is the old version of The Witcher 3 still available? I have a lot of doubts that the next -gen update will work on deck. I worry about Yakuza too but those games seem to scale well.
1 Like
All the next gen options are optional on PC AFAIK. That would be a real weird move to update a game so it no longer works for people who bought it for lower end hardware.
Not saying it couldnāt happen, but I know the raytracing, ambient occlusion stuff is optional.
EDIT: looks like you can choose the āclassicā branch
1 Like
Right, theres a beta branch thingy! Agreed itās weird but it was a major tech update that raised the baseline requirements to get those new features.
1 Like
I think youāll just have to split the difference and play Shin Megami Tensei III: Wild Hunt
5 Likes
Or play the first half of Witcher 3 and the second half of SMTV
3 Likes
theyāre not really too similar though. SMTV is a relatively compact and focused game (like all the mainline SMTs) and The Witcher III is much more a panoramic slow percolating kind of game.
1 Like
For what itās worth, if I were to unsplit my own vote, Iād go for Witcher III.
Though if I were to be totally honest I donāt think Iām all that enthusiastic about any option there.
No offense to Witcher III intended even. I have not played any of the 4 games, but itās probably easily the strongest narratively speaking. I just donāt really care about the combat, which inspires me to not care about it as a whole.
So, I kind of answered the poll less as āwhat should you play,ā and more as āwhat would I play if those were my only 4 options.ā
4 Likes
SMTV is an interesting one. Itās pretty fun to platform around in the big zones and see demons on the field. The power curve and how they overload the magatsuhi gauge also feels extremely rewarding. Had a good time in battles on Hard too.
Dungeons and narrative is pretty rough though. Some convenience features also feel at odds with the game structurally, making it feel surprisingly soupy for a game with a do-or-die combat system. But itās the only one on the list I beat!
2 Likes
4 Likes
No, no, no. You got it all wrong! The Witcher III is an excellent 40h single player card game with a story mode and a ludicrous amount of average side contents involving undercooked battle and investigation systems. But it does not matter, because the main reason to play (at least until you get on the boat) is the excellent card game.
Thatās why I voted for The Witcher 3. I like many things that SMT5 is doing (I think SMT6 will be a great game if it builds upon these ideas) but I would not recommend it as a first SMT experience.
5 Likes
Ugh, I donāt have the energy for dental school.
3 Likes
My main form of playing video games these days in our living room PS5. Having only one TV means that though I could wear headphones, my partner is usually in the room when Iām playing and sometimes makes a comment on what Iām playing.
I recently got quite sick and thanks to people on this forum I started playing Lorelei and the Laser Eyes. Now my partner is also sick and, to my surprise and profound delight, started a save file on their own. We started playing together and now weāre passing the controller around trying to work through all the puzzles. Itās very fun. They are motivated to figure everything out, which is very different from when I tried pitching Return of the Obra Dinn.
Hereās my question: What other games are like this that could also pique their interest? I have a huge crush on this person and would like to continue spending time with them in this way. The Talos Principle? Myst? What else is out there that has a heavy dose of puzzles that includes an interesting overarching narrative and/or presented in a visually interesting way?
8 Likes
Recent top-of-the-zeitgeist game Blue Prince might make the grade, perhaps.
I adore Talos Principle (and the sequel) but the puzzles can get pretty gnarly at times. I like that, but I can easilly see it being ātoo muchā if it isnāt exactly hitting the spot for you.
Outer Wilds, perhaps. Also, by nature of being a game centered around time loops, has a baked-in controller passing opportunity since there is a maximum length any one run can last and I can see it being quite natural to interleave turns like that.
5 Likes
I agree with @rejj yeah Talos is cool but I think as a practical matter it would be hard to play it the way youāre interested in bc it would be hard to backseat drive it given how much first person moving around you need to do to manage the puzzles. Might be a similar issue with Obra Dinn. Myst and Riven would work better although I donāt think theyāre on the PS4/5 if that matters. Golden Idol would be fun I think. And maybe some of the old point and click adventures like Monkey Island although the puzzling is on the light side
4 Likes
The Witness, maybe? As long as you donāt know the gameās larger secret already. I know its director is a twerp, so it depends how much @Bonsai can get over that aspect.
Baba is You is a typical ācan be played together / two heads are better than oneā single player game. Your partner has to dig the specific graphic style.
Heave Ho is about cooperation and solving physics based challenges, but it requires a minimum of platformer intuition (although the controls are amazingly simple). Itās less stressful than something task-based like Overcooked, and failure is genuinely hilarious.
Her Story is a classic recommendation for casual audiences due to its very intuitive concept and Netflix drama-like appearance. Itās a one afternoon game.
The Rootrees are Dead is similar to Golden Idol and Obra Dinn minus the possible stigma of looking like a 1ć8bit game. (But it might not be on PS5.)
4 Likes
If youād both enjoy something lighter and donāt mind ācutesyā, Tangle Tower is a really well-executed murder mystery adventure game. My wife and I had a really great time playing through together over the course of a few nights (doing our best southern detective voices while we sleuthed out the clues, I think weād just seen Knives Out). It does a great job of modernizing some of the more finicky or tedious aspects of older adventure games.
Samorost 3 is one of our favorites too. Beautiful visuals and soundtrack.
I still need to check out Golden Idol.
4 Likes
Thanks everyone!
The ones that look very promising are Her Story, Samorost 3 and *Myst and Golden Idol ā I can see about using the Steam Deck on the TV to try out some of these games. Iāve been meaning to check out Myst and Golden Idol anyway so Iāll give those a shot, if they donāt take I can play them by myself.
5 Likes