Topic: Pure Xbox Game Club - Rise of the Tomb Raider (May)

Back to A Plague Tale, my opinion is that Innocence is worth playing if you have the chance. Mechanically, it's rougher and more streamlined than Requiem but you might like the story and user interface a bit more. They both are visually impressive and the first one is tighter and shorter so that's a plus. I didn't love them but they are satisfying enough. For the record, I almost gave the sequel up between chapters II and III when Amicia gets mad fighting soldiers but I'm glad that I didn't because the best part came afterwards.

@LtSarge I understand your feeling but have to say at least for me if I choose a game in the club I will wait to play it at that month (there were games I did not vote because i knew I will get to them straight way like Tunic for instance). On the other hand if a game I suggest does not get upvoted I get into it too (like yoku's island express).

I think is normal for people to vote more for new games as some would have played the older titles before and for instance I usually only replay games I adore from childhood.

But maybe people will think about your thoughts on the future and be more thoughtfull of what they vote too!!

@LtSarge Sorry to see you go Sarge. Always enjoy your insights.

I hope you stay on the list and jump in when a game does interest you.

I like a mix of the old and new too, and getting to games that i'd missed and probably might not get back to without the nudge. That said until Immortality last month every other game we've played this year before that came out in 2021 or earlier, it's mostly not new games, though it is a lot games recently added to Game Pass. But I see that as a plus as it means more people have access and might join in.

But there's pro's and cons to each. The trouble with the older, classic backlog, games is the vast majority have probably played them. E.g. There were a lot of games in the 2021 list I had played before and didn't want to play again. I suspect many are in the same boat.

Personally I'm struggling with Game club for different reasons recently, some IRL stuff means I have far less time to game at the moment and so when I do it's usually a game I choose rather than the one here.

Apologies for the late replies, all votes have been added now. Looks like Return to Monkey Island is the current front runner.

Honestly I really couldn't remember a lot of the first Plague Tale so even I was confused when I started up Requiem. I remembered the main story beats but not who lived and who died throughout the original so I was a bit surprised when I saw some characters return after I thought they were dead 😅

That said, it only really mentions the first game a few times so I duno really. If I hadn't played either and I had access to both then I would probably play both because why not?

Mechanics wise, I think they are fairly similar. Requiem might actually be a bit simpler. Again my memory is really spotty but I think there are less alchemic ammo to craft in the second one but it does add a more traditional weapon into the mix.

Not an odd choice at all!

Haha you can change your name to Nintendo666!

R1spam made a good point actually about the first game being a Plus game ages ago. Might be worth looking into if you claimed it. At least no money would be involved but I'd totally understand if two games were just too much of a time sink.

@LtSarge no worries mate, I will take you off the tag list. Just let me know if you want to be added back.

I think only one person who voted for Plague Tale actually finished it though but it's a fair point that the game should be played within the month (more or less). But it really is up to people's playstyles. I tend to just play and finish a game over a few days because I don't like dragging things on for ages. If I'm Gona play a game club game, it'll fit in between my current schedule, could be in the first few days of the month, the middle of the month or a last minute one.

I also thought that the problem we discussed almost a year ago was about Day 1 drops being chosen for Game Pass rather than just old games that had just been added. It makes sense to try and avoid Day 1 drops like A Plague Tale because it's true that most people will play it anyway but I don't think avoiding every "recently added" game is feasible just because most only stay up there for 12 months. But yeah, I generally leave all that up to the democracy because it's not a club unless everyone has a say.

Looking at the list, I don't even think many of the Day 1 drops are bad choices. Stuff like Immortality is pretty niche and was a really good game to pick imo. Life is Strange, Deaths Door and Plague Tale are the only other ones I've spotted. I didn't play the first two because I wasn't that interested in them but I think Plague Tale has some relevance because we played the first one.

Not sure who that user you mentioned is. I don't seem to recall any discussion to that effect. We've lost a few who deleted their accounts for other or unknown reasons though.

But yeah, you've some made fair points so I'd probably like to remind people to let me know if you have already played a game you voted for so I can remove your vote - don't worry if it's just a couple of days before the month starts but if it is like weeks ago then just tag me and tell me to remove your vote for that game.

On the topic of Plague Tale. I actually have a question regarding a bit that really confused me later on in the game. I won't go into details about that exactly for spoiler reasons but something I didn't understand during the early chapters were the different enemy factions.

First up is some weirdos in bee masks which is fine and I understand that. Then it's like some soldiers and then it's like some mercenaries which are the two I get mixed up.

Considering the mid game plot point I am referring to, I can't really work out/remember why the mercenaries and their leader Arnaud were even going after Amicia in the first place. If somebody can enlighten me when they get to that point in the game then I would be grateful.

@ralphdibny Fair point. I wasn't planning on finishing the game before the month started. My idea was to slowly play it next to the other games which i was playing at that moment., so i would still be playing it in November. I got sucked in to the game so much that i couldn't put it down and put the other games i was playing at the moment on the side, not realizing we also chose it for the game club. So I finished it at the end of last week, just a few days before the month started. That was an exception though. My vote for next month Monkey Island isn't a game i would normally play but saw it as a good game club game since i heard good things about it (havent played the older Monkey Island).

So my apologies if me finishing this game before the month started, started this. It was never my intent to disrupt the game club.

@Lavalera I think you are alright to be honest, it was literally a few days before. I even considered starting the November month early but I didn't get time to do the thread.

Months can start a few days early or late depending on my schedule so it's only fair that people playing the games have the same flexibility. Plus the meme of Balta finishing every game very quickly is too funny to do away with 😃.

But yeah, I think your ok. Sarge has a very specific opinion of what game club should be which is not surprising considering their long tenure. they are an OG of game club and actually started the first one over on Push Square before this one span out of it. But with the revolving door of faces over the years, this club has become its own thing and likely will become another thing in future if other people join and other people leave. It's just the nature of the Club

Just remember the first rule of Game Club.... Do not talk about Game Club

@Balta666 @themightyant Yeah, I was primarily referring to games recently added to Game Pass, not new games. It just feels like we vote on whatever is topical, so what's the point even in keeping a list of older candidates when they will most likely never get voted for? I think it's more interesting to choose games to play that we weren't planning on doing so anytime soon. Somebody suggested Ninja Gaiden Sigma a page ago and I think that's a good example of a fitting candidate for Game Club.

@ralphdibny

Well I mean, we have a long list of candidates that have been there for a long time now. When will we ever get to Perfect Dark?

Yeah, that's why I'm bowing out as I obviously can't tell people to vote in a certain way. And I totally understand that Game Club is becoming its own thing now that more people are participating. So the only option for me is to share my thoughts on the matter.

Not surprising that you don't remember him considering he left Game Club a long time ago. I think his name was dmcc0. He was with us from the start here and an active participant, which is why it left an impression with me when he left.

@LtSarge hopefully next month! I am putting my vote in for Perfect Dark 😂

Of course I remember dmcc0 but I absolutely can't remember them asking to be removed from the tag list but they don't seem to be on it :S

They did say their preference isn't toward newer games on game pass but their last post in this thread said they no longer had the subscription and they voted Yes for whether we should do the front page article promotion that Fraser offered us.

But yeah, had a few chats with @dmcc0 so a bit confused that they are not on the tag list any more. DMC can you shed some light on this? Were you ever on the tag list? Did you ask me to remove you from it or did you just never join?

On an unrelated note, I just bought 3 years of game pass ultimate for £118 using the 1:1 gold to ultimate conversion.

Not sure if I should have done it as money is tight at the moment but it's still a really good deal at that price and I did see an article about "prices rising" in the new year.

Not sure how I feel really. Guess I don't have to think about it as an upcoming expense any more though as I'm stacked until November 2025 (if humanity still exists then)

Edit: had a total fail lol. I thought I'd give the battlefield games ago. Downloaded battlefield 1943 and it doesn't even have a campaign lol. Oh well, deleted it and downloading battlefield 3 now

@ralphdibny hey there. I'm still around, just not actively participating in the club as let my Game Pass sub lapse. I was buying just as many games as before, but only playing stuff on Game Pass, so let it lapse to clear a bit of the backlog. I do still drop in every now and again to see what the current game is, but nothing has come up that I actually own (partly due to being newer games that are getting picked), but I do still read the topic to check on folks thoughts for any games I might get around to playing some day.

I do tend to agree with @LtSarge though about picking the newer games. I ended up playing quite a few 'older' games that I might not otherwise have looked at because they were picked as part of Game Pass Club - stuff like Rise, Titanfall, the first Plague Tale etc that I absolutely loved, but might not have necessarily played if it weren't for Game Pass club.

@dmcc0 fair play to ya, Glad to hear your still kicking about! I am still none the wiser as to why you were never on the tag list though as you were a big part of this thread for so long!

How's the backlog coming along anyway? I haven't really bought any games in a long time. Actually I did buy the turtles collection and shredders revenge but other than that not alot really.

@ralphdibny I don't think I was ever actually on the list - I used to check the thread out almost daily so didn't really need to be notified of anything 😂

The backlog is still growing quicker than I can play the games - I just can't resist a sale 😂, not helped by the fact I started playing SnowRunner from the backlog (typically, I bought it just before it went on GP) a few months back and have been totally hooked - close to 200 hours now I think.

@dmcc0 wow! Can't believe it really. Well it's a bit late, but do you want to be added to the tag list? 😆

You know, I think I actually do buy random games in the sale but I literally just buy them and forget I even bought them. It's a bit sad really. I don't spend a huge amount, maybe a tenner a month but I almost always forget what I've actually bought.

I remember we were talking about 3DS Wii U eshops a little while back. I basically bought everything that's cheap that was unique to the system. But last time I was on there, I loaded up a final £100 card onto it and haven't decided what to buy with it. My choices were between the 3DS ace attorney games which are only available on 3DS (a couple are on android as well) or the fire emblem games which tbh, sound far too complicated and time intensive to even work out, play and but DLC for.

I haven't really played either series, except the F2P fire emblem on the phone back when it came out. I am leaning toward getting the ace attorney games but one of them (the Layton crossover) has free DLC locked behind completing the game which puts me off because I'd have to play a bunch of Layton games and phoenix wright games quickly in order to unlock it which is not how I'd like to experience the series. At this point I'd consider pirating both but I've only set aside a 2DSXL to use for pirating (not done it yet) so I wouldn't get the 3D on any of these games

I didn't realise snow runner was so addictive! I might give it a try! Is it actually completable though? Like can you get to an end point (that you have just gone past because you're hooked on it)?

@ralphdibny na, I'm good re the tag list 😂

I haven't bought a huge amount on XBox or Switch recently, but have been on a bit of a retro binge. Gradually picking up the last of my 3DS wishlist and I'm considering getting an Analogue Pocket as well so picked up some more GB/GBC/GBA and even some Game Gear carts recently too.

I've not played any FE and only really played the original Ace Attorney on DS I think - I have bought all the 3DS exclusive AA games though, just not got around to playing them yet. I'm not going to finish the Layton crossover game in time to unlock the DLC, but I guess it'll be available via less legit means when the eshop closes so I'm not too worried about it. FE is one where I've almost jumped in a couple of times on various systems, but something just stops me - maybe not knowing which game is suitable for a noob in terms of needing to have played a previous one, or maybe just that I feel the games would be pretty long and that's putting me off given the size of the backlog already.

SnowRunner does have an end point. There are 3 sets of contracts to complete in each region - one set is mainly general logistics stuff, the other is mostly logging and the third is mostly oil/drilling based. Usually the final drilling Contract in the region is like the level 'boss' where you deliver some ridiculously oversized load down some narrow, winding mud track or something. There are loads of side contracts you can do as well though - stuff like recovering stuck vehicles, delivering supplies to repair roads/bridges etc. and I tend to clear those before doing the general contract, which is why it's taken me so long.

@Lavalera You don't have to apologise for anything and also you can talk about games that you have already beaten. When you voted for A Plague Tale Requiem, you hadn't played it. I don't understand why anyone would care if you finished it in October or November.

There are some games that I had already beaten like Quantum Break. I didn't suggest it but I talked about it when I read some opinions here. That's the thing about old games. If someone prefers to suggest old games, they are free to do it. I also suggested cooperative games and that person complained about my suggestion. People don't agree about what to play and how to play, hence the votes. The only solution that I see is letting everyone choose their own criteria and respect other people's criteria.

@ralphdibny @Banjo- thanks for that info about plague tale. I'm going to miss this month out as it sounds like there is still a lot to gain from playing innocence before requiem and with me in the middle of forbidden west and a crippling bout of vampire survivor addiction, I'll not be able to finish both innocence and requiem before the end of the month.

@R1spam No worries, I was actually replying to you in that comment (#2148) about A Plague Tale Innocence and Requiem but I forgot to write your name. I agree with your stance, we all should take this thread easy and play whatever and whenever we want to 😊 👍🏻.

@dmcc0 haha fair play

Ooo nice, my brother has actually gone down the game gear rabbit hole over the last year. As well as other various retro consoles. He's always sending me pics over WhatsApp. He normally buys job lots so I've seen a lot of videos/screenshots of game gear "classics" like mortal Kombat and James bond 😂

I think I've basically stopped buying retro games unless they are dirt cheap. Reasons mainly include price but even more importantly, space. I have got stacks of boxes with consoles and games. My under bed storage (it didn't originally have storage - I cut a hole in the fabric) is completely stuffed with packaging for consoles (like CIB but I keep the consoles
themselves in plastic boxes in the cupboard for access). I also have shelves and shelves lined with games.

Basically, if I can emulate it easily then I would prefer to do that now, it's just much better for my mental health to have less physical stuff suffocating me. That's my preference anyway, that doesn't change my current situation of being suffocated by the physical stuff I already own 😂

I do like my series' though so I am more than happy to collect physical collections of like Mario games, MGS, Doom, Mortal Kombat, Zelda etc.

I think the length of the FE games puts me off too. I really don't think I have enough life left to live to play them. I'd quite like to try a few but maybe I'd try smaller portions of the series like a random game or two or that GC/Wii pair. FE Heroes on mobile was pretty good though and I do have a moderate liking for tactics games in general but I haven't played many