Do_The_Manta_Ray

Just recently, GiantBomb.com (It's a website about..) revealed that they'd be running a bunch of new shows, starting with a trio that are launching this month unless I'm mistaken. First episode of Grubsnaxx seems to be out already at the very least.

As I haven't kept up with the site in quite some time, I'm curious as to whether they've made any mention of doing more live shows again. From what I can tell, it seems like it's just the one per week with the Friday show. After a considerable hiatus from the site, I'd love to sign back up for a premium membership, but I'm not entirely sure I can justify it just yet.

Thanks in advance.

For a 100 % spoiler free topic; we sure delved into crucial story aspects REAL good. Heck, the majority of the thread consists of this. There's plenty of other threads where folks are talking about the story in-depth, so do kindly head on over here.

Now, back on topic; I loved the absolute bejeepers out of this game. The gameplay was superb, especially when fighting human enemies. Their use of tactics really brought an extra dimension to the already tense fire-fights. I ended up using a lot of their attempts at flanking me to my advantage, either by placing trip-mines or simply shot-gunning them in the face; then using the entrance they'd come out of us to retaliate against the opponent in a similar fashion.

And while I've heard people say that it's "too heavy-handed" that each enemy has a name, it makes for a really interesting dynamic that these people have different relationships with each other. Some break down when a loved one is killed; others go into something again to a berserk stage. It made the encounters feel real in a way that other games do not. Opponents also have very different reactions to when you grab them; or when you beat them to the ground as the last person standing. (Some beg for their lives, others threaten you; some tell you their tale and try to shift blame.)

As for the story itself, I adored it. It's been touted as a bleak revenge story, and while part of that is definitely true; I feel that it's far more a tale about forgiveness and dealing with grief. In Abbys case, forgiving herself; in Ellies, forgiving Joel. Abby robbed her of that, which is where most of her anger towards her stems from.

I'm a little conflicted about the ending. I thought it was perfect in so many ways, but I couldn't help but wish for a slightly happier resolution after Ellie made the right decision to let go. Then again, as it is somewhat open-ended; perhaps it eventually leads to something better for those few who made it through.

Overall; I adoooooored this game. I hope they don't end up making a Last of Us 3. Or if they do so; perhaps showcase a different part of the world, such as the EU or Asia, featuring a different set of protagonists. I think there could be a lot of potential there, between seeing how different environments have shaped the infected, to how people have reacted. Europe and Asia have far less access to guns for one thing, so it'd make for some interesting changes in gameplay.

Raising the price of video-games has been a long time coming; what with the absurd amount of investment that goes into triple A games these days. I'm 100 % willing to play 70 or even 80 for a full-length game akin to LOU2 as long as that comes with the assurance of no micro-transactions of any sort.

Mind you; there is a far better alternative; minimizing the amount of people involved, resting cheaper studio space and doing motion-capture in-house. A perfect example of this would be Hellblade: Senuas Sacrifice. It is a full length game, which isn't just absolutely gorgeous, but brings extremely unique gameplay features to the table. It also has one of the best stories in games I've seen in a long time. I don't mean to shill for this game, so I'll just make one last point about it; it is the single,best depiction of trauma, anxiety I've seen in any medium, period.

They sold that game for 30 bucks, and it performed fantastically. Triple A development does need to change, but the solution isn't necessarily to throw more money their way, but rather for them to be more economic about their design.

I wanna' go ahead and preface this series of questions with the simple statement that I ain't looking to shit on GB. Naturally, any post that begins with this type of defensive maneuvering clearly is going to be a little divisive, but I ask that you try to take this with a grain of salt. I love this here site, but things have changed, or rather, been scaled back considerably over the course of the years. I'd like to understand why, and would welcome an answer to it.

Let me explain what I mean to an extent.

It used to be the case, I felt, that there was a number of events per annum that were a huge undertaking for everyone involved, and a really great time to boot, due to the sheer effort and love that went into them. The most noteworthy of these would be the Big Live Live Show Live, with which I associate some of my fondest GB memories; be it the terrible call-in segments with Dave Lang, or Will and Norm cooking steaks with blow-torches, and not to mention, Dan with his god-fucking-awful insistence that nacho-cheese goes well with and in anything. Even as a part of a cocktail.

There was also that time he played Punchout with a DDR Pad and sensors connected inside a pair of boxing mitts that he triggered by continuously punching one John Drake in the face. (When the stomach would have worked just fine. This according to one John Drake, not to Dan Ryckert.)

These descriptions alone, I have to think, are enough to sell anyone even mildly interested in GB on the absurdity that was the Live Big Live Live Show Big.

So, what happened to that?

And what happened to Game of the Year, which used to be a month-long production that contained extended skits, incredibly unique lists, all within a theme, both visually and conceptually, and then ontop of that; a host of segments where the folks sat down and just had fun together with a mix of video-games, talk and some real dumb punishment games. I ain't even gonna' go into the details of all the nonsense they did, but mainly just due to fear of what the Rapman might do to me were I to snitch.

Again, where'd all that go? As is, it's been growing smaller every year, with this year culminating in a single piece of art that was the only through-line in the GOTY content.

I'm going to make a conscious effort not to go into what I perceive to also be a lack of effort in regards to Extra Life, 'cause it's damn good that they do it at all. I do, however, want to say that Alex Navarro is a beacon of hope and sick-ass drumming that makes it impossible for me not to spend a little too much money on donations every year.

But I digress.. By now, it REALLY sounds like I'm shitting on the site, and I'm not going to pretend that I'm not disappointed by the lack of all this creative insanity, especially as it hasn't been replaced by anything even remotely similar in scope or ambition. The content we get is still a ton of fun, but it's very formulaic, and I dare say, fairly low effort, in comparison to that of the past. Playdates and UPF remain a good time, but.. That's kind of the only thing we have other than quick-looks and the weekly podcasts. You know, people playing videogames infront of a camera.

And while that is, indeed, entertaining, it's not unique anymore. It's everywhere, it's every kid on youtube with a "dream." And these other events, that actually were unique to Giant Bomb, have been put out to pasture long since. Where it feels like GB should have tried to expand, they've rather consolidated. And as much fun as it is to follow these personalities, all of the personalities who shook things up; Austin, Dan and Patrick. They've all left. That can't be a complete coincidence.

I've been a member since this site launched, and a premium member since the option was available. A lot of time of my life has gone into Giant Bomb, and I hope that it goes without saying that I love this place and the people who are part of it. I just can't help but feel a little disillusioned at this point, especially between Dan recently having moved on and what I think we can all agree on was the worst GOTY in the history of the site. (The guest lists were terrific as always, however.)

At the end of this here rant, I still feel like I was selective in my criticisms. There's a number of other stuff that stand out to me, such as the wiki, which we were promised again and again would receive overhauls and more attention, or the de-emphasis on the community; which was what made this site what it was back in the day. Or articles or news, or or or or. And I could go on, and on, but I REALLY don't want to, because I really, really, REALLY have complained enough at this juncture. And while I've little to back this statement up after all the negative things I've said, I ain't looking to cast blame, but rather just understand what happened.

So, yeah; what happened? And in a better world, is there any way to bring any of this content back, or to spurn the staff to take more risks?

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Edited a couple of times because I always submit a terrible first (and second) draft, and only fix it after posting it for public viewing.

Well, I just got an invitation to Roys Boys'. That makes me very happy. Is there a discord, or similar other method I can use to converse with my fellow group mates?

So, a fella had apparently made a rude comment that offended the mods, or so I can only assume, as said messages was deleted. He didn't really understand what it was that he'd done wrong, so he asked. That message was deleted and he was banned. The matter had been brought to a quick halt.

Having looked in from the outside, I was more than a little confused. Seems to me, you wanna' ban a premium member from a live stream they're paying for, maybe give some kind of answer, some form of reason? Let 'em know what to do better next time at the least. But alright, that didn't happen. Might be all kinds of variables I wasn't aware of. Let's move past it.

I asked in chat what the guy had done. This being in the most polite way I knew of. "Could anyone please tell me why, etc.."

Now, I don't know if he'd killed a puppy, but said message was, ofcourse, deleted the instant it was created, and I did not receive any kind of answer as to the why of either. I asked what was happening, and you already know what happened then.

A few minutes later in the stream, Ben Pack made a preeetty dirty joke (which was kinda' awkward, but hey, he's doing his best) to which I said "Well, I'm surprised they're not trying to ban him for that." And well.. Here we are. I got banned for that.

I'm well aware this site has changed over the years, but what happened to communication? I see folks getting thrown out left and right; I ask why, and my messages get instantly deleted. I get the impression it's probably just a mod having a bad day, but if I'd suggested that; I'd probably have gotten banned as well. Doesn't exactly encourage any kind of freedom of speech, let alone discussions. Hell, we should be careful what we say when a cast-member says something naughty, because we might get banned for it.

It ain't the first time I've seen it, and only the second time it's happened to me in what.. 10 years? Since the site launched, that's how long I've been here. But I've seen it happen increasingly to people in the chat for no real reason I can understand.

I wanna' double-back on this and reiterate, I asked politely, didn't say anything rude or swear. I asked. Towards the end, I was a little bit sarcastic as my messages were getting ignore, and deleted without any explanation.

Now, if this were a free stream? I really wouldn't care. You get whatever mods you can, you try to do your best; etc.

But I pay money for the premium streams. And I feel like I should be able to expect some kind of professionalism. If I don't go against the rules, if I'm going out of my way to be nice and engage in conversations with folks, understand the context of things; and then get banned for that? Yeah, that's not okay with me.

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Full disclosure, this is a rant. My being weirded out and upset at how the standards have fallen round these parts. I'd ask someone from the staff, but when I tried; well, it resulted in this entire fiasco.

I wasn't sure whether I should even post this, but I've seen it happen more and more, and I ain't gonna' lie; it's made some folks I've suggested the site to back off, not to return.

I ain't claiming I'm perfect, just that there should be some standards requested of the people who moderate the premium chat. So here I am, bringing it up.

And they called it..

Aight, I'm definitely sold on WipeOut if nothing else. I did say that I ain't a fan of racing games in general, but there's been a few exceptions throughout the years. The WipeOut series definitely belong up there, so I'll probably end up loving it.

Thanks for all the input so far, fellas. Found a number of things I wanna' check out so far. I'm pleasantly surprised to see that there are so many darn demos as well; makes me all nostalgic for "better" times. I'll be checking back in on this thread once I get my headset and my fill of the games, I'm getting along with it, for suresies.

@glots: Is Job Simulator still a good experience even if you've seen a lot of it on websites such as giantbomb.com; oh, excuse me, I meant fuckdanryckert.com?

Having found a rare instance of a fantastic price, I decided to pick me up a PSVR for my birthday which is in a couple of weeks. I am a literal advent child, yes. Advent man-child at this point, I suppose.. Best not to dwell on it.

That aside, I'd like to pick myself up a few PS VR Titles to go along with the purchase, especially now that Black Friday sales are in full effect around the globe, and I was hoping some duders could point out a few stand out games to me.

So far, I've already decided to get "Moss", "Astro Bot: Rescue Mission" and "Resident Evil 7". I'll naturally be picking up "Superhot" and "Rez Infinite" at some point later down the line, probably along with "The Tetris Effect" and" Zone of The Enders: The Second Runner Mars". (It's an old favourite, what can I say?)

I'm also curious about "The Invisible Hours", "I Expect You to Die" and "Beat Saber". I already played through a lot of regular-ass "Thumper", but I'll definitely be returning to it with the VR mode.

So.. With all that out of the way; did I miss anything? Do any of these games in particular stand out in your opinion? Leemme' know, folks; uncharted territory for yours truly. I'll take any and all genres at this point, though I'm less enthused about driving games and arcade type experiences. Love me some damn horror, though. Cheers.

Quick Edit: While I'm at it; if there are cool things around the corner, don't hesitate to mention those, too.