OT: Video Game Computers/Gadgets/Gizmos Thread

[ReasonablySober]

Xbox event didn't do much for me - just never been one to care much about the exclusives they have, and not a big change for this gen it seems.

The two exceptions are Forza Horizon - which is on PC and will be re-optimized for the new Xbox X - and maybe Fable. I've never played Fable, but it seems to be in my wheelhouse. It's also on PC, so I'm good.

I briefly thought about Xbox for next gen, because Gamepass really does have a great offering and cool synergy between PC and console, but I quickly got my head on straight and realized PS console and PC gaming is a great mix to hit the exclusives I want.

ETA: Clarification - I missed the trailer for Avowed. I 100% will play that (it, too, is on PC) - new game from Obsidian set in the Pillars universe, but switched to first-person. I hope this doesn't signal they move completely away from CRPGs, but it wouldn't surprise me either.

Agreed about the exclusives. I've really never been into Halo since Halo 2. Forza falls into that Gran Tourismo category where I know they're excellent games, I'm just not into racing games, and especially simulations. Fable could be really cool, but I haven't picked up that series in 15 years and wasn't wild about it then.

That said, having everything new on Game Pass for $10 a month is massive. If you don't have a heavy duty PC rig, it's probably worth buying an Xbox alone if you just want a staggering amount of games to play on the cheap.

[MikeIsGood]

Xbox event didn't do much for me - just never been one to care much about the exclusives they have, and not a big change for this gen it seems.

The two exceptions are Forza Horizon - which is on PC and will be re-optimized for the new Xbox X - and maybe Fable. I've never played Fable, but it seems to be in my wheelhouse. It's also on PC, so I'm good.

I briefly thought about Xbox for next gen, because Gamepass really does have a great offering and cool synergy between PC and console, but I quickly got my head on straight and realized PS console and PC gaming is a great mix to hit the exclusives I want.

ETA: Clarification - I missed the trailer for Avowed. I 100% will play that (it, too, is on PC) - new game from Obsidian set in the Pillars universe, but switched to first-person. I hope this doesn't signal they move completely away from CRPGs, but it wouldn't surprise me either.

Agreed about the exclusives. I've really never been into Halo since Halo 2. Forza falls into that Gran Tourismo category where I know they're excellent games, I'm just not into racing games, and especially simulations. Fable could be really cool, but I haven't picked up that series in 15 years and wasn't wild about it then.

That said, having everything new on Game Pass for $10 a month is massive. If you don't have a heavy duty PC rig, it's probably worth buying an Xbox alone if you just want a staggering amount of games to play on the cheap.

I'm with you on racing simulations, but check out Forza Horizon. It's not a simulation - it's just mindless fun. It's closer to Burnout than it is to Forza Motorsport or Gran Turismo.

[ReasonablySober]

Xbox event didn't do much for me - just never been one to care much about the exclusives they have, and not a big change for this gen it seems.

The two exceptions are Forza Horizon - which is on PC and will be re-optimized for the new Xbox X - and maybe Fable. I've never played Fable, but it seems to be in my wheelhouse. It's also on PC, so I'm good.

I briefly thought about Xbox for next gen, because Gamepass really does have a great offering and cool synergy between PC and console, but I quickly got my head on straight and realized PS console and PC gaming is a great mix to hit the exclusives I want.

ETA: Clarification - I missed the trailer for Avowed. I 100% will play that (it, too, is on PC) - new game from Obsidian set in the Pillars universe, but switched to first-person. I hope this doesn't signal they move completely away from CRPGs, but it wouldn't surprise me either.

Agreed about the exclusives. I've really never been into Halo since Halo 2. Forza falls into that Gran Tourismo category where I know they're excellent games, I'm just not into racing games, and especially simulations. Fable could be really cool, but I haven't picked up that series in 15 years and wasn't wild about it then.

That said, having everything new on Game Pass for $10 a month is massive. If you don't have a heavy duty PC rig, it's probably worth buying an Xbox alone if you just want a staggering amount of games to play on the cheap.

I'm with you on racing simulations, but check out Forza Horizon. It's not a simulation - it's just mindless fun. It's closer to Burnout than it is to Forza Motorsport or Gran Turismo.

I actually have the Forza in Australia. I should play it more.

Right now I'm thinking I'll pick FE: Three Houses up for the first time since last summer. I got burned out on it before I got close to the ending.

As for Ghost, I'm in the middle of Act 2, basically a badass, the Hero of Tsushima. Just finished The Ghost of Yarikawa and that was fun. The thing that's keeping me going with this one is the story. It's legitimately great and I want to see where it goes.

[Sauce Boss]

Currently I’ve just been playing Deep Rock Galactic with one of my buddies and Red Dead Redemption 2 by myself. I haven’t touched Xenoblade Chronicles Definitive Edition in a few weeks, but need to wrap it up. Pre-ordered Horizon Zero Dawn on PC and I’m looking forward to it in a little over two weeks.

Waiting for EA of Baldur’s Gate 3 next month. Not much else? Was cool Nintendo gave an update on Shin Megami Tensei V, but could use some news on new first-party stuff.

Yeah it was excited to know SMT5 still exists. I haven't played one before, but became immediately interested after falling head-over-heels for P5.

Is BG3 EA confirmed for next month?

No. It was announced “August Maybe?” The plan is August, but there’s no date and could slip. I’d be fine with that since I have plenty to play. Instant buy regardless.

[ReasonablySober]

This has probably come up here before, maybe even by me, but any of you guys ever get into Dragon's Dogma? The way people have talked about it for years is like you would for a killer movie that did nothing at the box office and no one knows about it. Was done with my usual Pods so I looked into Kotaku Splitscreen. They've only been running recasts for months since the regulars quit. This week's recast had a guest come on to do nothing but gush about DD on the Switch. It was nothing I hadn't heard before but gave the game some more context. It's very Monster Hunter-esque, only in an open world with typical fantastical RPG elements.

Watch on YouTube

This review seems like a good one.

Anyway, picked it up on the PSN and gonna play it this weekend.

[jschligs]

Xbox event didn't do much for me - just never been one to care much about the exclusives they have, and not a big change for this gen it seems.

The two exceptions are Forza Horizon - which is on PC and will be re-optimized for the new Xbox X - and maybe Fable. I've never played Fable, but it seems to be in my wheelhouse. It's also on PC, so I'm good.

I briefly thought about Xbox for next gen, because Gamepass really does have a great offering and cool synergy between PC and console, but I quickly got my head on straight and realized PS console and PC gaming is a great mix to hit the exclusives I want.

ETA: Clarification - I missed the trailer for Avowed. I 100% will play that (it, too, is on PC) - new game from Obsidian set in the Pillars universe, but switched to first-person. I hope this doesn't signal they move completely away from CRPGs, but it wouldn't surprise me either.

Agreed about the exclusives. I've really never been into Halo since Halo 2. Forza falls into that Gran Tourismo category where I know they're excellent games, I'm just not into racing games, and especially simulations. Fable could be really cool, but I haven't picked up that series in 15 years and wasn't wild about it then.

That said, having everything new on Game Pass for $10 a month is massive. If you don't have a heavy duty PC rig, it's probably worth buying an Xbox alone if you just want a staggering amount of games to play on the cheap.

You hit the nail on the head. I haven't been huge on Halo since 3, I only liked the first Forza because I was in high school and had way too much time on my hands, and nothing else grabbed me except maybe Fable.

That being said, I have the Xbox Game Pass that also works on PC for $5/mo. It's incredible. Right now it has the Halo Master Chief Collection, Shadow of War, Stat of Decay 2, Football Manager 2020, Sea of Theives, No Man's Sky, Forza Horizon 4, Gear 4/5 and more. Insanely good deal.

Was really disappointed they didn't release a price of the system. I'm sure it's in the $400-500 range but I would've liked to hear officially what it cost.

The only games in the next 6 months I'm really interested in is Cyberpunk, maybe PGA Tour 2k21, and beacuse it'll be on Gamepass, Halo Infinite. Very few games have gotten me hooked lately.

[truly]

The only games in the next 6 months I'm really interested in is Cyberpunk, maybe PGA Tour 2k21, and beacuse it'll be on Gamepass, Halo Infinite. Very few games have gotten me hooked lately.

Are you aware of Wasteland 3?It's coming out late August.I loved wasteland 2 so i am looking forward to it.
Similar setting to fallout but i hope it's not a disappointment like f4.

[StickeeFingaz]

Bought Ghost this morning, let’s see what this is all about.

[crkone]

Ghost update that adds a Lethal difficulty.

[REDDzone]

This has probably come up here before, maybe even by me, but any of you guys ever get into Dragon's Dogma? The way people have talked about it for years is like you would for a killer movie that did nothing at the box office and no one knows about it. Was done with my usual Pods so I looked into Kotaku Splitscreen. They've only been running recasts for months since the regulars quit. This week's recast had a guest come on to do nothing but gush about DD on the Switch. It was nothing I hadn't heard before but gave the game some more context. It's very Monster Hunter-esque, only in an open world with typical fantastical RPG elements.

This review seems like a good one.

Anyway, picked it up on the PSN and gonna play it this weekend.

How did this go? I've played this game, put it down for awhile but will go back to it. I can see MH in the combat but if you pick it up expecting MH I think you may be surprised. It's more Skyrim+MH than just MH I think.

[Sauce Boss]

Started playing Path of Exile a bit this week because I needed something a bit mindless to play. Not sure how long this Harvest season has left, but I have no idea what is going on with the seeds. Been doing this as a build in case MikeIsGood can tell me to do something completely different lol (highest I've ever gotten to was level 40ish range with the Shadow character)
https://www.poe-vault.com/guides/earthquake-juggernaut-build-guide

[MikeIsGood]

Started playing Path of Exile a bit this week because I needed something a bit mindless to play. Not sure how long this Harvest season has left, but I have no idea what is going on with the seeds. Been doing this as a build in case MikeIsGood can tell me to do something completely different lol (highest I've ever gotten to was level 40ish range with the Shadow character)
https://www.poe-vault.com/guides/earthquake-juggernaut-build-guide

Nice! I can't recall - have you ever played before? If you haven't PoE probably isn't actually too mindless, unfortunately lol.

If you're coming in new, and aren't too far along, I strongly, strongly recommend abandoning your build and starting new with this:

Enki's Arc Witch
(At time of this post, the forums are down for maintenance, but the links shouldn't change)

It is, far and away, the best build guide for beginners. This build is legendary in the community. It isn't just for new players, though, as the build scales moderately well into end game if things really catch you and you keep playing.

You will learn a lot about the game by following this build. Enki very clearly breaks down not only how to allot your passives as you go, but your gear, gems, and even how to progress through the campaign. Seriously, it's top notch and will help you immensely. I played this build 2 out of my 3 first seasons (it's updated each season).

As for seeds, unless you get deep into the end game you don't need to worry to much about how your garden is setup. Essentially, when you want to start growing T2 seeds, you store the juice from the T1 seeds in tanks, connect those tanks to dispensers via pylons, and have those dispensers setup to cover a field where you plant a T2 seed as required by the seed. When you hover over a dispenser, there's a red X you can click on to turn it onto a green checkmark, which will "water" your seeds automatically as you play.

And if all of the seed stuff is too confusing right now as you learn the game, you 100% can ignore it with no real impact to your playing. It's much more important to learn the basics of the game as opposed to a league mechanic. Though Harvest in particular is great for leveling, it's moreso great if you have played before and know what you're doing. Just play through the campaign and learn the basics, first.

The game is so **** packed with stuff it's hard to give succinct advice or guidance. I'll absolutely help you with any questions you have though, so ask away if anything comes to mind.

[ReasonablySober]

The big castle battle at the end of Act II of Ghost was really pretty great, even if the stealth stuff that followed was pretty dumb. Gonna sprint to the finish.

One lame thing about the game is how it forces you to use "Ghost" moves and equipment, then never fails to admonish you for it. Personally, I'm more than happy going in hacking and slashing.

[Sauce Boss]

Started playing Path of Exile a bit this week because I needed something a bit mindless to play. Not sure how long this Harvest season has left, but I have no idea what is going on with the seeds. Been doing this as a build in case MikeIsGood can tell me to do something completely different lol (highest I've ever gotten to was level 40ish range with the Shadow character)
https://www.poe-vault.com/guides/earthquake-juggernaut-build-guide

Nice! I can't recall - have you ever played before? If you haven't PoE probably isn't actually too mindless, unfortunately lol.

If you're coming in new, and aren't too far along, I strongly, strongly recommend abandoning your build and starting new with this:

Enki's Arc Witch
(At time of this post, the forums are down for maintenance, but the links shouldn't change)

It is, far and away, the best build guide for beginners. This build is legendary in the community. It isn't just for new players, though, as the build scales moderately well into end game if things really catch you and you keep playing.

You will learn a lot about the game by following this build. Enki very clearly breaks down not only how to allot your passives as you go, but your gear, gems, and even how to progress through the campaign. Seriously, it's top notch and will help you immensely. I played this build 2 out of my 3 first seasons (it's updated each season).

As for seeds, unless you get deep into the end game you don't need to worry to much about how your garden is setup. Essentially, when you want to start growing T2 seeds, you store the juice from the T1 seeds in tanks, connect those tanks to dispensers via pylons, and have those dispensers setup to cover a field where you plant a T2 seed as required by the seed. When you hover over a dispenser, there's a red X you can click on to turn it onto a green checkmark, which will "water" your seeds automatically as you play.

And if all of the seed stuff is too confusing right now as you learn the game, you 100% can ignore it with no real impact to your playing. It's much more important to learn the basics of the game as opposed to a league mechanic. Though Harvest in particular is great for leveling, it's moreso great if you have played before and know what you're doing. Just play through the campaign and learn the basics, first.

The game is so **** packed with stuff it's hard to give succinct advice or guidance. I'll absolutely help you with any questions you have though, so ask away if anything comes to mind.

I think I've posted a few times about having non-starts --- downloading it, playing for an hour or two, uninstalling and trying again a year later. Highest I got was level 40, so there is a lot of game for me to see.

I was enjoying the character I was playing, but I was only playing it since it was a "league starter" that looked simple when I was poking around. I definitely would play something different after I got a handle of the game, so I'm totally open to flipping over to the witch right away. I'll definitely read that guide because all the builds/guides I've read have been very not helpful thus far.

[MikeIsGood]

Started playing Path of Exile a bit this week because I needed something a bit mindless to play. Not sure how long this Harvest season has left, but I have no idea what is going on with the seeds. Been doing this as a build in case MikeIsGood can tell me to do something completely different lol (highest I've ever gotten to was level 40ish range with the Shadow character)
https://www.poe-vault.com/guides/earthquake-juggernaut-build-guide

Nice! I can't recall - have you ever played before? If you haven't PoE probably isn't actually too mindless, unfortunately lol.

If you're coming in new, and aren't too far along, I strongly, strongly recommend abandoning your build and starting new with this:

Enki's Arc Witch
(At time of this post, the forums are down for maintenance, but the links shouldn't change)

It is, far and away, the best build guide for beginners. This build is legendary in the community. It isn't just for new players, though, as the build scales moderately well into end game if things really catch you and you keep playing.

You will learn a lot about the game by following this build. Enki very clearly breaks down not only how to allot your passives as you go, but your gear, gems, and even how to progress through the campaign. Seriously, it's top notch and will help you immensely. I played this build 2 out of my 3 first seasons (it's updated each season).

As for seeds, unless you get deep into the end game you don't need to worry to much about how your garden is setup. Essentially, when you want to start growing T2 seeds, you store the juice from the T1 seeds in tanks, connect those tanks to dispensers via pylons, and have those dispensers setup to cover a field where you plant a T2 seed as required by the seed. When you hover over a dispenser, there's a red X you can click on to turn it onto a green checkmark, which will "water" your seeds automatically as you play.

And if all of the seed stuff is too confusing right now as you learn the game, you 100% can ignore it with no real impact to your playing. It's much more important to learn the basics of the game as opposed to a league mechanic. Though Harvest in particular is great for leveling, it's moreso great if you have played before and know what you're doing. Just play through the campaign and learn the basics, first.

The game is so **** packed with stuff it's hard to give succinct advice or guidance. I'll absolutely help you with any questions you have though, so ask away if anything comes to mind.

I think I've posted a few times about having non-starts --- downloading it, playing for an hour or two, uninstalling and trying again a year later. Highest I got was level 40, so there is a lot of game for me to see.

I was enjoying the character I was playing, but I was only playing it since it was a "league starter" that looked simple when I was poking around. I definitely would play something different after I got a handle of the game, so I'm totally open to flipping over to the witch right away. I'll definitely read that guide because all the builds/guides I've read have been very not helpful thus far.

You wouldn't know this, but the biggest red flag to me looking at that EQ build right off the bat is that it was calling for a 6-linked Belly of the Beast for body armor. That's a 2-4ex item, depending upon league/economy, which is a lot to acquire for a new player and spend on one item. You're better off with a build that will walk you through easier to acquire uniques, or prioritizing rares - at least as a starting point.

[Sauce Boss]

Nice! I can't recall - have you ever played before? If you haven't PoE probably isn't actually too mindless, unfortunately lol.

If you're coming in new, and aren't too far along, I strongly, strongly recommend abandoning your build and starting new with this:

Enki's Arc Witch
(At time of this post, the forums are down for maintenance, but the links shouldn't change)

It is, far and away, the best build guide for beginners. This build is legendary in the community. It isn't just for new players, though, as the build scales moderately well into end game if things really catch you and you keep playing.

You will learn a lot about the game by following this build. Enki very clearly breaks down not only how to allot your passives as you go, but your gear, gems, and even how to progress through the campaign. Seriously, it's top notch and will help you immensely. I played this build 2 out of my 3 first seasons (it's updated each season).

As for seeds, unless you get deep into the end game you don't need to worry to much about how your garden is setup. Essentially, when you want to start growing T2 seeds, you store the juice from the T1 seeds in tanks, connect those tanks to dispensers via pylons, and have those dispensers setup to cover a field where you plant a T2 seed as required by the seed. When you hover over a dispenser, there's a red X you can click on to turn it onto a green checkmark, which will "water" your seeds automatically as you play.

And if all of the seed stuff is too confusing right now as you learn the game, you 100% can ignore it with no real impact to your playing. It's much more important to learn the basics of the game as opposed to a league mechanic. Though Harvest in particular is great for leveling, it's moreso great if you have played before and know what you're doing. Just play through the campaign and learn the basics, first.

The game is so **** packed with stuff it's hard to give succinct advice or guidance. I'll absolutely help you with any questions you have though, so ask away if anything comes to mind.

I think I've posted a few times about having non-starts --- downloading it, playing for an hour or two, uninstalling and trying again a year later. Highest I got was level 40, so there is a lot of game for me to see.

I was enjoying the character I was playing, but I was only playing it since it was a "league starter" that looked simple when I was poking around. I definitely would play something different after I got a handle of the game, so I'm totally open to flipping over to the witch right away. I'll definitely read that guide because all the builds/guides I've read have been very not helpful thus far.

You wouldn't know this, but the biggest red flag to me looking at that EQ build right off the bat is that it was calling for a 6-linked Belly of the Beast for body armor. That's a 2-4ex item, depending upon league/economy, which is a lot to acquire for a new player and spend on one item. You're better off with a build that will walk you through easier to acquire uniques, or prioritizing rares - at least as a starting point.

Sigh, yeah I figured. I kind of skimmed at a high level on that guide. I mainly am zoned in on the Act-to-Act leveling and advice. Like on Act 1 it says "go to Nessa, buy Spark, dump Fireball" and that is pretty clear, concise, straightforward advice.

[MikeIsGood]

I think I've posted a few times about having non-starts --- downloading it, playing for an hour or two, uninstalling and trying again a year later. Highest I got was level 40, so there is a lot of game for me to see.

I was enjoying the character I was playing, but I was only playing it since it was a "league starter" that looked simple when I was poking around. I definitely would play something different after I got a handle of the game, so I'm totally open to flipping over to the witch right away. I'll definitely read that guide because all the builds/guides I've read have been very not helpful thus far.

You wouldn't know this, but the biggest red flag to me looking at that EQ build right off the bat is that it was calling for a 6-linked Belly of the Beast for body armor. That's a 2-4ex item, depending upon league/economy, which is a lot to acquire for a new player and spend on one item. You're better off with a build that will walk you through easier to acquire uniques, or prioritizing rares - at least as a starting point.

Sigh, yeah I figured. I kind of skimmed at a high level on that guide. I mainly am zoned in on the Act-to-Act leveling and advice. Like on Act 1 it says "go to Nessa, buy Spark, dump Fireball" and that is pretty clear, concise, straightforward advice.

Then stick with it, and for sure switch to the Enki Arc Witch build! That will be right up your alley. That is precisely what it excels at. And honestly I think arc is a very fun skill.

[Sauce Boss]

You wouldn't know this, but the biggest red flag to me looking at that EQ build right off the bat is that it was calling for a 6-linked Belly of the Beast for body armor. That's a 2-4ex item, depending upon league/economy, which is a lot to acquire for a new player and spend on one item. You're better off with a build that will walk you through easier to acquire uniques, or prioritizing rares - at least as a starting point.

Sigh, yeah I figured. I kind of skimmed at a high level on that guide. I mainly am zoned in on the Act-to-Act leveling and advice. Like on Act 1 it says "go to Nessa, buy Spark, dump Fireball" and that is pretty clear, concise, straightforward advice.

Then stick with it, and for sure switch to the Enki Arc Witch build! That will be right up your alley. That is precisely what it excels at. And honestly I think arc is a very fun skill.

I played for a few hours tonight and caught up to where my Marauder was in half the time.

I'm loving the build; I feel like Emperor Palpatine zapping people. Right now I just leave Clarity on, drop the Orb of Storms, then go to town with Arc --- it's very satisfying.

Can't thank you enough for that build thus far. We'll see if this one sticks and gets me to go into the higher levels.

[Sauce Boss]

Alright Mike, I gotta question to make sure I'm not screwing up. I found a corrupted Arc gem in a Vaal thing, and swapped it in for the normal Arc gem I have. In the build, the final gem is a corrupted one so I assume that was the correct play, but I could be way off. Just checking if my logic is off-base because some weird stuff with enchanting happens or whatever under the hood that I'm not aware of yet.

[MikeIsGood]

Alright Mike, I gotta question to make sure I'm not screwing up. I found a corrupted Arc gem in a Vaal thing, and swapped it in for the normal Arc gem I have. In the build, the final gem is a corrupted one so I assume that was the correct play, but I could be way off. Just checking if my logic is off-base because some weird stuff with enchanting happens or whatever under the hood that I'm not aware of yet.

You're right on. Using a vaal gem gets you access to the normal version of the skill, plus the vaal version (which always has some special benefits, and charges as you gain "souls"/kill mobs). That's all you NEED to know right now.

If you'd like to know a little more - there are a couple ways to get vaal gems. You can either find them in a vaal side area, as you did, or you can actually corrupt your own gems with vaal orbs. Vaaling gems has several outcomes, so it won't always result in a vaal gem.

*No effect (other than adding the corrupted property)
*Add or subtract one level. Max level gems can exceed their normal maximum this way. A corrupted gem at the normal maximum will not continue to gain experience.
*Add or subtract 1-10 quality. Gems can have up to 23% this way
*Change the gem to its corresponding Vaal Gem.

The reason I mention this is mostly just so you know, but also because this would be the best way to get a vaal arc gem that also has full 20% quality. You could find one with quality on it, but it's rarer. That said, as you can see, it's not a guarantee you get a vaal gem - you could also get any of the above effects.

You don't need to worry about any of this at this point. I think the tip I will leave you with is to level more gems in your weapon swap, because they gain experience too. So it's often worth leveling a couple extra of your most important gems.