the first person shooter game thread (eew fps)

[Lethe]

Supposedly this second port needed to be pitched as a new project because Atari didn't want the expense of continuing to support the first one. Seems to be their pattern of behavior with this stuff. Maybe the new version will catch up to NBlood this time.

Wonder how well it'll play on controllers without gyro aim... you want to pain tag hitscanners real fast to spook them into not shredding you. Routing the maps and ramping up the aggression is way more of a transformative experience for Blood than its peers from the era, it's the only one where I want to replay levels over and over to see how far I can push my recklessness.

[AGermanArtist]

I just paid an extra £30 to play as a robot in COD BO7 - granted I do get a Blackcell battlepass included and 1100 COD pts to add to my stash in the event there is a decent crossover or two.

[Obiwanshinobi]

And the criticism was also aimed at the general public and professional reviewers.
A game with old mechanics but modern graphics is fine, but a game with modern mechanics and graphics from a 1-2 generation ago is not.

I feel sometimes a game with old mechanics but modern graphics is fine indeed. And I believe that Vanguish received generally favourable reviews upon its release. I can't blame some folks out there who found its playable demo "no hum" and moved onto something else, either. Not everyone gives things a second chance.

[Austin]

I tried to play the PC version - liked the atmosphere but jesus it was brutal.

Third difficulty or lower. And lower it to 1 or 2 if you have to. The game is fun then. On 4 and up, you'll want to throw your computer out the window. It's total BS difficulty with a bunch of RNG thrown in for added torturous measure, and I don't throw that terminology around very often.

[Lemnear]

And the criticism was also aimed at the general public and professional reviewers.
A game with old mechanics but modern graphics is fine, but a game with modern mechanics and graphics from a 1-2 generation ago is not.

I feel sometimes a game with old mechanics but modern graphics is fine indeed. And I believe that Vanguish received generally favourable reviews upon its release. I can't blame some folks out there who found its playable demo "no hum" and moved onto something else, either. Not everyone gives things a second chance.

I've always found Vanquish anything but "old", in fact it's always given me that super modern effect. I got it at launch with a steelbook included.

[it290]

I tried to play the PC version - liked the atmosphere but jesus it was brutal.

Third difficulty or lower. And lower it to 1 or 2 if you have to. The game is fun then. On 4 and up, you'll want to throw your computer out the window. It's total BS difficulty with a bunch of RNG thrown in for added torturous measure, and I don't throw that terminology around very often.

If you use NBlood you can change the aggressiveness of hitscan enemies independently. Would definitely recommend lowering that otherwise they'll just shred you as soon as they see you. Also it pays to use dynamite, like, all the time. The game actually gets easier as you progress because you get a lot more tools for dealing with enemies.

[Obiwanshinobi]

I've always found Vanquish anything but "old", in fact it's always given me that super modern effect. I got it at launch with a steelbook included.

What I really meant was that if big enough crowd of folks is willing to replay a game they like as-is, just graphically refreshed, I don't have a problem with them getting what they want. If they don't want Vanquish refurbished this way nearly enough, I don't blame them, either.
Vanquish got released in environment pretty saturated with 360-gen console TPP games. Whereas Gears of War didn't compete against quite as many 360 games, let alone then-exclusives. Also, local co-op using one set of devices, whereas Vanquish is not multiplayer at all. This has to count for something in terms of broad appeal.

[Faith]

I tried to play the PC version - liked the atmosphere but jesus it was brutal.

MaranahhhhhHHHHHHHHHH!!!

Haha, yes, wow Blood is very difficult. I did my run on Well Done >.<"... and already that, make the stupid cultist throw big dynamite at you. Big joke.

Did not want to try Extra Crispy (hardest) after that... lol...

But anyway... not sure the point of Refreshed Supply??? Was already super happy with Fresh Supply playing experience!~

Really love this game a lot. Love Caleb a lot, such a cool character! Maybe try play again!

[Daytime Waitress]

The multiplayer/co-op update for Nightmare Reaper was the perfect excuse to get back into it, and it was expectedly just as enjoyable a second time around with a mate.

Running through it originally, I had an absolute blast passing off streams with a buddy: watching along and seeing how our separate builds handled each stupid new mechanic the game threw at us as we progressed (I distinctly recall that his fuckbusted RNG meant he had a hell of an easier time with the last boss...).

And it's just something that just transitions seemlessly into co-op play: you're constantly shifting between pairing up to make fights more managable, and splitting up to explore the levels and find whatever keycard-flavoured doohickeys you need to trigger progression; and balancing your own weapons (/ammo types) to cover each others weaknesses or compound your strengths. A well-oiled murder machine operating in perfect sync, knocking down the maps one after another.

Separately I also enjoyed getting back to NG+1 again: cooling it on the modifiers for enemies and environmentals because HP pools for mobs were getting inflated AF and dragging the game down.
Popcorn mode engaged.

Back to loving the game unreservedly.

(I've also looped back around to detesting the lack of level design again, though)

[AGermanArtist]

Robocop comes to COD BO7 this week. So if you buy that pass, and play Warzone - you now can play as Arnie from Terminator 1, the T-800 endoskeleton, Predator and now Robocop.

[Obiwanshinobi]

Been wondering... Oftentimes have I seen Call of Duty ridiculed around here. So, I would like to know what exact PROBLEM those who actually PLAY first person shooters have against any particukar CoD title, sub-franchise or mayhap all of them (assuming they had actually PLAYED, at least briefly, each and every single one of 'em).
My experience is, I think, from well over 20 years ago. It was of playing very briefly PC demo of United Offensive add-on just when that one was new, then first one's PC demo I found on a Soldier of Fortune II Platinum Edition's disc. I might add that I hardly ever play any FPS to completion. And since I practically NEVER play them online, I demand a singleplayer experience they offer being compelling to me.
What I recall having found most off-putting about those two demos was the music they played. I take it they were emulating the kind of film depicting war as manly adventure with it. I just can't remember music in any other first person shooter this off-putting to me. Actually, around that time, SWAT4 had some of the most compelling ambience in an FPS to me. Like I said, not much of my genre to boot.
BUT then, it was only the music that could be tuned down completely, or replaced with some other music of choice. Maybe the actual game underneath wasn't half-bad? Again - what trouble those who actually play this genre games have playing any CoD one?

[TransatlanticFoe]

According to Does It Play, Call of Duty WWII (2017) is the last one which has an offline single player campaign, with Infinite Warfare (2016) they last time you could play offline from the disc build. Black Ops 4 dropped the campaign entirely, and since then it's treated as various levels of afterthought.

Black Ops featured some music in places (Sympathy for The Devil, Fortunate Son), designed to make it feel more like a playable Vietnam war film. Otherwise the series largely uses generic movie-like ambient music, with songs only in appropriate places (bars, radios).

The main criticism about Call of Duty campaigns are that they're very cinematic - it's largely a fast-paced corridor, mowing down enemies who infinite spawn until you pass a certain point. They typically have guest big name celebrities (Advanced Warfare has Kevin Spacey if you can handle that ick) and are only 4-6 hours long. I wouldn't spend much money on it if you're not going near multiplayer.

I tapped out after Black Ops III which, while it had an enjoyable campaign gameplay-wise, the story was (putting it politely) a load of total fucking horseshit. Its multiplayer was also weak, with a main gimmick that was impossible to learn because it never activated - thanks to a matchmaking system that constantly pitted inexperienced players against the sort of 100+ hours in week 1 max-ed out "I fucked your mom" incels online multiplayer is famed for.

World at War, Black Ops, Modern Warfare 1-3, Advanced Warfare - these all have campaigns that are a fun ride in my opinion, and you can probably pick up a disc dirt cheap. I wouldn't go near anything recent if you only want offline single player.

[AGermanArtist]

To be honest, I've only played 2 COD campaigns - COD 2 and COD4 MW.
COD online is a victim of its own success and it taught me one very valuable lesson. And that is, if something's good - shut up about it.

I can't claim to be someone who played the game from its first iteration, I didn't get into online gaming until Xbox 360 with COD2 which I enjoyed, but it hadn't grabbed me yet because it felt quite basic and I wasn't really invested in online gaming, only using free codes when friends would invite me for a game.
I don't know why I skipped COD3, I think it just seemed like more of the same.
It wasn't until COD4 MW came along that it got its hooks into me. A great campaign and ADS which Halo 3 didn't have. And it felt more agile than Halo 3.
At the time I started to sub to the online service and played 3 online games regularly - COD4 MW, Gears of War and Halo 3, but COD4 quickly became the main game for my buddies and I. Even my G/F at the time got into it and to the best of my knowledge, she continued to play it after we broke up and still does.

The problem with COD is the people who play it. When videogames, particularly online games were once the preserve of actual 'Gamers', COD4's overwhelming success and the word of mouth hype brought in people who aren't gamers in the conventional sense. These are the very same people who only a couple of years earlier would deride 'Gamers' as "nerds" often accompanied by slurs. These people really didn't belong there, they're unsporting tryhards who would just ruin everyone else's fun in-game - camping, sniping on small maps, griefing and so on, which escalated with COD4's sequel MW2, to the point it actually alienated the core base, but because so many of them flooded in, Activision didn't care. They just saw the money and did everything they could to keep these assholes engaged at the expense of those who actually played the game in its early days.
It lost a lot of its elegance and became the clusterfuck it is today with all the UAVs, camos, prestiges and so on.
COD since then has been propped up by those people - those who only play COD and a sports title.

When Black Ops 6 was released, I happened to have Gamepass on my Series S and for whatever reason, I played a few hours on it and actually really enjoyed it and how the game engine has evolved with omni-movement. It had been 13 yrs since I played COD. Gamepass lapsed and I bought BO6 on PS5.The players are still the worst, most unsporting cunts, but I played them at their own game and within a month of being quite rusty, I was coming in first in every lobby I entered also with BEST PLAY in most cases which carried over into Black Ops 7. I'm kind of over it now and haven't really touched it for a few mths, but I did enjoy my brief return. I kind of got off on stomping the cunts at their own game and it felt like justice to me for them ruining my game.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jf_qQWFlETc
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KEea7kY76qs

[Obiwanshinobi]

Thanks for write-ups. At some point I fancied trying CoD4: Modern Warfare, which I think was the first FPS this MASSIVELY successful on PC and consoles alike. In that regardless of the platform, it made pretty huge, long-lasting impression/impact. Not sure if I'm wording my impressions exhaustively. Crysis appeared like the last one made primarily for the most powerful PCs at the time. After that, I seem to recall all the "bigger" FPS titles getting developed for consoles from the word go.

[AGermanArtist]

COD4 MW's campaign is excellent. It felt like quite the accomplishment to clear it on Veteran.
I should add that while it does seem that I'm quite negative about the series, I do have 654hrs clocked on COD BO6/7 and Warzone.
If you check the videos I posted, I don't camp as such. Meaning, I don't just sit in a doorway waiting for people to pass so I can shoot them in the back.
I do what I call Zone Camping, where I take an area and make it mine and anger people enough to the point they keep coming to take me down and just grind that zone until the round's over. Every COD map has one.