[phpBB Debug] PHP Warning: in file [ROOT]/includes/bbcode.php on line 390: preg_replace(): The /e modifier is no longer supported, use preg_replace_callback instead
[phpBB Debug] PHP Warning: in file [ROOT]/includes/bbcode.php on line 120: preg_filter(): The /e modifier is no longer supported, use preg_replace_callback instead
[phpBB Debug] PHP Warning: in file [ROOT]/includes/bbcode.php on line 120: preg_filter(): The /e modifier is no longer supported, use preg_replace_callback instead
[phpBB Debug] PHP Warning: in file [ROOT]/includes/bbcode.php on line 120: preg_filter(): The /e modifier is no longer supported, use preg_replace_callback instead
[phpBB Debug] PHP Warning: in file [ROOT]/includes/bbcode.php on line 120: preg_filter(): The /e modifier is no longer supported, use preg_replace_callback instead
QCF Design Community • View topic - What Else Do You Play?


What Else Do You Play?

All things Desktop Dungeons

Re: What Else Do You Play?

Postby Lujo on Wed Jan 20, 2016 1:07 am

Anyone gave Dark Dungeons a look? If you approach it as a casual, the art style, the music and the whole ambience can be quite gripping. It's very RNG-ey and simple minded if you go veteran gamer on it, but somehow the pig-in-a-poke diletantism doesn't irk as much as one would think. The core mechanics are such an obvious joke that you just let it slide and have some pulpy gothic fun. I wanted someting grindy and not brain intensive after having a lot of fun with Knights of Pen and paper on a tablet during a holiday, picked it up and was pleasantly underwhelmed XD

I remember someone somewhere calling it HP Lovecrafts football manager, and I never played actual football managers (knew some nice and simple folks who never played games other than various football managers) but I guess this is what one of those would feel like for an RPG fan.

Some great ideas, too (interaction with dungeon environments and supply items, for example), just too little content. I can see someone actually competent taking the good bits, talking an (or the) artist into it and making a very good game along the same lines.

IN SHORT: Pretentious, missess the opportunity on a lot of levels, yet what it does well it does really well (sadly, that has more to do with art and sound design than gameplay, but wth). Thumbs up!
I almost got pwned by Shifty Brickwork!
User avatar
Lujo
 
Posts: 3793
Joined: Tue Aug 02, 2011 8:47 am

Re: What Else Do You Play?

Postby dislekcia on Mon Jan 25, 2016 12:53 pm

I've always found that "pretentious" as a description for any sort of media is nearly completely meaningless. More often than not it speaks about the reviewer's expectations more than the thing being reviewed... Plus in these days of internet shoutery, it's a word that's been thoroughly misapplied far too often.
User avatar
dislekcia
 
Posts: 2321
Joined: Fri Mar 25, 2011 5:58 pm
Location: Cape Town, South Africa

Re: What Else Do You Play?

Postby Tinker on Mon Jan 25, 2016 3:27 pm

"Thinker", just without the "ache".
User avatar
Tinker
 
Posts: 2000
Joined: Fri Oct 31, 2014 8:51 am

Re: What Else Do You Play?

Postby Lujo on Tue Jan 26, 2016 7:33 pm

What Tinker said, it has an interesting premise but fails to deliver on it in a way which makes it look like a bit (understatement) of a hackjob. It's not very innovative at all, and certainly not too complex but you'd think it would be based on advertising. It's not that I expected any particular implementation of the, say, sanity mechanic, but when the whole gimmick turns out to have been largely irrelevant (apart from being a separate health bar which is nicer than most other health bars I've seen around) "pretentious" is what comes to mind. Not a hugely revolutionary game by any means, yet it sells itself under the pretense that it's mechanically different / superior to most... idk what they're called, turn based squad grinders?

While it fails to deliver on that front (like even if you don't expect anything in particular it really doesn't deliver, it's just a grindy hack-and-slash with two health bars and minor lingering debuffs) it's a really atmospheric squad grinder, the art and vibe is quite cool, the horror can be nicely gripping, the inventory management and the role of items in general is cool. You come for one reson that makes for a good kickstarter pitch, don't get much out of it, but then you look at what's there and if you've got a soft spot for that sort of thing it's rather enjoyable. Stylish!
I almost got pwned by Shifty Brickwork!
User avatar
Lujo
 
Posts: 3793
Joined: Tue Aug 02, 2011 8:47 am

Re: What Else Do You Play?

Postby dislekcia on Thu Jan 28, 2016 8:09 pm

User avatar
dislekcia
 
Posts: 2321
Joined: Fri Mar 25, 2011 5:58 pm
Location: Cape Town, South Africa

Re: What Else Do You Play?

Postby dislekcia on Thu Jan 28, 2016 8:11 pm

Back to the topic though: I recently picked up The Witness. Anyone else?

Also, Fallout 4's menus are really bad. Ugh.
User avatar
dislekcia
 
Posts: 2321
Joined: Fri Mar 25, 2011 5:58 pm
Location: Cape Town, South Africa

Re: What Else Do You Play?

Postby The Tapir on Thu Jan 28, 2016 8:56 pm

Outside of Desktop Dungeons, my most played game recently has to be Tales of Maj'Eyal (ToME for short) that I found around a year ago that perfectly captured what I wanted in a "traditional" roguelike like DCSS or Nethack without some of the factors that made them so complex and difficult to figure out. Though I could go into how much I love the classes and playstyle of the game, the best part has to be the real-time chat in-game that happens to have one of the friendliest communities I've seen to date. They've helped a lot in getting into the swing of the game by answering questions and offering advice, and more recently there's been a lot of hype for an upcoming expansion that's been in the works for a few years at this point.

Other than that, I still hop into DCSS and the Desktop Dungeons alpha from time to time, and there are the large(r) name games that are fun to mess around in whenever I'm in the mood.
The Tapir
 
Posts: 156
Joined: Thu Nov 06, 2014 1:46 am

Re: What Else Do You Play?

Postby Tinker on Thu Jan 28, 2016 9:15 pm

"Thinker", just without the "ache".
User avatar
Tinker
 
Posts: 2000
Joined: Fri Oct 31, 2014 8:51 am

Re: What Else Do You Play?

Postby Lujo on Fri Jan 29, 2016 4:33 am

Fun thing to consider is that the way Darkest Dungeon in particular manages to be "pretentious" frees up the person using it from any accusations of trying to elevate themselves. The art direction and ambience play the horror straight, and work quite well. The game presents itself as a grim and dark and quite serious horror thingy, but the mechanics of the game are grindy and kindergardeny. You don't have to expect anything in particular, but it's hard not to get hyped up by the visuals/sound/etc... and then it turns out it's mostly just Knights of Pen and Paper with disposable dudes (and paradoxically a bit more grind). It's not bad by any means, but it's a bit like they used the Thus Spake Zaratustra music sequence as an intro to an oddly amusing fart joke. And it's unintentional, they seem to have really been out to make this great complex, difficult, deep game, the really told the artist what he's supposed to portray, I can see their vision clear enough, it was supposed to turn people's heads, and it does... and then the game isn't what they thought it was going to be. But it's not bad, they just really convinced the audience that it would be somehow more special and unique or original in some way or more sofisticated or something.

What you call that?
I almost got pwned by Shifty Brickwork!
User avatar
Lujo
 
Posts: 3793
Joined: Tue Aug 02, 2011 8:47 am

Re: What Else Do You Play?

Postby smuglapse on Fri Jan 29, 2016 5:57 am

User avatar
smuglapse
 
Posts: 226
Joined: Fri Jul 31, 2015 1:52 am
Location: FL, USA

PreviousNext

Return to Desktop Dungeons

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 52 guests