Underrated and Overrated Video Games

[mickilennial]

Oof.

[Dolerman]

Are we just going to sit here and act like far cry 2 isnt overrated?

The game isnt evem that good, it just has a few of those 'new vegas on hardcore mode' which make the game slightly more annoyingly difficult. I know Far cry 3 ruslted a lot of jimmies because it was a fun game with a charasmatic villian thag people quoted a little too much and also committed the cardinal sin of having a dubstep song in the sound track.

But that of course isnt a good reason for the counter jerk army to then overblow far cry 2 in response to that, the game is kinda boring and the shooting is clunky, and no not just because of the weapons degrading.

None of these games are great, they are just time killers until something better comes out.

[POOHEAD189]

I liked Farcry Instincts better.

Even if Farcry 2 was a neat idea, they shouldn't have taken away the Sci Fi aspect to the games.

[Fabricant451]

it was a fun game with a charasmatic villian

@Dynamo Frokane

Far Cry 3 would've been a better game if Vaas was actually the villain instead of the guy no one remembers the name of without looking it up.

But onto your point, which I agree with, Far Cry 2 is much more overrated in hindsight when people suddenly went "Oh I like this thing now because Far Cry is for normies now". Yeah cool I love having to take my pills every ten minutes and being punished by wanting to travel the main roads because enemies fucking respawn as soon as you turn around.

Far Cry 5 is probably going to be a 3/5 game but it's also going to cause comment wars which is more than a painfully average series like Far Cry even deserves.

[Dolerman]

<Snipped quote by Dynamo Frokane>

Far Cry 3 would've been a better game if Vaas was actually the villain instead of the guy no one remembers the name of without looking it up.

@Fabricant451

Hoyt (Didn't look it up, I actually embraced that game) and Buck made up a good ensemble of villains for Far Cry 3 but Vaas just became too damn popular for his own good. I'm kinda glad he wasn't around for the whole game as the final boss, however charming, the whole 'insane but aware of it' schtick gets old pretty quick with anyone, including the Joker, fite me.

Far Cry 5 is probably going to be a 3/5 game but it's also going to cause comment wars which is more than a painfully average series like Far Cry even deserves.

@Fabricant451

Is this about the whole trump thing? That died pretty quickly after the first few trailers, they really amped up the whole Waco/Manson/Jonestown cult theme and damn near every protagonist is a redneck who ironically probably would be a republican. Including the black priest and the black female military sniper.

[Dolerman]

@Fabricant451 Looks like far cry 5 played it too safe with its themes and is getting panned for it/

[Fabricant451]

@Dynamo Frokane I've seen conflicting and mixed opinions. Like some people seem upset that the game didn't take a hard stance and that is somehow worthy of knocking points off. I've read that the part where it's a game is generally enjoyable and fun but because of the whole "We're not really taking a side and the writing is pretty bad" it's lesser because of it.

But I wouldn't exactly expect an Ubisoft game to be the one I'd look to for woke political themes in a video game.

[Dolerman]

@Fabricant451 Right but there is a balance, I dont expect Far Cry to be the Malcom X of political commentary but if you're going to use the political and cultural landscape as a marketing tool at least have the balls to run with it like Wolfenstien did. I doubt bethesda are any more 'woke' than ubisoft are, but at least they were thematically consistent with the marketing.

[Fabricant451]

@Dynamo Frokane Wolfenstein isn't exactly making a statement other than "Nazis are bad and killing Nazis is fun". That people got upset that the game is about killing fake Nazis in a fake take on history was both hilarious and stupid. Far Cry 5 is very much using certain aspects of the current social and political climate to garner attention but then pretty much doing nothing with it other than correctly having some characters use terms like "libtards". It ruffled certain feathers because "Oh I'm killing white conservative Americans and I'm one of those uh oh" but it amounted to little other than white noise. I'm not giving Ubisoft any props for taking advantage of a certain climate but I am rolling my eyes that some reviewers can't get over the fact the game doesn't swing as hard in the direction they wanted it to.

I haven't played the new Wolfenstein sequel so if they do something other than 'Nazis bad, B.J. good' then that's news to me. But I'd also say that Wolfenstein: The New Order and by association The New Colossus are better written games than Far Cry 5 anyway.

[Dolerman]

@Dynamo Frokane Wolfenstein isn't exactly making a statement other than "Nazis are bad and killing Nazis is fun". That people got upset that the game is about killing fake Nazis in a fake take on history was both hilarious and stupid. Far Cry 5 is very much using certain aspects of the current social and political climate to garner attention but then pretty much doing nothing with it other than correctly having some characters use terms like "libtards". It ruffled certain feathers because "Oh I'm killing white conservative Americans and I'm one of those uh oh" but it amounted to little other than white noise. I'm not giving Ubisoft any props for taking advantage of a certain climate but I am rolling my eyes that some reviewers can't get over the fact the game doesn't swing as hard in the direction they wanted it to.

I haven't played the new Wolfenstein sequel so if they do something other than 'Nazis bad, B.J. good' then that's news to me. But I'd also say that Wolfenstein: The New Order and by association The New Colossus are better written games than Far Cry 5 anyway.

@Fabricant451

I'd probably agree that Wolfenstien is better written than Far Cry 5, not that is any sort of achievement mind you.

However, I still think the whole 'white conservative' thing is misplaced by people who have only seen the box-art. The protagonists in the resistance of Montana are the conservatives, gun toting, patriotic, beer swilling, fake southern accent republican types. The people you kill are based more on the Jim Jones cult, who ironically were a spiritual, progressive for the time, hippy type outfit, (which obviously morphed into something much more like a authoritarian, dogmatic dictatorship). But very few cults apart from things like Scientology start out as anything resembling the 'right wing' as Americans know it.

People really need to read the synopsis.

[mickilennial]

Yeah, the new Far Cry is more influenced by the cult uprisings in the 80s that the game director grew up around rather than any agenda™.

[Fabricant451]

Yeah, the new Far Cry is more influenced by the cult uprisings in the 80s that the game director grew up around rather than any agenda™.

@Inkarnate

Tell that to the people that wanted the game to take a stand on politics and also acknowledge the opioid crisis because shooting drugged up Americans in a game is tone deaf. Granted that's one example.

If there's one constant it's that even the people that like the game for being a big dumb shooty field agree that the story is shit which I don't know why anyone would be surprised by that. Even if the game isn't tied to any specific agenda - and I'm not saying it IS - the fact that many people were quick to be like "Why you shooting white people" or "Can't wait to shoot some conservatives" is unfortunately telling but that's the internet in a nutshell where entertainment can't just exist.

Wake me up when God of War comes out so I can complain about that series again.

[mickilennial]

In all fairness, Far Cry has never had a good story. Ever.

[Dolerman]

Wake me up when God of War comes out so I can complain about that series defend its shallow button mashy combat system again.

@Fabricant451

FTFY

[Fabricant451]

<Snipped quote by Fabricant451>

FTFY

@Dynamo Frokane

You must have me confused with someone else. I've voiced my dislike of God of War in here. In fact I believe what I said was

I don't like God of War but the reason I don't like God of War has nothing to do with its combat and everything to do with Kratos.

@Fabricant451

Which is hardly defending its combat.

[Dolerman]

Which is hardly defending its combat.

@Fabricant451

It implies you don't have an issue with the combat. Which is a more important factor than Kratos.

Obviously lead characters are important, but we are talking about a borderline retarded nu-metal re-imagining of greek mythology where you gouge eyes as a QTE and hammer the circle button to have a quick orgy. The fact that Kratos is a paper thin, nonsensical psychopath actually fits fairly well. If you're expecting multi-layered characters and complex narratives from fucking God Of War, you're playing it wrong, sir.

And to be clear I despise the games, none of this is a defense, I'm just saying the dumbass main character is consistent with the dumbass world the game is set in.

[Fabricant451]

<Snipped quote by Fabricant451>

It implies you don't have an issue with the combat. Which is a more important factor than Kratos.

@Dynamo Frokane

You're right, I don't. I'm not going to sit here and say it's on par with a good character action game but it's above any given Musou game and its simplicity doesn't mean a lack of variety, QTE event kills aside since that's more the reward anyway. If that's a defense then so be it, but the problems with God of War isn't in the combat.

Obviously lead characters are important, but we are talking about a borderline retarded nu-metal re-imagining of greek mythology where you gouge eyes as a QTE and hammer the circle button to have a quick orgy. The fact that Kratos is a paper thin, nonsensical psychopath actually fits fairly well. If you're expecting multi-layered characters and complex narratives from fucking God Of War, you're playing it wrong, sir.

The first God of War was at least consistent with itself and opted for the Greek tragedy route. Kratos at least pretended to have a bit of nuance to him considering the game opens and then wraps around to show why he's trying to kill himself in standard Greek tragedy fashion. There's almost a bit of justification in his actions, selfish as they may be, it's at least easy to justify his murder boner towards Ares given that Ares dicked him over. It's in the sequels where they just decide to forget all about the part where Kratos tried to kill himself because of his actions and the hollowness of his revenge and just cranked him up to 11 and had him just be angry stab man.

Then it was made even worse when after two games of angry stab man being reprehensible they tried to fucking redeem him in the last minutes of the game as if one kind of okay deed somehow absolves him of literally ruining Greece and its pantheon forever. Kratos is the worst video game character. He's the kind of character a teen going through the phase of shitty rebellion thinks is cool except unlike Dante who is in on the joke Kratos is played totally straight and on top of being a murder angry man whose only emotion is yelling, he also can fuck so good that the god of love and pleasure has never had a better lover and the mere act inspires lesbian ravishing from the audience.

God of War is a bad franchise not because the combat is a bit on the easy side but because everything about it is so appallingly tone deaf and uninspired. It's telling that one of the more memorable moments, the escape from Hades, is just done again in the third one because that's the level of creativity the games have. God of War is stupid but it doesn't even have the decency to laugh at its own stupidity.

Them slowing down the combat and making Kratos a mad dad isn't going to undo things and it's stupid that people are willing to assume that giving him a longer beard and a kid will magically make him a character.

[Dolerman]

<Snipped quote by Dynamo Frokane>

You're right, I don't. I'm not going to sit here and say it's on par with a good character action game but it's above any given Musou game and its simplicity doesn't mean a lack of variety, QTE event kills aside since that's more the reward anyway. If that's a defense then so be it, but the problems with God of War isn't in the combat.

@Fabricant451

Well at least we are setting the bar high.

If we are defending combat systems based on being 'better than dynasty warriors' which is easily the worst combat system ever, then we arent off to a good start.

The game has almost no variety, every enemy in the entire game including bosses can be fought most efficently with square, square triangle. In God of War 3 all of the weapons apart from those shit hercules gauntlets function exactly the same just with different colours. QTEs are a whole nother issue but the core of the gameplay is mediocre platforming and god awful 'sweep the room' combat.

And yes I agree with you, everything about Kratos and his world is stupid and shit, but its not just him. Almost every god acts like a one dimensional sneering prick till their last breath, and the game revels in this. You hate everyone and everyone hates you, which is fine when you are a all powerful shirtless spartan with a black guy's voice. But not so much when you are a musty neckbeard who can only attempt pro-creation with a used sock.

And 'greek tragedy' in the loosest possible sense, translates in god of war as "You killed my family you motherfucker, I'm going to kill you and everyone who looks like you" was never going to make for a very interesting trilogy.

These games were never good, and if you purchased sequels to this game hoping it was ever going to be good then Sony did a good job marketing it and deserves your money.

[Fabricant451]

<Snipped quote by Fabricant451>

Well at least we are setting the bar high.

If we are defending combat systems based on being 'better than dynasty warriors' which is easily the worst combat system ever, then we arent off to a good start.

The game has almost no variety, every enemy in the entire game including bosses can be fought most efficently with square, square triangle. In God of War 3 all of the weapons apart from those shit hercules gauntlets function exactly the same just with different colours. QTEs are a whole nother issue but the core of the gameplay is mediocre platforming and god awful 'sweep the room' combat.

@Dynamo Frokane

Dynasty Warriors is better than God of War.

There's more to a good combat system than variety or depth. There's not a lot of variety to Nier Automata but it's still got a good combat system. The larger issue with God of War's combat isn't the simplicity of its combos, it's the weightlessness of its motion. The way Kratos moves with his signature weapons is antithetical to the entire point the game is trying to make. Kratos, especially in the later games, is supposed to be this brutal guy but the stupid blades are floaty and make Kratos feel more like a ballerina than someone who is trying to murder things effectively. It's only when the bigger enemies have their QTEs that a hint of 'brutality' comes into play.

Nier Automata, to use that example, doesn't have nearly the depth of the higher profile Platinum games (though it does have more than God of War) due to its limited weapon choice and the simplicity of it all, but it makes clear distinctions between weapons and the animations help tremendously: when 2B uses a giant sword it feels heavy and comes off that way even when swung quickly. Combat feel is super important in an action game and the worst thing is feeling like your character doesn't have as tight a response as they should.

Dynasty Warriors might have the simple combat but it's not trying to be a deep action game or a brutal one, it's pure power fantasy and it does that incredibly well in most cases. It gives you open fields and sends thousands of dudes at you and every move in your arsenal is designed to kill them in ridiculous and quick ways. It is rather cathartic and though the inputs are the same the characters still feel like they play differently.

A lot of the good action games have their gimmick. Metal Gear Rising was all about the active parry which provided a way to keep the action going by turning defense into offense. Bayonetta was about witch time and flashy combos with precise timing. Devil May Cry, especially 3, was mastery of different styles in a fast and stylish way to the point the game punished you for just doing the same thing over and over again; even DMC 4 was about swift movement and enhanced attacks with Nero. God of War's gimmick is brutality but it doesn't succeed in making the player feel powerful on a moment to moment basis. Regardless of the buttons you press, Kratos rarely feels powerful until the QTEs pop up and he does a kill.

I'm not saying that enemies should be made of paper, but for a guy who is the god of war he plays like he's attacking with pool noodles. The mechanics of the combat are whatever, it's everything that happens when he's actually attacking that makes it worse.

[Ruby]

<Snipped quote by Dynamo Frokane>

Dynasty Warriors is better than God of War.

There's more to a good combat system than variety or depth. There's not a lot of variety to Nier Automata but it's still got a good combat system. The larger issue with God of War's combat isn't the simplicity of its combos, it's the weightlessness of its motion. The way Kratos moves with his signature weapons is antithetical to the entire point the game is trying to make. Kratos, especially in the later games, is supposed to be this brutal guy but the stupid blades are floaty and make Kratos feel more like a ballerina than someone who is trying to murder things effectively. It's only when the bigger enemies have their QTEs that a hint of 'brutality' comes into play.

Nier Automata, to use that example, doesn't have nearly the depth of the higher profile Platinum games (though it does have more than God of War) due to its limited weapon choice and the simplicity of it all, but it makes clear distinctions between weapons and the animations help tremendously: when 2B uses a giant sword it feels heavy and comes off that way even when swung quickly. Combat feel is super important in an action game and the worst thing is feeling like your character doesn't have as tight a response as they should.

Dynasty Warriors might have the simple combat but it's not trying to be a deep action game or a brutal one, it's pure power fantasy and it does that incredibly well in most cases. It gives you open fields and sends thousands of dudes at you and every move in your arsenal is designed to kill them in ridiculous and quick ways. It is rather cathartic and though the inputs are the same the characters still feel like they play differently.

A lot of the good action games have their gimmick. Metal Gear Rising was all about the active parry which provided a way to keep the action going by turning defense into offense. Bayonetta was about witch time and flashy combos with precise timing. Devil May Cry, especially 3, was mastery of different styles in a fast and stylish way to the point the game punished you for just doing the same thing over and over again; even DMC 4 was about swift movement and enhanced attacks with Nero. God of War's gimmick is brutality but it doesn't succeed in making the player feel powerful on a moment to moment basis. Regardless of the buttons you press, Kratos rarely feels powerful until the QTEs pop up and he does a kill.

I'm not saying that enemies should be made of paper, but for a guy who is the god of war he plays like he's attacking with pool noodles. The mechanics of the combat are whatever, it's everything that happens when he's actually attacking that makes it worse.

@Fabricant451

In both college dorms and military barracks I saw way more Dynasty Warriors than God of War. So there's mass appeal for Dynasty Warriors. Plus iirc Dynasty Warriors (or some knock-off/variation) was popular in the Tokyo arcades I used to visit. As popular as the dance games or the Mario Kart? No but still popular.