Epic Games Store (now with free games!!)

[Rorschach]

I played Ark back when it was in early access - it was terrible. Sounds like it hasn't improved much. It's nice that it's free and all but I have so many games to play now I don't want to waste time on something the developers could even optimise.

[Deef]

It's just bonkers that they can't fix "torpiditity" in one place and "torpidty" in another, or the massively obvious broken brontosaurus animation... after 5 years... yet still pump out expansions and are currently hosting 5-year birthday events. Wtf. Fix your typos from 2015 perhaps?

[Candy Arse]

When Total War Saga: Troy launches in August, it will be free to keep on the Epic Store for 24 hours.

This game being Epic exclusive kills it before it releases; Steam Workshop support adds so much to the Total War games.

[Ambrose Burnside]

"Indeed, Sony, Nintendo and Microsoft all operate similar walled gardens or closed platform models as Apple, whereby the hardware, operating system, digital marketplace, and IAPs are all exclusive to the platform owner.

"As such, a final decision should be better informed regarding the impact of the walled garden model given the potential for significant and serious ramifications for Sony, Nintendo and Microsoft and their video game platforms."

Source

The judge in the Epic vs Apple case pointing out console monopolies also suck (not really, but they do)

Crash Bandicoot 4 $99.95 vs $69 at JB Hi-Fi

I really hope the disc-less next gen consoles die.

[Peppermint Lounge]

Watching the kid-oriented gaming streamers my son sometimes tunes into I can see obvious Epic sponsorship to drive kids to their store and Fortnite. So their moralising on Apple and monopolies which is nothing more than a grab for more direct cash makes me dislike them more.

[Gamma]

Crash Bandicoot 4 $99.95 vs $69 at JB Hi-Fi

There was a "demo" for this but you could only access it by pre-ordering the game for $99.95. Classic Activision. I went back and checked after the game had launched to see if the demo was now available for everyone, nope, it no longer exists. I'd wager it was actually just the full game with restrictions on what you could access, so it'd count as you playing it and therefore you'd be unable to cancel the pre-order.

Looks really cool, but I'm happy to wait for a sale. Particularly in light of getting Mario 64, Sunshine and Galaxy together for $59.

[Deef]

Free games every day for 2 weeks starting today (WA's midnight).


Dec 18th (12:00am)
Cities Skylines

Super pleasant and modern city builder. Strongly recommended if you like the genre and haven't yet tried this one.

It was free on PS4 a while ago and we were hooked for about 2 weeks, like literally not wanting to share the console. As complexity increased, managing started to weigh us down a bit too much compared to building (and it's tough for any game to hold attention for long anyway), so we moved on before getting to its highest tech stuff.

But while it lasted it was really enjoyable to play. One of those games where it's just a bit longer then damn where did 5 hours just go.

Happy to have it added to my free collection, but I've already had my fill so...


NEXT!!

(And just repeating in case anyone glossed past it: One free game per day for 2 weeks, starting today with Cities.)

[Peppermint Lounge]

Thanks for heads up, Deef.

[Deef]

Dec 19th (Remember this is Australia time... Epic/most places will say it's the Dec 18th release)

Oddworld: New 'n' Tasty

I don't know much about the Abe's Odyssey games. Played the original a little back in its day and did think it was pretty great. But that was then.. I'm not sure if that particular style of game is juicy enough to compete these days. Well, not for me anyway. I'd say it's a good game that I probably just won't ever install.

... Actually, no, I've definitely played this a little. I have nfi where or when, but I know I have.
*shrug*



NEXT!!

[Peppermint Lounge]

Happy with that one. Been close to buying it a few times. Upcoming Oddworld Soulstorm looks good but they’re asking $75 for it.

[t0mby]

Isn't New and Tasty just a remake I f the original or am I confusing it with another?

[unfnknblvbl]

yeah, it's a remake. I quite like it still; it's like a modern interpretation of Flashback.

[Deef]

Dec 20th

The Long Dark

Haven't heard of this.

I see the words "survival", "challenge", and "thoughtful" and I'm a bit interested. No zombies, just mother nature, etc. Local multiplayer would've been nice but ah well.

But then I see the word "Episode" and that can sod off. The word "episodic" is the fastest way to destroy my opinion of a game... the whole carrot-on-a-stick thing.

To make it worse, the blurb on the Epic page makes it hard to tell wtf is going on.
It tells us that "Wintermute" is 2 episodes so far, then it describes the first 3, then tells us that it will be 5 in total ... that will form the first season. Sigh.

Episodes 3 to 5 will be unlocked for free as they are released, it says.
But the game was released in 2014, and the same blurb is telling us that Wintermute was overhauled in 2018... So was it actually 4 years later and they still hadn't finished the other three (8-hour) episodes of their solo survival game's season 1? Or is this store page text literally different things written at different times, pasted together?
I think it's the latter.

"Five Challenges exist at launch, with more on the way in future updates."
"...over the past three years of Early Access."

What a mess.
Is there a complete game here or not?
Am I really going to hear the word "season" again?
Will I be bothered figuring these things out? Unlikely.


At a glance, user reviews are quite positive however.
I just don't want to install it and find out it's not all here. If someone confirms this is at least a whole game (and saves me having to google), I'll probably give it a try.

[Peppermint Lounge]

It's been on my Steam wishlist for ages. It appears to be the complete game. I've never seen it presented for sale as episodic.

[Hercy]

The game has an optional story mode or you can play in sandbox mode. I've played it a bit because it's on Xbox Game Pass and preferred the sandbox. Never finished the story (and maybe neither did the developers if that blurb was true).

The story mode restricts you to one map at a time and you have objectives. In sandbox mode you can choose any map to start from and move between maps (at travel points along their edge). There are no set objectives so you are just free to explore and harvest resources.

To me it felt more like a sandbox game with a story mode tacked on.

[Deef]

Well that's good to hear. And if Pepp's gone and wishlisted it in the past it must be worth a look.

[Deef]

Dec 21st

Defense Grid: The Awakening

Well its promo trailer certainly sings it a lot of praise.
For me, tower defense was a genre I enjoyed for a patch then have never felt the urge to go back to. Looks ok, but it also looks 12 years old (which it is).


NEXT!!

[Ambrose Burnside]

Dec 21st

Defense Grid: The Awakening

Well its promo trailer certainly sings it a lot of praise.
For me, tower defense was a genre I enjoyed for a patch then have never felt the urge to go back to. Looks ok, but it also looks 12 years old (which it is).


NEXT!!

It's also been given away before (I have it on Steam so maybe through Humble Bundle?)

Today it's Alien Isolation!

[t0mby]

Awesome game, but I had to play it in small doses as I was getting the fear and heart races. I still haven't finished that.

[Peppermint Lounge]

Alien Isolation looms large on my pile of shame. I'm turned off by repeated reports it drags on.

[unfnknblvbl]

Awesome game, but I had to play it in small doses as I was getting the fear and heart races. I still haven't finished that.

Yeah, same. That game gets me right where I live. I never thought I'd be properly terrified by a video game.. but then the Alien gets to me in some kind of primordial fashion in the films. I guess I should have known.

[Deef]

Sounds good, on the list of things to try.

[Deef]

Dec 23rd

Metro 2033 Redux

This is a repeat giveaway, so a big meh to that. The one good thing about this is that at least I have my impression already written:

I was definitely thinking Metro was something other than what it really is, which is about as clichéd an FPS as you can get. I've been trying to figure out how they pitched this before it got the go ahead, because "brown nondescript monsters in a post-apocalyptic environment where ammo is scarce and the NPCs talk a lot" doesn't exactly scream originality.

I can only guess that someone thought "Russians" and "based on a novel" was some kind of big deal.

Deleted already. I was about 40% through but prefer to not give it more time.

[Ambrose Burnside]

Looks like this leaked list was accurate. Hidden if you like surprises:

Spoiler!

Cities: Skylines
Oddworld: New n Tasty
The Long Dark
Defence Grid
Alien: Isolation
Metro 2033
Tropico 5
Inside
Darkest Dungeon
My Time in Portia
Night in the Woods
Stranded Deep
Solitairica
Torchlight II
Jurassic World Evolution

Source

[Deef]

It hasn't been and doesn't look to be the most amazing of lists, tbh.

I'm probably the most spoiler averse person in the country so I appreciate that gesture... but also wonder if anyone really cares in this case. Nevertheless...

Spoiler!

Tropico 5 - Haven't played it but from a glance at reviews I'd say there's little point including it when Cities is already on the list. For me anyway. I already know Cities is a strong title in the genre, and I don't know what Tropico 5 brings that's particularly unique apart from a tropical vibe.

Inside - A good successor to Limbo; similar in style but different enough to be a fresh game. Though like Limbo it still has a short life expectancy with not a lot of replayability.

Stranded Deep - Got this too. Literally can any survival game exist that is not indie (or at least, doesn't look indie)?
While this one has relatively good production quality (for the genre), it comes at a cost of being impressively bland. Its hook just isn't that strong, and nothing comes along during a game to spice things up. It's Grandma's survival game basically.
I'd recommend it only if you're after a survival game that values production quality more than things that are interesting. However if you're willing to accept significant (sometimes copious) amounts of jank in return for stronger identity, go Subnautica (first and foremost), The Forest, 7 Days to Die, or ... ... just maybe Ark.

There's a few on that list that appear to have decent reviews after a quick check, but still look too much like a mobile game for me to feel interested.

JWE at least will be good. I am a complete sucker for dinosaurs, and it was well received so even though I'd barely heard of it before I'm looking forward to that one.