God of war, using Moonlight to stream from my PC. Visuals are definitely better on PC vs the LCD screen of the deck, but sitting on the couch leaning against my wife is nice too
At the moment, Sea of Stars, but I need to get back to Dave the Driver and finish up the Among Us DLC for Vampire Survivors. And also need to finish Unmetal. And then I’ve also got this metroidvania bundle I got from Humble Bundle to finish. And Beholder 2. Jesus, my home screen is one long waiting list, and I’m still just playing other stuff.
How are you liking Sea of Stars? I’ve heard a lot of praise for it, but I’ve also heard some people really didn’t like it or enjoy the story at all, and I’m trying to figure out which party I would fall into.
To preface this, I don’t really like JRPGs. Especially turn-based ones. That doesn’t mean I can’t appreciate them, it’s just that a lot of them have had, in the past, an emphasis on things like grinding over gameplay. This might not be true for more modern ones, but considering I largely avoid the genre, I don’t know.
All that said, Sea of Stars does everything so right. I remember playing Persona 5 and having a blast, primarily because of the story and presentation, but Sea of Stars not only has that, but does everything it can to keep you immersed.
Combat is turn-based, but you have the opportunity to time button presses to attacks to do extra attacks. I know that sounds not amazing, but the combat system also requires attacks of specific types to stop an enemy from doing a special attack. Nail the timing, and you can interrupt an attack completely. Fail, and you either have to brace for it, or find another way around it (and early game, that’s not an option most times). Likewise, timing the button press when getting hit blocks damage, and with an item early on, it also recovers MP. The game goes all in on rewarding you for actively playing instead of just sitting back and clicking through menus.
Plus, the traversal is just so great. Yeah, an isometric game has great traversal mechanics. It feels weird saying that, but it does. Almost every screen has multiple layers to move up and down, making it feel like a real world instead of just walking from point A to point B. Plus it encourages exploration of those layers for cooking ingredients and treasures, which are hidden away in secrets, but if you’ve played enough games you generally know where to look.
This is also going to sound kind of like more weird praise, but there’s no bullshit with needing to find several keys spread across the world to go back to one location to get a chest. Everything you see can be obtained if you can figure out how to get to it, with literally one exception that I’ve found in the first right hours. The puzzles aren’t that hard, and as long as you’re thorough you can find everything.
Regarding the story, it’s nothing groundbreaking, but it’s presented so well that it’s still entertaining. It’s almost relentlessly positive, and even the darkest parts are handled in the manner of “we’ll get through this” instead of “this is hopeless.” It’s good, but it’s not the best I’ve played (though given everything else, I wouldn’t be surprised if it improved later).
I have no idea if you’ve played, or even heard of, a GBA series called Golden Sun. It feels a lot like a spiritual successor to it. But the thing that keeps me playing is that not only is the gameplay fun and the story entertaining, but it seems to absolutely value your time. No grinding, you’re capable of maintaining your party through good combat decisions, and limited backtracking. You’re not there to play a game, you’re there to experience a journey, and it keeps you moving forward. I love this game, but I feel safe saying that you could buy this on Steam, and figure out in the two-hour return window whether or not it’s for you.
I have no idea if you’ve played, or even heard of, a GBA series called Golden Sun. It feels a lot like a spiritual successor to it.
Golden Sun was my first real JRPG, and it and its sequel Lost Age were two of my all time favorite games. So hearing you consider it like a spiritual successor is all I need to know, I’ll probably love it.
Main game I’m playing currently is Cobalt Core. It’s a card-based roguelike similar to Slay the Spire where you control a space ship. Really fun, I might actually prefer it over Slay the Spire.
I’m just getting used to the idea that my SteamDeck can also play games outside the Halo: Anniversary collection.
Also, ‘Sonic All Star Racing: Transformed’ is really good.
Gta4, sifu and journey to the savage planet for me at the minute
I’ve been playing Star Ocean the Second Story R since my fiancee bought it for me at Christmas.
Grabbed Mass Effect Legendary Edition on sale for £4.99 and having a blast. Completed the first game last night and now started on the second one. Runs like a dream, EA launcher didn’t cause any issues (I loaded it in desktop mode the first time) and the game is as good as I remember from first time around.
The only issue I’m having is when I use the HDR calibration in game I wind up losing a bunch of detail in dark areas and the image overall is way too dark.
I’ve also picked up subnautica ready to give it a proper go at some point after picking it up and it not quite gripping me on game pass on desktop.
I’ve been playing far too many games to give anyone of them the attention it deserves. Currently I’m switching between:
- Persona 5
- Void Stranger
- Hogwart’s Legacy
- Honkai Star Rail
- Xenotilt/Demon’s Tilt
Shoutout for Xeno/Demon’s Tilt!
Like a dragon the man who erased his name (streaming with moonlight) and 20 minutes til dawn (on deck). Loving them both, both fill different moods.
Started Diablo 4 a couple of days ago and alternate between the Deck and PC. Performance is much better than I would have thought, and even as a KB+M elitist I like the gamepad controls.
Then there are also some Vampire Survivors-like games. VS itself, with the latest DLC (Among Us collab) and Soulstone Survivors.
I also got Dave the Diver and Enter the Gungeon in the Winter Sale, but I don’t think I’ll get to those any time soon.
A friend got me into Barony, and it has become an obsession.
I bought Mirrors Edge: Catalyst. I really liked the original and doing a few runs from time to time is really nice
Stray. It’s an absolute feast on the eyes on the OLED deck’s screen. Something about the way it pulls off the subtle hue shifts in the game and the high contrast is just better than on 2 different PC monitors I’ve tried, my (arguably cheap) TV or even my (not-so-cheap and also OLED) phone. You just have to try and see for yourself to get it.
I’ve also gotten back into rhythm games. Been playing Project Diva and Thumper as well lately.
Randomly started playing PC build simulator. It is funny, how fast this game drains the deck battery and generates heat. Far beyond the other ones for some reason.
- Signalis
- Bomb Rush Cyberfunk
- Vampire Saviour
- FFXIV (through XIVLauncher)
