A Month in Gaming
I last wrote A Month in Gaming post in December. Quite a lot has changed over the last two months. I have abandoned Cyberpunk 2077 as it has totally failed to hold my interest. I just couldn’t get on with the first person perspective. I also stopped playing Neverwinter, despite the game having many appealing elements. Sometimes, when you start an MMORPG that has been running for years, you feel so “behind the curve” that the prospect of catching up with everyone at the endgame is too daunting. And because the Call of Duty franchise has a yearly lifecycle, a new iteration of the game was released in November. Black Ops Cold War subsequently replaced the reboot of Modern Warfare and a lot of the new games content subsequently bled through in the free Battle Royale version. I’d been playing Warzone since last April and it was beginning to get a little stale. So I didn’t buy the latest Battle Pass and decided to move on. And then there’s The Lord of the Rings Online. Let it suffice to say I have completed as much of the latest “mini expansion” as I require and the game is now “on hold”.
I last wrote A Month in Gaming post in December. Quite a lot has changed over the last two months. I have abandoned Cyberpunk 2077 as it has totally failed to hold my interest. I just couldn’t get on with the first person perspective. I also stopped playing Neverwinter, despite the game having many appealing elements. Sometimes, when you start an MMORPG that has been running for years, you feel so “behind the curve” that the prospect of catching up with everyone at the endgame is too daunting. And because the Call of Duty franchise has a yearly lifecycle, a new iteration of the game was released in November. Black Ops Cold War subsequently replaced the reboot of Modern Warfare and a lot of the new games content subsequently bled through in the free Battle Royale version. I’d been playing Warzone since last April and it was beginning to get a little stale. So I didn’t buy the latest Battle Pass and decided to move on. And then there’s The Lord of the Rings Online. Let it suffice to say I have completed as much of the latest “mini expansion” as I require and the game is now “on hold”.
Moving on from what I’m not doing, to what I am, Star Trek Online has been keeping me busy and providing the majority of my gaming entertainment. I have also spent some time perusing various online game retailers back catalogues, to see if I can find something new (or old) that interests me. The latter of these activities is an ongoing undertaking and I have not as yet found an RPG or action game that takes my fancy. Multiple titles fill my “wish lists” but for the moment none of them particularly excite me. Fortunately, STO has been the source of my fun over Christmas and New Year. I created a new TOS era Federation Captain last February and I initially played through the bespoke story arc for that faction. I resumed playing this alt over December and focused on getting them to level cap. As the game's content scales to level, I then started playing through all the major stories in order and benefitted from some of the mission rewards being level appropriate.
I won’t spend too much time waxing lyrical about STO here as I have done that in other posts. I will say that being a licensed game of a major franchise does have advantages and that STO can be very “Trek-like” at times. Most of the missions (apart from some of the earliest ones in the game) are fully voice acted, lore heavy and well conceived. As with LOTRO, it’s often the little touches that will raise a wry smile because of some minor canonical reference. For example, there is a Horta hidden in a side passage of a mine in one particular story. If you defeat the Romulans attacking it you receive the accolade “No Kill I”, which is a joy for any Trek aficionado. Replaying through the various stories was a pertinent reminder as to where this MMOs strength lie. Another noteworthy achievement was that I finally saved sufficient funds to buy the 10th Anniversary Legendary Starship Bundle and have finally got a Tier 6 TOS era Constitution Class ship. I love the Jefferies’ Phase II Constitution Refit skin.
Over the course of February I shall continue with STO, especially now in light of the new Klingon Recruitment Event, which seems to have been very well received. I shall also seek out a new game if possible. At present I’m considering The Council, as it’s an investigative RPG with a focus on dialogue, as opposed to an action driven game. I may have a second attempt at Infectious Madness of Doctor Dekker, as I never managed to complete the story last time round. So far, none of the big triple A titles coming this year particularly excite me. But it’s not as if there’s a shortage of good games to play. It’s really just a question of trying to find the right one for you. No doubt I shall return to LOTRO, as and when they have a content update. I still have Fall Guys installed for when my Granddaughters come and visit.
Cyberpunk 2077 and Third-Person Perspective
There’s no point in dancing around the issue, Cyberpunk 2077 has failed to maintain a hold on me and I have not touched the game for over a week. I have niggles about the combat system and navigating the wonderfully realised world of Night City. The biggest selling points for the game are the central story and the wealth of well conceived side quests. Sadly all of these positive attributes are hamstrung by one fact that ultimately spoils my enjoyment. I don’t care for the first person perspective that developers CD Projekt RED have chosen for the game. I understand that they feel that combat is better served by this mechanic and that the entire FPS genre provides credence to their argument. However, I find that this decision comes at the expense of your character. This is a Role Playing Game with a complex character customisation system. It strikes me as incongruous that after lovingly creating your own concept of V, the main protagonist, that you spend your entire game unable to see them.
There’s no point in dancing around the issue, Cyberpunk 2077 has failed to maintain a hold on me and I have not touched the game for over a week. I have niggles about the combat system and navigating the wonderfully realised world of Night City. The biggest selling points for the game are the central story and the wealth of well conceived side quests. Sadly all of these positive attributes are hamstrung by one fact that ultimately spoils my enjoyment. I don’t care for the first person perspective that developers CD Projekt RED have chosen for the game. I understand that they feel that combat is better served by this mechanic and that the entire FPS genre provides credence to their argument. However, I find that this decision comes at the expense of your character. This is a Role Playing Game with a complex character customisation system. It strikes me as incongruous that after lovingly creating your own concept of V, the main protagonist, that you spend your entire game unable to see them.
An example of the default first-person perspective in Cyberpunk 2077
CD Projekt RED made it clear quite early in the game’s development that Cyberpunk 2077 would be first-person. I hoped that over the years this decision would be tempered and that the final release would include the ability to change between first-person and third-person views, as with Skyrim and The Elder Scrolls Online. Sadly this didn’t exactly happen. The game does provide an optional third-person view when driving and players can view their custom avatar when using the mirror in V’s apartment. But beyond these instances, the game plays out in first-person view. Again there is an argument to be had that this is beneficial for the cutscenes and dialogue options, allowing you to see the facial animations of the characters that you’re interacting with. Due to the lack of peripheral vision which is a foible of the first-person view in video games, the arrival of new people can catch you unaware. This does add to the drama sometimes. However, the opposite is also true. The locked in, first-person perspective restricts you and impacts upon your effectiveness in combat.
A glitch shows the native third-person model is “malformed”
Because the game is not designed to support a continuous external view of your character, it has been discovered that your avatar is quite bizarre when viewed in third-person. Several gamers have posted videos on YouTube showing a glitch allowing them a third-person perspective and their avatar is missing a head and has a strange elongated body. However, that has not discouraged the modding community. Jelle Bakker has created a means to play the game in third person although it is by his own admission not perfect and remains a work in progress. So far, the results are interesting although rapidly turning causes your character’s hips to become out of sync with the upper body. At present combat in this perspective breaks the character animations with limbs missing or moving unrealistically. Swimming is also somewhat stilted, lacking in sufficient leg movement.
The current third-person mod breaks character animations
I did some research on various permutations of this mod, as obviously others gamers are attempting to do the same. So far I’ve not seen any footage of dialogue scenes from the main story shown in third-person. Perhaps it cannot be implemented during these parts of the game for technical reasons. Or it may be a case that I just haven’t found the right video so far. What I may do is postpone any further playing of Cyberpunk 2077 and wait for the game to be patched further by developer CD Projekt RED and see how development of this mod progresses. If it can be perfected and easily integrated into the game then I may attempt a new play through and see if the third-person perspective makes the experience more enjoyable. Perhaps this mod may even lead to a formally produced third-person patch by CD Projekt RED at some point. We can but dream.
A Year in Gaming
Retrospective posts such as this can be a sprawling mess. There is also potential to cover the same old ground that I’ve covered in my monthly summaries “A Month in Gaming”. So I’ll try to be as succinct as I can. Firstly I won’t dwell too much on the iniquities of the video game industry as I’ve covered that elsewhere. Let it suffice to say that the notion of the “rock star developer” and the ethical publisher have proven false. Buying a triple A mainstream game is as morally compromised as buying a pair of jeans made by child labour. But let’s not get caught up in ethics. That’s another post. The pandemic meant that I, like many others, had far more leisure time this year and hence I spent that time gaming. It’s been a good year for video games publishers and the revenue has rolled in. Have I had fun while playing more games? Yes. The games have proven engaging and they also provide a lot to write about, so it’s a win, win scenario from my perspective.
Retrospective posts such as this can be a sprawling mess. There is also potential to cover the same old ground that I’ve covered in my monthly summaries “A Month in Gaming”. So I’ll try to be as succinct as I can. Firstly I won’t dwell too much on the iniquities of the video game industry as I’ve covered that elsewhere. Let it suffice to say that the notion of the “rock star developer” and the ethical publisher have proven false. Buying a triple A mainstream game is as morally compromised as buying a pair of jeans made by child labour. But let’s not get caught up in ethics. That’s another post. The pandemic meant that I, like many others, had far more leisure time this year and hence I spent that time gaming. It’s been a good year for video games publishers and the revenue has rolled in. Have I had fun while playing more games? Yes. The games have proven engaging and they also provide a lot to write about, so it’s a win, win scenario from my perspective.
So, what have I played? Let’s start with MMOs.
Star Trek Online: This game celebrated its ten year anniversary this year and celebrated with a lore infused two part story in February which was an utter joy to fans. Sadly the pandemic has somewhat reduced the flow of major story content but there has been further feature episodes produced. I rolled a new character and raised them to level cap by playing events and Task Force Operations. I’m now trying to play through all story missions in order and refamiliarize myself with the narrative arc of the game, which has become confused over the years. I finally achieved my long term goal and obtained a Tier 6 Constitution Legendary Miracle Worker Light Cruiser (a ship that looks like the original Enterprise) and I’m enjoying slowly working towards gear upgrades and advancing in-game systems. When you already have a high end alt that basically has everything available in the game it can become somewhat dull playing that character. Having to start from scratch another is quite challenging. Plus I just love the Trek vibe that is so strong in this game. It covers a multitude of sins.
The Lord of the Rings Online: LOTRO gave away a wealth of content free of charge earlier this year and players returned in droves. And then there were the server outages and the games fortunes took a nosedive. The “mini expansion” was obviously done out of dire financial need but it didn’t help flagging community relations. And then at the eleventh hour developer’s Standing Stone Games were bought out by Enad Global 7 and suddenly a wealth of questions that have been outstanding for the last few years became clear. I have enjoyed the content that I played in LOTRO of late but it doesn seem to be stuck in a rinse and repeat mindset. I’m hoping that a new owner will mean that content will come more often and will be broader in scope. I have a great deal of affection for this MMO and I would like to see it continue, rather than slowly fade away. Let’s see if a Producer’s Letter and a “roadmap” are forthcoming in early 2021.
Neverwinter: I returned to this game briefly for the first time since its beta test in 2013. I enjoyed the hybrid style of action combat and the atmosphere and aesthetic of the game. But it makes that typical MMO mistake of focusing too much on endgame and trivialising the early content. So I have already drifted away.
The Elder Scrolls Online: I started the year playing ESO but as I stated before, you can’t have too many MMOs on the go at the same time or else you end up spreading yourself too thinly and not getting enough enjoyment out of any of them. So I stopped subscribing but briefly returned in June for the Greymoor expansion. Oddly, I wrote a post about Harrowstorms providing a simple guide regarding where they occur and the quickest way to get to them. It proved one of the most popular items I’ve written in 2020.
Dauntless: Not strictly an MMO but it does share a lot of similar mechanics. This is another game that I played during its initial testing period. I returned to find it streamlined, polished and great fun. It is similar to Monster Hunter: World but far more accessible and sociable. It’s well worth a try and has a great art style.
Single player and multiplayer games:
Deathtrap Dungeon: A superb adaptation of the Ian Livingstone adventure book with its branching narrative. An avuncular Eddie Master sits in an armchair and narrates the story while the player chooses text based options. Combat is carried out by the roll of virtual dice. It’s wonderfully old school and an utter breath of fresh air from modern glossy triple A guff.
Call of Duty Warzone/Modern Warfare: I finally returned to the FPS genre after a break of seven or eight years. I bought this reboot of Modern Warfare in April and by that time, Warzone, the Battle Royale version of the game, had just launched. Simply put I had great fun playing up until November and then the next iteration of CoD was launched. Warzone endures but is now weighted towards content from the latest instalment Black Ops: Cold War. Modern Warfare will no longer receive any content updates for multiplayer and its player base will slowly diminish. All of which is an object lesson in the ephemeral nature of video games and the franchise treadmill.
Fall Guys: A fun Battle Royale game? Can there be such a thing? Yes. And Fall Guys: Ultimate Knockout is just that. I find that if I play this sparingly, then I don’t get too frustrated. It’s amusing to dress up in silly virtual costumes and indulge in what I can only describe as a video game version of Takeshi Castle. However, I still think the game needs some tweaking to adjust certain “human factors”. Plus I haven’t yet won five games in a row and gained a crown. I doubt if I ever will. That peeves me. However, my Granddaughters love this game so I’ll keep it installed.
The Sinking City: Frogwares make the popular Sherlock Holmes games and so The Sinking City shares a lot of the same investigative mechanics. It does have some bugs and not all the mechanics are as engaging as they could be but I really liked this odd, Lovecraft inspired game. It’s very atmospheric. Sometimes a game’s imperfections can be part of its appeal.
Cyberpunk 2077: Let us not discuss the hype surrounding this game or the fickle nature of gamers that projected their own hopes and dreams on to this product. CD Projeckt Red have tanked their own reputation by releasing broken versions for the previous generation of consoles and the game remains controversial. At some point I may write a lengthy blog post on my thoughts on this game, now that I’ve played sufficient to assess it. The short version of that future analysis is as follows. I love the story and the characters because it addresses complex adult issues in a challenging fashion. But I dislike the first person perspective and find that it ruins combat, which is in itself somewhat underwhelming. I never understand why a game that gives you such a rich and varied character creator and then elects to never let you see yourself in-game. Cyberpunk 2077 offers a big, visually impressive immersive world but it is lacking in interaction. It doesn’t feel as alive as the city of Los Santos in GTA V, although it looks better. My advice to those curious about this game is to buy it in six month times when it’s patched and on sale. And adjust your expectations accordingly.
So that’s what I played in 2020. Broadly I had fun. As for next year, I suspect I’ll keep playing games in a similar fashion. MMOs will continue to provide a staple and I’ll try various single player titles as the year progresses. It is customary when approaching the New Year to make predictions and many of my blogging friends will be doing such. I shall now bring the benefit of my fifty three years of “wisdom” to bear on the matter and give my thoughts on what is to come over the next twelve months. Game developers will hype and over sell their products. Gamers will get over excited and partisan debates will divide the community. Some folk will make lots of money and others won’t. Some games will be fun and others will not. Some gamers will be massive assholes, where others will be cuddly and nice. We’ll all keep grumbling but we’ll also keep playing. Finally, no matter how much things change, they will essentially stay the same. And Dwarves will still jump around annoyingly in my peripheral vision while I’m perusing the auction house. See you next year.
Cyberpunk 2077: Too Much Information
In 1979 I started learning French, as it was a standard part of the UK school curriculum then. For the first year or two, I remember learning the rules of French grammar and keeping pace with what was being taught. And then in the third year, something odd happened. I was asked a question one day and my mind was blank. This wasn’t a case of forgetting something that one can recall when prompted. No. This was due to an informational void. I found myself at a point where I was suddenly and totally out of my depth. Somehow in the months prior, I had reached a point where I had stopped comprehending and absorbing what was being taught. And I had now strayed beyond and was no longer equipped to deal with the situation. For those wondering where I am going with this analogy, allow me to clarify. I found myself in a similar situation with the role playing game, Cyberpunk 2077, within hours (not years) of starting it.
In 1979 I started learning French, as it was a standard part of the UK school curriculum then. For the first year or two, I remember learning the rules of French grammar and keeping pace with what was being taught. And then in the third year, something odd happened. I was asked a question one day and my mind was blank. This wasn’t a case of forgetting something that one can recall when prompted. No. This was due to an informational void. I found myself at a point where I was suddenly and totally out of my depth. Somehow in the months prior, I had reached a point where I had stopped comprehending and absorbing what was being taught. And I had now strayed beyond and was no longer equipped to deal with the situation. For those wondering where I am going with this analogy, allow me to clarify. I found myself in a similar situation with the role playing game, Cyberpunk 2077, within hours (not years) of starting it.
When the first teaser trailer for Cyberpunk 2077 was released back in 2013 I was nominally interested. However, after playing The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, I became more enthusiastic about the game and the developer’s CD Projekt Red. If it had a similar narrative depth as their successful fantasy based RPG, then it could well be a further genre defining title. Sadly, as soon as it became apparent that the game was going to be in first person perspective, my initial excitement waned. I can tolerate this mechanic in the FPS genre, often where the story is not that important. But in a genre such as the RPG, I think it is essential that you see your avatar from a third person perspective. Especially so when there are dense stories and it is important for the player to have an emotional connection with their avatar. To cut a long story short, over the length of Cyberpunk 2077 long development cycle, I slowly lost interest in the game and was not planning to buy it at launch. And then someone surprised me by “gifting” me a copy as an early birthday present. So I decided to dive right in and play with minimal knowledge regarding the state of the final release.
Now one of the reasons I like the RPG genre is because they usually offer complex stories. A good one is like an interactive novel. Therefore, when I fire up a game such as Cyberpunk 2077 and start playing, I have the subtitles on for all dialogue and I take my time when choosing branching narrative responses. I like to weigh up each reply and consider its ramifications. Just as I do in real life. So I was surprised and far from impressed by some of the timed response sequences that force the player to make a hasty decision on some dialogue choices within a few seconds. This annoys me because my analytical mind will continuously reflect upon whether I have hamstrung myself at some future point in the game. Something that detracts from my ongoing enjoyment of the game in what we call the “moment”.
Another aspect of the game that I struggled with is the collecting and reading of story related data. There are portable drives which are broadly the equivalent of books and scrolls in other fantasy based RPGs. They contain information on characters, institutions and the world the game is set in. I initially started reading each one when collected but I soon put pay to that. As this is a new IP there is a lot to learn and I simply couldn’t assimilate all of this lore in such a manner. Plus on top of all this, there are numerous text messages continuously coming to your in-game phone, plus further messages and data on the computer in your apartment. Naturally not all of it is mission critical but some of it is illuminating in providing backstory to the game world. As such I feel obliged to read it all, otherwise why am I playing an RPG in the first place? If I just want to shoot stuff I can play any FPS.
Naturally, a major part of Cyberpunk 2077 is hacking. One specific type, breach protocol, involves “jacking in” to a terminal and then trying to select a specific sequence of numbers in a short period of time. You are not expected to complete all sequences (there are usually 3) to win, and successfully breach the system you’re hacking. However, the game does an utterly appalling job at explaining a system that is far from clear cut. When I was first confronted with this mechanic it was 2:30 AM and I simply could not comprehend what I was being told to do. It was immensely frustrating. And the game has several other foibles that are equally as frustrating. For example I wanted to get to a particular part of Night City to see if the shops offered more stylish clothing. I set a waypoint on the map and attempted to drive there. But when I crossed into certain areas my screen played a glitch animation and I found myself facing the opposite direction. It seems you cannot just traverse the world as you see fit and some areas don’t open until you reach a certain point in the main story.
Essentially, I have blundered my way through 10 hours of Cyberpunk 2077 and completed 2% of content according to the GOG Galaxy launcher. I have enjoyed aspects of the game but I feel I may have missed some optimal outcomes with my decisions and actions. I don’t feel empowered, enthused or challenged by this. I simply want to trash my existing character and start again. Until I started writing this post, I was slowly sinking because there was “too much information”, as Gordon Sumner sang. However, I have now decided to simply approach the game in a far less methodical fashion. I may even limit the length of my play sessions so I do not find myself going down too many rabbit holes. Often I find myself sounding like a stuck record, repeating the same old observations ad infinitum. Again we have a game that has a poor tutorial and doesn’t adequately inform the player about essential mechanics. Cyberpunk 2077 has also been a timely reminder about the perils of being an early adopter. I suspect the game of the year edition will be far more polished and streamlined. In the meantime I shall continue to play like a child on a bike with training wheels.
Update: I decided to delete my current alt and progress so I could start all over again. I’m also using a Xbox controller for the driving sequences and a keyboard and mouse for the remainder of the game.
Cyberpunk 2077 Gameplay Reveal: 48-Minute Walkthrough
Two months ago, those attending E3 tradeshow were afforded a behind-the-scenes demo of Cyberpunk 2077 by developer CD Projekt Red. Finally, that same footage has been made available to the general public today. Here is the link. I do recommend that you watch the entire video and assimilate the details. Because, I’m sure there’s going to be a great deal of hyperbole, bluster and hype going around in the next 48 hours regarding the Cyberpunk 2077 Gameplay Reveal on You Tube. I’m sure there’ll also be a handful of professional malcontents who’ll immediately look to find fault or take a critical posture because, hey, that’s what some folks do. Speaking as a mature player of games, who takes a calm and measured approach to marketing and tries not to get sucked into the hysteria that can sometimes arise from the wider community, I must say I am intrigued by what I’ve seen so far.
Two months ago, those attending E3 tradeshow were afforded a behind-the-scenes demo of Cyberpunk 2077 by developer CD Projekt Red. Finally, that same footage has been made available to the general public today. Here is the link. I do recommend that you watch the entire video and assimilate the details. Because, I’m sure there’s going to be a great deal of hyperbole, bluster and hype going around in the next 48 hours regarding the Cyberpunk 2077 Gameplay Reveal on You Tube. I’m sure there’ll also be a handful of professional malcontents who’ll immediately look to find fault or take a critical posture because, hey, that’s what some folks do. Speaking as a mature player of games, who takes a calm and measured approach to marketing and tries not to get sucked into the hysteria that can sometimes arise from the wider community, I must say I am intrigued by what I’ve seen so far.
I was very impressed by CD Projekt Red’s last game, The Witcher III: Wild Hunt. I liked the open world, the aesthetic of the game and its level of complexity. It managed to balance the technical requirements of an RPG, with gear, skills points and system progression and ensure that it didn’t tip over into an excess of resource management. But above all I loved the story. It eschewed the binary morals of other games and offered us a world of hard decisions, complexity and consequences. And this is what appears to be at the heart of Cyberpunk 2077. Furthermore, the Gameplay Reveal seems to indicate that there are multiple paths to take with each mission that shape the outcome of content later in the game. Again, the balance between systems, the complexity of combat and narrative progression seems to be appropriate. As for the issue of first person perspective that has already been hotly debated, it seems to be justified from what I’ve seen. The way it reverts to third person for cutscenes and exposition looks like a good compromise.
I suspect that as well as a lot of hype, Cyberpunk 2077 is also going to encounter a lot of controversy as it’s release date gets close. The game is overtly political (by the developers own admission) and will explore a great deal of adult and challenging themes. Violence, transhumanism and evolving human identity will not be welcome in some quarters. And anything of a sexual nature always ruffles the feathers of the usual suspects. Oh, I’m certain that Cyberpunk 2077 will be pilloried in corners of the gaming community. Another potential issue is going to be the games minimum specifications. I think this may be the title that will force me finally replace my current four-year-old PC. However, I shall temper my modest enthusiasm, with a pinch of cynicism that I’ve learned the hard way after thirty plus years of gaming. “There’s many a slip between cup and lip” as the old saying goes. So, for the immediate future, I’ll remain just “interested” and content to just, watch, wait and reflect upon Cyberpunk 2077.