User information for Myrddin Emrys

Real Name
Myrddin Emrys
Nickname
The Raven
Email
Concealed by request - Send Mail
Description
Homepage
None given.

Supporter

Signed On
November 3, 2002
Total Posts
302 (Amateur)
User ID
15062
Search For:
Sort Results:
Ascending
Descending
Limit Results:
 
302 Comments. 16 pages. Viewing page 1.
Newer [  1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9  10  11  12  13  14  15  16  ] Older
4.
 
Re: Cities: Skylines II: Beach Properties and Modding Announced
Mar 18, 2024, 19:05
4.
Re: Cities: Skylines II: Beach Properties and Modding Announced Mar 18, 2024, 19:05
Mar 18, 2024, 19:05
 
Paradox isn't perfect, but I think they do one thing very well: Release a product, then keep updating it for years while simultaneously monetizing it via optional expansion packs. They're incentivised to make the product good enough that you want to keep coming back and keeping it fresh with new content. They don't do live service bullshit (aka, make the product bad and release DLC that patches the badness). They release a game, then release content for the game. They don't deliberately release half a game then fix the holes with DLC... though it certainly felt that way for some people with City: Skylines II.

Is all the content worth it? Not for me. I bought some of the Stellaris expansions, and skipped others. I think I only got one of the DLC for the original Cities Skylines, but I also played it less than Stellaris.
Ancient
Avatar 15062
2.
 
Re: Stellaris: The Machine Age Announced
Mar 14, 2024, 21:35
2.
Re: Stellaris: The Machine Age Announced Mar 14, 2024, 21:35
Mar 14, 2024, 21:35
 
About half the expansions are worthwhile (IMO) the others are not. Notably, I should add the caveat that an expansion is worthwhile if it'll make a handful more playthroughs exciting and new. Since a full game takes me 30+ hours (I'm slow), that's a pretty good ROI for a $5-$10 expansion.

If you're still playing regular rounds of Stellaris (which I think is the best 4X game in existence) then the expansions are probably worthwhile. If you played a couple games and it didn't gel with you, or if you never finished a game, then of course the expansions aren't targeted at you.

That said, I'm confused about the current one; we already have machine intelligences... I don't get what the new one is going to add. The trailer explained nothing. *shrug* Not every expansion is a success.
Ancient
Avatar 15062
12.
 
Re: Ice-T and ClffyB Join Wolves Den
Mar 12, 2024, 17:15
12.
Re: Ice-T and ClffyB Join Wolves Den Mar 12, 2024, 17:15
Mar 12, 2024, 17:15
 
Oh, and can we stop calling him CliffyB? He's old enough to have grandkids now.

There is nothing wrong with nicknames "Prez". Why call him out and not Ice-T? People can choose preferred pronouns and genders (which I'm fine with), I really don't see why they can't also pick a preferred name.
Ancient
Avatar 15062
1.
 
Re: PC Balatro Safe from Console Delistings
Mar 1, 2024, 22:45
1.
Re: PC Balatro Safe from Console Delistings Mar 1, 2024, 22:45
Mar 1, 2024, 22:45
 
Using poker scoring is not the same as playing poker. Just in case any other ratings boards are watching let me clear up some confusion: Match 3 games are not the same as playing slots. Playing DotA is not the same as betting on DotA. Sports sims (that don't have loot boxes) don't encourage or have anything to do with sports betting.

This shouldn't still be a thing. These ratings boards aren't new, they've been doing this a long time.
Ancient
Avatar 15062
8.
 
Re: Respawn's Star Wars FPS Cancelled
Feb 29, 2024, 09:34
8.
Re: Respawn's Star Wars FPS Cancelled Feb 29, 2024, 09:34
Feb 29, 2024, 09:34
 
Because the best way to ensure your large team doesn't get burnout or suffer from creative fatigue is to make only one kind of game forever. It worked out so well for Telltale.
Ancient
Avatar 15062
11.
 
Re: Subnautica 2 Not Coming This Year; Will Not Have GaaS Features
Feb 9, 2024, 10:20
11.
Re: Subnautica 2 Not Coming This Year; Will Not Have GaaS Features Feb 9, 2024, 10:20
Feb 9, 2024, 10:20
 
I never played Below Zero. I'm glad I didn't based on the reviews.

I think you should take the plunge. It's just as good as Subnautica in my opinion, though I think some of the out-of-water segments were less good. I enjoyed my time with it a lot, especially the space truck that replaced the Nautilus.

Was it perfect? No. In particular, a lot of what made it good was also in Subnautica; it was 'more of the same', not a significant improvement, but Subnautica is a game where 'more of the same' is still high praise.
Ancient
Avatar 15062
17.
 
Re: GaaS Subnautica 2 This Year?
Feb 9, 2024, 09:32
17.
Re: GaaS Subnautica 2 This Year? Feb 9, 2024, 09:32
Feb 9, 2024, 09:32
 
To be honest, Subnautica was really the poster child for Early Access GaaS done correctly. Get player feedback, iterate and improve, polish, and release. If they carry that model forward into post release content then that would qualify as GaaS without being fucking bullshit.

I'm optimistic.
Ancient
Avatar 15062
8.
 
Re: Quoteworthy
Feb 3, 2024, 18:51
8.
Re: Quoteworthy Feb 3, 2024, 18:51
Feb 3, 2024, 18:51
 
$500k a month, holy shit. That's a one time fee game, right?
Well, a couple important points.

First, hosting costs will go down over time. They're paying a premium for on-demand servers; long term, they'll likely build servers and host them for a much smaller monthly cost and only use cloud spin-up for short term demand (like when a patch is released).

Second, that's less than 2.5 cents per purchaser, from whome they have made ~$20 profit (after store cut) each. So it'll be YEARS before this is a significant problem, even for a one-time-purchase game.
Ancient
Avatar 15062
17.
 
Re: Over One Million Players Enshrouded
Jan 30, 2024, 11:04
17.
Re: Over One Million Players Enshrouded Jan 30, 2024, 11:04
Jan 30, 2024, 11:04
 
I'm glad they're seeing success, what with Palworld stealing all the media attention. Enshrouded has one feature I detest, and another I love.

I detest that your effect on the world is ephemeral. One of the joys of survival games is your effect on the world, the paths you carve into the world, the havok you wreak. Having my mining, my pathmaking, even my looting reset as soon as I log out is frustrating. It feels like an unnecessary concession to multiplayer, some change they made because they had trouble implementing it technically not because they wanted it to reset. I have hope that they'll change their mind at some point and implement world permanence.

The part I love is how construction works, both personally and for the map designers. They have small (0.25m) voxels that you paint with in a variety of materials. It's honestly a lot like building in Minecraft, but with tinier blocks. They make it easy to build houses by making 'paintbrushes' shaped like walls, ceilings, stairs, etc, but you don't really need to pay attention to that if you feel creative. You can use a small part like a paintbrush, and 'spray' your shape into the world.

And the materials don't just change the texture of the blocks, they change their shape. This is the genius part... they blend the shapes together just like terrain artists have blended ground textures for years. Different materials have different shapes and different blending rules, so 'log' blocks have rough uneven edges with sticks poking out while 'plank' blocks are more even (but still interesting). No block is a boring cube, they all have ways they alter the outline of the shape to create wonderful variation.

Finally, the genius move is that the world builders use this unfettered freedom of shape to create interesting, unique geometry anywhere they like. They're world is decayed and run-down, and it's so easy for them to sell that because they build their world with voxels then they rip chunks out all over to simulate the damage of time. As a player, this means I'm not seeing distressed_bridge_03 over and over; they re-use architecture pretty frequently, but they don't re-use the alterations to it (that I've seen), so each location is unique without that copy-paste feel that many games have.

I spent way more words on the good part, but I want to stress... I really hate that my effect on the world is transient. But others have already spoken about that, and nobody talked about how building/voxels work in the game, so I spent my wordcount there.
Ancient
Avatar 15062
1.
 
Re: Tools Up! Ultimate Edition Released
Jan 5, 2024, 12:55
1.
Re: Tools Up! Ultimate Edition Released Jan 5, 2024, 12:55
Jan 5, 2024, 12:55
 
It's always nice to find co-op games that you can play with younger children. This looks like a good game to add to my babysitting list.
Ancient
Avatar 15062
1.
 
Re: Epic Games Store Changes AO Policy to Allow Blockchain
Dec 20, 2023, 12:46
1.
Re: Epic Games Store Changes AO Policy to Allow Blockchain Dec 20, 2023, 12:46
Dec 20, 2023, 12:46
 
Needs an example of a specific game that would now be allowed. I can't think of one that uses Blockchain, is Adults Only, and ISN'T about gambling.
Ancient
Avatar 15062
3.
 
Re: Dota 2 Smurfs Banned in the Smurfiest Possible Way
Dec 15, 2023, 13:21
3.
Re: Dota 2 Smurfs Banned in the Smurfiest Possible Way Dec 15, 2023, 13:21
Dec 15, 2023, 13:21
 
A (famously toxic) streamer got banned on stream in this manner. It was soothing to the soul.
Ancient
Avatar 15062
8.
 
I had no issues.
Dec 2, 2023, 23:50
8.
I had no issues. Dec 2, 2023, 23:50
Dec 2, 2023, 23:50
 
I have a powerful PC, and the game doesn't require a high framerate, so getting ~40fps wasn't an issue for me. I have over half the CS1 DLC, and I still prefer playing CS2. There are so many improved QoL features that make building your city a much smoother and more pleasant experience than CS1, despite the occasional bug. There are only a couple mods that I miss, and I know they'll be back eventually.

So I don't want to dismiss the frustrations of players who went from CS1 to CS2 and got slammed by performance problems; it sucks, and they didn't advertise realistic specs. But the game was a TON more playable and functional than Cyberpunk 2077 on release day. It had occasional bugs, not constant ones. The occasional bugs were also just annoying, not gamebreaking. So I agree with the quote in there that they released a product that they were happy with. I think they should be proud of it, even if there were still things that could have been better.
Ancient
Avatar 15062
4.
 
Re: Quoteworthy
Nov 18, 2023, 14:24
4.
Re: Quoteworthy Nov 18, 2023, 14:24
Nov 18, 2023, 14:24
 
It's never been easier than today to release unfinished crap and to either make people pay for post-release support or to get people to celebrate you for free post-release support

  • The Lord of the Rings: Gollum
  • Redfall
  • Overwatch 2
  • Diablo Immortal
  • Battlefield 2042

The world is littered with far more failures that never got back up than redemption stories.
Ancient
Avatar 15062
1.
 
Re: etc.
Nov 15, 2023, 13:28
1.
Re: etc. Nov 15, 2023, 13:28
Nov 15, 2023, 13:28
 
I have a reasonably strong PC / card, plus I'm fine with ~40 fps, so the performance issues of CS2 haven't bothered me. It's certainly not a twitch game where a low framerate affects my ability to enjoy it. But a LOT of players upgraded from CS1, with a computer that may have been marginal for that game... that caused a lot of hurt feelings I think. I'm sure they'll get most of those players back when they get the floor for minimum performance lower (or users upgrade), because it really is a good iteration on the formula.
Ancient
Avatar 15062
3.
 
Re: Roblox Class-Action Lawsuit
Nov 7, 2023, 20:18
3.
Re: Roblox Class-Action Lawsuit Nov 7, 2023, 20:18
Nov 7, 2023, 20:18
 
I'm just going to leave this here.
Ancient
Avatar 15062
11.
 
Re: Riccitiello Out at Unity
Oct 9, 2023, 23:21
11.
Re: Riccitiello Out at Unity Oct 9, 2023, 23:21
Oct 9, 2023, 23:21
 
The fact that they're searching for a CEO using a headhunting firm is the stupidest part... promote from within. Promote someone who already understands the company, where it has been, and where it's going.

A CEO is not a position that requires specialized training. You can have assistants to help with public speaking, legal issues, and accounting clarity. A CEO's primary job is to lead. They need soft skills + a deep understanding of their business so they can make informed, long term decisions. Most of the senior management of the company will be more qualified as CEO than any outsider they may hire.
Ancient
Avatar 15062
19.
 
Re: Unity Reverses Course on Fees
Sep 23, 2023, 02:05
19.
Re: Unity Reverses Course on Fees Sep 23, 2023, 02:05
Sep 23, 2023, 02:05
 
by doing it on a friday it gets lost in the weekend crush.

The public won't notice. The devs will. Their target audience will still know about the changes.

Whether it'll be enough? Dunno. People have short memories.
Ancient
Avatar 15062
28.
 
Re: Star Citizen Funding Passes $600M
Aug 27, 2023, 22:20
28.
Re: Star Citizen Funding Passes $600M Aug 27, 2023, 22:20
Aug 27, 2023, 22:20
 
I'm never going to give them money before it's finished, but I really do hope they successfully create a finished single-player game. It does look like it would be something I'd like. I enjoy immersive sims.
Ancient
Avatar 15062
6.
 
Re: Quoteworthy
Jul 31, 2023, 19:30
6.
Re: Quoteworthy Jul 31, 2023, 19:30
Jul 31, 2023, 19:30
 
There are definitely issues with BG3 that will prevent it from being perfect but... I'm confused about your callout about intimacy coordinators. Do you also think stunt coordinators are useless? How about directors? Costumers? Mocap studios?

If you're going to have scenes with live actors getting intimate, intimacy coordinators do just about the same thing as stunt coordinators... they make sure the scene is both exciting and safe. They're decades overdue.

Maybe you just think that live action scenes in RPGs are not a good investment?
Ancient
Avatar 15062
302 Comments. 16 pages. Viewing page 1.
Newer [  1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9  10  11  12  13  14  15  16  ] Older