Running video games (and consoles) thread

Demon Souls is also on my list as I've never played it. I didn't realize there was an online element to it, though, and that kind of turns me off. I don't like dealing with others too much in my gaming! Especially if I'm new and don't know what I am doing. We'll see if I ever give it a go.

 

Thanks for the tips ... Really the only games I'm worried about transferring over to the PS5 from the PS4 is my NHL 20 and PGA2K21 files, along with the FFVII remake since the second part of that is supposed to drop in June. Can't wait to dive into the new FIFA game.

 

At least in the first game, the online element was really mild - Namely, that players could write messages for you to discover. There wasn't direct interaction. Not sure if they changed it for the sequel.

 

I think it should be fine. Everything I've done has been seamless. If worse comes to worst it you would still have it on your PS4.

 

Speaking of the FFVII remake, that's the PS Plus freebie this month. I want to get it, but probably need to delete a couple of games to fit it.

 

Is anyone else playing Valheim? New PC survival game on Steam. Twenty bucks for the early access version. Not the usual buggy beta. Very stable and well designed. Already sold four million plus copies.

Addictive as hell, lots of smart choices in design, you can build amazing structures and it is not in a hurry to kill you for the slightest misstep. Highly rec it. It takes you from the wood and flint stage right on up but allows you to set your own pace. New choices open up as you find/craft/do new things.

As an example of what is possible with this game, here's a player built Notre Dame in wood. Note the character e on top of the right tower in the top left picture for scale.

 

I did buy Valheim, but it's going to sit on the shelf for a while until I have a computer that isn't a potato. It does scratch the open world-crafting-survival itch a la The Long Dark and Subnautica. Even if it just stays an open-world longhouse-building simulator with a bit of combat built in, it's an impressive effort for a small indy dev.

 

I've read nothing but good things about it, but my only hesitation is reading that the game is as good as it is when played in multiplayer. I wonder if the devs are putting just as much effort into making single player an enjoyable experience, too.

 

Single player works well. Multi-player PvE is more fun though, both because you have someone else to talk to and because it's quicker to gather materials and build as a group. I'm playing on a private server with five gaming friends, three of whom I've known for 10+ years IRL. I'm a little hinky about an open server multiplayer because if you get a bad apple in there they could steal all your stuff or do trollish stuff to you. Since you can move your character from server to server this is an issue.

We are currently in a Viking longhouse in the Dark Forest, which is the second level biome. You progress by making gear from materials you scrounge up and raising your skills by using them. So chopping lumber raises your axe skill and helps when you use one in combat. Gathering stone increases your pick skill, running your run, same for club (blunt skill), spear, bow, etc. Each biome has a boss you have to beat to open the next biome's skill tree. The bosses scale - each can be killed solo if you have made and upgraded your armor and weapons and skills, and bosses are more difficult if you do them as a group. No going in with five people and stomping him to help someone move up - or you can, but it's not the same difficulty as when you killed him solo.

It's a bit grindy. You're always needing stone and wood to build with, food to cook or make potions with, ore to make whatever metal type. The other side of that is that most of it is also lying on the ground and you can just pick it up as you move around, scout, hunt, or go fight whatever enemies are local. I don't find the grind too unbearable as you learn some shortcuts.

Our long house is big enough for up to ten people (the multiplayer limit), and has room for all our beds (for rest and your bind point), about twenty chests to store whatever, craft bench for wood and leather work, a forge for metals, a cook fire, a stew pot, a container to ferment in. We've got half a dozen small boats and a longship that we can explore the map in. We've got eight outposts sited near areas of interest and teleporters going both ways to them. We have built varying degrees of minimal structures there as you need shelter from the elements and a campfire at minimum. There's always something different to go do if you get stale on something you're working on. We recently found a site to build a big permanent base on, and I've put in maybe eight hours of site prep flattening the ground and digging a deep ditch around it. Once we all get back together we'll design our castle site - because that's what this will probably evolve into over time.

I'll throw in a Steam review one of my friends wrote when he was at 94 hours as it's pretty concise:

Review : Early Access 02/24/2021
Excellent survival-lite game with tech/world progression...a mixture of Terraria, Minecraft, and Conan Exiles. Starting with stone, you move forward through bronze, iron, and beyond, defeating bosses and mastering biomes as you progress. Particularly fun with friends.

A good amount of content in Early Access, predictable mechanics, solid engine, very few bugs/crashes, stylized graphics and enjoyable gameplay. There's a reason why it has sold so many copies and a large number of people are getting more hours out of it than AAA titles.

Minor Cons : Engine and world save system still needs plenty of optimization. A couple of lost item or haywire mob bugs.
One crash.

Major Con : The single world-spawn of the Merchant is a trash mechanic. You may find him early....you may find him in early-iron...or you may be four plus bosses in and still have no clue where he is. One of his items is *key* to enjoying the game starting in the Iron age....without it, progression becomes a dreary slog. Strongly recommend researching a suitable Merchant world-seed if this has not been fixed by the time you read this review.

 

Does anyone here know if you can carry-over seasons in MLB The Show 21? If you can't I am not really interested in buying the game.

Thanks in advance,
Love,
Octave

 

It has a Franchise mode.

 

Do you mean carrying seasons over from previous editions of the Show? I think you can do that but I'm not 100 percent sure.