clueless1 wrote on 2024-04-13, 13:01:

Hogwarts Legacy

My youngest is a big Harry fan and played this through to completion - she liked it from what it's worth, but she hasn't gone back for another play through I notice.

Same experience here hardware wise - her machine has a weak CPU but it run really well thanks to a decent RTX GPU.

Completed two more planets in Star Wars: KOTOR. Manaan had some nice quests, especially the trial of that old war veteran. You can resolve it in several ways, depending on what you want to achieve and how much evidence you've gathered. The underwater area with the diving suit reminded me of BioShock, or vice versa I guess? Cool planet overall.

The intermission on the Sith warship was kinda fun, since I put Jolee in charge of the rescue. The part where he makes a guard lock himself inside a cell was hilarious. Once you get back in control of your main character, the escape becomes pretty straightforward. Without spoiling anything, I think the big reveal at the end of this section is what makes the first KOTOR so memorable.

I deliberately left Korriban for last, since you get some unique dialog options there after said revelation occurs. Exploring the ancient tombs was interesting, and I liked being able to redeem some of the Sith and turn them back to the light. After finding the last Star Map, I went back to Yavin to buy the unique lightsaber crystals from the merchant. They cost a pretty penny, but are well worth it. And with that, I'm all set for the final stretch.

Joseph_Joestar wrote on 2024-04-14, 10:37:

After finding the last Star Map, I went back to Yavin to buy the unique lightsaber crystals from the merchant. They cost a pretty penny, but are well worth it. And with that, I'm all set for the final stretch.

I remember that merchant giving a sizeble discount for everything if you beat him ten times in pazaak, helps a lot if you want most of the top stuff. It's a huge pain in the ass though, the guy has good cards and I swear the game is rigged against you.

But it's not like that gear is necessary, the original XBox version didn't even have that station so the end game is probably not balanced for that stuff.

Death Rally, so very addictive. Still haven't beaten the final boss...

Sombrero wrote on 2024-04-14, 10:59:

I remember that merchant giving a sizeble discount for everything if you beat him ten times in pazaak, helps a lot if you want most of the top stuff. It's a huge pain in the ass though, the guy has good cards and I swear the game is rigged against you.

Pazaak is pretty much is rigged against you in KOTOR1, since you always have to go first. They changed this for KOTOR2, and I think one of the NPCs even makes a reference to it during a conversation.

But it's not like that gear is necessary, the original XBox version didn't even have that station so the end game is probably not balanced for that stuff.

Yup, they certainly make the rest of the game easier, especially for a melee focused class like Jedi Guardian. Well, it's not like I had anything else to spend my money on, so I figured might as well splurge on the crystals.

Markspace wrote on 2024-04-14, 11:07:

Death Rally, so very addictive. Still haven't beaten the final boss...

Great game! I spent hours and hours playing it as a kid.

The ability to customize and upgrade your car made it super fun for me.

Finished Star Wars: KOTOR. I forgot how small the last couple of areas were. The Rakata temple was a breeze, with the only real threat coming from the Rancor beasts, and even they were susceptible to Force Stasis.

On the other hand, I found the Star Forge to be boring as always. Too many similar looking corridors filled with pointless combat. It did help that I had maxed the Destroy Droid force power on all three Jedi characters. That one's super useful in areas where droids and turrets pop up in large numbers. It's basically a combination of stun and lightning which only works on mechanical enemies. Interestingly, it even helps during the final battle, as you can use it to disable the pods which Malak drains to replenish his health.

Anyway, I was playing a light side character and got the appropriate ending. I liked the final sequence quite a bit. With the proper music and the blue font credits roll, it felt like something out of a classic Star Wars movie. On that note, KOTOR remains my favorite Star Wars game to this day. Despite its flaws, it does manage to capture the spirit of that universe quite well. And finally being able to play the game with all settings fully maxed out made the experience even better.

Today I tried two player split screen in Jazz Jackrabbit 2 for the first time, with my 5 year old. A lot of fun. Spaz and Lori make a good team.

PD2JK wrote on 2024-04-14, 18:10:

Today I tried two player split screen in Jazz Jackrabbit 2 for the first time, with my 5 year old. A lot of fun. Spaz and Lori make a good team.

Nice! Split screen is actually how I played the first time, as a kid, with a friend. It was the original version, so only Jazz and Spaz.

Which levels did you play through?

I finally got Command & Conquer: The First Decade installed on my Athlon XP system. Have played a little bit of each of them, but want to start playing thru Generals/Zero Hour again. I did play through them when they came out and still have my save files!

dr_st wrote on 2024-04-14, 19:06:

Which levels did you play through?

We played the first episode, Formerly a Prince, I love the art style depicting the episodes. This one has inspiration from Purple Rain, Jazz sitting on a motorcycle. The title is also referring to his name change(s), the artist Prince I mean.

My daughter and I finished Alba: A Wildlife Adventure over the course of a few weekends, and I must say it is an amazing game to play with your little ones if you want to introduce them to free roam adventure games.

PD2JK wrote on 2024-04-14, 18:10:

Today I tried two player split screen in Jazz Jackrabbit 2 for the first time, with my 5 year old. A lot of fun. Spaz and Lori make a good team.

Nice! 😀 I play MERCS on Amiga in 2-player mode with my 5 year-old. It seems it's his favorite game at the moment. We use the unlimited credits cheat tho, cuz we kinda suck 😉

Started playing BioShock Infinite for the first time. I completed the first two games last year, and liked them well enough. Heard that this one is somewhat different though, and I immediately noticed one big change.

Looks like you're not allowed to manually save the game anymore. I googled this and it seems you have to use the built-in checkpoint/autosave system. For me, this sucks big time. I don't always have time to play for X amount of minutes/hours/however long it takes to reach the next checkpoint, and I'm sure many other people are in the same boat. Screw whoever thought this was a good design decision.

On the plus side, the graphics are absolutely gorgeous. Even better, the game runs fine on my GTX 970 while fully maxed out at 1080p, at least so far. I really dig the whole early 20th century aesthetic. The sound is pretty epic too, and the game seems to make good use of my surround speakers. I like the music as well, especially that ethereal piece that plays when you first reach Columbia. It really enhances the atmosphere.

Anyway, didn't have much time to play today, so I just took a quick stroll through the initial area that you end up in after the "baptism" sequence. Hopefully, the forced checkpoint system won't ruin my enjoyment of the game.

The amazon show gave me a reason to play through Fallout 1/2/NV, so I've been doing that as of recent. Luckily, there's a project called Community Edition nowadays which let me play it natively on my Apple Silicon Macbook.

BetaC wrote on 2024-04-15, 16:15:

The amazon show gave me a reason to play through Fallout 1/2/NV, so I've been doing that as of recent. Luckily, there's a project called Community Edition nowadays which let me play it natively on my Apple Silicon Macbook.
Screenshot 2024-04-14 at 9.49.45 PM.png

What version of Fallout 1 has a tardis?

Shagittarius wrote on 2024-04-16, 00:17:

BetaC wrote on 2024-04-15, 16:15:

The amazon show gave me a reason to play through Fallout 1/2/NV, so I've been doing that as of recent. Luckily, there's a project called Community Edition nowadays which let me play it natively on my Apple Silicon Macbook.
Screenshot 2024-04-14 at 9.49.45 PM.png

What version of Fallout 1 has a tardis?

It's an extremely low chance random encounter, like the aliens and the Used Car Salesman that has the very OP Christmas Story BB Gun.

BetaC wrote on 2024-04-16, 03:44:

Shagittarius wrote on 2024-04-16, 00:17:

BetaC wrote on 2024-04-15, 16:15:

The amazon show gave me a reason to play through Fallout 1/2/NV, so I've been doing that as of recent. Luckily, there's a project called Community Edition nowadays which let me play it natively on my Apple Silicon Macbook.
Screenshot 2024-04-14 at 9.49.45 PM.png

What version of Fallout 1 has a tardis?

It's an extremely low chance random encounter, like the aliens and the Used Car Salesman that has the very OP Christmas Story BB Gun.

Haha! Never knew this, thanks for the explanation.

BetaC wrote on 2024-04-16, 03:44:

Shagittarius wrote on 2024-04-16, 00:17:

BetaC wrote on 2024-04-15, 16:15:

The amazon show gave me a reason to play through Fallout 1/2/NV, so I've been doing that as of recent. Luckily, there's a project called Community Edition nowadays which let me play it natively on my Apple Silicon Macbook.
Screenshot 2024-04-14 at 9.49.45 PM.png

What version of Fallout 1 has a tardis?

It's an extremely low chance random encounter, like the aliens and the Used Car Salesman that has the very OP Christmas Story BB Gun.

I had the aliens encounter but never got the Tardis one despite two playthroughs. Interesting.

I have been playing the whole Age of Empires II HD campaign (2013 HD version, not the current remaster), I only played multiplayer with the original game. It's really an awesome game series, I still enjoy it.