Community MetaSteam | March 2022 - Try Finger But Hole

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Mivey

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Very long article so I won't be able to post relevant info because there's a lot on it. Feel free to read it and share your thoughts about it.

I talked to Archi (yes famous Archi from ASF) and he was as always helpful giving me insight on the topic.
thanks for posting this. Seems like Valve hasn't spent all that much time yet about how to communicate these test results with devs, nor how to clearly communicate how long a test will take and how long developers have to react to a negative test result before it gets published.

On the flip side, I also don't think it's really all that important right now. There's maybe 10.000 Decks in the wild right now, probably less, and this won't become something major that makes or breaks any games until the Deck actually becomes a major market (or I guess sub-market) in its own right.
 

ExistentialThought

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Solution:
They could crowdsource it the same way protondb did. Send decks to people. Allow them to contribute. Pick the best. You'd NATURALLY have a base

Meanwhile we have the result of 10 interns crunching to meet the deadline and review as many games as possible.
People on steamdb discord server laugh they reviewed some hentai games
This is an interesting idea. I kinda sorta wonder how it would work if folks testing would be encourage to run a stock experience or not. If there was a means for folks to test within official protocols that would help lend validity to any results.

One of the tricky bits of ProtonDB is the sheer number of hardware/software configurations on top of specific distro fixes and/or proton releases. With the target hardware of the Steam Deck, that does resolve a fair number of the possible hardware configs (only issues that could arise from running off of different storage types like SD/NVMe/etc. which I would assume would be extremely rare issues). Though it is still possible for folks to implement their own fixes on the fly and have different ideas of what is working or not (especially if they need to overlay that into categories like verified/working/unsupported).
 

PC-tan

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I think I've said this already but there is the possiblity that Steam Deck will hit retail stores by the end of the year.



The catch how ever is that it will not be in any stores that any of us have access to.


That being said, I'm sure you all remember how Gabe was hand delivering Steam Decks to people in Seattle. I wonder would that mean that he would potentially travel to Nippon and be selling some of them in person at a store?

Just a thought, maybe it will happen, maybe not.


This would explain why they haven't released in Japan yet (it could also be a certification thing as well as the device needing to pass some local stuff first?) And why they have mentioned it a few times in the past and it being the only place that called by name.
 
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Parsnip

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I generally do enjoy the "ubi formula", but when every AAA game starts being that it can get a bit boring.

Since the last Ubiworld game i kinda liked was HZD i played a bit of HFW before Elden RIng sucked up every minute of free time i have. The strongest memory i have is turning off some hud elements, following tracks in a quest and deciding to use my own eyes instead of the cheater vision that plays the game for you. They're perfectly visible but require a bit of, you know, tracking. Aloy wouldn't have it:

"I should use my focus"
"Maybe i should use my focus"
"I should really use my focus"
"Time for my focus"
"The focus would help here"
"I'm sure my focus would show me something"
...

I was stubborn and i think i completed the quest in under 100 mentions of the focus.
Lots of games really suck at this type of stuff. Like, they are so afraid to let players just figure even the simplest stuff out.

I really enjoyed that Shadow of the Tomb Raider added a "shut up Lara" option along with having puzzle and exploration difficulty as their options. In the two earlier games she just wouldn't shut up.
 

Fluffpuff

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If you can't be bothered to sift through 1000 things, maybe 100 things will be easier? I went through the bundle games list and pulled out stuff that looked interesting to me. I avoided TTRPGs, books, and multiplayer games. Lists are behind spoilers so as not to take up too much space.




The Bundle Browser has the Ukraine Bundle included if you want to narrow down the list with specific search filters.
 
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PC-tan

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ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


The boss for this month challenge I was soooooooooooooooooooo close.



It was me vs him both at 1hp each...... I had no more health or more FP left. I had to resort to arrows but I guess my fire arrows were just not enough
 

Futaleufu

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I really enjoyed that Shadow of the Tomb Raider added a "shut up Lara" option along with having puzzle and exploration difficulty as their options. In the two earlier games she just wouldn't shut up.
In ROTR there was a puzzle involving mine carts and Lara wouldn't shut up giving hints when it wasn't needed.
 
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QFNS

Plays too many card games
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I played this game on PSP. Fun was had by all. Great to see it getting a re-release

ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


The boss for this month challenge I was soooooooooooooooooooo close.



It was me vs him both at 1hp each...... I had no more health or more FP left. I had to resort to arrows but I guess my fire arrows were just not enough
Don't give up, skeleton!
 
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Mor

Mor

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How do I get my name put there? I defeated him.
you just tell me and I do the rest :)

ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


The boss for this month challenge I was soooooooooooooooooooo close.



It was me vs him both at 1hp each...... I had no more health or more FP left. I had to resort to arrows but I guess my fire arrows were just not enough
you can do it!
 
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prudis

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RIP Settlers , fuck Ubi
"I was invited 3x to play tests, once in the fall of 2018, in the spring of 2020 and in the spring of 2021.
What I was able to play in 2020 was really a settlers dream, basically all the strengths of the settlers games were combined and well meshed. It was similarly complex as an ANNO 1800, looked beautiful, had a cool partly direct, partly indirect military system and also the diplomacy, which was similarly deep as in a Civilization, worked well, actually also the heroic battles. In contrast, almost everything that had to do with water (except fishing) was a total failure, as was the AI. Also, the gameplay didn't quite work yet because of immature balancing and sometimes strange UI design decisions that caused a lot of unnecessary clicking and such. In short, you could tell it was still a work in progress, but one that was heading in exactly the right direction.

What I was able to play last year was, well, something in between the one from 2020 and what you can see in the video above, but it was more in the direction of today. For example, the fertilities had already been deleted, the hexes really came into play (before it was more of a mixture of hexes and zones of influence/building borders), there was much more focus on military, much was already "streamlined", etc. My review, like that of all the other 19 testers on site, was suitably negative and scathing, all who had played the previous version wanted it back and none really felt this was a settler.
By the way, during the lunch break I was able to speak briefly with Volker Wertig. In summary he told me that it would only be consultants, the new game designer doesn't like building strategy and has never played a Settlers, the management wants to have a competitor product to Age of Empires 4 and market analyses would have shown that the previous version would have been too difficult & complex for the target group of building strategy gamers (yeah no it's clear - looking at ANNO 1800, Factorio, Civilization, ...) and he was deeply sad. I think he already knew what they want to do with his baby and have done now."
 

kio

MetaMember
Apr 19, 2019
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RIP Settlers , fuck Ubi
"No one wants building games" is one of the dumbest arguments I've heard in a long time. RIP Settlers, it's sad but probably for the better.

So, as someone who never got into the series, what's the last truly great Settlers game? Feel like I want to explore it a bit
Generaly the debate about which game is better ends in a face-to-face between 2 and 4. My personal favorite is 2.

If you're interested this game is a nice S2 "clone":
 
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Tomasety

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This is an interesting idea. I kinda sorta wonder how it would work if folks testing would be encourage to run a stock experience or not. If there was a means for folks to test within official protocols that would help lend validity to any results.

One of the tricky bits of ProtonDB is the sheer number of hardware/software configurations on top of specific distro fixes and/or proton releases. With the target hardware of the Steam Deck, that does resolve a fair number of the possible hardware configs (only issues that could arise from running off of different storage types like SD/NVMe/etc. which I would assume would be extremely rare issues). Though it is still possible for folks to implement their own fixes on the fly and have different ideas of what is working or not (especially if they need to overlay that into categories like verified/working/unsupported).


For now, it seems Valve will maintain their current model for Steam Deck Verified process system.

----

Historical low for :


Never bundled
 
Reason: Added Vomitoreum
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Parsnip

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Settlers 2 basically perfected their concept from 1, and then they switched it up for 3 and 4 which I never really liked. I think 5 and 6 were again, a bit different but of the same mold, and 7 was again different. That's my memory of them anyway.

S2 is probably my favorite, despite only playing some of it at the time and having never beat it. I did beat the S2 10th anniversary edition which has the same mechanics but a different story and I assume different maps too.
One of these days I'll play the original S2 too since I own it on GOG.
 

Kyougar

No reviews, no Buy
Nov 2, 2018
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My thoughts on open world:

Level scaling is a big downer. I want the experience to go to a region that I couldn't previously go into and fuck them up because I feel stronger, because I AM stronger! The other downside is trash mobs, I don't fucking want to get into combat with mobs at my level while I am in a region that I already "cleared"
Another thing is Instant porting to EVERY known location. Not only does it throw me out of the immersion, it just feels like a checklist game with separated levels and not an open-world game. Fast Travel to major cities are okay, but if I can port to every little cave, it makes loot and immersion worthless.
Questmarkers are meh, they take the immersion out, but we are just lazy in that.


basically, Open world games should go back to being Morrowind.
 

Le Pertti

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Oct 10, 2018
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basically, Open world games should go back to being Morrowind.
100%!

I have seen people mention that Elden Ring reminds of Morrowind and I actually partly agree, no level scaling is great, the freedom, and being able to find gear that isn't random and such. If it was more of an RPG and a living world it would be Morrowind 2.
 
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Mor

Mor

Me llamo Willy y no hice la mili, pero vendo Chili
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For now, it seems Valve will maintain their current model for Steam Deck Verified process system.
Yes, but at the end of the day, user reports will also help changing some of the tags for games, or point exactly what problems does the game present if unsupported, at this moment playing Moon RPG on Deck (which is tagged as unsupported) I cannot say where it is supposed to fail or what does happen to the game to get this tag.
 
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Alexandros

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I feel like Sony may have missed their window by procrastinating in porting Bloodborne and Demon's Souls to PC. Elden Ring seems to be widely considered as the best souls-like by From and I think that the eventual release of earlier games on PC won't have the same level of hype that it would have before ER. I'm sure they will still sell quite well but not as well.
 

Aaron D.

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If you can't be bothered to sift through 1000 things, maybe 100 things will be easier? I went through the bundle games list and pulled out stuff that looked interesting to me. I avoided TTRPGs, books, and multiplayer games. Lists are behind spoilers so as not to take up too much space.




The Bundle Browser has the Ukraine Bundle included if you want to narrow down the list with specific search filters.
This is awesome. Thanks for your efforts.

I was browsing the primary list for 1st-time appearances and settled on a few I'm gonna dig into straight away.

Welcome to Elk
Summer in Mara
Cloud Gardens
Nauticrawl
 

fearthedawn

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Apr 19, 2019
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I feel like Sony may have missed their window by procrastinating in porting Bloodborne and Demon's Souls to PC. Elden Ring seems to be widely considered as the best souls-like by From and I think that the eventual release of earlier games on PC won't have the same level of hype that it would have before ER. I'm sure they will still sell quite well but not as well.
With the numbers Elden Ring is doing it might also sell as much or even more because of a grown audience and we might have to wait a while before from software serves to it again. They might hit good spots for Bloodborne and Demon's Souls in 2023 and/or 2024 with everybody still frothing for the next one.
 

Arc

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20 million Lost Ark players with half of them coming from the western release.

Hoping for ER sales numbers soon. Must be records. And platform split.
I would say the most pessimistic sales expectation for ER on PC is 3.6 million (using the reviews multiplier of 20 times 180k reviews). I wouldn't be surprised if the PC version has sold over 5 million units alone. Funny thing is Bamco expected 4 million units across every platform in five weeks. They've almost certainly shattered that expectation.
 

ezodagrom

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Lots of recent 3rd party PS console exclusives are also EGS exclusives. It's possible that Epic and Sony are working together on these deals.
Somehow none comes to mind to me right now, I guess that's how much attention I've been paying to EGS lately.
Though, I don't think Sony and Epic are working together in deals, it isn't all that surprising that a company that takes exclusivity deals for consoles would take exclusivity deals on PC.
 
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