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[Pakoe]

Well deserved, no game came close.

 

[jigglet]

Twilight Princess.

 

[BigTnaples]

Hell yeah.

I mean, I’d give it to TLOUPII, but HL:A feels like you’re playing a game from like 5-10 years in the future. And it is absolutely incredible. Very deserved.

 

[anothertech]

Well deserved. I dream about it sometimes after a good session.

 

[Wonko_C]

Would anyone be on-board with the making of a VR, GAF Community? I noticed we don't have one and thought I might give it a shot.

Are there even enough VR-players on this board to drive discussion?

There is a PC OT but it's more to keep up with the news, there is also a PSVR OT and it has a few posts every week, the most active OT right now is the Oculus Quest 2 one. I'm in for just a general VR community OT. Whenever I visit GAF or era (there is more VR activity in there but I can only lurk) it's always to check if there are any new VR-related discussions.

 

[pr0cs]

Almost no replayability.

I don't know if I agree with that

1. I didn't find all the upgrades to all the weapons, there were at least 1-2 that I wanted to try out but didn't have elements to do so
2. the developer commentary is very well done and gave a good insight at all the challenges they had, I only went through the first game section but was engaged, certainly worth a 2nd play through if you are interested in game design/development for VR
3. While the game is linear there are tons of branching paths that I didn't dig too hard into exploring, a number of areas/encounters that I would have liked to replay since I got by only the skin of my teeth and I think if I approached the encounter better I could have walked away with both more health and more ammo.

 

[tioslash]

Deserved. It is an amazing experience.

 

[SF Kosmo]

Yeah, this seems like the reasonable choice. It's an incredible, groundbreaking game, and a comeback story for a developer and series that spent years lost in the wilderness. Just a great game that came from nowhere and delivered in spades.

The only other games that are really in the conversation are TLOU2, which is also incredible in its own way, but so unrelentingly grim; and Cyberpunk, which, while still in contention for my personal favorite of the years, is so marred by well-earned controversy right now it is essentially disqualified.

 

[SF Kosmo]

Incredible first time experience... Almost no replayability. It's an amazing vr game but a poor game by normal standards.
I think it's my goty too

Only game I played twice this year. It's replayable because it's good, not because random loot or multiplayer.

 

[Twinguistics]

There is a PC OT but it's more to keep up with the news, there is also a PSVR OT and it has a few posts every week, the most active OT right now is the Oculus Quest 2 one. I'm in for just a general VR community OT. Whenever I visit GAF or era (there is more VR activity in there but I can only lurk) it's always to check if there are any new VR-related discussions.

Hey, you get a ban from that crazy place too eh? After my ban I did lurk too because of the activity but I do so less and less frequently now.

Off topic but I tried Echo arena tutorial this afternoon and found the movement mind-blowing. Then I tried a match and sucked badly, just ricocheting from wall to wall no where near the disk lol. I'd rather the game was a single player corridor shooter or something.

Man the rift is so much better than the grear vr. I knew it would be but wow.

 

[Romulus]

On a side note, playing Half Life 2 in VR felt incredible. Takes a little work to get it going but Gary's mod is my choice.

 

[Wonko_C]

Hey, you get a ban from that crazy place too eh? After my ban I did lurk too because of the activity but I do so less and less frequently now.

Off topic but I tried Echo arena tutorial this afternoon and found the movement mind-blowing. Then I tried a match and sucked badly, just ricocheting from wall to wall no where near the disk lol. I'd rather the game was a single player corridor shooter or something.

Man the rift is so much better than the grear vr. I knew it would be but wow.

I wasn't banned, I just don't have a paid email anymore and can't confirm my registration.

If you want a single player Echo game, you're in luck: Lone Echo is what you're looking for. Lone Echo 2 is coming soon too.

 

[Wonko_C]

On a side note, playing Half Life 2 in VR felt incredible. Takes a little work to get it going but Gary's mod is my choice.

Just about anything is crazy in VR. I tried out Metroid Prime in Dolphin VR and, despite gimping myself to 3DOF by not having a way to make head tracking work with my PSVR on my PC, for an early 2000's game it's astoundingly VR-friendly. I could see details in the environment that never noticed on the TV, even for it's age some of the details looked very impressive, like some walls not being just totally flat textures, the raindrops on Tallon IV being fully 3D, it was magic.


If/when Nintendo eventually does a VR console (New Nintendo Switch?) they should just re-release MPTrilogy and MP3-style motion controls for all the games.

 

[UltimaKilo]

I’m late here but it was an OK game. Very simple, closed corridors, lack of NPCs to interact with, few physics on the enemies. The game was quite lacking.

 

[CloudNull]

I’m late here but it was an OK game. Very simple, closed corridors, lack of NPCs to interact with, few physics on the enemies. The game was quite lacking.

How is this different than TLOU? This game was not meant to be an open world RPG.

 

[Foilz]

The problem is Lot of people have never experienced HLA. It's not a normal game, the things this does for VR and gaming in general are unreal. I'm playing hLA wirelessly on my quest 2 and it's the best experience I've had gaming probably since HL 1

 

[SF Kosmo]

The problem is Lot of people have never experienced HLA. It's not a normal game, the things this does for VR and gaming in general are unreal. I'm playing hLA wirelessly on my quest 2 and it's the best experience I've had gaming probably since HL 1

There are some people that felt legit burned by the fact that they waited 12 years for Half Life 3 and ended up with a VR game that is sort of but not quite Half Life 3.

And those people have not played it but nonetheless dismiss it with nonsense criticisms recycled from negativity about VR in general. I've even see people say it's short or it's a demo, even though it's obviously just as long as any other Half Life game (and longer than most linear FPS in general).

 

[Wonko_C]

I’m late here but it was an OK game. Very simple, closed corridors, lack of NPCs to interact with, few physics on the enemies. The game was quite lacking.

That description perfectly fits the entire Half-Life series.

 

[UltimaKilo]

How is this different than TLOU? This game was not meant to be an open world RPG.

I didn’t say open world, it was almost entirely small corridors. Moreover, it lacked physics and was very simplistic, almost like a VR demo.

The enemies were just bullet sponges, no physics on them, not very varied and incredibly stupid.

it has a masterful ending, but other than that, I was hoping for a lot more from Valve.

 

[UltimaKilo]

That description perfectly fits the entire Half-Life series.

HL 1 & 2 had NPCs. Also, it wasn’t VR and it was a different generation, so it’s not a fair comparison. However, play HL1 in VR and it’s incredible.

 

[Wonko_C]

HL 1 & 2 had NPCs. Also, it wasn’t VR and it was a different generation, so it’s not a fair comparison. However, play HL1 in VR and it’s incredible.

Fair enough.

But I want the NPCs in the next game to act like this:

 

[TintoConCasera]

Fair enough.

But I want the NPCs in the next game to act like this:

Having that kind of procedural AI for actual NPCs would be the best thing ever.

 

[Eternal21]

Somebody should tell those guys to play The Last of Us Part II.

 

[UltimaKilo]

Fair enough.

But I want the NPCs in the next game to act like this:

Someone will eventually get the formula. Amazing physics, great AI and freedom of movement. This is probably the best we’ll get for quite some time. :/

 

[Mozzarella]

Great choice from GameSpot.
Half Life Alyx should won best game direction in TGA, it got hard snubbed. This is true gaming innovation. TLOU2 didnt innovate to deserve it, its similar to the first game with minor improvements and worse writing, no idea how it won.

 

[Gold_Loot]

I’m OK with this.gif.

Especially with games like TLoU 2 and Cyberpunk dropping the ball.

 

[Wonko_C]

Great choice from GameSpot.
Half Life Alyx should won best game direction in TGA, it got hard snubbed. This is true gaming innovation. TLOU2 didnt innovate to deserve it, its similar to the first game with minor improvements and worse writing, no idea how it won.

I'm convinced the majority of games media don't want games, they want movies.

 

[Mozzarella]

I'm convinced the majority don't want games, they want movies.

I was writing another post about this but decided to delete it. Yes Sony Triple A gaming is becoming an alternative to Hollywood industry, now more than ever because of the pandemic. Cinematic AAA games from Sony are trying to fill this void. With the success of God of War, The Last of Us 2 and more similar games on the Playstation exclusive picture, a lot of games will follow in the next decade, so expect more games similar to that. Producers from Hollywood will eventually realize that this business is profitable (I mean they are starting to come as hosts to TGA, right?) and they will see it as a good opportunity to expand on Cinema. More support, more budgets in the feature and it will become the standard for Sony gaming.
I dont mind them personally as long as they are not THE inspiration, but i dont want them to be the standard Triple A gaming experience.

 

[Chromanticore]

Somebody should tell those guys to play The Last of Us Part II.

Why would you want to ruin someone else's day like that?

I'm convinced the majority of games media don't want games, they want movies.

And they're not even good movies.

 

[Ogbert]

Really, *really* want to play it.

Have come very close to buying the Rift S, but not taken the plunge yet.

 

[SF Kosmo]

I didn’t say open world, it was almost entirely small corridors. Moreover, it lacked physics and was very simplistic, almost like a VR demo.

What game did you play? My game had physics on everything...

The enemies were just bullet sponges, no physics on them, not very varied and incredibly stupid.

AI was handicapped a bit for the teleport players, especially because they added full locomotion late in the game. This is probably my one real complaint with the game.

 

[turtlepowa]

How can this be game of the year when such a limited amount of people played it?

So the only option is Animal Crossing, because 26 million bought it?

 

[Zug]

Alyx really deserves this GOTY title if we're talking about it's overall quality and innovative aspects. Really a stepping stone of VR just like HL1 was for FPS in it's time.

 

[UltimaKilo]

What game did you play? My game had physics on everything...

the one where I couldn’t grab an enemy (other than head crab), see the enemy’s head explode when I aimed at their head, tear a head crab apart with my bare hands, jump in game, or interact with things if it wasn’t pre-scripted.

 

[Wonko_C]

I was writing another post about this but decided to delete it. Yes Sony Triple A gaming is becoming an alternative to Hollywood industry, now more than ever because of the pandemic. Cinematic AAA games from Sony are trying to fill this void. With the success of God of War, The Last of Us 2 and more similar games on the Playstation exclusive picture, a lot of games will follow in the next decade, so expect more games similar to that. Producers from Hollywood will eventually realize that this business is profitable (I mean they are starting to come as hosts to TGA, right?) and they will see it as a good opportunity to expand on Cinema. More support, more budgets in the feature and it will become the standard for Sony gaming.
I dont mind them personally as long as they are not THE inspiration, but i dont want them to be the standard Triple A gaming experience.

I don't mind them either, and honestly some of them I do like (I liked the Metroidvania-style exploration in God of War, for example), but my main gaming diet consists of indies, Japanese, retro and VR games.

Clarification: Even though I'm mostly mechanics-driven, I do actually like cutscenes (I love the Yakuza series and that game has an ungodly amount of cutscenes) in my games, what I don't like is when they are integrated seamlessly into gameplay the whole time, like when they force you into walk and talk sections, or even worse, when they confine you to a small room with NPCs having a conversation, Half-Life 2 style. Make them separate, as a reward for clearing a section, and more importantly, make them skippable at least for subsequent playthroughs.

 

[SF Kosmo]

the one where I couldn’t grab an enemy (other than head crab), see the enemy’s head explode when I aimed at their head, tear a head crab apart with my bare hands, jump in game, or interact with things if it wasn’t pre-scripted.

Oh so just it isn't Boneworks?

 

[CloudNull]

The enemies were just bullet sponges, no physics on them, not very varied and incredibly stupid.

it has a masterful ending, but other than that, I was hoping for a lot more from Valve.

For their first stab at a true VR game it was great. The physics on the items in game were fantastic. Also the enemies died faster depending on where you shoot them. Having to dismember the aliens to slow them and take them out also mixed things up.

There could definitely be more variety in the combat for the next game and I hope they add it. Still no other VR game comes close.

I agree the ending was amazing. I would love a whole game like that in the vain of Eternal Darkness. Combat wouldn’t even be needed just that crazy atmosphere.

AI was handicapped a bit for the teleport players, especially because they added full locomotion late in the game. This is probably my one real complaint with the game.

I didn’t know this. That makes sense and I am grateful they added locomotion. I couldn’t even imagine playing it without it.

 

[SF Kosmo]

I didn’t know this. That makes sense and I am grateful they added locomotion. I couldn’t even imagine playing it without it.

Yeah like when Geoff Keighley said he played it when they first announced it? It didn't have locomotion at that time. And that was what, 4 months before release?

If I recall polygon or someone reported that's why they yanked the reveal from the game awards, so they could make sure locomotion was in before they did a full gameplay reveal.

 

[EverydayBeast]

Huge step in making VR more significant.