Resident Evil 8 (village?)

[Loik V credern]

You haven't died and Moz only died late into the game and only used guard once? 

 

I've died loads.  On standard. You both sound like hardcore would suit you more though i don't think it increases enemy numbers, just more shots required. Not sure on that. 

 

I'm not finding it a challenge, but i didn't find Resident Evil 4 on normal difficult but it doesn't matter, I'm engaged enough to try which is all i want.

 

Unlike RE4 i never have enough ammo in this. Until the last area i didn't buy ammo so thought if i want to increase the intensity of the situations then I'll just always go  through my weapons using whatever i have. I have been going for headshots, I'm not good at games but I'm not bad. I've never played the souls games or have an idea at the punishment people are up for. I love loads of enemies coming at me but i hate never ending bosses so I'm glad I didn't persevere with hardcore.

 

Spoiler

The best action by far was that stone section, i loved that, just reminded me of lord of the rings, i didn't want it to end. But it soon did. I much prefer large amount of enemies than fewer who are harder to kill, i like that feeling of being overwhelmed, they keep coming, you're moving all over, going over covered ground to pick up items from the dead because you're low on ammo.

 

I'm at the factory now and the graphics continue to amaze. It is probably the first game since RE4 I've played where i can't believe my eyes, though that mainly shows how few games i play.

I want more scenarios where there's a dozen enemies at once but I'm not sure I'm going to get it.

 

[Jamie John]

I don't think I'd enjoy hardcore. Enemies are bullet spongy enough as it is (my stupidity notwithstanding) and Ethan just isn't mobile enough compared with the enemies. I did the fight with the 

Spoiler

Hammerbro

last night and it was a complete clusterfuck. Felt like I was wading through treacle most of the time, getting caught on the scenery and constantly hit in the back by things I couldn't see. I only survived by chucking grenades around willy-nilly. Wouldn't have liked to have done that on a harder difficultly.

[womblingfree]

In Hardcore you wil die and die a lot.

[Majora]

I think the game does show how difficult it is to make good bosses in first person when your character isn't particularly mobile. Most of the time a boss would start to attack and I'd just run away and hope I didn't get hit in the back. 

[Jamie John]

4 minutes ago, Majora said:

I think the game does show how difficult it is to make good bosses in first person when your character isn't particularly mobile. Most of the time a boss would start to attack and I'd just run away and hope I didn't get hit in the back. 

 

I think the problem is exacerbated in the particular fight I refer to above because the arena is so small, and the game chucks other enemies into the mix. I could definitely have done with a sidestep or dodge when he was doing the big overhead hammer slams.

[NecroMorrius]

Yeah I also think the new variants feel worse than the initial ones (and there are third variants too).

 

I'm really only using the pistol, everything dies to it.

[Jamie John]

I think there's a bug which is preventing me from getting the final treasure chest, which is annoying. The one beneath the 

Spoiler

gravestone in the doll's garden. The mausoleum back in the village with the missing chunk of the plaque is supposed to open up once you've killed doll lady, but it just... hasn't. I can see the plaque lying in there, but the gates are very much locked. Am I missing something? Apparently, once you put the plaque back, a big monster is supposed to jump out and you have to kill it to get to the treasure.

 

[NecroMorrius]

I'd use more weapons if I could bind them to 1-0 keys. As it is, I've just realised I've got 45 explosive rounds, 13 mines and 18 pipebombs, I haven't used any of them once yet except when I temporarily equipped a pipebomb to blow up a wall. All will fall to the might of pistol headshots.

[Majora]

2 hours ago, Jamie John said:

I think there's a bug which is preventing me from getting the final treasure chest, which is annoying. The one beneath the 

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gravestone in the doll's garden. The mausoleum back in the village with the missing chunk of the plaque is supposed to open up once you've killed doll lady, but it just... hasn't. I can see the plaque lying in there, but the gates are very much locked. Am I missing something? Apparently, once you put the plaque back, a big monster is supposed to jump out and you have to kill it to get to the treasure.

 

 

Unfortunately you have a very narrow window to get that item and it sounds like you've missed it. I did too. Unless you get it directly after the second house you're screwed.

[Jamie John]

1 minute ago, Majora said:

 

Unfortunately you have a very narrow window to get that item and it sounds like you've missed it. I did too. Unless you get it directly after the second house you're screwed.

 

Ah. Well that's silly. Oh well.

[NecroMorrius]

OK finished!

 

I've been moaning a lot so I'll do the positives (with a few caveats). 

 

The game looks beautiful. Some iffy monster designs aside, the actual RE engine continues to shine. I've said it before and I'll keep saying it, Capcom are really onto something with it and they can't lose - licensing to others would net them a load of cash, while keeping it in-house allows them to make these strikingly pretty games which run really well, which competitors would struggle to match. Ray Tracing is a bit of a mixed bag, but when isn't it? The environments are really well designed and detailed, lighting is fantastic with or without ray tracing, and characters look suitably realistic or gribbly.

 

It’s varied. It isn't afraid to do new things. It does rather end up a jack of all trades as a result, but at least it isn't too samey throughout. 

 

It's funny. There are lots of moments which made me chuckle which may or may not be intentional, but it’s both intentionally and unintentionally funny at times.

 

It comes together quite well in the end, with some good character beats and the story wraps around nicely to eventually make sense. Maybe it's one for multiple playthroughs, as I found the lack of context quite annoying at the time and wished that I was learning about the various characters while I was exploring their environments. Instead it seems to expo-dump you afterwards.

 

I really like Chris in this. He's really well realised and the character is very enduring.

 

I’ll go back and play it again on a much higher difficulty to see how it holds up as a proper survival horror experience, as it's evidently not balanced for mouse controls. And it was very clearly designed for VR, it seems so obvious when you look at the geometry of most of the arenas and boss fights. But it would make a bloody fantastic VR game so hopefully that'll materialise at some point. 

 

Overall, I'd say there were too many negatives holding the game back to make it anything except an average-tier distraction. There are all those I've mentioned and many I haven't. However, rather than keep listing them out, I'll give the game the benefit of the doubt on account of being built in the middle of a global pandemic. I still enjoyed it, not as much as 7 and nowhere near the remakes, but it was fun. 

 

Here's a tiny bit of Mercs for you, nothing special, but you can see how having a mouse makes it a bit too easy.

 

 

[Triple A]

26 minutes ago, Jamie John said:

 

Ah. Well that's silly. Oh well.

There's always NG+, which is partly why they have this sort of design in place I think.  I missed a bunch of fish first time round 

[Triple A]

On 15/05/2021 at 17:39, Moz said:

some good character beats and the story wraps around nicely to eventually make sense. Maybe it's one for multiple playthroughs

 

Spoiler

Not-Mia has some responses and mannerisms in the opening I didn't pick up on first play, that speak to who she really is.  That was a nice thing to experience in NG+.

 

Not-old lady that you see again after beating Lady D, drops some hint of Ethan’s true state as well, which also carries more weight on round 2.

 

[Jamie John]

@Moz - That vid makes it look like an entirely different game from the one I'm playing!

[NecroMorrius]

Ha, I played the whole game like that. The pistols once upgraded are beastly, I barely used anything else.

[NecroMorrius]

On 15/05/2021 at 08:24, Jamie John said:

I don't think I'd enjoy hardcore. Enemies are bullet spongy enough as it is (my stupidity notwithstanding) and Ethan just isn't mobile enough compared with the enemies. I did the fight with the 

  Reveal hidden contents

Hammerbro

last night and it was a complete clusterfuck. Felt like I was wading through treacle most of the time, getting caught on the scenery and constantly hit in the back by things I couldn't see. I only survived by chucking grenades around willy-nilly. Wouldn't have liked to have done that on a harder difficultly.

This is the single time I died in the entire game, I got caught on the scenery.

[Capwn]

Completed this a while back and wanted to return yesterday but you start a 'new game' rather than new game + which put me off. I kinda want to play again but with all my inventory intact, is that not possible? Only thing I can do is buy things from the game credits store? Also I thought this game had mercenaries mode but even after finishing on normal mode I can't find it in the menu? 

[BadgerFarmer]

15 minutes ago, Capwn said:

Completed this a while back and wanted to return yesterday but you start a 'new game' rather than new game + which put me off. I kinda want to play again but with all my inventory intact, is that not possible? Only thing I can do is buy things from the game credits store? Also I thought this game had mercenaries mode but even after finishing on normal mode I can't find it in the menu? 

NG+ is there. Just load your completed save data I think. Mercenaries has to be bought from the shop you unlock.

[Jamie John]

And done. 11.00 hours according to the game, but 13 according to the PlayStation profile timer.

 

I'm going to try to write up a proper review of it for MHG, but, in short, I thought it was good, expensive, polished fun, though the castle at the beginning is far and away the best part of the game and things take a gentle decline from there until the end. I liked it more than Resi 7, but it's not a patch on RE2make. I'd probably score it on the cusp between 7 and 8 out of 10.

 

Ethan is a complete bell-end.

 

I've stuck my copy in Trading if anyone wants a go.

[Triple A]

Cor the infinite Wolfsbane magnum is well naughty. Giggling like a schoolboy during the opening siege ha

[Sumire]

1 hour ago, Jamie John said:

And done. 11.00 hours according to the game, but 13 according to the PlayStation profile timer.

 

I'm going to try to write up a proper review of it for MHG, but, in short, I thought it was good, expensive, polished fun, though the castle at the beginning is far and away the best part of the game and things take a gentle decline from there until the end. I liked it more than Resi 7, but it's not a patch on RE2make. I'd probably score it on the cusp between 7 and 8 out of 10.

 

Ethan is a complete bell-end.

 

I've stuck my copy in Trading if anyone wants a go.

 

I just looked at my playtime, and it says 16 hours, probably knock 2 hours off that to be more accurate. I really enjoyed it, both parts, and will be going back to play it again for sure.

 

It looks pretty amazing on my PC. I think one of the main graphical things that let this Resident Evil Engine down is the water effects though, everything else was nice. I never had one crash either or major issues, which is rare for a PC game these days, definitely very polished , up there with the likes of Doom Eternal. I did have some stutters when fighting some enemies, but it seems to be a bug I think as lots of PC players are reporting it even on high end hardware, but nothing that distracted from the experience for me.

 

I preferred Resi 7 more as in VR it just makes everything to much more scary, perfect for this type of game. I would say the same for the score, maybe a strong 7 at the moment, but I want to play through again.

 

I know Ethan isn't the best character, but why do you think he is a bell-end lol.

[Jamie John]

1 hour ago, Sumire said:

 

I just looked at my playtime, and it says 16 hours, probably knock 2 hours off that to be more accurate. I really enjoyed it, both parts, and will be going back to play it again for sure.

 

It looks pretty amazing on my PC. I think one of the main graphical things that let this Resident Evil Engine down is the water effects though, everything else was nice. I never had one crash either or major issues, which is rare for a PC game these days, definitely very polished , up there with the likes of Doom Eternal. I did have some stutters when fighting some enemies, but it seems to be a bug I think as lots of PC players are reporting it even on high end hardware, but nothing that distracted from the experience for me.

 

I preferred Resi 7 more as in VR it just makes everything to much more scary, perfect for this type of game. I would say the same for the score, maybe a strong 7 at the moment, but I want to play through again.

 

I know Ethan isn't the best character, but why do you think he is a bell-end lol.

 

He's just a complete dork, Captain Obvious in extremis.

 

'Its dark down here'. 

 

'Take that!'

 

'You'll have to go through me first!"

 

'M-m-my hand!?'

 

What a twat. He's like an awkward dad meme personified. All the personality and nuance of a paper bag. I can't say

Spoiler

I was at all surprised when they killed him off at the end.

 

[Ry]

Ethan is that shit I find him hilarious. 

 

Thinking of doing another run, something I never do really in single player games. Wouldnt mind running through with the magnum and infinite ammo for a laugh. 

[PyramidFace]

Yeah, Ethan is so on the nose it's great. So much better than the shite wisecracking like some Marvel imbecile that's in every other AAA game.

 

Finished this and Capcom absolutely knocked it out the park with the final area and end game scenes.

 

RE4 seems to be the common comparison for this game, but I'm going to say it's the atonement for 6. This is everything 6 tried and so spectacularly failed to pull off. An action rollercoaster that's like a greatest hits of every kind of horror trope. And it's reassuring to see a game this hilarious and bizarre get the kind of budget that's usually only reserved for sub-HBO sad dad snoozefests. 

[LaveDisco]

For something so next-gen I love how videogamey this is. It's proper bonkers and I love it.

[fattakin]

I wish I hadn’t played it on casual. It’s too easy. I haven’t played one since RE1/2 in the PlayStation days and figured it would be a pain in the hole. It’s not, I’m loving it. 

[womblingfree]

Incrementally getting through hardcore. While it can be frustrating it gives you just enough room to improve to stop you from rage quitting. Mostly that’s the big bads.

 

The run of the mill enemies all have to be approached with caution and thought too, which leads to a nicely creepy pace. Not got any guns powerful enough to allow me to go in blasting yet.

 

On Series X with ray-tracing turned on. As this is a pretty solid 60fps I’m not sure what the point of turning it off would be?

[Calashnikov]

Ethan is incredible. “Who would do such a thing, oh no” total devastation over actual horrific thing, instantly goes shopping  

[MansizeRooster]

I've been getting lots of Bloodborne vibes from this game. Especially the model work for some of the treasures.

[CheekyMonkey]

Just completed the 3rd village lord - still absolutely loving this! 

 

It's like a glorious mish-mash of Resi 4 and Resi 7 which are 2 of the best in the series. If I have one tiny criticism so far - it's a similar one that applies to some other RE games ie:

 

Spoiler

The castle is such a great area to explore, but the following ones just end much too abruptly. The castle built up slowly into a big epic finish, but then you kind of expect the other areas to do the same. So far the doll house and reservoir have been quite short and are basically over before you've really got stuck in, and it leaves you wanting a bit more.

 

Reminds me a bit of RE2 with the police station being so great, but then the rest of the game doesn't quite measure up to it.

 

I read in the Edge thread that this doesn't have any freedom and is very much funneling you from one area to the next. Well, I'm replaying RE4 at the same time, and to me that is waaaay more linear. RE8 has lots of little pathways you can take to go hunting for treasure and some of these end up as really cool little mini encounters, I don't think RE4 has any of that (note - it sounds like I'm putting a downer on RE4 but it's my favourite game of all time). I actually think this has struck a brilliant balance between offering up some nice optional areas and being stuffed with banal side quests etc.

 

Also I'm very happy to have gone back and restarted on hardcore - I highly recommend this. After that (bizarrely difficult) first village siege, it seems to be pitched just about right.