Video Game Thread 2.0

[ironbite]

I wouldn't say everything. I can do without the damn game breaking glitches.

I don't think that'll ever NOT happen with this studio. Bethesda has a nasty habit of making really cool stuff, then releasing it before it's ready so they can get it out on time and hoping that they can patch the problems away later. The games are so horribly buggy that even downloading patches can create NEW bugs.

Obsidian suffered a similar problem for a different reason in New Vegas: they operate by getting paid a fixed amount in return for making a game on a set time and budget, and they can't really negotiate extra time or money. They HAD to release New Vegas when the deal said, even though they could have gotten their promised bonus (based on a Metacritic score that they missed by one percentage point) if they had been granted a little more time and money.

I'm guessing Fallout 4 will be running on the engine used for Skyrim. Which, judging from the last Fallout games being made on the Oblivion engine, will not have a single bug ironed out before they ship it.

More then likely it'll be Skyrim with guns.  Probably use the radiant quest system or some variant and hopefully give us an ending that DOESN'T INVOLVE YOU GOING INTO A RADIATION FLOODED ROOM WHEN YOU HAVE A GOD DAMN SUPER MUTANT WHO CAN DO THAT FOR YOU!

Ironbite-sorry...kinda bitter bout Fallout 3.

[Dakota Bob]

Anybody else watching E3? these jokes are tanking hard and it's awkward as fuck.

[Alehksunos]

It's a real tweet.

[chitoryu12]

So far I've watched the stuff for Halo 5, Dead Rising 3, and Metal Gear Solid V.

Halo 5 reveals effectively nothing. It's just a trailer featuring what looks like a gigantic Forerunner robot moth in the desert, and the Chief wearing a burlap poncho over his armor for no reason whatsoever.

Dead Rising 3 is something I'm interested in, but it's unfortunately slated to be an Xbox One exclusive and I really don't want to buy one. It's got the same basic gameplay as the previous games, but a bit slower paced and more realistic. Takes place in a full city now, with destructible environments (both the player and zombies can smash down fences, for instance). You can take time to build at least some weapons or modifications, like a sledge-saw or taping a flashlight to a pistol, without needing a workbench. And you can use the SmartGlass to interact with the game, including calling in airstrikes.

Metal Gear Solid V is looking the best out of the trio. Impossibly good looking, with open world environments, vehicles and horses, and a far superior combat system that seems to make it practical to actually go loud and shoot (including "dynamic CQC", one of the tactics being disarming an enemy and shooting everyone around with his gun). Hopefully they've learned from the previous game and won't make it 9 hours of cutscenes interspersed with 10 or 20 minutes of gameplay each.

[syaoranvee]

Tom Clancey's The Division was the best game to come out of Ubisoft's conference.

Also interested in The Mighty Quest For Epic Loot might try for the closed beta.

[Shane for Wax]

I wouldn't say everything. I can do without the damn game breaking glitches.

I don't think that'll ever NOT happen with this studio. Bethesda has a nasty habit of making really cool stuff, then releasing it before it's ready so they can get it out on time and hoping that they can patch the problems away later. The games are so horribly buggy that even downloading patches can create NEW bugs.

Obsidian suffered a similar problem for a different reason in New Vegas: they operate by getting paid a fixed amount in return for making a game on a set time and budget, and they can't really negotiate extra time or money. They HAD to release New Vegas when the deal said, even though they could have gotten their promised bonus (based on a Metacritic score that they missed by one percentage point) if they had been granted a little more time and money.

I'm guessing Fallout 4 will be running on the engine used for Skyrim. Which, judging from the last Fallout games being made on the Oblivion engine, will not have a single bug ironed out before they ship it.

For me I always expect bugs and then I expect the worse ones to be ironed out before ship. More and more though I'm seeing a pattern of brand new, release day games needing updates when I put it in my console. I don't like that. Find the bugs before you ship not after.

ALSO: BATTLEFRONT!!!!!!!

[Distind]

More and more though I'm seeing a pattern of brand new, release day games needing updates when I put it in my console. I don't like that. Find the bugs before you ship not after.

This one sits on the hardware people as much as the programmers. Programmers are handed a set of beta drivers, the public doesn't have those yet when the game releases, hell breaks loose. Seen that happen at least as often as obviously untested configurations(take that graphics card logo on the box serious on release day folks).

[Shane for Wax]

Well, yeah. For PC. There's a reason you have places that tell you if your current config can deal. But glitches that aren't dependent on your config is awkward.

[Distind]

True, the fact it happens on consoles... I tend to blank it out really.

[chitoryu12]

The advent of internet connections for more than just online gaming has made it easier for developers to justify buggy releases. Back in the PS2 and Xbox days, online gaming outside of the PC was in its infancy and you mostly just used wireless adapters to play multiplayer. But the PS3 and Xbox 360 made one of the biggest leaps in technological advancement between generations (especially from the PS2 to the PS3), and part of that included using the internet to download content (including, more recently, downloading entire brand new games instead of buying them in stores). Previously, it was impossible to patch a game after release except to re-release it and hope that people bought it. Like they did after the Hot Coffee scandal with San Andreas.

But now that many users have Xbox Live or a PSN account that they use regularly, it's viable for games to be given mandatory patches online. What started as an easy way to fix problems in console games like you could on the PC has turned into an excuse for developers to release the game on time at a good part of the year (like the holidays), then scramble to fix the problems for months afterward.

[Shane for Wax]

True, the fact it happens on consoles... I tend to blank it out really.

Yeah I'm predominantly on console because I can't afford a gaming laptop. And I can't use a regular desktop.

E3 day one summed up:

[Vypernight]

So E3 is only on television for the first day and online for the rest?  Well that sucks.  I took this vacation mainly so my wife and I could sit on the couch or lay in bed and watch E3 all week.  WTF?

[Distind]

Check for online streams, lots of stuff should be floating about.

[Dakota Bob]

So....how about that PS4 design? looks a bit...peculiar.

EDIT:Sony perfectly bitch-slaps Microsoft in 20 seconds

[Shane for Wax]

I got an email from Microsoft talking about the Xbox One.

They're offering an exclusive controller and achievement if you pre-order. A ruddy achievement. Wonder what it'll say?