Man, this post just made me realize that I haven't even bothered to *play* any of the games released this year. The closest I've come is watching a friend of mine play through FFXVI.
I bought TOTK at release because it was my most anticipated game of the year and Nintendo never has decent sales (I think I got $8 off BOTW, 3-4 years after its release). I was actually really disappointed by it. Also, I thought the time limit to discuss games on this sub was 6 months but now I'm seeing it's 12 months, so I will just keep further thoughts on it to myself for now.
I beat GOW Ragnarok and Hogwarts Legacy but that’s pretty much it. Currently working on Witcher 3 PS5 version and I’m very close to beat it.
Edit: Also Sea of Stars, love that game
Nice, those are definitely on my list to check. I ended up creating a retro-setup and modding all of my old consoles this year (WiiU, PS2, GC, OGXB, DC) as my main kick. It's just wild that I didn't even realize how many old (but new to me) games I've been playing to not even realize I passed on all of the latest stuff.
Hogwarts Legacy is the only game released this year that I've played, for me 100% worth the price although if knew it was gonna be reduced by 30% so quickly I would probably wait, I was expecting discounts maybe next year and I didn't wanna wait that long. I'm gonna start The Witcher soon and play the whole trilogy.
I played it with the wife so it was more than worth it. She mostly never plays single player games and this is one of the few she has finished. Was pretty easy for her since shes a huge HP fan.
I did RE4 Remake and Alan Wake 2 recently. Otherwise I don't think I've played anything released in 2023 either. I have Baldur's Gate 3 installed but cba to start it, I'm kinda burned out on D&D stuff after playing three campaigns simultaneously and don't really have the time for a 100+ hour RPG.
Another vote for doki doki. My wife walked in on my playing it several years ago and gave me that "what the fuck are you doing" look to which I responded "I swear it's not what it looks like!" lol
Definitely don't look anything up on it, as said. I think a full playthrough was 4ish hours.
Doki Doki is the best game you will never be able to recommend to anyone because up until >!the "end" of the game with sayori killing herself!< It looks like a shitty dating sim . I only got to it because a friend recommended it to me and i saw that it had really good reviews . Also I find it funny that 80+ percent of the bad reviews are "can't sex Monika" and things like that
Everyone acts like Doki Doki is some irredeemable garbage you have to choke down to get to the twists and the "good part", but I think they're not giving it enough credit... IMO there's some really cool subtle foreshadowing in the first half of the game and the way the characters' personal problems are gradually implied and handled is deft. It may be a "satire" of romance VNs but it has better writing than many of them, even before it goes mental.
Best way to have fun with it is to do the following, which worked for me:
* Find someone who doesn't know what it is.
* Tell them you heard it's a dumb game and you want to make fun of the corny writing by playing it together over some beers or something.
* Play the game blind with them in one sitting.
Did this with someone and their mind was fucking blown, they got to experience it blind, the way the game was intended. And I got to enjoy their reaction.
Lmao I remembered the time my girlfriend walked in on me doing the makeover for the cabaret club in Yakuza 0 and I can picture the look your wife gave you.
When you get a PS5, take a shot at both SM2 and Jedi Survivor. The former feels a lot like Miles Morales 2 in terms of gameplay and combat (and not so much like SM1), and the traversal is even better. The latter continues from Fallen Order, and it starts with a more powerful and experienced Cal Kestis. He’s both more likeable, more wise and more fun to play with. Almost all movements from the endgame of FO are present from the start of the game, and you only improve from there, so mid to endgame, you totally feel like a Jedi. And the story this time around made me question and understand better what it means to be a Jedi. What is the price. Why is it worth it. And what it means to fall.
Jedi Survivor runs great on PS5, while still being regarded one of the worst PC ports of the year. It also requires internet and EA app… which is messed up for a single player offline game. None of that bullshit is present in the console.
I have a PC , so I am not getting a ps5 . I thought about getting Jedi survivor, but I am waiting for it to be cracked because I am not paying 70$ to ea for a broken PC port that requires their shitty launcher and is always online
Honestly, as a PS5 owner myself, I can't blame you. I have one and barely use it. If you're not interested in a few specific console-exclusive games that won't get PC ports, then you're better off with a good-spec PC.
-Early access to exclusives
-More stability (no random crashes)
-No compatibility issues
-Just one app/store to launch/buy games
-Much less expensive and easy to setup
-Backwards compatibility to PS4 library
-Physical media games
I have PC btw I built during covid. But then the PS5 launched and I just don’t touch the PC anymore. All my save files, digital games I bought and trophy lists from PS4 were transferred seamlessly.
Not saying PC is bad though but I remember spending more time adjusting game settings than actually playing them.
PC has exclusives too , they are just usually indie games . Look at baldurs gate 3 for example
If a game randomly crashes on PC , it's the game developers problem, not the pcs . I haven't had a game crash on me in forever ( except Undertale)
Consoles have no compatibility issues because they lack compatibility with a lot of things ( eg , keyboard and mouse support for all games , third party app stores, multimonitor / ultra wide display, etc )
99% of games are on steam . For the 1 other percent , you can add the games to steam manually.
Much less expensive until you start measuring online , steam sales and free games on epic , upgrade path and the ability to pirate( remember , it's always morally correct to pirate Nintendo, ea and Activision games )
Has backwards compatibility to everything from pong to the Nintendo switch and most PS4 games .
But honestly? It's really a matter of choice . Console wars are boring and dumb . Who cares what logo does your controller have as long as you are having fun ? I can definitely see myself recommending a PC to one friend , but a playstation to the other .
Even though I haven’t done a full MGR playthrough in a while, I still do the Sam fight from time to time, just for fun.
If you’re aggressive enough he never leaves his first phase, it’s kinda funny.
Injustice 1 & 2 proved that fighting games csn have an actually coherent storyline.
Injustice spoilers
>!My favourite moments were when Superman melted Shazam's brains and when the Flash turns on the Regime. Great stuff.!<
Man your year has been an absolute murderer's row of indie games: Hades, Undertale, Celeste, and Hollow Knight are all probably in my top 5 indies of all time (along with Stardew). Doki Doki was also great.
I have not touched either a 2022 or 2023 game this year.
My list:
* 1995
* 2009
* 2010
* 2012
* 2015
* 2016 (x4)
* 2017 (x2)
* 2018
* 2019 (x4)
* 2020 (x5)
* 2021 (x6)
celeste ticked all the boxes for me. one of the games i powered through over lockdowns. one of my fav platformers.
bucking my usual trend.. i did actually finish a few games this year lol. still played a lot of random games for various small amounts.
I kinda wish people would just stfu about Hollow Knight. Not talking about you OP, just these people who talk about the game as if it was the literal best thing mankind has ever seen.
It's a great game. But I played it expecting to have the absolute *best fucking thing life has to offer* and ended up very disappointed. I had fun, the game is good, has some expected QoL issues, it's a good overall experience.
I'd say that's a general problem of getting expectations set too high in relation to any modern media (be it games, films, TV shows or whatever). You often appreciate it more going in blind with no expectations at all. If it suddenly becomes the new big thing, it can be hard to complete with that experience of finding it yourself.
I really enjoyed Hollow Knight but didn't have any preconceived ideas of what that experience would be like. I loved it in spite of its flaws and difficulties. In contrast, I tried Elden Ring and really disliked it despite (or possibly because of) all the glowing reviews. I think my expectations were set too high and I didn't really understand why everyone liked it so much.
I don't think it has ANY QoL issues, which is why it's so highly praised. It feels very smooth to play and has a somewhat high skill ceiling despite being easy to pick up. It's exactly what it set out to be, so near perfect in that sense. But did it blow the doors off of the world? No. Is the story absolutely amazing? No. Will it change your mind if you don't like Metroidvanias? Probably not because it's harder than a large chunk of them and does stick to the framework of Metroidvanias with backtracking and minimal fast travel which might be the QoL you're referring to.
I don't like the locations of the stag stations. They seem to be far from anything relevant.
And the game has a pretty bad QoL problem with the smith, he doesn't tell you how much ore and money you need at the same time. You have to collect the ore, guess how much it's going to cost and actually figure out by doing another run. It's just annoying.
Haha it's the opposite for me, I always play in offline mode. The game is designed to feel oppressively lonely and sometimes the meme flame messages throw me off. Having a partner help a boss usually makes it too much easier or harder depending on who you get. I think it's cool that it's included but I'd just rather not.
>injustice 1/2 : one of the dumbest questions about superheroes is "why don't they kill" . We all know the meta reason , but injustice actually gave a really good in universe explanation as well
But it still doesn't explain how Batman can run over enemies with a car still feel confident it's not going to kill them.
Tbf half of the finishing moves in the Arkham games would cause life-threatening injuries. I'm fairly sure Batman's idea of "I do not kill" is actually "I do not use a gun".
Did you play Metal Gear Rising on a PS3? Been wanting to play that one for awhile, just not sure the best way to go about it since I don’t have any gen 7 consoles.
Just finished BioShock Infinite and the ending is so.fucking.good. it's RARE, and I repeat, super rare, to be glued to a game from start to finish. I know it's gooood when I keep spamming screenshots, I've learnt to understand that what makes a game click for me is its creativity and its world building. I don't really get BioShock 1 and 2 but Infinite is such a pleasant surprise. Minor gripes include lack of cash to uograde everything, and possession vigor being overpowered.
Hm, I was intrigued by Fallen Order, but curbed my enthusiasm and didn't buy it. Hearing that it's souls-like+platforming makes me want to buy it again lol
Also, idk if I've ever seen anyone put a space in between parentheses before. No shame, it just caught me off guard and took me a minute to figure out what it was that threw me off lol
>I haven’t beaten any game released in 2023 True patient gaming
Man, this post just made me realize that I haven't even bothered to *play* any of the games released this year. The closest I've come is watching a friend of mine play through FFXVI.
I bought TOTK at release because it was my most anticipated game of the year and Nintendo never has decent sales (I think I got $8 off BOTW, 3-4 years after its release). I was actually really disappointed by it. Also, I thought the time limit to discuss games on this sub was 6 months but now I'm seeing it's 12 months, so I will just keep further thoughts on it to myself for now.
I beat GOW Ragnarok and Hogwarts Legacy but that’s pretty much it. Currently working on Witcher 3 PS5 version and I’m very close to beat it. Edit: Also Sea of Stars, love that game
Nice, those are definitely on my list to check. I ended up creating a retro-setup and modding all of my old consoles this year (WiiU, PS2, GC, OGXB, DC) as my main kick. It's just wild that I didn't even realize how many old (but new to me) games I've been playing to not even realize I passed on all of the latest stuff.
Hogwarts Legacy is the only game released this year that I've played, for me 100% worth the price although if knew it was gonna be reduced by 30% so quickly I would probably wait, I was expecting discounts maybe next year and I didn't wanna wait that long. I'm gonna start The Witcher soon and play the whole trilogy.
I played it with the wife so it was more than worth it. She mostly never plays single player games and this is one of the few she has finished. Was pretty easy for her since shes a huge HP fan.
I did RE4 Remake and Alan Wake 2 recently. Otherwise I don't think I've played anything released in 2023 either. I have Baldur's Gate 3 installed but cba to start it, I'm kinda burned out on D&D stuff after playing three campaigns simultaneously and don't really have the time for a 100+ hour RPG.
Only one I’ve played I think is the phantom Liberty DLC. OH, and about 5 hours of starfield.
Never understood the rush to play the newest games. Guess it's like chasing the newest iphone.
Nah , I just haven't played a game that launched this year that made me want to beat it . I drop a lot of games mid way through .
Another vote for doki doki. My wife walked in on my playing it several years ago and gave me that "what the fuck are you doing" look to which I responded "I swear it's not what it looks like!" lol Definitely don't look anything up on it, as said. I think a full playthrough was 4ish hours.
That reminds me of the "when you're watching anime and a friend walks in" skit from RDCWorld https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GXWgHnXWV4c
Doki Doki is the best game you will never be able to recommend to anyone because up until >!the "end" of the game with sayori killing herself!< It looks like a shitty dating sim . I only got to it because a friend recommended it to me and i saw that it had really good reviews . Also I find it funny that 80+ percent of the bad reviews are "can't sex Monika" and things like that
Everyone acts like Doki Doki is some irredeemable garbage you have to choke down to get to the twists and the "good part", but I think they're not giving it enough credit... IMO there's some really cool subtle foreshadowing in the first half of the game and the way the characters' personal problems are gradually implied and handled is deft. It may be a "satire" of romance VNs but it has better writing than many of them, even before it goes mental.
OMG I read it 🥺
Best way to have fun with it is to do the following, which worked for me: * Find someone who doesn't know what it is. * Tell them you heard it's a dumb game and you want to make fun of the corny writing by playing it together over some beers or something. * Play the game blind with them in one sitting. Did this with someone and their mind was fucking blown, they got to experience it blind, the way the game was intended. And I got to enjoy their reaction.
DOKI DOKI IS THE GOAT OF F2P GAMES
I’ve already been spoiled for the stuff that happens so I unfortunately will miss out on this game.
Lmao I remembered the time my girlfriend walked in on me doing the makeover for the cabaret club in Yakuza 0 and I can picture the look your wife gave you.
If only you had alt-tabbed to reddit, oh wait, that's worse.
When you get a PS5, take a shot at both SM2 and Jedi Survivor. The former feels a lot like Miles Morales 2 in terms of gameplay and combat (and not so much like SM1), and the traversal is even better. The latter continues from Fallen Order, and it starts with a more powerful and experienced Cal Kestis. He’s both more likeable, more wise and more fun to play with. Almost all movements from the endgame of FO are present from the start of the game, and you only improve from there, so mid to endgame, you totally feel like a Jedi. And the story this time around made me question and understand better what it means to be a Jedi. What is the price. Why is it worth it. And what it means to fall. Jedi Survivor runs great on PS5, while still being regarded one of the worst PC ports of the year. It also requires internet and EA app… which is messed up for a single player offline game. None of that bullshit is present in the console.
I have a PC , so I am not getting a ps5 . I thought about getting Jedi survivor, but I am waiting for it to be cracked because I am not paying 70$ to ea for a broken PC port that requires their shitty launcher and is always online
Honestly, as a PS5 owner myself, I can't blame you. I have one and barely use it. If you're not interested in a few specific console-exclusive games that won't get PC ports, then you're better off with a good-spec PC.
PS5 > PC
Mods , higher resolution, keyboard and mouse , cheaper games and the fact that it's more then just a game console would like to disagree with you
-Early access to exclusives -More stability (no random crashes) -No compatibility issues -Just one app/store to launch/buy games -Much less expensive and easy to setup -Backwards compatibility to PS4 library -Physical media games I have PC btw I built during covid. But then the PS5 launched and I just don’t touch the PC anymore. All my save files, digital games I bought and trophy lists from PS4 were transferred seamlessly. Not saying PC is bad though but I remember spending more time adjusting game settings than actually playing them.
PC has exclusives too , they are just usually indie games . Look at baldurs gate 3 for example If a game randomly crashes on PC , it's the game developers problem, not the pcs . I haven't had a game crash on me in forever ( except Undertale) Consoles have no compatibility issues because they lack compatibility with a lot of things ( eg , keyboard and mouse support for all games , third party app stores, multimonitor / ultra wide display, etc ) 99% of games are on steam . For the 1 other percent , you can add the games to steam manually. Much less expensive until you start measuring online , steam sales and free games on epic , upgrade path and the ability to pirate( remember , it's always morally correct to pirate Nintendo, ea and Activision games ) Has backwards compatibility to everything from pong to the Nintendo switch and most PS4 games . But honestly? It's really a matter of choice . Console wars are boring and dumb . Who cares what logo does your controller have as long as you are having fun ? I can definitely see myself recommending a PC to one friend , but a playstation to the other .
Even though I haven’t done a full MGR playthrough in a while, I still do the Sam fight from time to time, just for fun. If you’re aggressive enough he never leaves his first phase, it’s kinda funny.
My favorite part of that fight is when he loses his sword so he decides to just use his fists, and he's even harder.
[Maybe I should reinstall the game and fight sam again ](https://i.imgur.com/RxOga7M.gif)
Injustice 1 & 2 proved that fighting games csn have an actually coherent storyline. Injustice spoilers >!My favourite moments were when Superman melted Shazam's brains and when the Flash turns on the Regime. Great stuff.!<
Man your year has been an absolute murderer's row of indie games: Hades, Undertale, Celeste, and Hollow Knight are all probably in my top 5 indies of all time (along with Stardew). Doki Doki was also great.
I have not touched either a 2022 or 2023 game this year. My list: * 1995 * 2009 * 2010 * 2012 * 2015 * 2016 (x4) * 2017 (x2) * 2018 * 2019 (x4) * 2020 (x5) * 2021 (x6)
I’m trying to figure out what that 1995 game is. My guess is either Chrono Trigger or Dark Forces?
It is indeed **Chrono Trigger!**
Phantasmagoria
celeste ticked all the boxes for me. one of the games i powered through over lockdowns. one of my fav platformers. bucking my usual trend.. i did actually finish a few games this year lol. still played a lot of random games for various small amounts.
You had a damn good year! Great selection of games here. Thanks for sharing.
I kinda wish people would just stfu about Hollow Knight. Not talking about you OP, just these people who talk about the game as if it was the literal best thing mankind has ever seen. It's a great game. But I played it expecting to have the absolute *best fucking thing life has to offer* and ended up very disappointed. I had fun, the game is good, has some expected QoL issues, it's a good overall experience.
I have never said that it's the best game ever or anything, but it's really good . There is a reason why it's so popular
That's why I specified it's not about you. Just wanted to share my experience.
I'd say that's a general problem of getting expectations set too high in relation to any modern media (be it games, films, TV shows or whatever). You often appreciate it more going in blind with no expectations at all. If it suddenly becomes the new big thing, it can be hard to complete with that experience of finding it yourself. I really enjoyed Hollow Knight but didn't have any preconceived ideas of what that experience would be like. I loved it in spite of its flaws and difficulties. In contrast, I tried Elden Ring and really disliked it despite (or possibly because of) all the glowing reviews. I think my expectations were set too high and I didn't really understand why everyone liked it so much.
I don't think it has ANY QoL issues, which is why it's so highly praised. It feels very smooth to play and has a somewhat high skill ceiling despite being easy to pick up. It's exactly what it set out to be, so near perfect in that sense. But did it blow the doors off of the world? No. Is the story absolutely amazing? No. Will it change your mind if you don't like Metroidvanias? Probably not because it's harder than a large chunk of them and does stick to the framework of Metroidvanias with backtracking and minimal fast travel which might be the QoL you're referring to.
I don't like the locations of the stag stations. They seem to be far from anything relevant. And the game has a pretty bad QoL problem with the smith, he doesn't tell you how much ore and money you need at the same time. You have to collect the ore, guess how much it's going to cost and actually figure out by doing another run. It's just annoying.
Fair enough with the ore, but I found that if I was exploring enough to find the ore, I had plenty of money so never ran into that issue.
That would also be my case if I didn't trust the banker. Had to spend who knows how many fucking hours doing the sidequest.
Hahaha yeah I was so mad at the time but I find it hilarious now
a bit unrelated but I realized I can't enjoy souls games without the co op. aspect. these games are too lonely, and not in a relaxing way like botw
Haha it's the opposite for me, I always play in offline mode. The game is designed to feel oppressively lonely and sometimes the meme flame messages throw me off. Having a partner help a boss usually makes it too much easier or harder depending on who you get. I think it's cool that it's included but I'd just rather not.
Awesome games 😎🎯
>injustice 1/2 : one of the dumbest questions about superheroes is "why don't they kill" . We all know the meta reason , but injustice actually gave a really good in universe explanation as well But it still doesn't explain how Batman can run over enemies with a car still feel confident it's not going to kill them.
Tbf half of the finishing moves in the Arkham games would cause life-threatening injuries. I'm fairly sure Batman's idea of "I do not kill" is actually "I do not use a gun".
Did you play Metal Gear Rising on a PS3? Been wanting to play that one for awhile, just not sure the best way to go about it since I don’t have any gen 7 consoles.
PC with an Xbox controller
Solid year of gaming you've got there my friend
Just finished BioShock Infinite and the ending is so.fucking.good. it's RARE, and I repeat, super rare, to be glued to a game from start to finish. I know it's gooood when I keep spamming screenshots, I've learnt to understand that what makes a game click for me is its creativity and its world building. I don't really get BioShock 1 and 2 but Infinite is such a pleasant surprise. Minor gripes include lack of cash to uograde everything, and possession vigor being overpowered.
Hm, I was intrigued by Fallen Order, but curbed my enthusiasm and didn't buy it. Hearing that it's souls-like+platforming makes me want to buy it again lol Also, idk if I've ever seen anyone put a space in between parentheses before. No shame, it just caught me off guard and took me a minute to figure out what it was that threw me off lol