Welcome to the Free Talk Tuesday Discussion!

What are you up to this week? Want to discuss gaming news? Or maybe share your progress in a game. Any non-gaming related posts are also allowed in this thread to be shared with like-minded people here.

We've almost reached the end of the 1st half of 2024, and Xbox has had more studio closures than first party game releases in the year so far.

That framerate is hilarious.

About the game: A tower defense action roguelike where you control a single tower to fight against hordes of aliens coming from all directions. Pick your tower, equip up to 4 skills, and choose from a variety of traits and items to craft powerful builds that lead you to victory.

I'm here to answer any questions you have about the game!

I don't think big companies know how to make a good FPS campaign anymore, let alone hone in on classic deathmatch multiplayer. The last FPS I bought was Half-Life: Alyx four years ago, and the first one to come along and interest me since then was Phantom Fury, but I'm letting that one iron out bugs for a few weeks before I pick it up. Even former TimeSplitters devs, given the opportunity to make a new TimeSplitters, made another Fortnite instead. Likely this new Perfect Dark was built to turn it into a live service that keeps players playing it forever rather than just making a fun deathmatch to play with your friends a handful of times, which would be missing the point. And all this is to say nothing about how those devs must be feeling when even a great game that sells well won't save you from Microsoft laying you off.

Affected devs:

• Arkane Austin (closed)
• Tango Gameworks (closed)
• Alpha Dog Studios (closed)
• Roundhouse Games (absorbed into ZeniMax Online Studios)

> These changes are grounded in prioritizing high-impact titles and further investing in Bethesda’s portfolio of blockbuster games and beloved worlds which you have nurtured over many decades.

> Others across the Xbox organization have been told that more cuts are on the way.

Raiden gets the bad touch.

Hi all! I posted a few days ago when I finished MGS1 and im back! :)

MGS2 blew my mind, holy crap, that was a GOOOOOD game.

Same as before, short break, and onto MGS3!

I never completed Arkham Knight and only played the first two games which I really liked. But for some reason I can't get into Arkham Knight. I find myself overwhelmed by the controls that seem to do something different all the time.

Granted, I am much dumber now than five or so years ago when I played the first two. But as far as I recall they were relatively straight forward. But as soon as I reached the first tank segment in the beginning of AK I remembered when I gave up originally.

But this time I decided to soldier through. Until I got to a segment where I had to complete five or six boring ass tutorials which all showed me different unrelated things of which I needed exactly one to progress and which all could have been integrated into the normal gameplay. Three I already forgot and with one I didn't even know what I was supposed to be doing but somehow I completed it.

Is it worth it to go on playing? Do I have to know everything it's trying to teach me? I remember that it was pretty much needed to learn everything in Doom Eternal (as opposed to 2016). But at least all the controls were pretty consistent there.

Anyways. Should I keep playing? Or is Arkham Origins better? Maybe I should just replay Asylum and City instead.

I would've written something about what this browser game is about, but imo it's best experienced blind

Demo available: https://store.steampowered.com/app/2094070/Quest_Master/

Ah yes, the super chad of its console generation, tons of great games, dvd playback, and PS1 compatibility! What's not to love about this legendary system?

What are your experiences with the PS2, what were your cherished games on the console?

Despite it being the weakest of its generation, you cannot deny they managed to craft some excellent games out of it with work arounds.

What are your thoughts?

Thinking about games such as the newly Pacific Drive.

Looks like Arrowhead might be moving forward with PSN despite "internal discussions".

!

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.zip/post/14764738

> Helldivers 2 Players Express Frustration On Steam As It Will Soon Require A PSN Account

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.kde.social/post/1227204

> > Image shows screenshot of XCOM2: War of The Chosen: Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. Terms of Service, with an added Mandatory Arbitration clause in Section 15. > > Came back to the game after a year or so, just to see this: > > !Shows how to opt-out > > At least they let us disagree to the ToC. Not sure if I can play the game after that though, since I just exited after clicking the disagree button. > > Also, at least they show us the changes on the top, so we know what happened.

Unsurprising move. People should've moved them elsewhere.

I bought this game 3 days ago and I'm totally hooked. It's still in early access alpha, though.

This is my totally made up WW2 Japanese light howitzer, built from scratch!

That is honestly hilarious from a old, old used to play Tekken player.

>The Government recognises recent concerns raised by video games users regarding the long-term operability of purchased products. > >Consumers should be aware that there is no requirement in UK law compelling software companies and providers to support older versions of their operating systems, software or connected products. There may be occasions where companies make commercial decisions based on the high running costs of maintaining older servers for video games that have declining user bases. However, video games sellers must comply with existing consumer law, including the Consumer Rights Act 2015 (CRA) and the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008 (CPRs). > >The CPRs require information to consumers to be clear and correct, and prohibit commercial practices which through false information or misleading omissions cause the average consumer to make a different choice, for example, to purchase goods or services they would not otherwise have purchased. The regulations prohibit commercial practices which omit or hide information which the average consumer needs to make an informed choice, and prohibits traders from providing material information in an unclear, unintelligible, ambiguous or untimely manner. If consumers are led to believe that a game will remain playable indefinitely for certain systems, despite the end of physical support, the CPRs may require that the game remains technically feasible (for example, available offline) to play under those circumstances. > >The CPRs are enforced by Trading Standards and the Competition and Markets Authority. If consumers believe that there has been a breach of these regulations, they should report the matter in the first instance to the Citizens Advice consumer helpline on 0808 223 1133 (www.citizensadvice.org.uk). People living in Scotland should contact Advice Direct Scotland on 0808 164 6000 (www.consumeradvice.scot). Both helplines offer a free service advising consumers on their rights and how best to take their case forward. The helplines will refer complaints to Trading Standards services where appropriate. Consumers can also pursue private redress through the courts where a trader has provided misleading information on a product. > >The CRA gives consumers important rights when they make a contract with a trader for the supply of digital content. This includes requiring digital content to be of satisfactory quality, fit for a particular purpose and as described by the seller. It can be difficult and expensive for businesses to maintain dedicated support for old software, particularly if it needs to interact with modern hardware, apps and websites, but if software is being offered for sale that is not supported by the provider, then this should be made clear. > >If the digital content does not meet these quality rights, the consumer has the right to a repair or replacement of the digital content. If a repair or replacement is not possible, or does not fix the problem, then the consumer will be entitled to some money back or a price reduction which can be up to 100% of the cost of the digital content. These rights apply to intangible digital content like computer software or a PC game, as well as digital content in a tangible form like a physical copy of a video game. The CRA has a time limit of up to six years after a breach of contract during which a consumer can take legal action. > >The standards outlined above apply to digital content where there is a contractual right of the trader or a third party to modify or update the digital content. In practice, this means that a trader or third party can upgrade, fix, enhance and improve the features of digital content so long as it continues to match any description given by the trader and continues to conform with any pre-contract information including main characteristics, functionality and compatibility provided by the trader, unless varied by express agreement. > >Consumers should also be aware that while there is a statutory right for goods (including intangible digital content) to be of a satisfactory quality, that will only be breached if they are not of the standard which a reasonable person would consider to be satisfactory, taking into account circumstances including the price and any description given. For example, a manufacturer’s support for a mobile phone is likely to be withdrawn as they launch new models. It will remain usable but without, for example, security updates, and over time some app developers may decide to withdraw support. > >Department Culture, Media & Sport

TL;DW: | Category | Progress | |-|-| | 2D art | 98% | | 3D Art | 85% | | Asset Implementation | 71% | | Level Design | 70% | | Navmesh | 60% (Exteriors), 44% (Interiors) | | Animation | 25% | | VFX | 70% | | SFX | 48% | | Music | 73% | | Voice Acting | 85% | | Filecutting | 83% | | VA Mastering | 5% | | Writing | 92% | | Quest Implementation | 72% | | QA | 30% |

Plenty of interesting info in the video, with dive into each category on what's done and what's needed to finish them. Worth a watch.