven guilty." So, he doesn't go around using Detect Evil on every person he meets, but rather waits for them to show him their natures through their actions.

In this last run, after I had Jaheira and Khalid, and was going around the inn to clear the hobgobllins, Khalid's and Monty's dialogue triggered where Khalid says "Could you be less, umm, evil?" and Montaron responds by threatening his life. I took that as the perfect opportunity to kick them from my party right then and there, and as far as I know, they still live out on the road beside the Friendly Arms Inn.

Incidentally, I discovered an interesting use for Detect Evil that I had never figured out before. It shows evil creatures from all over the map in the combat log, meaning the paladin can detect over distance, and can detect creatures out of sight. So, I can use it to remind myself what kinds of creatures are nearby on a map. It gives me an RP excuse to pre-buff for certain encounters, and it can be useful for scouting ahead.

EDIT: I just saw your questions about the BG3 characters. My problem with a cleric of Shar is that I assume that the character openly worships her, and speaks of Shar often as her goddess, as well as wearing Shar's holy symbols. Shar is an evil goddess whose goal is the destruction of all light and life in the universe. I could maybe be convinced on the demonic pact thing if the guy was truly desperate when it was done, was trying to save a loved one or another innocent life, and just wound up making a terrible mistake. It would depend on the writing, I suppose.

But I have to buy the game and play it to even take a closer look at the companion characters, and my tendency is to "trust my feelings" in the case of BG3, because I don't trust the people who are writing it to give me a positive experience. I'll probably break down and buy it sooner or later, depending on what I read about it after it's out, but I doubt I'll pay full price for it.

 

[mlnevese]

That bit does gnaw at my conscience. If I was playing EE, (I have a paladin run going in that, too), I would be a cavalier, and the Horror spell wouldn't be an issue, so the choice would be easier. In the BG2 engine, there is also a chance to hit through Mirror Images, making that also less of an issue. Although I have done the Tarnesh fight where he still could beat me with his Magic Missile barrage after Horror and Mirror Images don't work, if I got bad dice rolls and couldn't heal fast enough.

My compromise was to RP that my character isn't the "lawful stupid" type of paladin, and also considers it part of his honor to respect people's privacy. "Innocent until proven guilty." So, he doesn't go around using Detect Evil on every person he meets, but rather waits for them to show him their natures through their actions.

In this last run, after I had Jaheira and Khalid, and was going around the inn to clear the hobgobllins, Khalid's and Monty's dialogue triggered where Khalid says "Could you be less, umm, evil?" and Montaron responds by threatening his life. I took that as the perfect opportunity to kick them from my party right then and there, and as far as I know, they still live out on the road beside the Friendly Arms Inn.

Incidentally, I discovered an interesting use for Detect Evil that I had never figured out before. It shows evil creatures from all over the map in the combat log, meaning the paladin can detect over distance, and can detect creatures out of sight. So, I can use it to remind myself what kinds of creatures are nearby on a map. It gives me an RP excuse to pre-buff for certain encounters, and it can be useful for scouting ahead.

EDIT: I just saw your questions about the BG3 characters. My problem with a cleric of Shar is that I assume that the character openly worships her, and speaks of Shar often as her goddess, as well as wearing Shar's holy symbols. Shar is an evil goddess whose goal is the destruction of all light and life in the universe. I could maybe be convinced on the demonic pact thing if the guy was truly desperate when it was done, was trying to save a loved one or another innocent life, and just wound up making a terrible mistake. It would depend on the writing, I suppose.

But I have to buy the game and play it to even take a closer look at the companion characters, and my tendency is to "trust my feelings" in the case of BG3, because I don't trust the people who are writing it to give me a positive experience. I'll probably break down and buy it sooner or later, depending on what I read about it after it's out, but I doubt I'll pay full price for it.

Just don't forget they haven't shown us any of the good companions. My bet is you won't have any difficulty playing a good Paladin on BG3.

 

[Chronicler]

Spent the day playing Fate Grand Order.

I haven't been able to play it since september-ish, when it got too big for my shitty tablet.

But I got a new phone today, and I'm having a blast with it.

It's cool that I can finally enjoy the attack animations for the first time in ages. Even before it got too big for that tablet, it would lag and stutter so much there was hardly any animation to enjoy. But not I get every delicious frame of it.

 

[shmity72]

The largest most complex game I play every day is called 'networking with friends'.

I mean, I enjoy a good game of axis and allies for an hour and a half, a progression trial with my friends in ESO for a couple hours. When it comes down to it? It's about my interaction with fellow humans rather than bits and bytes.

Yes talent, perseverance, good habits~these things lead to temporal success like the end splash screen of a video game~personally I find more victory in a conversation well had.

That being said the topic is what game you are playing.

ESO, Adobe Premiere, Madden, Axis and Allies online, Prominence poker.

 

[Urdnot_Wrex]

Took a quick jump into Metal: Hellsinger today.

At last, aspect defeated in Stygia! (It's only the second hell). It was in the demo too and I never got far there.

I took an awful lot of damage, but considering I haven't touched the game in about 2 months, getting through this hell (with two resurrections during the end boss though) wasn't too bad, playing Assassin's Creed: Odyssey and now Elder Scrolls Online gave me a little more practice with fast switching of weapons and dodging and all that.

I missed a lot of shots with one of the new guns I wasn't used to and would have preferred no resurrections, but still, I'm happy with progress!

 

[Antimatter]

I've been playing Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy. I can agree the narrative and writing are really well-done. All the 10 hours I've been playing, I've been smiling, it's just that funny. Unfortunately, the game has stuttering/lagging in certain cut-scenes and during transitions between cut-scenes and gameplay, and sometimes, even during the gameplay (and considering the gameplay is very active, it's bad). I've checked online and seems like the issue is present since the release, and sometimes happens even on the console. It's really too bad. Ignoring the performance issues, the game is really fun, and I can see why players got excited when the Guardians' writer Mary DeMarle joined BioWare as the senior narrative director for Mass Effect 4.

 

[mlnevese]

I've been playing Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy. I can agree the narrative and writing are really well-done. All the 10 hours I've been playing, I've been smiling, it's just that funny. Unfortunately, the game has stuttering/lagging in certain cut-scenes and during transitions between cut-scenes and gameplay, and sometimes, even during the gameplay (and considering the gameplay is very active, it's bad). I've checked online and seems like the issue is present since the release, and sometimes happens even on the console. It's really too bad. Ignoring the performance issues, the game is really fun, and I can see why players got excited when the Guardians' writer Mary DeMarle joined BioWare as the senior narrative director for Mass Effect 4.

Played this on the XBox and was quite surprised by how good it was. Also no stutters, etc. on the console version.

 

[Skatan]

Playing Phantom Doctrine, a X-com-esque game set in 1983. You manage your spies and your base, do missions and try to avoid being caught or have your identities revealed while trying to stop the enemy's spies and plans. So far, so good, although I am only in the first part of the game so let's see how it turns out.

 

[Urdnot_Wrex]

I'm back to playing Cyberpunk2077, but sometimes a break is needed and a Krogan needs to blow off some steam, so I felt like another quick jump into Metal: Hellsinger and beat Hell number 3 of 7.

It was a bit more difficult for me to hit on beat in this hell, the rhythm of the music was a bit different, but it felt great, especially because I've finally got used to jumping, dashing and soaring enough to avoid constantly getting killed. It's fun to get better at stuff that initially almost made me rage-quit.

Also, while I have learned to switch and use my different types of guns, somehow I still often switch to Terminus, the sword. I guess the typical experienced shooter player wouldn't see the point in that, but whatever works is fine I guess. And man it has been a fun ride!

It would probably get easier if I played the same game more regularly, but it's full of adrenaline, I'm often not in the mood for that after a long stressful day at work. But it's perfect to squeeze in a short and intense session when I feel like it.

And the music fits the atmosphere so well!