Lurker > Hexenherz

Ivynn posted...

I thought AC was science-fiction. When did it start getting involved with myths and gods? >_>

At least as early as Origins.

I don't think I ever fully understood how it all works, but essentially the precursor species that made the technology that saved the planet from the apocalypse were also gods or manifested themselves as the gods that inspired early human mythology.

In Origins, Odyssey and Valhalla you're exploring the afterlives and other worlds as expressed in Ancient Egyptian, Ancient Greek and Viking mythology.

I don't remember if they were meant to be digitalized recreations of the afterlives and you are exploring the echos of those recreations, or if the Isu actually created these places.

It was actually really cool in Origins and Odyssey, but I think they took it a bit too far with Valhalla when it started becoming an even more integral part of the plot rather than a fun foray into different worlds.

I act grossed out for half a second, gather my composure, start laughing, tell him it's OK, ask if HE is OK, go change and rinse off and get some towels to clean stuff up.

I'd want to know why he threw up though - was it nervousness alone or was this guy doing drugs or something?

El_Marsh posted...

I'm more interested in the setting for Mirage than I was for Valhalla but damn if the latter didn't just burn me out on the "new" series.

I've played all of the main AC games at one point or another but I'll probably end up waiting a bit longer to play this one just because Valhalla bored the hell out of me so thoroughly.

Did you like Odyssey, though?

I got burned out bad on Odyssey but felt like Valhalla found a good balance to keep the action moving without a bunch of pointless fetch quests. And the story was more interesting and coherent.

Super_Slash posted...

Like three semesters in. I enjoyed the first one for sure, but then the degree I was going for got moved to a transfer degree. Ever since, I've kind of hated it. It feels like a chore. I don't care much about graduating one way or another.

Have you looked into a different but similar degree? Sucks you hit that point at just three terms in

0Renegade posted...

i was in the same boat, I started my masters program the semester before the 2020 pandemic. I was originally supposed to graduate in 2021, but after a few deaths in the family, the inability to go physically in person for some required lab work (im in biology), and hating every class online. I almost did not want to finish it. But I'm so close to finishing it now I can see the finish line. It just sucked when a 2 year program got extended to 4 years for me cuz of a global pandemic and personal issues.

Other than just sticking to your potential degree, if you're not feeling it rn, maybe take a semester or 2 off, maybe forcing yourself to go to isn't working and you're feeling dragged down by it. The best time to take time off is usually spring semester cuz iirc for a lot of universities, they dont count summer as a semester you've taken off and if you take too many semesters off you'll have to reapply to the university.

Congrats on finding your second wind and making it this far, and sorry for your losses. Biology sounds exciting.

I did take off two terms last year, got back into it with the Spring term this year. Started with two classes, did fine, then tried with two classes again and ended up having to drop to one, and now I'm in my third term back.

oh and I didn't even get any work done last night beyond typing up the header for the page. great.

Glob posted...

Nothing wrong with needing to rant.

Is it studying itself thats wearing you down or the subject matter?

I don't even know if you could call what I do any more "studying". I find myself skipping reading materials here and there because they start to feel like "nice to know tangential backstory". The last class I took, the text book felt more like a technical catalogue of sensors being marketed to private multibillion dollar companies rather than an actual exploration and explanation of the technology and techniques that are used in the field.

Subject matter is also kind of tiring. I just feel like I start a new class and there's some new information and then it starts to feel all very similar to what I've already seen and done. I don't know how many times I've seen the "Danger of a single story" TED Talk - don't get me wrong, it's a beautiful lecture. I just ... don't feel the need to watch it for the dozenth time before I write my introduction post about why I want the degree.

So. It's pretty much everything. Doesn't help my wife doesn't really seem to support me any more - I try to take care of her and our daughter as best as possible, I am the single source of income at this point in time so I'm trying to take care of work plus family plus school and then we're butting heads because neither one of us really has our own time for ourselves. I offer to stop taking classes and she tells me I need to keep going but then when I try to "schedule" some study time it's never convenient for her. So I end up doing what I'm doing tonight, procrastinating until midnight to get started on something and maybe getting a couple hours of work in on it so I can finish it tomorrow before the deadline.

Super_Slash posted...

Yeaaaah, I've been there. That pretty much exactly describes my experience with online college so far.

How far are into it are you and how has your experience been? Are you at least looking forward to finishing it?

Shit sucks and life is depressing. Started out in 2020 when I was teleworking and had all the time in the world and it was fun. And now I probably won't even complete the program until 2025. I am burned out, the classes feel like they are repeating themselves, I still don't have a vision for actually using the degree in a future career still, and my discipline and study habits are even worse than they've ever been which just results in a lot of unnecessary anxiety due to pushing deadlines on assignments.

I don't even know what I'm doing any more. Have to turn in a first draft of a research paper by tomorrow and I have a general idea on what sort of resources I need to incorporate in there but besides that I'm at a loss for how to even write and formulate my shit.

Need to rant because I have nowhere else to go.

ultimate_reaver posted...

Do people really play those things for the story at this point

I do, but the story in Odyssey sucked anus, and Valhalla had some promise but it was pretty messy with all the weird.... well, Valhalla shit.

since you mention it, the local targets in the area and a few other stores I've gone to have TERRIBLE manning, with like one or maybe two cashier stands open at a time.

but then I go to Trader Joe's and they have a ton of people available to check folks out, I've never had to wait in line there.

OK I have now at least tried HoloCure, Halls of Torment, Nomad Survival, Army of Ruin, Spirit Hunters and FatalZone.

HoloCure has some flashy visuals but certain details seem very unclear to me... A big part of these games is completing achievements and challenges to unlock new things, and I tried to do a run without looking anything up on a Wiki and only got a few achievements when I should have probably gotten more. It is difficult to discern between display elements, too, imo (between weapon effects, enemies, and interface items).

Halls of Torment - I only did one round of this. It is fun, does feel a little basic but it looks like I did unlock more features I will need to explore. Looks like it has quests to complete, too. Looking forward to getting into this again.

Nomad Survival - Just feels too much like VS still -_- The interface and menus just look pretty meh. I got it for free from Fanatical (right now!) so maybe I'll revisit it but for now... eh

Army of Ruin - Fun quirky Warcraft-esque graphics, good sense of progression, things feel a little slow in the first couple levels. I like the emphasis on revisiting stages and having different difficulty levels and Star challenges to complete.

Spirit Hunters - I'm not digging the visuals, everything just feels ... flat? And the interface looks like something from the 1998-2002 era of PC gaming.

FatalZone - Actually enjoying this the most, progression feels rather consistent - not too fast but also I am achieving something every raid. Gathering resources is kind of lame, though...

GuerrillaSoldier posted...

bounty of one is alright. also scarlet tower or something. halls of torment is pretty legit too but i feel like it tries too hard to be deep but it's not actually very deep. sexy mystic survivors is pretty good, it has 'adult parts'. it's balanced well so the 'adult parts' are the least interesting part. beautiful mystic is the same exact game just without the boobs, probably a 'different studio' in the label for this reason, so if you're not into the adult stuff it's probably the best way to go.

but honestly VS is the best one so far. though i can't say i'm a huge fan of the dlcs and expansions, i feel like even they're not as good as the base game.

Yeah I got 100% on VS and I enjoyed some of the mechanics and weapons in the new DLC (especially how you unlock the second map, that was a simple but fun addition).

Younger me would be like "yeah bring on the adult stuff" in the SMS game but older me is like "what if the 50+ friends I never actually talk to saw me playing it".

FatalZone sounds hella awesome with the base building mechanics, gonna check that out. and all of these realistically.

I have fond memories of that when I played the game at like age five or six. I barely understood the negotiating thing, just remember the minigame of trying to get the two hands to meet lol.

Kamil posted...

Theme Park by Bullfrog. I don't really play these kinda games anymore but it was fun. Also early on in the game you could easily negotiate with your employees to take big pay cuts it was humorous.

They also did Theme Hospital, aaaaand... the Two Point games (Two Point Hospital and Two Point Campus) are spiritual successors to that made by some of the original devs. Could be worth checking out if you liked it.

I really love Planet Coaster but I suck at it, which is enough to get by in the story mode but if you want to make mind blowing rides and theme parks you need to have more artistic vision than I do.

These are all great recs, thank you for that. It's hard to figure out which one I want to work on next, I like the idea of getting 100% achievements.

Oh and I think I figured out the cause of my video performance issues. "Use HDR" was turned on in Windows and that was ... causing a lot of choppiness in all my programs. I turned it off on a whim and now everything feels better (except Steam).

mom's frothy milkshakes

usually like if someone talks to me I feel compelled to do things for them because people don't tend to talk to me very much.

I looked up Sexy Mystic Survivors and there's also "Beautiful Mystic Survivors" which looks VERY identical and is also in Early Access but is by a different studio...

Tried HoloCure out, was fun, beat the first level on the first try which was a bit surprising. Those enemies are... interesting to say the least.

Computer still feels off, still doesn't seem like it's using the GPU at all but HoloCure ran just fine.

I am a dumbass, I am realizing now my laptop is only using my intel GPU for some reason instead of the dedicated one.

Actually I think it's a problem with EGS / Alan Wake 2... I've noticed some weird visual effects on my desktop in general after playing it. Don't klnow how to fix that though.

Thanks for the game suggestions. Don't know why these games are so addicting but they are.

And I'm convinced I just need to update something for Nomad Survival, looking at YT gameplay it runs fine for everyone else.

The set-up is nearly identical but the game feels entirely wrong. Enemies and my character move too slow, it feels like there is a framerate issue even though I'm pulling 200+ frames, the interface feels a little cheap.

Is it that hard to rip off a good game properly? :(

https://www.pcgamer.com/cities-skylines-2-devs-are-investigating-faster-patches-and-a-fix-for-the-huge-packs-of-abandoned-feral-dogs/

Although I can't find a video of it.

But something is causing pet owners to abandon their dogs and the dogs apparently just coalesce into a big pack of stray dogs.

[LFAQs-redacted-quote]

Please do.

Gameplay can be a little bland but the narration and atmosphere are absurd. Also worth playing Quantum Break and Control afterwards (though they say QB is not officially a part of the universe).

I am loving Alan Wake 2. Even broke my self-imposed EGS embargo just to play it right now.

It is significantly slower than the first game with a bigger emphasis on exploration and storytelling.

I am only on Chapter 3 but it is already making me question a lot, especially my theories about the role of the FBC in this world.

It's not a sign of stupidity, it's just a tragic thing that happens to all sorts of people with all sorts of educational backgrounds as a result of things like extreme fatigue.

Lord_of_BeefDip posted...

Maybe it's wrong of me to apply my experiences and standards to everyone else, but fuck it that's what I'm doing anyway.

Well yes, it is. Obviously the severity of the situation is different, but it's similar to when someone complains about some game breaking glitch in a game and you responding, "it must be your fault because I've never had that glitch". Just because it never happened to you does not mean it wouldn't happen to someone else in other situations.

You could also argue that it is entirely irresponsible to be driving your young child around, or even just driving in general, after having not slept for 36 hours.

FortuneCookie posted...

I have to get my national certification as a pharmacy technician. I said that I would do it after I got back from vacation in September, but I've sent the entirety of October watching scary movies and playing creepy video games instead.

<_<

Also, I need to finish doing the dishes.

what does getting your certification entail?

this topic again
and the answer is still homework
different week, different assignment, two hours left. I did most of it, just have to write 100 words which is nothing lmao and because of that I am putting it off to the last minute like an idiot.

The first game is amazing. Also highly recommend playing Control which ties directly in to the world of Alan Wake, and other Remedy games (Max Payne 1 and 2, and Quantum Break) which have tentative ties to this universe if not being directly related.

It wasn't a Halloween event but at the very end of September there was a Rebels and Outlaws country festival here and a LOT of very fine ladies in very skimpy shorts and tops.

No, especially not after they shamelessly ripped off one of my favorite songs.

Ricemills posted...

More fundings perhaps? Also they seems to have more free time than Army and Navy.

How do you figure this? Not that I know much about academy life but they would theoretically have equal amounts of time to practice and train for organized college sport teams.

Day of the Dead was cool if not a little slow. Introduced some interesting aspects to the zombies while still making them alien and dangerous enough to dislike.

I liked Land but it went a little overboard with its social commentary and especially about what it means to be human. ngl though my favorite character was the one who was responsible for entering the targeting data for the rocket system, I envied the fact that she had a pretty clear-cut black-and-white attitude towards life and seemed content just doing her job. Probably weird as hell to admit that. Also the game was ass but it filled a fun niche back before the influx of zombie/horror games that saturated the market.

Garabandal posted...

Condolences. That's my pick too

funny, I am watching AVGN's video on beating it, just came out yesterday. Looks awful.

Not that I remember much from where I was born since I moved at a pretty young age, but pretty sure it was K-Mart. In my hometown where I grew up it was definitely Target. We had a Wal-Mart but it was away from town IIRC and there was a lot of active effort into keeping them from building a Super Wal-Mart.

Full_Pokedex posted...

Taylor Swift apparently has redone all of her old songs. Maybe that's what they mean.

Yeah, didn't see do that as a way to reclaim rights to them?

I liked the FNAF movie when it starred Nicolas Cage and was called Willy's Wonderland.

Clearest one I can remember is Superman 64.

I also rented some weird side-scrolling fighter game on PS1 a long time ago that was rather terrible compared to other games on the platform. Don't remember the name though.

Dungeater posted...

i skipped 4. i think my guy talking would ruin it for me honestly

The worst part really was the lack of meaningful roleplaying mechanics, the heavily "radiant" nature of a lot of the content, and the repetition of combat encounters. The idea of stumbling into an abandoned place with a bunch of corpses that turn out to be ghouls that come to attack you is pretty cool the first few times, but after it's happened a hundred times you're kind of over it. And just like in Skyrim there's not a huge variety of enemies - mostly super mutants, ghouls, insects and raiders/bandits. The AI was so glitchy that I died more to bloodbugs than I did to deathclaws (aka, never, because deathclaws just clip on the environment and then you do whatever you want to them).

And it sucks since it sounds like they made a lot of good improvements and maybe even finished the story.

But I don't have time to replay that crap any more lol too little too late RIP

I bought it after they released the long anticipated NPC update that added humans to the world and released it on Steam.

Played it a little bit. I actually enjoyed exploring the world, but the gameplay flow kinda sucked since it forces you to rely more on gathering supplies to craft your resources (aid packs, ammo) rather than just collecting them directly in the world.

I miss some of that weird subtler stuff in the lore. I like the new games starting with Origins and the afterlife expansions/content for each of the games is really beautiful and fun to explore, but they kind of lost me with the mechanics of how these different things work, like each afterlife is apparently a simulation and the gods which are AC's reptilians control it and they still exist or they don't and you're just exploring a past version of that simulation?

I like this write-up about how dangerous Mike Johnson is - https://www.thedailybeast.com/heres-why-mike-johnson-is-more-dangerous-than-donald-trump

oh saw x is 20 to rent on Amazon i'll just wait

I have tried to play through the base story of 1800 at least seven times now, and I always hit a wall and then stop for a few months before trying to pick it up again.

It definitely is the best looking of the games and has a lot of awesome features, especially with the DLC.

my mother didn't really forbid me from celebrating it but I lived with her and she would put up trash bags on the windows and never decorated since her dad had been killed on halloween. I started going to my dad's house to at least give out candy and watch some scary movies.

I want to watch Saw X, assuming that's a new movie and not the garbage Chris Rock starred in.

OT had memorable characters, memorable action sequences, a good combination of character development and intrigue and adventure. It was all just more impactful.

I *hated* Episode 7, enough to not want to watch the other two movies.