 |
|
Bridge Constructor Portal (PS4) by jp (Sep 12th, 2026 at 16:02:23) |
Oh, the main reason I got bored is because, once the levels start to get a lot more complicated, I found myself in the situation of having to painstakingly "rebuild" bridges from scratch because my first attempt just just off by a little bit...and you can't really do things like select a whole construction and, say, move it to the left a little bit...you just have to built it again from scratch, which got a bit tiresome - felt more busywork.
That being said, because the physics simulation isn't quite 100% predictable - there are moments of genuine surprise and laughter. Each level has essentially two goals - get one cart across and get a convoy (multiple, that come out at a regular rate) of carts across. The convoy part was definitely more fun because your bridge might work for one cart, but oscillate a bit such that the next cart barely missed, and then there's a whole pileup with carts flipping and getting stuck or the entire bridge swinging out of control.
read all entries for this GameLog 
- add a comment 
|
|
Bridge Constructor Portal (PS4) by jp (Sep 12th, 2026 at 15:58:36) |
I played 40 plus levels, it was fun, didn't take too long but began to get a bit tiresome (which is why I've bailed and moved on).
This game is a portal-themed bridge-constructing game in which carts move automatically and you have to build structures that will sustain/hold them on their way to a pre-determined exit. It's physics based, and having taken static mechanics as an undergraduate I appreciated the load-balancing/bearing principles behind a lot of the gameplay.
However, the game's gameplay is portal-themed and not portal-based. In the main Portal games (1 and 2), the cognitive challenge comes from figuring out where to place portals and how to navigate yourself (your character, in first-person view if I recall) around an area such that you can reach the exit. In this game, the portals (and later gels for speedy and bouncy effects) are already placed - you just need to build bridges. This is fair to the game's title - just an observation not a complaint.
In fact, the existence of portals arguably makes the puzzles themselves more interesting because it affords larger areas withing a single screen/area. If a level in this context is a large rectangular "diorama" - there are only certain ways to navigate from, say, the top left corner down to the bottom right. Portals allows the game's designers to create different navigational paths that violate the regular rules you'd have to follow in a normal space - Portaling around is basically teleporting (going from A to B without traversing anything in between) - so you can have more "interesting" routes you need to build bridges in.
I haven't played the other games in the series, which I assume have their own interesting mechanics and level-things to avoid/make use of, and I wonder if "teleporters" were used in their earlier games? If so, then this game is a lot less interesting - after all it limits itself to portal themed things (switches, sentry guns, the gels, etc.) while the other games could presumably have all that and much more.
Still, as a theming exercise, it's really well done - GladOs and more...and fun little interstitials every 10 levels (or was it 20?).
read all entries for this GameLog
- add a comment
|
|
Senran Kagura Peach Ball (NSW) by jp (Sep 12th, 2026 at 15:48:09) |
I kept on playing the main story - it did become a bit of a drag mostly because I did not care about the story or characters - in the vain hope that this might unlock an additional table to play on. Alas, this was not the case. It did not help that I kept unlocking different cosmetic items and virtual things that threw me off - there was one whose icon was a small pinball table. It took me a while to figure out what they referred to and, sadly, it was not a new table.
That being said, I thought the game's table goal design was interesting and how it triggers a broader goal you reach and then move on. Another way to describe it is that the game's main mode of play (the story mode) is one in which the pinball table is NOT played "until you lose", rather it is play until you complete it's goals - and then it forcibly ends you get another story sequence. There is, of course, an "endless" mode which I would call "regular pinball". LOL.
As I write this I continue to wonder why they decided NOT to go with a vertical orientation for play but alas. The different camera angles helped some, but I still felt like the game was harder to play than it should have been (it wasn't hard to play, just made harder) because of the aspect-ratio limiting how much you could see on screen or how small/big it would be. I found better success changing the pinball to different colored/textured ones I unlocked because they had better contrast with the background table...
Oh, also the tables often got stuck in an "infinite" situation that I had to nudge out of to continue playing, which is why the endless mode and score chasing are kind of pointless.
BUT, it was an interesting game. Creepy in many ways, but true to the series theme (which is, I guess, creepy/pervy already?). The table goal design were interesting, even if I found it hard to follow them (look at the right-side of the screen while playing)...
read all entries for this GameLog
- add a comment
|
|
Event[0] (PC) by dkirschner (Sep 11th, 2026 at 16:12:33) |
This was an interesting one. Another "what happened in the space station" game (I have played several of those lately!), except in this one, all your interactions are with the ship's AI (named Kaizen) through computer terminals. This game was released in 2016, pre-genAI, so Kaizen procedurally generates dialogue based on what you type. For example, Kaizen will treat you differently if you're mean to it vs. nice to it. It can be persuaded to do things, like let you into into an airlock, or you can fail to persuade it and it'll kill you. That specific example was the only one during the game where I couldn't get Kaizen to do what I wanted. I suffocated in space like 10 times before looking up what to do. You have to specifically reassure Kaizen that you're not a threat to it, that you won't harm it.
I really enjoyed trying to figure out what to do through speaking with Kaizen, but I often felt very manipulative. I suppose this is necessary. I mean, the gameplay is almost like completing a series of dialogue puzzles, probing with keywords and instructions and learning how Kaizen tends to respond. It's interesting because, knowing I was talking with the ship's AI, I was treating it like a genAI chatbot, and expecting it to respond like a genAI chatbot. GenAI chatbots are collaborative. They are designed to facilitate interaction, to address user needs. The game actually put me in this collaborative state of mind with Kaizen because it isn't framed as a rogue AI villain, as ship/station AIs are in most games like this. But then, Kaizen doesn't act like a genAI chatbot. If you tell it to do something, it doesn't ask what you mean. It doesn't suggest another course of action. It doesn't offer up very much. It's collaborative, but in a cheeky way, like talking to someone who's a little sarcastic or guarded and who isn't going to be easy to work with.
Unfortunately, I didn't get a chance to play for about a week, and when I came back to it today, I totally forgot what I was doing, where I was supposed to go, what this code I had was for. And Kaizen was being difficult and wouldn't give me straight answers! This resulted in all the aforementioned deaths and looking up things in walkthroughs. Turns out I was right at the end. So the last little bit of the game was dampened by me having to basically follow a guide because I didn't remember anything. The game is really short, and the story and narrative presentation are both obtuse, but it's interesting for sure.
read all entries for this GameLog
- add a comment
|
|
Record of Lodoss War: Deedlit in Wonder Labyrinth (NSW) by jp (Sep 11th, 2026 at 09:55:05) |
After another hiatus - I picked it up again last night. I had played a fair amount and had gotten to a boss fight I was sort of stuck on. Sort of in the sense that I didn't clear it, but also hadn't tried for too long or too hard.
The boss was Karla - who when defeated triggers a second boss fight against Flaus(?). I'm having a hard time remembering the names because I haven't been paying too much attention...
So, I booted up last night expecting to get stuck again, and although it took me a bit to get used to the buttons and actions again, I was able to (luckily!) quickly figure out where I was at/stuck - I mean, I didn't remember what I was doing at all. And so, it was back to Karla! And...I was able to finally beat them both...and then made my way back to a part of the map that look open...and yes! Finally made some progress.
There was a room that had a giant rock and... I had been finding these keys (I had four) and...Karla gave me a 5th (well, Flaus) which was exactly the number I needed...So, it felt really good to finally unlock that area - one for which I had no real idea what I was doing and for which I was starting to get a bit worried and confused. I had picked up these keys, didn't know how to use them, didn't know if they had been used already(?). Anyways, now it was made clear and I'm looking forward to seeing what new things open up now!
I've also hit level 22...I wonder how far this goes?
A few more interesting things:
a. You have a bow you can aim, and there's some puzzles/mechanics requiring the bow. They're clever in principle - for example, fire arrows at a large gear so that it rotates and lifts an elevator you need to ride in. But, you need to fire multiple arrows at it, so it gets a bit annoying because I'm bad at aiming the bow... There are other puzzles that were more fun - shooting arrows to hit a thing that opens a door - but sometimes there are magnets that affect the trajectory of the arrow and that sort of thing. Those were neat.
b. I ran across a buy that oversees a bow shooting mini-game - I did very poorly (you get rated/ranked) and I'm not sure if there's some sort of reward associated to doing well? I've moved past it now in terms of level layout...
read all entries for this GameLog
- add a comment
|
|
|
|
|
GameLog hopes to be a site where gamers such as yourself keep track of the games that
they are currently playing. A GameLog is basically a record of a game you started playing. If it's open,
you still consider yourself to be playing the game. If it's closed, you finished playing the game. (it doesn't matter
if you got bored, frustrated,etc.) You can also attach short comments to each of your games or even maintain a diary (with more detailed entries)
for that game. Call it a weblog of game playing activity if you will.
[latest site fixes and updates]
[read more]
|
view feed xml
|
 |
|
2323 registered gamers and 3383 games. 7922 GameLogs with 13428 journal entries. 5119 games are currently being played.
More stats
|
 |
|
The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion (PC) by dkirschner |
| Ended up getting really frustrated with the AI and the general bugginess. |
|
most recent entry: Sunday 10 October, 2010
|
Weekend gaming extravaganza finale: Why Oblivion is going to begin gathering dust.
I sat down for a couple hours of Oblivion this morning. Have been super busy with work and haven't been playing hardly anything the last few weeks, but I got it out of me this weekend. So I was glad to be able to devote time to Oblivion, which I've had ups and downs with since I began playing it. Unfortunately, this whole session was a bunch of un-fun. Let's list the un-fun things I dealt with.
1. Missing Name - Ok, this was actually un-un-fun. It was more weird than anything. I was pickpocketing an NPC and she had this item. It was a Missing Name. It didn't weigh anything and was worth 0 gold. I stole it, saw it didn't do anything interesting, and dropped it. When I dropped it, it materialized into this big bright yellow wall of oops-bug-in-the-game with a giant light blue exclamation mark. I...was stunned. What is this? Why is it here? Why is there a giant yellow mass with an exclamation mark? I googled it and saw that other people found it too. Very strange.
2. The NPC that I stole the Missing Name from gave me an interesting quest to enter this guy's dream and save him. He was lost in his own dream. I saved him, and when we teleported back to his bedroom, he immediately enacted the pissed off and territorial AI script. He began threatening me and demanding I leave his house and chased me around until I did. What a jerk. I save him from his dreams and that's all I get in return. AI in this game is truly inexplicable sometimes.
3. Another silly AI story: I was trespassing in a castle at night when I didn't sneak quietly enough and woke up a servant or cook or something. She was naturally angry to find me there, although half the time, the NPC will wake up and speak to you like normal. Anyway, this one acted like I would expect one to act about an intruder and attacked me. I ran, and another NPC came out behind us and launched a fireball at me. It hit the first NPC instead of me, and the first NPC turned around and attacked the second one. They fought and the fireball NPC won, killing the first NPC. Then the fireball NPC went back to her room to sleep. What? If I had killed anyone, I'd be arrested. NPCs can do whatever their stupid AI tells them and not be arrested. And why would they fight one another? Accidental fireball = fight to the death.
4. So this castle that I was trespassing in is a dangerous place to trespass because guards are ardent patrollers of the master's quarters in castles. I was spotted several times and had to flee the city. The 3rd or so time this happened, I came back in and noticed the city guards were bugged, stacking on top of one another. Always amusing. I walked to the castle door and one guard was staring off into space. I entered, went to the hallway where the countess was, whose room I had to gain access to for a Thieves' Guild quest, and found the Countess lying sprawled on the floor with an attendant standing over her. What happened? How fortuitous actually. Somehow the countess has died in the hallway and I can just loot her corpse and take the ring I'm supposed to steal from her lockbox for my quest. Oops, she's not dead. She's just unconscious. She gets up and begins running in place. The attendant walks into another room. I start trying to pickpocket the countess, but it's like she's not really there. I can't interact with her. She's just running, stopping, running in place, stopping. Then she passes out from fatigue again. Wakes up. Runs in place. And so on. This is frustrating, so I try to reset her somehow. I ran back outside the castle and came back in. This time she runs out the hallway door and turns and runs into a guard in place. I tried to pickpocket her again,but this time it said she was fleeing, so I still couldn't. Ok. I'll walk out and back in again. That worked and she finally got unstuck and returned to normal. I followed her back and pickpocketed her ring. But it didn't give me the quest. Ok. Quest says to steal it from her lockbox at night. So I went to her lockbox after I followed her to her bedroom and she went to sleep. Nothing there. ARg. I could absolutely not figure out what to do. I think all that bugging screwed up the quest, and then me taking things from the lockbox earlier and stealing the ring from her instead of the lockbox might have done it. Who knows. It's irritating though because, unless I want to load my game from way earlier, the game has just bugged out this Thieves' Guild quest, so I can't continue down that storyline. And I'm a thief. So annoying.
5. The last rant is about another stupid NPC. I picked up a quest where I had to lead an NPC to some island she wanted to go to. On the (long) journey there, I discovered a tomb, and we went in. I told her to stay, and I went on alone so she wouldn't die. What happens as soon as I encounter enemies? She comes running. I loaded and did it again. She still comes running and almost gets herself killed. So apparently telling the NPC to 'wait here' doesn't mean much. So after fighting a few times and her almost dying a few times, I just went on with her at low health. Bad idea. As we're walking along the coast, some big spider monster decided to target her and one-shot her. I loaded it back and tried to intervene, and did this about 20 times. Even if I get to the spider monster first and pump like 5 arrows into it, it just ignores me and goes straight for my NPC companion and kills her. So annoying. And what's worse, I can't get my NPC companion to follow me away from the monster! Once she realizes the monster is going to attack her, she runs toward it no matter what I say. So she dies and I can't do the quest. Finally by some stroke of luck, I got to where she avoided the monster and we made it to this camp on an island. She had told me not to attack any of the NPCs there, that she wanted to talk to them. So it's me and her, and there are like 5 NPC men around a campfire who are not hostile to me. She stands on the edge of their camp and doesn't do anything. I go talk to her, and she yells like "Get out of my way!" and just makes a suicide run into the camp attacking the guys. What? Why? She does it every time. And here's the even dumber thing. Even if you leave her alone, that spider monster comes running from a mile away and kills her anyway! Monsters leave you alone if you run far enough away, but this one was just intent on killing her for no good reason. I messed with that stupid quest for an hour before giving her up as dead. So frustrating! The NPCs in this game are so ridiculously stupid I can't believe it. Not only stupid, but they just do things that make no sense whatsoever.
Since this sums up my play session for the day, I really feel like this game isn't worth continuing. It's been ups and downs the whole time, but I've kept with it hoping it will turn into more fun. But it's just not. It shimmers here and there, but overall I find it very frustrating. Two things I wanted to do but haven't are purchase a house and do some of the main quest line. But I've really no motivation for either anymore. I can buy a house, but so what? I can stash things in it? Woohoo. I can do some of the main quest line, but again, so what? I have reason to believe I'll encounter many more stupid NPCs, bugs, and general un-funnery. I am done. Uninstalling.
[read this GameLog]
|
|
|
