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I can't wait to get this. I'm kinda sad it doesn't receive more attention since it looks very good from what I've seen. I've watched the first 3 chapters on YT since I wasn't able to find an early copy. It looks very pretty, the music is excellent, I got some strong Last of Us vibes. The story and characters seem very engaging, voice acting is strong (both in English and French). I really hope it gets the success it deserves...
Yeah !
I am going to start this !
So english voice or french voice?I still don't know.I am french but usually i'll go for english,but for this one,i don't know.
Also it was a pre-order,but i didn't get those skins dlc codes.
Didn't do any comparison but French voice is really solid so far (started chapter 3).
And same, I didn't get my pre order bonus code :( Oh well, it is just small cosmetics.
Finished the game last night. Replayed most chapters today with English voices for collectibles and misc trophies . The French dub 'sounded much better' to me, probably mainly because the English dub is Frenglish, English with a French-like accent. But I think if you don't understand French, English could probably be a more efficient experience, so YMMV.
Waffling between buying this or Rage 2 this week, since they both come out on the 14th. I like meatier, story heavy games - so I'm strongly leaning into this game, which looks great. Any overall thoughts from the people who have played it already? Good, great, bad, meh?
I had a good, but relatively short time with it. Short as in ~
I thought most of the mechanics were solid and pretty fun to use, except when trying to stealth around hyper-vigilant guard AI. One time, an alerted guard can literally stand in front of you 'searching' while you're hiding in the tall grass a with bunch of kids, and not find you. Another time, multiple guards will rush straight towards you and kill you after you threw a rock, exactly like you've been taught, onto a metal object to distract them, while you are hiding around a corner. Also, don't underestimate enemy archer accuracy, not even while you are 'in cover' behind crates.
From the games in the OP, the comparison with Hellblade is probably a good one - I don't think it has much in common with GOW at all, except there is a BOY (and a mother) in it. Maybe more like Alan Wake, but without the terrible fashion sense and 'horror'. Also, I haven't played The Last of Us (lol). Anyway, like Hellblade this game is a pretty focused (=linear) and story-driven experience with light puzzle elements, (forced) stealth, some combat and running away from danger. Unlike Hellblade combat can be more varied, puzzles usually involve other 'party members' and the story is more 'adventurous'. I don't actively remember Hellblade's finale but A Plague Tale's is:
IN MY PERSONAL OPINION not a great boss fight or ending scenario. This is also due to the story not being very great either. At first I was intrigued about the origin and nature of the titular plague, because let's be real, 'normal plagues' don't spawn hordes of (remote controllable) rats. So when I learned about how or what, my reaction was: "OK". Maybe I was expecting something more 'grounded in reality', but then again I went in completely blind. Also, I'm not complaining about metaphysical or supernatural elements in my videogames, just not what I had in mind.
In short, In my opinion:
The Good:
- Solid and varied mechanics (if they yield the effect you had in mind)
- Alchemy (crafting ammo) directly tied above mechanics, no superfluous perks system
- Nice 'likeable' cast of characters
- Variety in gameplay (stealth, action, puzzles, etc)
- Nice visual presentation, HDR
- Nice and short
The Not That Great:
- 'Puzzles' not very challenging or interesting
- Although the main character is not 'a chosen one', basically it plays like that kind of story
- The rats are rather gimmicky*
- Chromatic aberration can be annoying
- Forced stealth, with literally no other options available
- "move backwards to escape" lol
*But seriously, the rats are basically 'the darkness' like in Alan Wake or Hellblade, but hilariously silly looking. They mostly just show you were you probably shouldn't go, or that you should do something about them, although that may not be all there is to them. My 'problem' is that I do know they are very dangerous, but they may as well be green or purple goo that I can try to manipulate or avoid.
In conclusion, contrary to Outward I don't regret buying and playing this game "Day1". I think some (of you) might benefit from checking their "Hype levels" (whatever that means), but that may also depend on what games (of the year) they want it to live up to.
EDIT: Adjusted completion time estimate after actual calculation.
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OP
OP
Really good so far. It's quite mysterious so I'm always eager to play a little more to see what is going to happen.
It's super beautiful , often looking like concept art. It looks just like those screenshots in motion.
How'd you find the story overall? Well-paced, compelling?
Also isn't the game largely stealth, and you're just kids against soldiers and guards? Why do you see stealth being "forced" as a negative given that context?
OP
OP
it works!
You see it in all of the places you would expect to see it, glowing fire, the afternoon sun and the sky, the game is often quite gloomy and misty and low contrast, so the HDR isn't necessarily the most impactful, but it does further enhance a really great looking game.
It appears to be geared up for typical gaming environments, so you can happily turn the brightness down if you find it's too bright or if you see white clipping.
I thought the story was well-paced and kept me interested enough to find out why things are happening.
Stealth does play a big part, but it's not always necessary or even an option.I'm fine with and enjoy hiding from enemies and waiting for or creating an opportunity to deal with them. I don't like "Forced stealth" when it's the 'only option' available, often with auto-fail when detected. Many ('stealth') games often have one or more 'forced stealth' sections, including this one. It's not something I'm a fan of, personally.
That's good to hear. So the puzzles aren't super focused on the light/rat element? I was worried that there wouldn't be much variety due to the apparent focus on that
Some are for sure. Some are not. The game doesn't have problems at times removing that element and putting something else in for a bit. Its just nice to have a break from them. Then boom they are back in another section. It breaks it up nicely.
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For some reason, I get a 3D Inside/Little Nightmares/Brothers-esque vibe from the footage. In that the game seems like a experience that drives you forward through escalating scripted sequences, with puzzles being more contextualized obstacles and deadly situations rather than like puzzles, if that makes sense. Is that accurate at all?
Also, are there seamless cutscene/gameplay/scripted moment transitions? Days Gone got really annoying with how it almost had that but never committed, and Plague Tale seems like a game that might transition between chapters and segments like that
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A tad concerned you describe such a key component of the game (the rats) as "hilariously silly looking". Can you be more specific? Obviously there's a lot of artistic licence going on with their allergy to light and sheer numbers, but if they don't look convincing that might prove fatal to my enjoyment. I must admit I'm 50/50 on the footage I've watched so far, at times the rats look like a morass of Molded from RE7.
Game is simply stunning, the artistic direction, material quality, lighting and models are of exceptional quality. I am looking forward to sharing my full review and analysis tomorrow night when the embargo lifts. Much, much better than Hellblade and really breaks up the style of gameplay throughout. The Rats, puzzles, stealth and combat are independently not the best of their fields but the variety and pacing makes up for that. I really enjoyed it and the narrative alongside the history and character arcs really add to the enjoyed and drive to see the end.
Sounds awesome! Can't wait to hear your full opinion on this. When does the embargo lift?
Don't worry, he keeps an eye on this thread (as well as on Twitter, among other places), he knows :'D
OP
OP
Yeah I'd say so, the puzzle segments often just provide time for the characters to speak to each other. It's these parts that remind me of God of War or maybe even things like Prince of Persia SOT. The puzzles are not taxing at all but they serve as a change in the gameplay. Not a million miles off Hellblade I suppose, however they are often contextualised in the story instead of being abstract (as those symbol matching and perspective puzzles kinda were)
The cutscenes are typically book-ending chapters and are not too frequent, to answer another user's question. Again , most of the character development is performed by characters talking directly to each other. It's really well done and is shaping up to be one of my favourite games of this gen.
Somewhat ya. There are also a couple things I have apparently found that it looks like some others haven't which will be interesting to discuss when more people gets hands on with the game.
When it comes to how it breaks things up. I think Days Gone's obvious gameplay changes that we know about hindered that throughout the game. Here there really isn't any replication of those problems in the presentation.
I am almost 100% sure that is next on the schedule but the honest truth is I haven't looked at that schedule in a couple days as I am finishing up reviews, streams and previews for some NDA titles as well as this and Rage. I THINK so though.
This is definitely hitting my GOTY list this year, absolutely no doubt. It really is a stunning game, I've made it to chapter 8, taking a break as to not rush through it but I'm already eager to get back to it.
The devs should be hella proud of what they have achieved, I really hope it does well for them and gamers actually buy and support the title.
The devs should be hella proud of what they have achieved, I really hope it does well for them and gamers actually buy and support the title.
Finished it a short time ago. Steam tells me I clocked at least 10 hours in it and I still missed about a third of the achievements.
I took a bunch of screenshots throughout the game, some using Ansel. Here are just a couple of them. They're super really not spoilery but I'll toss them in the spoiler tag just in case.
I still need to write my review ahead of 7PM Monday (ET). All I'll say for now is: Don't sleep on this one.
I took a bunch of screenshots throughout the game, some using Ansel. Here are just a couple of them. They're super really not spoilery but I'll toss them in the spoiler tag just in case.
I still need to write my review ahead of 7PM Monday (ET). All I'll say for now is: Don't sleep on this one.
Without going into spoilers, with "silly looking" I meant 'what they look like at times e.g. when they 'pile up' and tumble all over each other. They started to look more funny to me than menacing, probably because over the course of the game I came to view and treat them more like a gameplay element/mechanic rather than some purely external threat. As a gameplay mechanic they are sufficiently functional and actually fun to play with, most of the time. It's not so much about their graphical properties or modeling, although the glowing eyes are also pretty silly in my opinion.
I would say for me about 7 hours, I'm one of those players that has to scour every part of the level for collectibles, although I have missed some it seems.
Probably cut an hour or maybe two off if your the type of player just to go through without exploring areas.
Has so far been a good mixture of stealth, small bit of combat/confrontation and some room/logic puzzles. The story is pushing through nicely, main character, Amicia, is a good lead and the BOY is a decent character too.
Has some great small touches like the main character heavy breathing and trembling when an enemy gets closer to her location, it really does add to the tension. Also brother and sister holding hands will never not be nice to see too.
Would you recommend playing with the French or English voice overs?
Sounds great! 12 hours is about right considering the devs also said that the game will be 15 hours long at most if you take your time.
I guess I'm getting this day 1.
I looked at my trophy times and adjusted my completion time estimate to a more accurate ~15 hours.
15 hours for this, especially if it's as well-paced and varied as the impressions sound, would be really impressive. I was expecting something closer to 8-9 hours, or less
Are there difficulty levels?
No.
But you can disable pretty much the entire HUD for more immersion/challenge.
That's going in competely blind, watching all cutscenes, taking time to explore/experiment, failing and redoing sections and keeping an eye out for collectibles and trophy opportunities (and still missing quite a few). Just focusing on going through the levels/story could probably shave a few hours off. There is only one difficulty setting.
