The Hot Topic Returns

[Maf]

I didn’t have internet until the PS4 gen so for me those things just weren’t a factor. Didn’t deal with updates or online anything. The only thing I didn’t like about it was it didn’t have rumble.

 

But the system launched with Motorstorm and Resistance both of which were baller so I was over here having a good time

 

I think they had great games all the way through. 

[one-armed dwarf]

Outside of its bad organisation of games on the UI, the weird vertically scrolling list of things with blaring audio (MGS4 is a jump scare), I think the PS3 (and PSP) UI is the best they ever had. They should have iterated on it rather than the very bloated things they did with PS4 and PS5. It was easy to discover features and see how they are organised on PS3, and on PS5 I still get confused with its incongruent layout of stuff

[Maf]

Wasn’t the PS4 UI the same as the PS3 UI except it scrolls the other way? That’s how I remember it at least

 

UI is not really anything I have a strong opinion on. But coincidentally I used the Vita the other day and the whole thing with the different bubbles and ‘ripping off’ tabs is like wtf were they thinking 

[one-armed dwarf]

Every UI they've had since PSP has been a different version of XMB. The difference is that PSP and PS3 had a simple form of it, vertical line is categories, horizontal line is directories of features and items pertinent to those categories

 

But on PS4 and 5 they stack additional layers of abstraction and submenus on top and within these other ones. It's also got a lot of weird scope creep that increases friction with its systems, like the activity cards and other weird things I'm not remembering now. Adverts too. It's not even that it's a bad UI tbh, it's just that they got it so right with PS3 that the downgrade is puzzling, even if the systems obviously handle patching far better and the grid based UI is better for looking at games. But the problems with the game UI on PS3 weren't super evident then as people were mainly physical buyers, and they still could have done a grid UI within a simpler system

[HandsomeDead]

I'm mostly basing it on the experience of using it because we can list all the Good Games for each system all day.  I think there's always gems on any mainstream system.

 

This is less important on earlier systems of course I found the PS3 the most frustrating to use.  Can't say I did with the 360, maybe a little with later updates but I genuinely found it intuitive even with all the options it had, a rarely felt lost.

 

But I found the Iwata era of Nintendo delightful to use.  The DS/3DS Wii/WiiU were all great in that regard and I miss it more now especially since the Switch is just like a stripped down PS4.

[Maf]

This shit never got the respect it deserved rip

 

[spatular]

think i agree with the original GBA, played mario kart and f-zero on it (both great) then gave up because the screen was so hard to see. went back to GBA games when i got a DS that could play them and the GBA has loads of great games just the screen on that original one is so bad. more recently i'm not convinced by the playdate, need to give it more of a go really. for big consoles i never had any stranger stuff, ps3 i still liked enough games on the ps3 that i still liked it in the end. at the start (well only got it a few years after it came out) it was pretty bad though as all the games i got it to play i ended up not really liking - riff everyday shooter was my favourite ps3 game for quite some time. master system i liked at the time but not sure i'd want to play any of those games today (actually would play micro machines). and did have a jaguar but had like 1 or 2 games for it then sold it so not sure that counts.

[Maryokutai]

For me it's probably the PS3-PSP duo as well. PS3 was just waiting all the time and PSP, while I did enjoy my time with it more than the Vita because of its game lineup, felt like an alpha version of a handheld. Between the storage medium, its abysmal display and that weird Square button that had no proper feedback because they put it too close to the screen, it was a complete mess. Looked cool and futuristic, but it really was the Game Gear of its generation.

 

Also, in not-mainstream territory, the GP2X was a bit of a letdown. Bought that out of curiosity back in the day, but it just never convinced me from a hardware standpoint and I probably spent less than five hours total with it. I realise these handheld PCs have evolved enormously since then but my lack of interest in Steam Deck et al can probably be attributed to this initial disappointment with the concept.

[DANGERMAN]

with the PS3 and its updates, it always seemed to me that it was more of an issue for those where the PS3 wasn't their main console. I used mine way more than my 360, particularly as time went on, so it didn't feel as frequent

[Sly Reflex]

Nothing can even come close to the regret of buying a Wii. Absolute shitehouse console. A novel concept that was terrible in every practical way. The only good thing I can say about it is the music on it was great.

[Maf]

I’m guessing everybody has seen this before but you just reminded me of the Wii update song 😆

 

 

[Metroid66]

I can't say I've been upset with any of my consoles from PS 2 onwards. I loved the Wii, too - but then I had loads of catching up to do because it was my first Ninty console, so I got to see Zelda, mario and metroid on that console all from scratch (a bit like the gears, halo splurge i had when i got my XS, although a lot better, let's be honest 😀)

 

I did have one disappointment by proxy, when one of my kids wanted a ds for Christmas one year. I knew nothing about handheld gaming at that point, but I 'knew' that the word 'lite' attached to a product generally meant a cut price alternative with less features. Sod that, I thought, I'll get him a proper one.

[Maryokutai]

Yeah, the first DS felt a bit like a prototype. I kind of like the dated, bulky design and the better D-Pad compared to later models, but it certainly wasn't an attractive piece of kit. Still have mine though, basically mint condition, too.

[Metroid66]

I reckon if I clear out my cupboards I'll find about six ds/3ds'

 

And at least one of each psp and ps vita. Sony didn't really support their stuff though.

[shinymcshine]

Was there ever any support for the AR feature on the 3DS (aside from the bundled cards/game) ? Think there was a 'spirit camera' Project Zero type game.

 

I never owned a 3DS - but still occasionally play on my DS Lite.

[DANGERMAN]

Yeah, the Spirit Camera is the one that I'd have said. There was a Pokemon game too I think, I might even have that, it was an eshop game 

[Nag]

 

Quote

A convincing romantic sub plot is not the first thing you usually look for in a video game, but most games with a story do feature some sort of love interest. So we wanted to know which ones you found the most entertaining and believable, and which the most absurd and silly.

 

Predictably enough Uncharted was the number one choice, but there were also plenty of votes for Red Dead Redemption, Mass Effect, and various Final Fantasies. Video games might have difficulty telling any kind of convincing story, particularly a romantic one, but that doesn’t mean they can’t work when a developer puts in the effort.

 

Gone back through the archives for this question... which I think I'll do more often now, so expect questions about the 360 and PS3 soon...😂

[shinymcshine]

Lae'zel in BG3 was very forward - I'd barely had any direct dialogue with her, then following one fight she just initiated a dialogue along the lines of "I like the way you do things, let's hook up next time we're in camp !"

 

And that was it, and away we went....

 

Can't recall any other game that put it out there quite so easily (esp. after the laborious pursuit of Rank 10 Social Links in P3 Reloaded).

[DANGERMAN]

I like the idea of going back to older questions @Nag

 

 

I'm playing Cyberpunk atm, and they've added date nights to the game. Problem is, as far as I've seen, it's the same date repeated, and I'm not really bothered about my avatar getting laid. I certainly don't believe V is in love, his personality is too all over the place to feel like a real parson, because, y'know, I'm in control of him and sometimes I do the unequivocal right thing, and sometimes people just get murdered because it's quicker or funnier 

 

In a change from mentioning To The Moon, I'll instead mention its sequel Finding Paradise. I don't want to spoil it because people should play it, but it is probably the best bit of media I've ever encountered at dealing with imperfect relationships and unrealistic expectations. I remember saying in the thread about it, it's a proper gut punch of a game. Which is pretty damning that that's the most realistic portrayal of relationships I've played 😅

[Sly Reflex]

The Darkness. It's always going to be The Darkness. That game stood head and shoulders above everything at the time and I think it still rubs shoulders with a lot of the big hitters now. Had hands down the most realistic representation of what a relationship is down to a t.