Video games...what ya playing? And what are you looking forward to? (5 Viewers)

[IvanKaramazov]

Completely addicted to Balatro. Haven't felt this way about a game in years. 3 parts poker, 2 parts deck building, 1 part crappy CRT graphics, it's everything I want in a game. I can kill an hour on a single game and still not win the round. Killed a big part of the weekend. I've taken to at least listening to audiobooks while I play to at feel productive.

Playing on the PS5 (its on Steam and most platforms) so at least keeps the addiction at home, but it's coming to mobile soon and thinking of adding it to my Switch.

I kept seeing this game show up on Reddit and other places where folks were saying how fun and addictive it was. Reviews are stellar and it's up for a bunch of game of the year awards so I spent $10 and bought it on my iPhone late last week. Played it all through the weekend and I'm hooked even though I'm not very good yet. Only downside to mobile is that it seems to kill my battery pretty quick. It's a fabulous timewaster and it looks like it has almost infinite replayability with the plethera of jokers, card modifiers, and decks. I could totally see myself buying this on Steam ($14.99) at some point if it goes on sale there and I think it's also available on all of the other gaming platforms as well. Highly recommend.

I haven't had a lot of experience with Balatro yet, but I've played it enough to give it a big thumbs up. Basically, it is a rogue-like deck-builder. If you've played Slay the Spire, you will recognize what is going on here instantly. It uses a traditional 52-card deck, although it quickly starts including card variants, and you unlock an assortment of deck types, as you would expect from this sort of game. It uses "poker language" for gameplay purposes, but you kind of need to forget what you might know about poker to succeed at this game. My best runs so far (very small sample size) have been built around pair, two-pair, and three-of-a-kind. Fishing for big poker hands doesn't seem to be the way to win this game consistently.

I'm playing on Steam, and I've already had one night where I stayed up well past my bedtime on a weeknight because I wanted to do one more run. That's a big endorsement from me. For $15 it's a no-brainer if you like this kind of game at all. Not sure that it's better than Slay, but it's in the same class.

Edit: Just to be clear, I am bad at the Slay the Spire. I have never, not once, beaten the true ending. I've never beaten the regular ending on anything above base difficulty. I have no doubt that I'll be similarly incompetent at Balatro, but I've beaten the starting difficulty level a few times already with two different decks. It's easier, and I'll want to dial up the difficulty once I figure it out.

 

[STEADYMOBBIN 22]

I’m on the fence about buying another Xbox series X.

Part of me misses not finishing Elden Ring. Part of me wants to play kingdom come deliverance too. The other part of me knows the next frontier are the glasses and they’re not ready yet and maybe I should hold off still.

Real question is do I buy the series X with the drive that they still have Costco or is there any truth to the newer 2 TB edition for the same price?

 

[Capella]

Has anybody bought the Meta vr system? Thinking of getting it - I want to play the Arkham game.

 

[belljr]

Has anybody bought the Meta vr system? Thinking of getting it - I want to play the Arkham game.

I have meta 2? I held off because they made you get an fb account. Then it was a COVID purchase. Now you don't need fb account ....it well done but tbh the luster wore off for me.

We have a VR thread around here somewhere

 

[jwb]

Has anybody bought the Meta vr system? Thinking of getting it - I want to play the Arkham game.

I had one. I sold it to my neighbor's kid.

I wanted to like it. But after the initial cool factor, I found it cumbersome and uncomfortable, and it sat unused. Plus, any gaming session over 20 minutes or so started to give me a headache.

I'll try again when the tech improves and it's a light, easy pair of glasses.

 

[thecatch]

I’m on the fence about buying another Xbox series X.

Part of me misses not finishing Elden Ring. Part of me wants to play kingdom come deliverance too. The other part of me knows the next frontier are the glasses and they’re not ready yet and maybe I should hold off still.

Real question is do I buy the series X with the drive that they still have Costco or is there any truth to the newer 2 TB edition for the same price?

It looks like the normal version is on sale for $400. 1 TB should be plenty for what you're describing; if not, you can always go get an expansion card for like $100 later.

 

[Kanil]

Has anybody bought the Meta vr system? Thinking of getting it - I want to play the Arkham game.

I had one. I sold it to my neighbor's kid.

I wanted to like it. But after the initial cool factor, I found it cumbersome and uncomfortable, and it sat unused. Plus, any gaming session over 20 minutes or so started to give me a headache.

I'll try again when the tech improves and it's a light, easy pair of glasses.

We had a similar experience with the PS VR system. Got it home, spent about 2 hours in Skyrim and decided I didn't want to stand in my livingroom for 300 hours of gaming. Returned it the same night.

 

[FreeBaGeL]

I had the meta quest 1 and now the 2. Haven't upgraded to the 3 yet.

Playing "regular" games pigeon-holed into it like Skyrim is definitely not the primary use case. It's all about games designed just for it.

Games like Superhot and Beat Saber are tons of fun. Getting together with our normal Xbox group on the quest to play mini-golf once a week on the quest is surprisingly awesome.

It gets way less play time than my Xbox though just because it's so much easier to pick up a controller than re-arrange the living room to make space, put the headset on, etc.

 

[Hawks64]

Dragon Age: The Veilguard launched two days ago. It hit a peak of ~77K concurrent players on Steam over the past 24 hours. For comparison, Baldur's Gate 3, which launched over a year ago, peaked at ~73K concurrent players during those same 24 hours. It's all-time peak hit 870K.

So in just the second half of 2024, we've seen the failure of a new open world Stars Wars game by Ubisoft, an 9-figure GaaS by Sony, and a new Dragon Age title by Bioware. And the new Assassins Creed was so obviously doomed that it got pushed back to spring.

These are all massive, high-profile AAA or AAA+ titles by major companies, and they're failing one after another, some in truly spectacular fashion. Concord, for example, now probably holds the record for Biggest Videogame Flop of All Time, depending on how you measure that. (I'm sure the gameplay was better than ET, but more people bought and played ET.) In previous years, each of these big fall releases would have been titles that consumers were eagerly anticipating, and studios would have been hoping to position their titles for GOTY consideration. Instead, the company that made Concord has already been shut down, Bioware is probably done, and it wouldn't shock me if Ubisoft failed next year. I know Ubisoft is big, but I don't know that they're big enough to survive Outlaws and AC Shadows.

This industry needs a good controlled burn to clear out the deadwood, and it looks like we're finally getting it. What I'm hoping to see next are a few things:

• Less ideology crammed into games. I don't want to be preached at, and religious fundamentalists generally don't produce good creative products. (See Christian movies, Christian television, and Christian music -- this stuff is painful).
• Far fewer $200M+ titles. If you're making a game that expensive, it's too big to fail, which means the people calling the shots get way too risk-averse. Ditch the paint-by-numbers Ubisoft model. Ditch the paint-by-numbers Bethesda model. This stuff was innovative 10-20 years ago. It's played out now. It's slop.
• On a related note, AAA+ games increasingly rely on in-game monetization to make back their production costs. In-game monetization sucks. Another reason to make games smaller.
• Bring back the 12-16 hour single player game. You know who likes those games? Adult male gamers, who have disposable income to spend on games.

Larian Studios created a fantastic single-player RPG that genuinely moved the medium forward. FromSoft has a long track record of the same. Studios can do this if they want to. Or they can keep setting money on fire. It's up to them I guess.

I couldn't disagree more. I love the Elden Ring, ES, and FO type games, where you can sink hundreds of hours into building your character.
I enjoyed Outlaws, it was fun, but had some frustrating game mechanics.

I very much enjoy Dragon Age Veilguard, and have about 60 hours into it already, and not even into the 2nd act.

I can't WAIT for the next Obsidian game, Avowed.

 

[Todem]

Just fired up NHL 25. EA NHL is probably my favorite sports franchise. I've always played Be A Pro mode ever since it was introduced. Not sure I played last year. Decided to play Franchise.. oh my I suck... Definitely plays different than I remember

I am addicted to franchise on NHL 25.....really great playing game.

 

[Buckna]

I got a PSVR2 for free using Dell credit. My nephew loves it and plays it all the time when he comes over but echo the same sentiments, have to play games specifically designed for VR. The adapted regular games don’t play nearly as well. Also at least with mine you can sit and play, don’t have to stand the whole time.

 

[Moe.]

Anyone playing Hades 2? Major update last month, it’s pretty close to a complete game at this point. Decent time to jump in before the full release and price increase. I’m a couple hundred hours in and nowhere close to bored with it.

 

[TheAristocrat]

I'll say this about Balatro: if you aren't chasing flushes, you're doing it wrong.

I kid, there are about 75 different strategies that I don't think can work that well outperform mine. I put the game down a couple months ago but it may be time to bring it back to the rotation. $15 well spent.

 

[kupcho1]

Any fans of the Civ genre try Humankind? I started goofing off with it this afternoon because it’s on Game Pass and was pretty impressed. The flexible way you can develop your civilization’s traits seems like a cool twist on the formula.

Any thoughts on the game 1+ years later?
Steam sale has Humankind including all of the DLC for $25.67 (base game at $12.49).
Recommend?

 

[IvanKaramazov]

Dragon Age: The Veilguard launched two days ago. It hit a peak of ~77K concurrent players on Steam over the past 24 hours. For comparison, Baldur's Gate 3, which launched over a year ago, peaked at ~73K concurrent players during those same 24 hours. It's all-time peak hit 870K.

So in just the second half of 2024, we've seen the failure of a new open world Stars Wars game by Ubisoft, an 9-figure GaaS by Sony, and a new Dragon Age title by Bioware. And the new Assassins Creed was so obviously doomed that it got pushed back to spring.

These are all massive, high-profile AAA or AAA+ titles by major companies, and they're failing one after another, some in truly spectacular fashion. Concord, for example, now probably holds the record for Biggest Videogame Flop of All Time, depending on how you measure that. (I'm sure the gameplay was better than ET, but more people bought and played ET.) In previous years, each of these big fall releases would have been titles that consumers were eagerly anticipating, and studios would have been hoping to position their titles for GOTY consideration. Instead, the company that made Concord has already been shut down, Bioware is probably done, and it wouldn't shock me if Ubisoft failed next year. I know Ubisoft is big, but I don't know that they're big enough to survive Outlaws and AC Shadows.

This industry needs a good controlled burn to clear out the deadwood, and it looks like we're finally getting it. What I'm hoping to see next are a few things:

• Less ideology crammed into games. I don't want to be preached at, and religious fundamentalists generally don't produce good creative products. (See Christian movies, Christian television, and Christian music -- this stuff is painful).
• Far fewer $200M+ titles. If you're making a game that expensive, it's too big to fail, which means the people calling the shots get way too risk-averse. Ditch the paint-by-numbers Ubisoft model. Ditch the paint-by-numbers Bethesda model. This stuff was innovative 10-20 years ago. It's played out now. It's slop.
• On a related note, AAA+ games increasingly rely on in-game monetization to make back their production costs. In-game monetization sucks. Another reason to make games smaller.
• Bring back the 12-16 hour single player game. You know who likes those games? Adult male gamers, who have disposable income to spend on games.

Larian Studios created a fantastic single-player RPG that genuinely moved the medium forward. FromSoft has a long track record of the same. Studios can do this if they want to. Or they can keep setting money on fire. It's up to them I guess.

I couldn't disagree more. I love the Elden Ring, ES, and FO type games, where you can sink hundreds of hours into building your character.
I enjoyed Outlaws, it was fun, but had some frustrating game mechanics.

I very much enjoy Dragon Age Veilguard, and have about 60 hours into it already, and not even into the 2nd act.

I can't WAIT for the next Obsidian game, Avowed.

Glad you liked it. I don't think its Steam numbers ever improved, but it's a SP game so if you like it, it doesn't matter if it sells. I just can't get over how weird this industry has gotten.

 

[belljr]

Just fired up NHL 25. EA NHL is probably my favorite sports franchise. I've always played Be A Pro mode ever since it was introduced. Not sure I played last year. Decided to play Franchise.. oh my I suck... Definitely plays different than I remember

I am addicted to franchise on NHL 25.....really great playing game.

@Todem What level you play on? I used to play be a pro mode to start on Pro and then move to all-pro after a little bit of the season.

I started franchise on pro and have now lost my first 4 games. 4-1, 7-1, 8-2, 7-4. I can't stop the other team

 

[NewlyRetired]

Feeling a bit reading you guys talking about putting hundreds of hours into a game while I am over here trying to make sure I don't top 10,000 hours again in POE 2.....

 

[Todem]

Just fired up NHL 25. EA NHL is probably my favorite sports franchise. I've always played Be A Pro mode ever since it was introduced. Not sure I played last year. Decided to play Franchise.. oh my I suck... Definitely plays different than I remember

I am addicted to franchise on NHL 25.....really great playing game.

@Todem What level you play on? I used to play be a pro mode to start on Pro and then move to all-pro after a little bit of the season.

I started franchise on pro and have now lost my first 4 games. 4-1, 7-1, 8-2, 7-4. I can't stop the other team

Go here and plug in my Average Joe Pro level sliders.

You should really enjoy these.

Armor & Sword's "Average Joe" Pro Level Custom Sliders (Season and Franchise Mode) - Operation Sports Forums

Hello Average Joe Nation!!! I am taking a dice into the deep end with developing sliders for NHL 25. This is my first real foray into developing

forums.operationsports.com

 

[belljr]

ETA: and I played some actual hockey growing up so not a noob to the sport just suck at video game version

 

[Todem]

ETA: and I played some actual hockey growing up so not a noob to the sport just suck at video game version

I have embraced the NHL in the last decade like a drug addict.

It has leaped over NFL football for 2nd place behind MLB.

I learned the game a lot. As far as video game hockey, I have played it for 30 years and this is arguably my favorite hockey game ever.

Plays beautifully.

I am 16-7-1 with my Panthers in YR1 of my franchise.

 

[belljr]

Well my flyboys suck so maybe it's not me

The last real game I ever played I was 32;years old, playing in a men's league. A guy from the point winds up for a slap shot, I skate out to block it. It hits me square in the ankle just between the skate and shin guard. Hurt like hell I then got slashed on the forearm the next shift. A little later I block another shot IN THE EXACT SAME SPOT as previously. I freaking crawl over to the bench. Gut out the game.

Have to go to work the next day. Luckily nothing was broken. But I looked awful and ridiculous. Couldn't golf for a few weeks.

I was like what am I doing lol. Job family not sure it's worth it anymore

 

[Todem]

Well my flyboys suck so maybe it's not me

The last real game I ever played I was 32;years old, playing in a men's league. A guy from the point winds up for a slap shot, I skate out to block it. It hits me square in the ankle just between the skate and shin guard. Hurt like hell I then got slashed on the forearm the next shift. A little later I block another shot IN THE EXACT SAME SPOT as previously. I freaking crawl over to the bench. Gut out the game.

Have to go to work the next day. Luckily nothing was broken. But I looked awful and ridiculous. Couldn't golf for a few weeks.

I was like what am I doing lol. Job family not sure it's worth it anymore

Yeah…..I played mens open hardball till I was 38. I didn’t feel like getting hit anymore by 21 year olds throwing 85-87 plus.

Then we played softball till I was 48……and that was that. Just too much recovery time because I went at it hard. I could not play less than 100%.

Let me know how NHL 25 goes. It’s really great and franchise mode is deep. Love it.

 

[MTskibum]

Playing Minecraft dungeons with my kids, is a blast and would recommend.

It is a beginners diablo type game with single screen multiplayer.

 

[need2know]

So i just now started playing age of empires 4. What a cool real time strategy game

 

[BLOCKED_PUNT]

Playing Minecraft dungeons with my kids, is a blast and would recommend.

It is a beginners diablo type game with single screen multiplayer.

just wait until they play the real diablo

 

[STEADYMOBBIN 22]

Xbox Galaxy 2TB edition at BB with $75 gift card

 

[steelerfan1]

GTA VI can’t come quick enough…

 

[STEADYMOBBIN 22]

GTA VI can’t come quick enough…

That will make me buy another new Xbox

I was so close to buying that galaxy black Xbox for $599. Fired up my old Xbox One and HFS, I can play Eden Ring on it!?!?!? GTFO!

Just finished downloading it and trying to figure out where I left off.

Shadow of Chernobyl two is pretty fun so far.

I can get past the ****tier graphics.

 

[jwb]

Then we played softball till I was 48……and that was that. Just too much recovery time because I went at it hard. I could not play less than 100%.

Yea, I'm the same way. I loved softball and was a good player, but I could not imagine playing now at 58. I would definitely hurt myself.

 

[jwb]

Shadow of Chernobyl two is pretty fun so far.

This is next after I finish Dragon Age.

 

[STEADYMOBBIN 22]

Playing Elden Ring on Xbox one is perfectly fine. I’m clearing out Stormveil as I type this


I’m so happy right now!

 

[Todem]

Shadow of Chernobyl two is pretty fun so far.

This is next after I finish Dragon Age.

DA Veilguard has been an amazing ride. Yeah yeah the woke **** slipped in with one character storyline…..who cares in the grand scheme. It’s a marvelous action RPG.

It improved on Inquisition in almost every aspect.

 

[belljr]

Picked up Madden for $30

I really like the on field play.

 

[Todem]

Picked up Madden for $30

I really like the on field play.

It’s really solid this cycle.

College Football 25 is much much better though.

 

[belljr]

Picked up Madden for $30

I really like the on field play.

It’s really solid this cycle.

College Football 25 is much much better though.

Well I've played 3 seasons of that but it definitely felt awkward when I flipped back from Madden to ncaa

 

[steelerfan1]

GTA VI can’t come quick enough…

That will make me buy another new Xbox

I was so close to buying that galaxy black Xbox for $599. Fired up my old Xbox One and HFS, I can play Eden Ring on it!?!?!? GTFO!

Just finished downloading it and trying to figure out where I left off.

Shadow of Chernobyl two is pretty fun so far.

I can get past the ****tier graphics.

And I’ll get the new PS5 as well for GTA VI.

I can’t play first person games and have run out of games that I like. Bought a handful that were supposed to be good, but just not liking any of them.

 

[bp1]

Hey, everyone. Just grabbed my old Wii to let my daughter play around with and am getting an error message that the game discs are not recognized. I've looked online for possible solutions and one of them is to use a cleaning CD. That said, I cannot find any that are compatible with the Wii (other than some listings on eBay for hundreds of dollars, as a 'nostalgia' collectible). Any suggestions? Thanks!

 

[BLOCKED_PUNT]

Bought a handful that were supposed to be good, but just not liking any of them.

Which ones did you buy?

 

[tkrull1]

Played No Man's Sky for roughly 22 minutes yesterday. Went back to Steam for a quick refund.

 

[steelerfan1]

Bought a handful that were supposed to be good, but just not liking any of them.

Which ones did you buy?

Watchdog 2, Alan Wake, Red Dead 2 come to mind are ones I didn’t like. Ones I did like were the last of us series, uncharted series, sleeping dogs and days gone.

 

[IvanKaramazov]

Bought a handful that were supposed to be good, but just not liking any of them.

Which ones did you buy?

Watchdog 2, Alan Wake, Red Dead 2 come to mind are ones I didn’t like. Ones I did like were the last of us series, uncharted series, sleeping dogs and days gone.

These are both good, underrated titles. The Last of Us and Uncharted are also very good of course, but they're not underrated.

 

[STEADYMOBBIN 22]

Bought a handful that were supposed to be good, but just not liking any of them.

Which ones did you buy?

Watchdog 2, Alan Wake, Red Dead 2 come to mind are ones I didn’t like. Ones I did like were the last of us series, uncharted series, sleeping dogs and days gone.

I dont care for Watchdog or Alan Wake but RD2 stands out. IIRC, Red Dead 2 does have a insanely tediously long (forced) tutorial so I can see getting upset with that.

Did you make it past that?

and then....

What are a few of your favorite games all-time?

 

[ShamrockPride]

Bought a handful that were supposed to be good, but just not liking any of them.

Which ones did you buy?

Watchdog 2, Alan Wake, Red Dead 2 come to mind are ones I didn’t like. Ones I did like were the last of us series, uncharted series, sleeping dogs and days gone.

I would take a look at Ghost of Tsushima, if you're cool with swords instead of guns. You'll be hard pressed to find a prettier game on console. Great story and gameplay too.

 

[Joey Wright]

Santa is bringing my family Mario Party Jamboree for Christmas. Currently still working through Breath of the Wild. I only have a switch currently.

 

[steelerfan1]

Bought a handful that were supposed to be good, but just not liking any of them.

Which ones did you buy?

Watchdog 2, Alan Wake, Red Dead 2 come to mind are ones I didn’t like. Ones I did like were the last of us series, uncharted series, sleeping dogs and days gone.

These are both good, underrated titles. The Last of Us and Uncharted are also very good of course, but they're not underrated.

Yes, loved them both.

 

[thecatch]

Bought a handful that were supposed to be good, but just not liking any of them.

Which ones did you buy?

Watchdog 2, Alan Wake, Red Dead 2 come to mind are ones I didn’t like. Ones I did like were the last of us series, uncharted series, sleeping dogs and days gone.

These are both good, underrated titles. The Last of Us and Uncharted are also very good of course, but they're not underrated.

Yes, loved them both.

There's a new Indiana Jones game coming out next week that's getting a lot of positive buzz that may be up your alley.

 

[thecatch]

Santa is bringing my family Mario Party Jamboree for Christmas.

Grabbed that as a holiday present as well, hoping the family takes an interest in it.

 

[steelerfan1]

Bought a handful that were supposed to be good, but just not liking any of them.

Which ones did you buy?

Watchdog 2, Alan Wake, Red Dead 2 come to mind are ones I didn’t like. Ones I did like were the last of us series, uncharted series, sleeping dogs and days gone.

I dont care for Watchdog or Alan Wake but RD2 stands out. IIRC, Red Dead 2 does have a insanely tediously long (forced) tutorial so I can see getting upset with that.

Did you make it past that?

and then....

What are a few of your favorite games all-time?

I couldn't get by the early start of RDR2. just not interested in the story at all for some reason.

favorite games would be Vice City, GTA V, Days Gone, Last of Us 2.

 

[steelerfan1]

Bought a handful that were supposed to be good, but just not liking any of them.

Which ones did you buy?

Watchdog 2, Alan Wake, Red Dead 2 come to mind are ones I didn’t like. Ones I did like were the last of us series, uncharted series, sleeping dogs and days gone.

I would take a look at Ghost of Tsushima, if you're cool with swords instead of guns. You'll be hard pressed to find a prettier game on console. Great story and gameplay too.

will look into this one. Thanks!

 

[steelerfan1]

Bought a handful that were supposed to be good, but just not liking any of them.

Which ones did you buy?

Watchdog 2, Alan Wake, Red Dead 2 come to mind are ones I didn’t like. Ones I did like were the last of us series, uncharted series, sleeping dogs and days gone.

These are both good, underrated titles. The Last of Us and Uncharted are also very good of course, but they're not underrated.

Yes, loved them both.

There's a new Indiana Jones game coming out next week that's getting a lot of positive buzz that may be up your alley.

Will look at this one. thanks!