I'd forgotten how utterly unforgiving those games are... <blink>... dead... load save... take 2 steps... <anomaly>... dead... load save... avoid anomaly... <mutants>... dead... load save... flee... <shot by soldiers>... dead...
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It looks like the demo was just for Steam's Next Fest, which ended on Monday.LordMortis wrote: ↑Thu Oct 13, 2022 2:31 pmHow do you get the demo. I've seen a bit and am curious and dont want another EA city builder. All I see is wishlist.
They say restrictions breed creativity. A completely blank page or a directionless pile of building blocks can be an intimidating thing, and that feeling hit me full force when I first loaded into the demo of Plasma, a sci-fi building game coming to early access next year. But as I got acclimated to its surroundings and systems, I found some helpful constraints that pushed me toward a satisfying loop of tinkering and tweaking.
The developers describe Plasma as a “creative engineering playground," and it is a pure sandbox sim. Its demo was just released last week during Steam’s Next Fest along with a cute behind-the-scenes making-of for the trailer, which shows how it was entirely put together with in-game tools. With no campaign in the demo and none planned for release, the focus in Plasma is really on creativity.
Even in demo form, Plasma gives you robust systems to build your own structures, robots, and worlds. There are hundreds of components, and all of them can be customized. There’s also a visual programming language you can use to control and manipulate almost every mechanical component.
Demo has been extended to October 23rd. I now have the game wishlistedMax Peck wrote: ↑Fri Oct 14, 2022 1:25 pm This engineering sandbox is already so complex you can build games inside its demoThey say restrictions breed creativity. A completely blank page or a directionless pile of building blocks can be an intimidating thing, and that feeling hit me full force when I first loaded into the demo of Plasma, a sci-fi building game coming to early access next year. But as I got acclimated to its surroundings and systems, I found some helpful constraints that pushed me toward a satisfying loop of tinkering and tweaking.
The developers describe Plasma as a “creative engineering playground," and it is a pure sandbox sim. Its demo was just released last week during Steam’s Next Fest along with a cute behind-the-scenes making-of for the trailer, which shows how it was entirely put together with in-game tools. With no campaign in the demo and none planned for release, the focus in Plasma is really on creativity.
Even in demo form, Plasma gives you robust systems to build your own structures, robots, and worlds. There are hundreds of components, and all of them can be customized. There’s also a visual programming language you can use to control and manipulate almost every mechanical component.
While the demo is still currently available, it appears that it is slated to expire on Oct 16.
I've picked this up and have put in an hour, just finishing the tutorial. It's kind of a cross between House Flipper, the Sims, and some game where you manage tenants and the apartments they live in. So far it is enjoyable. If folks are interested I'll start a separate thread and give more impressions.
I'm always on the lookout for the next great city builder, and there are more of them in development now than ever before. Like Fraser noted earlier this year, no one out there is really making a play for the big urban city builder market these days, but just because Cities: Skylines is the uncontested king doesn't mean there aren't lots of smaller and more niche builders being made, many with survival systems, historical themes, or sci-fi settings.
2022 has already been an exciting year for city builders, with lots of new games to challenge our building and management skills. There's The Wandering Village, where you build on the back of a giant, lumbering dinosaur that carries your city through the world, Farthest Frontier, the excellent medieval-themed survival city builder from the makers of Grim Dawn, and Frozenheim, a Viking city builder that includes raids and RTS combat. And just this week, Banished-inspired city builder Settlement Survival left early access for a full 1.0 release. It's a great time to build!
But it's worth looking down the road at what's coming, because there are lots of exciting-looking city builders on the near horizon. I know a lot of us are waiting for Manor Lords, though developer Slavic Magic hasn't announced a release date for it yet, and we still don't know when Frostpunk 2 is coming out, but it probably won't be until 2023.
A Flintstones city builder... Now that would go straight onto my short list!
You know, that may be the best idea I've ever seen Dae post. I too would be in!
Running__ | __2014: 1300.55 miles__ | __2015: 2036.13 miles__ | __2016: 1012.75 miles__ | __2017: 1105.82 miles__ | __2018: 1318.91 miles | __2019: 2000.00 miles |
Not really construction - he worked in a quarry.
Running__ | __2014: 1300.55 miles__ | __2015: 2036.13 miles__ | __2016: 1012.75 miles__ | __2017: 1105.82 miles__ | __2018: 1318.91 miles | __2019: 2000.00 miles |
Well Ok, it's somewhat related as you still have a lot of machinery or construction-related contraptions involved.
That pretty much describes me with any MMO at level cap. On another forum years ago, I was told by someone that the real game begins at level cap, that the game before that is all training for what's to come. If that really were true though, Blizzard wouldn't keep extending the level cap with each expansion. The fact is, I think what comes at level cap is a very different kind of experience that isn't for everybody, as it requires lots of commitment, and it's something I feel many MMO developers haven't figured out. For many, the end-game content just isn't worth the time and effort and it can in fact be very polarizing.Skinypupy wrote: ↑Mon Oct 31, 2022 12:29 am But the very instant I hit the level cap and get into the endgame, my interest absolutely plummets. I don't have a clue how to I'm supposed to progress my gear, my builds, my specializations, and trying to piece it all together just gives me a headache. I now have five level 80 characters, all of which played right up until hitting the cap, then never progressed any further. It all just feels like such a confusing clusterfuck once you hit max.
I tend to agree. The other problem is that there is typically very little explanation or guidance on the end game systems or how to progress. Part of the problem with GW2, for example, is that I really have no idea what I’m supposed to be doing now. I guess I could just keep exploring the world, but without the carrot of level increases, it kinda feels pointless. I know there’s higher level gear (Ascended gear, maybe?), but I have zero clue on what activities I’d need to do to progress towards that or any idea where if even look to find out. I was interested in finishing the story, but the next step is in an area I can’t figure out how to get to. Following the guide markers drops me into an underground tunnel system that I spent an hour trying (unsuccessfully) to get out of last night. That’s not very much fun.Rumpy wrote: ↑Mon Oct 31, 2022 1:05 pmThat pretty much describes me with any MMO at level cap. On another forum years ago, I was told by someone that the real game begins at level cap, that the game before that is all training for what's to come. If that really were true though, Blizzard wouldn't keep extending the level cap with each expansion. The fact is, I think what comes at level cap is a very different kind of experience that isn't for everybody, as it requires lots of commitment, and it's something I feel many MMO developers haven't figured out. For many, the end-game content just isn't worth the time and effort and it can in fact be very polarizing.Skinypupy wrote: ↑Mon Oct 31, 2022 12:29 am But the very instant I hit the level cap and get into the endgame, my interest absolutely plummets. I don't have a clue how to I'm supposed to progress my gear, my builds, my specializations, and trying to piece it all together just gives me a headache. I now have five level 80 characters, all of which played right up until hitting the cap, then never progressed any further. It all just feels like such a confusing clusterfuck once you hit max.
It is also, however, where their whales reside. It's their money-maker. If they release an expansion every 18 months, most of the 'leveling experience' players will drop their sub after two or three, while the end game or PvP players will stay subbed for the long haul. It's why, despite Blizzard always upping the level cap, they also constantly shorten the leveling experience leading up to the current content, and then push players constantly toward the endgame and toward certain playstyles.Rumpy wrote: ↑Mon Oct 31, 2022 1:05 pm That pretty much describes me with any MMO at level cap. On another forum years ago, I was told by someone that the real game begins at level cap, that the game before that is all training for what's to come. If that really were true though, Blizzard wouldn't keep extending the level cap with each expansion. The fact is, I think what comes at level cap is a very different kind of experience that isn't for everybody, as it requires lots of commitment, and it's something I feel many MMO developers haven't figured out. For many, the end-game content just isn't worth the time and effort and it can in fact be very polarizing.
The problem about the core demographic is that end-game content speaks entirely to a different demographic than the rest of the game. It's like they're functionally two very different games that are very much at odds with each other. And most of them do a very poor job of reconciling that, because as it's been pointed out by @skinypuppy there's almost zero guidance.
Those two demographics, from their end, are the same: Dedicated players who consistently play endgame content as it is released, keeping an active subscription. The only real difference between the two is that one group likes to figure it out, and the other group prefers to learn from the first group. Once they log in, though, they're pretty much the same thing. They really are supporting two main groups (raiders and PvPers), but they have been doing that since the beginning. The last time I played, so much worked differently in PvP content than it did in the PvE content that it was almost like they were two completely different games with different mechanics.Rumpy wrote: ↑Mon Oct 31, 2022 6:44 pm Yeah, Ok, but that doesn't make much sense. They're supporting two entirely different demographics in the end. And given that the end-game content is more competitively driven, I'm not entirely surprised most people that aren't into that end up stopping completely.
Thinking about it, and what portion of the endgame I did play makes me think that there is a good parallel to sports. There are the pros. In sports they're the people who get their pictures on sports cards. In MMOs, they're the 'named' world-first and server-first raiding guilds, and the PvP/Arena champions. And then there are the fans. The pros play better than anyone else, and the fans love the watch them and then emulate them. The pros in sports get contracts. The pros in MMOs get lots of followers on Twitch and YouTube. The fans in sports play on a local league or with their friends in the back yard and try to perform like the pros. The fans in MMOs watch their chosen streamers, copy their builds, listen to them explain the mechanics, and then go out and try to do the kind of things that the pros do.Blackhawk wrote: ↑Mon Oct 31, 2022 7:58 pm Those two demographics, from their end, are the same: Dedicated players who consistently play endgame content as it is released, keeping an active subscription. The only real difference between the two is that one group likes to figure it out, and the other group prefers to learn from the first group. Once they log in, though, they're pretty much the same thing.
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