I think it’s kind of funny that Alan Wake has come up so much in this thread, because it literally has chapters and little recaps at the beginning of each chapter to remind you where you were, like episodes of a multi-part story arc in a TV show. Not sure about the sequel, as I haven’t played it yet. I know there are a few other games that do the same thing in text form, summing up the plot in an option under the menu so you can remember what happened so far, but I can’t remember off the top of my head what they were.
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The games i typically tend to play have all manner of side quests and stuff so the problem i encounter is that yes, i remember where things stand for the story. But outside of that i’m doing non-narrative things and i have no idea why i’m way across the map, and there’s a chance i was trying to do like 5 things at the same time and i might remember one at best. And i’m not organized enough to have a game journal so i’m my own worst enemy 
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Most games have a date/time associated with each save game. It seems reasonable that the game should be able to detect that the save is from beyond a certain threshold in the past, and then offer to give you:
- A recap of the story so far
- An offer to refresh yourself on the controls
- If the game has multi-part quests, and you’re in the middle of one or more, give you a recap of what you’ve accomplished so far so you have some context to work from.
None of these should be mandatory, of course, just options presented upon resuming a game after an extended absence.
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Just to note, if anyone wants a really good, high-quality RPG experience that doesn’t outstay its welcome, you can’t go wrong with Obsidian’s Tyranny.
While built using the same engine and tools, I think I overall prefer it to both PIllars of Eternity games, and PoE2 is a stone-cold classic in my eyes.
Much like the original Fallout, it establishes a compelling world, tells a great story in that world with multiple different outcomes, then ends when it should.
In these days of endless sequels with their scope creep, it’s a really refreshing experience, much like finding an excellent limited series on one of the streaming services.
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NN was so flexible that you could use a modified version to teach journalism skills, like interviewing, fact-checking, and being beaten to death by goblins you accidentally triggered when you failed a concentration check on invisibility.
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Thanks for that recommendation! It wasn’t on my radar, I may have overlooked it at some point because PoE1 is one of my started-but-not-completed games that I kind of want to get back to some day.
I’m looking forward to seeing how Avowed is received next month. Not that I need another game on my wishlist, but it looks promising.
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I really hope third party joy cons come out quickly. I can really only use my Switch because of the more ergonomic ones I bought.
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It looks like the new ones are a small percentage larger, which is appreciated, but i agree that 3rd party ones and even their pro controller are just more comfortable and ergonomic.
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I can’t think of any game I’d pay $100 for. As it is, I don’t pay the current $70, I just wait until it drops.
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There’s ways to make that “work” on the publisher side that are already being done. Multiple special editions, bundles, DLC, etc. and i don’t see how GTA6 would be any different from that nonsense. Personally i’m not terribly interested in the first place, and if i did want to buy it i’d probably way a year or two (or longer) and wait for price drops.
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I was just reading the Vampire Survivors 2024 wrap up, and realized I didn’t play it at all last year. I’m actually kind of sad, but I guess maybe I was more productive at work? Doesn’t seem like a great tradeoff, TBH. Anyway, they mentioned this video and called it “incredibly stupid” but I think it’s great:
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Everybody seems to be taking this teaser as confirmation of mouse functionality on the new joy-cons, but I feel like there might be some confirmation bias happening. The teaser trailer also shows how far the new kickstand adjusts, and then shows the Switch itself springing upwards after reaching the limit, and yet I don’t see any reporting that Switch 2 can jump.
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It can clearly jump and levitate, but I’d just be interested if it doesn’t cause carpal tunnel flareups.
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I am hoping the larger joy-cons are a bit more comfortable for my hands, especially after I’ve gotten so used to the Steam Deck.
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I haven’t spent a lot of time on the Switch, but the time I did was quickly very painful. Even the Dualsense controller can be a bit rough for me. I mainly use an X-Box Elite S2. I haven’t tried a Steamdeck, but I think that having my hands further apart would be helpful as long as I’m not making a claw grip to hold onto the controls (like I have to with the Switch - especially using a single joycon…ouch).
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My preferred controller is an Elite 2. The Steam deck is far more similar to an Xbox controller than the Switch joy-cons. Everything feels like it’s well positioned despite the size, with the exception of the buttons on the back, which I find to be much more difficult to depress than on the Elite. I am hoping that the rumors of a proper successor to the Steam controller modeled after the Steam deck are true, because I like the dual thumbstick and trackpad layout.
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Many computer games are hardly playable for blind people. A start-up from Leipzig wants to develop video games that can be equally enjoyed by both sighted and blind players.
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uhhhh
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