1. #22891
    Legendary God of Pirates Nik Hasta's Avatar
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    I am currently replaying through Dark Souls 2 because the Elden Ring trailer gave me the Soulsbourne itch once more.

    Those games are lot of fun. Hard and sometimes bullshit [looking at you Frigid Outskirts of Eleum Loyce] but really entertaining.
    Last edited by Nik Hasta; 06-23-2021 at 10:29 AM.

  2. #22892
    The Weeping Mod Sharpandpointies's Avatar
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    I'm juuuuust finishing off Mass Effect II for the Nth time. Mass Effect Legendary really got me back into those games (my wife as well). I expect we'll go back to the multiplayer (again) when we finish III.
    Why are we here?

    "Superboy Prime (the yelling guy if he needs clarification)..." - Postmania
    "...dropping an orca whale made of fire on your enemies is a pretty strong opening move." - Nik
    "Why throw punches when you can be making everyone around you sterile mutant corpses?" - Pendaran, regarding Dr. Fate

  3. #22893

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    Quote Originally Posted by Sharpandpointies View Post
    I'm juuuuust finishing off Mass Effect II for the Nth time. Mass Effect Legendary really got me back into those games (my wife as well). I expect we'll go back to the multiplayer (again) when we finish III.
    How's Legendary? I've heard they made the character models look worse somehow, but I've only seen screenshots rather than actual footage.

  4. #22894
    The Weeping Mod Sharpandpointies's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Siriel View Post
    How's Legendary? I've heard they made the character models look worse somehow, but I've only seen screenshots rather than actual footage.
    In order -

    1. Gameplay for Mass Effect 1 is MASSIVELY improved. The HUD is much more like Mass Effect's 2 and 3, the weapons have been drastically modified to have a big variation in rates of fire, handling, damage, etc, and they hit more like in a MEII/III shooter (also, headshot bonus! Which didn't exist in the original). Graphics dramatically improved. Character creation options improved (though they changed my favorite hair so much I needed to give Shepard a different 'do). Thresher Maws more difficult to kill (and quite hard to kill outside of the vehicle, depriving me of a big boost in Exp). Paragon/Renegade exploits...Unchanged. ^_^ Can still grossly boost paragon and renegade by going to the right places early-ish in the game (Novaria, or for Paragon only, that silly side mission of 'find the pyjak ('monkey' in first game) that stole the key' for unlimited paragon).

    2. Not big changes in gameplay, but some tweaks in it. Graphics definitely improved. All DLC weapons/armor now must be 'found' or purchased like the normal weapons (ie, they're scattered throughout the game - no more starting with the geth plasma shotty). Gameplay feels better to me, smoother. Paragon/Renegade Chapter One Exploit...unchanged, so if one has a lot of time on one's hands, can still boost P and R super-early in game. Currently they need to patch something - their last patch actually broke something in the game, and now we can't choose a Loyalty Power for Shepard to use any more. Annoying; I want my Reave or Armor Piercing rounds.

    3. Haven't arrived here, yet. But soon. Have finished II, just wrapping it up by post-gaming Arrival, then I'll start III when my wife catches up (she plays through more leisurely). As I understand there is very little changed in III beyond the graphics being tweaked. And lack of a multiplayer. Which is fine, I don't want to start over on that anyway and there are still a whole lot of people playing ME3MP.

    I know what you mean about the characters in Legendary looking bleagh - I've seen the comparison pictures - but I'm starting to think those are cherry-picked screen-shots. Thus far I've not really encountered anything that has seriously put me off. Maybe when I hit ME III I'll arrive at something I don't like, but...nope, enjoying it. I figure yeah, those shots ARE from the game, but only for some characters and when people are moving around, stuff is happening, etc, it's harder to notice.

    I guess I'll see with III.

    Maybe Conrad Verner looks dorkier, but that's possibly intended. Edit: Also, he STILL freaking accuses you of shoving a gun in his face, even if you didn't, despite Bioware saying 'We fixed that for this edition!'

    One complaint - the silly truck in ME 1 is more easy to control. I rather enjoyed driving around in nausea-inducing bounces, it's not quite so exaggerated any more. But I imagine most people will consider this a bonus. ^_^

    In all, I'm really happy with it. I've always intended to play it again, and with the changes in the first game it felt even more new after my time off. Had oodles of fun, and was reminded of some stuff that could be of value to my tabletop RPG.
    Last edited by Sharpandpointies; 06-23-2021 at 11:18 AM.
    Why are we here?

    "Superboy Prime (the yelling guy if he needs clarification)..." - Postmania
    "...dropping an orca whale made of fire on your enemies is a pretty strong opening move." - Nik
    "Why throw punches when you can be making everyone around you sterile mutant corpses?" - Pendaran, regarding Dr. Fate

  5. #22895

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    I can't believe they fixed the Mako, that was the best of the game, driving around in the most unwieldy vehicle known to human history. Otherwise that sounds like a lot of fun, maybe I'll buy it someday when I have a bit more free time to spend in videogames again. I'd heard some bad things about it so glad to hear it was mostly the internet blowing things out of proportions as usual.

    What's that about a tabletop RPG?

  6. #22896
    Reborn Samurai Len Ikari145's Avatar
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    Ichigo: What even *are* you?!

    Kenpachi: Some say my mother was a train. Some say that I'm a rejected Godzilla monster too strong for the series canon. But everyone says: I'M THE KEEEEENPACHIIIIII!!!!

  7. #22897
    nice to meet ya! master of read's Avatar
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    keep your bobas and jangos.

    for me, the baddest bounty hunter in the galaxy.

  8. #22898
    nice to meet ya! master of read's Avatar
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    finally got time to play shadows of brimstone.

    for those who don't know, shadows of brimstone is a dungeon crawler RPG board game. it's got a lot of components and the setting is damn good.

    just played with my indian tracker and wandering samurai. we fought some oni and ninja and we came out ok. can't wait until i play again.

  9. #22899
    Extraordinary Member Iron_Twister's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by master of read View Post
    finally got time to play shadows of brimstone.

    for those who don't know, shadows of brimstone is a dungeon crawler RPG board game. it's got a lot of components and the setting is damn good.

    just played with my indian tracker and wandering samurai. we fought some oni and ninja and we came out ok. can't wait until i play again.
    Nice.

    I'm not sure why certain role playing games with a character creation really gets my narrative functions on overdrive. But certainly having fun doing this with Battletech which I just bought recently.

    Edward "Ironwood" Longdick, commander of the mercenary outfit known as Ironwood's Revengers be stomping the battlefield in his giant mechs of doom.

  10. #22900
    nice to meet ya! master of read's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Iron_Twister View Post
    Nice.

    I'm not sure why certain role playing games with a character creation really gets my narrative functions on overdrive. But certainly having fun doing this with Battletech which I just bought recently.

    Edward "Ironwood" Longdick, commander of the mercenary outfit known as Ironwood's Revengers be stomping the battlefield in his giant mechs of doom.
    sounds awesome.

    the character creation in SOB isn't very deep. all you can do is pick a character, give them a name and come up with a bit of a backstory. although, since there is a upgrade tree, there is a lot of ablities you can give your character and since it caps at level 8, you won't be able to get every upgrade in the game. so it encourages replay.

  11. #22901
    Extraordinary Member Iron_Twister's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by master of read View Post
    sounds awesome.

    the character creation in SOB isn't very deep. all you can do is pick a character, give them a name and come up with a bit of a backstory. although, since there is a upgrade tree, there is a lot of ablities you can give your character and since it caps at level 8, you won't be able to get every upgrade in the game. so it encourages replay.
    That is neat. Ugh, I better save up on cash should anything looks interesting goes on sale.

  12. #22902
    nice to meet ya! master of read's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Iron_Twister View Post
    That is neat. Ugh, I better save up on cash should anything looks interesting goes on sale.
    i'd cop it if you can. minigaming has the core sets on sale and the extra stuff is on there too: extra cards, extra heroes, more enemies etc. the enemies are great too. you can get ninjas, mutated old west gangs, temple dogs, swamp lizard people, and raidens. yes. one of the enemies packs is you fighting a bunch of raidens from MK.

    the best ones to get are the boss. here's one i bought the other day.


  13. #22903
    Legendary God of Pirates Nik Hasta's Avatar
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    Fire Force pulling precisely zero punches.

    Great stuff.

  14. #22904

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    My Forum check it out

    Bruceleegreyhulk's RPG & Story Forum

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  15. #22905
    The Weeping Mod Sharpandpointies's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Siriel View Post
    I can't believe they fixed the Mako, that was the best of the game, driving around in the most unwieldy vehicle known to human history. Otherwise that sounds like a lot of fun, maybe I'll buy it someday when I have a bit more free time to spend in videogames again. I'd heard some bad things about it so glad to hear it was mostly the internet blowing things out of proportions as usual.
    I think people are possibly gun-shy after Andromeda. Hopefully ME IV will be better.

    But yeah, I'm highly disappointed in the new Mako. Also, they nerfed the jump-jets on it; silly things can no longer boost you over Thresher Maw hork.

    All-told, I feel it's a really big improvement, especially Mass Effect I's gameplay.

    What's that about a tabletop RPG?
    It's somewhat on hold right now (thank you, Covid), but for the past decade I've been hopping back and forth between Anima games and a Mass Effect game with my tabletop group. The Mass Effect game uses a modified version of Battlelords in the 23rd Century (Editions 6 and 7 mixed - I started with 6, then 7 came out, I bought the kickstarter and holy cow have they ever jacked that game up...wish I had started with 7, but the game is built on a foundation of 6, now), and takes place some 175 years after the Reaper War. I'm incorporating elements from Mass Effect history, mostly focused on the Protheans, their somewhat appalling empire, and the crap they got up to (messing around with the Rachni, for example, to make bioweapons - this is basically the big thing that has come back to bite everyone on the ass, though another of the Prothean attempts to escape the Reapers has, until now, been the important issue), as well as exploring what sort of fallout came of the changes due to the Reaper War (tech that is no longer 100% dependent on Reaper tech, changes in various societies, new larger organizations, the splintering of Cerberus, etc).

    175 years is a long time for human society, and even longer for Salarian, but for the Asari and the Krogan, it's 'last year'.

    Anyway, the tech is different from Mass Effect in a lot of ways, but I've incorporated enough of the old tech and based enough of the new tech on the Mass Effect stuff that my players say it has the same feeling. The rule system works well (though large fights will bog things down), and everyone is already pretty familiar with the Mass Effect universe. Grand old time.

    The storylines and arcs of the game mimic the video games. The first big arc had everyone working for the Union (an alliance between the Humans, Salarians, Turians, and Volus, with kind of a 'friendly' relationship with the Krogan territories) as military personnel. That storyline ended with all kinds of terrible crap going down on Illium, literally tens of thousands of people dead (through no fault of the players, but blamed on them), and the players thrown in jail.

    The second arc (where we are now) had the players about to basically get sacrificed for political reasons (also due to other groups that have wormed their way into the Union and started corrupting it from the inside), only to be busted out by Orpheus, a splinter group of Cerberus (yes, still around despite what happened in the Reaper War - they've just been keeping their heads down until the last 10-15 years). Currently they're working WITH Orpheus - they've decided that while Orpheus is mostly benign, they still don't want to be tied to them - and investigating the Prothean Threat as well as 'What ever happened to the Quarians and the Geth?'. Orpheus is only too happy to provide them with a ship and equipment, because these people have already proven They Get **** Done™.

    It's more complicated than that - there are factions, Reaper remnants, and all kinds of side stories going on - but that's the gist.

    So...yeah, some similarities in themes between this game and ME I and II, which the players have noted and find appealing.

    I'd say we've been playing this campaign for about...taking out the time off to play Anima, four to five years? Good for a few more, as we're sort of approaching the climax of the second arc (dealing with the Prothean rift-gate in Geth/Quarian space), and will after that begin the final, long story arc which corresponds to the Mass Effect III game.

    ...probably TMI, but I don't often get a chance to talk about this. ^_^
    Last edited by Sharpandpointies; 06-24-2021 at 09:48 AM.
    Why are we here?

    "Superboy Prime (the yelling guy if he needs clarification)..." - Postmania
    "...dropping an orca whale made of fire on your enemies is a pretty strong opening move." - Nik
    "Why throw punches when you can be making everyone around you sterile mutant corpses?" - Pendaran, regarding Dr. Fate

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