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[ThemsAllTook]

I'm currently playing the expansion to CrossCode (A New Home) that came out a little while ago. The base game already had SO MUCH STUFF in it, and the expansion is packed just as full as ever.

I've had a really complicated relationship with CrossCode as a whole. At first impression, I kind of hated it in a lot of ways. The early parts of the story didn't give me anything to latch onto, and I had a lot of trouble with a few particular overbearing characters and their exaggerated personality traits. In terms of gameplay, there were so many systems thrown at me at once that I was never able to keep up and feel like I understood what I was doing. The puzzle dungeons were always real enjoyable though, and the moments of good times (and some sheer stubbornness on my part) were just enough to keep me going.

Then, around the halfway point of the game, a major story event happened. The entire extended sequence of Vermillion Wasteland was SO GOOD that I'd say it's one of my very favorite story beats I've experienced in any game. Having actual investment in the story and characters carried me happily through the rest of the main game. Having put it down and waited a couple of years for the expansion turned out to be just the right thing - my bad times with the game faded away, and I realized just how much there was in it that I loved.

The combat system is deep enough that I'm still constantly learning new things about it with 80 hours on my save file. The experience I have is often just trying not to get overwhelmed by the huge amount of information there is to parse at all times, but whenever I feel like I'm riding the wave of chaos successfully, it's great. There are still other systems and playstyles I could be using that I barely know anything about. Just like all other aspects of the game, it's packed full of so much stuff.

So, I don't think I've ever had my opinion of a game shift from being so negative to so positive. Once I finish the expansion, I'm seriously thinking I'll do another full playthrough to see what the experience will be like now that I know the story goes somewhere and I have some idea of which buttons to press in combat. My only real complaints at this point are that the story takes a while to get going, while game mechanics are piled on a little bit too quickly to keep up with them. The game's sense of humor still isn't quite my jam, but it's really perfectly tolerable. There's so much to love in here that these negatives feel insignificant. I'm glad to have had my worldview expanded by this game.

[ThemsAllTook]

Several years ago, I happened upon a platform game on the playtesting forum called "You can Double Jump", tried it out, and recorded a video on it. I kind of lost track of it after that, but was vaguely aware that it had been finished and released in 2017, now renamed to Super Lumi Live.



I finally got around to playing the full version, and man, it's really something. Underneath the relatively unassuming exterior is a masterwork of level design. This is a pure precision platformer that knows exactly what it's about and executes its concept perfectly. There are a lot of games that try to be this, but only a rare few are built so well.

Having played through the game's 60 levels for basic completion, I'm now doing a second loop to get gold medals earned by racing through each level in a time trial. This is where I'm finding that the level design really shines - there are a lot of level elements that move in cycles, and it's revealing to me that everything has been tuned with great care to present a very specific challenge when moving at maximum speed. Nothing is random, so it ends up being a learning process of puzzling out how to route around each obstacle, and how the arrangements at the time I arrive at them will change if I find an optimization earlier on in the level. It's a beautiful dance that's pure pleasure to learn every time.

If you're into fast-paced precision platformers, this is truly one of the best of its kind. If you're into platformers but don't necessarily want to go fast, there are other ways to play too - there's another entire set of awards I could collect by playing cautiously and picking up every collectible in each level without dying or using checkpoints. Give it a try!

[sambloom]

Hollow Knight, baby here we go!!

[Pfotegeist]

When I first started learning the Hollow Knight lore I was concerned my avatar resembled a pale one. But I figure coincidences like that happen pretty often, right? It won't come back to bug me. Now I have to wonder what kind of wurm remains behind if the coincidence doesn't stop.

[Guntha]

INFRA, and I'll be playing that for a while. Each chapter so far was like 2 hours long, and it seems to get longer and longer. It's just a gorgeous Source adventure game.

[minkonn]

I've been playing a bunch of smaller itch.io games! There are a lot of great games about LGBTQ+ experiences on there and it's been a blast, one that comes to mind that I highly suggest is Lookouts!

[JungleHeart]

Currently playing Attack on Titan 2 on Xbox. Makes me want to restart watching the TV show haha.

[rottendevice2x]

GRID 2.

(not as good as the original... but OK)

[victor11]

First is Minecraft, I've been playing regularly for 2 years now.
The second one that I've recently got hooked to is cookie clicker. This dumb game is getting me addicted man.

[agamerdev]

One word.

[ThemsAllTook]

It's been a while since I posted here. Here are a bunch of new recommendations from stuff I've played recently:

Bean and Nothingness

http://beanandnothingness.com/

A thinky puzzle game about growing monsters and using their unique properties to traverse obstacles. Impeccable level design with a really good flow of "see problem, think about it for a while, come up with an idea, test it out". Pretty hard, but at the same time very approachable.


Tunic

https://tunicgame.com/

What looks at first like an unassuming Zelda clone slowly reveals itself to be a much deeper experience, with surprisingly sharp teeth. A finely tuned struggle for survival in a hostile world, with many mysteries to unravel. I keep finding more and more layers to the game, and I have no idea yet how much remains to be discovered.


Patrick's Parabox

https://www.patricksparabox.com/

An absolute delight of a puzzle game, packed full of a lot of different ideas that all work together surprisingly well. At its core, it's essentially a Sokobanlike, but with inner and outer spaces, recursion, and a whole lot of other stuff. This reminds me of Baba Is You in that its concept is extremely fertile ground for puzzles and mechanical exploration. I suspect this one might end up creating a whole subgenre.


Thumper

https://thumpergame.com/

A rhythm game with a distinctive horrorlike aesthetic and some spectacular audiovisual design. A serious reflex test, with just the right checkpoint placement to ensure a challenge is understood and mastered before moving on, without having to repeat sections excessively. A susprising amount of depth and choice to the inputs required to clear each level - sometimes it might be necessary to play it safe and sacrifice a point multiplier just to survive, or you can go all out on the score attack at your own risk.

[InfiniteStateMachine]

Ultimate Marvel Vs Capcom 3. The addiction and learning never ends.

[Daria Sweet]

single player is much better than online games.  the last one I went through was life is strange

[JungleHeart]

Was just recently done with Eiyuden Chronicle: Rising. It's the prequel game for Eiyuden Chronicle: Hundred Heroes which comes out next year. If you're a Suikoden fan, these games should be familiar to you XD

I haven't started yet but I just installed Assassin's Creed Unity. Bugs are already fixed and there's a 60fps support on the Series X. Gonna start it later after work!

[xDaex]

I finally had the chance to play Deadly Premonition 2: A Blessing in Disguise on PC since it was released last Saturday. This version is much better than the original Switch version. Luckily I'm a console gamer, so I don't miss the mouse + keyboard support and graphic options, but I'm sure many PC gamers will complain.

The world-building and overall atmosphere of the game are outstanding. So far, I love both the story and the gameplay. Swery's approach to game design is still so unique, so I can't recommend enough checking out his GDC presentation on game design.




http://www.shshatteredmemories.com/greenvale/gdc-2011-game-design-in-the-coffee/

[Jondog]

Today I played The Looker, which is a pretty clever The Witness parody. It is only a few hours long so it doesn't overstay its welcome https://store.steampowered.com/app/1985690/The_Looker/

[JungleHeart]

Currently playing Xenoblade Chronicles 3 on the Switch and I'm loving it. The first 5 hours is incredible in terms of laying out the story. The battle mechanics are awesome and are definitely a stop above the first XC (I never played part 2 yet so my comparison is limited hehe).

If you're on Switch and you like JRPGs, and if you haven't checked it out yet, I highly recommend XC3.

Also looking forward to Gotham Knights, it looks awesome:




And also maybe this time I'll jump into the WoW Classic bandwagon when Wrath of the Lich King comes out:
[link removed]

[derekevers]

I downgraded from Xbox One to Xbox 360.  Mainly because of the pandemic.  I'm playing Super Street Fighter 4.  I have the Kinect too, better than what I thought it would be.  On PC I'm trying Fallout 76 the Pitt.  But I have to get used to the controls.  I like James Bond on Wii.

[flowerthief]

^ Oh man I really miss Super Street Fighter 4. I've pretty much played the whole series but that one might have been my fave, It had all my fave fighters in it: Makoto, Cody, Guy, Sakura, Hakan, Gen, Dudley, El Fuerte.

[PixelRunner]

I have been playing some Doom conversion mods as well as Minecraft (as always) and maybe some random indie games I find that fascinate me. I am a big Half-Life fan but for some reason I can't bring myself to finish Alyx, even though it is a really good game.