Gaming

[anthrodisiac]

Oh, Chants of Sennaar is god-tier! The game, the mechanics, the world, the story, oh, everything about it is amazing. Ugh, people need to play this damn game. I think people here would like it a lot, it's a very language-centered game. You wake up mysteriously, and have to decode signs and things people are saying, and at first I was like, "Oh, so you just match a pre-determined list of words and symbols, how-" And then it was like, "Hi, this is a free-text field, put your guess in for later when you have enough symbols to actually figure out the real answer," and I was hooked at that point.

Don't be surprised if this thread is just me every few hours going, "Oh fuck, I forgot about that."

 

[onehitwanda]

Ooh! OOH! I JUST REMEMBERED ONE!

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Dig_(video_game)

Fuck, the puzzles were not obvious though!

 

[anthrodisiac]

The Eagles wrote a song about this... just saying. Don't worry. I'm close enough that I can hear your breathing.

Oh boy, story-driven gaming. I'm going to have to put my big girl pants on, it seems.

In no particular order:

Baldur's Gate 3 (Karlach, Shadowheart, Astarion and Lae'zel all have tragic arcs worthy of a book each)
Expedition 33 (Sophie. Gustav. Verso. If you know, you know.)
Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion (Still one of the greatest game introductions ever)
Skyrim - Dawnguard - should honestly have been a separate Elder Scrolls game in and of itself.
and
Bioshock Infinite - I loved Elizabeth.

Of these, though, only Expedition 33 has made me ugly cry, though Bioshock and BG3 came close sometimes.

I still need to get BG3. I keep waiting for it to go on sale, and then I miss it, and wait again. My brother's been hounding me about it.

I did love Bioshock Infinite a lot. The cyclical thing did a lot for my brainmeat.

Yeah, E33 is... yeah... one of maybe 3 or 4 games that has ever made me close to cry (RIP Dom; Femshep's voice cracking in ME3 when talking to Garrus ow, Mordin ow, "Does this unit have a soul?" I did cry, and I just about cry every time, because Legion's my best boy. God, ME3 was brutal), and it put me over the edge a couple times. End of Act I blew me away, I was stunned. The reveal of the truth, heartbreaking. The ending? Cried. Just straight up cried. I am not a crier, and this game damn near broke me several times. It also made me laugh out loud a bunch too. Fuck, I need to replay that.

 

[Seurat]

Right now? Gears Emergence Day, because I need something that I can get lost in for a few hours and then not think about for another week. If I want something deeper, I play TTRPG.

 

[StillStunned]

Years ago I bought the redhead an arcade cabinet with 60 old-school arcade games. Pac-Man, Dig Dug, Frogger, Centipede, Galaxian, Burger Time - all the classics. Unlike modern games, they teach you a valuable life lesson: congratulations on your achievement, now you start over but it just became more difficult.

Baldur's Gate

Great fun, and I have fonder memories of it than BGII and the two Icewind Dale games, but did you ever try Planescape: Torment?

Most of the time, though, the game I play is Writer's Roulette: you open a blank page and stare at it for an hour. If, by the end of that hour, there are words on the page, you've won. (And, like the old games I mentioned, you get to do it all over again, only it gets harder and harder.)

 

[sijopunk]

I like video games, and my all-time favorite are the Dishonored series. I've played through both several times. I played through them both recently, plus the latest Thief game, as a way to get inspired for an urban fantasy story I have in my head.

Factory/city builder games are what I play the most. My husband and I have a few Satisfactory worlds that we've taken to the "how fast can you make ballistic warp drives and throw them in the Awesome sink" stage. Dyson Sphere Program is the gold standard for me, but any game where you build a factory so that you can more efficiently build factories is something I'll play for a few hundred hours. I recently got Dungeons 4 on sale, and have been playing a lot of that lately.

I like the more immersive first person games like Subnautica, especially when you can play on local co-op. The ones I play usually have a base building and/or factory building component, like Subnautica and Planet Crafter. I look forward to rainy, stormy weekends because my husband will be like "it's too yucky out to go anywhere, wanna just build some stuff in <NAME OF GAME WE LAST PLAYED>?"

 

[onehitwanda]

I like video games, and my all-time favorite are the Dishonored series. I've played through both several times. I played through them both recently, plus the latest Thief game, as a way to get inspired for an urban fantasy story I have in my head.

Factory/city builder games are what I play the most. My husband and I have a few Satisfactory worlds that we've taken to the "how fast can you make ballistic warp drives and throw them in the Awesome sink" stage. Dyson Sphere Program is the gold standard for me, but any game where you build a factory so that you can more efficiently build factories is something I'll play for a few hundred hours. I recently got Dungeons 4 on sale, and have been playing a lot of that lately.

I like the more immersive first person games like Subnautica, especially when you can play on local co-op. The ones I play usually have a base building and/or factory building component, like Subnautica and Planet Crafter. I look forward to rainy, stormy weekends because my husband will be like "it's too yucky out to go anywhere, wanna just build some stuff in <NAME OF GAME WE LAST PLAYED>?"

Do you have a moment to talk about our Lord and Saviour Factorio ?

 

[AwkwardlySet]

In terms of story and characters and investments, Mass Effect takes the frist place easily, followed by KOTOR. The closing of Bioware is one more sign that money trumps art, although the studio's demise began when they were acquired by the worst gaming company in the world, EA.

When it comes to gameplay, I prefered strategic and tactical games over classic rpgs. God, the years I burned on Heroes of Might and Magic ...

Anyway, I always see that BG3 is such a favorite in these topics. But I can't really see it. The game is just okayish when it comes to story, characters, and gameplay. There is nothing innovative about it, and nothing original about the story or characters. I might get hate over this, but it just tells me what plebs average gamers are.

 

[Erozetta]

Years ago I bought the redhead an arcade cabinet with 60 old-school arcade games. Pac-Man, Dig Dug, Frogger, Centipede, Galaxian, Burger Time - all the classics. Unlike modern games, they teach you a valuable life lesson: congratulations on your achievement, now you start over but it just became more difficult.


Great fun, and I have fonder memories of it than BGII and the two Icewind Dale games, but did you ever try Planescape: Torment?

Most of the time, though, the game I play is Writer's Roulette: you open a blank page and stare at it for an hour. If, by the end of that hour, there are words on the page, you've won. (And, like the old games I mentioned, you get to do it all over again, only it gets harder and harder.)

Planescape: Torment is the game that opened my world up to D&D games as an option. I didn't think I'd like them. My husband got me that one, I played it nonstop for a few days. When I got through it, I crashed hard and then my husband got me more games like that and I'd swap between gaming and writing.

I love the majority of the games mentioned in the thread so far, either playing then myself, or watching my husband play them. (Some games gave me massive migraines when I tried to play them, but could watch someone else play them just fine.

Currently I'm playing Dressmaker. Stupid low stakes cozy game to reset after everything I've done the past few months because I need a break. And I'm watching my husband play Hellraiser.

Some of my favorite games, though, were the MYST series. Those were the first games I was *allowed* to play because my mom didn't recognize that they were games. Before that I would sneak and play Altered Beast and Golden Axe and things like that at my cousin's house.

Big narrative games are my favorites to play.
About the only time I've cried playing or watching someone play is the "Little Sisters" storyline from Bioshock. It got to me.

 

[TheLobster]

I like video games, and my all-time favorite are the Dishonored series. I've played through both several times. I played through them both recently, plus the latest Thief game, as a way to get inspired for an urban fantasy story I have in my head.

I loved Dishonored, especially the first part where they didn’t go too far in the direction of the supernatural. Stealth games are also occasionally enjoy, and the Styx franchise has been the one I had particular fun going through.

Factory/city builder games are what I play the most.

Cities Skylines and Stellaris are my go-to relaxing games. I mean, sure, the latter might involve blowing up planets and genocide of entire species, but that’s only so that those ugly fungoloids don’t diminish my calm.

 

[ElectricBlue]

Ladder goat.

Really, that's all that needs to be said. Go find the clip, and try not to laugh along with the dude playing the game.

 

[sijopunk]

Anyway, I always see that BG3 is such a favorite in these topics. But I can't really see it. The game is just okayish when it comes to story, characters, and gameplay. There is nothing innovative about it, and nothing original about the story or characters. I might get hate over this, but it just tells me what plebs average gamers are.

BG3 and Witcher 3 are the two mega-hyped games that I don't love. BG3 surprised me with how boring I found it because I liked the Pathfinder games from Owlcat (Kingmaker and Wrath of the Righteous).

They're both outstanding games and I get why people love them, I just didn't really connect with either of them.

Cyberpunk 2077 is also in this category but I actually finished that one. If it would have been anything other than cyberpunk, I wouldn't have liked it, though. The game itself was okay but cyberpunk has always been an obsession of mind and there was just nothing cyberpunk related released.

This is a terrible thing to say as a writer and a storyteller, but I almost always skip the cutscenes (except in Dishonored 2, because the voice actor for Corvo has a rough, gravelly, calm voice, and I'd listen a five hour talk about industrial cement mixing if he gave it)

 

[Callum_M]

Oh, how the fuck did I forget Alan Wake, Alan Wake 2, and Control? Duh.
Honorable mention to Quantum Break.

First time I played Alan Wake was such a fun experience! The game feels a little repetitive now (I still like it), but getting caught up in that world at the time was soooooo good!

Baldur's Gate 3 (Karlach, Shadowheart, Astarion and Lae'zel all have tragic arcs worthy of a book each)
Baldur's Gate
Knights of the Old Republic
Expedition 33 (Sophie. Gustav. Verso. If you know, you know.)
Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion (Still one of the greatest game introductions ever)
Skyrim - Dawnguard - should honestly have been a separate Elder Scrolls game in and of itself.
and
Bioshock Infinite - I loved Elizabeth.

Of these, though, only Expedition 33 has made me ugly cry, though Bioshock and BG3 came close sometimes.

Massive agree on Oblivion’s opening! That was the first game that made me go, “oh games can be like this now?” Patrick Stewart’s like reading to open that game was one of the most inspired choices in all of game development.

And while I thoroughly enjoy both, I maintain that Skyrim has the better game play mechanics, but Oblivion is my preferred story and setting. I could run around the forests and fields of Cyrodill for hours and consider it a good use of my time.

And because this is yet another round of praise of Expedition 33, it has been added to the wishlist. Ooooo and currently 20% off. Hmmmm!

 

[onehitwanda]

Ooooo and currently 20% off. Hmmmm!

Stock up on tissues. For your eyes, obviously!

 

[StillStunned]

The story of the Witcher in particular is funny.
Imagine if a musician starts writing songs about the local exterminator. These songs become so popular that said exterminator becomes one of the most famous exterminators in the land. He then ends up becoming involved in high stakes political power plays.
Eventually he adopts the president's daughter who also happens to be the Chosen One and raises her to also be an exterminator.

Add a fantasy setting and that's basically the Witcher.

So essentially the same story as the first book and the first season of the TV series?

 

[Lord_Libido]

So essentially the same story as the first book and the first season of the TV series?

Kind of. The games are a bit different when it comes to details.

 

[Callum_M]

Stock up on tissues. For your eyes, obviously!

It’s for the tears, I swear!

 

[gloomyMoron]

If you’re not partaking, what are you currently playing instead?

Oh and to keep it somewhat on theme for AH, what’s your favorite game because of its story?

Don't own a Switch 2 so, sadly, I can't play OoT Remake.

My computer has gotten so messed up/old (parts of it are old enough to vote) that I can barely play games much anymore (besides Ren'Py games). As for games I'm playing/replaying...
FF7 (need to get back to that, actually),
Makai Kingdom (also need to get back to playing that),
Yu-Gi-Oh! Master Duel (one of my "pet decks" just got all its support, so I'll actually be spending time grinding Ranked, something I haven't bothered to do in earnest in over two or three years),
a couple of Idle games (not really worth mentioning which),
Vampire Survivors (on and off; I have all the achievements but I don't have everything complete yet, almost though),
and a bunch of adult visual novels/porn games. >.>

I don't really "do" favorites. The games with stories that have stuck with me though are: Final Fantasy (7, 9, 10, 10-2, 12, 15), Phantasy Star (2 and 4, 3 sticks with me for reasons other than its story; not Online), Outer Wilds, Bastion, Transistor (though I never finished it, I did get far), Hades, Pyre (again, never finished it but loved what I did experience of it), Fire Emblem: Three Houses, Fire Emblem: Awakening, Xenogears, Xenoblade Chronicles (1 & 2, mostly 1; haven't gotten to play 3 yet), Bravely Default, and dozens more I'm forgetting. Even a couple of adult games make this list. Though most of those are still being made and releasing updates, so aren't finished. One that is finished that stuck with me is Katawa Shoujo (for something made by 4ch, it is shockingly good and un-exploitative).

 

[onehitwanda]

It’s for the tears, I swear!

View attachment 2702836

My soul just projectile vomited.

 

[KittyOfSteele]

I haven't gotten a computer, so my gaming has stalled for a while. But whenever I'm not playing D&D with my group, we're usually playing Dead as Disco, or Wrath of the Lich King. When it comes to my fossil, I have RetroArch in it, so lately I've been playing a lot of Super C runs, as well as doing some Daggerfall in a roguelike style: once I die, all saves are deleted. I can save outside of each dungeon though because plenty Daggerfall dungeons are impossible to complete.

Because I've been focusing on writing too much, I don't have the drive to complete long games since I'm playing through bursts instead of dedicated hours. While I miss playing RPGs for hours, I'm not going into them anymore, mostly because I forget what the hell was I doing in my save.

 

[Callum_M]

My soul just projectile vomited.

May I offer your soul a tissue? I have a few around here somewhere.

I’ll go now.

 

[Callum_M]

Because I've been focusing on writing too much, I don't have the drive to complete long games since I'm playing through bursts instead of dedicated hours. While I miss playing RPGs for hours, I'm not going into them anymore, mostly because I forget what the hell was I doing in my save.

I feel this. It’s been a while since I’ve jumped into a deep game that wasn’t something I replayed. It’s partially the time commitment and not remembering after taking a break, but I think my being wowed by modern RPGs has diminished.

 

[MK_Whimsy]

Don't be surprised if this thread is just me every few hours going, "Oh fuck, I forgot about that."

I had one of those too!

 

[Rob_Royale]

I had time for gaming before I started writing. The only one I do now is Skyrim on a rare occasion when I just don't feel like writing. I've been a huge fan of the game for a decade.

 

[anthrodisiac]

FF7 (need to get back to that, actually),

Currently playing the remaster. It's cheesy as fuck. Fun though. I'm not overly wowed, but I didn't play it when I was younger, so coming to it as a [mumblemumble]-year-old might have made me a bit jaded because there are such phenomenal stories in games out there now, and the oil metaphor has been done to death since then.

Horizon Zero Dawn! Damn, that game is fucking phenomenal. So is Death Stranding, really unusual game that was actually quite powerfully written.