But, I just finished Freedom Fighters (third person tactical shooter). I was on the fence a bit here, but I have to give it a very solid 3/5 (almost 4/5). It has a solid foundation, and actually plays pretty well considering it's an old PS2 game (that uses the Hitman 2 engine) ported to PC. The story isn't brilliant (think 1980s action movie), but it hits the notes of the genre really well. It's a little on the short side, but there's no filler missions. Squad controls don't have extreme tactical depth, but what you can do gets the job done and it's simple enough that it's easy to manage a squad of up to 12 "freedom fighters". The level design is pretty good and there are frequently non-linear paths to reach your goals. There's room for improvement on the gunplay. There's some variety with the weapons (sniper rifle, hmg, rocket launcher, smg, AR), but you can only carry one "main" weapon. So, due to ammo constraints (AR ammo was ubiquitous, everything else not really), I was using the AR almost all the time. Still, you can find the other weapons occasionally in various missions near places where they would be of the most use. I think it worked overall. "Realistically", an AR would be the weapon of choice anyway considering the other options. I'm definitely not mad about the $1.50 I spent on this (GoG sale).
So, I finished Torchlight 2. Did the series redeem itself from Torchlight 1? I would say so. I think the game just barely slips its way into 4/5 territory for me. I finished the main campaign and want to fiddle/play with it more, so that's easily a 3/5.
The story was basically the same of what I remember from Diablo 2. The locations were even derivative (an encampment, a forest town, a desert town, etc.). The final dungeon fell flat for me. It was basically just a factory and less interesting than other areas of the game. The final boss was maybe the third hardest fight in the game, if that. They improved on scaling loot generation from the previous game. Uniques were a little more unique. The art was improved enough for me to consider it better than just generic stock art (like the previous game) and the animated sequences between acts get bonus points. The music was just ok. I don't really remember it, but it didn't get in the way. I think the biggest slight against the game is that defense/resistances were seriously undertuned to the point of being useless. In this game, you're basically either an Engineer (who has the only decent defense skills) or a glass cannon of one of the other classes. This leaves somewhat of a lack of choice with builds. Really, just throw all your points in your damage stat (Strength for physical, Focus for magical). Dexterity is a matter of personal preference, but by the numbers, it's inferior to the other two in most situations (it's possibly a boon for melee if you have poor defense options otherwise). Vitality is completely useless, unless you're using a shield, then it's just ok. Or, unless you're playing a pure summoner (in which case none of the other stats do anything for you), then you're going to want to dump everything into Vitality and use a shield for lack of anything else useful to do with your stats.
This could have been a 5/5 game with slightly better art and music, an attempt at an original story, a more interesting final area, and sorting out their core mechanics better. I would be tempted to recommend leaning more into stat requirements for gear to make stats more essential to builds. As is, you can circumvent all gear requirements by a) gaining a couple levels or b) using an enchanter that can give you +a billion to individual stats therefore meeting the requirements. But, yeah, it's a decent enough way to scratch a Diablo 2 itch if you don't want to spend $40 on the remastered Diablo 2 game because you can't get the original anymore (lame move, Blizzard). I think I paid $4 in a GoG sale for Torchlight 2 and I'm not mad about it.
But, I just finished Freedom Fighters (third person tactical shooter). I was on the fence a bit here, but I have to give it a very solid 3/5 (almost 4/5). It has a solid foundation, and actually plays pretty well considering it's an old PS2 game (that uses the Hitman 2 engine) ported to PC. The story isn't brilliant (think 1980s action movie), but it hits the notes of the genre really well. It's a little on the short side, but there's no filler missions. Squad controls don't have extreme tactical depth, but what you can do gets the job done and it's simple enough that it's easy to manage a squad of up to 12 "freedom fighters". The level design is pretty good and there are frequently non-linear paths to reach your goals. There's room for improvement on the gunplay. There's some variety with the weapons (sniper rifle, hmg, rocket launcher, smg, AR), but you can only carry one "main" weapon. So, due to ammo constraints (AR ammo was ubiquitous, everything else not really), I was using the AR almost all the time. Still, you can find the other weapons occasionally in various missions near places where they would be of the most use. I think it worked overall. "Realistically", an AR would be the weapon of choice anyway considering the other options. I'm definitely not mad about the $1.50 I spent on this (GoG sale).
A bit late reply, but I LOVE Freedom Fighters. Haven't played it in quite many years now, but I have finished it at least twice IIRC. Gods, I love the music, the feeling in the end when you roll up with your crew and wreak havoc, the base in the sewers (and the sad that comes there later). I still listen to the soundtrack to this day, Jesper Kyd is the man. I know he's a lot more famous for ie Hitman, but for me he was the game music composer that made me realize how much music can elevate a game from Good to Great. Without the music I sincerely don't think I would have loved the game as much as I do.
Alan Wake 2. Finished it, and all its DLC, after 62 hours in the game. I played it slow and took a big break between August and December, but now I have finally completed the whole story.
This is one of the bravest and most anti-mass-market AAA games I've played. Probably THE most anti-mass-market. It is an arthouse cinema, but a game.
Alan Wake 2 has become an unforgettable experience for me. A bizarre mix of detective, storytelling, musical, horror, and shooter. A game like no other.
This is not a game to play in-between, after work, when you're distracted. It's a game to experience every second of it. Not essentially "enjoy" but watch, play, and live in this bizarre world.
2 separate protagonists that provide different points of view. 2 separate worlds. 2 stories that eventually become one. Dialogue, characters, music, sound effects, story twists, the surreal nature of everything and everyone. Just the whole vibe of it.
The game is not without its faults. I wish it could run better on my PC. I wish some gameplay mechanics worked smoother. I wish it was less a horror and more a shooter.
But make no mistake, it's a big step forward from Control, the game that I loved (you can find my mini-review here). PLAY it!
I wrote a really long post and it somehow got deleted when I tried to add an additional reply. So in leu of the full summary I had spent 25 minutes on, I bring you this:
I wrote a really long post and it somehow got deleted when I tried to add an additional reply. So in leu of the full summary I had spent 25 minutes on, I bring you this:
That's great to hear, congtatulations! It's a shame you lost the post, I'd love to read how do you feel about the finale and and the game in its entirety.
I wrote a really long post and it somehow got deleted when I tried to add an additional reply. So in leu of the full summary I had spent 25 minutes on, I bring you this:
What browser do you use? I use Chrome and the post's draft (aka text that you haven't posted yet) is usually saved ok. When I want to write something long (like a playthrough report), I usually use Word for a draft though, just in case.
TL;DR
This is a wonderful game, set in an enormous, rich world that pulls you right in. The aesthetics are first rate, including the breathtaking scenery, a brilliant and lengthy musical score, great writing, and voice acting that is off the charts. There are some things I find really annoying, such as the camera (which hinders your interactivity with the game world), some poor puzzle design, and excessive combat. But, overall, this is probably the greatest game I’ve ever played. I’m still trying to process it all. If you haven’t tried it, I highly recommend that you do. However, my caveat here is that you will want to have a good computer. I have heard that the game bogs down in Act 3 with older/weaker systems. I think that would be intolerable with the aforementioned camera issues and lengthy fights.
Alan Wake 2. Finished it, and all its DLC, after 62 hours in the game. I played it slow and took a big break between August and December, but now I have finally completed the whole story.
I thought I was the only one! I started BG3 in August, and am just finishing now. Why so long? A few reasons. It’s been a rough year. I’ve had to work a lot of OT due to staffing issues, and my partner and I have had health issues (both with ultimately successful outcomes, but roadblocks to be sure). So I haven’t had as much time to game. You may have noticed I wasn’t around the forum much during the fall, either. But I chipped away at the game, usually daily, but sometimes taking breaks for a week or more.
I restarted once, due to the inevitable regrets one feels with their build choices (skills, spell picks, etc.) in a completely unfamiliar game. I restarted a second time after feeling under-leveled for the end of Act 2. This cost me a lot of time and in the end all the grinding only gained me a level! The third time was the charm.
And how do I feel? Overwhelmed? Emotionally exhausted? LOL. It sounds silly to say about a video game, but there it is. I was in that world for months, and it is indeed a world. @Antimatter mentioned that you don’t play Alan Wake 2 as a distraction. Well, the same is true of BG3. It is something you need to immerse yourself in. I’m not sure you have a choice. The game has gravity.
Full disclosure: I’m not very good at BG3. I didn’t know anything about 5e going into it, and due to fatigue, it wasn’t really a season for me to think, to learn and master a new system. I chose the Balanced difficulty, thinking it would be a point-and-click breeze, and yet there were numerous times that I struggled mightily and contemplated quitting. There are some really tough fights, with a lot of enemies. Due to the turn-based combat system, these fights can take a very long time, and I often got discouraged. But even though I’m generally in the RTWP camp, I enjoyed the turn-based system for the most part. It is pretty intuitive, and I believe there is a lot of depth and utility to take advantage of. The better, more experienced players can expound on this if they like.
My biggest criticism of the game is the camera. On one hand, you’re afforded beautiful, sweeping views, and the ability to pan, sweep, and zoom to get a great view of terrain. However, the camera pulls and yanks around to various default viewpoints, and you have to wrestle with it constantly to maintain optimal perspectives in combat. Also, it can be difficult to see what your cursor is actually clicking on. Too often you think you’re clicking on a bit of turf you want to move to, when you’re actually clicking on an interactive object, like an NPC, or a ladder. I have never climbed so many ladders against my will, LOL. For this reason, I can’t ever see myself trying to do a no reload run of this game, but UMMV.
My second big pet peeve: there’s simply too much combat in this game. While the fighting is generally satisfying, you end up battling many of the same enemy types (and trash mobs) over and over again - just like most other CRPGs. I found it quite tedious. And there are spots (e.g. the end of Act 2 and more in Act 3) where they chain multiple, brutal encounters together, one after another. I found this really tedious and frustrating. I reached points where I was craving story resolution, but I had to keep reloading and reloading… And again, some of these fights can go on forever in real time.
@Cahir, you asked what I thought of the final encounter? Well, I thought the very final encounter was great! Well designed mechanically, and aesthetically a delight, with yet another original area. However, it was a perfect example of the game as a meat grinder - to get to that point you have to get through a chain of other massive encounters that offer nothing new in terms of enemies or the skills required to defeat them. It was the point I was closest to quitting at.
If I hadn’t looked on the internet to see that there’s a way to skip the bulk of this sequence, I really would have quit.
I think the game could have been better served by being lighter on combat and heavier on role play - especially with that team of writers. However, I’m aware that this is a very subjective preference. For others, the extensive combat is undoubtedly a plus.
The game’s greatest strengths? There are a lot of them. First, it is pure eye candy. It is a gorgeous, immersive world. The music is sublime, and I can’t say this enough. What a score! So much original material, rather than the recycled passages you hear throughout most games. The writing is first rate as well. The characters are real and leap through the screen at you. They become part of your life. This is bolstered by first-rate voice acting. I mean, first-rate. I’ve never been so attached to characters in a game. I’m feeling their absence today.
I’m going to stop myself at this point. This may seem like a long post, but there is so much more I could say and go into. This is the tip of the iceberg, but I have to stop somewhere. For now, at least.
Just finished PoE1 with WM1 and 2. the DLCs for the first time actually despite owning them for many, many years. Loaded my save game into PoE2 and started that now. Played a Cipher DPS in PoE1 and MC'ed into a Cipher(Soulblade)/Rogue in PoE2. Tried to add the community patch but couldn't boot up the game then unfortunately, so I'll be playing vanilla then it seems. Added a few small mods just to try them out; added skills and boons from PoE1 transferred to 2. Partially bugged out to, the icons are missing 'strings' but the effects are there. Made me a bit OP, but ah well, it's fine for me. Also added a mod that should, if it works, let me level above 20. I don't really care if that makes the game easier, it's just plain fun to be able to progress a bit and not hit a hardcap. According to the modder the max he got was level 27 with all DLCs, but I don't own the Seeker, Slayer, Survivor DLC. I have the rest though. I know I've finished the winter beast (I think it's called) once, but not sure I finished the other ones.
Finished KCD 2 already. 15 days, 12.8 hours per day on average. It's a masterpiece, in my opinion, one of the best RPGs of all time, and best games of all time. Didn't expect that, I will be honest, but the game exceeded my expectations by a lot. We have a dedicated thread for this game (and the first part), you can find my thoughts there (as I played the game).
I would happily play all the expansions they have planned for this game and would recommend this game to everyone. Hopefully, it'll get at least a grade of recognition BG3 got in the year of its release, but that depends. We'll see about GTA 6 and other games to be released in 2025.
Now, similar to how I felt after finishing CP2077, it's emptiness inside. A good feeling, of a very exciting journey with characters who became real pals, but now it ended. Will take some time for me to get into another story game.
Look at me, finishing KCD1 only after doing the full playthrough of KCD2. Well, that's me.
Of those 3 hundred+ hours, I think the last playthrough took ~170 hours. All other times were my attempts to play the game between 2018 and 2024.
I can compare this experience to my full playthrough of Divinity: Original Sin only after I tried D:OS 2 and was so sucked into that game. Say, around ~100 hours in D:OS 2, feeling completely hyped, I decided to pause my D:OS 2 game (~in Act 2), and completed D:OS 1. Then came back to D:OS 2 and played/replayed it many times.
And just like with that experience, I think playing KCD can be fun for those who are already fans of the franchise and want to learn "how it all started," or for people with smaller gaming experience and who start a game like that for the first time. Hard to imagine it in 2025, after all the megahits, but still.
I thought D:OS 1 was too long and could be x2 shorter, with better balance, better story, better everything. Honestly, after completing it once, I never actually thought about the game until now, because of this comparison.
KCD 1 could be so much better in everything. But this was a Kickstarter game, with a budget of less than 40 mln USD total. And it allowed us to get such a masterpiece in KCD 2. Just as D:OS 1 was a stepping stone on the way to D:OS 2, and then to BG3 and its GotY total sweep of awards. I can see how Warhorse is on the same path now, as Larian was in 2017, and can only drool at the thought of what KCD 3 would be like.
KCD 1 has its charms: slow and patient development of your character, a skill system, exploration, backgrounds, music, just the general vibe of being in Bohemia, 1403. A few quests were well-made. A few characters were fun. You can start with KCD 2 and not worry about not playing KCD 1 at all.
But there are only 2 games like that atm, KCD 1 and KCD 2. Historical setting, the Bethesda-like RPG formula, evolved. In a way, this is a unique experience. I'd rate it 7/10 at the time it released (and with a promise of something much better that would arrive later), 5/10 for me personally as of now, if KCD 2 is 10/10.
Of those 3 hundred+ hours, I think the last playthrough took ~170 hours. All other times were my attempts to play the game between 2018 and 2024.
I can compare this experience to my full playthrough of Divinity: Original Sin only after I tried D:OS 2 and was so sucked into that game. Say, around ~100 hours in D:OS 2, feeling completely hyped, I decided to pause my D:OS 2 game (~in Act 2), and completed D:OS 1. Then came back to D:OS 2 and played/replayed it many times.
And just like with that experience, I think playing KCD can be fun for those who are already fans of the franchise and want to learn "how it all started," or for people with smaller gaming experience and who start a game like that for the first time. Hard to imagine it in 2025, after all the megahits, but still.
I thought D:OS 1 was too long and could be x2 shorter, with better balance, better story, better everything. Honestly, after completing it once, I never actually thought about the game until now, because of this comparison.
KCD 1 could be so much better in everything. But this was a Kickstarter game, with a budget of less than 40 mln USD total. And it allowed us to get such a masterpiece in KCD 2. Just as D:OS 1 was a stepping stone on the way to D:OS 2, and then to BG3 and its GotY total sweep of awards. I can see how Warhorse is on the same path now, as Larian was in 2017, and can only drool at the thought of what KCD 3 would be like.
KCD 1 has its charms: slow and patient development of your character, a skill system, exploration, backgrounds, music, just the general vibe of being in Bohemia, 1403. A few quests were well-made. A few characters were fun. You can start with KCD 2 and not worry about not playing KCD 1 at all.
But there are only 2 games like that atm, KCD 1 and KCD 2. Historical setting, the Bethesda-like RPG formula, evolved. In a way, this is a unique experience. I'd rate it 7/10 at the time it released (and with a promise of something much better that would arrive later), 5/10 for me personally as of now, if KCD 2 is 10/10.
I have finished Dark Souls: Remastered! I'd like ot share my overall thoughts about the game.
Let me start with difficulty: it's weird and inconsistent. I think the initial difficulty of the game is a mix of early-game limited resources (in terms of equipment, spells etc.) and the game being cryptic about some things and not holding your hand at all. But I think that as you progress and your options widen, the game becomes easier for the most part. For instance, when you get yourself some nice heavy armor, your life becomes much easier due to your defense boost and better poise. Poise can allow you to take an attack without being thrust into a hit recovery animation. The higher the poise, the more/stronger attacks you can take on before getting stunned. It helps when you make a mistake in a fight and get hit, but the combat is still tense and you should still carefully make your moves. But, add to that, for instance, a pair of rings you can find by exploring: one further increases your poise, the other increases your equip load by 50%, meaning that even with heavy armor you can easily maintain decent roll/evasion speed. There's probably more combinations like these that makes your life in DS so much easier. I think the game may be aware of players getting too strong over time and thus thrusts at you some interesting challenges. It may be the level design itself or some problem to figure out (like, figuring out how you can damage seemingly invincible enemies).
Dark Souls is also known for its bosses, so let's talk about that. They are all memorable and some even great. But, coming from a Monster Hunter player, I don't think they are THAT hard in this game at the very least (I required several tries per boss at most). I also think some boss fights could be designed better - in some cases, I think I saw what the developers were thinking while designing that particular boss battle, but I think the execution of the idea was lacking. For example, I think that the boss battle in a form of puzzle to solve is a great concept, but I dislike it when the execution leads to just trial-and-error. My favourite boss battle was a certain duo at the middle point of the game, while my most hated one was a f*cking tree.
Level design is interesting, particularly in the first half of the game, due to you discovering how interconnected the areas in the game are. It is really cool when you find shortcuts and alternative ways to reach a certain area. It certainly will make a NG+ playthroughs interesting. The areas themselves offer enough variety in terms of envoirment, as well as grimmicks that appear later on that make for interesting challenge. Some areas I really hate going through, but even then I think they are memorable, if not to look at, then due to gameplay. As stated before, the game does not hold your hand and you can reach some end-game areas very early on. It happened to me, and getting back to safer places was a pain - I almost thought I would be soft locked there or be forced to git ultra good. This is dark fantasy game, so you can guess the overall vibe. But still, there are some beautiful views to see from time to time
The sound design and music are great. I don't have any expertise to explain why I think so, but for me it just seems like it is. The music in particular, doesn't appear often, but it is very memorable when it does.
Overall, I think Dark Souls is a great game, that I think was developed with love and care from an artistic standpoint. This isn't something you see that often nowadays, so I think it needs to be appreciated when it does. That being said, the game was originally released in 2011 and it shows its age. Some things about this game feel clunky now, and I don't mean the combat mechanics (though I suppose most modern player would have problem with lack of animation cancelling and being forced to commit to dodge/attack etc). I can't say I love the game as much as many FromSoftware fans do, but that may change. I think the game offers a lot replay value, and I am sure I haven't seen everything yet.
Currently, I am close to finishing Sekiro, and then I'll definitely need a break from FromSoftware games for a bit. Sekiro's final boss seems harder to me than Dark Soul's by several margins.
Ok, it's funny that my last post was about me beating Dark Souls, because I am here to report - among other things - that I've beaten this game 4th time already, one of which was in NG+. This brought some new conclusions.
There are boss fights and levels/sections that are uninteresting and that feel like a chore to go through. Many people are claiming that the second half of the game feels worse than the first half, and I must say, I agree. One of endgame bosses is a puzzle/grimmick with an uninteresting area to go through before it; the other is a annoying DPS check, which limits your playstyle. Third one in unremarkable, as long as you are mindful where you are. The fourth one is interesting, although he can be trivialized if you have a divine weapon. Each of those are good idea in principle, but execution is lacking - which makes me want to try other Souls games and see if that improved.
On the other hand, more playthroughs through the DLC content made me appreciate its boss battles more, except for maybe the dragon. Because if you are used to Monster Hunter, the clunky DS dragon battle pales in comparison.
What I noticed with replaying the game - trying different character build aside - is just how much the game rewards you for being attentive and exploring your options. The game is known to be cryptic and providing you limited amount of information - but I found out that there's a lot that game gives you, if you wish to exhaust dialogues with NPCs etc, to the point it sometimes even hints you what to get before going into a next area. Unfortunately, in those instances the game also expects you to pay attention and memorize the information, as some dialogues are playing only once.
New Game plus doesn't offer any "new" content per say, aside for tougher enemies and more souls, but it does present you with opportunity to take your build closer to its full potential if you're willing to go with it. With my paladin-like character, I've used a greatsword ascended with an use of one of the bosses' souls. The sword has 4 stats requirements (as opposed to usual 1-2), thus to wield it, I needed to spend a lot of stat points. This resulted in a subpar weapon used by character that seemingly "wasted" a lot of stats. In NG+, however, I have made the build to work pretty well overall: due to the sword's stat scalling and me having more opportunity to level up, weaknesses of my build were diminished, while my strengths rose to acceptable and even good level. Plus, I had really cool sword (combined with the same boss' greatshield), and fashion is important!
In meantime, I have finished Sekiro 3 times, each time with a different ending. I enjoy the game more than I do Dark Souls. It is shorter, faster and more intense experience. The gameplay mechanics are also very different, and it feels very satisfyting to get good at them.
Meanwhile, I made big progress with my current Diablo 2 hardcore character... I am just to lazy to describe it in the relevant topic
And while all that's happening, my BG3 playthrough is stuck at 36 hours of playtime, and everytime I look at it on my steam library I'm thinking something similar to "meh... maybe later". And then later, and then later.... You know the drill.
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