What games are you playing now?

I bet it is, but I was low on mana (stalagmite killed the dwarf, so no use from 2 healers after no initial resting!). ;)

Yes, combat is very much about resource management.

Also you can tilt the camera to see the stalagmite and where they will fall and I believe enough points in perception will make the hexagons darker where they will fall If I remember correctly.
 
Ty guys I returned and nailed it in the first retry. But this time I was rested.

Plus found a bug in chapter1. :(
Not a big one!
 
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Assassin's Creed 4 - Black Flag

I've played AC and AC2 - and found the first game very boring, but the second one pretty good. Never completed it, though, because it quickly turns into some kind of OCD hunt for mostly meaningless objects, unless you're very good at ignoring goodies all around you. I'm getting to be pretty good at ignoring them, but I can't entirely leave it alone - which means I bog myself down trying to collect shit instead of playing the main game, and I end up exhausting my interest.

For AC4 - I see the same pattern with the item hunt - but I have to admit I really like the setting and the ship stuff. Also, it does seem to have integrated everything with more competence, probably because they've milked the franchise for so long that they know what works a bit more. The story is appealing and I like the mechanics as well.

I've just started though, and I'm really looking forward to the underwater exploration that I'm hearing about - because that's just my thing.

Had some trouble getting it to run properly - but after turning PhysX to low, it's pretty smooth overall. Quite beautiful as well.

The game would be significantly better if they dropped the collectable shit and instead put really interesting and significant stuff in there to find, but DID NOT make it a visible hunt with X/X numbers everywhere - because that makes the player feel obligated. Much better to hide these items and let players with that inclination go hunt when they feel like it - like in Dark Souls.

The way to make immersive exploration (and not GAMEY exploration) is that you don't show the player how many items are in each area, and certainly not where they are on the map. It's stupid.

I'm considering turning the HUD icons off - but I'd be aware of all the stuff I was missing, because I know the design of the game.

It's exactly the kind of modern hand-holding gamey crap I've come to hate. All these mostly superficial "activities" with little icons and small achievement rewards.

HIDE IT and make it SIGNIFICANT. You don't need a million little things - just enough to make it worthwhile for the player interested in exploration.

Hehe, ok - rant OFF.

But beyond that, it's actually not a bad game at all.
 
Well, well… I have to say I'm getting more and more into AC4.

Even after quite a few hours of playing it, it's still evolving and opening up new stuff. Last night, it really clicked with me during a moment in some highly atmospheric Aztec-inspired dungeon. I had to solve a cute little puzzle - and I had a smile on my face the entire time.

I'm even starting to enjoy hunting those trivial white spots on the map, as if I'm finally coming to terms with being an OCD gamer :)

Also, and I never thought I'd say this - but I'm actually having a SLIGHT bit of fun using the "companion app" - which is a part of the Uplay scheme. You can use your tablet as a secondary screen, complete with a world map and all kinds of silly in-game related stuff.

It's useful and it tracks my movement at all times, which means I don't need the map screen and that's convenient. There's also a mini-game that can help you earn extra gold whilst chilling out.

Hehe, yes, it's all part of the new and horrible way of integrating online-stuff into games, but this time it's kinda fun.

The game remains staggeringly immersive and beautiful, I have to say. It's the complete AAA package, no doubt about it - and playing with my new surround headphones takes it up another notch. Also, some of the music is fantastic.

I'm going to have to admit that it's one of the best "GTA" inspired games I've ever played. It has so many interconnected systems that all work out pretty well, including one of the best stealth/assassin systems I've encountered - despite the usual gamey crap. It feels good to be good in this game.

Also, the ship/sailing stuff is surprisingly involved and though it's obviously not realistic-at all - they've made it work so you don't mind it so much.

Great game.
 
The game would be significantly better if they dropped the collectable shit and instead put really interesting and significant stuff in there to find, but DID NOT make it a visible hunt with X/X numbers everywhere - because that makes the player feel obligated. Much better to hide these items and let players with that inclination go hunt when they feel like it - like in Dark Souls.

The way to make immersive exploration (and not GAMEY exploration) is that you don't show the player how many items are in each area, and certainly not where they are on the map. It's stupid.

I'm considering turning the HUD icons off - but I'd be aware of all the stuff I was missing, because I know the design of the game.

It's exactly the kind of modern hand-holding gamey crap I've come to hate. All these mostly superficial "activities" with little icons and small achievement rewards.

I wasn't going to consider AC4 after seeing how cluttered the HUD is with icons and text. That completely destroys the immersion for me in these types of games. But you're saying that most of it can be toggled off?

Also, does it feel like you're missing much story-wise from not having played several of the preceeding AC games?
 
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I wasn't going to consider AC4 after seeing how cluttered the HUD is with icons and text. That completely destroys the immersion for me in these types of games. But you're saying that most of it can be toggled off?

AFAIK, pretty much all of them can be turned off - though I think that would make the game somewhat annoying.

Also, does it feel like you're missing much story-wise from not having played several of the preceeding AC games?

Nope, not at all. It seems like a completely separate storyline - though there does seem to be a few references to the "Creed" and some of the characters from the past games.
 
AFAIK, pretty much all of them can be turned off - though I think that would make the game somewhat annoying.

Yeah, I realize it would make some things harder to locate. I don't really care about the OCD egg hunts though.


Nope, not at all. It seems like a completely separate storyline - though there does seem to be a few references to the "Creed" and some of the characters from the past games.

So there's none of that nonsense where it suddenly takes you into the future for brief sections like the original game did?

I know there's some kind of silly story in the background about a high-tech corporation probing your genetic memories, and that you're actually playing out those memories. I had the impression that all the games were connected through that.
 
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Yeah, I realize it would make some things harder to locate. I don't really care about the OCD egg hunts though.

It includes stuff like the minimap and weapon indicators - which means you will have a hard time finding stuff altogether and you'll have to remember the weapons you've selected which is harder than it sounds. But you can just disable the icons that bother you.

So there's none of that nonsense where it suddenly takes you into the future for brief sections like the original game did?

I know there's some kind of silly story in the background about a high-tech corporation probing your genetic memories, and that you're actually playing out those memories. I had the impression that all the games were connected through that.

Yeah, there's some of the "Animus" stuff - but, so far, it's very limited. I'm about 30% into the main quest now - and I believe I've been taken into the "future" 2 or 3 times. We're talking ~15 hours of playtime at least.

But it's part of the AC experience, I guess, so you can't avoid it entirely.
 
Well overall it seems like a significant improvement over the earlier titles. I like the setting, and it sounds like exploration is a lot of fun.

I'm going to get it.. although that might be a mistake considering the size of my current gaming backlog. :)

One last question: Is the underwater stuff only at hotspots, or can you dive in and explore anywhere?
 
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Well overall it seems like a significant improvement over the earlier titles. I like the setting, and it sounds like exploration is a lot of fun.

I'm going to get it.. although that might be a mistake considering the size of my current gaming backlog. :)

One last question: Is the underwater stuff only at hotspots, or can you dive in and explore anywhere?

Since I've only played 1 and 2, I don't know how much of an improvement it is over the rest of the games - but I'm certainly having fun.

Underwater stuff is only during certain quests and hotspots, I'm afraid. The world is pretty massive, so I guess it's understandable that they couldn't create underwater environments for it all as well.

I guess the best thing I can say about it is that it feels sort of like Risen 2 crossed with the old Pirates! game from Sid Meier - only much prettier and quite a bit more entertaining.

But it's still very gamey in terms of mechanics, so don't expect old-school PB stuff.
 
Yeah, I got a Risen 2 vibe from the footage I saw, and that's a good thing.

I expected that freeform underwater exploration was too good to be true, but what's there still seems pretty good.

Ubisoft's stuff is always a little too gamey for my taste, but I think I can ignore the trivial extras and just enjoy the world if I try hard enough. I'm a big fan of tropical environments, and it's rare to see them in a game with an open-world style.
 
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Currently playing M&M10 and honestly am not sure what's so awsome in it.
Can't say the final word before I finish it or drop if it turns into annoying experience, but honestly, early game is not so stellar as reviews suggest.
 
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I am playing Consortium, I haven't gotten far into game because I want to read everything on in-game computer and there is LOT to read, and it's interesting enough.Huge effort was put into this segment alone.I don't like graphic design of the game, but it doesn't bother me too much.

I am also playing Aura fate of ages, myst clone from 2004.There is more story and npc interaction than in myst games but writing and voice acting is very bad, in would be better if game was "lonely".Puzzles on the other hand are very good, also unlike myst game there is inventory but there it isn't used much and most of puzzles are similar in design to myst,.
 
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DArtagnan; You really seem to enjoy AC4. I've only played the first one for a couple of hours, I didn't like it too much.. But after reading your posts, I might actually give this one a go.
Currently playing Morrowind for the second time, the only game I have ever played twice. I like this one better than the later Elder Scroll games. It's slooow, you're no instant super hero in this one. You have to make the effort. And the atmosphere.. I'm lost in some old Dwemer dungeon and it's scary! Death could be lurking around every corner. If only I had taken a few more restore Magicka potions with me..
 
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Just started 5th chapter of Blackguards. Good stuff. My main is a Mage. Little did I know that the game would add 2/3 other mages to your party. So they run to a corner every fight, buff the 2 npc fighters, and heal, with occasional enemy debuffs (which always seem to fail even with 98% chance to succeed). Direct damage spells rarely fail, but do little damage. After about 20 battles doing this only viable tactic, I'm ready to be done.
 
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There's only "Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag". Although I can see how it could be confusing because most people just refer to it as AC4.

Speaking of which, I purchased and installed it last night. I only played for about an hour and have mixed thoughts so far.

The game is beautiful for sure. It's also very well optimized for how detailed it is, but I'm guessing it's probably heavily GPU bound. It runs completely smooth on my aging rig + GTX 770 with everything maxed and PhysX off. Turning on PhysX brings some stutter, but I honestly couldn't notice a visual difference with it on or off anyways.

I was surprised how little has changed gameplay-wise since the original Assassin's Creed though. After the sea battle intro, it instantly felt very familiar with me going to an elevated landmark and "scanning" the area to identify various loot locations. The character animations and controls also seem to have changed very little from the original game.

I obviously haven't played it long enough to really form an opinion though.
 
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