Battlefield 1....

The latest theme of the week is Apocalypse large scale combat, conquest mode. A mode and scale I'd usually be fully into; Yet I've not played many matches. Seems the coordinated clans are back. All of which leads me to hanging back in a match, spotting, using flares or trying to take down tank/horses. There's only so much a random team can do against more organised sides; And I prefer to not get spam killed.

Which leads me to this weeks video. Being pushed back to spawn points and hammered into the ground has made me notice the games details again. Rain, mud, reflections, shockwaves. Shouts and calls, charging player battle cries, whistles, pops and bangs. Shots and echoes of shots, explosions and flamethrowers. In the heat of battle it can all be overlooked as players get blinkered for the kills. Dedicated PvP players turn off the fancy graphics to enhance their performance. I've always liked the games overall experience, graphics/sound and all.

So a video to highlight that end of the game.... The game experience between the kills.

A Casual Gamer

Torchlight Frontiers - Torchlight III....

I've had my eye on Torchlight Frontiers since it was announced. I was interested but not fully sold on it as an MMO(as well as it's zone only epic gear - so the main in game system). Like back then I'm still interested to see how it develops. And develop it has. Not as an MMO and with a name change to Torchlight III(and on Steam). So a 'proper' follow up to the franchise....

Play Torchlight

I've only recently had access to and played the First game. It made me realise I liked the second game more. With luck the third game will be another step up. It does seem to be well on it's way to being a good game in this new form.

The games move from the Arc launcher to Steam is a move I have no problem with. I use Arc's launcher for Star Trek Online anyway so it's no hassles either way(for me).

I'm more excited for this version of the game than I ever was for Frontiers..... Should be a lot of fun.

Games wtih Gold....

Another month another batch of games with gold.

TT Isle of Man - Looks to be a game I could spend some time on; A quick look will determine that for sure. One to try at the very least.

Call of Cthulhu - I'm into the Lovecraftian lore, stories, games etc; But I've no interest in a slow paced horror game. Listening to a audio book or playing a board game is way different than a video game. From what I've seen of it I know I'd become frustrated as NPC's drone on... That's just a me thing. So not a game for me.

Fable Heroes - A cutesy hack'n'slash Fable spin off that looks more at home on an OG Xbox than on a 360, so never mind how it looks on Xbox One. It doesn't interest me.

Star Wars Battlefront - Seeing as I've already claimed the second game last march through games with gold and not played it I doubt I'll be doing anything with this game.

60 Seconds!

It's been a while since I was last in 60 Seconds. Nice to get back to it for some quick fun!

STO....

Yesterday after patch time was interesting. Problems with lag due to too many players logging in, is a nice problem to have. A dev or two also appeared in chat channels to gain information from players on new content interactions and any problems which was interesting to watch. I can never fault the support/devs for their efforts, sometimes I wonder where they get their patience.

Rubber-banding all over the place was 'fun' to see. Even more fun to experience in a TFO. I mean that sincerely, it was fun/funny. With it happening to everyone all over the place, space, ground and TFO.

I took the opportunity to start the anniversary Q event; His usual Omega particles tasks.

This also counts as the daily for for the anniversary ship. So two birds with one stone. I'm into that.

The new TFO is a fun filled massive shooting gallery, on a planet. No complaints on that either.

I'm really liking the planet used in the new missions. It's portals remind me of Oblivion's gates. That planet is also the new character select backdrop, erupting lava and all.

This new phase of Star Trek Online is an interesting one to me, with one caveat. It also includes more content from Star Trek Discovery. Amalgamating all Star Trek-dom in their entirety and forming it into a game is commendable; But for me I can't stand Discovery. Not all of it but well into the 90%-tiles. So far I've been able to tolerate it's existence in game and ignore most of it. But the two new missions are long or at least feel long with Burnham mouthing off at everything that goes on(to harsh?) Maybe it was the lag..... That lag got fixed quickly and was gone a short time after.

Star Trek Online

Yes the 'expansion' is Borg themed, yes it's a good idea to have Seven of Nine, but a Discovery character? I like everything about the new content except for the STD crossovers. I'm biased, I don't like STD(as if that wasn't apparent already). It's not Star Trek to me(as is the new Picard series). In my mind STD and STP are alternative timelines born of the 'Kelvin' movies. Like an ever increasing mudslide, going straight down; leaving only destruction in it's wake.

Fans, viewers and gamers can all like what each individual likes. I'm not here to say anyone should not have their own views and tastes. If you love STD/STP then great, you got two shows to wallow in and a game that has some of your favourite content. But this blog, these waffling words are my views so I'm a gonna waffle(vent therapeutically)!

One other Discovery gripe I have happens with a very cool moment where all the Star Trek series ships and captains warp in(tv voice lines and all) to help you; The gripe? Discovery is at the center of them. Like it's in the lead...... Small thing but it irked me....

So yea, Discovery elements of the content aside, everything else is great.

I do appreciate that running the new missions once gives you all the rewards. So no need to endure experience it again and again unless you want to.

STO....

The infographic for the 10th anniversary is interesting.

Always nice to see some stats on the game.

I still have questions about the Xbox version. My character there 'got' two achievements this month with player stats that I find hard to believe.

Less than 1% have gotten an admiralty campaign to level 10!!?
It's one of the best ways to gather wealth....

Less than one and a half percent, have spent 30 specialisation points?!!?

Darkest Dungeon....

The journey has progressed further.

I've had some great success with a blight based crew, 2 Sheildbreaker's up front with a Plague Doctor and a Vestal at the back.

They've completed what remained of the last bosses and farmed dungeons for gold. That gold helped finalize the remaining heroes armour/weapons/skill upgrades and the removal of bad quirks and diseases.

The only action remaining is to get an Arbalest to level 6. I did have a level 5 but she got spam attacked in a dungeon and never made it out. It was as if the game knew. The paranoia is real....

I'll farm a little more and get a level 6 Arbalest, then move on to The Farm and The Crimson Court.
The farm will be a grind for crystals(for trinkets) but I'm enjoying the revisit to this save so far.

I also took 4 level 6 Antiquarians (Antiques Roadshow) in a short champion dungeon for test purposes. A good dodge buff and blight crew. Not a bad result either, they all made it out. I just need to pay more attention to the (blight)weaknesses of enemies. I might have to take them into more, longer or darker dungeons(dark run).

A Casual Gamer

Star Trek Online....

More 10th anniversary freebies but no epic tokens for me....

I must have used all my token luck last month with the Risian Luxury Cruiser claim!

Free with Epic....

I'm no fan of Epic. However free is free and I've claimed the free games given by Epic. I've waffled about that before and I've waffled that I've only played 2 or three of those games.

So in that vein I was surprised to see the next freebie, Farm Simulator 19! Coming on Jan 30th.

Farming Simulator 19 was only released on November, 2018....

I've played a good bit of Farm Sim 17(here, here and more since), so I'll be interested to play '19.

Phoenix Point....

Phoenix Point had my interest since I first saw it. It was delayed for further development, no harm in that. Not that I was tempted to be a backer either; But it's move to the Epic store soured a lot of those backers and potential fans in general.

I'd still kept the game on my wishlist to remind me of it, so at some point I'd see it on sale on Steam(probably with all the DLC) and snap it up in a year or so. All that despite having read reviews that say it was in need of more work. I never thought I'd get a chance to play it before hand never mind last weekend. I saw it as part of the games available with Xbox ultimate game pass for PC. I was surprised it was there given it's Epic exclusivity! But why argue that, it's available, it's free.

So an install, tutorial and a few missions later my overall initial reaction to the game is 'meh'. Reviews have been right.

In mission gameplay is better than XCOM 2's tactics and in some ways it looks more like the 2012/13's XCOM. While I'd choose the first over the second, both XCOM games have personality. Phoenix Point feels a lot more cold. There's very little characterisation. There's story, action and an overall campaign knitting it together, but there's no real motivation. I don't care about my own faction let alone the others or why should I stop them. A good story draws you in with characters and their plight and struggles. There's nothing like that, to capture me, not that I can see. So I've no real need to go back to the game. It plays like XCOM but I already own both. If I'd shelled out for this game and the season pass I'd be €70 poorer and disappointed.

Microsoft Store

That said, again, it's a lot like XCOM. I like XCOM so I like what Point is doing and trying to do. Yet the maps feel empty. There may be destructible buildings, trees, but everything is motionless, it feels fake. If XCOM is a Warhammer match between two players, Point is a game of chess against a computer arm. Both tactical but one is more fun to do than the other.

Load times are looooooooooooong.... 30+ seconds.

It's not all bad, there's a lot that does work. The tactical phases are good, as I said a cross in feel between both XCOM games but superior to XCOM 2(imho). Aiming at specific points of targets is a great feature, well done here. Seeing the results of your hits on a target are 'cool'. Shots count and hits matter. Nothing better than hitting a fast moving target in the leg and then see it limp next turn, giving you time to finish the job.

The enemies are great, varied and need to be handled tactically to eliminate. Like XCOM there are human and non human enemies. I keep calling the enemy 'creatures' aliens but they're human mutations and other 'things' from the sea. I'm sure that the story is probably alien related..... Or a microbe from an asteroid started the mutations etc.... But the story really isn't there to make you want to do missions to find out. Not for me at least.

The game is supposed to be set in 2022 but the world looks more 2122, there are so many futuristic elements to everything. I only know the year from looking the game up on Wikipedia. The game itself does very little to help your suspension of disbelief. In fact reading more as I write this the wiki states "extraterrestrial virus in permafrost" so my previous microbe from space was kind of right.

The immersion of the story is that you know noting(Jon Snow) of the virus or what your own faction really is; And need to find out 'things'. But the game makes me feel like I don't want to know. The more I look up online the more I see the game is not telling me and should have. That's frustrating.

Story aside I like that it seems you can have multiple bases, like XCOM HQ times 8. But your on a deadline like in XCOM 2. In Point you can do missions to drive back the enemies but I'd say it would take a lot of time and effort to get your faction fully upgraded/fitted/equipped/built etc.etc.etc. I can't fault the game for it's in game systems. There is a lot of detail there, it doesn't feel overly complex or bogged down in micromanagement.

The game may have had an official launch last December but it still feels like a work in progress. I've only scratched the surface of what is there. There's still free content, patches and DLC to come for the next year; Maybe by the end of that time it will be worth getting. I have it for 'free' and I've no motivation to play it.....

Star Trek Online....

Kudos Wonder Woman, Kudos!

STO....

Free R&D lock boxes(five of them) for the latest 10th anniversary giveaway; With the chance of a free ship.

But no luck on that free ship for me, plain old R&D materials and Lobi crystals in all the boxes.

STO....

I've been back to my Xbox character due to the release of the next event for the T6 token Phoenix Prize pack campaign. Like the PC version it's The Breach TFO and the reward is the Voth Power Subcore.

This event needs less to complete than the PC version, you only need '2' points from doing a TFO to count towards the 'daily'; PC was 3(so a TFO and a patrol were needed).

Getting the Subcore will be good, I'm all about the deployables for more DPS. Getting tech upgrades won't hurt either.

Speaking of tech upgrades, todays 10th anniversary reward is 3 tech upgrades....

The end of the current (Xbox) event should be enough to grant the overall campaign prize.

As such I've been looking at the ship list to see what I'd get.

She already has the Ferengi Nandi from a previous promotion. A few other ships stand out to me. The Xyfius Escort was my go-to ship on PC for years; Till he upgraded to the Risian corvette. A ship she is now also using. So in a way any other ship I am familiar and comfortable with she already has. Older familiar ships would be a down-ish-grade. Yet I still need to choose a ship.
As she already has that corvette from the summer event it seems better to go for the next best ship?!
Yet the Xyfius doesn't really add much more than the ship itself. Harasser mines from it's level 5 mastery are quaint compared to console deployables today....
Thinking about it more; If my PC main is using the Risian Corvette as the new mainstay and he's already claimed a bunch of these ships in teh past, what would he miss the most if it was removed..... Easy answer is the Bajoran Interceptor, mainly for the reason that it comes with the Domino console.

However, I've heard a lot of good things online about the Kobali Samsar Cruiser and it's console.

Then again, the Bajoran Interceptor can rely on the Bajor Defense Set. A set on PC that I've gotten a number of times on different ships and across different characters. The warp core for that set is unlocked with the Interceptor. The Kobali warp core that comes with the Samsar has no set to enhance(Kobali set has a 4 piece bonus and the warp core plays no role in that set other than in name).

Bajoran Interceptor it is....

Praetorians....

Speaking of GoG. In the middle of last year I saw and waffled about a number of games getting the remaster treatment. Among them was Praetorians. It and Commandos 2 are now a released double pack. Praetorians was my main aim when looking at the remasters.

My original still installed and worked when I took a look back.

A Casual Gamer

I was into Commandos back in the day (as I had waffled about)but not so much now as to want to replay it's remaster. I'd gotten the Commandos bundle on Steam a while back, that was enough to relive the nostalgia for me.

Even at a current -15% off, that's a steep price for what you get(imo) with the double pack. I'm not doubting the work that's gone into revamping the UI, graphics 'n' revamps of either game. They look great. Great for a person who wants to relive the nostalgia and wants to buy; But when I can reach for my original, still working disks and play my old saves.... €15 per game is steep, €12 is still steep.

One for the Steam and GoG wishlists to keep an eye on for future sales.

Defender of the Crown....

Growing up I was late to the C64 scene. Getting my T2 C64(c) pack in the early 90's. In some ways it was good as I could pick up cheaper hardware and software; But it really was the last burst of populism for the system. In retrospect it was a decent cross between a gaming console and PC functionality in the form of a 'reasonably priced car'.

Consoles of the time aside friends a few years later and my age group in general split into two factions. Amiga or Atari ST. I never got into either(or consoles), instead getting my first Windows PC in '95(first console was the OG Xbox(more on that here, here and here).

Bear with my waffling context.

One of my favourite game genres is strategy. 3 C64 games stand out for me from back then, Supremacy(Overlord), Johnny Reb II and Defender of the Crown. C64 games were very 'in the moment' as they had no saves. An action replay cartridge and a disk drive sorted that problem for me. Granted games on the C64 could last hours with retrying things. Artificially saving memory states only prolonged that to do and retry more. Like a form of what would be called save scumming today.

Waffle aside I spotted Defender of the Crown on sale on gog.com. I'd never tried the PC version but at €1.09 it seemed like I'd find out.

So I got it, and I've found out that the C64 version is indeed better than the PC version(imho). Nostalgia and rose tinted glasses aside. The only saving grace for my one euro purchase is that the superior Amiga original version also comes with the GOG software. GoG does use the Amiga version for the promotional screenshots. Better Amiga graphics and sound saved the day if not my true nostalgia. That's not to say that GoG tried to blindside buyers with trickery; They did a great Dos/Amiga comparison video:

GOG.com

The Amiga version may have been the first version that came out in '86 but the PC and C64 ports a year later were not identical. The PC Dos version does not stand the test of time well. Especially in the sound department. There are elements in the PC graphics that are slightly better than the C64(like 'some' animations) but the PC sound.... like finder nails on a chalkboard; The C64 is an 8bit wonder in comparison(All hail SID).

This era of 80's gaming really showed the difference in home systems and the more industrial office PC workhorses of the day. No wonder the 90's birthed waves of consoles (90's eh....).

Amiga map:

C64 map:

PC/Dos map

Amiga Tournament splash:

C64 Tournament splash:

PC/Dos Tournament splash:

Granted today it's down to perspectives, a gamer is going to love the game they played on the system they played it on. I'm C64 biased but not so much so that when I see the Amiga version I can't admit that it's better.
If your buying this GoG pack don't do so for the PC version. Unless that version is 'your' version for nostalgia. It's not worth it today otherwise. If your do, like me you'll be glad the Amiga version comes with it. I'm really glad it only cost me just over 1 euro; Any more and I'd have be peeved.

I'm waffling away here but I'm glad to have gotten this process/nostalgia/experience/comparison. It's also gotten me back to emulation of the C64(for a little bit of super nostalgia).

I'm not tempted to get the original hardware out of storage. Last time I looked and tried to set it up there were so many problems. Deteriorating cables and hardware wasn't fun. Kind of glad that I sold off the bulk of my original setup in the 90's. Kind of sad I don't have my old setup working these day's. For now, what I do have is in a form of Schrodinger's C64; It's in the box and potentially working..... The nostalgia lives and all my old saved disks are there.

Kind of tempted for the C64 Maxi. If only I had a way of getting my old 5¼ inch disks imaged and on usb.....

The 8-Bit Guy