Eve Echoes....

Having a gaming PC with more Eve Online accounts than I can shake a stick at I'm not the target audience for Eve Echoes. I don't spend enough time only using an android/mobile device that would make access to Eve Echoes a must or a 'go to' game.

A good while ago (after some Eve fanfest), I signed up to be one of the 4 million, now 5 million gamers who pre-registered for the game. Curiosity. Just for curiosity.

To check it out I didn't install it on an android device. I used Bluestacks on my PC.

Given all that what do I think of Eve Echoes. Mixed feelings, just like Eve Online.

It's more than it needs to be for a mobile game imho. It could have been better in area's to entice and be friendlier to casual mobile gamers. Like Eve Online the new player chat in Echoes is a flow of questions and people frustrated at not knowing what to do. I also get a feeling Echoes has shot itself in the foot. Again imho. That it's a game that thinks it's better than it is. That's a CCP thing all over.

Maybe I'm blinded by Eve Online and my own history with that game.

Starting off I was not happy I couldn't alter my characters looks or cloths. All randomized/presets.
Click presets till you get something palatable. As for names I didn't want to spend time so went with a preset random name. An Eve related character I don't care about, a first for me!

Once created and in game the hand-holding A.I. for the tutorial does a good job of it akin to Aura in Eve but in Ecoes it's a more long term guide. Good, all except for the very start of the game which is an interactive cut-scene that plays out and leaves you in a station ready to start fresh. Like a redacted version of Eve Online's start. I didn't like that start. no control. I have no doubt that will be coming to Eve Online soon(TM).

The tutorial rewards like in Eve make it all worth doing from basic(camera moment etc) to advanced. It's the same as Eve Online but 'different'. An alternative reality for sure. Interesting to see but it doesn't 'make' me want to play it as a game. I'd have logged off it it was't for me wanting to blog about it.

That advanced tutorial set is long and detailed. Maybe to long and detailed for a mobile audience.
Then again I might be showing some stereotypical prejudice towards mobile gamers.
Then again new players say it best:

Overall the game's got an unfinished feel when you dig deeper. Skills and the omega clones I think are to blame. That may just be my Eve Online bias poking through. Lot of that for me in this game. Bias.

Like Eve there are daily rewards but I'm sure that the idea in Eve came from Echoes development. 'Meh'. Unlike in Eve Online the Echoes daily rewards are claimable by each character. I'm sure that won't be coming to Eve Online any time soon(can you tell I'm biased!?!).

Don't get me wrong, for what it is it's almost got a feeling of being to ahead of it's time. Again that may just be me and my stereotypical prejudice towards mobile gamers. I just can't see 5 million clamoring android users all in on this game.

I like the UI, the look and feel is truly Eve. Clean and intuitive enough... At least for an old bitter vet of Eve Online.

Seeing the hanger like this is 'cool'; A part of Echoes that felt familiar. A place to start comparing and judging; A safe haven to reach out from.

The more I played the more I wanted to do things that were easy and more free form in Eve Online.
Echoes is Eve Online lite with it's own real world business model differences etc. It is what it is.

So yea CCP wants millions of mobile users for bigger profits no doubt. I fear if it does get millions and does do well then Eve Online, a better game(and it's community that built CCP) will loose out.

I don't hate Echoes. I just see it as a missed opportunity. I can play Eve Online for a better Eve Online experience.

The more I play Echoes the more I wish Project Aurora had lived. It would have been more accessible to more mobile players(imho); It would have been different enough from Eve Online that I might have been 'into it'. Players of Eve would have gone to it and players of Aurora would have gone to Eve Online in an ideal world. I don't see a symbiosis remotely like that with Eve Online and Echoes(a trickle if anything).

Shoulda, woulda, coulda.

Echoes isn't for me but with 5 million pre-registrations I'm sure it won't take long for Eve Online to go the way of Dust 514 and be 'uneconomical' despite a persistent small hardcore player-base. I really don't see that happening but I have to be semi-sarcastic and snarky etc etc etc. #bittervet #stopmysterycodeneglect. 

Star Trek Online....

Half way on the summer event already. Time flies.

I thought it'd be the same on the Xbox character but I must have failed to hand-in or did a hand-in when the timer hadn't fully reset so it didn't count. Either way she's behind by a day.

Speaking of Xbox, that character has done a few of the events; Spent some spare lobi on the favors and gotten some items, the most expensive of which is a better jet-pack(1000 favors) to do the daily faster.

The old basic jet-pack should really have been replaced the first xbox summer I was in on Xbox but it is what it is. Upgraded now and it makes so much difference.

Back on my Jem'Hadar I knew things would be really slow to progress but it's really slow. Doff assignments are dependent on location so being in Earth space dock all he gets are a mixed bag of standard stuff. I don't have the motivation to move him to a more optimum location. The Dyson sphere was good for a while. I might park him on Deep Space Nine for a bit, see if he gets nostalgic for the wormhole as well as alter his Doff assignment lists.

Otherwise I've been blitzing TFO's on my Delta Recruit KDF alt(of an alt of an alt). Accessing freebies as his level improves. Also adding stuff from the Phoenix prize store(Doff's, Dil tribble, admiralty ships etc etc). A few more TFO's today got him to level 65. So yea, I've been messing about with the character a good bit. It's easier to 'fix up' a lower level character that's not had a lot of attention; Or at least it feels like you accomplish more. It's a good thing.
He's claimed a lot of account wide rewards including a large number of ships. However he leveled up so fast that he couldn't gain mastery in most of them . With him hitting level 65 I got the pop-up for the Specters chain; and has gotten about halfway through it. Happy day's.

A bit of a new look for him as well, not bad but not fully happy with it. Need to adjust his Borg implants again at the very least.

Pondering....

.... Just Pondering.

Star Trek Online....

My main Starfleet Tactical character has, like all other events, been the one I am doing the current event on. Yet I've been lazy with doing Risian content. I've done a few but I've been relying on collecting all the reward favors from all characters and used some Lobi to buy the rest of the needed favors. My main is sorted with the new Kit, kit modules and other bits etc. As for the new tribble and pet, I went to the exchange and splurged energy credits for my main and some alts. So with my main done except for the daily re ship claim I've not had my Jem'Hadar near Risa. Maybe next year he'll get his summer togs on. Jem'Hadar in a Hawaiian shirt on a beach needs to be done.

Speaking of my Jem'Hadar, his Gamma recruit unlocks are progressing. I was surprised to see the 'do 100 TFOs' complete last night. Logging back onto him today and not doing a few TFO's seems strange; Hopping on and doing a few TFO's was a habit.

The remaining 'todo' list of Doff missions and R&D are more long-term and are dependent as much on my mood to do them as with luck in getting a good result from them. Still the Doff portion will be more doable than R&D as I've no real experience at min/maxing anything R&D related. I sense a waste of Dilithium incoming in that regard.

His reputations are also coming along. Another two or three days should see the majority of those that do remain be completed.

I've neglected a lot of my alts the last 'while'. Particularly with the 'first world problem' of claiming all the free stuff that's available to them. There are so many places in the game UI that you need to go into and claim items that it can be a job in itself. C-Store(tab after tab), event reclaim, dilithium store reclaim, recruit account unlocks and some lifetime rewards.  Going through each and claiming is a task I've put off. At least the Gamma recruit stuff is in one place. So for my alts I got to claim the account wide unlocks more easily. Very nice to get.

In looking up these rewards on an alt I noticed that there were still two listed under Klingon/Romulan that needed to be done. Strange as I thought I'd done all the Klingon stuff on my KDF Gamma recruit alt a while back; I must have blocked out the Klingon part when I read Romulan in the list. I really don't remember there may have been content that I put off.

Checking it out further it seems that both are unlocked by doing 2 mission chains that are no longer in the formal mission journal. Specters is a mission chain based on the Drozana station(Federation station turned Ferengi 'business opportunity'). A fun chain I've done a good few times. Having the mission trigger is level dependent. Like with my Jem'Hadar on Wastelands I think it's given after being hailed(section 31 or high council)etc. Once the prerequisites are done and you meet level requirements. My KDG character is mid 40's-ish so needs another 20 levels to be 'hailed'. 
The other is a small chain of thee missions - Vigilance. From looking up info on the starter mission of the chain shows I've done the prerequisites but no idea where it's picked up. Or why I can't get it now as my character has both the prerequisites and the level requirements.

More journal/mission hunting awaits.

Battlefield 1....

The last three weeks or so have seen a lot more Battlefield 1 action. The usual highs, lows and everything in between. Despite a lower player count it's still a great multiplayer game.

The highs of gameplay range from great sniper kills, even better post death tripwire kills, fantastic tank main gun kills at range, some cool multi kill assault streaks.... They've been weeks that had it all. 

The lows are the usual, getting gank killed by planes or coordinated clan groups, shot through walls via cheaters or aim hacks, the usual at this stage and then some; With the odd bellend waffling away in text instead of gaming.

I don't mind if players waffle in text as they can be ignored(or sometimes hilariously funny) but it's when a player starts to mouth off and mess with another player in game; Like standing in front of them intentionally blocking their view. That's being a true gobshíte. So yea I met one of them this last week. Specifically a player that told me a sniper in an attic shooting out a window(covering an objective) that I was "a fool camper"(And here comes my own childish petty rant).

The fact I was a sniper should have been enough to halt such a petty derogative gaming term; Never mind it being an objective based game where you literally sit on a create! But he waffled and then he stood in front of me. Dick move for an ignorant tw@ (seen end of the edited clip here).

If only that player could learn the difference.

Yea I'm over analyzing this shít but it's fun to do as well. Giving me motivation to waffle and edit some video about BF1.

Players can play any way they want, lazy, ignorant, overenthusiastic; They can play any class, any way and I'll have no problem unless it's cheating or specifically f**king with another player(or me).

It's annoying to have to game with gobshítes like that! Knowitall's that are not.
As if the enemy team weren't enough for him.... Why f**k with a member of your own team covering an objective!

Swap teams if it's so annoying, go to another server!

Don't stand in front of other players being a douche.

Usually this type of stuff doesn't bother me, I ignore and game on. It's his f**king with my gameplay that pissed me off(my tolerance was low to begin with). So I went out of my way to stay exactly where I was. Call me a camper, no problem I'll camp! Childish of me but if he was annoyed by me before hand I wanted to annoy him even more after.

Anyway, I like being a sniper.

Assaults not bad either ;)

A Casual Carebear Gamer

Two Point Hospital....

While I've been continually pottering away at different game elements, it's been some time since I really tried some of the DLC content. The last few days or so I've been trying to 'get into' some of the three DLC's that I'd started (briefly) some time ago but could never 'do'.

I like the idea of them. I like the narrative and story lines of the broader Two Point world universe.

Yet when I play them I'm almost immediately disinterested. I'd no such issues with the first DLC - Bigfoot. I've been doing and enjoying all the other content in the game. Especially the R.E.M.I.X. additions.

I think the efforts I've seen my wife go through have made me not want to go through the same. Pebberley Island in particular with it's wave based objectives which I find super annoying.  Close Encounters seems fun but I've seen and heard my wife play and utter some expletives, which in a post game analysis didn't inspire me to go through the same.

It's all a matter of gameplay. The DLC is more 'hardcore' in ways. For the dedicated only. I guess I'm not as dedicated to it as I thought; Or at least not the DLC's kind of dedicated. While they are themed, they are also based around different gameplay mechanics.

The Off the Grid DLC seemed to be the one that drew me in more than the others. All that despite having one game mechanic I really don't like. For the first map anyway. The 'hospital' occupies the same look as the grounds. It's all open air.

Sounds harmless enough but when you try plotting out rooms pre planning goes out the window and I tend to get confused as to what is in and outside. It's hard to tell when it all looks the same. Pebberley was the worst for this but at least with Off the Grid I got to place some cheap items to more clearly mark boundaries.  Even zoomed out the maps stone outer limit markers fade into the artwork. A me thing for sure. At least map two and three are very much building based!

Map one isn't that much of a challenge. It's the games usual hospital management. On it's third star it's very much a grind for cures and percentages. A lot of hospital management and staff training. Two Points version of a 'grind' I guess. With the added % of 'greenness' to keep an eye on as it's an immediate fail condition if it drops too low.

Some perseverance, luck as well as research gaming and the third star popped after a while, to my relief. I had been on the verge of save and quit(for now). Least it all worked out! There's gameplay motivation in that.

One down and two more maps to go. Map 2 and 3 at least are back to being in buildings.

Maybe the other DLC's won't be so bad after this.... 

Poly Bridge 2....

I've had Poly Bridge 2 on my wish list for a little while. I was notified of a 20% off sale so I picked it up yesterday.

A less violent, modern day bridge based version of Besiege, kind of(*). I've been having good fun with it. Fun in the challenge, fun in the problem solving, the enjoyment that that brings as well as some relaxation through it all. Not as much as with say Islanders (*) but along the lines of Mini Metro(pun intended*).

The amount of players that come up with their own unique solutions is another interesting view of the mechanics of the game and what you can 'get away with' building for success.

It's a good game. For me a game I'll be playing long-term, pottering about with it here and there.

Star Trek Online....

A new summer event and a new ship. No real new updates to the old event, the usual new vanity/store items and the ship etc. Day two today but to early for my activities to count yet. Cooldown on that ends in a few hours.

I picked up the new multicolored tribble and caracal.

As for the ship CounterYolo Gaming did a good analysis of it. Well worth a watch.
None of my characters have any real need of it. I have access to better Science based ships. Free is free even if it's by doing the event. I enjoy the events activities so getting the ship isn't a chore.

I'm even doing it with my main on my xbox account. 19 days doing a daily on each, great on my PC main and his best of the best jetpack; Painfully slow on my Xbox main with her slowest of the slow basic jetpack.

PC

Xbox

I'd really like to pick up the new Risian Kit Frame and the new ball lightning kit module as well as a few other minor items from the event store; But that will need my main to grind. I might wait till the event is half done and the exchange is flooded with the event currency, buy up a lot there. Time will tell on that. Either way I'll be working on items for my main and not any main alt or alt or alt alt..... etc etc etc...

I mentioned the new cartoon characters are now duty officers.... While I did claim them and intended to treat them like all Doff's in a claim and forget manner; I actually like the ability of one of them...

Yet set in a space slot it/he doesn't seem to do anything.... Joke on me perhaps....

STO....

The Lower Decks cartoon is not Trek it's far from Trek, it's far from Animated Trek never mind Trek; And I'd go into a more ranting analysis but I have better things to do.

The main 'characters' of the cartoon are however being introduced as duty officers in STO. I'll claim and then never see them again. Fair enough.

Neon Abyss....

Neon Abyss; Another new game I've access to via Xbox Ultimate which covers titles for PC. From the trailer it's got everything I think I like about a platforming shooter. Specifically it sparked my attention due to it's 8-bit graphics as well as it's more vertical platforming Enter the Gungeon style.

Team17

I've said before I'm not really a fan of platformer games but there are some games that are technically platformers that I like.... Even if I don't consider them as platformers(Deadcells, My Friend Pedro, etc. etc).... Technicalities!

So with games of Neon Abyss's ilk I tend to like them a whole lot more than they like me. Fun. Fun till it becomes frustration. I've long ago given up hardcore striving for perfection in games like it. 

Enter the Gungeon was a game I bought on a sale but had never really clicked with me. It ticked all the gameplay wants and needs but in playing it, it just faded away. So it colours my view of Neon Abyss with all the similarities they share never mind other games. I'm biased with what to expect. Still there's enjoyment till the scale tips into frustration.

However playing Neon Abyss the big deciding factor was that its 'free'(via Xbox Ultimate). I can say hand on heart that I'd not even wish-listed it anywhere never mind think about buying it. That's me and this type of game right now, not a dis towards the game, it's mechanics or players who are all in on it. It looked good, peeked my interest. It peeked my interest for sure. It's fun and free is free so why not give it a go(like it's Steam demo).

And a go I gave it. Cat's for guns! Who wouldn't!

Broadly speaking this game is everything I like and hate in one. I played it(but not as much as Enter the Gungeon by far), I enjoyed it(again not as much as other games).

I've had fun in it. But....

It's a game that has a slightly different control system, remapping was needed but still felt unsatisfactory. That was annoying. Basic intuitive pick up and play controls are a 'basic' given in most games like this. The other annoying thing control wise was that when looking/aiming with the right stick is that it also auto fires as you aim. That felt 'off'; I like a separate fire button. A "platformer" better with a mouse and keyboard..... Who'd have thunk it!

After a few hours or gameplay I was left with a feeling that I knew would happen. Fun till the fun became frustration. It was and I did. That did indeed happen and then the aversion to going back to it. Again that's a me thing.

There's a lot of chance and randomness to the game, sometimes both.

Sometimes enough is enough.

The randomness of levels can be good but when your doing your best and have to keep restarting, well that gets old fast. That randomness acts against my return as it's not like I can learn to take a level a certain way. That's a reactionary gameplay cliff not a learning curve.
There's accomplishment in doing a level but when the level keeps changing and 'doing' it then becomes more about luck or chance.... That's really off-putting to me. In this game anyway.

I do like how 'fun' the game is, it's just not enough for me to overcome what I consider as off-putting gamplay mechanics. Each to their own. Even for me it was well worth a try.

So yea this game for me is fun. A lot of fun. But frustrations take away from that fun. I'm glad it's free with Ultimate. Glad I played it. Glad to have known it was what I expected(any other way would have been a good surprise). This game isn't 'bad', it does a lot well; It's just really not for me.