30 Days of Games

[MC74]

I miss the PS2 intro.

 

[VashTheStampede]

I miss the PS2 intro.

The PS5 currently does the PS1 intro for the 30th anniversary and MAN does it hit my nostalgia hard.

I changed my theme to a PS2 one but it doesn't hit the same as the old days.

 

[MC74]

The PS5 currently does the PS1 intro for the 30th anniversary and MAN does it hit my nostalgia hard.

I changed my theme to a PS2 one but it doesn't hit the same as the old days.

Interesting, didn't they do this on the PS4 too?

 

[VashTheStampede]

Interesting, didn't they do this on the PS4 too?

I dunno, my PS4 crapped out due to excessive Being A Cat Bed

 

[MC74]

I dunno, my PS4 crapped out due to excessive Being A Cat Bed

I see they have the original PS boot screen as part of the theme. If only they made ones that correspond to every other console as a customization option. That'd be sick. Love for XBox to do the same because original FTW!

 

[Quagmire]

I dunno, my PS4 crapped out due to excessive Being A Cat Bed

My cats like to jump on my pc, really hate it, sit too long though, but if course my fucking case had the power button on top and they've turned it on or off as well as making the vent screen cover come off when jumping off of it

 

[MC74]

Funny thing about Fortnite. I remember that time where people were going bonkers because the map got blown up or some shit.

 

[rktaker]

now the Fortnite map gets blown up like every season

 

[Spiner202]

Re: Breath of the Wild

I loved the game, but can see how it feels overrated. Durability is the worst thing about the game IMO, even once

Spoiler

you get the master sword. That shouldn't have a durability recharge on it.

TOTK is the better game, but I think both games benefit from being willing to just spend unlimited amounts of time doing whatever you want. I think I would have put more hours into them as a kid than I did. It's hard for me to lose myself in a game anymore and do much outside of the main plot and/or trophy requirements.

 

[Fool's Requiem]

I kinda feel like that spoiler is unnecessary. It was one of the big reasons the durability system was criticized. It's also a Zelda game. Zelda without that weapon is not a Zelda game. I haven't played it much, but I'm sure Hyrule Warriors had it.

 

[dimmerwit]

Day 16 - Best Plot Twist:

Bioshock is an obvious choice. I know a certain Final Fantasy would be a popular pick. Maybe the end of SOMA too.

I will also say Assassin's Creed 3. Haytham being outed as a Templar after a non-trivial amount of play was a pretty wild twist.

 

[Crystal]

Missing a few days again...might as well add a couple of opinions.

Most Annoying Character -- Claptrap. Sorry, I dislike him.

Best Voice Acting -- Hmm...so many gravely male protagonists to choose from. I say Femshep

Favourite Class of Fighting Style -- Uhhhh...Gohan, Dodge?

Overrated Game -- Fortnite? I don't know, there are a lot of overrated games out there.

Best Plot Twist -- A couple could fit here, obviously any of the Bioshock ones, but I do agree those are a little obvious. I like Darth Revan's reveal in KotOR, so I'm going with that.

 

[Fool's Requiem]

Biggest Plot Twist: Peach NOT being Bowser Jr's mommy in Super Mario Sunshine. I don't know how we didn't realize. It didn't feel like there were any clues. Really came out of nowhere.

Seriously, though? Maybe Spec Ops: The Line.

Spoiler: Spec Ops Spoiler

---

You were the bad guy the whole time and/or it was all a hallucination.

Here's a video explaining the possibilityof the entire game being a hallucination, plus other stuff.

IMO, Bioshock is too east a mention. Dead Space's "twists" are hardly twists. I don't think I've played and completed many games with huge twists.

 

[Joseph Snapple]

I'm gonna cheat and split into Best Plot Twist and Favorite Plot Twist.

Best plot twist: Silent Hill 2 and I'm just gonna leave that be.

Favorite Plot Twist: This is ultimately rather simple but it's one that's stuck with me a lot from FF14: Heavensward: As you progress through the expansion and learn more about what's going on, there's this building feeling that Nidhogg & his horde could just completely wipe out Ishgard whenever he really wanted to...so why doesn't he? Because that's not his goal, it is in fact the opposite of what he wants. He will never wipe out Ishgard, because he wants its people to suffer forever just like he does thanks to the wonders of immortal dragon memory that sees him remember his sister's death at the Ishgardian's hands as if it were yesterday and not a millenium ago.

 

[Smacktard]

Best plot twist: Imma go with Custom Robo for this one. It was just so unexpected from such an unassuming, fun, light-hearted game.

Spoiler: Custom Robo twist

You eventually find out that the world you're that you're living in a domed city inside of a post-apocalyptic world because a powerful lifeform destroyed the world. The Government had used mind control to cause people to forget this -- IIRC, by introducing chemicals to people's water? -- and then kept the reality of the destruction of the world and the apocalyptic outside world wasteland a secret from the rest of the world.

Things that were funny/strange but which was just chalked up to "video game logic", like easily being able to cross the entirety of "the world", begin to make sense. Eventually the truth is revealed to all characters in the game, and after the initial shock sets in, they even make jokes about and reference this.

 

[Quagmire]

Skipping best plot twist, knowing there is a plot twist is kind of a spoiler in it self

I did want to add Tales of Symphonia to yesterday's overrated. The story feels very derivative of Final Fantasy X and none of the characters were likeable.

 

[Nae'blis]

Favorite class/fighting style: I've always like the up and close fighters, preferably monk types with high dex.

Aye, that he does!

Overrated game: Uh, don't really know here. If people want to praise games to the sky, let them. To each their own I guess. Not a huge fan of the Soulsborne games, but are they overrated?

Best plot twist: I always liked the one in

Spoiler

Infamous, when it's revealed the Kessler is actually Cole McGrath from the future/alternate time line.

 

[The Eye in the Sky!]

Favorite plot twist (came out in 2023 on PS5 so beware)

Spoiler

GoW Ragnarok. You know the one. I did not see it coming AT ALL and it was so brilliantly, heart-wrenchingly done.

Honorable mention: Portal 2 if that counts as a plot twist or turn of character, I dunno.

 

[VashTheStampede]

When I think of video game plot twists, Knights of the Old Republic was the first one that really hit me, so I have a soft spot for that.

 BioShock was the one that hit me the hardest in the moment, and is the first one that always comes to mind.

But IMO the  best one is Spec Ops: The Line. That game has lived in my head rent-free ever since. I can't even read a tutorial line on a loading screen without thinking of that game.

But since all of THOSE have been mentioned, I'm going to pivot to the best plot twist in an RPG, and for me that would be Bravely Default. A plot twist so devious it changes the title screen.

 

[rktaker]

Best plot twist: now i’m going to say this based on what I have seen and not what I’ve played as I have said before I haven’t played a whole lot of anything lol but I’m gonna go with Silent Hill 2

 

[Fire Queen]

favorite class or fighting style: i am a simple woman. i think it was, what, vanguard in mass effect? the one where you rush in and hit people extremely hard before they can hit you back. that's my thing. unless i'm in a hero fighter in which case i am a support main. (i am never touching overwatch again but i sure did have way more hours as mercy than anyone else.) in ffxiv i main summoner though i've also found some enjoyment in sage

most overrated game: i'm a born hater but i will be sensible here and limit myself only to a game i've played. it's gotta be skyward sword. i'm sure that remaster everybody was begging for fixed some problems or whatever but playing through the original on wii was a chore among chores. it was one of the better zelda characterizations we've ever had and they totally wasted it. it was the zelda game that made me realize zelda games weren't as good as i thought they were. dishonorable mention to bioshock infinite which is one of the worst video games i have had the displeasure of "playing" (in scare quotes because the verb play implies that one is having fun)

best plot twist: this is a funny category to include because by virtue of its very nature it's gonna be a hard category to share from. as much as i'd love to go with something from zero escape, i have to be true to myself. shu takumi has some incredible plot twists in the ace attorney games but my favorite one he pulls is definitely ghost trick. iykyk

 

[TD]

Best Plot Twist: So I'm going to go with a probably not-so-popular one and it's from Elden Ring. From has been notorious for their vague storytelling but they really flipped the switch in Elden Ring (yes it's still vague in that it's behind npc dialogue and item descriptions over cut scenes), but much more impactful. There's actually a lot of twists but I'm going to go with the one that changes a lot; Radagon is Marika. The reveal is tucked behind a side quest so you may not even get it, but it makes the final boss just hit different.

Notable mentions for:
- KOTOR twist, it's been mentioned, and is probably one of the biggest ones out there
- The cake is not a lie

 

[Spiner202]

Best Plot Twist: Bioshock is the easy answer for me, but I'll throw a curveball that I think beats out Bioshock:

Red Dead Redemption 2.

Spoiler

It should have been obvious to me that Arthur would die somehow, since it was a prequel, but I never expected him to get tuberculosis, and the signs were there from before it happened. There are few games that have swerved me as much as that did. It's probably because I was more immersed in the story of this game than I am most others, but I've also never seen something like this in a game before.

 

[Smacktard]

but my favorite one he pulls is definitely ghost trick. iykyk

Oh fuuuuuck you're right. Completely slipped my mind. As much as I wanna give Custom Robo some love, I change my answer to this answer.

It's one of those games where even though the plot gets deeper and more complex, it doesn't get too convoluted and nonsensical (as in, it all makes sense within the world established by the game without introducing any deus ex machina stuff)

 

[MC74]

Star Wars: KOTOR is the first one that comes to mind when it comes to Best Plot Twist.

Honorable mention going to FFX having some incredible twists of its own. Bioshock deserves a shoutout too.

 

[Joseph Snapple]

It's 12/17 somewhere

Best Cinematic: Red Alert 3

 

[Fool's Requiem]

Do cinenmatics necessarily need to be cutscenes? Or can it be scripted events that you witness while in control of your character?

 

[VashTheStampede]

It's 12/17 somewhere

Best Cinematic: Red Alert 3

Whenever my kids hear the word "capitalism" they yell "SPACE!!"

That's how you know I'm raising them right.

 

[Smacktard]

Gonna be hard for me to pick the best cinematic. I typically hate when games take control away from the player.

MGS5 when you meet Codetalker is hilarious. That was a nice one.
Deep Fear has some really nice cutscenes too. The animation is very dated though, and ultimately they don't affect gameplay even after filling you with a sense of dread, so the effect is kind of spoiled.

Dunno, there's probably much better answers out there. I'll wait til @Fire Queen answers again and steal hers.

 

[Joseph Snapple]

I do have a more serious offering: Xenoblade Chronicles 3. The very long cutscene at the end of Chapter 5 is probably one of the most moving segments I've ever experienced in a game and is an all-timer.

 

[Fool's Requiem]

Ok, I didn't get an answer, so I'm going to do both:

Scripted Events: Dead Space 2 - Burning train. I fucking loved the chaos that was going in the 3rd chapter of the game, and then cap it off with a solid train battle scene. Right before it, this happens:

On my first play, I got incredibly giddy when it happened. Almost instantly made DS2 one of my most favorite games.

Cutscene: The ending to BG&E

Spoiler

The music is so good.

 

[Smacktard]

I thought of my answer:
Alien: Isolation, the scene after activating the reactor. It's a very short cinematic, but extremely impactful after everything you've been through.

I do have a more serious offering: Xenoblade Chronicles 3. The very long cutscene at the end of Chapter 5 is probably one of the most moving segments I've ever experienced in a game and is an all-timer.

Great answer too.

 

[Quagmire]

Favorite Cinematic

The Last of Us

Spoiler

The scene in Utah with the giraffe

Final Fantasy IX's ending

Red Dead Redemption 2 scene between Arthur and the Nun at the train station

Final Fantasy VI the scene between Edgar and Sabin at the castle and the coin flip

Im sure there are plenty of others, but these are the ones that jump out at me

Oh and Ace Attorney, the breakdowns are all fantastic, but

Spoiler

Von Karma's

is my favorite

 

[Quagmire]

best plot twist: this is a funny category to include because by virtue of its very nature it's gonna be a hard category to share from. as much as i'd love to go with something from zero escape, i have to be true to myself. shu takumi has some incredible plot twists in the ace attorney games but my favorite one he pulls is definitely ghost trick. iykyk

Love me some Ghost Trick

 

[Smacktard]

TLoU cinematic you mentioned is really nice. It's simple but haunting and beautiful. Dammit, now you're making me change my answer AGAIN.

 

[rktaker]

Favorite cinematic: i like the opening cinematic of Diablo 4

 

[Fire Queen]

favorite cinematic: finally, an easy one. i didn't experience this cutscene for the first time until just a few years ago, and i haven't yet finished watching my friend play the game, but i knew immediately upon seeing it that i was witnessing peak in its purest form. this seems to be a pretty divisive game, but i will always cape for final fantasy x-2. that opening cutscene is one of the best openings to a game i've ever seen. especially in the context of everything that goes down in ffx there's so much going on here. i think more games should open with a jpop concert on a lot of floating platforms.

y r p in position. it's showtime, girls.

 

[The Eye in the Sky!]

Best cinematic: Going back to the old days - FF9 - Vivi blasting the evil mage out of the sky on the airship early on in the game.

That came out prior to launch and it amped me up for the game in ways that I wish would happen as an adult.

 

[Spiner202]

Favourite Cinematic: Modern answer - TLOU 2. The flashbacks near the end of the game relating to the dance.

Older answer: The very brief part where you first step onto Hyrule field in OoT. Or the meeting with Princess Zelda at the castle looking through the glass to see Ganondorf. Or near the Fire Temple when you run into Sheik (amazing music in this scene).

 

[VashTheStampede]

Favorite Cinematic

One of the first that comes to mind is Mass Effect 2, "Model of a Scientist Salarian". (My second favorite completely unexpected musical performance in a video game, but the other is during a playable scene).

Every World of Warcraft expansion cinematic was a banger.

But I'm gonna go with the opening cinematic for The Witcher III: Wild Hunt. Most of my hype around this game going in was finally getting to see Yennefer of Vengerberg in the game series, and the opening cutscene was a perfect dramatic introduction of the character, while simultaneously getting across the determination of Geralt's search for her, and also setting the tone of the world of the Witcher for those new to the property.

 

[Fool's Requiem]

World of Warcraft

It doesn't count for this category, but the Mr T "Night Elf Mohawk" ads were classics.

Almost made me want to play WoW...

Almost.



Also, Ozzy had one, too.

 

[dimmerwit]

Day 18: Worst minigame

Probably something more irritating like the persuasion in Oblivion, or the hacking in Mass Effect 2 with the hard to differentiate text scrolling past. No wonder they basically dumped all that stuff in the third game.

 

[Joseph Snapple]

Worst Minigame: I want to say I remember the sub minigame in FF7 being a double scoop of dogshit

 

[Fool's Requiem]

Worst Minigame: Anyone remember the Caravan card game from Fallout New Vegas? If you actually managed to learn how that game works, I commend you.

Edit: Honorable mention goes to the pipe hacking minigame in Bioshock. The game itself isn't bad, but it constantly ruins the flow of the game. On PC, I end up using a cheat that gives me max Auto Hacking tools. The hacking game in Bioshock 2 is much less of a pain in the ass and time sink, even if it's not really a minigame.

Also, if it counts, lock picking in Fallout 4 is fucking stupid because there is absolutely no skill involved and you are almost guaranteed to lose a pin.

 

[Smacktard]

I've never actually played it, but that minigame in FF8 where you have to jump a jump rope 1000 times in a row to get an exclusive item sounds like complete dogshit.

The jump rope minigame in New Donk City in Odyssey is also bad, but way better in comparison.

 

[TD]

that minigame in FF8 where you have to jump a jump rope 1000 times in a row to get an exclusive item sounds like complete dogshit.

*FFIX

Which brings me to...

Worst Minigame: I'm just going to flat out say Square Enix because fuck them and all the bullshit they put into their games like Final Fantasy and Kingdom Hearts. If they eliminated their mini game shit, the games would be so much better.

 

[Smacktard]

Waiting for FQ to chime in with some Yakuza minigames

 

[Quagmire]

Worst Minigame

Im gonna go with the card game from FFIX, it was a huge step down from VII's Triple Triad, but it is also forced upon you where you have to play it, I also hated X's blitzball

If it is one I dont have to play I dont care, but if its forced upon me and I dont like it, fuck it

 

[Spiner202]

Worst Minigame: I thought this category was built for Mario Party!

While at one point in my life, I appreciated The Beat Goes On (from Mario Party 3), I unfortunately don't have the patience for it anymore. The other mini game that bugs me is Mario's Puzzle Party. I understand how it works, but at the same time, I don't at all. It's the only game where the computer can beat me and all of my friends consistently.

 

[VashTheStampede]

Worst Minigame

Im gonna go with the card game from FFIX, it was a huge step down from VII's Triple Triad, but it is also forced upon you where you have to play it, I also hated X's blitzball

If it is one I dont have to play I dont care, but if its forced upon me and I dont like it, fuck it

Fuckin Tetra Master.

This was gonna be mine, so I'm gonna switch it up and go with Swoop Racing from Knights of the Old Republic, but specifically because you have to beat your own time to advance the plot. So if you do extremely well the first time, you make the quest so much harder for yourself.

Also I love Blitzball