Now Playing (Video Games)

[Detective Beauregard]

So, partially it's been because ID Software sure can make their game really addictive, partially because everyone's enjoying The Dark Ages currently, but I've been playing Doom Eternal pretty much exclusively for the past few days (well, whenever I have time to play when the boys are asleep). And sure, playing it on Nightmare is really exhilarating, also whenever I do a Slayer gate on this difficulty, it feels like a flex and you get this "alpha" feel, lol. However the fourth Slayer gate in the ARC Complex level, wow. Two cyberdemons (yeah, I know, Tyrants) in a cramped arena, several mancubi and whiplashes and that's just the first wave? Fuck me sideways, this is really insane. And I say this as someone who managed to finish both Alien Vendetta and Hell Revealed on Ultra Violence, lol.

EDIT: And I did it anyway! Who's your Daddy, ha?

Hot damn do I love Doom.

I’m about halfway through The Dark Ages, and while Eternal was far less my jam than 2016, parts of it were better (namely Mick Gordon’s sick tunes). Aesthetically this game is like Hexen and Doom had a baby, and while I loved the OG Hexen (I’m old), a bit of this game just doesn’t feel like Doom.

I still remember those crisp winter mornings in the mid-‘90s when I would wake up and run to the PC to dive into Doom while @MrKnickerbocker was playing in his crib or something. The feeling of entering the Tower of Babel thinking I was armed with the weaponry of a tank, only to get blown to tiny little chunks by the Cyberdemon’s rockets… that was the life.

 

[JudasMyGuide]

and while I loved the OG Hexen (I’m old)

As one TV Troper once said
"I'm a shirtless Viking guy and I just punched an entire level to death and a giant flaming skull asked me if I was ready to die and omfg this game is METAL."

Hexen was great, but I actaully got to it only later, my childhood memories were of its spiritual predecessor Heretic (I still know every level by heart) and Doom 1 and 2 (and partially Wolfenstein). Precisely the feelings that you mention.

Also, even after I got into the custom made levels later on (besides Plutonia and TNT, also all the fan made megawads like Vendetta, Memento Mori etc), I still kinda feel like successfully pistol starting E4M2 in the original Doom is among my greatest gaming achievements, lol.

And although I first played Alien Vendetta only at the university, it still feels inherently nostalgic - a hot summer night, my wife studing for exams (I usually played Doom instead and then did an overnight study session and usually had better grades than her; she was always pretty pissed off about that, lol), depths of the Dark Dome level, a world-music oriented web radio that we used to listen to back then, an occasional smoke while sitting in the open window, not a care in the world...

 

[Batman]

Damn, I just love Doom. Maybe not Doom Eternal (I dislike fps platforming in general) but Dark Ages is quite nice only thing that it lack is for me main thing that in 96 made me love doom - the idea of combining a modern environment with a demon invasion. At the time, it blew my 8-year-old brain :-D

 

[Detective Beauregard]

As one TV Troper once said
"I'm a shirtless Viking guy and I just punched an entire level to death and a giant flaming skull asked me if I was ready to die and omfg this game is METAL.”

You know, it really is. The first level alone has you infiltrating a cathedral under cloudy night skies and clubbing those hilarious two-headed orc things while smashing stained glass windows for magic vials. It’s basically a Dio album.

Hexen was great, but I actaully got to it only later, my childhood memories were of its spiritual predecessor Heretic (I still know every level by heart) and Doom 1 and 2 (and partially Wolfenstein). Precisely the feelings that you mention.

I need to revisit Heretic as I think I only played it once. I preferred Hexen since I first played it on the N64 when I was a teen and the atmosphere really impressed me. I still fondly recall getting lost in that swamp level, and the ice caves…

I still kinda feel like successfully pistol starting E4M2 in the original Doom is among my greatest gaming achievements, lol.

You are mad. That level is insane!

And although I first played Alien Vendetta only at the university, it still feels inherently nostalgic - a hot summer night, my wife studing for exams (I usually played Doom instead and then did an overnight study session and usually had better grades than her; she was always pretty pissed off about that, lol), depths of the Dark Dome level, a world-music oriented web radio that we used to listen to back then, an occasional smoke while sitting in the open window, not a care in the world...

I played Alien Vendetta a few years ago and thought it was great; another one I’ll have to revisit soon. Never much cared for Plutonia or TNT, though. Something about most of the maps’ designs didn’t gel with me, although I did like most of the levels better than vanilla Doom 2 (which I’ve always thought was massively overrated).

What’s your favorite megawad?

Damn, I just love Doom. Maybe not Doom Eternal (I dislike fps platforming in general) but Dark Ages is quite nice only thing that it lack is for me main thing that in 96 made me love doom - the idea of combining a modern environment with a demon invasion. At the time, it blew my 8-year-old brain :-D

I think 2016 hit the sweet spot between platforming and whatever Dark Ages is, although dying when you fall was something that I’m glad they corrected.

Did you like Doom 3?

 

[Batman]

You know, it really is. The first level alone has you infiltrating a cathedral under cloudy night skies and clubbing those hilarious two-headed orc things while smashing stained glass windows for magic vials. It’s basically a Dio album.


I need to revisit Heretic as I think I only played it once. I preferred Hexen since I first played it on the N64 when I was a teen and the atmosphere really impressed me. I still fondly recall getting lost in that swamp level, and the ice caves…


You are mad. That level is insane!


I played Alien Vendetta a few years ago and thought it was great; another one I’ll have to revisit soon. Never much cared for Plutonia or TNT, though. Something about most of the maps’ designs didn’t gel with me, although I did like most of the levels better than vanilla Doom 2 (which I’ve always thought was massively overrated).

What’s your favorite megawad?


I think 2016 hit the sweet spot between platforming and whatever Dark Ages is, although dying when you fall was something that I’m glad they corrected.

Did you like Doom 3?

Yeah, i like it. It was nice horror game and for me it had nice half life vibe. It wasnt perfect but it was good. I was a little bit bummed that they didnt delivered on all promises. Either way - good game but nothing beats Doom II and building own maps. And yeah, I also think that doom is metal af.

 

[JudasMyGuide]

What’s your favorite megawad?

Yeah, Vendetta is probably overall the most impressive, visually, gameplay-wise and everything. I also am very partial towards Memento Mori 1 and 2, mostly for nostalgia reasons. Hell Revealed is a classic, but very spotty in places (and the sequel felt somewhat meh) and I also remember enjoying Scythe and Icarus back in the day. Community Chests are very hit or miss, I mostly gave up on them after the notorious Citadel at the Edge of Eternity, which is borderline unplayable.

Never much cared for Plutonia or TNT, though. Something about most of the maps’ designs didn’t gel with me, although I did like most of the levels better than vanilla Doom 2 (which I’ve always thought was massively overrated).

I agree that Plutonia and Evilution also always felt a bit weird to me, but being "official" and being there so long (and replaying them so much) has made me used to them in the end. Plutonia in particular - despite it uses less monsters on average than the latter ultra-fights megawad, it uses them in a very careful and concise manner, it feels really oppressive throughout and kinda memorable.

Doom 2 is very hit-and-miss, Sandy was really inconsistent as a level designer - but then again, the original game was also suffering from this, let's be perfectly honest - most people remember primarily the first episode Knee-Deep in the Dead, and although it's fair to say that most remember it because it was in the shareware version and therefore most popular, it was also nearly entirely designed solely by Romero and works in a way the other ones just don't.

Did you like Doom 3?

Back then when it came out, I felt like I was the only person in existence who absolutely loved it. It felt very well put-together, narratively, I enjoyed the survival horror aesthetics, it looked great and the main title sounded awesome, in all its nu-metallish glory, lol. I need to revisit it one of these days.



Also, in the Eternal Nightmare run, I'm already at the Slayer gate in Mars Core, so far so good. Honestly, playing through the entirety of the game on Nightmare up to that point made feel the first Marauder fight somewhat easy, lol. Certainly one of the easiest fights in the game so far. However now he's back in the Slayer gate with all the fodder and Barons of Hell afterwards and I'm fucked, lol.



In other news, while I expected Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 to be successful, possibly not this successful, however where I expected foreigners to be inquiring about Hus and Hussites (and pre-emptively took up some reading for exactly those cases), so far the gamers abroad are more instead in competing who spent more time in "Trotsky"



However I'm only slowly going through the first game (again) so far. If all goes well, I'll be able to pick up the second game once the winter DLC drops and I'm allowed to visit at least some churches (aka, the selling point of the original game, lol).

 

[Onhell]

Taking a break from crushing student's dreams IRL.

I'm on my last week of the semester, putting up grades and meeting with desperate students, ugh. Anywho, haven't had much time for gaming, but I've made a summer resolution of sorts. I have A LOT of games on my gamepass play later list, so I'm uninstalling all my games except for Alan Wake II and Control (replaying it on the series x version), then I'm intalling as many GamePass games as possible and work my way through those. On that list we have Doom 3, Doom 2016, Doom Eternal, Doom Dark Ages, Oblivion (both OG and RM), Still Wakes the Deep, Mass Effect Trilogy, etc. So I'll see how much I can get done from next week til the second week in August, cuz aside from fully moving I got nothing else going on and Imma game like it's my full-time job.

 

[Firakks]

Taking a break from crushing student's dreams IRL.

I'm on my last week of the semester, putting up grades and meeting with desperate students, ugh. Anywho, haven't had much time for gaming, but I've made a summer resolution of sorts. I have A LOT of games on my gamepass play later list, so I'm uninstalling all my games except for Alan Wake II and Control (replaying it on the series x version), then I'm intalling as many GamePass games as possible and work my way through those. On that list we have Doom 3, Doom 2016, Doom Eternal, Doom Dark Ages, Oblivion (both OG and RM), Still Wakes the Deep, Mass Effect Trilogy, etc. So I'll see how much I can get done from next week til the second week in August, cuz aside from fully moving I got nothing else going on and Imma game like it's my full-time job.
You know, it really is. Only the first level has you sneaking into a cathedral under a cloudy night sky and beating up these hilarious two-headed orcs, smashing stained glass windows for magic flasks. It's basically a Dio album.I need to rewatch Heretic, because I think I've only played it once. I liked Hexen better, because I first played it on the N64 when I was a teenager, and the atmosphere really impressed me. I still fondly remember getting lost in that level with the swamp and ice caves... By the way, if you need variety in terms of games, here is a site https://spin-star.cz/ about interesting online games and how to start playing them. I advise you to read it, you will learn a lot of interesting things!You are crazy. This level is insane!

Play Expedition 33. In my opinion, the best game of this year, and maybe not only this year. Very cool gameplay, visuals, plot, and the music is simply the best!

 

[JudasMyGuide]

I'm sexy and I know it



100% it too. Now it's the DLCs and then Dark Ages.

(I'm especially looking forward playing the Slayer Gate with possessed Marauder on Nightmare, lol)

 

[JudasMyGuide]

Me yesterday to my wife: "Hey, I have to flaunt my restraint, lol, although both Skyrim and RDR2 are on sale (75 % off or so on Steam), I managed to control myself and bought only Skyrim."

Me today: "How much was the RDR2 again?"

(I have both games for xbox already, lol)

 

[Batman]

I rescently get into boomer shooters again. I just started chapter 3 of Dusk (great game!), finished Doom & Doom II last week and after that - going probably into prodeus. Coworker is laughing because I started all of that after buying 4k QLED monitor for my gaming pc

Also - I just started something that I wanted to do for looong time - trying to make my own levels for Doom II & Quake.

EDIT:
I finished Dusk, very good game. Very interesting gameplay design ideas. Started Cultic (chapter 1) - very good game, a little bit slow gameplay but it has this dark, heavy vibe which is very interesting.

 

[Firakks]

I rescently get into boomer shooters again. I just started chapter 3 of Dusk (great game!), finished Doom & Doom II last week and after that - going probably into prodeus. Coworker is laughing because I started all of that after buying 4k QLED monitor for my gaming pc

Also - I just started something that I wanted to do for looong time - trying to make my own levels for Doom II & Quake.

EDIT:
I finished Dusk, very good game. Very interesting gameplay design ideas. Started Cultic (chapter 1) - very good game, a little bit slow gameplay but it has this dark, heavy vibe which is very interesting.

I also discovered Dubibet not so long ago, but I already understand that this is one of the few sites where there is real benefit. Here they not only tell about ways of online leisure, but also help to navigate the offers, understand the conditions and avoid obvious mistakes. At first, I did not know at all how to choose a reliable platform https://dubibet-arabia.com/ for games, but thanks to their articles, I began to confidently navigate. And it is also nice that there are versions for mobile - you can look at a cafe or the subway and quickly see everything.

I recently completed Expedition 33. It's a really cool game in my opinion, the music is absolutely gorgeous. Now I'm playing the alpha version of Vindictus. I really liked the old MMO, I hope they'll make this reimagining even better.

 

[Belshazzar]

I'm at the stage in Expedition 33 where I'm fighting

Spoiler

the second Axon

and absolutely loving it.

 

[Onhell]

Been meaning to post for a while, but I've been too busy moving. At any rate, taking advantage of my long, somewhat forced, vacation to dive into my GamePass subscription.

I replayed Sea of Stars, because they released a new FREE DLC. I thought I'd be able to jump right in, since I had already finished the base game a while back. However, when I brought up my save file I apparently started a new game plus campaign and was basically right at the start. The cool thing was I had all my equipment and skills from the previous game so I was able to power through it very quickly. Also didn't have to worry about collectathons and the like. I only focused on doing all the side missions necessary for the "true" ending. Then on to the DLC.

General impression, not a fan. I hated the circus theme of it, the writing wasn't as strong and the new battle mechanics felt awkward at first. In the end I got used to it all, but never quite liked it. At any rate it was free so, meh. Also, one of the NPCs, Jerad the Constructionist, based on the Youtuber The Completionist, got patched out because of his supposed scandal that basically did him in. I read that they were going to replace him, all they did was a pallette swap, changed his name to "Bob" and gave him ZERO personality. Ugh.

Still recommend the base game though, Amazing game and great prequel to The Messenger.

Still working through Control. I read that the Ultimate PC and Xbox editions were going to get the Hideo Kujima mission previously only available on PS4. The PC version has it, the Xbox not yet. So I just played through it anyway. I'm at the Foundation close to the end.

Played both Max Payne games (3 does not exist). I liked them a lot, so glad I played them since so much of it makes it into the other Remedyverse games. The one that made me chuckle out loud was the Pink Flamingo which in control is an Object of Power. The first game was really cool, except for the nightmare sequence parts. Way to annoying. The second is as close to a perfect sequel as you can get. Everything from the first game only better.

My brother and I are almost done with an NHL24 playoff and NHL25 is now available on GamePass. So when we finish this one we'll jump onto that one. Mainly because 24 has an annoying bug that won't let you change lines if you're the home team before a game. This is particularly annoying as sometimes it decides to scratch your best players and you can't have them on your line-up.

Haven't finished Alan Wake II, mainly, because I've been super busy with the move and end up too tired to deal with relearning the control scheme and dealing with the hectic fights. Also, I "own" it, so I can get to it whenever. GamePass gets rid of shit all the time, so gotta get it while it's hot.

Speaking o hectic fights, decided to give Hollow Knight another go. I first played it 4 years ago, didn't make it too far, didn't "get it" nor liked it all that much. No idea why I decided to go back to it, but now, knowing what to expect, I fucking LOVE it. Something just clicked and I'm really enjoying it. It reminds of of Celeste in that it is tough but fair. Just learn the patterns and you're good. I stopped getting frustrated with certain boss fights, because I knew I just needed to learn the patterns, what at first seemed impossible or too fast eventually slowed down, became crystal clear and BAM, one more down. Currently debating whether to banish the Grimm Troupe or Complete the ritual. After that it's off to the main fight.

Downoloaded the OG Oblivion. My brother asked me why I didn't download the Remaster and I said, "one is 4 gigs, the other is 124 gigs." He just said, "oh." haha. The other reason is, I want to make a fair comparison. I haven't made it too far. I made it out of the cells and basement. Got my main quest and IMMEDIATELY went side questing LOL. I'm in a HUGE underground temple, forget the name, but made it pretty far before a zombie killed me. Haven't gotten back to it just yet. Much better than when a rat killed me in Daggerfall in the very first room.

Also working through Jedi Survivor. I am LOVING this game as well. I really like the first one even though it's nothing more than Uncharted meets Dark Souls IN SPACE! What I've been enjoying is that from the get go you ARE a Jedi. I hate how in franchises the character forgets everything they learned in their previous adventure and you have to relearn practically everything. Here you have a wide array of combat and force powers from the word GO, as well as traversing skills like the double jump and wall running from Prince of Persia. So I'm already pretty badass and I'm kicking stormtrooper butt fairly easily already. I like that. Of coure there are challenging fights, but I like that I'm not relearning double jumps and how to throw my light saber.

As I write this I'm downloading Warcraft, Warcraft II and Warcraft III since they are available on PC gamepass. I already have OG Diablo and Starcraft. wish they added Diablo II.

 

[Batman]

My only two problems with Jedi Survivor are that lightsaber felt week (seriously, two - three hits to kill stormtrooper?) and technical issues. i7 + 32GB RAM + GTX4070ti and blurry textures on epic settings? Wow. Thankfully there is graphic mod that fix that and game looks like in cutscenes.

 

[Onhell]

My only two problems with Jedi Survivor are that lightsaber felt week (seriously, two - three hits to kill stormtrooper?) and technical issues. i7 + 32GB RAM + GTX4070ti and blurry textures on epic settings? Wow. Thankfully there is graphic mod that fix that and game looks like in cutscenes.

I've been reading/watching plenty of reviews and apparently shipped broken and had loads of technical issues. However, it's been 2 years or so and it's been patched.

As for the light saber, eh. It's a game. A friend of mine says it's never felt good. It's a fucking laser sword and in the movies can cut down almost anything, but, as you said, in a game it can't cut down a stormtrooper unless you surprise him?

I'm liking it so far. I'm doing all the bounties and rumors as they pop up trying to clear as many as possible. I had seven health canisters and quite a bit of life before my first really big fight. Just took down teh Gorocco Matriarch fairly easily.

 

[Onhell]

Finished Hollow Knight, the final fight was a bit of a let down, thought it would take me longer and I dispatched him on the second try. Thought I had unlocked the true ending, but nope, no fighting Radiance for me, don't know if I needed to start a new game plus, or what, But wasn't about to do that. Trying to get through as many Game Pass games as I can before going back to work in August.

Finished Jedi: Survivor. Really liked it. Again, due to time I didn't do all the collectathons, but enough to feel I could leave it be. Really enjoyed it, I heard it's supposed to be a trilogy and I hope it is, this would be it's "Empire Strikes Back" darker middle episode. I love how, like with Kotor, they explore and expand the whole lore of the force and light/dark greyish angles of it.

I'm about to Finish South of Midnight. At it's core it is a Cajun Alice in Wonderland. Hazel (you) lost her mamma in a flood and sets out to look for her, in exploring the bayou she meets fantastical creatures and monsters. The game play is simple yet very familiar. The plataforming is very much uncharted, the wall running is Prince of Persia, fights are challenging, but nothing like the previous to games. I've been playing it on normal difficulty and get through most fights on the first try, you have a force pull, force push, double jump and glide. Sound familiar? Well, yup, most games in the last decade. No detective/eagle/instincts vision, but you do get a ghostly trail to show you where to go similar to when you follow a scent in Witcher 3.

The soundtrack is AMAZING. filled with Jazz, Spirituals, and other southern music i can't really put into a genre, because I don't know enough to really call it blues or just Bayou Banjo Goodness. The songs and the soundtrack are great and WHEN they play really hits home. The art style is also interesting, going for a quasi-handdrawn aesthetic. HIGHLY recommend it if your looking for something off the beaten path.

 

[Batman]

I've been reading/watching plenty of reviews and apparently shipped broken and had loads of technical issues. However, it's been 2 years or so and it's been patched.

Nope, I had these problems like month ago Either way - great game, can't wait for third part.

I've hear a lot about South of Midnight, must try but first I must finish dredge and Tony Hawk 3+4 (loved them back in a high school).

 

[Vaenyr]

Finished Hollow Knight, the final fight was a bit of a let down, thought it would take me longer and I dispatched him on the second try. Thought I had unlocked the true ending, but nope, no fighting Radiance for me, don't know if I needed to start a new game plus, or what, But wasn't about to do that. Trying to get through as many Game Pass games as I can before going back to work in August.

You need to have gathered at least 1800 essence to get the awoken dream nail, with which you can do the white palace to get the required item (to get the next required item). You're not locked out and can still do it, but depending on how much essence you have it could be quite a grind.

 

[JudasMyGuide]

Finished Lies of P: Overture and it made the excellent game even excellenter. Totally worth it, I name LoP a honorary from game. I literally have to force myself to go playing something else as well, because I can't be fucking around with fucking Pinocchio so much all the time, lol.

I've finally taken up Expedition 33 and I think it's great - the visual design, the narrative and screenplay, the combat (it's really fun, more than any turn-based combat should be) and I think it is probably going to (deservedly) win GOTY 2025. Still, to me it kinda feels like a single-playthrough game, I'm not sure how many times will I return to it after I finish it.

Decided to give Baldur's Gate 3 another try, this time with buying the PC version as well, so I can cross-play. I still like it and I still feel the "...but...", but we'll see.

I've bought Elden Ring again, this time for PC (it was on sale) and I'm really trying to hold myself not to jump into it again.

Stuck in Eternal Doom DLC 1, the Blood Swamp level I can't seem to beat on Nightmare. Probably the biggest case of being stuck in a game in recent memory for me.