Quoting: silentprocyonThe game below actually takes place in Glasgow

It does? Cool! (Goes to look at screenshots.)

Hmph. That doesn't look like the Glasgow I've lived in for the last 40-odd years. The “train station” (sheesh) seems to be French for some reason, and the countryside looks like a weird mix of Yorkshire and Switzerland. With American roadsigns. On a quick image search, the only picture that seems even vaguely right is one of the background images from the title screen, and on closer examination I think it's actually supposed to be Manhattan. Or maybe not. At this point, I have no idea.

I know I'm kind of hijacking the thread here, but this kind of thing happens too often. Seriously, how hard is it to make a game's environment actually look at least broadly like the place you're setting it in? I mean, don't get me wrong: I know it is pretty hard, and you don't necessarily have to use actual real-life locations, but at least try to make them plausible. If you don't have the budget to visit the place, use StreetView or something to get a feel for the architecture. What's the point of setting it in a particular place if it doesn't look right? You might as well make one up.

View this comment - View article - View full comments

My first thought was that there might be a place called Flushing Point somewhere in Queens, New York City. And it turns out there is (or, at least, [url="https://ny.curbed.com/2016/9/19/12972316/flushing-point-plaza-residential-hotel-queens"]a development called Flushing Point Plaza[/url]), not far from Citi Field and the Arthur Ashe Stadium.

What this might mean, or if it's even relevant at all, I have no idea.

Quoting: liamdawe"A flavour of Alasdair Gray http://alasdairgray.info/images/Paintings/paintings9.htm [External Link]"

I thought it looked vaguely familiar. Oran Mor's just down the road from me. It's a bar/restaurant complex in a former church. Very popular for weddings. Although I imagine Feral didn't choose it for that. :)

View this comment - View article - View full comments

Quoting: Linas

Quoting: DuncPity about the weather effects and framerate issues. The static screenshots look amazing.

I don't know. The screenshots don't look much like the actual game to me. They are at least very carefully selected...

Well, it wouldn't be first time a publisher has tried that trick...

View this comment - View article - View full comments

A sin games simply shouldn’t commit

The first game dev diary I ever read - it may even have been the first one ever, period - was Andy Braybrook's in Zzap! 64. The one thing that always sticks in my mind from it was his principle that “the program should never get in the way of the game”. Sound advice.

Pity about the weather effects and framerate issues. The static screenshots look amazing. (Well, yours doesn't, with the green rain, but you know what I mean. :P )

Motocross isn't my motorsport of choice, but when I think about it, it's hard to recall a game based on it that I didn't enjoy. I hope they can sort out the issues. VP have usually been pretty good at that, in my experience at least. (If only they'd do more testing before release, maybe a semi-public beta or something. Can anyone think of a port they've done that didn't launch with serious problems? As I say, they're usually good at sorting them out, but by then the bad publicity is already out there.)

View this comment - View article - View full comments

Quoting: dpanterDid you mean Deadfall Adventures? https://store.steampowered.com/app/231330/Deadfall_Adventures/ [External Link]
It's on Steam sale for 5€, dunno where you saw it for 2 or 3. :)

Heh. That's been on my wishlist almost since day 1 of Steam on Linux. I played a free weekend way back then, and remember enjoying it. But I still haven't actually bought it, even at that price. It's probably worth it, though.

Speaking of games from the early days of Linux-ey Steam (or should that be Steamy Linux? :D ), Kairo [External Link] is an interesting abstract puzzle/exploration thingy which reminded me of the old Freescape [External Link] games from the '80s and '90s (argh, I feel old today). I recall the ending being a bit underwhelming but at 80% off, making it less than 1GBP, you can't really go wrong.

View this comment - View article - View full comments

Quoting: MohandevirThe Cave might not be as underated as you define it but, imo, it deserves an honourable mention and it's 80% off. :)

Yes, it won't be everyone's cup of tea, but it's an interesting transposition of Double Fine's traditional strengths in point-and-click puzzles (and comedy) into a 2D platformer. It reminded me a little of some of the British puzzle-oriented platform games of the '80s: Trap Door, the Magic Knight series, and especially the isometric classic Head over Heels, with its “single-player co-op” aspect.

That said, I don't think I stayed with it enough to play through all the characters, but at this price it's definitely worth a look.

View this comment - View article - View full comments

Worth noting, the next Steam sale is also this month.

Uh-oh. :S:

Right now, Surviving Mars is having a free weekend on Steam, and 30-40% off, depending on what DLC bundle you buy, if you want to keep it. (There seems to be a few Paradox titles on sale, actually: CKII's at 75% off, for example.)

I'm still a bit wary of the replay value in Haemimont's games to buy it outright, but I'll definitely give it a try. Maybe I'll like it too much to resist. It has happened before. Damn you, Steam!

View this comment - View article - View full comments

“Cryptic obscurity”? Is it a new version of the teaser radar?

View this comment - View article - View full comments

1. HITMAN 2
2. Just Cause 4
3. Shadow of the Tomb Raider

Agree on all three. And frankly, although it's getting on a bit now, I'd be more than happy with Just Cause 3. It still seems to have trouble under Wine.

View this comment - View article - View full comments

Quoting: WindousicoShame on you! :P

Heh. :) I feel like a bit of a slacker now: I “only” have 147. Which is still way more than I'd have thought possible six years ago.

I actually have 10 “years of service” on Steam because I bought The Orange Box back in the day. (I could never get it to work under Wine.) It's weird to think that my account has been properly “active” for longer now than it lay dormant, because that seemed like a looong time. I'd almost forgotten about it when Steam came to Linux.

View this comment - View article - View full comments