Elden Ring - #6 on the most played Games List

Ha..I already know my tastes are crap compared to the average gamer. When I was young I wanted to play everything. Now that I'm middle aged my tastes have narrowed.
Doesn't mean your tastes are crap, it's far more likely that mainstream tastes are crap. When have The Masses ever preferred things that are actually the finest? Just look at the most popular movies, TV, or (shudder) music today. Then think about how you're not playing the games that are equivalently popular among The Masses. Not a bad feeling :lol:

As for me, I've played 1 game in that top 20 (Fallout 4) and, if you follow the link, 2 games in the top 100 (the other is XCOM 2). XCOM 2 was actually fairly good, but I won't say more about Fallout 4 ;)
 
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I didn't actually mean silent so I probably should have worded that better. I want to hear the music, sound FX, etc, which is why I can't stand hearing some stranger talking over it.

Some videos with commentary are ok because the person knows when to talk and when not to, but far too many of them just drone on constantly.

You may be right about crpgnut wanting commentary though. He's weird like that. ;)

Ah, no, I know what you meant, you just want to watch the game without commentary, which, to me, seems awfully soulless.

Half the point of watching someone else play a game is to get a sense of how they are reacting to the game. Like a very long-form review almost. What annoys them, what enthrals them, the rage and the praise, the excitement and the misery, and all of that.

Similar to how we used to play games by taking turns on an arcade machine, or just watching if you were broke, similar to taking turns on a console when over your mates house or just watching them try out a new game or go for a record or something.

I, personally, can't see the point of just watching a game play out. That's just too robotic, like watching an AI go through the motions.
 
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Doesn't mean your tastes are crap, it's far more likely that mainstream tastes are crap. When have The Masses ever preferred things that are actually the finest? Just look at the most popular movies, TV, or (shudder) music today. Then think about how you're not playing the games that are equivalently popular among The Masses. Not a bad feeling :lol:
I hope you are not in earnest. I'm not playing Elden Ring, and yet… Feeling superior to others is always pathetic, but feeling superior to others because of your taste in digital toys really takes the cake.
 
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Ah, no, I know what you meant, you just want to watch the game without commentary, which, to me, seems awfully soulless.

Half the point of watching someone else play a game is to get a sense of how they are reacting to the game. Like a very long-form review almost. What annoys them, what enthrals them, the rage and the praise, the excitement and the misery, and all of that.

Similar to how we used to play games by taking turns on an arcade machine, or just watching if you were broke, similar to taking turns on a console when over your mates house or just watching them try out a new game or go for a record or something.

I, personally, can't see the point of just watching a game play out. That's just too robotic, like watching an AI go through the motions.

To each his own.

The main reason I might watch a let's play is to get an idea of what the game is like. I don't watch videos of games I already own.

I find it really strange that some people are more interested in seeing some stranger's reaction to it. I couldn't care less what someone else thinks about it. I'm trying to find out what *I* think about it.
 
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Along with playing Elden Ring, I've been thinking about why I like the games and why other people don't (or think they wouldn't, if they haven't tried them). And something occurred to me.

Some people don't play them because they're supposedly difficult. They don't play them because the idea of dying a lot and having to do stuff over again doesn't appeal to them. Here's the thing: dying in Elden Ring is less annoying than in just about any RPG I can think of.

You don't believe me, but check it out. In any other game, if you pick up or buy items and you die before you've saved the game, you go back to a state where none of that happened. In Elden Ring (and all Fromsoft games), once you get something, that's it. Die all you want, it's still in your inventory.

In any other game, talk to an NPC, and if you die before you've saved, you have to talk to them again. The second time through a dialogue tree is a lot less fun than the first time, and if they gave you a quest, you have to get it again. In Elden Ring (and all Fromsoft games), none of that resets. You talked to them, gave them shit, joined their service, got stuff from them, whatever it is, it's done and you don't have to do any of it over again.

But you've heard that you get experience points of a sort in the form of runes (souls in Dark Souls) and you lose them if you die. Well, sort of. You lend them to the game if you die. If you go back to the spot where you bit it and get them again before you die a second time, no problem.

But yes, there's still the chance you'll lose progress in this way, especially against bosses. In Elden Ring, you can immediately teleport from anywhere outdoors to any site of grace, and at any site of grace you can level up. So you can effectively use those runes at any time by leveling or by teleporting to a vendor and buying shit with them. Go into that tough battle with a handful of runes you could kill two wolves to get back. Stress gone.

If even that is still too stressful a thought, there are other ways you can avoid losing runes (or souls). In Dark Souls there were rings that would break when you died instead of you losing your souls. In Elden Ring there's a talisman with a similar function.

I've seen a lot of comments to the effect of "I don't enjoy getting my head beat in because I'm not a masochist, so these games aren't for me". But Elden Ring is partly about demystifying death and failure. I'm not going to pretend that it can't be frustrating at times… there's this swordman in Stormveil Castle who has my number and I'm dying to him more often than to a boss… but for the most part the game goes out of its way to make death and failure not really that big a deal.
 
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nope, silent is likely my way to go or perhaps cc if that exists in LP sessions. I may try Elden Ring eventually as a mage but not for $60. I'm more of a survival gamer at this point and can't see spending big money on games anymore. Gotta save it for gas money, lol. I will look for mage play throughs.
 
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Along with playing Elden Ring, I've been thinking about why I like the games and why other people don't (or think they wouldn't, if they haven't tried them). And something occurred to me.

Some people don't play them because they're supposedly difficult. They don't play them because the idea of dying a lot and having to do stuff over again doesn't appeal to them. Here's the thing: dying in Elden Ring is less annoying than in just about any RPG I can think of.

You don't believe me, but check it out. In any other game, if you pick up or buy items and you die before you've saved the game, you go back to a state where none of that happened. In Elden Ring (and all Fromsoft games), once you get something, that's it. Die all you want, it's still in your inventory.

In any other game, talk to an NPC, and if you die before you've saved, you have to talk to them again. The second time through a dialogue tree is a lot less fun than the first time, and if they gave you a quest, you have to get it again. In Elden Ring (and all Fromsoft games), none of that resets. You talked to them, gave them shit, joined their service, got stuff from them, whatever it is, it's done and you don't have to do any of it over again.

But you've heard that you get experience points of a sort in the form of runes (souls in Dark Souls) and you lose them if you die. Well, sort of. You lend them to the game if you die. If you go back to the spot where you bit it and get them again before you die a second time, no problem.

But yes, there's still the chance you'll lose progress in this way, especially against bosses. In Elden Ring, you can immediately teleport from anywhere outdoors to any site of grace, and at any site of grace you can level up. So you can effectively use those runes at any time by leveling or by teleporting to a vendor and buying shit with them. Go into that tough battle with a handful of runes you could kill two wolves to get back. Stress gone.

If even that is still too stressful a thought, there are other ways you can avoid losing runes (or souls). In Dark Souls there were rings that would break when you died instead of you losing your souls. In Elden Ring there's a talisman with a similar function.

I've seen a lot of comments to the effect of "I don't enjoy getting my head beat in because I'm not a masochist, so these games aren't for me". But Elden Ring is partly about demystifying death and failure. I'm not going to pretend that it can't be frustrating at times… there's this swordman in Stormveil Castle who has my number and I'm dying to him more often than to a boss… but for the most part the game goes out of its way to make death and failure not really that big a deal.

I died to the knights (and others) in Stormveil castle so many times I lost count. Once I got to the actual boss, it only took me two tries. But yeah the castle itself was definitely the most frustrating part of the game for me. I finally got through it when I found a different weapon to use, which was only mildly better in actual stats, but whose range and moveset made all the difference.

And yeah people often lose track of the fact that in many ways the souls like games are in some ways extremely forgiving about death. Did you get killed by something right after you picked up that amazing treasure? Don't worry about it, the treasure will still be in your inventory when you respawn. Just make sure you spend your runes/souls rather than carrying them around in hard areas.
 
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I'm also surprised at some of the games on that list. Valheim at #8? I didn't realize it was that popular. Postal at #14?

Odd list for sure but I'm not surprised about Valheim - it's one of the best survival/open world games ever IMO (300k justified overwhelmingly positives).

Valheim wall of text:

There's nothing rocket scientific about Valhem. In many ways it's several well designed and somewhat minimalist systems coming together to make a very pleasing whole.

I'm guessing the only folks that might really not like Valheim are graphics folks that only play the shiniest

Valheim draws because:
- fully solo playable and enjoyable, unlike many such games (feels single player to me)
- not required to be online (for solo)
- incredibly immersive despite lowish poly graphics (bliz style in a way since they do this)
- media (screenshots/video) does not do it justice vs how it plays.
- boss based tech gates/progression that's never rushed and feels good (souls lite bosses)
- food system that feels useful and good without feeling burdensome
- solid crafting
- very solid combat, mobs do more than just come at you like zombies (perform or be destroyed, some might even call it souls-like or souls-lite, blocking is a thing, for ex)
- plenty of mob variety (appearances and behaviors) across biomes
- lots of diverse biomes with excellent random gen and exploration
- weather, weather/climate effects that make sense and feel logical
- mod friendly (I run ~15 QOL mods in my latest go)
- solid and enjoyable building system
- viking themed everything
- motivations for doing things other than just "make your own adventure and exhaust tech tree"
- enjoyable from the moment you spawn in - minimal hand holding and immediately interesting
- solid thread of PvE content and motivation that you just don't find in most survival games that tell you to make your own adventure or murder and steal from each other endlessly
- boats and good sailing mechanics
- solid UI (mods for it as well)
- solid performance
- minimal bugs
- early access game that felt like gold when it hit
- low price of $20
- plenty of replay due to all the random gen
 
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Whatever. Quickly getting sick of hearing about Elden Ring lately -- EldenRing overload. :rolleyes:

It's making me want to try the game despite absolutely hating my 30 minutes with DS3.

I need to grow! I need to become the better me! I need to accomplish things that can only be done in a stupid video game to get fulfillment in life. I need to GIT GUD!

I'm buying into the souls philosophy and hype. Trying to psych myself up.

PS - at least this game had a semi-solid release. It's worse when the big games like 2077 release as a dookie storm and then THAT is all you hear about.
 
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From someone who just comes in here occasionally, you all sound like a bunch of grumpy old men. To keep RPGwatch alive, it requires new blood. That new blood is probably going to be young people. Please don't chase them away, the news this site provides is great! let's show them that.
 
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It is kinda weird, I don’t think I’ve seen this here before. Some seem genuinely upset that the game is good.

For me the games a mixed bag. It may objectively be the best souls game yet but I’m not sure it’s the most fun one yet. The game is so big though I’m reserving judgement until I see more.
 
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Eh? Where are all these people who are shitting on the game as you seem to be implying? I'm not seeing that at all. There are a few members who have mentioned that it's not their style or taste, but that's not crapping on it.

What's weirder is how insecure Souls fans suddenly seem to be.
 
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For me the games a mixed bag. It may objectively be the best souls game yet but I’m not sure it’s the most fun one yet. The game is so big though I’m reserving judgement until I see more.

It's been an adjustment. I'm used to methodically picking my way through each region. I'm used to there being a certain amount of density to that. If there's a path that winds off in Dark Souls, there's probably going to be an item there. The scale of Elden Ring makes that less true. There are still areas that are like that and they tend to be my favorite (like in legacy dungeons and underground). I do like the overworld but in terms of pace it's just very different and requires a different mindset.
 
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Eh? Where are all these people who are shitting on the game as you seem to be implying? I'm not seeing that at all. There are a few members who have mentioned that it's not their style or taste, but that's not crapping on it.

What's weirder is how insecure Souls fans suddenly seem to be.

Some= "all these people" ?
upset the game is good = "shitting on the game"
Insecure, nothing to be unsecure about.

You're so far off, but it's not surprising. You an I rarely get each other.

It's been an adjustment. I'm used to methodically picking my way through each region. I'm used to there being a certain amount of density to that. If there's a path that winds off in Dark Souls, there's probably going to be an item there. The scale of Elden Ring makes that less true. There are still areas that are like that and they tend to be my favorite (like in legacy dungeons and underground). I do like the overworld but in terms of pace it's just very different and requires a different mindset.

Very similar to my feelings the overworld seems unrewarding. Almost feels tacked on just for farming crafting materials. It does look amazing though and the scale is awesome. The castles and under ground areas feel totally different and almost identical to a souls game. It's a bit jarring going between the 2. I'm still really enjoying it and like I said I want to see more before forming an overall opinion.
 
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Very similar to my feelings the overworld seems unrewarding. Almost feels tacked on just for farming crafting materials. It does look amazing though and the scale is awesome. The castles and under ground areas feel totally different and almost identical to a souls game. It's a bit jarring going between the 2. I'm still really enjoying it and like I said I want to see more before forming an overall opinion.

I don't know how far you are, but I get more of the traditional feel from the eastern region (Caelan? Something like that) because of how dangerous it is. Everything there is five kinds of wrong.
 
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Some= "all these people" ?
upset the game is good = "shitting on the game"
Insecure, nothing to be unsecure about.

You're so far off, but it's not surprising. You an I rarely get each other.

I'll rephrase it. Where is anyone "upset" that the game is doing well?

Not their cup of tea = upset the game is doing well.

See how easy that is?
 
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I'll rephrase it. Where is anyone "upset" that the game is doing well?

Not their cup of tea = upset the game is doing well.

See how easy that is?

You're so far off, but it's not surprising. You an I rarely get each other.
 
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To each his own.

The main reason I might watch a let's play is to get an idea of what the game is like. I don't watch videos of games I already own.

I find it really strange that some people are more interested in seeing some stranger's reaction to it. I couldn't care less what someone else thinks about it. I'm trying to find out what *I* think about it.

This comes across as complete gibberish to me.

If you only want an "idea" of what a game is like, you likely wouldn't watch a let's play, you'd just watch a sample gameplay video or some kind of spoiler free review (which would usually have voice and opinions).

Whether you own a game or not is a telling statement. I mean, even if you owned and played Cuphead to death, surely it'd still be fun to watch someone else have a go at it? No? Erm… ok? But I really don't understand why not.

Why would it be "strange" to want to see a stranger's reaction to a game? What, you mean like you do all day every day on a discussion forum? Oh, you couldn't care less about what someone else "thought" about it? What, you mean like you do every day on a discussion forum?

I can't say I've ever watched a Let's Play for the sole purpose of finding out what "I" thought about the game, that seems to be a completely arse about hat way of approaching a form of video entertainment. That would be like watching Top Gear for the sole reason of seeing a car review.
 
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This comes across as complete gibberish to me.

If you only want an "idea" of what a game is like, you likely wouldn't watch a let's play, you'd just watch a sample gameplay video or some kind of spoiler free review (which would usually have voice and opinions).

I'm not watching the entire let's play from beginning to end. Is that what you thought I meant? I might watch say 20 minutes or something like that.

I prefer a let's play over a "sample gameplay" video because those are often put out by the publisher and only show specific things. I want to see unedited gameplay from a finished copy of the game not something that exists for PR purposes.

Is that something you can comprehend or does it still seem like gibberish?

Whether you own a game or not is a telling statement. I mean, even if you owned and played Cuphead to death, surely it'd still be fun to watch someone else have a go at it? No? Erm... ok? But I really don't understand why not.

Fun to watch someone else play a game that I've already played to death? I think it's safe to say that you and I have vastly different ideas of what's entertaining, but there's nothing wrong with that.

Why would it be "strange" to want to see a stranger's reaction to a game? What, you mean like you do all day every day on a discussion forum? Oh, you couldn't care less about what someone else "thought" about it? What, you mean like you do every day on a discussion forum?

You got me there. That analogy is so incredibly dumb that I literaly don't know how to respond to it. :)
 
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