• I Played: Shadow Warrior 2

    From Justisaur@3:633/10 to All on Thursday, July 23, 2026 14:58:05
    *** Shadow Warrior 2
    An irreverent FPS looter shooter. At the end it was... O.K. Somewhere between 2&1/2 to 3 stars.

    It felt like they were going for a Borderlands feel with the
    looter-shooter and shit-talking. Well I'm all played out on
    Borderlands, and it wasn't as over the top as Borderlands. A watered
    down Borderlands, both with the looter shooter, and shit-talking.

    Music: o.k. metal-traditional Japanese fusion.

    Graphics: Somewhat similar to Borderlands without the cell shading, with
    some cyberpunk thrown in there. Again o.k. It *was* too much with the particles, and number of mobs, I could barely tell what was going on and
    had to look at my mini-map to see where enemies were often (when I
    remembered to, which wasn't often, I'd just spam attacks hoping to hit something too often.)

    Weapons: unlike borderlands you get a smaller number of weapons, I had
    about 20-30 by end game (I didn't bother to sell any) but only really
    used the 8 that fit on my wheel as the older & weaker were obviously
    weaker. Where the customization comes in is the weapon mods, you get 3
    slots to put in mods for each weapon, which there's hundreds of by the
    end game, it's fairly obvious which ones are best though sorting through
    them is a bit of a pain, usually you want the highest level and rarity
    though. This allows you to max out 8 weapons with builds by the end of
    the game, so not as much a looter-shooter as Borderlands.

    Skills: you pick up/buy skills which are on cards, with between 3 to 5 upgrades from skill points, which increase from 1 skill point to 3 at
    the top end. I ended up with around a hundred points by the end which
    was enough to upgrade most up to 2 or 3, and few to max. That's o.k. again.

    Length I did most of side missions except early game, you can also do
    bounties and get an extra skill point from each one, I only did that
    once. I think it took about 20-30 hours. It was cheap on sale, under
    $6, so I got my money's worth, but I barely enjoyed it.

    I'd recommend it if you aren't burned out on looter shooters, but that's
    about it.

    --
    -Justisaur

    ?-?
    (\_/)\
    `-'\ `--.___,
    ?ª'\( ,_.-'
    \\
    ^'


    --- PyGate Linux v1.5.18
    * Origin: Dragon's Lair, PyGate NNTP<>Fido Gate (3:633/10)
  • From Spalls Hurgenson@3:633/10 to All on Friday, July 24, 2026 11:26:08
    On Thu, 23 Jul 2026 14:58:05 -0700, Justisaur <justisaur@yahoo.com>
    said this thing:

    *** Shadow Warrior 2
    An irreverent FPS looter shooter. At the end it was... O.K. Somewhere >between 2&1/2 to 3 stars.

    It felt like they were going for a Borderlands feel with the
    looter-shooter and shit-talking. Well I'm all played out on
    Borderlands, and it wasn't as over the top as Borderlands. A watered
    down Borderlands, both with the looter shooter, and shit-talking.

    It was such a weird shift for the game. The 1990 original and the 2013
    remakes were unabashed 'boomer shooters', and while they weren't the
    greatest games, they played to their strengths. The shift to
    looter-shooter just didn't work as well for the game's tone and style.

    I played and finished the 1990 game and its 2013 sequel. I'll never
    hold them up as examples of must-play games but they were competently
    put together and were stupid fun. But I gave up on "Shadow Warrior 2"
    just a few levels in. It just wasn't a very enjoyable game.





    --- PyGate Linux v1.5.19
    * Origin: Dragon's Lair, PyGate NNTP<>Fido Gate (3:633/10)
  • From PW@3:633/10 to All on Friday, July 24, 2026 14:23:05
    On Thu, 23 Jul 2026 14:58:05 -0700, Justisaur <justisaur@yahoo.com>
    wrote:

    *** Shadow Warrior 2
    An irreverent FPS looter shooter. At the end it was... O.K. Somewhere >between 2&1/2 to 3 stars.

    It felt like they were going for a Borderlands feel with the
    looter-shooter and shit-talking. Well I'm all played out on
    Borderlands, and it wasn't as over the top as Borderlands. A watered
    down Borderlands, both with the looter shooter, and shit-talking.

    Music: o.k. metal-traditional Japanese fusion.

    Graphics: Somewhat similar to Borderlands without the cell shading, with >some cyberpunk thrown in there. Again o.k. It *was* too much with the >particles, and number of mobs, I could barely tell what was going on and
    had to look at my mini-map to see where enemies were often (when I >remembered to, which wasn't often, I'd just spam attacks hoping to hit >something too often.)

    Weapons: unlike borderlands you get a smaller number of weapons, I had
    about 20-30 by end game (I didn't bother to sell any) but only really
    used the 8 that fit on my wheel as the older & weaker were obviously
    weaker. Where the customization comes in is the weapon mods, you get 3 >slots to put in mods for each weapon, which there's hundreds of by the
    end game, it's fairly obvious which ones are best though sorting through >them is a bit of a pain, usually you want the highest level and rarity >though. This allows you to max out 8 weapons with builds by the end of
    the game, so not as much a looter-shooter as Borderlands.

    Skills: you pick up/buy skills which are on cards, with between 3 to 5 >upgrades from skill points, which increase from 1 skill point to 3 at
    the top end. I ended up with around a hundred points by the end which
    was enough to upgrade most up to 2 or 3, and few to max. That's o.k. again.

    Length I did most of side missions except early game, you can also do >bounties and get an extra skill point from each one, I only did that
    once. I think it took about 20-30 hours. It was cheap on sale, under
    $6, so I got my money's worth, but I barely enjoyed it.

    I'd recommend it if you aren't burned out on looter shooters, but that's >about it.

    *--

    Thanks for posting that. It is still expensive at Steam and got mixed
    reviews.

    J - there seams to be an upcoming DLC for Elden Ring? It looks like it
    is for MP so I will pass. Don't have the stamina to get back into ER.
    Well - I would end up in the ER if I got back into it like I did! I
    through out hundreds of pages that I printed out regarding the game
    (no doubt a couple toner cartridges for the laser printer too - just
    for that! -) and I can't even remember how to play the game, even the
    keyboad commands.

    But, it is still installed.

    Two new Knight classes

    https://www.pcgamer.com/games/rpg/fromsoftware-reveals-final-stats-of-new-elden-ring-classes-and-one-of-them-already-got-a-tiny-nerf/

    -pw

    --- PyGate Linux v1.5.19
    * Origin: Dragon's Lair, PyGate NNTP<>Fido Gate (3:633/10)
  • From Justisaur@3:633/10 to All on Sunday, July 26, 2026 08:45:26
    On 7/24/2026 1:23 PM, PW wrote:
    On Thu, 23 Jul 2026 14:58:05 -0700, Justisaur <justisaur@yahoo.com>
    wrote:

    *** Shadow Warrior 2
    An irreverent FPS looter shooter. At the end it was... O.K. Somewhere
    between 2&1/2 to 3 stars.

    I'd recommend it if you aren't burned out on looter shooters, but that's
    about it.

    *--

    Thanks for posting that. It is still expensive at Steam and got mixed reviews.

    Well it's $2.99 on GOG. It's worth that, or is it? I feel it was, I at
    least finished the game. But it's not great.


    J - there seams to be an upcoming DLC for Elden Ring? It looks like it
    is for MP so I will pass. Don't have the stamina to get back into ER.
    Well - I would end up in the ER if I got back into it like I did! I
    through out hundreds of pages that I printed out regarding the game
    (no doubt a couple toner cartridges for the laser printer too - just
    for that! -) and I can't even remember how to play the game, even the keyboad commands.


    Two new Knight classes


    https://www.pcgamer.com/games/rpg/fromsoftware-reveals-final-stats-of-new-elden-ring-classes-and-one-of-them-already-got-a-tiny-nerf/


    The DLC is 2 classes and some stuff that was supposed to be exclusive to
    the Switch 2 version. It's a micro transaction, no content. Still I'm tempted as it's only $5, and features a heavy knight, which you can of
    course make, just not from the get go (unless cheating, or at least
    following a guide.)

    Shadow of the Erdtree is the major DLC that's been out for awhile, but
    it's much harder than the base game, and you have go through all of it
    due to the seed mechanic, at least if you want to fight the last boss
    without it being up to 20x harder than it should be.

    But, it is still installed.

    I uninstalled it after I finished the SotE DLC. I occasionally have
    thoughts of going back, but only to make helper characters, I've no
    desire to play through the whole game again.

    --
    -Justisaur

    ?-?
    (\_/)\
    `-'\ `--.___,
    ?ª'\( ,_.-'
    \\
    ^'

    --- PyGate Linux v1.5.19
    * Origin: Dragon's Lair, PyGate NNTP<>Fido Gate (3:633/10)
  • From Lane W@3:633/10 to All on Sunday, July 26, 2026 10:11:40
    Justisaur wrote:
    On 7/24/2026 1:23 PM, PW wrote:
    On Thu, 23 Jul 2026 14:58:05 -0700, Justisaur <justisaur@yahoo.com>
    wrote:

    *** Shadow Warrior 2
    An irreverent FPS looter shooter.ÿ At the end it was... O.K.ÿ Somewhere
    between 2&1/2 to 3 stars.

    I'd recommend it if you aren't burned out on looter shooters, but that's >>> about it.

    *--

    Thanks for posting that.ÿ It is still expensive at Steam and got mixed
    reviews.

    Well it's $2.99 on GOG.ÿ It's worth that, or is it?ÿ I feel it was, I at least finished the game.ÿ But it's not great.


    J - there seams to be an upcoming DLC for Elden Ring? It looks like it
    is for MP so I will pass.ÿ Don't have the stamina to get back into ER.
    Well - I would end up in the ER if I got back into it like I did!ÿ I
    through out hundreds of pages that I printed out regarding the game
    (no doubt a couple toner cartridges for the laser printer too - just
    for that! -)ÿ and I can't even remember how to play the game, even the
    keyboad commands.


    Two new Knight classes


    https://www.pcgamer.com/games/rpg/fromsoftware-reveals-final-stats-of-new-elden-ring-classes-and-one-of-them-already-got-a-tiny-nerf/



    The DLC is 2 classes and some stuff that was supposed to be exclusive to
    the Switch 2 version.ÿ It's a micro transaction, no content.ÿ Still I'm tempted as it's only $5, and features a heavy knight, which you can of course make, just not from the get go (unless cheating, or at least following a guide.)

    Shadow of the Erdtree is the major DLC that's been out for awhile, but
    it's much harder than the base game, and you have go through all of it
    due to the seed mechanic, at least if you want to fight the last boss without it being up to 20x harder than it should be.

    But, it is still installed.

    I uninstalled it after I finished the SotE DLC. I occasionally have
    thoughts of going back, but only to make helper characters, I've no
    desire to play through the whole game again.

    True, Elden Ring was really tough. No one wants to slog through that again.

    --- PyGate Linux v1.5.19
    * Origin: Dragon's Lair, PyGate NNTP<>Fido Gate (3:633/10)
  • From PW@3:633/10 to All on Sunday, July 26, 2026 20:09:49
    On Sun, 26 Jul 2026 10:11:40 -0600, Lane W <cactus_DAC@yahoo.com>
    wrote:

    Justisaur wrote:
    On 7/24/2026 1:23 PM, PW wrote:
    On Thu, 23 Jul 2026 14:58:05 -0700, Justisaur <justisaur@yahoo.com>
    wrote:

    *** Shadow Warrior 2
    An irreverent FPS looter shooter.? At the end it was... O.K.? Somewhere >>>> between 2&1/2 to 3 stars.

    I'd recommend it if you aren't burned out on looter shooters, but that's >>>> about it.

    *--

    Thanks for posting that.? It is still expensive at Steam and got mixed
    reviews.

    Well it's $2.99 on GOG.? It's worth that, or is it?? I feel it was, I at
    least finished the game.? But it's not great.


    J - there seams to be an upcoming DLC for Elden Ring? It looks like it
    is for MP so I will pass.? Don't have the stamina to get back into ER.
    Well - I would end up in the ER if I got back into it like I did!? I
    through out hundreds of pages that I printed out regarding the game
    (no doubt a couple toner cartridges for the laser printer too - just
    for that! -)? and I can't even remember how to play the game, even the
    keyboad commands.


    Two new Knight classes


    https://www.pcgamer.com/games/rpg/fromsoftware-reveals-final-stats-of-new-elden-ring-classes-and-one-of-them-already-got-a-tiny-nerf/



    The DLC is 2 classes and some stuff that was supposed to be exclusive to
    the Switch 2 version.? It's a micro transaction, no content.? Still I'm
    tempted as it's only $5, and features a heavy knight, which you can of
    course make, just not from the get go (unless cheating, or at least
    following a guide.)

    Shadow of the Erdtree is the major DLC that's been out for awhile, but
    it's much harder than the base game, and you have go through all of it
    due to the seed mechanic, at least if you want to fight the last boss
    without it being up to 20x harder than it should be.

    But, it is still installed.

    I uninstalled it after I finished the SotE DLC. I occasionally have
    thoughts of going back, but only to make helper characters, I've no
    desire to play through the whole game again.

    True, Elden Ring was really tough. No one wants to slog through that again.

    *--

    Including me! But it is one of my favorite games ever. I no longer
    have the energy and stamina for a game like that.

    -pw

    --- PyGate Linux v1.5.19
    * Origin: Dragon's Lair, PyGate NNTP<>Fido Gate (3:633/10)
  • From Spalls Hurgenson@3:633/10 to All on Monday, July 27, 2026 12:05:08
    On Sun, 26 Jul 2026 08:45:26 -0700, Justisaur <justisaur@yahoo.com>
    said this thing:

    On 7/24/2026 1:23 PM, PW wrote:
    On Thu, 23 Jul 2026 14:58:05 -0700, Justisaur <justisaur@yahoo.com>
    wrote:

    *** Shadow Warrior 2
    An irreverent FPS looter shooter. At the end it was... O.K. Somewhere
    between 2&1/2 to 3 stars.

    I'd recommend it if you aren't burned out on looter shooters, but that's >>> about it.

    *--

    Thanks for posting that. It is still expensive at Steam and got mixed
    reviews.

    Well it's $2.99 on GOG. It's worth that, or is it? I feel it was, I at >least finished the game. But it's not great.


    TIL that there is even a "Shadow Warrior 3" (I discovered this looking
    at prices for the older games). It compares itself to "Doom Eternal",
    so it seems like it may have dropped the looter-shooter aspect of the
    gameplay. Since that's the part I liked least in the second game,
    that's good news. On the other hand, reviews also indicated that they
    doubled- (and maybe tripled-) down on the sophomoric humor, and the
    writing and characters in the game are terrible. The Shadow Warrior
    games were never particularly well-written (although they did have a
    certain tongue-in-cheek charm) but even compared to the older games,
    this new one is apparently quite awful.

    For $2.99 I think "Shadow Warrior 2" is worth at least a look. I'd
    probably do the same for the "Shadow Warrior 3" if it were at that
    price... but it's currently 2.5x times the cost (and that's with a
    current 80% discount. I'd never pay the asking $40 retail price). But
    if "Shadow Warrior 3" gets to $2.99? I'd add it to the library, sure;
    why not? ;-)






    --- PyGate Linux v1.5.19
    * Origin: Dragon's Lair, PyGate NNTP<>Fido Gate (3:633/10)
  • From Spalls Hurgenson@3:633/10 to All on Monday, July 27, 2026 12:16:04
    On Sun, 26 Jul 2026 20:09:49 -0600, PW <noneused@noneused.net> said
    this thing:
    On Sun, 26 Jul 2026 10:11:40 -0600, Lane W <cactus_DAC@yahoo.com>
    wrote:


    True, Elden Ring was really tough. No one wants to slog through that again.


    Including me! But it is one of my favorite games ever. I no longer
    have the energy and stamina for a game like that.



    "Elden Ring" is one of those games I really feel I ought to try. Three
    things are stopping me:

    a) it's a Souls-like, and while I don't actively dislike
    that genre, they aren't the sort of game I normally seek
    out unless there's some other compelling reason to do so.

    b) it's an open-world game, and while I can and do love
    open-world titles, they are just such TIME-SINKS. I play
    one, and I'm usually good for several months before I want
    to engage with the next. And since every-other game seems
    to be open-world, I try to limit myself to only the
    ones I know I'll love.

    c) it's 4+ years old, and they're still charging full-price
    for it. What can I say: I'm cheap, and if I'm gonna pay
    that much for a game, I want the latest-and-greatest, and
    I want it to be a game I (hope) I'll really enjoy.

    That said, it is a game I want to engage with. From all reports, it's
    a well-made, influential game with terrific atmosphere and lore. The above-mentioned quirks aside, I suspect this is a game I would have
    fun with.

    so one day, maybe I'll get around to "Elden Ring"... but I wouldn't
    count on that happening any time soon.


    --- PyGate Linux v1.5.19
    * Origin: Dragon's Lair, PyGate NNTP<>Fido Gate (3:633/10)
  • From PW@3:633/10 to All on Monday, July 27, 2026 16:09:53
    On Mon, 27 Jul 2026 12:16:04 -0400, Spalls Hurgenson <spallshurgenson@gmail.com> wrote:

    On Sun, 26 Jul 2026 20:09:49 -0600, PW <noneused@noneused.net> said
    this thing:
    On Sun, 26 Jul 2026 10:11:40 -0600, Lane W <cactus_DAC@yahoo.com>
    wrote:


    True, Elden Ring was really tough. No one wants to slog through that again.


    Including me! But it is one of my favorite games ever. I no longer
    have the energy and stamina for a game like that.



    "Elden Ring" is one of those games I really feel I ought to try. Three
    things are stopping me:

    a) it's a Souls-like, and while I don't actively dislike
    that genre, they aren't the sort of game I normally seek
    out unless there's some other compelling reason to do so.

    b) it's an open-world game, and while I can and do love
    open-world titles, they are just such TIME-SINKS. I play
    one, and I'm usually good for several months before I want
    to engage with the next. And since every-other game seems
    to be open-world, I try to limit myself to only the
    ones I know I'll love.

    c) it's 4+ years old, and they're still charging full-price
    for it. What can I say: I'm cheap, and if I'm gonna pay
    that much for a game, I want the latest-and-greatest, and
    I want it to be a game I (hope) I'll really enjoy.

    That said, it is a game I want to engage with. From all reports, it's
    a well-made, influential game with terrific atmosphere and lore. The >above-mentioned quirks aside, I suspect this is a game I would have
    fun with.

    It is that! But it is very hard, especially the bosses and most every
    one! I had to "cheat", in order to progress. "Farming", so that I
    could level up. I felt a little guilty and sleezy to have to do that,
    but as far as I know, that was the only way I knew how to keep playing
    the game and surviving and leveling up, which was gorgeous. I should
    boot it up and see if it still looks good with my latest hardware.
    Same Alienware monitor though, much better graphics card.

    I spent tons of time on youtube and reading webpages (and bugging
    Justisaur every now and then :-)) trying to figure out how to beat the
    enemies, etc...

    Steam says I played it 403 hours!!

    -pw


    so one day, maybe I'll get around to "Elden Ring"... but I wouldn't
    count on that happening any time soon.

    --- PyGate Linux v1.5.19
    * Origin: Dragon's Lair, PyGate NNTP<>Fido Gate (3:633/10)
  • From Justisaur@3:633/10 to All on Tuesday, July 28, 2026 11:18:22
    On 7/27/2026 3:09 PM, PW wrote:
    On Mon, 27 Jul 2026 12:16:04 -0400, Spalls Hurgenson <spallshurgenson@gmail.com> wrote:

    On Sun, 26 Jul 2026 20:09:49 -0600, PW <noneused@noneused.net> said
    this thing:
    On Sun, 26 Jul 2026 10:11:40 -0600, Lane W <cactus_DAC@yahoo.com>
    wrote:


    True, Elden Ring was really tough. No one wants to slog through that again.


    Including me! But it is one of my favorite games ever. I no longer
    have the energy and stamina for a game like that.



    "Elden Ring" is one of those games I really feel I ought to try. Three
    things are stopping me:

    a) it's a Souls-like, and while I don't actively dislike
    that genre, they aren't the sort of game I normally seek
    out unless there's some other compelling reason to do so.

    b) it's an open-world game, and while I can and do love
    open-world titles, they are just such TIME-SINKS. I play
    one, and I'm usually good for several months before I want
    to engage with the next. And since every-other game seems
    to be open-world, I try to limit myself to only the
    ones I know I'll love.

    c) it's 4+ years old, and they're still charging full-price
    for it. What can I say: I'm cheap, and if I'm gonna pay
    that much for a game, I want the latest-and-greatest, and
    I want it to be a game I (hope) I'll really enjoy.

    That said, it is a game I want to engage with. From all reports, it's
    a well-made, influential game with terrific atmosphere and lore. The
    above-mentioned quirks aside, I suspect this is a game I would have
    fun with.

    It is that! But it is very hard, especially the bosses and most every
    one! I had to "cheat", in order to progress. "Farming", so that I
    could level up. I felt a little guilty and sleezy to have to do that,
    but as far as I know, that was the only way I knew how to keep playing
    the game and surviving and leveling up, which was gorgeous. I should
    boot it up and see if it still looks good with my latest hardware.
    Same Alienware monitor though, much better graphics card.


    I don't think it'll be that hard for Spalls, since he's already played
    The Surge and The Surge II, both soulslikes, and he had less trouble
    with them than I did.

    I spent tons of time on youtube and reading webpages (and bugging
    Justisaur every now and then :-)) trying to figure out how to beat the enemies, etc...

    Steam says I played it 403 hours!!

    Wow, I didn't realize you played it that much. I took my time and
    played several characters, and did everything, and beat the game at
    around 500 hours. And between beating it again and playing tons of
    hours on my newbhelper, and playing again to go through the DLC, I'm up
    to 1500.

    --
    -Justisaur

    ?-?
    (\_/)\
    `-'\ `--.___,
    ?ª'\( ,_.-'
    \\
    ^'

    --- PyGate Linux v1.5.19
    * Origin: Dragon's Lair, PyGate NNTP<>Fido Gate (3:633/10)
  • From PW@3:633/10 to All on Wednesday, July 29, 2026 20:08:24
    On Tue, 28 Jul 2026 11:18:22 -0700, Justisaur <justisaur@yahoo.com>
    wrote:

    On 7/27/2026 3:09 PM, PW wrote:
    On Mon, 27 Jul 2026 12:16:04 -0400, Spalls Hurgenson
    <spallshurgenson@gmail.com> wrote:

    On Sun, 26 Jul 2026 20:09:49 -0600, PW <noneused@noneused.net> said
    this thing:
    On Sun, 26 Jul 2026 10:11:40 -0600, Lane W <cactus_DAC@yahoo.com>
    wrote:


    True, Elden Ring was really tough. No one wants to slog through that again.


    Including me! But it is one of my favorite games ever. I no longer
    have the energy and stamina for a game like that.



    "Elden Ring" is one of those games I really feel I ought to try. Three
    things are stopping me:

    a) it's a Souls-like, and while I don't actively dislike
    that genre, they aren't the sort of game I normally seek
    out unless there's some other compelling reason to do so.

    b) it's an open-world game, and while I can and do love
    open-world titles, they are just such TIME-SINKS. I play
    one, and I'm usually good for several months before I want
    to engage with the next. And since every-other game seems
    to be open-world, I try to limit myself to only the
    ones I know I'll love.

    c) it's 4+ years old, and they're still charging full-price
    for it. What can I say: I'm cheap, and if I'm gonna pay
    that much for a game, I want the latest-and-greatest, and
    I want it to be a game I (hope) I'll really enjoy.

    That said, it is a game I want to engage with. From all reports, it's
    a well-made, influential game with terrific atmosphere and lore. The
    above-mentioned quirks aside, I suspect this is a game I would have
    fun with.

    It is that! But it is very hard, especially the bosses and most every
    one! I had to "cheat", in order to progress. "Farming", so that I
    could level up. I felt a little guilty and sleezy to have to do that,
    but as far as I know, that was the only way I knew how to keep playing
    the game and surviving and leveling up, which was gorgeous. I should
    boot it up and see if it still looks good with my latest hardware.
    Same Alienware monitor though, much better graphics card.


    I don't think it'll be that hard for Spalls, since he's already played
    The Surge and The Surge II, both soulslikes, and he had less trouble
    with them than I did.

    I spent tons of time on youtube and reading webpages (and bugging
    Justisaur every now and then :-)) trying to figure out how to beat the
    enemies, etc...

    Steam says I played it 403 hours!!

    Wow, I didn't realize you played it that much. I took my time and
    played several characters, and did everything, and beat the game at
    around 500 hours. And between beating it again and playing tons of
    hours on my newbhelper, and playing again to go through the DLC, I'm up
    to 1500.

    *--

    I remember you saying you were trying different classes at one point,
    and playing on-line.

    The other thing I hated having to do was to constantly back up the one
    save game file every time I felt I was going to have trouble. No
    quicksaves and multiple save games from what I remember. Just one
    save point.

    I was towards the end of the game when I quit playing. Mountain top
    of the giants or something like that. I think I only had two of the
    final bosses to find and take down? Something like that.

    -pw

    --- PyGate Linux v1.5.19
    * Origin: Dragon's Lair, PyGate NNTP<>Fido Gate (3:633/10)
  • From Spalls Hurgenson@3:633/10 to All on Thursday, July 30, 2026 13:18:18
    On Tue, 28 Jul 2026 11:18:22 -0700, Justisaur <justisaur@yahoo.com>
    said this thing:

    On 7/27/2026 3:09 PM, PW wrote:
    On Mon, 27 Jul 2026 12:16:04 -0400, Spalls Hurgenson
    <spallshurgenson@gmail.com> wrote:



    That said, it is a game I want to engage with. From all reports, it's
    a well-made, influential game with terrific atmosphere and lore. The
    above-mentioned quirks aside, I suspect this is a game I would have
    fun with.

    It is that! But it is very hard, especially the bosses and most every
    one! I had to "cheat", in order to progress. "Farming", so that I
    could level up. I felt a little guilty and sleezy to have to do that,
    but as far as I know, that was the only way I knew how to keep playing
    the game and surviving and leveling up, which was gorgeous. I should
    boot it up and see if it still looks good with my latest hardware.
    Same Alienware monitor though, much better graphics card.


    I don't think it'll be that hard for Spalls, since he's already played
    The Surge and The Surge II, both soulslikes, and he had less trouble
    with them than I did.

    Ehn. It probably helps that "The Surge" has difficulty levels, and
    while I wasn't on easy-mode, I'm pretty sure I wasn't playing the
    hardest either. More importantly, "The Surge" (at least the first one)
    is less dependent on timing your blocks/dodges than were the "Dark
    SOuls" games. It was far more about timing the right attack... which
    is fortunate since I /suck/ at blocking. If anything, I prefer to tank
    through most battles. "The Surge" allowed that tactic, since most
    fights were against single-foes, the battlefields were (comparatively)
    open, and few enemies could stun-lock you to death. This differs from
    my experience with the Dark Soul games and --I presume-- "Elden Ring".

    I'd get through them with persistence and grinding, but it's not my
    favorite way of playing. So add another reason to my previous list why
    I am reluctant to get started on "Elden Ring" ;-)

    I can't say I got through any of the battles in "The Surge" with any
    real grace




    --- PyGate Linux v1.5.19
    * Origin: Dragon's Lair, PyGate NNTP<>Fido Gate (3:633/10)
  • From Justisaur@3:633/10 to All on Friday, July 31, 2026 07:41:42
    On 7/29/2026 7:08 PM, PW wrote:
    On Tue, 28 Jul 2026 11:18:22 -0700, Justisaur <justisaur@yahoo.com>
    wrote:

    On 7/27/2026 3:09 PM, PW wrote:
    On Mon, 27 Jul 2026 12:16:04 -0400, Spalls Hurgenson
    <spallshurgenson@gmail.com> wrote:

    On Sun, 26 Jul 2026 20:09:49 -0600, PW <noneused@noneused.net> said
    this thing:
    On Sun, 26 Jul 2026 10:11:40 -0600, Lane W <cactus_DAC@yahoo.com>
    wrote:


    True, Elden Ring was really tough. No one wants to slog through that again.


    Including me! But it is one of my favorite games ever. I no longer >>>>> have the energy and stamina for a game like that.



    "Elden Ring" is one of those games I really feel I ought to try. Three >>>> things are stopping me:

    a) it's a Souls-like, and while I don't actively dislike
    that genre, they aren't the sort of game I normally seek
    out unless there's some other compelling reason to do so.

    b) it's an open-world game, and while I can and do love
    open-world titles, they are just such TIME-SINKS. I play
    one, and I'm usually good for several months before I want
    to engage with the next. And since every-other game seems
    to be open-world, I try to limit myself to only the
    ones I know I'll love.

    c) it's 4+ years old, and they're still charging full-price
    for it. What can I say: I'm cheap, and if I'm gonna pay
    that much for a game, I want the latest-and-greatest, and
    I want it to be a game I (hope) I'll really enjoy.

    That said, it is a game I want to engage with. From all reports, it's
    a well-made, influential game with terrific atmosphere and lore. The
    above-mentioned quirks aside, I suspect this is a game I would have
    fun with.

    It is that! But it is very hard, especially the bosses and most every
    one! I had to "cheat", in order to progress. "Farming", so that I
    could level up. I felt a little guilty and sleezy to have to do that,
    but as far as I know, that was the only way I knew how to keep playing
    the game and surviving and leveling up, which was gorgeous. I should
    boot it up and see if it still looks good with my latest hardware.
    Same Alienware monitor though, much better graphics card.


    I don't think it'll be that hard for Spalls, since he's already played
    The Surge and The Surge II, both soulslikes, and he had less trouble
    with them than I did.

    I spent tons of time on youtube and reading webpages (and bugging
    Justisaur every now and then :-)) trying to figure out how to beat the
    enemies, etc...

    Steam says I played it 403 hours!!

    Wow, I didn't realize you played it that much. I took my time and
    played several characters, and did everything, and beat the game at
    around 500 hours. And between beating it again and playing tons of
    hours on my newbhelper, and playing again to go through the DLC, I'm up
    to 1500.

    *--

    I remember you saying you were trying different classes at one point,
    and playing on-line.

    The other thing I hated having to do was to constantly back up the one
    save game file every time I felt I was going to have trouble. No
    quicksaves and multiple save games from what I remember. Just one
    save point.

    Well you don't really loose anything on death except souls, and you're supposed to spend them before a boss fight on leveling up/equipment.
    And most boss fights are fairly close to graces. I don't think it's a
    big deal, but I do backup before boss fights in DS2 because it's longer between bonfires and bosses, and it's impossible to run by everything,
    like it is in all the other souls games.

    Also good idea to back up fairly frequently because of easily failed
    quests (though in ER you aren't likely to know that for so long that
    it's not worth it.)

    I was towards the end of the game when I quit playing. Mountain top
    of the giants or something like that. I think I only had two of the
    final bosses to find and take down? Something like that.

    Yeah that's pretty far along. They made the last boss easier because
    you can now use torrent during the fight.

    --
    -Justisaur

    ?-?
    (\_/)\
    `-'\ `--.___,
    ?ª'\( ,_.-'
    \\
    ^'

    --- PyGate Linux v1.5.19
    * Origin: Dragon's Lair, PyGate NNTP<>Fido Gate (3:633/10)
  • From Justisaur@3:633/10 to All on Friday, July 31, 2026 08:13:34
    On 7/30/2026 10:18 AM, Spalls Hurgenson wrote:
    On Tue, 28 Jul 2026 11:18:22 -0700, Justisaur <justisaur@yahoo.com>
    said this thing:

    On 7/27/2026 3:09 PM, PW wrote:
    On Mon, 27 Jul 2026 12:16:04 -0400, Spalls Hurgenson
    <spallshurgenson@gmail.com> wrote:



    That said, it is a game I want to engage with. From all reports, it's
    a well-made, influential game with terrific atmosphere and lore. The
    above-mentioned quirks aside, I suspect this is a game I would have
    fun with.

    It is that! But it is very hard, especially the bosses and most every
    one! I had to "cheat", in order to progress. "Farming", so that I
    could level up. I felt a little guilty and sleezy to have to do that,
    but as far as I know, that was the only way I knew how to keep playing
    the game and surviving and leveling up, which was gorgeous. I should
    boot it up and see if it still looks good with my latest hardware.
    Same Alienware monitor though, much better graphics card.


    I don't think it'll be that hard for Spalls, since he's already played
    The Surge and The Surge II, both soulslikes, and he had less trouble
    with them than I did.

    Ehn. It probably helps that "The Surge" has difficulty levels, and
    while I wasn't on easy-mode, I'm pretty sure I wasn't playing the
    hardest either. More importantly, "The Surge" (at least the first one)
    is less dependent on timing your blocks/dodges than were the "Dark
    SOuls" games. It was far more about timing the right attack... which
    is fortunate since I /suck/ at blocking. If anything, I prefer to tank through most battles. "The Surge" allowed that tactic, since most
    fights were against single-foes, the battlefields were (comparatively)
    open, and few enemies could stun-lock you to death. This differs from
    my experience with the Dark Soul games and --I presume-- "Elden Ring".
    There's no difficulty settings to the game, I looked it up when I didn't remember there being any. It's easily as hard as any souls game, if not harder, and much much MUCH less entertaining than ER.

    The options for how to play ER are much more expansive, ranged magic, or
    even just arts of war, where you just stay away from enemies works, you
    can go full facetank with blocking - though it takes awhile to set up properly, you can go str stunlocking though it doesn't always work
    entirely and requires some dodging.

    ER is I think one of the easiest souls games if you take advantage of
    summons (multiplayer, but requires staying at a reasonable level for
    what you're fighting) or spirit ashes (single player summons.)

    I'd get through them with persistence and grinding, but it's not my
    favorite way of playing. So add another reason to my previous list why
    I am reluctant to get started on "Elden Ring" ;-)


    You can play it without grinding, though I recommend exploring
    everywhere if you don't. I certainly didn't grind anywhere near as much
    as I did in The Surge. I'd go grind in draonburrow or against the
    albernaiacs when I got a new weapon/weapon art to test it out.

    Not that I'm trying to get you to play it, I'm just clearing up misconceptions.

    I can't say I got through any of the battles in "The Surge" with any
    real grace

    Neither did I, neither did I.

    --
    -Justisaur

    ?-?
    (\_/)\
    `-'\ `--.___,
    ?ª'\( ,_.-'
    \\
    ^'

    --- PyGate Linux v1.5.19
    * Origin: Dragon's Lair, PyGate NNTP<>Fido Gate (3:633/10)