Gaming PlayStation 5

amolbhatia50k

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I think im going to give up on Returnal. I'm not particularly good at bullet hell shooters and if im making any progress its at a glacial rate. Kind of glad i got a chance to try it with ps+ before buying.
Been looking forward to playing this but I too worry it'll be too much for me. I love Souls games but they have bonfires whereas the concept of Rogue Lite's isn't my favourite. And I've heard Returnal has really long areas / runs.
 

caid

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Been looking forward to playing this but I too worry it'll be too much for me. I love Souls games but they have bonfires whereas the concept of Rogue Lite's isn't my favourite. And I've heard Returnal has really long areas / runs.
I spent a couple more days playing it, finding it frustrating mostly. Yeah it has long runs, you can turn a stopwatch on, if i got to a boss in under an hour it was at a power level that didn't stand a chance in hell of beating it. The way difficulty ramps up is weird too. First run you step into the first few rooms and they'll have 2 or 3 dogs. At this point the first few rooms have like 12 dogs, 2 big dogs that hit twice as hard and take twice as much damage, a couple of turrets and maybe a guy throwing green stuff around. Maybe more if it randomly decides it wants to kill you now.
It seems to be based at least partly on deaths so derping around for the first hour jumping in water to see what happens (you die) makes the game exponentially harder and you go from being about 2 hits from killing the first boss on the first attempt to struggling to get past the first phase after 10 attempts.
I got past it eventually and have had 2 or 3 runs at the 2nd level and nearly beaten the boss despite terrible gear so i got past that hump and I'm making some progress. But i've probably dropped 20 hours or so into at this point and seen 2 levels. I'm just bored of the parts i have seen and dont have the time to waste to get good enough to play the rest. Its almost a great game but completely sabotaged by how hard it is.
It feels like playing dark souls with firelink shrine as the only bonfire and set levels like Sekiro so no overleveling.
 

TrustInJanuzaj

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It’s crazy how fast I got through Returnal. It just clicked for me but I basically completed it in 14 hours within the first weekend of release. The key for me was just getting the momentum going and doing it in single big runs. I think I cleared 1-3 in a single run, then after the reset I took afew times to get going in 4 before finally getting some good loot and clearing 4-6 in one run. Been meaning to go back and actually get the final ending though.
 

Brwned

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I think everyone should have Astro as their first PS5 game. You're already buzzing because you've got the console, and then there's this lovely little game to introduce you to the new features, while supplying a hearty dose of nostalgia.

It's kind of like those sweet little shorts before a Pixar/Disney film.
Definitely, it’s beautiful. Great game to give to the kids too. My niece had never picked up a controller before in her life but 10 mins in and she was loving it. It’s so playful and they really nailed the sensory experience. Although I’m not sure most of these features are actually deployed well in any of the other games I’ve played!
 

Ainu

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I spent a couple more days playing it, finding it frustrating mostly. Yeah it has long runs, you can turn a stopwatch on, if i got to a boss in under an hour it was at a power level that didn't stand a chance in hell of beating it. The way difficulty ramps up is weird too. First run you step into the first few rooms and they'll have 2 or 3 dogs. At this point the first few rooms have like 12 dogs, 2 big dogs that hit twice as hard and take twice as much damage, a couple of turrets and maybe a guy throwing green stuff around. Maybe more if it randomly decides it wants to kill you now.
It seems to be based at least partly on deaths so derping around for the first hour jumping in water to see what happens (you die) makes the game exponentially harder and you go from being about 2 hits from killing the first boss on the first attempt to struggling to get past the first phase after 10 attempts.
I got past it eventually and have had 2 or 3 runs at the 2nd level and nearly beaten the boss despite terrible gear so i got past that hump and I'm making some progress. But i've probably dropped 20 hours or so into at this point and seen 2 levels. I'm just bored of the parts i have seen and dont have the time to waste to get good enough to play the rest. Its almost a great game but completely sabotaged by how hard it is.
It feels like playing dark souls with firelink shrine as the only bonfire and set levels like Sekiro so no overleveling.
It's definitely not based on deaths, that would be a weird mechanic. Enemies always seemed to unlock in a similar way that everything else unlocked for me, i.e. once you've encountered or scanned something for the first time, it has a chance of appearing where it previously didn't. That's why, on average, you will see an increase in enemy numbers and variety the longer you play the game. Certain milestones such as reaching the next biome might also increase earlier biome difficulty, can't really say with any certainty.

Boss difficulty always remained identical for me though, it's just the perceived difficulty that varies based on your loadout. For some reason, despite often struggling and taking multiple attempts to reach bosses, I never once died to a boss until I cleared the game. I found them minor obstacles on the path to the next biome, while the real difficulty was just the rest of the game.
 

afrocentricity

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It’s crazy how fast I got through Returnal. It just clicked for me but I basically completed it in 14 hours within the first weekend of release. The key for me was just getting the momentum going and doing it in single big runs. I think I cleared 1-3 in a single run, then after the reset I took afew times to get going in 4 before finally getting some good loot and clearing 4-6 in one run. Been meaning to go back and actually get the final ending though.
The Tower is worth going back for too. It's great, and a good way to unlock outstanding traits on your weapons.
 

amolbhatia50k

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Tried Shadow Warrier 3 for 10 minutes as it's going off PS Plus on the 5th. Seems a bit shit tbh.

Otherwise I gave Obervation a go on the weekend which has been good so far.
 

Ted Lasso

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I think im going to give up on Returnal. I'm not particularly good at bullet hell shooters and if im making any progress its at a glacial rate. Kind of glad i got a chance to try it with ps+ before buying.
If the style of play didn't suit, probably not worth going on. If it's just frustration from not progressing then I would encourage you to keep going.

There is only one boss I was able to beat without an extra life pack. Have you come across those yet? There's basically two versions, one more luck based. But you have a chance with each cycle to level up your health bar to almost double and an extra life at minimum. I made that my goal before ever progressing to a boss and it helps a lot.

Once it clicks, man, it clicks. I hope you're able to give it another shot. If not the added co-op mode is exactly for those players that want the experience without the same amount of frustration. I would be happy to run thru a couple levels on co-op with you. Busy week and 4th of July holiday so it'd be after that though.


Been looking forward to playing this but I too worry it'll be too much for me. I love Souls games but they have bonfires whereas the concept of Rogue Lite's isn't my favourite. And I've heard Returnal has really long areas / runs.
If you've played and loves Souls games I can't foresee an issue. It's quite similar in that the start of the game is the hardest - just resetting your style to match the game to be most effective. And likewise you can kind of grind and level up your character on each cycle or go ahead and rush straight thru to the stage end/boss once you've got the general map layout figured.

Since all the talk on here I took a small break and restarted Returnal to play the DLC tower mode. My goodness I forgot how fantastic the game is. visually quite a spectacle. The 3d audio especially w headset on is sublime.

As I mentioned to @caid id be up to do some coop with anyone needing just a little bit of a boost to get moving ...again not too dissimilar from Souls!
 

caid

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It's definitely not based on deaths, that would be a weird mechanic. Enemies always seemed to unlock in a similar way that everything else unlocked for me, i.e. once you've encountered or scanned something for the first time, it has a chance of appearing where it previously didn't. That's why, on average, you will see an increase in enemy numbers and variety the longer you play the game. Certain milestones such as reaching the next biome might also increase earlier biome difficulty, can't really say with any certainty.

Boss difficulty always remained identical for me though, it's just the perceived difficulty that varies based on your loadout. For some reason, despite often struggling and taking multiple attempts to reach bosses, I never once died to a boss until I cleared the game. I found them minor obstacles on the path to the next biome, while the real difficulty was just the rest of the game.
No one seems to know how the difficulty scales, theres lots of theories. Maybe its based on time and that hour i spent afk drove the enemy difficulty up, i have no idea really. Basically i made a couple of semi serious attempts to progress, spent an hour or two derping around and semi afk and came back to the game being drastically more difficult. I didn't unlock anything in terms of artifacts in that time, i didn't really see anything in terms of cutscenes in that time. This was all on the first biome so unlocking the next isn't an explanation.
I'll probably stick with it a bit longer, theres parts i've really enjoyed but the difficulty is severly overtuned in my opinion.
The damage bosses take seems to change. Or maybe i just had a much better gun on the first attempt than later ones, thats definitely possible now i think of it.
 

Ainu

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No one seems to know how the difficulty scales, theres lots of theories. Maybe its based on time and that hour i spent afk drove the enemy difficulty up, i have no idea really. Basically i made a couple of semi serious attempts to progress, spent an hour or two derping around and semi afk and came back to the game being drastically more difficult. I didn't unlock anything in terms of artifacts in that time, i didn't really see anything in terms of cutscenes in that time. This was all on the first biome so unlocking the next isn't an explanation.
I'll probably stick with it a bit longer, theres parts i've really enjoyed but the difficulty is severly overtuned in my opinion.
The damage bosses take seems to change. Or maybe i just had a much better gun on the first attempt than later ones, thats definitely possible now i think of it.
There's nothing in this game that has a bigger impact on your runs than weapons, and especially weapon traits.
 

caid

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There's nothing in this game that has a bigger impact on your runs than weapons, and especially weapon traits.
Any opinions on when to upgrade your weapon? Swapped a carbine for a pistol or shotgun a couple levels higher a few times and that felt like a bad choice.
 

Massive Spanner

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Any opinions on when to upgrade your weapon? Swapped a carbine for a pistol or shotgun a couple levels higher a few times and that felt like a bad choice.
Pretty much any time you come across a weapon with a trait you haven't learnt off yet, you should pick it up. The Hollowseeker in particular is a total beast in later biomes once you have good traits for it.

I hit a hump early enough where nothing seemed to go right for me and I kept dying in biome 1 over and over cause of bad luck with weapons and enemies. The further you progress in the game the more things get into your hands as weapons become more powerful and you learn to get more obelites, the right artefacts to unlock, secret rooms etc.

I was like you, close to giving up early on, but you do reach a point where biome 1 becomes pretty easy and that's when it gets really enjoyable. It's class.
 

Ainu

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Any opinions on when to upgrade your weapon? Swapped a carbine for a pistol or shotgun a couple levels higher a few times and that felt like a bad choice.
I've made several posts on this subject in the Returnal thread, but in short: use whatever types you're most comfortable with and try to grab a new one whenever it has locked traits (you will see a lock and a percentage next to it). Keep using it until you've unlocked the trait or find a higher level one with a locked trait you also want to unlock. Trait unlock percentages are permanent, so your progress is never wasted (unless you really don't like the weapon type, in which case best ignore it).
 

caid

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I've made several posts on this subject in the Returnal thread, but in short: use whatever types you're most comfortable with and try to grab a new one whenever it has locked traits (you will see a lock and a percentage next to it). Keep using it until you've unlocked the trait or find a higher level one with a locked trait you also want to unlock. Trait unlock percentages are permanent, so your progress is never wasted (unless you really don't like the weapon type, in which case best ignore it).
Oh can you link the thread? Went looking for it but couldn't find any
 

Sara125

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Upgraded to Extra. Absolutely worth it. I think this will make me starting playing my PS5 more than my switch :lol: (I know this is unheard of but it’s because my type is more Zelda, Mario and Pokémon etc.)
 

Berbasbullet

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Im waiting until i finish Horizon before I upgrade and then heading straight into Returnal.
 

tinfish

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Not sure if allowed to share here, so apologise in advance. But for those not signed up to PS Premium or other tiers - you can make a new PSN account in Turkey, sign up for a crypto card and pay much cheaper rates. Instead of £99.99 for the year, I'm paying £23 and I've stacked it until 2026. :lol:
 

Sara125

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Not sure if allowed to share here, so apologise in advance. But for those not signed up to PS Premium or other tiers - you can make a new PSN account in Turkey, sign up for a crypto card and pay much cheaper rates. Instead of £99.99 for the year, I'm paying £23 and I've stacked it until 2026. :lol:
Thought they cracked down on VPNs? or can I…uhh…I mean my friend go back to changing the UK Netflix to the US one via VPN?
 

Ted Lasso

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Any opinions on when to upgrade your weapon? Swapped a carbine for a pistol or shotgun a couple levels higher a few times and that felt like a bad choice.
Early on you want to take any weapon with the special shot greyed out and use it until it's unlocked. Later on I Just go with the weapon I like the most for my style
 

Irwin99

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Res Evil 2 on the Ps5 much after enhancements? I really want to plau that game.
Weirdly you have to have a good tv to play at 60FPS for some reason so I ran it on ray tracing mode and it was as fun as ever. Loading times are quicker too.
 

tinfish

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Thought they cracked down on VPNs? or can I…uhh…I mean my friend go back to changing the UK Netflix to the US one via VPN?
No need for a VPN. A crypto.com online visa card does not check where the card was issued so it can be used. You have the make the purchase using the console, does not work online for some reason. You can youtube it for more info...
 

afrocentricity

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Not sure if allowed to share here, so apologise in advance. But for those not signed up to PS Premium or other tiers - you can make a new PSN account in Turkey, sign up for a crypto card and pay much cheaper rates. Instead of £99.99 for the year, I'm paying £23 and I've stacked it until 2026. :lol:
I've got games spread over too many accounts as is. I have used the turkey/crypto trick for games purchases though.

Anyway, regarding Returnal's weapons. DPS is not really related to the weapon level it's related to the bonus damage stat. Low level weapon with high bonus damage is going to hit harder than a higher level weapon with low bonus damage. There are other factors too...
 

harshad

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I've got games spread over too many accounts as is. I have used the turkey/crypto trick for games purchases though.

Anyway, regarding Returnal's weapons. DPS is not really related to the weapon level it's related to the bonus damage stat. Low level weapon with high bonus damage is going to hit harder than a higher level weapon with low bonus damage. There are other factors too...
So I should keep at it and I will eventually get a weapon where the bonus damage is high? So far i only have the pistol. Haven't seen any other weapon anywhere :(
 

afrocentricity

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So I should keep at it and I will eventually get a weapon where the bonus damage is high? So far i only have the pistol. Haven't seen any other weapon anywhere :(
Yep, and be weary of dropping a solid weapon for something that does way less damage, or is a weapon type you don't like to use. The shiny new weapon you want to pick up might have a higher level, it might have an interesting looking trait.... It might also feck your run up spectacularly.
 

KirkDuyt

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Any opinions on when to upgrade your weapon? Swapped a carbine for a pistol or shotgun a couple levels higher a few times and that felt like a bad choice.
The Carbine is great in the beginning since it's easy to use and decent without traits. Wouldnt ever swap ot for a pistol. The shotgun is pretty good, but only with narrow maw or slugshot to increase it's range.

Stuff like the Rotgland Lobber or Dreadbound become amazing with certain traits, but are hard to use and are better suited for when you can effortlessly avoid damage.

Returnal is amazing by the way. Best next gen game for me and 1 of only 2 platinums Ive bothered getting.
 

caid

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The Carbine is great in the beginning since it's easy to use and decent without traits. Wouldnt ever swap ot for a pistol. The shotgun is pretty good, but only with narrow maw or slugshot to increase it's range.

Stuff like the Rotgland Lobber or Dreadbound become amazing with certain traits, but are hard to use and are better suited for when you can effortlessly avoid damage.

Returnal is amazing by the way. Best next gen game for me and 1 of only 2 platinums Ive bothered getting.
The difficulty seems to have topped out a bit and im enjoying it a bit more. I'll probably spend half the night dieing miserably and hating the game again but got to bio 3 earlier today and it seemed pretty ok really.
 

KirkDuyt

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The difficulty seems to have topped out a bit and im enjoying it a bit more. I'll probably spend half the night dieing miserably and hating the game again but got to bio 3 earlier today and it seemed pretty ok really.
Oh yeah, it's definitely also a big fat arsehole of a game where you sometimes have a great run, but somehow just encounter a shite room and die near instantly and are left wondering what the feck happened.
 

BusbyMalone

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So out of all the hundreds of games I now have at my disposal, all the modern games I still haven't played, the last few days I've found myself playing Street Fighter 2 The World Warrior which was given away for free last week. Still great, although Street Fighter 2 Turbo is better. But I'm having a great time and I forgot how difficult Bison is. Absolute mad lad.

I'm now thinking of buying the Street Fighter 30th Anniversary Collection. Does anyone have it?
 

RedDevilRoshi

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Who was it saying they hated GoT? Great game so far!
I didn't hate it but I felt it flattered to deceive in the end which was a big disappointment for me personally considering the potential it had. Don't know how far you are into it but I never finished it and ended up trading it in. Think I got up to about midway through Act III and then decided to give it a break and never ended up going back to it as there was just no urge to play it again. There are some elements that I felt were very good such as the combat/swordplay is absolutely fantastic. Also visually it’s a very beautiful looking game but other than that, I just found it very tedious and boring in the end. The missions both story and side were very predictable & repetitive I felt. Overall it just felt very meh.
 

Alock1

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Who was it saying they hated GoT? Great game so far!
For someone who bangs on that they don't like playing B & C tier games you've played a lot of mediocre shit (especially on VR) and not much of the actual good stuff PS has to offer (TLOU2, GOW)

How far in are you? It had one of the best starts I've played, and whilst I still land on it being a very good game, I do think it overstayed it's welcome and like a lot of so called 'GOAT' games from the last 10 years, not actually that fun all the way through.
 

caid

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So out of all the hundreds of games I now have at my disposal, all the modern games I still haven't played, the last few days I've found myself playing Street Fighter 2 The World Warrior which was given away for free last week. Still great, although Street Fighter 2 Turbo is better. But I'm having a great time and I forgot how difficult Bison is. Absolute mad lad.

I'm now thinking of buying the Street Fighter 30th Anniversary Collection. Does anyone have it?
I had most of the titles from one source or another so skipped it. Friend bought it though and its very good. You have to unlock a lot of the stuff so some of it isn't available off the bat but think it was quite enjoyable to unlock. Think it was just complete the game in arcade mode kind of thing to unlock the 3rd version of Street Fighter 3.
 

caid

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I'm playing guardians of the galaxy at the moment. Its fun, very little notable or particularly strong about it just remains consistently solid. The characters and writing are hard not to like. Its a strong feel good, relaxing game to break up the Returnals or Demons Souls or Hollow Knights. Definitely worth a play.
 

afrocentricity

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I didn't hate it but I felt it flattered to deceive in the end which was a big disappointment for me personally considering the potential it had. Don't know how far you are into it but I never finished it and ended up trading it in. Think I got up to about midway through Act III and then decided to give it a break and never ended up going back to it as there was just no urge to play it again. There are some elements that I felt were very good such as the combat/swordplay is absolutely fantastic. Also visually it’s a very beautiful looking game but other than that, I just found it very tedious and boring in the end. The missions both story and side were very predictable & repetitive I felt. Overall it just felt very meh.
What did you think of the Story?
For someone who bangs on that they don't like playing B & C tier games you've played a lot of mediocre shit (especially on VR) and not much of the actual good stuff PS has to offer (TLOU2, GOW)

How far in are you? It had one of the best starts I've played, and whilst I still land on it being a very good game, I do think it overstayed it's welcome and like a lot of so called 'GOAT' games from the last 10 years, not actually that fun all the way through.
What are you on about mate? I'm on act 2 and enjoying the story, visuals and gameplay.
We'll see if I keep that feeling for the duration, this would look sublime in VR by the way.
 

BusbyMalone

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I had most of the titles from one source or another so skipped it. Friend bought it though and its very good. You have to unlock a lot of the stuff so some of it isn't available off the bat but think it was quite enjoyable to unlock. Think it was just complete the game in arcade mode kind of thing to unlock the 3rd version of Street Fighter 3.
Ok, cool.

I've never played the Alpha series so that's the thing that's really tempting me to buy it at the moment.