everynowandben

Never got into this one. My friends and I played for about an hour and just kinda never went back. I also don't think it looks THAT good, but to each their own. This one just wasn't for me.

My daughter is 2 and the only game she's been drawn in by so far is Banjo-Kazooie. She absolutely loves the opening sequence, so basically we just watch that over and over

Almost finished with Portal Stories: Mel. I was really having a tough time with one of the levels last night, but I refuse to look up the solution. I beat Portal 1, 2, and Reloaded on my own, and this will be no different.

I started Mass Effect when the Legendary Edition dropped onto Game Pass and it seemed like something I would enjoy, but I may put off continuing it until I beat Metro: Exodus first so I can give both of these games the full attention they seem to deserve.

Even if this was part of Game Pass, I doubt I would play any of their games tbh. Sadly none of them seem to do it for me. I feel like Ubisoft games are shiny and pretty, but always end up feeling hollow after a couple hours. Maybe it's me, but I haven't really enjoyed my time with their efforts.

Edit: Actually, I did enjoy Mario + Rabbids.

I'd say yes in the far future when its as easy as putting on glasses. VR will be a niche market for at least another decade.

Hopefully their next addition will be this game to Game Pass

Ghost of a Tale is phenomenal, however, be careful if you play that - the Xbox app erased about 5 hours worth of my progress (looks like its saving, multiple save slots, but upon booting up the game the next day, the only save slots that existed were from days earlier, saves I actually saved over even). I bought it and finished it on GOG instead.

Thief. I know the universal consensus is that this game is trash, and yeah, its not even close to as good as the previous 3 games in the series (or Dishonored for that matter), but it's not that bad.

Also playing Portal Stories: Mel which I picked back up after putting it down for about a year. Over halfway through now and starting to run into some real brainbusters. Pretty sure I "cheated" on one of the puzzles, but hey, my strategy worked so I'm calling it fair game even though I'm 99% sure I didn't solve the puzzle "correctly."

I started Metro: Exodus as well, but I think I'm going to hold off until I beat one of these other games before I get too deep into this one.

I take my initial comment back, I bought Deus Ex: Mankind Divided in the recent sale, but it was a gift for a friend (I already own it). Pretty sure he's going to love it!

Haven't bought anything on Xbox in a while. Game Pass is more than enough.

There's definitely room for both of these games. They're both great, and their individual mechanics are very much unique enough for each to stand on their own.

Work has been very busy this last week, so pretty much playing the same games as last weekend for me: Half-Life: Alyx and Darkwatch. I might start up Return to Castle Wolfenstein if I finish one of the other two.

30/122 games and DLCs that I beat this year, plus 9 more I didn't finish. Game Pass is amazing.

@BlueOcean https://www.purexbox.com/guides/all-games-with-fps-boosts-on-xbox-series-x-and-xbox-series-s

@BlueOcean @Kidfunkadelic83 @NEStalgia It did get FPS Boost though. 60fps on Series consoles.

If you haven't already, please pick up and show support for Deus Ex: Mankind Divided. Guardians was great, but Deus Ex doesn't deserve to die for it.

Thief Simulator would be cool

Depends on the person of course, but if I had to choose just one regardless: Forza Horizon 5

@themightyant That sucks about the lost progress! Were you playing on PC or console?

Last night I played some Aliens Fireteam Elite for a short while and had a bit of fun with the guys.

I also started The Gunk last night. It's alright. Easy, looks nice enough, fun to explore.

I'm kindof trying to savor Half-Life Alyx, so I'm not playing more than a chapter per day or two. It is extremely good. I'm past the halfway point now and I just don't want it to end. The level of immersion of unparalleled, and as you would expect from this franchise, the game itself is very well paced and impeccably designed. The barrier of entry is high to say the least, but it's definitely worth it. Easily makes it onto my "one of the best games ever" list.

Also playing Darkwatch on PS2. It's okay. Heard it was a hidden gem, but I'd say it doesn't really hold up. It's not awful, and has a decent aesthetic, but it's probably not worth the time it takes to play it considering how many games there are that are better.

I got this on PS3 through PS Plus in something like 2014 and finally played it just last week. Quick thoughts/opinion: Presentation is wonderful. Performance is terrible. Gameplay is less than mediocre.

Quick, let's all shout down the echo chamber!

Lol seriously though, some of y'all are blowing this way out of proportion. This is possibly the most pessimistic, cynical, and overly dramatic comment section I've ever seen on this site. The game isn't out for another 6 months. Let's wait until we get more details before we all jump on the doom and gloom bandwagon. The devs are allowed to appeal to an audience that extends beyond our personal tastes. NFTs in STALKER 2 is a red flag, sure, but if it doesn't end up effecting our enjoyment of the game, then it simply isn't going to matter. I'm not going to let this information ruin a game I'm looking forward to before fully understanding the details.

I might use this to whittle away at Bug Fables before bed. Alternatively I might just give up on BF entirely instead.

I'll play The Gunk for sure, and possibly Firewatch as well.

Finished Guardians of the Galaxy last night, and it was truly great. I wish Deus Ex didn't have to die for it, but it was really fun, and I highly recommend it.

Started up Half-Life Alyx late last night and played for about an hour. Can't wait to dive back in. So far, it's pretty dang amazing.

Wow, October? Dang. Plenty to play in the meantime but yeah, that's not very soon.

Halo Infinite last night with the guys. They like quick play, but I have the most fun playing the big battles.

On my own, I'm halfway through Guardians of the Galaxy and I must say it is very good, and I'm enjoying it very much.

@JRJalapeno Occasionally games will return as well. It's not often, but it does happen every once in a while.

I bought 5 games from holiday sales, but this weekend probably just getting through more of Pokémon Brilliant Diamond with a little Wolfenstein 3D (ECWolf mod) to break up the monotony. Maybe some Back 4 Blood or Halo Infinite tonight if my friends are available.

Unfortunately nothing on Xbox. However, I did buy Wolfenstein 3D, Spear of Destiny, and Return to Castle Wolfenstein on Steam for $3 total. I also bought Half-Life: Alyx. I spent all my Microsoft money on a customized controller a couple weeks ago.

@NEStalgia Sortof. I was having a hard time with the mouse and key setup (even though I'm in my late 30s, I'm new to PC gaming) and couldn't figure out a good controller mapping solution, so while I did play through a bit of the Revision mod on PC, I ended up playing through the PS2 version. That version has it's own pros and cons, but for me, playing it with a controller and simplified menus/UI was worth the tradeoff of a lower resolution and framerate.

@NEStalgia I have to disagree. I played the original for the first time in 2021 and thought it was amazing. It's dated in many ways, sure, but it's still quite easy to appreciate it for what it is. Anyone into imm sims should definitely play through the original Deus Ex.

@BlueOcean Unfortunately Invisible War isn't backwards compatible. I'd recommend playing that on PC if possible anyway for widscreen support and higher frame count. I'd also recommend playing the original before IW as it's a sequel and would make less sense story-wise without the context of playing the first one beforehand. I liked MD a lot for what it's worth. I know some people have issues with MD's narrative structure, but the gameplay is incredible.

@BlueOcean @NEStalgia Not sure you guys care about the full range of the Deus Ex franchise, but just in case you or someone else reading this does:

The original was ported to PS2 as:
Deus Ex: The Conspiracy.

Then there's also:
Deus Ex: The Fall for PC/Android/iOS
Deus Ex Go for Android/iOS.

Also there's the "not technically a Deus Ex game":
Project Snowblind for Xbox/PC.

Edit: I suppose technically Deus Ex: Breach for PC would count as a separate entry since it was released as a FTP standalone, even though it was originally just a separate mode in MD.

Deus Ex: Invisible War with the "visibility upgrade" on PC. Just got to Trier. Sure it's not as good as any of the other games in the franchise, but I'm still having a great time with it.

This is great! Will definitely sign up.

@PhileasFragg It's not that great imo - 6/10 at best. There are loads of better games on Game Pass that are much more deserving of your time. Unless you're a diehard for the genre, I'd say skip it. You're not missing anything special.

Play Prey if you haven't. It's like Doom 3 crossed with Portal crossed with Super Mario Galaxy.

Getting deeper into Doom 2 RPG (via ​emulation) on my phone. It's actually really good; a weird but worthwhile entry in the franchise if you can appreciate it for what it is.

Also planning on finishing up Duke Nukem Forever: The Doctor Who Cloned Me DLC. It's exactly what I expected so far: mediocre FPS action wrapped in jokes about male genetalia. Perfect.

Played a little Forza Horizon 5 the other day and will probably eff around a little more with that, too.

Mine says JEDINITE

PSA: SteamWorld Dig 2 is free on GOG right now

I still haven't played Quest yet, but I'm a fan of Heist and both Dig games. This one has my attention so far.

So many great games coming next year, wow. It's going to be a big one.

I'm just over halfway through the Avengers campaign and am enjoying it at least enough to continue.

Playing some more Back 4 Blood tonight with the guys.

I share some of the moments listed above, including the RE1 dogs through the window and the Eternal Darkness bathtub. Surprised no one mentioned the one that really got me more recently - RE8 House Beneviento.

Finishing up Resident Evil 4 VR and loving every minute.

I finished The Knife of Dunwall DLC for Dishonored last night, and enjoyed it very much.

I started Spec Ops: The Line earlier today and am looking forward to whatever it may have to offer.

Playing Back 4 Blood tonight with the guys.

Costume Quest is the perfect Halloween RPG

I played for maybe 90 minutes and will probably not go back as it becomes incredibly tedious.

I bought AWAN a couple months ago but haven't started it yet. That's okay though because it was paid for entirely with rewards points that were going to expire anyway.

Resident Evil 4 VR. Almost halfway through. Truly awesome. The cutscenes remaining 2D and certain animations like kicking, pushing bookcases, and dying popping out to 3rd person is pretty weird, but experiencing such a great game like this from a totally new perspective is really cool. Dual-weilding the knife and hand gun, and also being able to move and shoot at the same time makes most of the combat pretty easy. At the same time, it is really fun to just circle-strafe el gigante out of his misery for example.

Also started Visage last night. It's extremely creepy and actually pretty scary... until it isn't, because it quickly and often devolves into running around in circles trying to figure out what to do next, hoping to find the one interactable thing that hasn't been clicked on yet, completely breaking immersion and losing all built up tension. It's like a 3D point-and-click walking sim, and there's really nothing guiding or motivating to progress the game except maybe morbid curiosity. I don't know, I played for maybe 90 minutes and alternated back and forth between being terrified and bored out of my mind. I'll give it another chance, but I'm fairly disappointed so far.

Probably some Back 4 Blood tonight with the guys.