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Oct 26, 2017
12,125
just a thing about this game.

the difficulty scale is made pretty bad. the enemies become sponges, and hit like tanks, meaning you could be fighting something for a while and just makeyou angry
just play the game on normal,
 

ThreepQuest64

Avenger
Oct 29, 2017
5,735
Germany
Sorry for the double post but i have one more question.

What are the main reasons for choosing each faction? I prefer the idea of using tech in place of magic, and I prefer ranged over melee in games like these.

I've read ranged isn't as good as melee, but is there a faction that is more suited to it that works well? Is there any clear superior faction, or is it really whatever you prefer?
Ranged combat is like in any PB game. You can deal a significant amount of damage until the enemy can even get close. If you don't kill it until it reaches you, you better have at least some melee skills and a good melee weapon; don't expect to kill everything before it gets to you.

Faction choice should be based on faction ideology (I found them all being douchebags), visual/armor style, and playstyle. There is no faction significant better than another one -- and even if it were, you should pick what suits you better. If you prefer ranged and tech combat, go with the clerics.

I wouldn't touch the default difficult levels unless it really takes out the last pinch of joy for you. PB games are supposed to be hard in the early stages and there are many areas you have to avoid and figure out which quests you are actually able to solve and which not; it's almost puzzle like to figure it out. However, it's a totally different approach than most RPGs where you meet enemies that level with you and you tend to feel no real character progression except for more skills and abilities. PB were always the other way around: you really get stronger and many former issues won't be any issues any longer. There are still high level enemies waiting for your high level character, so don't worry.
 

astro

Member
Oct 25, 2017
56,853
Thanks very much all of you.

I'm only an hour in but so far this game feels really great in the ways that matter to me most for an RPG, and that's being open and having rewarding exploration. I can already see this game is going to deliver there, and the combat feels fine to me. The jetpack is really awesome.

Also really like the lack of scaling, and the fact I'm so underpowered, I can see how this will make the payoff really rewarding.

I found a lockpick+1 amulet right at the start, are there any items I could miss that I should grab early on? Or any other advice you'd give someone aside from the questions I asked?

I like to curate my own experience in games like this, so perhaps it's just better to stop asking questions and go in as blind as possible?
 

panda-zebra

▲ Legend ▲
Member
Oct 28, 2017
5,734
This thread popping up from time to time always has me interested. £14.99 with ps+ and I've got a third of that sat waiting, suppose now I have the time to play I gotta go throw a tenner at Sony and start the download.
 

astro

Member
Oct 25, 2017
56,853
Just want to say again, the jetpack is incredible. It fixes so many issues with open world traversal, and exploration is actually open. You actually get to fully explore areas instead of being closed off artificially, and the areas seem really well designed so far. Both of these things make the game feel like an actual adventure.

Very happy I picked this up!
 

Zukuu

Member
Oct 30, 2017
6,809
As one of the biggest Gothic nerds there is, I enjoyed this game somewhat. It scratches certain Gothic-itches, but always leaves you wanting more and never quite reaches Gothic 1+2. Sadly, the sacling of weapons on the hardest difficulty is also kinda dumb. You go from barely tickling enemies to 3 shotting most of them with the bigger weapons, when you hit the arbitrary stats to wield the next "level" of weapons. I loved the vertically of the jetpack, but sadly they didn't do all that much with it. Quest design is also sadly not the strongest part of the game and the world feels not as natural as Gothic 1. Still, overall I'd recommend it for everyone who feels a perpetual Gothic-itch like me.
 

Artdayne

Banned
Nov 7, 2017
5,015
Thanks very much all of you.

I'm only an hour in but so far this game feels really great in the ways that matter to me most for an RPG, and that's being open and having rewarding exploration. I can already see this game is going to deliver there, and the combat feels fine to me. The jetpack is really awesome.

Also really like the lack of scaling, and the fact I'm so underpowered, I can see how this will make the payoff really rewarding.

I found a lockpick+1 amulet right at the start, are there any items I could miss that I should grab early on? Or any other advice you'd give someone aside from the questions I asked?

I like to curate my own experience in games like this, so perhaps it's just better to stop asking questions and go in as blind as possible?

Have you played Gothic 1 and 2? Elex is really good but Gothic is god tier, even to this day.
 

Artdayne

Banned
Nov 7, 2017
5,015
I've not. What makes them so special in your opinion?

Curious: what platforms is that available for/recommend to play on?

Gothic 1 and 2 are only available on PC. They are both over 15 years old now so it doesn't exactly require a nice rig to run them. It's pretty hard to sum up everything those games do right. They are open world, and everything feels so organic and makes sense within the game logic. It's quite similar to Elex in that there are three factions that are very different, armor is gated behind progression through one of those factions, leveling incredibly meaningful progression. The animations in combat change the better your character gets. Areas in the game are gated behind high level monsters and the sense of progression and discovery you feel is amazing. You are finally able to kill that monster you spent time so much time running away from is great and you just explore and discover awesome new areas based on that progress your character makes. Each faction exists in a very logical manner, their place in the world makes sense.


This video does a pretty good job covering it:

 

HBK

Member
Oct 30, 2017
7,963
I found a lockpick+1 amulet right at the start, are there any items I could miss that I should grab early on?
There's a jackhammer you can find in a junkyard in the outskirts to the Zerkers village. It's not exactly vital but it'll allow you to mine some ore and IIRC it's not easy to find another one.
 

astro

Member
Oct 25, 2017
56,853
So, after a few hours of play I think I'd actually recommend new players who aren't used to janky games or find the combat very off-putting set their stamina and combo meters to low and easy (low = less stamina used overall, easy = combo meter stays full for longer).

This made the combat feel /much/ smoother. It doesn't seem to break the game by making it much easier either, combat is still very hard and I'm still having to run away from most things, or lure them to other enemies/allies, etc... and battles are still hard, they just don't feel as awkward.

Unless you're a purest who wants to really feel the intended power curve, I think this might really help some struggling with getting into the game.

There's a jackhammer you can find in a junkyard in the outskirts to the Zerkers village. It's not exactly vital but it'll allow you to mine some ore and IIRC it's not easy to find another one.

I'll take a look when I get back there, currently gone way off course just exploring stuff, I have a feeling this might happen a lot...
 

HBK

Member
Oct 30, 2017
7,963
Unless you're a purest who wants to really feel the intended power curve, I think this might really help some struggling with getting into the game.
The stamina bar at the start of the game is very weak, but that's kind of the point. The first stamina upgrade add like +50% if not more. It's kind of a no-brainer for the early game upgrades. It changes a lot.
 

Teggy

Member
Oct 25, 2017
14,892
Hey there, I'm playing this now and while I'd like to make my way through it with limited help, I had a couple of quick questions.

1. I bought a gas mask in the Outlaw town, but when I tried to use it in a gassed area it hardly did anything. It certainly wouldn't help me survive the gassed converter. Am I missing something?

2. I tried to approach the separatist alb area but it's so cold I would get killed before I got to the door. Again, did I miss something or are you supposed to get cold resistance or potions just to do those quests?

Thanks!
 

2CL4Mars

Member
Nov 9, 2018
1,708
I'm just going to put it out there that getting Elex on console or any Piranha bytes games on them is a mistake, even the X1X had a very choppy frame rate but if that doesn't bother you than it's fine or... Elex is perfectly playable, hell I spent 70 hours on it. Just if you have a choice go for the PC version.

I would also agree that Elex is one of the best RPG's of 2017.

The side quests are actually good so it deserves recognition on that front.
 

Teggy

Member
Oct 25, 2017
14,892
Hey there, I'm playing this now and while I'd like to make my way through it with limited help, I had a couple of quick questions.

1. I bought a gas mask in the Outlaw town, but when I tried to use it in a gassed area it hardly did anything. It certainly wouldn't help me survive the gassed converter. Am I missing something?

2. I tried to approach the separatist alb area but it's so cold I would get killed before I got to the door. Again, did I miss something or are you supposed to get cold resistance or potions just to do those quests?

Thanks!


I wound up figuring this out well enough. It turned out I didn't need to go into the gas, so while I still don't understand why the gas mask doesn't do much, it didn't matter.

As for the ice, it turns out if you go in on the ground level the ice doesn't hurt you. Why that is, I have no idea, but it solved the problem.

I had done so much of the quest work before I even talked to that guy that it was just a conversation where I kept receiving and completing quests without having to do anything, punctuated by a few cutscenes 😂
 

Teggy

Member
Oct 25, 2017
14,892
Finished the game today and had a great time. Any chance it sold well enough for a sequel?

I can't believe that I had to choose between

Caja and Nasty. But I had to go with Nasty.

One of my favorite ridiculous characters of all time.

I'm going to play the Risen series next.
 

Deleted member 6137

User requested account closure
Banned
Oct 25, 2017
1,386
Finished the game today and had a great time. Any chance it sold well enough for a sequel?

I can't believe that I had to choose between

Caja and Nasty. But I had to go with Nasty.

One of my favorite ridiculous characters of all time.

I'm going to play the Risen series next.
A sequel is extremely likely.
 

Gloomz

Member
Oct 27, 2017
2,401
Elex is ridiculous. The first weapon I found after obtaining a Rusty Axe needed 56 Dex and 25 Intelligence. You start out with 10 for your stats. Fighting random beasts on the road is like I'm fighting a boss - I'm a couple hours in and mobs shouldn't be taking 25 hits to kill while 2 shotting me.
 

Nameless

Member
Oct 25, 2017
15,326
Elex is ridiculous. The first weapon I found after obtaining a Rusty Axe needed 56 Dex and 25 Intelligence. You start out with 10 for your stats. Fighting random beasts on the road is like I'm fighting a boss - I'm a couple hours in and mobs shouldn't be taking 25 hits to kill while 2 shotting me.

Let Companions do the heavy lifting in combat early on and focus on leveling towards useful perks(Animal Trophies!). I really didn't worry about gear until I chose a faction.
 

Artdayne

Banned
Nov 7, 2017
5,015
Elex is ridiculous. The first weapon I found after obtaining a Rusty Axe needed 56 Dex and 25 Intelligence. You start out with 10 for your stats. Fighting random beasts on the road is like I'm fighting a boss - I'm a couple hours in and mobs shouldn't be taking 25 hits to kill while 2 shotting me.

That's because some beasts are much higher level than you and you're not supposed to fight them, but avoid them until later. They give you a sneaking option basically right away for this reason. Also you need to fully utilize the combo system if you're playing a melee character.
 

NCR Ranger

Member
Oct 25, 2017
5,822
Piranha Bytes games are unforgiving at the start. Doubly so if you are not used to them. Unlike most games, at the start your guy is weaker, in many cases massively weaker, than the majority of the baddies you come across, so running/avoiding them should be your default. They key is save often, explore to see just where the boundaries are, and do quests. You have to keep in mind though that, if I remember right, some quests can't be done right when you get them or take some out of the box thinking at the very least.
 

Deleted member 46568

User requested account closure
Banned
Aug 9, 2018
51
Keep looking at this because it looks like something I should love but keep getting put off by bad reviews around difficulty and bugs. I haven't played a Gothic game and have only tried one Risen game which I couldn't get into and bounced off. Love Fallout, etc; should I try this? Thanks :)
 

Halabane

Member
Nov 10, 2017
243
"Elex is a terribly constructed video game full of glitches, lag, eye-sores, and confusing mechanics. I would not recommend most people go through the pain of playing this RPG. " -kotaku

Probably having kotaku call it a trashfire...even though they kind of liked it probably didn't help. some are tired of buggy games.
 
Oct 31, 2017
8,466
I loved the good parts of ELEX, and and I'd still pick it as an overall experience over, say, basically anything Bethesda GS has ever produced... but I have always a hard time recommending it to anyone, because it can't really be denied that some of its part are genuinely garbage.
 

wombleac

Member
Nov 8, 2017
712
Keep at it, once it clicks you will be hooked. I played like 60 hours and did 90% of the quests. Janky lag fest but I played through it. The world was just so interesting and that jet pack felt amazing. The war now was what ended up using a majority of the game. I finished the game as an Outlaw.
 

Zeno

Member
Oct 25, 2017
9,150
Elex is ridiculous. The first weapon I found after obtaining a Rusty Axe needed 56 Dex and 25 Intelligence. You start out with 10 for your stats. Fighting random beasts on the road is like I'm fighting a boss - I'm a couple hours in and mobs shouldn't be taking 25 hits to kill while 2 shotting me.
I'm playing on the hardest difficulty and doing okay. Let companions do the heavy lifting. Quests that involve you picking up stuff in an area with stronger enemies can be done without killing the enemies. Depending on the area, you can kill enemies by luring stronger beasts/enemies in the area.
 

NotUS

Member
Oct 27, 2017
135
I loved the good parts of ELEX, and and I'd still pick it as an overall experience over, say, basically anything Bethesda GS has ever produced... but I have always a hard time recommending it to anyone, because it can't really be denied that some of its part are genuinely garbage.
Absolutely loving this game, despite its significant flaws. Just got to chapter 4.

This is a studio screaming for someone like Sony to invest in to improve the engine, and the core gameplay elements. Has the makings to be the next Witcher like experience if it got the AAA treatment.
 

Aeana

Member
Oct 25, 2017
6,918
Piranha Bytes got extra funding from EU for ELEX 2 project. I wouldn't be suprised if they announce a sequel during Gamescom.
Yeah, I saw this right after I finished the game and I was so excited to see it. Even if Piranha Bytes makes some missteps, they are the only dev doing what they're doing. There is nothing like a Piranha Bytes game. I hope they get to make games forever.
 

Sketchsanchez

Attempted to circumvent ban with alt account
Banned
Oct 25, 2017
2,702
I just need to take the time to talk about the satisfaction I feel after 30 or so hours.

I can finally fight alb soldiers more or less straight up. It's been a hellish journey with a lot of running away or leading enemies to other npcs who will fight for me but I'm no longer afraid of most enemies in the game.

And I still got a shit ton to go, I haven't even been to ignadon yet! (although I did officially join a faction already).

Also what ultimately happened to the domed city remains my biggest regret so far. 😢
 

Teggy

Member
Oct 25, 2017
14,892
I just need to take the time to talk about the satisfaction I feel after 30 or so hours.

I can finally fight alb soldiers more or less straight up. It's been a hellish journey with a lot of running away or leading enemies to other npcs who will fight for me but I'm no longer afraid of most enemies in the game.

And I still got a shit ton to go, I haven't even been to ignadon yet! (although I did officially join a faction already).

Also what ultimately happened to the domed city remains my biggest regret so far. 😢

Seeing

a bunch of people you talked to lined up dead against a wall is pretty heavy.
 

Nooblet

Member
Oct 25, 2017
13,621
I've tried playing this bit by bit now and then, it's just very unforgiving at the start and the map is kinda shit, plus the sense of location (being able to tell where to go etc) is bad too. Also that footstep sound is incredibly loud and monotonous.

Hope Elex 2 is better innthis area but I doubt it'll be.
 

butman

Attempted to circumvent ban with alt account
Banned
Oct 30, 2017
3,024
Quick question.
I know Elex is not Gothic level but how is compared with the first Rysen?
 

Teggy

Member
Oct 25, 2017
14,892
Quick question.
I know Elex is not Gothic level but how is compared with the first Rysen?

I actually played both this year. I think they're pretty similar in enjoyment but the settings make them feel pretty different. Elex is a much larger world so allows for a lot of exploration and has the option of using guns. If you are open to the basic gameplay concept in a sci-fi universe I would definitely recommend it.
 

butman

Attempted to circumvent ban with alt account
Banned
Oct 30, 2017
3,024
I actually played both this year. I think they're pretty similar in enjoyment but the settings make them feel pretty different. Elex is a much larger world so allows for a lot of exploration and has the option of using guns. If you are open to the basic gameplay concept in a sci-fi universe I would definitely recommend it.
Thank you i will give it a shot after Sekiro. I need to relax.
 

Zeno

Member
Oct 25, 2017
9,150
As someone who played on the hardest difficulty, always check if you can bait monsters into attacking your enemies if you're having trouble.