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No Mans Sky, Monster Hunter and Yokus Island Express


On 08/02/2018 at 08:44 AM by Blake Turner

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So I've been playing some games and they're in the title. So um, yeah.

No Mans Sky

 

Holy shit this game is good now. Like, really really good. It's so close to realising the promise of its initial release and god I'm loving it.

So what do you do in no Mans sky? Well, you do a lot. You can fight things. You can scan things for money. You can build bases. You can find blueprints to build more stuff. You can learn alien languages so you can actually speak to the aliens you meet. And you can find old ships and repair them, which makes me feel like an awesome space mechanic.

 There's a central storyline to pull you through. It's a lot like a more focused Minecraft but on a larger scale.

 

I'm about eight hours in and loving every second honestly. Though I still can't really speak much of the alien language, and I end up coming off as an ignorant tourist accidentally offending everyone and buying them presents To make up for it. So far I don't know many words and the words I know arent super helpful. I know the word for their race, what they call me, the word for warrior, ancient, interloper, and antimatter. They don't come up much in everyday conversation.

Goddamn is it addictive though. There's always something you could be doing and it's hard to put down as a result. You can be a space pirate, a trader, an engineer, a botanist, and so many other things. It's just really really good.

 The only real issues I have are small. I've spent a decent amount of time on the wiki due to the tutorial being pretty hands off, and I died a lot learning the ins and outs of the controls. Those controls are a bit weird on a controller, but they're perfectly functional. It's half price on psn now and that includes the massive expansion, so I definitely recommend.

Monster Hunter World

 

Monster Hunter World is the first Monster Hunter game I've enjoyed, and that's primarily because of how much they've streamlined it. It's a lot more accessible now, with crafting being done automatically and the game having a more focused story mode that teaches you a lot. 

It's a pretty simple game. You go out, you hunt monsters and then you wear said monsters as a hat. Or make a sword out of them to kill their friends. There is a lot of depth in the systems though. There are 14 different weapons that drastically alter how you play. There are 3 different ranged weapons, two being guns with ammo of different varieties for different types of attacks and afflictions. There's also a bow with unlimited ammo that has different coatings to achieve similar results though you can move a lot faster with it.

 Then there's a gunlance which allows you to shoot and hit, a switch axe which is an axe that transforms into a sword, an insect glave that does small amounts of damage but let's you stay airborne and out of harms way for a decent chunk of time, and a sword and shield that also turns into an axe. There are other weapons but listing them would take forever.

 That's not even mentioning that upgrades have different stats that can be useful for different monsters and you can take off those upgrades and get your materials back so you can easily upgrade another weapon you want to use.

 And hunting monsters is a lot of fun. It's kind of like every enemy is a dark souls boss that's just wondering around the world, but it's more forgiving than those games because you can run away and collect healing items, or lead them to a bigger monster, watch that monster kick its ass and then finish it off.

Some of the weapons seem a bit harder to use than others, and it'll be down to personal preference as to which you want to use. Pretty darn solid game. Pretty darn stressful game though.

Yokus Island Express

 

It's a metroidvania pinball game. Need I say more? It's really great too. Really weird, but also adorable in a way that will remind you of your childhood and cause your nostalgia boner to go rock hard.

I'm kind of wondering why it hasn't been done before honestly, it's a fusion of genres that works quite well. It's a little frustrating, but only because I personally suck at pinball. Honestly, it's just great.

 

Name of the Wind.

 

Okay, I'm also reading a book. Its a really good book though. It's a fantasy novel about crippling student loans. There's a lot more to it than that of course. The world is great, it has stories within stories within stories, and some great songs as well. Plus Kvothe is a badass. A bit of a brat at times, but a an awesome character nonetheless. I'm not super far in, but it is a pretty great read.

 

Man, everything's just great at the moment. At least in terms of entertainment.


 

Comments

Casey Curran Staff Writer

08/02/2018 at 11:09 AM

No Man's Sky Next looks neat. I'll be sure to check it out when it's free on PSPlus/XBL/Humble Monthly

Blake Turner Staff Writer

08/02/2018 at 11:26 AM

It might be on humble bundle but I doubt you'll be getting it free anytime soon since they essentially relaunched the game. They even sent the new version to reviewers to be rereviewed. 

Casey Curran Staff Writer

08/02/2018 at 12:05 PM

I can wait a year or two. I'm in no rush. 

goaztecs

08/02/2018 at 02:02 PM

Damn I should have jumped on the Walmart $10 deal. Hopefully either Black Friday, or a sale on the PC version will happen so I can finally give No Man's Sky a try. I forgot who mentioned it but the game I'm currently playing, Everspace is similar, and I'm really digging that game. 

Blake Turner Staff Writer

08/03/2018 at 06:25 PM

No mans sky is half price on psn atm if you're interested on getting it on ps4. I imagine other systems would have it for a similar price as well. 

Matt Snee Staff Writer

08/02/2018 at 05:27 PM

I might give No Man's Sky another shot. I bought it at launch and while there were things I liked, it was also frustrating. The new version seems a lot better. Just a matter of time. 

I also want to play Monster Hunter. I'm gonna buy it eventually, it looks really cool. 

Hope u are well!

Blake Turner Staff Writer

08/03/2018 at 06:24 PM

You get the expansion for free if you own the game plus all the updates so there's no real reason not to try it. Today I got a freighter, got in a space war and only escaped by the skin of my teeth. It was great! 

Homelessrook

08/02/2018 at 08:15 PM

So, they fixed No Man's Sky? I wanted to get it but I heard so much bad shit about it. I mean to the point of damn this game has to be aweful.

Blake Turner Staff Writer

08/03/2018 at 01:38 AM

Yes. It's actually a video game now. There's actually stuff to do now. And most of the stuff you can do is a lot of fun. 

Cary Woodham

08/02/2018 at 09:22 PM

I recently played and reviewed Yoku's Island Express.  It's defintely one of the better indie games out there right now.

http://www.gamerdad.com/blog/2018/07/16/yokus-island-express-ps4-switch-xbox-one-pc/

Blake Turner Staff Writer

08/03/2018 at 06:23 PM

I agree with your review. I definitely think the swinging controls especially could have been tightened up a bit but overall I loved it. 

KnightDriver

08/02/2018 at 10:47 PM

No Man's Sky sounds great now. I'm definitely going to try it again.

"You go out, you hunt monsters and then you wear said monsters as a hat. Or make a sword out of them to kill their friends." Ha ha! Should be called Psycho Hunter. I've got the game on hold from the library but whoever has it won't let it go yet.

I tried to read that book once. From the first chapter I knew I was in for a long haul of epicocity and didn't have the patience. I'm weird like that now about epic fantasy. Maybe it's age. I dunno.

Blake Turner Staff Writer

08/03/2018 at 01:36 AM

The first few chapters aren't really what a name in the wind is about. It shows him having to hide out and own abmn inn because he's collossally fucked his life up, then proceeds to tell the story of how he got there. It really doesn't feel like most epic fantasy. It's mostly kvothe growing up a poor orphan then going to university and constantly getting in trouble. The fantasy stuff honestly takes a back-seat for most of the book. 

KnightDriver

08/03/2018 at 03:13 PM

The way you describe it makes me interested again. I think I didn't get past the inn the first time. I didn't really give it a chance.

Blake Turner Staff Writer

08/03/2018 at 06:22 PM

Nah, that's basically a 50 page prologue before the story starts essentially. I wasn't super invested until about page 80 then I couldn't put the damn thing down. 

KnightDriver

08/04/2018 at 08:08 PM

2007 that book. Hum, I think it was that year I got it for Xmas. Other problem was it was in paperback and I'm into hardbacks now. I'll try and get into it next month when I cover the late aughts (I love saying "aughts", so snobby).

Blake Turner Staff Writer

08/05/2018 at 03:23 PM

If you do let me know what you think! 

KnightDriver

08/05/2018 at 11:35 PM

I put it on my list for Sept. I'm going to look for a hardback copy at the library.

Super Step Contributing Writer

08/03/2018 at 12:52 AM

Name of the Wind sounds interesting. Student loan fantasies.

asrealasitgets

08/03/2018 at 09:46 PM

After playing ESO Morrowind and Zelda botw back-to-back, I'm more open to playing open world games now. I think that the world matters and in the past, giant map games haven't been interesting enough for me to hang around for a long time. No Man's Sky looks interesting with all the planets and aliens and stuff. I really want to try it.

I just started playing MHW recently (35 hrs) and the combat loop is very good. I just got to the point where the monsters are getting a bit harder and I have to upgrade my equipment and think about elemental weapons and armor perks before moving forward. I steamrolled through 30+ hours with ease, but now I'm hitting a steep grind wall. 30 hrs have been really fun though. I'm maining a Switch Axe and alt weapon is Bow. I'm just doing daily grinds for armor sets and weapon upgrades now. Haven't played online yet. Kind of disappointed that there's only a few maps though, but they are fun to run around like a playground.

God of War is on my backlog. Maybe by xmas I'll get to play it when the price drops.

Blake Turner Staff Writer

08/05/2018 at 03:38 PM

The great thing about No Mans Sky is that there aren't any map markers outside of telling you where planets and space stations are. Once youre on a planet you have to build a signal booster to tell you where things like buildings and monoliths are unless you're close enough to see them in your scan visor. It makes exploration feel more rewarding since the scan visor tells you basically what's close to you but you still don't know for sure what you'll find them.

Then the quests will tell you roughly where you can find some things for the quest by there are still a lot of ways to do them and there aren't really proper quests until 10ish hours in.

I'm still only about 15 hours into monster hunter because yoku and no mans sky hooked me harder and now I'm super into iconoclasts. I'll get back to it soon as I was really digging it.

God of war is great, but mainly for its story. The side stuff isn't that great for the most part outside of the optional realms and some great puzzles and lore. 

asrealasitgets

08/06/2018 at 02:20 AM

Sort of off topic but I'm not sure I asked you before what your thoughts were on Resident Evil 7? I really dug the whole thing. I kept going back and forth about things I loved and hated. Maybe with repeat play throughs it will clear things up, but after playing the free DLC section with Chris, it really is a remake of the original game, much in the spirit of Shattered Memories to Silent Hill. I liked the family stuff in the beginning, but then it turned into Resident Evil and it felt too familiar. The end was more Silent Hill and F.E.A.R, plus they threw in part of Revelations 1 with the tanker ship. 

One thing I really did like was the reinvention or retelling of Lisa Trevor from RE1. She was abducted and experimented on and lived in a shack in the back of the RE1 mansion and was a boss fight. RE7 had Eveline, with a similar back story to Lisa but more connected to the whole story RE7 and her presense is there thoughout the game. 

Blake Turner Staff Writer

08/08/2018 at 11:58 AM

I really liked re7 up until the ship/quarrie section. I felt it got a little dull around then. I never got to the dlc because my computer died and I haven't got a new one yet and can't quite justify rebuying it. I still loved the game, just didn't feel the ending held up. 

mothman

08/04/2018 at 06:23 PM

I updated my physical copy of No Man's Sky the other day but just as it was the first time I played it I had no idea what I was supposed to be doing, got poisoned and died. LOL

Yoku's Island Express is indeed really good even though I too suck at pinball.

Blake Turner Staff Writer

08/05/2018 at 03:30 PM

Yeah the same happened to me. I just looked up a wiki. Once I got off the first planet I was hooked though. 

Basically, just make sure you scan to find oxygen and fill up yourlife support, and sodium to refill your atmosphere protection. Do that early and you'll have enough soon that you won't have to worry about it for a while. There's usually enough of both around that it should be OK. Problem is game doesn't really explain this that well.

Yeah I 100% completed yoku yesterday. Its really really good. Have you played iconoclasts? I got it yesterday and man the plot is great, feels like an old school final fantasy game in the story though a bit darker and really really funny at times. 

mothman

08/06/2018 at 11:25 AM

Hmmm, may need to look into Iconoclasts because lord knows I don't have anything else to play. LOL

Nicoleb1989

08/06/2018 at 04:59 PM

I play MHW still but not as much since I beat the main story part. I do though wanna do the final fantasy themed stuff. I actually got into using the Bow and Hammer. I was used to using the Switch Axe and Hunting Horn for a long time. Im gonna pick up the MH for Switch title and play through it too. I know in some aspects its not as improved as MHW but Im excited for Prowler mode to make a return. I really liked being able to play as a palico. Not to mention I miss being able to have multiple palicos. I was really disappointed with the changes they made to that in MHW.  

Ive been reading mostly manga but I am close to finishing Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs and I gotta say Ive really enjoyed it. They use these super old photos throughtout the book and it just fits so well. There are 2 more books in the series and Ill definitely be getting them on down the line. I think Ill start reading Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman next.

Blake Turner Staff Writer

08/08/2018 at 12:02 PM

I haven't beat the main story yet because iconoclasts and reading are taking up my time atm. If you havent played iconoclasts I recommend it. It's a metroidvania but it has a story that reminds me a lot of a final fantasy story if it dealt with things like mental illness and grief in a very real way. Has a surprisingly weighty and well written story.

Haven't read miss perigrene, only seen the movie and my partner tells me it's nowhere near as good - apart from Samuel l Jackson being in it. Neverwhere is one of the few Neil Gaimen works I haven't read and definitely need to.

Name of the wind reminds me a bit of Gaimen actually, if only in the way he writes prose. 

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