Spec Ops: The Line or Binary Domain

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Hunkulese

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#1  Edited By Hunkulese

I wanted to play both of these by the end of the year but probably wont get around to it. It sounds to me like Binary Domain would be more enjoyable but Spec Ops has a couple great story moments. Basically what I'm wondering is if I should play Spec Ops first because it will be talked about more and probably spoiled during the GOTY podcasts?

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iamjohn

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#2  Edited By iamjohn

Yeah, if you care about experiencing Spec Ops' story without it being spoiled for you, you should probably play that first. If you play it on easy to get through the gameplay bits (which are fine, but underdeveloped for the most part), you should be able to knock it out in a couple nights.

On the whole, I had a better time with Binary Domain, though.

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TheHT

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#3  Edited By TheHT

I don't expect them to get all into Spec Ops, though I wish they would. But if they did talk about both, I imagine the talking points for Binary Domain would be Cain and the talking points for Spec Ops would be the story, so the safer choice would be to play Spec Ops first if you didn't want to risk any spoilers.

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alistercat

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#4  Edited By alistercat

Spec Ops can be done in one sitting. If you don't have a lot of time, maybe 2 or 3 but it isn't long. Play on the lowest difficulty and just enjoy the story. A valid way to play. Then go listen to the podcast Jeff was on with the writer. I finished it a couple of hours ago, then listened to the podcast. One of my favourite story experiences of the year. Since Portal 2, maybe.

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xxxlynchxxx

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#5  Edited By xxxlynchxxx

Binary Domain was good dumb fun. Haven't tried Spec Ops yet, I'll grab it from a bargain bin eventually.

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Animasta

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#6  Edited By Animasta

Spec Ops' story moments, I dunno, are kinda... I watched an LP of it and I felt like I got what I would've gotten out of it playing it; it's impactful, don't get me wrong, but it's also less involved from a story telling perspective. Binary Domain is more open; not that either of them are open from a gameplay perspective, but from a story perspective the conversations you get with your crew are different depending on who you take with you. Binary Domain definitely seems funner to play, purely because the way robots blow up are hella cool and the dudes in spec ops are dudes.

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cornbredx

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#7  Edited By cornbredx

I definitely recommend Spec Ops the Line. Over Binary Domain especially but also because you can get it pretty cheap now. 
Good story. 
 
Although, I have to be fair, I haven't played Binary Domain so I guess it depends on what you want to get out of it. I think Binary Domain looks like cheesy harmless fun, and Spec Ops the line is a game with a soul searching message.

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eSci

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#8  Edited By eSci

For me, Spec Ops all day without a doubt. Yes it's short, steam saying my play time clocks in at 6 hours and sure it doesn't bring anything new to the third person shooter mechanics.

But, and this an gigantic but, the story is amazing in my opinion and I highly suggest it to anyone who has even a small interest in the game. Heck, I would recommend it to people who have absolutely no interest in the 'modern military shooter' genre just on the bases of story alone.

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crusader8463

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#9  Edited By crusader8463

The reason people go nuts for Spec Ops is the little story bits from time to time and they can be seen by watching an LP on youtube and skipping through all the gameplay parts. You would be done it in about an hour. That's all that really matters with that game and the only reason people care about it. Personally I thought it was a rather obvious twist, but to each their own. Also, the build up was not that great and felt like a rather generic war story/COD clone in a neat setting.

Binary Domain has some funny characters and set pieces that you need to watch in order to get a good laugh out of. So if you can only play one I would pick that.

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ArcLyte

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#10  Edited By ArcLyte

Binary Domain is probably the best overlooked game to come out this year. Very fun gameplay mixed with a great big-budget action movie story.

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DunbarDunbarDunbar

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@ArcLyte: Yeah, i just finished it not 2 hours ago and i was blown away with it. Picked it up on Amazon for 9 bucks. Just a great example of a japanese ass game.

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Marz

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#13  Edited By Marz

I'm an advocate for more people playing Binary Domain.

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colourful_hippie

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#14  Edited By colourful_hippie

@crusader8463 said:

The reason people go nuts for Spec Ops is the little story bits from time to time and they can be seen by watching an LP on youtube and skipping through all the gameplay parts. You would be done it in about an hour. That's all that really matters with that game and the only reason people care about it. Personally I thought it was a rather obvious twist, but to each their own. Also, the build up was not that great and felt like a rather generic war story/COD clone in a neat setting.

Binary Domain has some funny characters and set pieces that you need to watch in order to get a good laugh out of. So if you can only play one I would pick that.

I have a feeling that if I didn't already watch Apocalypse Now that I would be hyped about the story beats in Spec Ops as much as the other guys.

@ArcLyte said:

Binary Domain is probably the best overlooked game to come out this year. Very fun gameplay mixed with a great big-budget action movie story.

This for sure. I actually almost forgot that I played this because it was such a while ago and I feel bad because I feel like a total piece of shit for forgetting about Big Bo.

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crcruz3

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#15  Edited By crcruz3

I didn't have a great time playing Spec Ops.

Man, I love Binary Domain!

Big Bo is my avatar at Steam...

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ReCkLeSs_X

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#16  Edited By ReCkLeSs_X

I've only played Spec Ops (actually currently reading the critical reading found here: http://stolenprojects.com/) and I have to say that I would definitely recommend taking a trip just for the story and the experience's sake.

That being said, I just bought Binary Domain off of xbox.com for $10 today and I certainly plan on experiencing that game as well.

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sins_of_mosin

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#17  Edited By sins_of_mosin

Binary Domain is a rare treat from the East and I would play that over Spec Ops.

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Animasta

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#18  Edited By Animasta

@CornBREDX said:

I definitely recommend Spec Ops the Line. Over Binary Domain especially but also because you can get it pretty cheap now. Good story. Although, I have to be fair, I haven't played Binary Domain so I guess it depends on what you want to get out of it. I think Binary Domain looks like cheesy harmless fun, and Spec Ops the line is a game with a soul searching message.

if you haven't played both than you can't really say that BD is cheesy harmless fun. I mean it's definitely not as... harsh as Spec ops is but don't mistake that for being harmless.

It's emotional, you actually care about the other characters whereas in spec ops you definitely do not build up the relationship that you have with your team in BD. I mean you care about em obviously but in BD you care without them needing to be put into danger. It also has it's own message and it's own moral.

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impartialgecko

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#19  Edited By impartialgecko

Spec Ops is a more interesting and important game, Binary Domain is a better-playing game. I vote for the latter because French robots.

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ds8k

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#20  Edited By ds8k

If you actually want to have fun - Binary Domain. If you want what is, in my opinion, an overrated game, play Spec Ops.

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GunslingerPanda

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#21  Edited By GunslingerPanda

Binary Domain. Spec Ops was overrated.

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Hunkulese

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#22  Edited By Hunkulese

Thanks for the feedback. I do want to play them both and I'll probably stick to playing Spec Ops first. After I'm finished with Hitman I didn't really know what to tackle on my embarrassing terrifying long list of unplayed steam games. Maybe I'll play them both back to back but then again I bought Hotline Miami and Mark of the Ninja during the steam sale. Not to mention the two games that I really want to play but am scared of the time commitment, Skyrim and The Witcher 2. At least I've seemed to have conquered my LoL addiction and have been making some progress through my list.

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Animasta

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#23  Edited By Animasta

@Hunkulese: well play hotline miami first

it will get you into the exact right mindset for enjoying binary domain, and the exact wrong one for playing spec ops (which is what that game wants, it's not subtle about it either).

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ripelivejam

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#24  Edited By ripelivejam

i know it's kinda apples and oranges, and as a disclaimer i haven't played this game yet, but could you argue the gameplay for The Walking Dead is equally inconsequential? i mean if that's the case then spec ops the line should have equal footing with walking dead as a gaming experience, and be as strongly considered for GOTY as walking dead appears to be.

i may argue that the gameplay of walking dead lies in the dialogue choices and quick reactions there (the puzzles really aren't much to write home about, tbh), which i guess would make TWD's gameplay somewhat more innovative and essential than Spec Op's generic 3rd person mechanics...

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joshthebear

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#25  Edited By joshthebear

Play Spec Ops and then listen to the spoilercast that Jeff was on at Gamespot with the writer.

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iamjohn

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#26  Edited By iamjohn

@Animasta said:

Spec Ops' story moments, I dunno, are kinda... I watched an LP of it and I felt like I got what I would've gotten out of it playing it; it's impactful, don't get me wrong, but it's also less involved from a story telling perspective. Binary Domain is more open; not that either of them are open from a gameplay perspective, but from a story perspective the conversations you get with your crew are different depending on who you take with you. Binary Domain definitely seems funner to play, purely because the way robots blow up are hella cool and the dudes in spec ops are dudes.

I'm just throwing this out there, you're not really in any position to talk about the game if your experience of it is a Let's Play.

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EquitasInvictus

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#27  Edited By EquitasInvictus

@Animasta said:

@Hunkulese: well play hotline miami first

it will get you into the exact right mindset for enjoying binary domain, and the exact wrong one for playing spec ops (which is what that game wants, it's not subtle about it either).

Oh wow; I started Hotline Miami yesterday and while I actually have Bindary Domain and Spec Ops too I've started on neither of them so I guess I'm actually doing this in the right order!

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ozzdog12

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#28  Edited By ozzdog12

@Hunkulese: Spec Ops is worth a run through, towards the end its starts to become a grind, but holy shit the end is insane. (4 possible outcomes)

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wefwefasdf

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#29  Edited By wefwefasdf

I never finished Binary Domain but the amount I played was really fun. I would recommend playing it eventually--even if you play Spec Ops first.

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colourful_hippie

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#30  Edited By colourful_hippie

@Hunkulese: The Witcher 2 is shorter than Skyrim and it can be fast to play through it all if you main lined the game but even then the game is somewhat linear to a certain extent so don't worry about having to travel huge distances in it.

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Animasta

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#31  Edited By Animasta

@iAmJohn said:

@Animasta said:

Spec Ops' story moments, I dunno, are kinda... I watched an LP of it and I felt like I got what I would've gotten out of it playing it; it's impactful, don't get me wrong, but it's also less involved from a story telling perspective. Binary Domain is more open; not that either of them are open from a gameplay perspective, but from a story perspective the conversations you get with your crew are different depending on who you take with you. Binary Domain definitely seems funner to play, purely because the way robots blow up are hella cool and the dudes in spec ops are dudes.

I'm just throwing this out there, you're not really in any position to talk about the game if your experience of it is a Let's Play.

why? Certainly for some games but Spec ops story moments are the same for every person, disregarding some mild choice, which the LP'er laid out very well (he let the thread vote and said what the vote signified). Spec ops isn't as varied as Binary Domain because there are more characters in Binary Domain and not all of them can be part of the story at the same time.

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cornbredx

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#32  Edited By cornbredx
@Animasta: Sorry but I don't think Binary Domain is trying to make you think about things. The writing is what it is- cheesy harmless fun. 
Nothing wrong with that, and my point is they are on opposite ends of the spectrum. One is meant to be entertaining, and one is meant to make you think about something. 
You do not need to build "relationships" for a story to be though provoking, and you do not need to be thought provoking to have fun. They are two different games with separate goals. It depends on what the OP wants out of it on which they would prefer.
This is my opinion. It's ok that you disagree.
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Animasta

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#33  Edited By Animasta

@CornBREDX: but... you haven't even played it, so how do you know?

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iamjohn

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#34  Edited By iamjohn

@Animasta said:

@iAmJohn said:

@Animasta said:

Spec Ops' story moments, I dunno, are kinda... I watched an LP of it and I felt like I got what I would've gotten out of it playing it; it's impactful, don't get me wrong, but it's also less involved from a story telling perspective. Binary Domain is more open; not that either of them are open from a gameplay perspective, but from a story perspective the conversations you get with your crew are different depending on who you take with you. Binary Domain definitely seems funner to play, purely because the way robots blow up are hella cool and the dudes in spec ops are dudes.

I'm just throwing this out there, you're not really in any position to talk about the game if your experience of it is a Let's Play.

why? Certainly for some games but Spec ops story moments are the same for every person, disregarding some mild choice, which the LP'er laid out very well (he let the thread vote and said what the vote signified). Spec ops isn't as varied as Binary Domain because there are more characters in Binary Domain and not all of them can be part of the story at the same time.

Because it's a vide game and video games are based around the idea of interaction. The story beats are one thing and all interesting in their own right, but all the interesting elements in all the world don't matter if you don't have a base interaction with the game on some level (personal definitions of what that level of interaction should entail aside), and that's especially true of Spec Ops. Feeling like an active player in the events and like I had an effect on that world, even if it was minuscule and feeding into one clear path, is pretty much the entire reason that game worked for me, and I think it should be pretty obvious why.

(But in case it's not obvious, it's because it's not Walker doing the actions - it's you and the game actively forces you to question your actions while you're playing it, mocking you for it all along the way.)

Watching someone else play it, no matter how hard they try to give you a say in the proceedings, robs you of that basic interaction that comes from you being in control of the action. It's literally removing half the equation.

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cornbredx

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#35  Edited By cornbredx
@Animasta: I didn't want to do this (because it feels like nit picking and silly) but you haven't played Spec Ops: the line- how do you know?
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murisan

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#36  Edited By murisan

Binary Domain was a far better game mechanically and technically, but Spec Ops had a far better story. If you're going to play both, play Spec Ops first to avoid spoilers, but know that Binary Domain was much more fun in gameplay settings.

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Animasta

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#37  Edited By Animasta

@iAmJohn: but it's not like the LPer isn't doing stuff I wouldn't have done anyway; and I like the story, even if I believe it is a tad overrated (most things like this are, of course). I get what you're saying but watching the LP is sort of the same thing as playing the game (I could have stopped watching the LP if I wanted to but I didn't etc.).

Also I played Hotline Miami which does something very similar anyway so I know what my interaction with it would've been. I mean I wouldn't have played it otherwise so it was worth it, but I still say that Binary Domain is better for involving yourself because a playthrough can be different, in it's own minor way; a playthrough of spec ops isn't really different beyond what you or me, as the players, glean from it.

@CornBREDX: because I watched it and I know the story beats and regardless of whether playing it would've gotten a stronger reaction from me, I still know the themes, the moral, the characters; which you do not.

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DoctorWelch

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#38  Edited By DoctorWelch

I still don't understand why people think Binary Domain is a good game...maybe I should go play it.

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murisan

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#39  Edited By murisan

@DoctorWelch: It's mechanically rock-solid, and the shooting is very satisfying. Picking off limbs of robots is great, and the story isn't half bad IMO.

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Animasta

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#40  Edited By Animasta

@murisan said:

@DoctorWelch: It's mechanically rock-solid, and the shooting is very satisfying. Picking off limbs of robots is great, and the story isn't half bad IMO.

also the characters are amazing, you forgot that part

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cornbredx

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#41  Edited By cornbredx
@Animasta: It's funny to win with me you have to secede that playing the game is pertinent to understanding the game fully- which means you have to lose the other argument that's going on in here (that I really didn't want to take part of and for the record I agree with you, at least partially it would seem, that you do not need to play a game to understand it. Although you seem to be of the belief this only pertains to some games). 
 
Anyway, this is silly. I have the right to my opinion, and I don't wish to sway you from yours. I have given my opinion on the topic, I do not wish to continue derailing the thread. 
It's been a pleasure. =)
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hero_swe

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#42  Edited By hero_swe

Binary Domain, defnitely one of my GOTY picks.

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Animasta

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#43  Edited By Animasta

@CornBREDX: you can totally watch binary domain and glean the morals and the character interactions though! You were calling Binary Domain, for lack of a better term, shallow mindless fun, which it is not. I was just saying that a Binary Domain playthrough changes more than a Spec Ops one does, therefore it's better to play Binary Domain yourself than Spec Ops (though since the OP has both this is a meaningless discussion anyway)

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murisan

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#44  Edited By murisan

@Animasta: True. I really liked the writing, and you cannot deny a French robot.

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kishinfoulux

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#45  Edited By kishinfoulux

For the people saying watch the Spec Ops story stuff on youtube to skip the gameplay...yeah you could do that, but the experience isn't the same. It's one thing to watch all those things happen. It's another to DO them. It's not comparable.

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MordeaniisChaos

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#46  Edited By MordeaniisChaos

If time is the problem, I think you can do both because they aren't super long.

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nightriff

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#47  Edited By nightriff

Oh god, between the 2 Spec Ops because of the story but Binary Domain is fucking great, check out both

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Animasta

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#48  Edited By Animasta

@MordeaniisChaos said:

If time is the problem, I think you can do both because they aren't super long.

if you were honestly prepared I bet you could beat both in a day

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DoctorWelch

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#49  Edited By DoctorWelch

@Animasta said:

@murisan said:

@DoctorWelch: It's mechanically rock-solid, and the shooting is very satisfying. Picking off limbs of robots is great, and the story isn't half bad IMO.

also the characters are amazing, you forgot that part

I'll probably play both of these games eventually. I guess I'm just not very optimistic about how I'll feel about them considering I was pretty cold on Gears and Uncharted 3 last year, but maybe that was just me getting burned out on franchises.

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smcn

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#50  Edited By smcn

I'm not sure anyone actually read the OP's question.

Yes, you should play Spec Ops before the GOTY podcasts. Binary Domain probably won't be discussed at all.