What game are you playing?

[ibanezmonster]

Since you're asking about FF XI, have you tried FF XIV? I remember XI being very console-y but XIV isn't. XIV's job system is great (in my opinion) because your character can be anything, and tradeskills are treated as real jobs in that they have their separate abilities etc. As you level in jobs you can use some of the powers from other jobs in your current one.

I'm glad you asked. I noticed that you mentioned you were playing it but I guess you missed when I was posting about it.

My character:
http://na.finalfantasyxiv.com/lodestone/character/7023811/


I played through the main storyline and that was it (will come back one day, of course). I have mixed opinions about the game, though I do like it overall.

What I liked about the game was the crafting, graphics, ease of transportation as well as many other things such as class changing, and balanced leveling system. There is no competition between crafting in FF11 vs. FF14: FF14 is clearly more fun and interesting.

What I didn't like was amount that the game streamlined things. I didn't care for the whole approach being point-and-click rather than keyboard and the job system felt more constrained despite the ability to add four optional cross-class abilities. The subjob system in FF11 just feels much richer to me. Maybe I didn't get into 14 enough to accurately judge the possibilities of the system. Also, since parties are pre-defined in dungeons, there's little room for custom or experimental strategies. And I hate being so pressured to not be able to go afk for 5 minutes because a dungeon is timed. And the main storyline was mainly just taking care of errands for people, though it does get good near the end.

I do prefer FF11 and that's why I went back to it for a while and am just now starting to quit again. I'm curious how FF14 will evolve. Right now, it's a somewhat small world and for me, the bigger the world, the better. They'll probably start up some good storylines when they start releasing expansions.

[ibanezmonster]

Having said that, I'm toying with the idea of making a return to FF14 during my fall semester which starts next Monday. The reason is that I doubt I'll get more than an hour of free time each day, and you simply cannot progress in FF11 with that little bit of free time each day, whereas you can in FF14. I would probably daily roulette my rng/brd to 50 and try out the patches which I haven't done yet. Not sure how a lot of the endgame stuff works, though.

[ibanezmonster]

Having said that, I'm toying with the idea of making a return to FF14 during my fall semester which starts next Monday. The reason is that I doubt I'll get more than an hour of free time each day, and you simply cannot progress in FF11 with that little bit of free time each day, whereas you can in FF14. I would probably daily roulette my rng/brd to 50 and try out the patches which I haven't done yet. Not sure how a lot of the endgame stuff works, though.

Thought about this all day, and...
when I do return, might play White Mage instead, and will probably play Skyrim first, until I get bored with it.

[DavidW]

I finished Silent Hill 2 yesterday.  It is now my favorite game, replacing Knights of the Old Republic.  This is the only time that I can say yes, this video game has a good story and not add (for a video game).  It has a great story, great atmosphere, excellent pacing, a good blend of combat, puzzle solving, exploration and narrative.  The endings are organically developed and depend on how you play the game instead of a decision at the end or a stupid karma meter (Bioware could have learned from that, just saying Mass Effect 3 I'm looking at you).  My only complaints are that the camera is terrible, and the HD remaster is not the best.

[ibanezmonster]

Silent Hill 2 is awesome. Exactly how a horror game should be. The atmosphere is my favorite aspect of the game.

[Jaakko Keskinen]

I still think the first one is best, even if only for Kaufmann and the "Darkness devouring the town? Must be on drugs"-line and the best ufo ending. I have heard some people mock James in second game, mainly for moments like him putting his hand in toilet without hesitating for a moment.

Not to say Harry Mason didn't have his dumb moments. Whose first thought when seeing aliens would be to ask them if they have seen his daughter?

[Mirror Image]

I finished Silent Hill 2 yesterday.  It is now my favorite game, replacing Knights of the Old Republic.  This is the only time that I can say yes, this video game has a good story and not add (for a video game).  It has a great story, great atmosphere, excellent pacing, a good blend of combat, puzzle solving, exploration and narrative.  The endings are organically developed and depend on how you play the game instead of a decision at the end or a stupid karma meter (Bioware could have learned from that, just saying Mass Effect 3 I'm looking at you).  My only complaints are that the camera is terrible, and the HD remaster is not the best.

Here's how far behind I am: my favorite game is still Donkey Kong Country.

[stingo]

Finished Diablo III yesterday as the witch doctor. I think I may have really lucked out on my loot drops, because I felt it necessary to upgrade from Normal to Hard difficulty. I still need to play/finish the expansion (Reaper of Souls) before I can consider it truly finished.

[bwv 1080]

2048

[kishnevi]

Especially for Greg
http://www.geekinheels.com/2012/08/17/video-game-characters-reinvented-as-traditional-japanese-woodblock-prints.html

[ibanezmonster]

Especially for Greg
http://www.geekinheels.com/2012/08/17/video-game-characters-reinvented-as-traditional-japanese-woodblock-prints.html

Pretty cool. 

[lisa needs braces]

I'm really enjoying "Assassin's Creed 4: Black Flag."

In addition to the traditional AssCreed segments, Ubisoft added a substantial sea piracy simulator element. I don't believe a big boating/piracy game like this has existed since the 2004 game "Sid Meirs' Pirates!"


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mcU-zrI2Rg8

[DavidW]

I'm really enjoying "Assassin's Creed 4: Black Flag."

In addition to the traditional AssCreed segments, Ubisoft added a substantial sea piracy simulator element. I don't believe a big boating/piracy game like this has existed since the 2004 game "Sid Meirs' Pirates!"


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mcU-zrI2Rg8

I like it too, I played it several months ago.  It is the only time that I liked an AC game.  What stops me from loving it is:

* stealth is too simplistic, for a game with assassin in the title this is unforgivable.
* fighting is more tedious than fun, it lacks that rhythm that games like Arkham City have.
* side quests lack any type of narrative, I don't like it when a game tries to be open world by simply putting in fetch quests.  It lacks depth.
* need to ditch the future guy stuff, who cares?

If they could fix those problems they could make something on par with an Elder Scrolls game which would be awesome.  Maybe if they didn't release 1-2 games every year, they could make something amazing instead of merely good.  But yeah don't get me wrong, I liked it.

[stingo]

Finished Diablo III campaign (Diablo III and the Reaper of Souls expansion) as the Witch Doctor. Really good game.

[lisa needs braces]

Finished Diablo III campaign (Diablo III and the Reaper of Souls expansion) as the Witch Doctor. Really good game.

And of course that's the sort of game some addicts continue to play well past the point of just beating the campaign -- Diablo 2 servers are still running. Grinding for great loot and maximizing their character as much as possible compels some people to play these sort of games for years on end. I sort of get the appeal. Couple of months ago I went to a PC cafe in Virginia, and there was a korean dude on the computer to right of me who was dozing off. Some guy there told me this dude would come in to the PC cafe, pay $30, and stay at the place for 24 hours straight, doing nothing but playing Diablo 3 and dozing off when he needed to. Blizzard games tend to bring that out in some people. When this guy came out of his nap I asked him politely to take a look at my Demon Hunter and tell me how I could make the character better, and he switched a few things around and gave me a great build that almost tripled my damage output.  Speaking of Diablo 3, a greatly anticipated patch (2.1) comes out Tuesday.

[ibanezmonster]

And of course that's the sort of game some addicts continue to play well past the point of just beating the campaign -- Diablo 2 servers are still running. Grinding for great loot and maximizing their character as much as possible compels some people to play these sort of games for years on end.

This is precisely what I learned about MMORPG's after playing my first two. For one, in these games, you're never "there" forever. You always have to play catch-up with whatever updates that are implemented.

You ever read this article?
http://www.cracked.com/article_18461_5-creepy-ways-video-games-are-trying-to-get-you-addicted.html


I had to quit FF11 and decided to not get back into MMORPG's for a long time. The addictive qualities I noted:

1) You can feel a sense of achievement every day.
2) The world felt like a secondary home, or perhaps a home you wish were your primary home.
3) The ridiculous amount of time spent accomplishing stuff makes you think, "well, I've invested this much time, why not invest more?"
4) The ridiculous amount of things you learn make you feel like you are fluent in an advanced skill, so it's fun to keep perfecting this skill.

#1 is possibly the most important factor, and it is noted in the cracked article. The problem with real life is that you typically can't get anywhere just by working hard. Maybe some people can, but those people aren't going to be addicted to MMORPG's. Working more hours at my job won't really achieve any goal and school predetermines when I finish. Neither are particularly enjoyable, as well. An MMORPG that is enjoyable and gives you the ability to get "there" as quick as you can spend the time to get there is a recipe for addiction.

It's almost horrifying to realize the feeling of subconscious fulfillment when playing FF11 vs. not playing FF11. The feeling of achievement is what keeps me from feeling empty inside, and FF11 sure helped, basically every day I was able to play it.

[stingo]

And of course that's the sort of game some addicts continue to play well past the point of just beating the campaign -- Diablo 2 servers are still running. Grinding for great loot and maximizing their character as much as possible compels some people to play these sort of games for years on end. I sort of get the appeal. Couple of months ago I went to a PC cafe in Virginia, and there was a korean dude on the computer to right of me who was dozing off. Some guy there told me this dude would come in to the PC cafe, pay $30, and stay at the place for 24 hours straight, doing nothing but playing Diablo 3 and dozing off when he needed to. Blizzard games tend to bring that out in some people. When this guy came out of his nap I asked him politely to take a look at my Demon Hunter and tell me how I could make the character better, and he switched a few things around and gave me a great build that almost tripled my damage output.  Speaking of Diablo 3, a greatly anticipated patch (2.1) comes out Tuesday.

It's not just loot drops, you can also modify existing enchantments which adds a whole other level to the proceedings. While I can appreciate such mastery of a game, that comes at an awfully high cost in life.

Thread Duty: Completed the Easy mode of Fist of Awesome last night, and I've recently completed the first three or so missions of Majesty 2.

[Jaakko Keskinen]

Playing Half-life 2 episode two. Along with the original Half life and it's add-ons this is probably my favorite. Although I am driven crazy by that one achievement, killing all 333 antlion grubs, I managed to get only 325. So frustrating. And it's a great game, one of the greatest shooters ever made, even though original is still even better. I think the reason they haven't continued Half life in 7 years is because they don't know in which direction to take this franchise.

[ibanezmonster]

I think the reason they haven't continued Half life in 7 years is because they don't know in which direction to take this franchise.

That might indeed be the underlying reason. I mean, where do really go from there? Of course, you could explore stuff that is left unexplained in Half Life 2, but the appeal about the game is precisely that it doesn't explain everything, so it feels that much more mysterious.

[Jaakko Keskinen]

After having to replay entire mine sequence to get that one achievement I am getting a bit of sick of it. Maybe I enjoy it more now that I got outside, it's some time since I last played this. More variety and all that. So I think the original Half life (and even the add-ons by gearbox) is by far the best. They just have that unique kind of atmosphere. Even if it is a bit corny at times (many quotes from Black Mesa Scientists come in mind) that's one of the main reasons I love it. Newer Half-life games while still provide excellent action and adventure do not quite reach the atmosphere of the first games. Ah, I dunno. Maybe episode 3 (0r Half life 3), if it ever arrives, brings the kick I need. I guess I shouldn't have replayed the beginning of this episode, I did get even a bit frustrated when playing original I had to start the game from the beginning twice after some game-breaking glitches after having already played several several hours of it.

I really hope Gman is not an alien...

Am I starting to lose interest in video games? I hope not.