Unpopular Opinions about Video Games

[The Foxtrot]

I haven't played it since the Mercury Dyson sphere was patched.

Has it gotten better or just harder?

IDK when that patch was made, or what the hell the Mercury Dyson sphere is, but my biggest bitch right now is when the AI cheats and just says "Fuck You!" and gives one of your control points to the Protectorate or the Servants, out of the blue. This might be due to the Hydra carrying out an Enthrall mission, since it seems to stop (or happen VERY rarely) once I research the techs that defend against Enthrall missions. Either way, it feels extremely cheap since I don't see it happening to the AI factions, just me (the player), and it starts so early into the game.

Humanity First is objectively the best faction, just so you know.

And besides that one big bitch, I will flat-out say this game is in my Top 10. No other game's scratched the itch that Terra Invicta does, especially when I pull a reverse Fall of Reach and completely bitchslap a Hydra fleet while outnumbered 12:1.

 

[Point Man]

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2019 is the Scott Pilgrim of videogame first person gun animations and I hate it. Ever since MW19 came out every tactical modern military themed FPS game has had the same Hyper style tacticool animation style and because of it all FPS games (in this category) feel exactly the same. They all do the same bolt check, mag saving, AK underhand shit that it's tiring and makes it hard to distinguish games from each other. At the time, the style was cool and new, a revolution of the animation quality for Call of Duty, but because it was so successful people started copying it, making the style the base-line generic style. Some of the best examples that I can think of for this type of stuff is Ready or Not, SCP:5K, and sort-of Battlefield 2042. Only difference with 2042 is that they did it really shittily.

 

[Pierre D'Olnique]

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2019 is the Scott Pilgrim of videogame first person gun animations and I hate it. Ever since MW19 came out every tactical modern military themed FPS game has had the same Hyper style tacticool animation style and because of it all FPS games (in this category) feel exactly the same.

I don't play CoD but watched a weapon reel for 2019, and thought "wow, these looks strikingly similar in style to a meme animator I remember from way back when", and lo and behold:

When I saw his work I believed that his non-chuckleworthy animations wouldn't look good in a game, because they're over-animated. I remember making this argument in the past when comparing viewmodels in TF2 and Overwatch. Many people (mostly underages who migrated from other shooters after ~2015) shit on TF2's viewmodel animations as being barebones, stiff, unnatural and lazy looking. While I can't defend the stuff like Demo's nade launcher not rotating on reload, Soldier reloading non-stock launcher with air or Pistol's hammer not moving when firing, the viewmodels do an excellent job of conveying what the state the gun is in while staying out of sight. TF2's designers understood that viewmodels were not meant to be the center of attention and the player should be able to tell when the next round can be fired, how close the weapon is to (fully) reloading etc without shifting the focus away from the combat.
The viewmodels also barely move when the character does. There's a slight sway when W/A/S/D is pressed, but that's it.

And then there's Overwatch. I played it very late during one of the free weekends just to see what the hype was all about. While the gameplay was okay (I definitely didn't dig everyone having infinite ammo, the spamfest was fucking cancer) and hitting midairs on idiots with the rocket girl felt pretty satisfying, I just couldn't put up with the weapon bob and wobbly animations. It was like watching one of the new Pixar movies. You jump, the gun spazzes out vertically. You walk, it bounces. You shoot, and it feels like the character is intentionally pulling the weapon back instead of dealing with recoil. You reload, and it feels like the motions could easily be trimmed in half. It doesn't help that the guns are so fucking MASSIVE. The rocket girl's launcher was easily taking up 20% of the screen I think only Tribes was worse, the default fusor was close to 25%, basically blocking off the bottom right half of the screen.
I went back through my YT history and discovered what the aminations reminded me of:

Looks fucking jarring and distracting, doesn't it? And yet, it's not far off from Overwatch's basic viewmodels. Valve knows their shit when it comes to first person shooters. Blizzard doesn't, and it shows.

 

[Point Man]

I don't play CoD but watched a weapon reel for 2019, and thought "wow, these looks strikingly similar in style to a meme animator I remember from way back when", and lo and behold:

This is exactly what I meant by "Hyper style" since not only does he work for Infinity Ward, but he also worked for Respawn with Titanfall 2. Kudos to this dude for revolutionizing the animation game in a way, he can project real force and movement into gun animations not only with recoil but with just general sway. I enjoy(ed) it when it was fresh and new, glad the dude got to do his dream job. At the same time, fuck him for doing this shit since now every game is like it.

Along with that I completely agree with what you say about TF2 and Overwatch's gun animations. TF2's animations in all honesty aren't outdated like L4D2. (imo L4D2 has some fucking horrid animations, the first game had better ones) The only grievance that anyone really has that's worth listening to is the lack of detail with rounds going into the revolver and other minor details that were removed with time, which is not an issue with the animation itself. They're simple, kind of flashy, but they serve their purpose very well. The animations is one of the reasons why I don't get why people fuckin disable viewmodels in TF2, I feel like they're missing very important information when they do that shit.

 

[Pierre D'Olnique]

The animations is one of the reasons why I don't get why people fuckin disable viewmodels in TF2, I feel like they're missing very important information when they do that shit.

Compfag mindset. Been there, done that. It only matters in 6v6 where you absolutely need every bit of detail possible (disabling the model is also less resource-intensive, at least technically, but that's just high grade coping - if you gain a significant frame boost from that, get a better machine), since missing a scout coming at you from the angle blocked by the viewmodel can very well mean your demise - unlike in casual, you're rarely at full HP unless you're the pocket soldier, and two midrange shots (a little over 1 second in execution) is enough to bring you down. 6v6 is also a lot quieter so you can just listen to your own audio cues - after a while, the sound of a round being loaded is enough. Doesn't excuse fagtubers using it in fucking casual Harvest matches, that's simply self-fellation, because they're garbage outside pubs. Here's what happens when a pubstar meets a comp tryhard:

 

[Judge Dredd]

Wind Waker.

Man this game is fucking boring, they had enough content for about 5 hours of gameplay and just padded it to hell. Hey Link, good job with this dungeon and progressing the plot, now go sail the mostly empty sea to find 8 charts which lead to 8 pieces of the triforce to go any further.

Yes, Wind Waker is padded to the eyeballs. Supposedly they reduced the sailing time in remakes and re-releases, but I'm surprised that game gets away with it. Far Cry 2 is another game that is a commute simulator that you're not allowed to criticise.

In GX's case, I got as far as I could, at least... lack of interest was not the limiting factor

If you're talking about the GP mode, don't quick a GP until it's over. Unlike most racing games, being consistent is more important than coming first. So many people have got the mindset from bad rubber banding games that the same cpu car will win every race, but GX on harder modes doesn't do that. Your car will do better on some tracks than others. Also, a well timed bump of a high scoring rival can win you the GP as he goes from a 90 point lead to last place.

Long War also has easy modes and 'cinematic' mode where your XCOM soldiers basically cannot miss and you can't fail air battles. So it actually can make the entire game simple enough for 'game journalists' or whatever lowest common denominator idiot installs the mod then rages over the challenge.

When I tried long war (admittedly, it was somewhat early on) there was no easy mode to keep the casuals out. Having to micro manage dozens of guys is just tiring.

 

[Ser Prize]

Postal 3 is more of a postal game than postal 4. Fuck postal 4

I've heard a lot of Postal 4 hate. I never got into Postal, can you give me a quick rundown?

 

[The Ugly One]

While I can't defend the stuff like Demo's nade launcher not rotating on reload, Soldier reloading non-stock launcher with air or Pistol's hammer not moving when firing, the viewmodels do an excellent job of conveying what the state the gun is in while staying out of sight.

Sure, you can defend all that stuff pretty easily. When it launched in 2007, 16 years ago, its minimum requirements were a 512 GB of RAM and a single core, 1.7 GHz CPU. They had to keep the assets pretty lean.

 

[TVB]

I've heard a lot of Postal 4 hate. I never got into Postal, can you give me a quick rundown?

Try Postal 2, then Postal 1, and that's it (and also watch the Uwe Boll movie)

 

[xXx: State of the Union]

Far Cry 2 is another game that is a commute simulator that you're not allowed to criticise.

Really? I always used to see Far Cry 2 criticism.

And it's deserved. I like the game myself, but it's got sooooo many issues.

 

[Pierre D'Olnique]

Sure, you can defend all that stuff pretty easily. When it launched in 2007, 16 years ago, its minimum requirements were a 512 GB of RAM and a single core, 1.7 GHz CPU. They had to keep the assets pretty lean.

I meant today, and even back then, what you needed was a DX8 config running at 640x480 or 800x600, possibly with extra low-poly models from FPSBanana, which is what I used on my single core 2,53 GHz, 256 MB RAM, ATI X1300 PRO machine. It was able to crack 35 fps sometimes, but messy scenarios, ie Badwater last push with like 4 sentry guns and soldiers/demos spamming all over would fucking hammer it down to single digits pretty often. Disabling viewmodels brought little benefit but disastrous consequences, obviously, because you didn't know what weapon you had out and paying attention to the HUD is not something new players do.

 

[Smaug's Smokey Hole 2]

If you're talking about the GP mode, don't quick a GP until it's over. Unlike most racing games, being consistent is more important than coming first. So many people have got the mindset from bad rubber banding games that the same cpu car will win every race, but GX on harder modes doesn't do that. Your car will do better on some tracks than others. Also, a well timed bump of a high scoring rival can win you the GP as he goes from a 90 point lead to last place.

That's a thing that is really nice with that game and pretty realistic. In the end it comes down to who has the most points, not who won the most races. Do well enough and don't die will go a long way in F-Zero 64 and GX.

edit: I know it won't ever happen but I would like a perma-death mode in Forza or Gran Turismo.

 

[RA-5C Vigilante]

I think my favorite part about Tropico is it tells the sad truth about most of the Carribean and third world nations: they are compeltely inept at almost everything, have to import foreigners to get stuff working, and at the end of the day have to rely on first world countries, either through financial aid or tourism, to stay out of debt.

Case in point, Cuba had great medical care, socialist dream, etc etc. Then sugar daddy USSR fell and their economy has been in a tailspin for 30 years and the first five of those had rampant death by starvation. It always works when someone else foots the bill or is handing you money to pay them.

 

[LORD IMPERATOR]

Western RPGs were at their best during the time when they had to compete with JRPGs, from the late 90s to the 2010s. You saw games like Diablo, Mass Effect 1-3, KOTOR 1 & 2, Oblivion, Skyrim, World of Warcraft, Star Wars Galaxies, SWTOR, Fallout 3 and New Vegas, the greats. Then, when JRPGs declined and ceased to be a competitor, western RPGs got high on their own farts, and began to decline. Fallout 4 & 76, Mass Effect Andromeda, Dragon Age 3, Cyberpunk 2077, and now, Starfield. While there is still some good in the genre, no one can contest the fact that things were better in the old days.

The fact that WRPGs are now in decline is no longer a contested fact; Baldur's Gate 3 seems to be a last hurrah for the genre rather than a return to form, especially considering the fact that most of the people who made that game got fired. Western RPGs needed competitors to stay on their toes, and without that competition, they sank into the muck and became a laughingstock of the glory that they once had.

I think my favorite part about Tropico is it tells the sad truth about most of the Carribean and third world nations: they are compeltely inept at almost everything, have to import foreigners to get stuff working, and at the end of the day have to rely on first world countries, either through financial aid or tourism, to stay out of debt.

Case in point, Cuba had great medical care, socialist dream, etc etc. Then sugar daddy USSR fell and their economy has been in a tailspin for 30 years and the first five of those had rampant death by starvation. It always works when someone else foots the bill or is handing you money to pay them.

That's what happens when rabble-rousers promise everything under the sky then realize they need real money in order to deliver on the goods. They have to spread their legs to big daddy USA or USSR and be some country's bitch in order to pay for it all.

 

[The Tall Man]

I think my favorite part about Tropico is it tells the sad truth about most of the Carribean and third world nations: they are compeltely inept at almost everything, have to import foreigners to get stuff working, and at the end of the day have to rely on first world countries, either through financial aid or tourism, to stay out of debt.

Case in point, Cuba had great medical care, socialist dream, etc etc. Then sugar daddy USSR fell and their economy has been in a tailspin for 30 years and the first five of those had rampant death by starvation. It always works when someone else foots the bill or is handing you money to pay them.

I think colonialism was a bad idea, if these islanders would just lazily lie on the beach in the nude and occasionally catch a fish their societies would function, not impressive, but that is what they came up with after all, it's on their level. Trying to make them achieve European civilization standards is doomed to fail.

Cuba is a complicated case.
You can't just ignore Lansky and all the weapon smuggling and money laundering the Jewish Mob did there.
And how deeply intertwined the Mob already was with the CIA back then.

 

[TheHarbinger]

Western RPGs were at their best during the time when they had to compete with JRPGs, from the late 90s to the 2010s. You saw games like Diablo, Mass Effect 1-3, KOTOR 1 & 2, Oblivion, Skyrim, World of Warcraft, Star Wars Galaxies, SWTOR, Fallout 3 and New Vegas, the greats.

I doubt that any of the CRPG creators were playing many JRPGs. Most of them came from tabletop games or ancient DOS games. The teams of the original Fallout or Diablo games were small developers that mostly played Western games. Diablo's class system came from NHL 94 and other sports games.

 

[Kurt Eichenwald]

Dixie is best girl.

 

[SSj_Ness (Yiffed)]

Dixie is best girl.
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That didn't load so I thought you were talking about Dixie Kong

 

[Thiletonomics]

When it comes to RTS games, I don't like that Unit stat upgrades are a thing, i.e. Blacksmith upgrades in Age of Empires 2, or Engineering Bay upgrades for infantry in StarCraft 2. It seems like that they're there, just to be things to spend resources on, so that your units aren't as garbage as your opponents ones. (assuming that they research upgrades too) Also, to a smaller extent, I don't like how population management, as in needing to build Houses/Supply Depots/Overlords/Pylons/etc., is a thing in RTS games as well. At least there are a few exceptions to that, i.e. Huns in AOE2 don't require houses.

 

[The Last Stand]

• Bunch of gamers complete a game dozens of times

I could never understand beating a game more than once other than achievements. Once I'm done, I'm done for a time.