Review: Wasteland 3 (PS4)

NB I completed my playthrough of this on the PS5, as my first (PS4) attempt was somewhat set back by the console breaking. 

Wasteland 3 is a post-apocalyptic RPG set in the USA (Colorado, specifically). It’s got a grim sense of humour throughout, a six-man party, and a very interesting setup for combat and non-combat skills, plus plenty of decisions to make. But is it a good game?

Gameplay

The combat of Wasteland 3 will be easily recognisable to anyone who’s enjoyed XCOM or XCOM 2, but does handle things differently enough to set it apart. For those unaware, this style involves a turn-based approach on a grid, with the entirety of one side progressing at once, which means getting the jump on enemies is worth a lot. Movement and actions, such as firing weapons or throwing grenades, consume AP (action points).

However, whereas XCOM 2 has two AP and that’s it, Wasteland 3 has a more nuanced system with characters capable of having more or less AP depending on stats, and different weapons consuming different amounts. Heavy weapons and sniper rifles consume almost a whole AP bar, whereas shotguns and pistols can be fired multiple times in a single round without difficulty. This increases flexibility and makes the choice of weaponry (a mix through the squad is a good idea) crucial. In addition to the player and enemy sides, you may have a friendly turn, which will be your non-controlled allies such as animal followers and extra chaps (or robots) you pick up along the way.

On standard difficulty I found the combat to be sharp enough I needed to stay awake but, for the most part, usually not too challenging. That said, I had several hours in my initial borked playthrough as experience so I wasn’t diving in fresh and that may’ve smoothed my path a bit. Nevertheless, combat is fun and if you take it for granted you can easily end up in trouble. This is a big Wasteland 3 review highlight.

Out of combat players have multiple significant decisions to make regarding who lives and dies, and who you help, or not. You can also unlock multiple new dialogue options by proficiency in various skills, most commonly the hard ass/kiss ass skills. The game does a good job of ensuring you can be as nice or dickish as you like.

 

Story

Post-apocalypse is a genre I can really take or leave, but I still liked Wasteland 3 a lot, which is a testament to how well it’s written. There are plenty of grisly moments and daft comedy, which both work well.

You play as the leaders (even if playing solo you make two characters at the get go) of Team November. And by leaders, I mean survivors, because the other four dozen get killed in the intro. Hailing from Arizona, you’re in Colorado at the invitation of the state’s ruler, the Patriarch. He’s got supplies which the Rangers desperately need, all you need to do is capture his kids and stop them causing problems. But things may not be so simple… The Patriarch’s children are Valor, Victory, and Liberty, or Nerd, Psycho, and Tyrant if you want to know their respective personalities.

Beyond this core of the game there are a good number of side quests, exploring the map will throw up some fun gems you can easily miss (I especially liked paying Santa a visit), and each major quest can go down various ways. It’s pretty good, with some interesting twists that I won’t spoil.

Companions could be better, though. I liked Lucia quite a lot, but the other (non-player made) companions stayed pretty much undeveloped through the story. They will leave if you act contrary to their interests, apparently.

 

Sound

In most areas good, this is sometimes excellent. One stand-out example was when I loaded up a game in the world map and the radio played some random nonsense. This happened and it was a psycho with a chainsaw and screaming in the background, which was very well done (although not great for those who are squeamish). Flamethrowers, explosions, gunfire, ambient effects, and voice acting are all either good or very good.

The music deserves a special mention as there are a small number of fights (including one in the intro area) that have their own excellent tracks, as does one (optional) fight that can lead to a new companion. The latter was a rare occasion when I deliberately paused mid-fight just to listen to the music a bit more.

 

Graphics

As an isometric RPG this is not the biggest deal in the world, but the graphics get the job done without being spectacular. Occasionally you see major characters (the Patriarch, for example) up close and they’ll look ok, but not amazing.

 

Bugs and Other Problems

There were some bugs. I had a small number of crashes, perhaps three or so in an entire playthrough (I’d guess perhaps 30 hours total, can’t be sure). In addition, I once got stuck in combat and the enemy turn just wouldn’t start. That’s not ideal.

 

Replayability

There are two ways this game offers good replayability: difficulty and choices. The difficulty has several basic levels making combat easier or harder, but with some degree of customization covering things like permanent character death and friendly fire (NB even when this is off, you’ll be affected by AoE stuff so don’t throw a Molotov on your animal follower or you’ll end up with a hotdog).

Choices are plentiful and missions can often have multiple outcomes. Sometimes failure to attend to a matter can lead to it being resolved in your absence (I have one confirmed case of this, unsure if other things can happen this way). And certain missions can only be completed if you ignore an alternative, which will have consequences.

 

Conclusion

Wasteland 3 is not flawless. It has the odd bug and could perhaps be a little longer (playtime is perhaps around 25-30 hours, I think). But it has fantastic combat, engaging missions with multiple outcomes, and the approach to skills is excellent as all of them are useful and deciding where to spend points (and which perks to get) will alter your playthrough significantly. It’s a very good game indeed.

 

Thaddeus

First Thoughts: Stellaris (PS4)

Stellaris is a real time with pause strategy game that’s been out for quite some years now, especially for PC. Being a console peasant, I’ve only just gotten around to getting it. So, is it mind-bendingly complicated or easy to get into?

Yes.

It’s complicated. There are multiple resources/currency types, huge timescales, diplomacy, internal political factions, bureaucratic limitations and various policies, as well as racial bonuses and disadvantages you can give yourself.

And yet despite that, I haven’t had too much difficult so far with my first game. The tutorial tips are really useful, and, although complex, everything seems to make intuitive sense. I’ve made some mistakes, which is to be expected for a complicated game the first time it’s played, but nothing horrendous (probably should’ve built more starbases and fewer districts).

Let’s start at the beginning. There are preset races/civilisations you can play as, or you can make your own. I toyed with being Cosmic Dragons or a reptilian version of Rome (may create those later) but decided to go with the British Space Empire, exporting tea, cricket, and intergalactic violence to anyone who crosses me. There’s a range of cosmetic stuff you can play with, as well as gameplay mechanics such as boosting how adaptable your species is (handy for colonising more worlds). Another cool feature is that empires you create may then appear in your future games as AI civs (you can enable or disable this feature as you like for each individual empire).

Start up the game and you’ve got your homeworld, a small military force, and civilian ships. These last ships are the most immediately useful. Constructions ships create mining facilities, and can build starbases in other systems, claiming them for your empire and enabling the constructions of mining operations. Science ships fly about surveying everything so you know which systems are worth claiming. They also analyse anomalies which can yield significant benefits (mostly scientific, but one example of something different would be that found a ship way more advanced than anything I had, trapped in the gravity of a planet. I tried and succeeded to retrieve it, substantially boosting my military capacity).

It’s a really laid back game. Mostly. The vast distances can mean that if you get caught short militarily you end up unable to defend if your ships are too far from the action.

Other empires can have wildly varying attitudes towards you, based on xenophobia/xenophilia and how similar/far away you are from them. Butter them up with trade deals (or gifts), or crack some skulls and go to war (I did this and claimed two systems from the Figyar Star Commonwealth, including a natural bottleneck to stop them annoying me in the future).

The speed can be varied from slow to average to fast, as well as pausing possible pretty much any time you like. There’s a really nice level of creative writing with the varied anomalies and special research projects that I appreciate. Still relatively early days (I’ve been playing for less than a week), but right now I’m enjoying it a lot. Recently formed a federation with my best alien friends, and a third member just joined, putting us in what I hope is pretty good shape.

I have to admit to a perverse desire to try playing it in German. I’ve played quite a few games that way, and it’s the only reason I can remember more than a handful of words.

Thaddeus

Age of Wonders: Planetfall (PS4) – First Impressions

I snagged this for £6, having been intrigued for a while by the seeming mix of Civ and XCOM mechanics. But how does the sci-fi game stack up after a couple of hours of play?

Pretty well, actually. There are six factions available, of which I’ve only played the Vanguard (think humans with advanced war machines and laser guns). The others are the man-hating tree-huggers, insects without a hive mind, cyborg vampires(ish), human resource capitalists, and Russian space dwarves. You can customise your own commanders (who partake in combat) and there’s a decent array of options, from flags to vices.

There are two tenets of gameplay: a strategic world map, and tactical combat on a battlefield. I’m a console peasant but like the idea of strategy games (may get Stellaris next month) so I’m still getting to grips with all the strategic stuff, but so far I think it’s fairly intuitive and easy to follow. In addition, the research often leads to amusing little quotes, and it’s nice the game doesn’t take itself too seriously.

You start off with a planetfall colony, to which you can annexe adjacent sectors for more food, productions and other resources. It’s also where you create new units, including the coloniser to set up new colonies.

The tactical battles play out significantly faster than XCOM’s. Beforehand (when initiating, at least, unsure if it happens when you defend) you get to compare the relative strengths of the armies, which is very helpful. You can also have an auto-combat option, which simply gives you an automatic result. During the battle you can also hand over to the Machine God to run auto-combat from there (you’ll see the moves taken in this instance). There are options to cut down on the brief overhead intro and make enemies’ turns quicker, which I adopted to cut down on noise (see below).

A really nice feature is modding units. Research soon yields bonuses, from ammo that inflicts bleeding to hitpoint restoration abilities. You can apply these to units individually or en masse, giving that template a name (the suggested ones, such as Butcher and Eviscerator, are usually pretty good). That way, you can create these specifically upgraded units at your colony, if you want to. It also makes tier 1 units more useful later on, it seems, rather than just becoming obsolete.

The biggest drawback I’ve encountered isn’t the game, it’s the console. Fellow PS4 owners will be aware that the machine (I’ve got a fat original version) can be noisy a lot, and occasionally mimic a jet engine with alarming authenticity. It’s audible during the strategic map, but during the tactical battles it can get pretty damned loud. Can’t fault the game for this because I’ve had the same with many other titles, and it’s obviously a console cooling weakness, but if, like me, you get nervous of your console melting itself, this is a downside.

The game itself, however, is pretty good.

Thaddeus

Review: The Outer Worlds (PS4)

I finished my first playthrough of this game a few days ago, playing as a high intellect sniper type of character.

I’ve got to say my expectations were pretty high, and they were met. This is a great sci-fi game, with a range of options in main and side-quests, as well as varying combat playstyles and a lot of freedom (you can kill a lot of characters, maybe everyone, whereas other games in this genre might make them ‘essential’).

Downsides: it is shorter than some comparable games. However, it still clocks in at something like 30-40 hours, and Obsidian were totally up front about this. They never claimed it was a 200 hour game. Textures on an old, fat PS4 can take a second or two to show up. And if you do the vast majority of quests, as I did, you’ll end up feeling overpowered relatively quickly (which suited me as I have the combat skills of tortoise stuck in a bucket).

Dialogue is an area where the excellent character creator (in terms of setting up strengths and weaknesses) really shines. You get special dialogue options for lots of skills, such as Engineer prowess, and the Dumb option if you make your character a little bit dim.

In combat you can go for a melee approach, sniping, guns blazing, and I’d guess full stealth would work too (I have zero experience of the latter, the others all work fine). Be sure to get the tinkering skill (Engineer 20, I think) to improve your weapons/armour, as this’ll help out quite a bit. Enemies come in the form of automechanicals, mischievous people, and rabid creatures (alien apes, dogs, and insects). The variety could be a little better but it works fine.

The world-building is another especial strength, creating a plausible corporate dystopia in which perfectly reasonable people are constrained by the bounds of a hyper-capitalist society. It does a great job of making the inhabitants of the Halcyon system credible, rather than 2D cardboard cut-outs, and nowhere does this work better than with the character of Parvati, who was my ever-present companion in the first campaign.

Genuine moral (and personal) dilemmas are presented, with legitimate choices either way, and often scope to be pretty evil if you want to be (not that I was).

During my first run I didn’t encounter a single serious bug, no hangs, freezes, crashes, or offers to pay $100 a year for a game I’d already bought.

Although not the longest RPG in the world the decisions with consequences plus varying play styles in combat and dialogue means it’s easy to envisage multiple playthroughs (I’ve just started a ‘dumb’ run).

The Outer Worlds a very good game.

Thaddeus

The Outer Worlds – Early Thoughts (PS4)

Yes, yes, pre-ordering games is generally a bad thing. But this game, by Obsidian (makers of Fallout New Vegas and Pillars of Eternity) looked very good indeed. And, so far, I’m not regretting the decision at all.

At the time of writing I’ve played about six or seven hours or so, and have left the starting area.

The Outer Worlds is set in a new alternate reality future, in a distant star system which is run by corporations in a rather dystopian way. You play a chap or lady thawed out from a ship where hundreds of people ended up as popsicles rather than colonists.

There’s a lot I like about the game, and a few minor gripes, so I’ll outline the downsides first. The subtitles are too small. Doesn’t affect me personally but if you rely on them I can see that being frustrating. Textures take a little while to load in. It does make the fat PS4 scream a bit, although this is a console rather than game problem, and the inventory menu helps it to calm down.

The plus side is that all the big stuff, so far, is good. Sometimes very good. The setting, the story, the dialogue, all are great. The combat is fine (this isn’t my area, really, but it’s fine on the standard difficulty setting). The cold, bureaucratic nature of a corporate dystopia contrasts brilliantly with the exotic and vibrant alien worlds. When you leave the office of the first bigwig you meet, having been invited to do him a dubious favour, you can look up and see the dazzling sky of another world.

The whole colony is run by a few major companies (with only one space station excepted), where people are seen as biological components in a corporate machine. But despite this, the members of corporations often come across sympathetically, as decent people stuck in a difficult place (not unlike the real world, where perfectly good people can get lumbered with less than lovely work). This adds depth and plausibility to the world, and is enhanced by the humour. This brings another dose of realism, without being over-egged.

I’ve kept stuff story-light because I don’t want to spoil anything, so all I’ll say is that the early stages are promising. Side quests and main story missions often have varying potential outcomes, and you can screw up tasks entirely (I believe you can kill anyone, but I’m playing as a nice ex-elevator technician so I haven’t tested it myself). The companions seem to be quite diverse in their personality (when it comes to combat you can mould them as you wish, so only personality matters when picking who to take).

In short, it’s really rather good.

Thaddeus

Ramble: The Great Immersion Overhaul (Skyrim mod, PS4)

It’s been a while since I tried out mods on Skyrim, but one I already had, but hadn’t tried, was The Great Immersion Overhaul (TGIO). In common with many other PS4 mods, it’s probably lacking things available on Xbox and PC due to the platform’s restrictions. But is it worth having? What’s it like?

Quick Summary

TGIO alters a lot of things substantially. Almost all skills are 1 to start with (I think my Khajiit had two or three that were marginally higher). Races have their own particular pros and cons (Khajiit can use Silent Paws to be extra sneaky). The skill trees for the warrior and rogue sections have been completely rejigged. Combat is radically different, more damage is both received and given, and you can’t alter direction when you’re attacking, making it easier to dodge. The weight of items has been changed and carrying capacity nerfed so unless you fluke a lot of hauling-enchanted gear (I did) it’s really difficult deciding what to take. Similarly, the economy has been drastically altered, with higher prices for most goods and the limiting factor instead being the weight. Last but not least, fast travel is disabled.

It’s worth noting that the mod does not affect DLC. The only time this appeared to be a problem for me is when I had to steal X amount of stuff from Solstheim, but even though I was sure I achieved it (I nicked an emerald, amongst other things) it didn’t register as completed.

That’s a lot of stuff to consider. I should stress I’ve played for probably a few dozen hours at this point, with a thieving, bloodthirsty, stealthy chap called Murdercat. At the time of writing I’ve completed the first quest or two in the Dark Brotherhood and Thieves Guild lines, and just received the final part of the Fus Ro Dah shout. The weapons I’m using are the bow and the dagger.

Combat

Often with stealth builds I don’t have a companion. In TGIO, I do. Not only does this slightly ease the carry weight situation, companions are super valuable in combat, taking the pressure off when facing multiple opponents and pinning enemies down when you’re just facing one (especially handy for an archer/stealthy stabber build). On the downside, combat now rewards skill (I have the combat prowess of a drunk trapped in a cat flap). Because you can’t shift direction when attacking, side-stepping is eminently possible. The swifter dagger attack means you can get in, attack, and get out whilst Brainless McMuscleboy is still swinging his Compensatingforsomething Megahammer. I had a great run for about eight stabs against one guy then buggered it up at the end and had my head smashed in. It’s a good system, provided you have more martial instinct than a baked potato.

I didn’t play much with magic, but a few scrolls proved how useful conjuration in particular could be. A storm atronach’s ranged damage was very handy when I was in a tight spot.

Crime and Stealth

Murdercat, as you might guess, is not a law-abiding citizen. Indeed, his happiest moment was randomly stealing from a house in Whiterun and discovering Nazeem. Murdercat: “Nazeem was asleep when I arrived. When I left, he was dead.” Bounties are rejigged, with murder now carrying a fine of 10,000 gold. That’s a lot. But it does fit the crime.

Stealth has been reworked to operate more along line of sight. Also, if you alert someone a little so they start searching, they won’t just stop six seconds later. This adds to realism, especially when you’ve just shot them in the chest with an arrow (ahem). It’s very easy, and satisfying, to sneak up behind someone and slit their throat, although I had a little Twitter chat with the mod creator and he mentioned he was going to make that a bit more difficult (it probably is overpowered, but I like it).

Backstabbing bonuses come from the weapons trees, not from sneak, I believe. It’ll take a while to earn them (I have one for daggers and none for bows, after 20-30 hours, probably, of playing). However, because damage is generally increased, backstabbing is powerful. With Mehrunes’ Razor and Dark Brotherhood gauntlets, I’m able to one-shot a snow bear by backstabbing.

Crafting

Crafting in the vanilla game is easy. And overpowered. It’s much trickier with TGIO (tip: get yourself a blacksmith’s hammer. You should be able to buy one from Lucius in Riverwood). Weight of materials is one thing (ingots weigh about 5 each and leather 4), and you won’t be able to smith most things off the bat. If you want to power level, the easiest way is probably to make arrows. As I’m playing an archer (mostly) that dovetailed nicely.

Side note: the armour/weapons stats have been rejigged to make more sense (Orcish gear is pretty good now).

Alchemy ingredients weigh more. Some, like antlers, weigh a lot more. Potions are also worth less money so you can’t just spam potions and get your skill up superfast. One thing that’s a clear improvement on the vanilla version is that rarer ingredients give better results. When I was making poisons a couple of slightly rarer ingredients gave me a boost to either damage per second or longevity. Like smithing, alchemy takes a while to level.

I haven’t done much enchanting, excepting dismantling magical goods to learn the effects.

Crafting also includes cooking bonuses (the original set of recipes has been changed), though I haven’t experimented with this. Also for instruments and tailoring (although tailoring hasn’t been implemented at the time of writing).

Money, Economy, Travel, and Weight

I’ve bracketed these together because they’re all related to one another. The absence of fast travel and altered weight of goods (they make more sense, so antlers might weigh 6) are obviously connected, and the altered weight affects what you can sell. However, prices for most things are higher, and this enables and encourages more trading. For example, you might not have enough for some swanky armour, but if you’ve got some gemstones or old armour, you can likely flog that to make up the difference. Although I think the starting carry capacity is a bit rough (it’s perhaps 100), the system is well-balance and really does make trading more dynamic. Travel is aided by the cart system and by the ferries that link Windhelm, Solitude, and Dawnstar (especially good for the latter as it doesn’t have a cart). Another change which helps travel is the improvement in sprinting from stamina, which now lasts much longer than in the vanilla game (perhaps about five times as long). An important note, given all that, is that money remains weightless.

Bugs and Other Problems

I have had a couple of crashes whilst playing, but I also have crashes whilst playing the base game, so I don’t think that can be chalked up to the mod. The stealing problem in DLC-land outlined at the start is the only real problem I’ve encountered, and I just cancelled the quest (which can be done simply by telling Delvin). Not ideal but certainly not a game-breaker.

On compatibility, the mod’s description has links indicating load order (essentially, have the mod and four sub-mods, with the main mod itself at the bottom) and what kind of other mods work or clash with TGIO. Stuff that alter combat and economics are likely to clash. Weather and lighting mods are likely to be fine. The mod doesn’t work with survival mode, but another modder made one that apparently fixes that (I haven’t checked as I think having survival mode as well, with all the other restrictions, might be overdoing things).

All in all, I’ve had fun with this mod.

Thaddeus

Pillars of Eternity (PS4): First Impressions

This game first came out a while ago for the PC, and I’ve got to admit my gast was flabbered when I saw it had a console release, as it seemed the most PCish of games. I’ve been playing it for a few days, and here are my early impressions.

Character Creation

Although the system’s completely different, the vast array of customisation available reminds me a bit of Dragon’s Dogma. But whereas Dragon’s Dogma focused on physical changes (although some did have gameplay aspects), Pillars of Eternity’s customisation is almost all about the gameplay impact and personal backstory. You have both genders, six races (human, elf, dwarf and original races aumaua, orlan and godlike), and thirteen classes. Each race have different bonuses or special abilities, and each class has different starting attributes (hitpoints, here called endurance, and so on). After this you pick a background and culture, then fiddle with your stats (these are modified somewhat by your race, class, background and culture).

A nice part of the voice options is that you’ve got about eight or so for each gender, but can go for no voice, or one from the opposite gender (this isn’t critical as this seems to take the Dragon Age: Origins approach of having grunts and exclamations but no actual dialogue beyond the odd battle cry). You can also alter your two armour colours (currently, my chanter Pengel has opted for green, which makes his cloak look rather snazzy). The physical appearance, including armour colours, can be altered in-game at any time, right from the start.

Story

After creating your player-character, you’re thrust into the first scene, which introduces some gameplay mechanics in a smooth way and explains a bit about the world. As you might expect, disaster strikes, and then …

It’s a lore-rich original world. I’ve got to say that whilst I personally love lore, for some people it may be a bit text-heavy early on.

One thing I really like is that quest lines do have genuine choice. As is usual for a first playthrough, Pengel the Chanter is a heroic and noble sort, so I’m being very good. But there have been options to be much less good. You’re not shoe-horned into being heroic, so if you want to be selfish and a bit of a git, that’s eminently possible.

Gameplay

Having the swift reflexes of a jam sandwich, I was somewhat wary of the real time strategy in combat. That, as well as the suggestion at the start, had me begin on the default setting of Easy.

So far, it’s living up to its name, but it’s clear to see how certain tactics are helpful and would be critical at higher difficulty. The real time combat can be easily paused/resumed at the click of a button and has a nice pace.

I’ve not had to pause too much but I suspect that’s just because I’m playing on Easy.

Combat tip: intellect increases the area of effect (AoE) for spells etc. The base area is shown in a different shade to the expanded circle. However, negative effects only affect allies within the base circle, not the expanded one.

A nice little feature is that jewels and plants (ingredients) are stored collectively but don’t consume any inventory space, preventing frustration when trying to create something [not tried this yet] and avoiding the ridiculous inventory slot dilemma of taking a broadsword or a rare flower. Because you only have room for one.

You get penalties when you go without rest for a long time (as well as time on-screen, it takes X hours to travel between locations). These fatigue penalties are easily remedied, either by camping (you need camping gear for this, which is consumed upon rest) or staying at an inn. The latter can cost cash but also confers a bonus for the whole party which can last a pretty long time.

The stronghold, acquired quite early on, seems to work well although I’ve not developed it enough to say a lot. Essentially, it’s a ruin you renovate and rebuild to grant yourself bonuses. From what I gather it’s completely optional and you can leave it as a heap of broken stone if you like, but I quite enjoy having my own fort and it doesn’t seem especially expensive.

A nice touch is that class, race, and skills can be checked in conversations, so if your character knows a lot of Lore, for example, they might have extra dialogue options available.

Graphics

The graphics won’t be troubling The Witcher 3 anytime soon, although it’s worth noting the game didn’t make my fat PS4 scream like a jet engine either, so maybe that’s a good thing. They’ve got old school charm in the world, and I like the fitting menus which look like ye olde parchment (the bestiary even has rather cool drawings).

Sound

I love the music. It’s evocative of Lord of the Rings, Final Fantasy and The Witcher 3, and is a great addition both to the world and during the parchment scenes. These are not-cutscenes which have text descriptions beside drawings on parchment. It sounds a bit rubbish but actually works well, possibly even better than showing the scenes in-game would because of the isometric approach.

Sound effects and voices are generally good although there are jarring moments in long conversations where 90% of lines might be spoken and a few are just text.

Bugs and other issues

Load screens are frequent (think Skyrim) and whilst they’re not so bad crossing from one area to another it’s mildly irksome waiting a while for the upper floor of a house to load.

Stealth appears less useful than it could be because it’s a party-wide on/off toggle rather than being specific to a sneaky character in combat.

Longevity and Replayability

Difficult to comment on length, was a bit surprised to finish the first act as quickly as I did. However, the wide variety of character creation, difficulty and quest options does make me confident I’ll play a second time, and perhaps a third.

Thaddeus

Skyrim PS4 mods – thoughts and recommendations

It’s been a little while since they came out, but mods for the PS4 edition of Skyrim are an interesting addition to an already immense game. However, as is known, there are limitations compared to not only the PC but the Xbox One (which has a clear advantage), namely total file size (only 1GB) and the total absence of new assets. There’s also a 100 mod limit.

So, given all that, are mods still worth bothering with if you’re on the PS4?

In a word: yes.

As well as nice little additions, some offer substantially changed weather effects, tweaks to gameplay, or even a full-blown overhaul (more on that later). The file size isn’t a problem because the absence of new assets (including scripts) means that you’re almost certain to never reach the limit.

So, are there any downsides to mods? Well, sometimes they conflict, although this will often be obvious. I’ve had a few more crashes (not loads, maybe one every 10 hours or so) when playing as The Red Panther. And the greyface bug is irksome (new NPCs can have freaky faces). But they add a lot to the game, so if you’ve sunk a lot of time into Skyrim and want something a little different, mods can really add to the experience.

Below is a list of mods I’ve particularly enjoyed. Do remember (I keep forgetting...) to like/rate mods that improve your game. These are all free, remember.

Darkness Falls, by Grumpy-Gazz

Since Dragon’s Dogma introduced totally black nights (save for your lantern’s limited light) I’ve really liked this approach. Nights are miles darker, practically impossible to see unless you’ve got a torch, magical light or are Khajiit. The only downside is this is incompatible with Dolomite Weathers (see below). It dovetails very nicely with the two mods bracketed together below.

Lanterns/Lampposts of Skyrim, by MannyGT and Micahghost (respectively)

The first of these mods adds little lanterns to settlements. In the newly darkened world, these really help make the villages and cities a spot of illuminated civilisation in the middle of the wilderness. The lampposts work much the same, providing lighting for the roads. Neither overdoes it, instead managing to get the balance of light just right. They work perfectly with Darkness Falls, and also fit the darker (although not as dark) nights of Dolomite Weathers.

Simple Survival, by Worlds

Now, I’ve only played with this a little bit because it’s not compatible with the Great Realism Overhaul, and when I made two new characters to see which I preferred I went for the latter. That said, this simple survival mod seemed to work very nicely. It adds a requirement to eat, drink and sleep regularly. Fail to do so and you take penalties, including your health, magic or stamina (or multiple) not regenerating. The mod’s author increased the frequency of finding salt to enable more cooking. I liked this a lot, and the only reason I didn’t stick with it is because I liked the other mod even more.

The Great Realism Overhaul, by Simtar123

This mod changes a colossal amount. The perks, especially those for warriors, have been reworked massively, and mostly for the better. One-handed, for example, has various multi-tiered perks to improve your skills with daggers, swords, axes or maces. Backstabbing perks are now located in one-handed, for daggers, and archery, for bows. Crafting replaces smithing and includes perks to improve cooking (curtailed options initially), create pottery as well as the armour/weapons you’d expect (tip: to improve rapidly, focus on arrows).

Combat is utterly reworked. On the recommended Legendary setting, damage both dealt and received is x2 normal, and you can’t shift mid-swing. So, enemies can be side-stepped and whacked, wolves are suddenly a bit dangerous (early on), and fighting multiple enemies is much harder. Correspondingly, a good follower is worth a lot, and summon spells are much more powerful. Stealth is also more valuable because of the enhanced damage, balanced out by enemies searching for you for much longer.

Carry weight has been utterly nerfed (100 initially) and fast travel is verboten, so this will put off some players, and I completely understand that. It’s particularly irksome when you kill a dragon (which is much harder than it was) only to find its valuable bones and scales weigh so much you can barely carry any of it. Travel by carriage is a lot more useful, but you can’t use it when you’re over-encumbered. Perks to make your armour (when worn) weigh less are also really helpful.

One discrepancy I found (I briefly played with a Breton mage to see how magic worked) is that my Khajiit, The Red Panther, had more or less the starting skill numbers I’d expect whereas my Breton, Laura de Mirgnac, had 1 for everything. Incidentally, the Breton starting spell (conjure familiar) is actually of some use.

It also has two supplementary mods for enemies and looting I recommend getting.

The Great Realism Overhaul really does change an awful lot. For me, it’s reinvigorated a game I’ve already (on the PS3) sunk hundreds of hours into.

All Armour Lootable and Wearable, by Bear

A great little mod that does what it says on the tin. If you get attacked by a Dark Brotherhood minion, why shouldn’t you be able to steal his snazzy masked cowl? Also good for getting a load of cash from selling looted stuff. Not compatible with the Great Realism Overhaul (but you wouldn’t be able to carry all the extra armour in any case).

Dolomite Weathers, by Megaloblast

An all-in-one weather mod (there are a few varieties, I just went for the original) which improves things a lot. In particular the higher intensity and sound effects of rain gave me goosebumps, it’s very good. Fog is denser, and the sky (clouds, aurora) just seems a lot better. I think that the distance you can see has been dramatically increased, although before this I was using the weather mods below so I can’t swear to it. Nights are darker, although not as black as Darkness Falls. The only downside is that the aforementioned mod is incompatible with Dolomite Weathers, but, generally, this is really good.

Supreme Storms, by MannyGT

A weather mod that turns rain showers into torrential downpours. It’s even more intense than the Dolomite version, and works very well (obviously incompatible with Dolomite, though).

Supreme and Volumetric Fog, by MannyGT

Similarly, dense fog for those who don’t want to go down the Dolomite route. Before I had the all-in-one mod, I used this, Supreme Storms and Darkness Falls, which all meshed nicely together.

Master the Summit, by SpaceGoats

We’ve all been there. Heading for Ivarstead. Discovering you’ve got to go all round the houses. Master the Summit adds bridges, steps and so forth to various places in Skyrim, making it easier to get around on foot. Especially useful for those going without fast travel, and fits in perfectly with the game.

Rich Merchants, by Jason069

Pretty simple. Stops merchants running out of money when you want to flog them stuff. Straightforward and very useful.

Smooth Human Female Faces, by FiNwolf

At the risk of sounding shallow, wrinkly foreheads don’t do it for me. This simple mod gives them (particularly Bretons) smooth foreheads so you can have a character who isn’t looking inexplicably old.

Phenderix Magic World DLC, by Phenderix

I’ve not played extensively as a mage, but had to include this mod. It includes several new locations (not visited them) and hundreds of new spells, some of which I’ve messed around with. There’s a vastly increased range of summons, and the destruction magic is improved with new spells too. New bosses, followers, loading screens and the mod bundles together a number of previously released, smaller mods. If you’re playing as a mage or part-time magic user, this is well worth a look.

Immersive Patrols, by Ameermohamedtt

Adds patrols from the various factions (Imperials, Stormcloaks, Thalmor etc) throughout the roads. These can, and will, encounter one another. They can also be very handy if a dragon shows up. I happened upon a fort that’s usually bandit-held (in the vanilla game) and instead found a massive Imperial-Stormcloak battle, which was pretty cool. It’s a nice touch that makes the world feel more alive.

Immersive and Levelled Items, by Gehirnmutant

There’s a problem with finding cool items early, which is that you get lumbered with a basic level of enchantment. However, this nifty mod means you can then level it up to improved versions, if you have the right material. So, if you get Chillrend early on, you’re not stuck with the n00blet level effect forever. Pretty simple, and a nice addition.

Late addition:

Fix: Restore Vanilla Settings, by DylanJames

After writing the above, I wanted to check to make sure I wasn’t over-egging the cake with certain things (particularly to see whether I was misremembering how far you can see the landscape without mods). So I started a new save, without mods. However, my character had far lower skills (1 for most) than she should’ve. Lakraz Ogre-Killer was not amused. I tried making another new save, but Gryzelda also had the same problem. Mostly, this didn’t change a lot, but I couldn’t actually sharpen the iron dagger in Riverwood because I lacked the skill (my smithing was only about 6 or 7).

Happily, the above mod fixed things, although I did have to make a new character.

This isn’t an exhaustive list by any means, but there’s a fair range of good mods that players both hardcore and casual might enjoy.

Thaddeus

PS4 Pro: Why It Has Already Failed

I have a bad habit.

Every console generation, I buy at the wrong time. Within a year, often within months, a better version of the console (a slimmer one, or one with a bigger hard drive) comes out. Like clockwork.

This time is a little different, though. Because both Sony and Xbox have more advanced consoles which are souped-up versions of the existing generation. I’m focusing on the PS4 Pro, both because it’s just been announced and because I have a PS4.

It is a stupid idea. A strategic blunder.

In basic terms, this either sells well and succeeds, or poorly and fails. If the latter, that’s obviously a failure. But even if it sells well, there’s a problem.

Sooner or later, the PS5 and Xbox RandomNumber will come out. But who, beyond the rather rich, is going to want to buy one? A few years after that, the PS5.5 and Xbox RandomNumberB will come out. You’ll then be left with an invidious choice: buy the slightly better console that has the same range of games but will cost extra for a second console purchase, or go without and stick with the peasant version.

So, I imagine many people will wait. Meanwhile, Sony and Microsoft aren’t getting the console sales they hoped for, because the public are wary of their dodgy generation-and-a-half ways. Game sales are down, console sales are down, and everyone makes less money.

Consoles aren’t like mobile telephones. You spend for convenience. If you want to incrementally improve your gaming experience and have the dosh to throw around, the PC is there for you. PCs are more powerful in every way, games can be played without worrying nearly so much about backwards compatibility. Yes, they’re fiddlier and costlier, but that’s the trade off.

Consoles = cheaper, more convenient

PCs = more expensive, better experience

I didn’t spend a couple of hundred pounds on a black box to spend even more on another black box a year later to play the same games.

Maybe I’m just more of a skinflint/poorer than other people, or just a bit old-fashioned (that latter point is almost certainly true), but the PS4 Pro seems stupid to me. Anyone wanting continual improvements can get that already. The whole point of consoles is that they’re easy. You splash out once every seven years or so, plug in and play.

Another problem with the PS4 Pro is that to get the most out of it, you need a 4K TV. And the VR. Which also means a camera. And probably a couple of Playstation Move peripherals.

I might be wrong (I’m into F1 and classical history so I’m well aware I’m not Captain Everyman) but it seems too expensive for most people whilst offering too little (the games are the same) just a few years after the initial PS4 launch. Far better to have that for a PS5 launch, and have a VR bundle for those who want that, no?

As an aside, the Xbox Scorpio, or whatever it’s called, is a good chance for Xbox to strike back against Playstation in the console war.

Late additional bit: fresh from an underwhelming presentation, Sony’s delighted PS4 owners a little bit more. Bethesda, who wanted Fallout 4 mods on PS4 in June (they came to Xbox One in May), have said they’re cancelled, and squarely blamed Sony for that. Mods are also not coming to the PS4 version of Skyrim.

If you’re a huge Bethesda fan, that’s a great disappointment. I do like Bethesda’s games (less taken with Fallout than Elder Scrolls), and find this to be unsurprising but bad news.

Fallout 4 and Skyrim mods - https://bethesda.net/#en/events/game/ps4-mod-update/2016/09/09/199

There are suggestions (following the news that a farming simulator game will have mods on the PS4) that some form of mods may yet happen for Fallout 4/Skyrim on the PS4, but that remains to be seen.

Thaddeus

The Witcher 3 (PS4) – early thoughts

The Witcher 3’s reputedly a massive game (200 hours is the figure given for a pretty comprehensive playthrough), so it’ll be a while before I review it properly. In the meantime, here are my initial impressions.

I’ve got to start on a negative note. Some people who get the physical copy of the PS4 edition enter an infinite loading loop on the first load screen. I did get past this, but it’s a frustrating start and took me a while. Suggested remedies (which I tried) include clearing some hard drive disk space, disconnecting from the internet, and uninstalling then reinstalling game data (I also restarted, after my free space, weirdly, was in freefall. Upon restarting, it returned to normal).

Once you get past that and can save, the problem does not recur (or hasn’t for me, at any rate).

Voice-acting’s top notch. Most importantly, Geralt’s got the voice to match his appearance and prowess. The world is intriguing, and avoids the videogame equivalent of info-dumping by just letting things unfold naturally. I haven’t played either previous game, but didn’t feel all at sea. Side-quests (only done half a dozen or so) often have surprises, and are interesting in themselves [no bland shopping lists or take X to Y so far]. Morality has many shades of grey, and several reds too.

I found combat a bit tricky to get into, but quite satisfying. There are three large school sets (weapons, alchemy [includes bombs and poisons] and magic) and one smaller [general] one. I’m going for a magic-focused build, and the spells seem nicely balanced, strong enough to be useful without being overpowered. Of games I’ve played, the closest equivalent is Dragon’s Dogma, although you’re usually alone in TW3 and you’re always a hybrid class rather than going down entirely warrior, alchemical or magical routes. In common with Dragon’s Dogma, there’s no enemy scaling. I wandered into a village at level 5 and found myself facing three level 20 beasts. The ensuing fight was not an episode of undiluted glory for Geralt.

Mounted combat is difficult at speed but you can do lots of damage and I cut one man asunder (I didn’t just lop his head off. I cut his torso in two, from one shoulder diagonally through his chest and abdomen down to his hip).

Too early to comment on the main story. Moral decisions, such as I’ve encountered, are finely balanced, with options for receiving bribes a couple of times. I may have accidentally unleashed a plague. Ahem.

The graphics are very nice indeed. Frame rate issues (with the initial patching) are minimal, and I only mention that in passing because of the pre-release negativity. It didn’t happen often and hasn’t diminished my enjoyment of the game. Special mention must be made of the landscapes, which often look gorgeous, to the extent that I’ve paused a few times to admire the scenery.

Gwent, the card game, is lots of fun and very easy to understand.

It’s quite addictive. Yesterday, I seemed to be just getting into it and realised I’d been playing for a full hour.

Downsides, initial load screen aside? I don’t have enough time to play it properly. And loading a save from the main menu requires an internet connection if you have the Beard DLC. Except that sometimes, for reasons I do not understand, it doesn’t.

The game itself appears to combine the open world of Skyrim, the narrative strength of Dragon Age, and the morality of Game of Thrones. And it’s got 200 hours of gameplay. Which is nice.

Can’t give it a proper score, but right now it feels like five star territory.

Thaddeus

Review: Tomb Raider, Definitive Edition (PS4)

I recently acquired a PS4, and the first game I got for it was Tomb Raider. This was originally out for the previous console generation but (as seems the fashion nowadays) it was remastered for the PS4.

Storyline

Lara, her mentor Roth, a few friends and a TV dick called Whitman are sailing to find Yamatai for archaeological/television purposes. Lara suggests going into Not The Bermuda Triangle, which naturally causes the ship to sink in a massive storm and the crew to wash up on a dreaded island.

After spending her first evening on the island suffering bondage and puncture wounds, Lara sets out to find her crew and a way off the island. Unfortunately, the island is inhabited by an assortment of murderous lunatics.

The premise is nice and simple. Characters and their relationship with Lara are revealed naturally as the game progresses. The way the story goes won’t be a shock, particularly to gamers familiar with this sort of thing, but it’s perfectly sound.

There’s a mid-point which is so involved, lengthy and thrilling I thought it might actually be the climax of the game, and was a bit surprised it wasn’t (feels almost like the end of the first half of a play, which plenty of excitement prior to the interval).

Upon completion, you can return to the island to collect things.

Gameplay

The controls are very intuitive, and the initial section teaches you the basics without the dreaded tedium of a typical tutorial. Most players will have the gist from older Tomb Raider (or Uncharted) games, but for those new to this genre it’s a good introduction.

I played the game on Normal. Discounting occasions when I tried making impossible jumps, I got killed perhaps half a dozen times during the playthrough. Here and there you’ll be forced into a proper gunfight, in many areas you’ll have the option of taking a stealth approach (which I usually went for). Combat in this genre isn’t my favourite aspect, but I thought it worked pretty well.

Tombs are smaller areas you stumble across (there aren’t a huge number) within which you find treasures/upgrades. The puzzles, such as they are, tend to be pretty straightforward. If you’re stuck for a little while you’ll have the option to press L1, and Lara will offer a hint.

On the downside, there’s too much in the way of QTEs (quick-time events, the work of Satan) early on, and occasionally later in the game. Apart from the first hour, there’s not really a glut of them, but I’m not a fan of that approach.

Graphics

The graphics generally look very nice, as the screenshots I’ve included in this review show. Sometimes water effects look outdated compared to the rest. Likewise, flames can sometimes look a little bit dated.

The sea itself looks very nice, though, and there are some great vistas in a reasonable variety of settings.

A nice touch is that Lara’s default outfit undergoes the John McClane process, getting dirtier and slightly torn as the game progresses. Unfortunately, this doesn’t occur with the six extra outfits. She also gets some small scars, which makes sense given she spends several hours getting battered [but these magically disappears if she changes outfit].

Sound

I’ve bought a few Tomb Raider games, and really liked Keeley Hawes’ past performances. The reboot, unsurprisingly, went for a new actress, Camilla Luddington [who also, as is becoming commonplace, did the motion capture for the character].

A good choice, I think. She does sound pretty young, which fits, as this is basically an origin story for how Lara Croft became female Indiana Jones.

The rest of the cast do a solid job, and I like the dynamic of slightly bickering shipmates.

Sound effects are nice, from zip-lining to forcing open metal crates with a pick. By default, you also get sound via the mini-speaker in the controller. As I usually play with earphones in, I disabled this.

The music fits the game well, and is enjoyable without being overpowering.

Bugs and other issues

In my entire playthrough I encountered one bug. Lara froze at the end of an animation, and was stuck in an ice-skater type pose. She kept on gliding forward too, which was weird. I got out of it by changing my weapon. No freezes, lags, excessive screen-tearing, prolonged loading times or any other issue occurred, so that was pretty good.

Conclusion

I enjoyed it a lot. The game’s been out a while, which means you should be able to get it for a low price and I probably spent 20-30 hours on the main storyline (I did some exploration on the side, but not much).

Thaddeus

PS4 revealed (sort of)

Sony has unveiled the PS4! And by 'unveiled' I mean 'not actually shown anyone what it looks like'. [I know this news is a week old, but unexpected productivity has meant blogging's been a bit light]. They have unveiled the new controller, which looks similar to the old one with the major exception of a touch-screen strip running roughly the distance between the analogue sticks at the top of the controller.

A more serious look at what was, and wasn't, revealed, can be found here. 

Being able to watch live gameplay of other people isn't the sort of thing that gets me going, to be honest.

A low power state for downloads is a worthy change, but, again, it's not exactly going to make one's trousers burst into flames with excitement.

Apparently PS Vita connectivity and remote play will be enhanced. Some may like this, but it doesn't push my buttons.

Being able to play games as they download sounds good. It won't affect me, but for those it does it should cut down on lengthy waits.

The console should come out (both in a visual and selling sense) around Christmas this year.

As has become traditional, I will not be buying this at launch. I'll wait a few years for the price to drop (assuming the console is worth buying) and for more titles to come out.

Perhaps the biggest change is that it's been deliberately designed to be easier for developers, which will hopefully increase the number of games for it compared to what might have been.

There have been rumours about the next generation of consoles effectively declaring second hand games verboten by having one-time use codes shipped with new games that are required for activation (so you can sell a disc, but the code is already used up so it can't be activated and played). Hopefully that gets quashed by Xbox when they do their reveal (it won't be the case for the PS4). I don't buy many used games now, but when I was younger and played more I did often visit shops to browse the second hand games.

So, there's no big bang world-changing development like holograms or spectacles that offer 3D gaming without a TV. It sounds like a significantly beefed up PS3 with a fancier controller.

Both the PS4 and the new yet-to-be-revealed Xbox are expected to be for sale this Christmas.

Thaddeus