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STEAM | July 2014-3 – Let Off Some STEAM Bennett

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S

Shadownet

Banned
Beelzebubs said:
Relax, he was shown in some of the trailers. That said though, I'm seeing it on Monday! Looking forward to it immensely, already heard about the post credits sequence and can't wait for it... mega spoilers about post credits...
Fucking Howard the Duck played by Nathan Fillion!!!!
Click to expand...

wait you serious?
 
Beelzebubs

Beelzebubs

Member
Double said:
Damn I think I missed the after credits lol. Seen the preview 2 weeks ago, loved the film, better than Avengers imo. (which I think is overrated too)
Click to expand...

They haven't added them to the film yet til the official release. Fortunately our Russian friends with camcorders give zero fucks about such trivialities.

Shadownet said:
wait you serious?
Click to expand...

And yes, footage is lurking online.

https://s3.yimg.com/cd/resizer/FIT_TO_WIDTH-w500/8751ab725748603f5de7f20875d4f7179583fad2.jpg

One of the many sources:
http://www.underthegunreview.net/20...dits-sequence-leaks-online-and-its-hilarious/
 
S

Shao Kahn Brewing a Stew

Banned
Now THIS
Beelzebubs said:
Relax, he was shown in some of the trailers. That said though, I'm seeing it on Monday! Looking forward to it immensely, already heard about the post credits sequence and can't wait for it... mega spoilers about post credits...
Fucking Howard the Duck played by Nathan Fillion!!!!
Click to expand...

Is a spoiler. I'm glad I read it though.
 
D

Dr Dogg

Member
Spring-Loaded said:
Absolution really did have some considerable improvements even over Blood Money, but the disguise system was just too borked, some of the more scripted/actiony sequences were too frequent and the linear segments were too frequent with too few traditional levels to capture the appeal of Blood Money.

Would be a markedly better game if the disguise system was fixed. The idea of making them less than 100 percent reliable is great; there were situations in Blood Money that, because of how perfect disguises were, were less intense than they should be.

Having just anyone who's wearing the same outfit as you become suspicious is dumb though — it does make parts of the game challenging, but in a way that doesn't make sense. If a game feature disguises so prominently and has relatively smaller scale levels with finite number of NPCs, it's not unreasonable to create a network of NPCs that know one another in each level. Chinatown chefs who don't even know there's an assassin prowling around shouldn't be suspicious enough of an unrecognizable chef to interrogate that person, let alone suspicious enough to sound an alarm. On the flipside, a small police strike force should know one another better and be harder to fool.

Expanding on ways to blend in (and not tying it to the "instinct" meter) would be much better. Same-clothes NPCs would become suspicious of you unless you were actively doing a non-suspicious gesture (scratching face, looking through pamphlets, Etc.) and there were times where I was surrounded and essentially trapped at a stove pretending to cook, since if I stepped away from it, people would immediately get irreversibly suspicious (on a harder difficulty) and non-suspicious actions outside of certain locations costs instinct that doesn't regenerate on harder difficulties. Having certain disguises require specific series of actions to be non-suspicious would be good, e.g. chefs only have to periodically cook, or be seen near cooking stations to be non-suspicious. Getting a limited number of chances to make up an excuse for suspicious behavior for a single NPC would be nice too — in absolution, having someone come up to you to question you only has two ways to escape.

The game recognizing disguises with masks or helmets would help make that aspect of the game seem more fair too. in short, there's no good reason for this game to have so many flaws and incongruities with one its most prominent aspects of gameplay. I still give the game a bit of a pass because I appreciate how IO was willing to introduce non-traditional situations to the game (being hunted by other assassins/cops), I just think those segments don't require the level of scripting and linearity Absolution had in order to be fun/challenging.
Click to expand...

Yeah can definitely agree. All the Hitman games before Absolution didn't have the best controls in the world nor were they deployed on striking engines but Absolution really has tight controls in both movement and the games central mechanics as well. Shooting has never felt better and weapon handling as well at the thrown weapon ability really make you feel in control 100% of the time which even in Blood Money I would have the occasional awkward moments and end up going out in a blaze of glory (Silent Assassins and Contract more so). The Glacier Engine used for Absolution looks stunning and despite some weird choice for the main colour pallet really has some great graphical effects (and better now the performance is sorted out).

I agree on the disguise system as well and couple that with how the new direction difficulties work makes for some odd choices. I get the feeling the disguises not being a unique outfit any more really upset the balance as all the NPCs who would be wearing the same disguise were always in a mission critical place, like they were there just to fuck with you if you tried to use a certain disguise. Some of the features added like mid mission checkpoints on lower difficulties, instinct (and bloody loads of it on lower difficulties again) seemed to upset the balance a little. One aspect I did like was the crowds in more populous maps like Chinatown which offered some way to blend in. I think all the elements are there it just needed a lot of refinement and adjusting to balance everything out but it errs on the side of easy all too much at lower difficulties.

For me though it's the shift in dynamic that focused more on the story than the sandbox/playground levels as the reason I still prefer the others. It's the most cohesive story the series has ever seen (even if it is a little predictable) and feels like the story was planned out first and then the levels were designed to fit the timeline. Where as before you have a collection of fun sandboxes or playgrounds set all over the world and the only thing remotely connecting them was a flimsy story (that really I'd say you'd have to be invested in the series to get the most out of it). I feel this approach is what led to the linear and smaller sections as they serve the story and connect the bigger levels to one another. Blood Money for example has you ping ponging around the globe and it's only at the very end that things are more story focused (I can't even remember half the cutscenes). Silent Assassin had a very simplistic over arching story about rescuing Father Vittorio but that just seemed to be an excuse to travel halfway round Europe.

For Absolution I liked the missions where you were offered a bit more flexibility in the way you could attempt things. Levels like The King of Chinatown, Hunter and Hunted (though it does have a repeat of the Chinatown map but it's a standout for me), Skurky's Law, Shaving Lenny and Blackwater Park felt like you have a bit of freedom, expression and to attempt things in a non linear fashion and still get a great score. They were also fun to replay a slight different way too. The rest of the levels didn't quite have that spark so while Death Factory and Attack of the Saints had bigger levels and a little wiggle room in choice the progression was pretty much the same each time. Levels like Run For Your Life and Operation Sledgehammer where the objective is to escape and not assassinate were different but I felt were at odd with the hallmarks of the series. Maybe they might have been better served meshed with other levels. The first Assassin's Creed toyed with the idea of a 3 step assassination (observe, eliminate, escape) which is a shame the series dropped that approach and went for a more scripted nature (and pretty much moved the idea of being an assassin) but something like that on the larger maps in Absolution could work well I think negating the need for whole levels that playout that way.

One redeeming feature though is Contracts mode which is a blast. If IO get a shot at another Hitman game I'd be happy if they could expand on this mode like add a complete mission making suite.

I'm not going to say the game is without it's faults but I do get the feeling there is a lot of focus is on the negative aspects of Absolution and not the segments that offer what the series is known for.
 
M

Mr. Poolman

Member
I'm replaying the Batman games, now with a controller.
Excellent graphics aside, I think I finally got the flow of combat instead of mashing blindly.
Now I truly feel like a terror to criminals!
 
S

Shadownet

Banned
Beelzebubs said:
And yes, footage is lurking online.
Click to expand...

original

---------------------

I had my awkward moment of the day. My mum called to see if I was alright, and during a brainfart I told her "Yeah I'm feeling okay, I'm just going to relax today and maybe play some more TiTs."

The moment I said that I knew I just did something bad. So i had to spend 10 mins on the phone with her explaining that TiTs is just an acronym for a game, nothing lewd.


But I'm really liking the game so far, just got to the combat part, its pretty fun, reminds me of Fire Emblem in a way but a bit more limited because theres only so many spaces you can move. Can't wait to get more party members.
 
Jawmuncher

Jawmuncher

Member
Beelzebubs said:
Relax, he was shown in some of the trailers. That said though, I'm seeing it on Monday! Looking forward to it immensely, already heard about the post credits sequence and can't wait for it... mega spoilers about post credits...
Fucking Howard the Duck played by Nathan Fillion!!!!
Click to expand...

Had no idea of this. I just died and got resurrected. My boy is finally back.
 
Beelzebubs

Beelzebubs

Member
Jawmuncher said:
Had no idea of this. I just died and got resurrected. My boy is finally back.
Click to expand...

Interesting fact about the spoilers I posted that I don't think many have picked up on yet.

The official release for GOTG is August 1st, guess which film came out on August 1st exactly 28 years ago? That's right, Howard the Duck
 
D

Double

Member
Last chance :p

Instructions for participants:
I am giving away a Steam key. To enter this giveaway, send a PM to ModBot with any subject line. In the body, copy and paste the entire line from the message below containing the game you want to enter for. Confused? Watch this GIF tutorial or ask for help.

ModBot Basics:
- This giveaway has a manual blocklist. The giver has identified members who abuse giveaways and restricted them from participating.
- I really appreciate thank you messages, but please send them to me (Double, not ModBot!) via PM instead of in thread.
- Do not trade keys you win off-site to enrich yourself. Don't try to claim games you have no interest in collecting or playing. Don't claim games to give them to friends off-site.
- If the key is already taken you will not receive a reply. Replies may take a minute or two.

Rules for this Giveaway:
- If you are a lurker you are not eligible for this giveaway. You need five or more posts in either the current Steam thread or the previous one to be eligible
- This giveaway is a raffle. The winners will be selected by random draw 3 hours after the draw was created. Any games not claimed after that point will be given away first come first serve.



The Whispered World Special Edition -- MB-F26FC241B22A7FFC - Taken by fokkusu. 4 entrants total.


t1406842462z1.png
Click to expand...
 
Kiru

Kiru

Member
Oh god look at all those thread titles in off topic:


5 year old doesn't want her baby brother to grow up to be Thanos

White-gaf: Have you ever been called a Thanos?

Favorite Space Religion? Thanite.

Online dating people - do you prefer OKT(hanos) or Thander?
 
B

BinaryPork2737

Unconfirmed Member
Beelzebubs said:
Looking forward to it immensely, already heard about the post credits sequence and can't wait for it... mega spoilers about post credits...
Fucking Howard the Duck played by Nathan Fillion!!!!
Click to expand...

Marvel pls

Jailer of Hope said:
LOL I love that the OT thread keeps changing too.
Click to expand...

Off topics threads in general too.

White-gaf: Have you ever been called a Thanos?
5 year old doesn't want her baby brother to grow up to be Thanos
Favorite Space Religion? Thanite.
I just realized Thanos is creepy as shit!
Online dating people - do you prefer OKT(hanos) or Thander?
why do ppl catch feelings over Thanos?
Advice? Wild Thanos in my bathroom
Thanos
 
R

rtcn63

Member
Kiru said:
Oh god look at all those thread titles in off topic:


5 year old doesn't want her baby brother to grow up to be Thanos

White-gaf: Have you ever been called a Thanos?

Favorite Space Religion? Thanite.

Online dating people - do you prefer OKT(hanos) or Thander?
Click to expand...

Someone really wants Thanos to touch him
 
A

Amzin

Member
One of the least-spoilery spoilers in history. It's like announcing "Luke is going to be in the Empire Strikes Back"! Who would have guessed!
 
S

Spring-Loaded

Member
Mr. Poolman said:
I'm replaying the Batman games, now with a controller.
Excellent graphics aside, I think I finally got the flow of combat instead of mashing blindly.
Now I truly feel like a terror to criminals!
Click to expand...

As great as those games feel to play, there's still so much room for improvement in all aspects, particularly "striking fear into criminals."
 
A

Amir0x

Banned
Heh, this title changing stuff reminds me of when Mike Works changed tons of titles to say positive shit about Nintendogs. I think it was Mike Works.
 
C

Creamium

shut uuuuuuuuuuuuuuup
btw Kentucky Route 0 Act III keeps racing in my mind man. I want the remaining acts NOW, and then I want to replay the entire thing
 
A

ashecitism

Member
Aaron D. said:
Yeah, it reads like Greek to me.

Is this about that hype-train retro-JRPG that just released?
Click to expand...

Marvel villain

ashecitism said:
http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=865307

wasn't the original title, but something "hey, first look at Thanos in GotG!". Then people got outraged despite the fact that we knew Thanos was in it for a while now. Then mods added something like "omg Thanos is in Guardians of the Galaxy!" to the title and now that.
Click to expand...
 
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