OT: Video Game Talk (oh, also the Week before the All-Star Break Pre-Game Talk "archive")

[S E P H]

I don't at all think BotW's map is too big. I think it is much closer to the proper size. The Hebra Mountains are more desolate (though I think the Gerudo desert is far more desolate)... like most extreme cold regions are. I still felt there was quite a bit to do there.

A game that suffers from that (and is still great) is the Witcher 3... I don't know the stats but that map has to be 3-4x BotW and double Orgins. None of them hold a candle to Just Cause 3 or Death Stranding. Those games are utterly enormous... and Death Stranding is basically post apocalyptic FedEx simulator.

Oh, I have issues with other parts of that map as well like the desert, but the Hebra Mountains as you called it were definitely the worse for me. All the outer portions of that game are just too barren, which I suggest Rockstar did a better job at filling in the empty space with stuff like what we see in RDRII. I played like five hours of The Witcher and dropped it for something else (hated the movement when you're on a horse), but I definitely plan on going back in. Isn't the map (Witcher) for the PC like two times larger than that for the consoles? If so, that could make sense...

The most underrated open-world game to this date is NieR: Automata. I also dropped the game for a Persona playthrough, but the combat is some of the best I've played with some of the most satisfying yet challenging boss battles.

E: I was in a game shop one time looking for retro games for a buddy and this guy was about to buy Death Stranding and I told him that if you like being a delivery man, you'd love that game lol. Very interesting concept story-wise though.

 

[The Merchant]

So with Nintendo's results... we have some numbers on the AAAness of Splatoon. GoW Ragnarok has solid ~11m copies and Sony has stated it was the fastest selling first party game in their history. It has sold fantastically to put it bluntly. Splatoon 3 has sold 10m copies since its release in September. A bit longer, but 10m copies is definitely a bar AAA games are happy with. Pokemon sold over 20m.

Not sure what correlation you're trying to draw between sales figures and a game being AAA, though (of if you are at all)? Minecraft is best-selling videogame of all-time and that shit isn't even remotely AAA.

 

[henchman21]

Oh, I have issues with other parts of that map as well like the desert, but the Hebra Mountains as you called it were definitely the worse for me. All the outer portions of that game are just too barren, which I suggest Rockstar did a better job at filling in the empty space with stuff like what we see in RDRII. I played like five hours of The Witcher and dropped it for something else (hated the movement when you're on a horse), but I definitely plan on going back in. Isn't the map (Witcher) for the PC like two times larger than that for the consoles? If so, that could make sense...

The most underrated open-world game to this date is NieR: Automata. I also dropped the game for a Persona playthrough, but the combat is some of the best I've played with some of the most satisfying yet challenging boss battles.

E: I was in a game shop one time looking for retro games for a buddy and this guy was about to buy Death Stranding and I told him that if you like being a delivery man, you'd love that game lol. Very interesting concept story-wise though.

I'm pretty sure the map is the same size consoles vs PC on The Witcher 3... it is just enormous though. RDR2 was pretty great too.

NieR: Automata is a super underrated game. Just a ton of fun... though I never finished it. Story never really kept me hooked... gameplay was fantastic though.

 

[The Merchant]

Boy do I ever have news for you!!! You can do this in Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity.




(Just ignore that the game sucks)

Hey now, it does not!! I'll always have a soft spot for those mindless hack-n-slash Dynasty Warriors games. And AoC was actually one of the better ones, tbh.

 

[katfude]

Pretty stoked for the TotK delayed announcement tomorrow.

 

[henchman21]

Not sure what correlation you're trying to draw between sales figures and a game being AAA, though (of if you are at all)? Minecraft is best-selling videogame of all-time and that shit isn't even remotely AAA.

Sales figures matter a lot for AAA games and Splatoon is a AAA shooter for Nintendo. It is a game with a 30+m budget and falls right in line with that. It sells like a AAA game. It has the budget of a AAA game. It has the content of a AAA shooter. Its a AAA game.

Minecraft in the beginning certainly wasn't a AAA game... it was one guy. Today, with the huge team and studio behind it, it might be one of the largest games out there. To me, hard to say it isn't AAA. The budget there dwarfs almost any other major game out there sans Cyberpunk and GTA.

 

[The Merchant]

Sales figures matter a lot for AAA games and Splatoon is a AAA shooter for Nintendo. It is a game with a 30+m budget and falls right in line with that. It sells like a AAA game. It has the budget of a AAA game. It has the content of a AAA shooter. Its a AAA game.

Minecraft in the beginning certainly wasn't a AAA game... it was one guy. Today, with the huge team and studio behind it, it might be one of the largest games out there. To me, hard to say it isn't AAA. The budget there dwarfs almost any other major game out there sans Cyberpunk and GTA.

There is no direct correlation between how a game sells and if it's AAA. That's just silly. The terminology of AAA is simply to describe if a game is a "blockbuster" or not, akin to movies. Minecraft was and still is an indie game at its core. So was Tetris and that's also one of the best-selling games ever. AAA's can also bomb, like Anthem did.

You can debate whether or not the Splatoon franchise is AAA or not (and people certainly have since the first game was announced), but you're not gonna be able to describe it as such without a shadow of a doubt. To me it doesn't look AAA, it doesn't have the production value of AAA and it doesn't have the content I'd expect out of a AAA.

 

[henchman21]

There is no direct correlation between how a game sells and if it's AAA. That's just silly. The terminology of AAA is simply to describe if a game is a "blockbuster" or not, akin to movies. Minecraft was and still is an indie game at its core. So was Tetris and that's also one of the best-selling games ever. AAA's can also bomb, like Anthem did.

You can debate whether or not the Splatoon franchise is AAA or not (and people certainly have since the first game was announced), but you're not gonna be able to describe it as such without a shadow of a doubt. To me it doesn't look AAA, it doesn't have the production value of AAA and it doesn't have the content I'd expect out of a AAA.

Sales are an important factor for budgets. Some games explode and sell a ton with no budget. Most games that sell have huge budgets and studios behind them hence the AAA moniker. They can bomb, but that’s clearly not the intention.

To me it is clear Splatoon has the production value, budget and content. Content wise it is an online shooter… it’ll be lacking single player content. Just like COD single player campaigns are 4-5 hours long now (Splatoon 3 is 8). Splatoon is similar to that. The levels are comparable. The graphics are tuned to the system (and are incredibly polished). The look is completely subjective. It doesn’t try to be life like visuals… does that automatically ruin it being AAA?

 

[The Kingslayer]

Yep, love to see it. The hate for this game was so comically short-sighted. Can't wait to play

Easy buy. Dont care about the outside noise.

 

[The Merchant]

Sales are an important factor for budgets. Some games explode and sell a ton with no budget. Most games that sell have huge budgets and studios behind them hence the AAA moniker. They can bomb, but that’s clearly not the intention.

To me it is clear Splatoon has the production value, budget and content. Content wise it is an online shooter… it’ll be lacking single player content. Just like COD single player campaigns are 4-5 hours long now (Splatoon 3 is 8). Splatoon is similar to that. The levels are comparable. The graphics are tuned to the system (and are incredibly polished). The look is completely subjective. It doesn’t try to be life like visuals… does that automatically ruin it being AAA?

There's a difference between a piecemeal level-based story mode like in S3 and the bombastic, hugh-budget campaigns in CoD. That's a strange comparison. And yes, the game does not remotely impress in the same way graphically as a true AAA on the console does in BotW. I would classify it more as a AA first-party. A good game, and maybe even a great game to some...but not a system-seller.

 

[Sea Eagles]

I play SWTOR on Satele Shan server if anyone else does, and is keen to group? I mostly play on the Imperial Side, haha. PM me, and we can play some PVP.

 

[henchman21]

There's a difference between a piecemeal level-based story mode like in S3 and the bombastic, hugh-budget campaigns in CoD. That's a strange comparison. And yes, the game does not remotely impress in the same way graphically as a true AAA on the console does in BotW. I would classify it more as a AA first-party. A good game, and maybe even a great game to some...but not a system-seller.

The comparison is online based shooters. Both are multiplayer focused games.

So AAA has to be system sellers now?

 

[The Merchant]

The comparison is online based shooters. Both are multiplayer focused games.

So AAA has to be system sellers now?

Right, which very few are AAA outside of the colossal franchises like CoD. And even those have high-budget, high-profile campaigns unlike Splatoon.

And not always, but certainly the first-party and exclusive AAA's are the ones used to sell consoles. GoW, Halo, Zelda, etc.

 

[henchman21]

Right, which very few are AAA outside of the colossal franchises like CoD. And even those have high-budget, high-profile campaigns unlike Splatoon.

And not always, but certainly the first-party and exclusive AAA's are the ones used to sell consoles. GoW, Halo, Zelda, etc.

And Animal Crossing them too.

 

[The Merchant]

And Animal Crossing them too.

Oh AC is definitely an exception. That sold a metric shit-ton of consoles.

 

[henchman21]

Oh AC is definitely an exception. That sold a metric shit-ton of consoles.

And I don’t at all understand it

 

[The Merchant]

And I don’t at all understand it

Yeah I don't know man. The combo of accessibility, interior design, cute animals and an endless collectathon really does it for some people.

 

[sethro109]

Yeah I don't know man. The combo of accessibility, interior design, cute animals and and an endless collectathon really does it for some people.

I keep buying them, but I haven't really enjoyed them since the one on GameCube. I really don't like being hard capped with how much you can do in a single real time day. Then I see the trailers for the next one and I start thinking "Yeah I'll just play a little bit a day while I'm mostly playing other games" then I play it for about 3 days and never look at it again.

 

[The Merchant]

I keep buying them, but I haven't really enjoyed them since the one on GameCube. I really don't like being hard capped with how much you can do in a single real time day. Then I see the trailers for the next one and I start thinking "Yeah I'll just play a little bit a day while I'm mostly playing other games" then I play it for about 3 days and never look at it again.

But what's the appeal? Is it just the mellow, relaxing vibe of it all?

 

[sethro109]

But what's the appeal? Is it just the mellow, relaxing vibe of it all?

Basically yeah. Just a relaxing game that just keeps you engaged enough to keep you occupied. On the GC I wanted to just pay off my maxed out house and make friends with all the villagers.

 

[henchman21]

Basically yeah. Just a relaxing game that just keeps you engaged enough to keep you occupied. On the GC I wanted to just pay off my maxed out house and make friends with all the villagers.

This sounds like Stardew Valley with more steps.

 

[sethro109]

This sounds like Stardew Valley with more steps.

The Stardew valley developer actually said that his biggest inspirations were Animal Crossing and Harvest Moon.

 

[UncleRisto]

Animal Crossing is great when you first start it. Then when I had to build on the initial progress and kind of change things around with limited novelty, I lost interest.

 

[henchman21]

Animal Crossing to me (I’ve only played the GameCube one) just seem like work to me. I work enough, I don’t need more work.

 

[The Moops]

Animal Crossing to me (I’ve only played the GameCube one) just seem like work to me. I work enough, I don’t need more work.

Basically how I feel about Factorio