Discussion The 2025 Game Thread: Big Stupid Games Edition

[JujuFish]

Y'all keep bringing up games I've had in my backlog for years. Prototype 1 and 2? *checks Steam*. Yep, both there.

 

[GodisanAtheist]

Y'all keep bringing up games I've had in my backlog for years. Prototype 1 and 2? *checks Steam*. Yep, both there.

 

[Stg-Flame]

Y'all keep bringing up games I've had in my backlog for years. Prototype 1 and 2? *checks Steam*. Yep, both there.

Don't make us create another backlog thread.

 

[SteveGrabowski]

• Bought a 6700 XT
• Currently playing through a port of the PSP game Persona 3 Portable on it

 

[biostud]

I've bought Mass Effect legendary edition @ 90% off as I've never played them before, so why not.

World of Tanks as usual

 

[GodisanAtheist]

I've bought Mass Effect legendary edition @ 90% off as I've never played them before, so why not.

World of Tanks as usual

Strap yourself in for the Mass Effect series. It's a saga, broken up by annoying mini-games and gears of war esq cover shooting.

 

[biostud]

Strap yourself in for the Mass Effect series. It's a saga, broken up by annoying mini-games and gears of war esq cover shooting.

Never played GoW either

Also I can see mods can remove the mini games if I get annoyed with them.

 

[igor_kavinski]

Never played GoW either

I think you will have more fun with the Uncharted series.

 

[DAPUNISHER]

Never played GoW either

Also I can see mods can remove the mini games if I get annoyed with them.

If you ever want to play Gears, Co-op is the best way to play them.

I played the first 2 OG Mass Effect games; the first one caught me by surprise. I was not expecting to like it so much. That was ages ago I played them. I got Mass Effect legendary edition as one of the many many free games Epic, GOG, and Amazon giveaway. I keep meaning to check it out.

Midnight Suns is 8/10 for my tastes.

I am not paying anywhere near full price for yet another spiderman game. They are too similar to warrant it. I'll get it when it is 50% off or more.

I will finish Tomb Raider 2013 then maybe both the sequels.

 

[biostud]

If you ever want to play Gears, Co-op is the best way to play them.

I played the first 2 OG Mass Effect games; the first one caught me by surprise. I was not expecting to like it so much. That was ages ago I played them. I got Mass Effect legendary edition as one of the many many free games Epic, GOG, and Amazon giveaway. I keep meaning to check it out.

Midnight Suns is 8/10 for my tastes.

I am not paying anywhere near full price for yet another spiderman game. They are too similar to warrant it. I'll get it when it is 50% off or more.

I will finish Tomb Raider 2013 then maybe both the sequels.

Maybe I should put GoW on my shortlist, I have a old friend who I play with every Thursday and we need new CoOp games.

 

[biostud]

If you ever want to play Gears, Co-op is the best way to play them.

I played the first 2 OG Mass Effect games; the first one caught me by surprise. I was not expecting to like it so much. That was ages ago I played them. I got Mass Effect legendary edition as one of the many many free games Epic, GOG, and Amazon giveaway. I keep meaning to check it out.

Midnight Suns is 8/10 for my tastes.

I am not paying anywhere near full price for yet another spiderman game. They are too similar to warrant it. I'll get it when it is 50% off or more.

I will finish Tomb Raider 2013 then maybe both the sequels.

Which Gears is the best to start with?

 

[igor_kavinski]

Most Anticipated PC Games of 2025

From iconic revivals to ambitious debuts, 2025 is poised to redefine PC gaming with stunning visuals and bold new titles. Here's our list of the year's most...

www.techspot.com

I think the one that caught my eye with its superb visuals is Crimson Desert. Dangggggggggggg.

 

[GodisanAtheist]

Which Gears is the best to start with?

-They're all basically the same game so I'd say any of them. IMO one of those series (like COD) where one or two games would have been plenty, but now they're making a sixth one.

Gears 5 is the newest one that's been released, might as well start there.

 

[JujuFish]

I'm dabbling with two different games at the moment, and enjoying both so far.

I'm playing Indiana Jones and the Great Circle on my PC via Game Pass. I'm not a big stealth guy but I've always loved Indy so I had to at least try it. I'm a few hours in and it's got a decent blend of story, puzzles, and action IMO. Of course, being open-worldish, it has collectibles and side quests and the like, if that appeals to you (it does to me, but I know that's not everyone's cup of tea). And Troy Baker did a frankly amazing job at imitating Harrison Ford.

Also playing Cassette Beasts on my Steam Deck, which I got in a bundle at some point in the past. It's a turn based RPG where you transform into beasts that you record on cassette tapes. It seems to be a creature collector like Pokemon, but you become the creature instead of commanding it separately. It's got a very SNES style to it and I think I would have been obsessed with it as a kid.

 

[DAPUNISHER]

Unfortunately unless you emulate (and they fixed the bad performance) there is no way to play 2-3- or Judgement without an Xbox 360 or newer. I also disagree with the idea they are all the same. The combat in Gears 5 is radically different from OG Gears. If I never played I might wait for E-Day since it's a prequel, then Play Gears of War Ultimate.

I am hoping they announce a Gears Collection like they did with Master Chief on PC.

 

[GodisanAtheist]

Unfortunately unless you emulate (and they fixed the bad performance) there is no way to play 2-3- or Judgement without an Xbox 360 or newer. I also disagree with the idea they are all the same. The combat in Gears 5 is radically different from OG Gears. If I never played I might wait for E-Day since it's a prequel, then Play Gears of War Ultimate.

I am hoping they announce a Gears Collection like they did with Master Chief on PC.

C'mon Microsoft, let's get a COG Collection together for the PC...

 

[biostud]

So basically there's only GoW, GoW 4 and G5 for PC?

 

[GodisanAtheist]

Completed Prototype 2.

Great game: fantastic twist on the open world formula, fun protagonist, great traversal mechanics, fun (albeit mashy) combat mechanics, pure power fantasy enjoyment, great sense of humor in the upgrade tree etc. The closest to a "Carnage" game/series we're ever going to get.

Prototype 1 was a more raw, sandboxy kind of game. It was fantastic, but it was also very jank and leaned heavily on emergent gameplay to give the player their kicks.

Prototype 2 is all grown up. The sandbox elements from the first are there, but the side missions and missions are definitely better constructed, the world is better segmented and realized, everything is a bit more structured and clean.

Also, the fact that the collectibles map has a ping/general location for all the collectibles should be a standard feature on all open world games. It doesn't tell you exactly where everything is, but it tells you to search a general area and its just great. Makes collectibles more of a hide and seek than an absolute chore.

Game comes highly recommended as far as I'm concerned. Also, no/zero technical issues on my 5600X/980Ti steam box, even though Steam reviews make it sound like the game is completely broken and doesn't work...

 

[DAPUNISHER]

So basically there's only GoW, GoW 4 and G5 for PC?

Correct.

E-Day should land during the holidays this year. The Coalition has not met the high standards Epic set for them. E-Day is their chance to level up. Gears 5 I enjoyed the combat because the enemy pushes you, most of the cover is destructible, and they combine enemy classes and their weapons and tactics better than some of the previous installments. The A.I. on the harder difficulties is better than most games.

The story for 4-5 is not for my age group though. I relate much better to grimdark post apocalypse with the stoic archetype protagonists to accompany it. It makes any deep emotional reactions feel real and impactful. The newer games have kids wearing their emotions on their sleeves and oversharing and overreacting IMO. The games did well financially but I would attribute a large part of that to PC sales. If E-Day captures the feel of the OG game, it is going to easily be the best selling game in the franchise. Gears 5 was impressively well optimized for how good the game looks. If they can do that again, it is going to be a major hit.

And the music in the first game; it is up there with Halo CE IMO. There is this urgency and desperation in some of the scores that fits perfectly. Co-op is great because you can play on insane and really have to work together well. Including loadouts, as you are not both going to be able to find enough ammo for a particular weapon.

Alright, I'll stop now. It's been almost 20 years; Gears of War, including MP, was how I spent 100s of hours gaming back then. The profanity Marcus uses when missing an active reload in MP was exactly the same series of expletives I used when it happened the first time. The Epic crew were dialed in to the same frequency I was. That rarely happens for me in games.

 

[DAPUNISHER]

I know I am well over a decade late to the party, but Tomb Raider ended up impressing me. I can understand how they made a new trilogy because of it. Once you get Laura the weapons and skills, the game seriously hits its pace. I enjoyed the story, and everything felt on brand. I'll fire up the sequel shortly.

 

[GodisanAtheist]

I know I am well over a decade late to the party, but Tomb Raider ended up impressing me. I can understand how they made a new trilogy because of it. Once you get Laura the weapons and skills, the game seriously hits its pace. I enjoyed the story, and everything felt on brand. I'll fire up the sequel shortly.

- I was impressed by TR 2013, although it was a bit torture porny with the failed QT events and the "two Laras" was a bit silly (The murder hobo Lara you play vs the weak, innocent, scared by her own shadow Lara depicted in the cutscenes).

I have Rise of the Tomb Raider installed, maybe I'll fire that up next...

 

[JujuFish]

*pops into the thread again*

Oh, Rise of the Tomb Raider? Definitely don't have that in my backlog.

*hides Steam library*

 

[DAPUNISHER]

- I was impressed by TR 2013, although it was a bit torture porny with the failed QT events and the "two Laras" was a bit silly (The murder hobo Lara you play vs the weak, innocent, scared by her own shadow Lara depicted in the cutscenes).

I have Rise of the Tomb Raider installed, maybe I'll fire that up next...

They do end the game saying a survivor is born. Even if they got you there a bit clumsily.

 

[igor_kavinski]

I have a old friend who I play with every Thursday and we need new CoOp games.

Man, I should really get you to pick a lottery number for me. Humble Bundle heard you and put out the "Better with a friend" bundle!

 

[GodisanAtheist]

Just started up Rise of the Tomb Raider.

Man I am really starting to think PC graphics peaked in visuals to performance ratio around 2015-2016. This game is gorgeous, beautiful settings, good animations and character models, beautiful effects that wouldn't be out of place today. Texture resolution is a bit lower than it could be, but otherwise this is another game that could have released in 2022 and would have fit right in.

Performance on my 6800XT is absolutely through the roof. ~200FPS @ 1440P maxed.

As far as the game itself, it looks like its going to be more of TR2013 which isn't a bad thing at all considering that game was pretty solid. Game does a good job laying down strong Indiana Jones vibes from an archeological leading into the supernatural kinda place. Still has that murder porn kinda vibe with the deaths and failed QT events and such, but there does seem to be less ludonarrative dissonance between the gameplay Lara and the cutscene Lara this time around (i.e. Lara has just murder hobo'd her way through roughly 1000 cultists in gameplay, then Lara has a moral dilemma over killing a cultist in a cutscene...).

Looks like its going to be a good time.