Gaming Does TLoU get better? + thoughts on PS4 from Wii U gamer

[shinkodachi]

I'm at 43% completion right now (Hotel Lobby) and about to give up. Playing on normal difficulty, at first I just got tired of the infected, but then the whole clicker business before and after the high school when you're accompanied by Bill was just really dragging my energy. Can't for the life of me figure a way out to play through these scenes without getting bit once and dying...

...and that's my next problem. I don't care about dying because it just loads up the scene again without losing anything. In fact when Tess was left behind to face the soldiers and Joel & Ellie went hiding upstairs, I just kept trying to avoid the soldiers by running and getting killed each time until I was able to just run outside and get to the subway. Much easier.

So is it going to get better? I'm kinda tired of the game and not sure if it's worth to continue. The clickers and especially bloaters just get on my nerves so instead of being scared/startled I just get frustrated when I see them. (As a side note: this is one of very few survival horror games that I've played, I usually don't play M-rated games either.)

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TLoUR is my 1st and currently only game on PS4. Was it a good pickup for a 1st game to play? I had a PS3 originally, but sold it long before TLoU PS3 came out. That's when I picked up a Wii U. Now, a full year later after being a Wii U gamer exclusively, I got the PS4. I can't say I love the system and my biggest complaint right now is the awful Dualshock 4 controller that begs me to recharge it every few hours I play. It's also just a weird design to me, my hands are more suited for the Wii U Pro Controller or Xbox One controller.

I also started this thread over at the Wii U discussions if you're interested in knowing why I got a PS4: http://gbatemp.net/threads/sold-a-bunch-of-wii-u-games-to-get-a-ps4-anyone-feeling-same.373169/

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All input is appreciated. Also if there's any must-have / overlooked PS4 gems I should try, tell me what to get and I'll do it.

 

[mkdms14]

1st you should probably upgrade your shiva ability when a clicker grabs you, you can stab it back and not die instantly it is a must should of been your first upgrade. Second does it get better? Well that a very subjective question to ask. Its a story driven experience with 3rd person shooter/action/horror elements. If you have not been enjoying the game because you keep failing then you are probably not going to enjoy the game because it only gets harder from there until the end. If you try and upgrade your abilities first and have a little patience then yes stick with it and you should be fine. I always recommend maxing your shiva and bow first. Those are your best friend in the game. Everything else is optional only helps to make the game easier. Is this a must get for the PS4? I would honestly say no. I don't have a PS4 because I have still not seen that must have game for PS4. I am still getting a lot out of my PS3. I don't plan on getting a PS4 until Batman Arkham Knight comes out or if The Order 1886 proves to be good, but right now I am not impress by it. I love my WiiU and have been playing it a lot lately and can't wait for smash bros wiiu. Hope this helps

 

[shinkodachi]

1st you should probably upgrade your shiva ability when a clicker grabs you, you can stab it back and not die instantly it is a must should of been your first upgrade.

Already done! And gathering resources all the time to make shivs and other stuff. But though they're laid out plentifully around areas, I've found the necessary resources to make shivs are not very common (mostly rags) so I end up dying because I've run out of shivs.

If you have not been enjoying the game because you keep failing then you are probably not going to enjoy the game because it only gets harder from there until the end.

I think you're reading me a bit wrong here. I love a challenge, but I'm not failing all the time. The game is just frustrating because I feel the difficulty is very unbalanced. Certain points can be just run through (like my example above, why even try getting my stealth on and killing soldiers if I can just run through them after a few attempts?)

Thanks for the input, I too feel the PS4 still lacks variety despite being out for a year now.

 

[mkdms14]

Already done! And gathering resources all the time to make shivs and other stuff. But though they're laid out plentifully around areas, I've found the necessary resources to make shivs are not very common (mostly rags) so I end up dying because I've run out of shivs.
I think you're reading me a bit wrong here. I love a challenge, but I'm not failing all the time. The game is just frustrating because I feel the difficulty is very unbalanced. Certain points can be just run through (like my example above, why even try getting my stealth on and killing soldiers if I can just run through them after a few attempts?)

Thanks for the input, I too feel the PS4 still lacks variety despite being out for a year now.

Ok its been a while since I played the game. I don't remember what the easiest setting is but maybe you should try it the easiest settings because I do remember it becoming really frustrating for me towards the end of the game. You will have parts where you can avoid the clickers/infected, and other parts where to get by you have to kill them all. The only other game I think of that might be good on PS4 is Infamous Second Son but then again I have only played the Infamous game on PS3.

 

[shinkodachi]

Ok its been a while since I played the game. I don't remember what the easiest setting is but maybe you should try it the easiest settings because I do remember it becoming really frustrating for me towards the end of the game. You will have parts where you can avoid the clickers/infected, and other parts where to get by you have to kill them all. The only other game I think of that might be good on PS4 is Infamous Second Son but then again I have only played the Infamous game on PS3.

I'll try playing on Easy to see if that makes the game any more enjoyable to play. I usually play exploration games (e.g. Zelda games) so this linearity in TLoU of playing from one cutscene to another is what makes the experience less exciting to me.

I'm mainly waiting for Tekken 7 because I love arcade fighters. Infamous just isn't interesting enough to me, but I'll give it a try anyway.

 

[mkdms14]

I'll try playing on Easy to see if that makes the game any more enjoyable to play. I usually play exploration games (e.g. Zelda games) so this linearity in TLoU of playing from one cutscene to another is what makes the experience less exciting to me.

I'm mainly waiting for Tekken 7 because I love arcade fighters. Infamous just isn't interesting enough to me, but I'll give it a try anyway.

The only arcade fighter game I can think of that is currently available for PS4 is Injustice Gods Among Us with Mortal Kombat X and Tekken 7 coming sometime out next year. If you are looking for a fighter game to tide you over until Tekken 7 you might want to give Injustice Gods Among Us Ultimate Edition a try it came out a while ago and got really good reviews soo you should be able to find it at decent price.

 

[Nathan Drake]

You realize Zelda is still linear, right? It tries to hide it, but you are still on a set path of dungeons until the end of the game. Only the latest 3DS entry could be considered non-linear, as there is no set dungeon or story progression that has to be followed throughout the game. Ultimately though, in Zelda, you can't really go where you want when you want, nor is there a substantial amount of side questing that can be done. You can't go out of your way to gain new skills and abilities, as they all come from the linear progression of story dungeons that demand you get item x from dungeon y in order to get through it.

The biggest problem I see you having is that you're used to Nintendo games. You're used to the Nintendo formula. You like games that you already know and are having a hard time branching out because these games don't follow gameplay styles that you're used to. You prefer Nintendo games because, odds are, you've played enough of them that death is a pretty foreign concept. Trial and error has pretty much stopped existing for most Nintendo gamers. Patterns tend to be easy to discern, and the best way forward tends to be spelled out in an impossible to miss way. Basically, here you've said you don't like The Last of Us because it challenges you, is difficult, and you don't like that. All of your complaints revolve around the fact that you haven't figured out the best way to handle different infected as you come across them. Most of all, you don't seem to be appreciating the game for its story, and The Last of Us tells a pretty damn good one.

Let yourself out of the Nintendo bubble, and don't be hesitant to start on easy in games. Especially when you aren't used to a style of game, easy will be your best friend.

Also, yes, I know you said you like arcade fighters, but once again, that's likely because you've been playing them for years and have gotten good at them. Don't miss out on games just because they don't follow a familiar formula that you are good at.

 

[shinkodachi]

The only arcade fighter game I can think of that is currently available for PS4 is Injustice Gods Among Us with Mortal Kombat X and Tekken 7 coming sometime out next year. If you are looking for a fighter game to tide you over until Tekken 7 you might want to give Injustice Gods Among Us Ultimate Edition a try it came out a while ago and got really good reviews soo you should be able to find it at decent price.

I'll get my fix with Smash Bros. for Wii U until Tekken 7 and maybe Guilty Gear Xrd are out for PS4. Not a fan of Injustice/Mortal Kombat, but thanks for the suggestions.

You realize Zelda is still linear, right? It tries to hide it, but you are still on a set path of dungeons until the end of the game.

I think we started on the wrong foot here: I didn't say Zelda games weren't linear as well, but they pretty much lack the formula of cutscene-play-cutscene-play that I've so far experienced with TLoU. I can't go back to previous areas or explore entirely new areas on the side of my main objective. I think even Ico is a less linear game than TLoU (with essentially the same idea of "escort the girl") and I loved that game.

The biggest problem I see you having is that you're used to Nintendo games. You're used to the Nintendo formula.

Way to interpret things and ignore what I said. The only console I've had for longer than 2 years was my PS3. I didn't even play games before that. I love all kinds of games and I mentioned above I love a challenge, but feel TLoU is unbalanced. I'm sorry if the fact I don't enjoy games the same way you do poses a problem. TLoU may just not be my kind of game.

Let yourself out of the Nintendo bubble, and don't be hesitant to start on easy in games. Especially when you aren't used to a style of game, easy will be your best friend.

There's no bubble. Survival horror is a genre I haven't tried much, but I've many played stealth games before and just in the context of that I don't think TLoU is particularly challenging. I can just run through most situations and killing enemies at gun point is easy. It's just when getting to an area with lots of clickers that I just sigh and think to myself "alright let's get it over with". Because I don't think they made fighting zombies particularly engaging. It's just a "hold R1, sneak up behind them, press triangle, press triangle again to shiv". Or if I want to have fun and there's a bunch of them, then throw a Molotov cocktail and watch them burn. Otherwise it's just very tiresome doing the same over and over and over and over again. That's my problem. Not the difficulty, not the stealth gameplay, but fighting zombies is a drain on my energy because it's not exciting. And the game taught me that I can just restart the scene from where I left off after dying, so I no longer care about dying either. I don't lose anything. I just run and run until I'm gunned or survive. Take that any way you want, but IMO this is just lazy development as far as gameplay mechanics go. The story is engaging. I'll give you that. But I still think a game should focus on good gameplay, not storytelling.

Also, yes, I know you said you like arcade fighters, but once again, that's likely because you've been playing them for years and have gotten good at them. Don't miss out on games just because they don't follow a familiar formula that you are good at.

Did I ever say I'm exclusively liking arcade fighters? I started playing since the SNES and I participate in local tournaments almost every year, so yeah I love them. But I also play other styles of games. I enjoyed Killer7 on PS2, I loved Resident Evil 4 on GameCube, and for a game with mostly story elements I really liked Catherine even though it's just a puzzle game.

Like I said above just give me suggestions of what to try and I'll give it a shot. I've added Infamous on my list now, who knows I might enjoy it. But interpreting myself as living in a Nintendo bubble and afraid of games other than arcade fighters is just not the truth. I've read many reviews of TLoU now and some of them criticise exactly the same things I do, so at least I know I'm not alone thinking the game isn't perfect. And thankfully a game doesn't need to be perfect to be enjoyable, right?

 

[mightymuffy]

Playing on normal difficulty

There's most of your problem.... you've been playing games from the SNES days you say, so you should've picked Hard at least: the game is ssooo much better on harder difficulties. Add to that the fact you sound like you're trying to play it like it's Mirror's Edge or something.... my advice is stop, play summat else for a bit, then come back to it, from the beginning, on Hard mode at least, then take yer bloody time enjoying how to work your way through a particular bit - you can almost melee your way through the entire game on Normal, and that's not what the game is about...

 

[shinkodachi]

There's most of your problem.... you've been playing games from the SNES days you say, so you should've picked Hard at least: the game is ssooo much better on harder difficulties. Add to that the fact you sound like you're trying to play it like it's Mirror's Edge or something.... my advice is stop, play summat else for a bit, then come back to it, from the beginning, on Hard mode at least, then take yer bloody time enjoying how to work your way through a particular bit - you can almost melee your way through the entire game on Normal, and that's not what the game is about...

THANK YOU. Exactly what I needed to hear.

 

[emigre]

The Last of Us is glorious. A truly superb gaem.

It isn't a survival horror though so your expectation of it may cloud your judgement of it. It certainly incorporates a great amount of survival elements into the gaemplay. It isn't a horror gaem at the slighest. With the exception of the odd 'jumpscare.'

The intensity of the gaem certainly increased when playing on a higher diffuclty, normal provides little challenge, try playing on survivor difficultly where resources are much more scarce.

In terms of PS4 gaems, whilst there's not much in terms of system sellers, there's a good amount of system justifiers:
Infamous Second Son & First Light were a lot of fun
Tomb Raider DE is worth playing if you haven't already
Velocity 2X is fucking awesome
Peggle 2 is very fun
Dust is worth looking at as well
RESOGUN COS ITS RESOGUN

 

[shinkodachi]

It isn't a survival horror though so your expectation of it may cloud your judgement of it.

I just took Wikipedia's word for it, though. "The Last of Us is an action-adventure survival horror video game" https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Last_of_Us

I added all of the games you mentioned to my list of stuff to try, except Resogun. I had the chance to play it in beta form (I know the guys who developed it, it's a local game company here) and it's just a pretty 3D sidescrolling shmup. Absolutely no challenge (mind you, I play DoDonPachi on black label and I love Touhou games, so bullet hell genre is something I've played since a kid...)

 

[shinkodachi]

Update: When I started this thread I was at just a little before being 50% through the game. So I took your advice and played again, starting on Survivor difficulty. The game is MUCH more enjoyable this way. The difference is very big. My problem was playing on Normal, just like mightymuffy mentioned.

...and the game gets MUCH better. The first half is still IMO very bland, but going through fall and winter is absolutely great. Especially the winter because apart from one huge scene with the damn zombies it's mostly stealth gameplay vs. humans. I really loved that part. And now I start feeling the connection between Ellie and Joel in a more stronger way, so yes Mr. Big Shot Arcade King who just punches buttons does have feelings alright.

I stopped playing now because I played through almost the entire game without realizing it. So I'm right at when spring begins and Joel and Ellie are at the highway exit, almost 90% through the game. It's a short game, but so far it's great. Don't want to spoil too much, but everything after Tess gets better. Everything before and during Tess is IMO bland. I'm glad I kept playing.

Can anyone suggest other games of this kind: survival / stealth? Preferably no zombies, I mean fighting against them is so unexciting (very predictable moves and still easy to shiv the clickers even on survivor difficulty). Fighting against humans gets my blood pumping every time, especially during the part when I played as Ellie alone.

 

[emigre]

Looks like captain emigre saves the day again.

Can anyone suggest other games of this kind: survival / stealth? Preferably no zombies, I mean fighting against them is so unexciting (very predictable moves and still easy to shiv the clickers even on survivor difficulty). Fighting against humans gets my blood pumping every time, especially during the part when I played as Ellie alone.

On PS4, not really due to the whole the PS4 has only been out for a year. Jackshit like this exists on Wii U with maybe the exception of Splinter Cell (whihc I didn't like).

There is MGS 5:GZ which is good but only 90 minutes long. However it is on sale for about £7 on PSN and it is worth it as that price.

Tomb Raider DE incorporates some stealth but it rather minimal and rather meh stealth.

 

[shinkodachi]

Guess I'll wait for the full MGS, is the "demo" worth playing anyway? 90 minutes doesn't sound like much fun.

 

[emigre]

Guess I'll wait for the full MGS, is the "demo" worth playing anyway? 90 minutes doesn't sound like much fun.

The amount you play is actually really good from a gameplay perspective and there are additional side missions to play.

It isn't worth anything resembling full price, but considering you can get it for around £7 on PSN at the moment, I think it's worth it at that price.

 

[shinkodachi]

The amount you play is actually really good from a gameplay perspective and there are additional side missions to play.

It isn't worth anything resembling full price, but considering you can get it for around £7 on PSN at the moment, I think it's worth it at that price.

I'll think about it if I can't find anything else to play. Would Watch_Dogs work in the meanwhile to get a fix for a stealth-like game? Or is it crap?

 

[emigre]

I'll think about it if I can't find anything else to play. Would Watch_Dogs work in the meanwhile to get a fix for a stealth-like game? Or is it crap?

Not stealthy at all. Watch Dogs is an ok open world gaem and that's it. I only played it cos it came with my bundle otherwise it wasn't a title I was too interested in.

 

[shinkodachi]

Not stealthy at all. Watch Dogs is an ok open world gaem and that's it. I only played it cos it came with my bundle otherwise it wasn't a title I was too interested in.

I'll take your word for it. Thanks again, captain!

 

[Deleted_171835]

~SNIP

This sounds super super condescending.