Forspoken

goofing around a bit with the 'new powers'

Forspoken

Gothic Remake Demo from GOG

Well, i guess it is officially the now most demanding game ever played by my PC... and most likely it is top 5 of most demanding games all time, at highest settings, of course.

Pretty sure a lot of mid range PC´s can play it fine at average settings. Although my demand was to provide some "picture hunting" and trying to get the full graphical potential out of it, no matter the cost. At the highest 1080P settings "Alkimia Overdose" it is for a RPG still barely playable on my machine but surely not "smooth" anymore in most cases. Still... i was surprised how "nice" the games engine still was behaving at very low FPS... it does feel like "higher FPS" than what i actually got on my tracking tool. On top of that... in average it is still around 35 FPS i guess... but if i try to make a shot at the most crazy stuff... it may drop as low as 25 FPS for a moment.

In 4k i would say the only GPU able to still keep up over 30 FPS is a 5090, no other card i assume. The only issue is simply... this card may start to burn at full load... while my "old but good" 3090 TI will just draw a lot of juice but otherwise it will be as stable as "a rock from Gothic"... so nothing to worry here. Ah yeah, sure, it could run cooler but it would mean more noise, so i was limiting it to 81C at maximum load which is safe and not "to noisy".

Guess i will play it at second highest settings = Gothic Setting for extended period, which is way lesser demanding at 60 FPS and just half the GPU load... so actually 4 times less demanding... which is a huge difference. The graphic quality is still very good at the "Gothic Setting"... so i would recommend using the Gothic Setting for most mid range GPUs.

Surely some pretty impressive stuff to see... sometimes i feel it is very close to "photo realism" and almost unable to say "is it from a game or perhaps taken somewhere in the wilds or reality".

Guess we now have a "modernized Gothic" thats for sure... lets just see if the gameplay is doing just "as well".

Actually, i can play everything at almost 60 FPS in full settings, as long as I drop ONLY the Global Illumination Setting down to "Gothic-Settings", so near full quality at good performance is possible. Actually i see no visible difference between Gothic and Alkimia Overdose "on Global Illumination", although the performance hit is crazy with around 2-3 times more demand... which is insane if anyone would trade so many performance for a nearly "invisible" graphic boost... so i definitely recommend no to go above Gothic-Settings here and all will be fine.

https://ibb.co/ycx0Dtyq
https://ibb.co/v6y6KVWL
https://ibb.co/rKRY3LCL
https://ibb.co/Z6B7J3VV
https://ibb.co/svzCvJVX
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https://ibb.co/YSLQG93

Host: https://ibb.co/

Not providing GOG links this time, it would suffer to much quality loss because the biggest PNG is over 3.5 MB, simply so much details.

Islands of insight

https://images.steamusercontent.com/ugc/11925850703312015/C6E7F5D97711CDCD0657055DC21B34E04090370D/
https://images.steamusercontent.com/ugc/11925850703313835/76927B2ABB7C9A6BA9534910A5D747144B009F80/
https://images.steamusercontent.com/ugc/11925850703313331/0BF2E3554C258F295592389F1E43783E45605A91/
https://images.steamusercontent.com/ugc/11925850703312955/B4A6677616146EA51050C08E2CED08BC4A144676/
https://images.steamusercontent.com/ugc/11925850703312510/0927CDA5073C689450B60928902287B13224C0B6/
https://images.steamusercontent.com/ugc/11925850703314100/12C14CA986D893EBA281B10F3C5DDF5E38D20B5C/

I got my BD disc of Monster Hunter Wilds now. I already started playing it 1 day sooner than the huge load of Steam users tomorrow. Actually first time i ever paid full price for a Monster Hunter, and the only reason is because it was a PS5 BD with a Steelbook... which was sold out (in my country at least... perhaps other countries got way to much... dunno why) many months before release already. Additionally, the reviewers say "it is great", although they rarely say something bad else they will not get a review code anymore.

Is it really that good? Good question, there was surely lot of actions right from the start... i was barely able to breathe.

I would say it is the typical Monster Hunter with some touch of Demon Souls...

Some background:

The series is actually pretty old... however... it was mostly a "handheld-life service game" for the Japanese market... in the past. This has changed with the big success of "Monster Hunter World", actually the "5. generation" of this series.

1. Gen: Monster Hunter up to Monster Hunter Freedom: PS2 & PSP: 2004-2005 (not recommended)
2. Gen: Monster Hunter 2 up to Monster Hunter Freedom Unite: 2006-2009 (PS2 and PSP i do recommend)
3. Gen: Monster Hunter 3 up to Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate: 2010-2013 (PSP and WiiU i do recommend)
4. Gen: Monster Hunter 4 up to Monster Hunter GU: 2015-2018 (3DS and Switch i do recommend)
5. Gen: Monster Hunter World Iceborn up to MH Rise Sunbreak: 2019-2022 (both i do recommend)

And now we are at the 6. Gen and it seems now the biggest hype ever has started for its new entry. I think the "big breakthrough" in the West was the 5. Gen... so it happened in the past 6 years with PC-Steam and Switch, partially PS4/PS5, as its platforms.

For some weird reason the game apparently is connection to a server... certainly owned by Capcom, as soon as i create a character. The first time the game was unable to connect, so the game was hanging without any changes. Because of the very restrictive design i had to restart the game and all the data i created was simply gone.

However, the second time i tried it finally worked and new characters can be added as well. The option for deleting a old character is working too but it is safe to say, as soon as a character is made the only way of "changing its appearance" is by buying some recreation-tickets at a salty "microtransaction-price" which is of course not tasty at all: Considering the fact this is a full price game and not a "free to play". Still, as long as nobody is providing something better Capcom can charge whatever they feel like. I worry... if for some reason the server is not working anymore... the character data might be lost and... even worse... the creation of a new character might become impossible. This is just a wild guess now, as i totally dunno how it might be solved in such a case.

Currently it is hard to say how it is exactly working. In my mind, the games save is stored on the Capcom server, so... it will need a internet connection in order to play, just in order to actually access this data, which is a DRM layer, no need to mince words. At least there is no account required, apart from PSN (or Steam...).

Anyway, here some screenshots from the beginning, made from my PS5 Pro.

Character selection https://ibb.co/BVbDbXR5
Equipment Info https://ibb.co/wFRnkY18
Portrait https://ibb.co/9k7FJD9B
The first slash https://ibb.co/wFD2xRjv
Meeting https://ibb.co/Gv3Y5Q1c
Preparation! https://ibb.co/fYW9h8sY
The journey will start https://ibb.co/KjWSsDLf

Well, i was not able to play a bit more of Monster Hunter Wilds. When we was arriving at the oasis it was basically time for "picking up and testing out" a weapon, there are 17 weapon classes currently present in this new entry. Personally, i felt the highest affinity toward charge blade and dual blades. The charge blade is interesting because it is a hybrid between a rather fast single sword with a shield and a "hammer weapon" which can be switched by attaching the shield to the sword. Although, if the weapon is in "hammer mode" the movement is very slow, yet a strong attack with a good range is possible. In "sword and shield mode" the movement is pretty quick, it will allow for defending me, but the attack power is limited. In the end, i was still deciding for the dual blades as it will simply allow for fastest movement which i generally feel good about. The only weak spot is its lack of a defence-stance, so avoiding attacks by moving a lot is critical. It is as well with good attack-power if "demon mode" is used, although in this mode it will drain a lot of stamina, so it is not suitable without "taking some rest" if there is lesser opportunity for a strong blow.

I can certainly say, the weapon classes and its versatility is one of the special elements creating some interesting gameplay and it surely takes some time getting the most out of it.

Anyway, after testing out all the weapons at the oasis i was taking the mount in order to continue with the "story-line".

It did not take long for the first monster to challenge us, which of course... along with the weapon types is actually the most important part of the game and its gameplay. The flight was cool and it surely made a lot of fun in this pretty action-based combat. The monster was fleeing several times, so i had to use the mount°° in order to follow it. At some point the monster was trying to find a "place to rest"... during combat and when i finally was able to catch it... i found it sleeping somewhere... it seems to be exhausted from the battle. I almost felt sorry for interrupting the rest but if i do not slay it my quest will not become finished... so... a few more slashes and it was over. °°The mount does not seem to be "named", unlike in Monster Hunter Rise-Sunbreak where the mount is "personalized".

Some people say... there is no HP bar for the monsters and indeed it is not possible to tell "how much health" there is left... which is the case for every Monster Hunter, unless some tools is used for revealing it. However... i feel it is disturbing displaying it directly at the monster... instead it should be displayed at the UI (same as character). Exact informations is as well not really that cool because it is important to "understand" those monsters which may make some moves or actions at a certain condition. By revealing any condition it makes a player "immune" for detecting those interesting "hints". So, while a HP bar (at the UI) i would still enjoy... i would not want detailed infos.

Anyway, after the first monster has been slain we was arriving at the first small camp...

So, far i would say the game is great... i definitely enjoy it. The only issue is that the game is plagued by some technical issues, such as "connection issues to the server" and the server is sometimes required (save is stored server side it seems... if the game can not access the save... it can cause lot of troubles linked to it). However... if the game is losing the connection (which can happen, as the server does not seem to be great) the game can still be played... yet i can not say what will happen if it continues being "offline" all the time (because of the save).

So, apart from the typical "customer hostile" or overly "DRM friendly" attitude from Capcom it is a great game and so far i was not able to detect even more issues on the PS5 Pro. I hope (well never lose hope) that Capcom at some point might turn to become more open minded to more customer friendly approaches, including DRM free (yes, i demand the almost impossible) and i would say... they will get even more happy customers this way... which can be a win for both sides. The games... and especially Monster Hunter Wilds is great... (if i take away the issues i already mentioned) so i would back it up, or "thumb up" that game.

Perhaps i may create a album for some higher amount of pictures as this game seems to be "complex", so it may need some better "amount".

Rest at the Oasis https://ibb.co/ycHqgxzw
Choosing a weapon https://ibb.co/21F5qkgz
Taking the mount https://ibb.co/ymWxqTLZ
Troubles by a monster https://ibb.co/PvCst12S
The first threat https://ibb.co/93GRCJwW
Focused attack (L2+R1) https://ibb.co/hF1RzTYx
Help from Palico https://ibb.co/hJZpwf1t
Heat of battle https://ibb.co/bGpSjJ6
Hurray! https://ibb.co/S8rTmVq
Quest Complete! https://ibb.co/Mxy6BzbQ
Hunters destiny https://ibb.co/zhWNfhS9
Palico! https://ibb.co/svtmT9mb
Taking some rest https://ibb.co/qFXzZ1vr

Hosted by https://ibb.co

On topic of Monster Hunter, it's apparently a much bigger phenomenon than I had thought. Never played a single game, from the series, honestly barely knew anything about it. But the recent release very quickly reached almost 1 million concurrent players on Steam. Which has me wondering - what made the series explode so hard?

It really exploded around after the release of Monster Hunter: Worlds (i.e. the fifth mainline entry) in 2018. The third and fourth entries were mostly well received and had reasonable sales, in the millions. Not sure why the sales increased tenfold, though. I'd just end up quoting an article for some outlet without really knowing.

oh lol.... So supportive....

and that is how i felt in Total War Warhammer 2. Supported, all the lizards are mending me back in one of my favourite campaigns. Tecliss!

Aft first i thought it beneficial, but those green eyed snakes are expanding in such manner i started feeling doubtful about a shared future.

And now, hah . . . i'm stalling support in yet another of their wars, without looking too suspicious, i hope. Grinning when news arrives of yet another loss, hoping with an eager heart that Elven goals are granted certain victory.

One of my favorite bard songs about a young wizard who slowly learns to wield powerful magic manages to capture its listener hearts with an excellent combination of various stimuli. Imagine yourself immersed in learning the secrets of Elven nature, for example, the why it is so important to appreciate victory. Accompanied by glorious notes, dance and foods.

Tal' Varash!

"What little we know one thing is certain...We survived."

Astrox Imperium

We encountered Orcs!
While exploring Eastern Lands, past the Great Southern Sea, we encountered a damaged lonely vessel filled with regenating Orcs. We sunk their vessel and ordered out the scouts. 'Expedition' shows the result. Far in barren lands we managed to gain a foothold which we will slowly rebuild into a proper Elven outpost.

The other screenshots show the end result of a treasure hunt. Battle! against a superior force. Shots 1,2,3, show the first steps into 'cheesing' this battle from a heroic loss into a phyric victory. By moving forces forward, the enemy responds by deploying all of their forces into the watery plains segment of the map.
Shot 4 shows the brave Commander (mage) and the Paladin assigned to the force. After managing the death of the Monstrous Crab, he took a sip of a healing potion and he dominated the battlefield everywhere he went

edit attachment:

battle 4

Last night gave good ol' Andromeda another try....

This is the first game that let's me feel like : "I really made a superduperupgrade with my pc" for those that missed that specific post about me telling about me new purchase... I bought an intel ultra cpu \o/ Shader loading is ultra fast now.... also went a bit overboard in game.... 75 fps, set the custom resolution scaler at 1,4.... everything ultra ofc! 64 bit compression format averaging at 250W... if not for the GPU limit set to 294W.
Played for a couple of hours and felt really amazed about how my gpu fans did not cross the 900RPM threshold!

Now, Andromeda is, to me, one of those special games..... I bought the game after launch but felt a bit ridiculous with Scott, did try a couple of times but never managed to get really far without feeling either confused or lost.

After switching to Sarah, i immediately felt more in place while gaming. Still it took the better part of 5 years before i really started to develop some sort of appreciation, others could argue that the appreciation is the reason why i kept trying but i'm not sure. My mind likes to wander!

So, here i am, really really appreciating Andromeda.... but for the love of it. I just kept failing playing through the game.
Hardware issues!
Or software, your pick.
The previous 5 playthroughs all managed to gain the attention of non wanted game bugs, oh, and one time a clean windows install while forgetting cloudsave was turned off.

Let me tell you, this was,is utterly frustrating!
Who knows though, maybe it was the gods,
conspiring to bring me best of the best in playthroughs.....

What i'm am getting at ....

Sights of Andromeda
~Fresh beginnings~

Edit:

Had to 'shrink' ... a lot!

After over 30 hours playtime and 17 Large Monsters beaten, which are boss-type monsters, i got some more insight related to Monster Hunter Wilds.

The "bad" stuff first: I dunno how it works on Steam but on PSN Online play is basically a "Freemium" (combination of Free and Premium) model or a Hybrid-Free to Play (full price game with micro transactions and paid online-play services), basically the full "payment-package". Which we already knew but i can verify it goes more far than just "cosmetics". It is hard to say if i could call it "Pay to Win"; but it is absolutely possible considering the games mechanics and the possibilities involved which can make good use of teamwork, especially with Squad members involved (which basically is a guild function, limited to 50 members a squad). In many cases, i assume, many players may feel "pushed" into subscriptions, and in order to "show them what they are missing" they allow a few "basic functionalities".

A few basic Online functions are free using PSN, although, those basic functions only will allow to "join a squad channel" and to use "SOS function", so other players should be able to assist on bosses and quests. Online quests and buying DLCs (Capcom would be stupid locking it behind a paywall) may work as well but any other functionalities are disabled. While the price is not low for someone who may just use "teamplay" and nothing else; the bigger concern is the payment option and the "auto renewal" of the subscription. Sure, they say it can be "canceled" but reality is... it is easy paying for a subscription but in many cases it can be hard canceling it. In some cases the payment option itself may be problematic (i do stay away from credit cards... not everyone is loving it). So, just as a warning... without subscription and perhaps some useful (i can not judge its usefulness now as they will become added over time, so far not so many DLCs released) DLCs... the full game experience is not possible.

Another true concern is the in general bad technical shape... some of it i already was bringing up: Sometimes bad online connection. Another possible issue is graphical glitches, for example the texture may all of a sudden look very flat up to the point the game is even crashing (so texture loading issues) and as well sometimes weird artifacting which is unique to Capcom as i did not experience something comparable on any other game. Performance is not great, this is well know on every platform... so it will need a powerful hardware if it should be playable and hopefully still with good graphics. I feel, PS5 Pro is the "minimum" hardware for a good experience, not the maximum... and the old PS5 is probably already struggling a bit. Another concern is the sometimes weird gamma value which will not allow for "true black", no clue how it comes... Luckily, the true game-breaking glitches or bugs are pretty rare, so in general the game is surely playable. Still... many stuff are adding up and the technical director... whoever it is... was not doing a good job, so i can not back it up and if i got a saying here: I would look for someone better...

Now the good stuff: The art style is surely awesome, the gameplay is great.. so, those responsible for should become promoted. I am spoiled way to heavy... so i barely touch any game for longer than a couple of hours if it is not awesome... and this game i was touching for over 30 hours in a few days already, so it was passing my "connoisseur-test", which is a tough feat.

Considering gameplay and how it looks: I am now HR (Hunter Rank) 6 which is actually second highest possible for the first playthrough. It can be considered "easy mode" or some people call it "tutorial"... however we may call it. In this mode the maximum HR is 7, so i am almost capped yet. I guess in some more hours i may be finish with my first playthrough; if that is done... i will reach HR7 and the new "high rank mode" which starts at HR8. In HR8 the rank will be displayed green and it is basically "the true mode"... and the game kinda will start new with "fresh gears". I am not sure regarding the "rarity cap"... most likely in "normal mode" it is 4 or 5, which i already partially got.

In hard mode the possible rarity is probably 8+ which is then displayed in orange or even red colors. Rarity up to 7 is displayed in purple, which is already a very high rarity (comparable to epic in some games) and orange or red is kinda "legendary". No easy feat... it surely will take hundreds of hours into achieving it. Some of my squad members got it... which is not possible without beta-characters, so they was able to transfer their character from beta-servers.

Monster Hunter Wilds seems to be offering 29 "Large Monsters" (20 completely new, 9 from old games) in total, which is not the highest amount... rather on the low end. The highest amount so far (excluding spin off) we was able to experience in Monster Hunter GU, it got 93 Large Monsters in total. However... it may become updated with a lot of new "Large Monsters" in the not to far future and most likely as a addon.

Regarding weapons, there is a primary and secondary weapon. The secondary weapon is stored at the mount, so in order to "switch it" the mount need to be called, which is always on the battlefield. I was testing a lot... yet the slower weapons in general are not my thing. I feel "rooted" using them, as movement is barely possible. However, they allow for a very strong guard which can block even very nasty stuff, not usual in a game. The monsters on the other hand can move with "crazy speeds"... no matter how big they are... kinda funny at times but this is simply the "Monster Hunter mechanics". Some foe attacks got such a huge range that a block can be truly awesome; yet not every weapon can use it. Sometimes the attack got the range of the entire area or the monster will become enraged and at this point the best a hunter can do is simply "to block it" until the monster has become exhausted (it got stamina... still). This is even possible with "secondary weapons"... one of many reasons why to to use it.

Finally... i was testing out this possibility and so far the Lance was the best blocking-weapon and even with a "easy to use" attack, so i made it my secondary weapon on first loadout, in term a certain boss will need a block in some cases. This is basically my "block build". The second loadout is for when no block is needed but instead it will give me a "ranged alternative" as a weapon. In some cases it is tricky or dangerous going to close... in this case the ranged weapon can be used.

In general... i feel as a primary weapon the handling is critical and its offensive potency. For my play style the Insect Glaive and the Dual Blades are about head to head as a primary weapon, and both can be great at times. The best ranged weapon seems to be the Bow... and defensive was Lance for me. So i am gonna focus on those 4 weapons for now... which will make my game more efficient and easier getting the skill for those.

The Bow is basically the "ranged Dual Blades"... very fast movement possible. The Insect Glaive is something between closed and ranged combat: Pretty special... so it can allow me to even pass on a ranged on that loadout.

Another use for the loadout is to pair certain resistance gears so it can be adapted to the monster and its needs. Although this is rather a "endgame" thing and currently this is "over the top" for what i need.

New character selection https://ibb.co/RkJdvz7v
Equipment loadout https://ibb.co/pBwg9D2q
Large monsters slain (basically bosses) https://ibb.co/V0hv2Y0k
We rox! https://ibb.co/B20mbt9f
In search for the truth https://ibb.co/93SjH5ZT
So far toughest monster https://ibb.co/LdHnwQ96
Where to go? https://ibb.co/21RrJ6X8
Squad menu https://ibb.co/mCFdJkqj
Highest level squad member https://ibb.co/232fbR7w
Holy tree! https://ibb.co/r211r57k
Camp at the Crimson Forest https://ibb.co/p6ySntWG
Straight from hell and just as hot https://ibb.co/1YpRp9Df
Black... the other words is "hot" https://ibb.co/GfDk9vqJ
Those "lesser bosses" still pack a punch https://ibb.co/35dvW9RM
Not sure what it was... large for certain https://ibb.co/kVB0SfLR

Well, now the first playthrough has been done and i was arriving at the "true mode" with HR8, so, now the "real game" will start. Gonna make some break first as it has been pretty intense the past few days, which happens very rarely. Somehow this game is remembering me at PSO EP 1&2, it kinda got its heritage way better than any other "official follow up", which are.. in my mind... just cheap lifeservice games without the heart nor soul of what made the classic "so great". Of course there are many similarities, for example the hybrid "offline/online"-mode with up to 4 players, many quests, monster parts, weapon/armor elements and of course a lot of monsters of many sizes including boss size. As well a lot of different areas which usually are "locked" for large monster (boss type) fights. Those are simply true games, not some cheap "wannabes" and this love simply can be felt. It kinda got some comparable vibe which i unfortunately was missing for decades related to this type of game. I think if it comes to sheer gameplay Monster Hunter Wilds is probably even the best of the series, although it currently suffers tech issues and a rather limited monster pool. So perhaps if they gonna release a big addon and adding lot of new monsters with quests... it may slowly arrive at the "true spot"... but until now it got many rough edges which may mature... who knows.

Regarding crafting and items... so far i did not need any grind, as in usual it was sufficient simply to keep up a good gameplay by hitting weak spots which is always giving some bonus items. On the final boss a lucky voucher has been used, which is granted once a day for every login (typical free to play mechanic). So i got twice the cash... 20k... so already around 200k. Another option is to use "mission points" for buying items but so far i had more than enough stocks from gathering/crafting. The gathering was never that hassle free, which i find great. It surely is not grindy on items, however... the "high rank grind" is part of the game. The credits was very huge... over 1000 devs involved... so it seems AAA+ size. Some stuff was even done by external studios, a common practice for many AAA games.

HR8 with Veldian Trudis (probably best pre hard-mode Insect Glaive) https://ibb.co/QF4dKFTM
Plenty of options to buy/get items, almost overwhelming https://ibb.co/9mkCmnnH
20 Large Monsters slain, so 9 are missing on "normal" https://ibb.co/35n0r00W
Vines... a common thing, the environment is rarely "flat" https://ibb.co/vx4wvXbm
Some great view https://ibb.co/TxNDxFHv
Respect the nature! https://ibb.co/vpNbXTd
Credits https://ibb.co/Pzz96bcm
Traveling time https://ibb.co/Tq4kVnX9
Bonus! https://ibb.co/G46yydY1
Final Large Monster... for now https://ibb.co/q3zrLW8j
Wyvern or something... https://ibb.co/JjvvJC6f
Arkveld which is on the "Steelbook"°° https://ibb.co/LXvcsMMs
Arkveld`s Lair https://ibb.co/9H77CBrF

°° https://steelbook.com/releases/monster-hunter-wilds/


Besides just right now i got a server connection error several times in a row and i was restarting the console... no use. It seems the server is malfunctioning... i am not surprised. This is the "service" they want me to pay for? Sorry nope... for now i am gonna pass on it. I was testing some Free to play games on my console and there was NO connection issues, so it is ONLY Monster Hunter Wilds having this issue!

Total War Warhammer 2
A satisfying turn of events

1. One of the most promising commanders in the High Elven armies falls together with his entire staff in to the arms of Chaos
2. Utterly insane he commands the siege of a vestige, The holding place of one of the Dark Elves immortals. note the battle prediction
3. After 20 mins of an utterly satisfying experience our crazed commander, on the brink of death, declares victory for the day
4. The truth is however, We lost. Tecliss brother was not able to hold the High Elven lands safe from the clutches of the evil Dark Elves
5. With defeat on the doorstep old grievances are forgiven. The brothers talk again.


6. Meanwhile, a Chaos invasion lands right on the doorstep of the Dark Elves
7. With no other option left brothers will stand as one!