So, what're you playing?

[Ard]

Been playing the crap out of Two Worlds II.  It's so completely eurojank it's almost staggering, and yet I can't stop playing.  Thankfully it quickly gets easier unlike Risen, and it's magic system is scratching an itch I didn't even know I had.

[Rasix]

There's probably a topical cream for that.

Still playing inFamous.  Pretty fun and kind of satiates the need for some sandboxing. Game is awfully repetitive, but generally well done.

Researching DF stuff at work for an upcoming play through.  No idea what I want to do.  Overplanning leads to less engineering failures, however.

[Ard]

But engineering failures are half the fun when your pyramid of glass cascades into itself killing all the dwarves within, causing a spiral of panic and fear.  Then the goblins invade.  Probably shouldn't be asking in this thread, but did he ever put multi-level cave ins back in?

[Rasix]

I should have clarified.  I don't want to discourage engineering failures.  That's why I don't want to over do it before I jump back in.   

There's nothing quite like fudging the z-axis on your magma pumping and roasting some poor pump operator and possibly flooding the countryside with burning death.

[Minvaren]

I seem to have been ignoring the PC as of late, putting too much time into Rock Band 3.

...so much time that I hit the top 1% of PS3 guitar players (by total score) last night.   

[Ingmar]

I like playing new DLC on pro keys the day it comes out, it creates ego boosting ranking placements even when I 74% something on medium. 

[Minvaren]

Getting ranked on anything, even on release day, is always ego++.  

I'm still ranked on 3 songs on guitar somehow - and only 1 of them was an expert run.

[Rasix]

Once I saw the name, I knew it was the right site.

[Yegolev]

Nice job, Obsidian.  Why do you keep getting projects?

Because every so often they give us a New Vegas that makes it all worthwhile.

Lies!

I need to finish Fallout 3 first.

Also, stop making me want to play DF.

[Paelos]

I always think DF sounds good until I see screenshots. Then, I lose all interest. I'm not that hardcore to fuck around with ASCII games.

It's like hearing about this chick's killer body and then she shows up wearing a potato sack, and she's a never-nude.

[Rasix]

Not HD, but it'll do.  Mayday's graphics mod is pretty decent.

[Malakili]

Sadly, no matter what graphics pack I use, the games interface makes me stabby. 

Oh, and on topic: Fallout 3 GOTY.

[Paelos]

I'm no graphics whore by any means, but is it really that far-fetched for them to make it not look like ass? Even with that overhaul, that's doing nothing for me. Here's an example of the lowest I'm willing to go and still have fun.

[Rendakor]

I really wanted to like DF but the interface was my big turnoff. Figuring out what each key does and navigating the byzantine menus was just too much for me.

[ghost]

I've been playing a lot of X3 Terran Conflict.  It seems like it should be interesting, and I love the setting, but so far it's pretty bland.  It's very, very sandbox oriented and there is a lot of down time and repetition.  I doubt I'll put a lot more time into it unless things pick up.  Then I will finish Origins and do the new DLC from Fallout NV.

[Mrbloodworth]

I'm no graphics whore by any means, but is it really that far-fetched for them to make it not look like ass? Even with that overhaul, that's doing nothing for me. Here's an example of the lowest I'm willing to go and still have fun.

OMG, memories.

[Murgos]

I've been playing a lot of X3 Terran Conflict.  It seems like it should be interesting, and I love the setting, but so far it's pretty bland.  It's very, very sandbox oriented and there is a lot of down time and repetition.  I doubt I'll put a lot more time into it unless things pick up.  Then I will finish Origins and do the new DLC from Fallout NV.

What you see is pretty much what you get, it's very much a self-directed experience.  That said, play it long enough to get an M3 class fighter (Nova preferably) will full shields and weapons.  By then you should know most everything the game is going to give you.

Really though, if you dig into it there is a lot of meat there.

[Lantyssa]

If you're really brave, capture a Xeno or Khaak fighter and use that.

[Rasix]

I'm no graphics whore by any means, but is it really that far-fetched for them to make it not look like ass?

That's a mod.  All of the graphics are by some guy doing an overhall.  While those work well, they don't really animate. I'm not sure there's even a workable animation system in the game. Without that it's pretty much just ascii.  I could never play it base, I always have had some sort of mod going to at least make the dwarves, dwarves.  I'd be a bit hesitant to get behind a graphical overall that tries for anything fancier than SNES level.  I'd rather it retain some charm then just look like ass because someone tried to half ass it into a Morrowind era engine or something.

Honestly, the graphics aren't the problem and aren't for most people that give it a shot. Even the last major release had easily workable graphic packs and tilesets.   It is the overall UI that's a chore to deal with.  It's inconsistent and pretty difficult to find out how to do even the most basic tasks.  The easiest way to learn is to watch youtube tutorials, even then it's difficult to do the most basic things without playing with it for a while.  

I'm used to it, but I'm still having a hard time remembering some of the hotkeys.  A lot of hotkeys you just have to memorize because there's no menu equivalent (or at least not one that I've found).  

Still, it has some great emergent game play that's worth it to me when I can actually put some time into it. Plus, it's really neckbeardy in a way I can appreciate.  Having a hard time finding a decent magma spot this release (I don't like playing without trees), so I think I'll just play around with the swamp.

[Paelos]

DF is one of those things that I like in principle but I think totally missed the point of gaming. I get where you are coming from, but if you can't even figure out a menu and a passable GUI when RAM and hard drive space goes for a song? Sorry, I don't buy it. Look at Minecraft or Terraria. Perfect examples of the way you can go with it.

[Ice Cream Emperor]

It is the overall UI that's a chore to deal with.  It's inconsistent and pretty difficult to find out how to do even the most basic tasks.

Exactly -- people who can't handle ASCII or tile-based graphics and think that's the sticking point would probably start tearing out their hair 5 minutes into a cutting-edge 3d-rendered version of the game that still kept the same UI. (Obviously, part of the limitations of the UI is the graphics, but you can still design a much better menu/keyboard-based UI than the game currently has.)

As for why 'they' don't just, like, whip up some graphics -- it's one guy. One guy who is clearly very, very interested in writing complex mathematical simulations and very, very uninterested in coding graphics.

[ghost]

If you're really brave, capture a Xeno or Khaak fighter and use that.

That sounds like it would make for a short game. 

[Lantyssa]

The L is good, but not that great.  The LM I was never able to capture.  Nor any Khaak over an M.  One day...

Or maybe it was a K.  I can't remember the Xeno designations.

[Xilren's Twin]

Also picked up Shadow Era for my phone.  Decent little free to play CCG clearly inspired by Magic. You can win xp and gold from playing the AI, and they try and get you to install other apps to earn "shadow crystals" you can use to buy packs and such.  I'm trying to see how far I can make it without spending a dime.
You can also play it in your browser, but apparenly the browser and phone versions dont connect to the same account, which is a missed opportunity to me.

[Rendakor]

Just bought the original Mass Effect on Steam; I had played it on the 360 a bit but didn't care for it. However, I made a deal with a coworker that resulted in me having to give it another shot, and I'm hoping I like the shooting controls better on PC.

Finishing up some sidequests in my unarmed Fallout: NV playthrough before I start up Honest Hearts. Also WoW, killed Majordomo on our first night on him, then rolled a 6 on my tier shoulders. Le sigh.

[apocrypha]

I tried playing DF a couple of times but, like others, was put off by the UI. I actually find it's a lot more fun reading about other people playing DF.

I've just finished Red Dead Redemption on the PS3, which kept me entertained for a lot longer than I was expecting, and am now going to go scour the bargain PS3 games section on Amazon...

[Minvaren]

Started up my free copy of inFamous on the PS3 yesterday.  Interesting so far, up to chapter 3 so far.

Does anyone have any tips on how to aim better?  It's much easier now that I un-inverted the horizontal axis, but I haven't used this sort of control setup without a mouse involved in forever.

[Yegolev]

The only advice I can give for thumbstick aiming is to practice more.  The interface has reached a plateau, unlike in the old days when the quality was all over the map.  So adjust the sensitivity (if possible) to as fast as you can handle an keep working at it.  If there is a lock-on mechanic, use it.  Personally, the default setting works for me in +95% of the games I play.

[Trippy]

Started up my free copy of inFamous on the PS3 yesterday.  Interesting so far, up to chapter 3 so far.

Does anyone have any tips on how to aim better?  It's much easier now that I un-inverted the horizontal axis, but I haven't used this sort of control setup without a mouse involved in forever.

Fight from above, it gives you more time to line up shots and you can break LoS easier. Also move to fine tune horizontal aiming.

[Threash]

Jesus christ, i need to get back into an MMO.  In the month or so since i quit Rift i've bought Deus ex 3, Heroes of Might and Magic 6, Rage and SWTOR.  Which of course leaves me around 200 bucks in the hole and nothing to actually play.

[Malakili]

Jesus christ, i need to get back into an MMO.  In the month or so since i quit Rift i've bought Deus ex 3, Heroes of Might and Magic 6, Rage and SWTOR.  Which of course leaves me around 200 bucks in the hole and nothing to actually play.

This is definitely the advantage of an MMO :).  I haven't played an MMO seriously in a while and I've definitely been hunting and hunting for some non MMO to "stick"
 the way some older games did for me and I haven't really found it yet.  Maybe Diablo 3 will fill the void.

[Sky]

Didn't take me too long to get a few solid gaming options going after quitting Rift. Amnesia is such an awesome game, having something that intense that doesn't require (or even offer!) combat is such a refreshing break from the overwhelming majority of murder simulators.

Still poking around Civ V as the Iroquois. My previous try as Ottomans (and subsequently getting stomped by an irate Harald Bluetooth) was short. This time, I have tons of resources and a great early-game unit in the Iroquois Warrior but nobody nearby to stomp. Well, the Japanese quickly folded, but Washington is a long way away and otherwise there are only a half-dozen city-states in our trireme/embark reachable region.

Taking a break from Just Cause because of stupid controller motion sickness.

[jakonovski]

I just bought Cryostasis and NecrovisioN from the Gamersgate sale. It may not have been the smartest thing to do, but at least it was really cheap.

[Ingmar]

Civ V has me pretty well hooked currently, also fitting in some farting around in Dragon Age 2 and Fallout 3 while I wait for New Vegas DLC and Minecraft 1.8.

[Malakili]

Giving Global Agenda another go around.

Trying to find something to stick with not much luck, GA might get me though.

Other things I've been playing:

Project Zomboid Alpha
Natural Selection 2 Beta
Starcraft 2 (laddering 1v1 season 3)
Tribes: Next (Tribes 2 community run authentication server)