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Blog: The Hunt is On – 02/19/20

Recently, Monster Hunter World: Iceborne was released on the PC much to the delight of existing Monster Hunter players. Now, I never finished or even got far in the base game and I’m not even close to being able to touch the new content, but it certainly has piqued my interest in Monster Hunter World again. So I decided to take the plunge and ask my friends to shepherd me along my long grind in the hopes of seeing that snowy wonderland called Iceborne.

The main hurdles with me and Monster Hunter World in general can be simplified into the combat, and how cumbersome the whole game can feel. The combat itself is a little slower and more complicated than I usually like, requiring a lot more forethought and planning before encounters. Despite being listed in the corner of the screen and giving you a training area to try out each weapon, I still always feel like I’m getting lucky in combat more than being skilled.

The other thing that bugs me is just how many menus you have to navigate to do the simplest functions. Upgrading weapons and armor, posting quests, joining multiplayer games and crafting are all done in the most daunting and convoluted way. I just feel like there are too many times where my screen is just covered in menus. But that could just be me and my aversion to games with deep RPG mechanics.

I get that people really like Monster Hunter World and I realize that my quibbles are my own and clearly not reflective of the popularity or success of the game. I’m the weird one in this situation and I know that. But I just wish the game was a little more action oriented and less menu driven.

But none of that has managed to kill my drive to keep playing and see what else there is. I still am very eager to hop back in and slay some more creatures with my pals. I did just get to a new area called the Coral Highlands or something to that effect, and that’s been a nice change of pace and really recharged my batteries. But I just think that Monster Hunter World is successful in spite of itself. I know that this is technically the most accessible the franchise has ever been, but it hasn’t dumbed itself down enough for me just yet.

Blog: Hertz Me – 02/12/20

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Since I built my computer back in 2016, I’ve been kind of bolting new baubles and trinkets to it in an effort to stave off obsolescence. At some point the rubber is going to hit the road, vis-à-vis me having to build a new computer from the ground up, but for the time being, I’m okay with my Frankenstein’s monster of a computer, especially now that I purchased a shiny new monitor.

For context, I’ve been living that dual monitor lifestyle for years now and have been pretty happy with it. The problem was that my secondary monitor was old and starting to fail. It was a 720p LCD monitor that starting getting acne in the form of dead pixels. It was fine considering I was only using it to watch Netflix and stuff, but my tax return came through and I decided to pull the trigger on a new monitor.

I initially wanted a 4K display that had G-SYNC capabilities. After seeing those prices, I set out for a 1440p monitor instead that checked all of my boxes. The problem was that I noticed my computer was starting to show its age on the CPU front, which made the prospect of high framerate, high fidelity gaming while watching something on the side less realistic with how I use my computer these days.

I strolled into my local Best Buy with all these factors in mind, hoping I could maybe find an open box item or special sale I could take advantage of. The 4K monitors were out of my price range, and the selection of 1440p monitors they had were pretty sparse and expensive. I was about to walk out and settle on waiting for Amazon to provide me an acceptable deal, when I spotted a monitor that checked the most important box: The price.

The monitor was larger than anything I’d had before, boasted G-SYNC compatibility with a refresh rate of 144hz. The only thing that made me pause was the 1080p display. But considering this monitor was only $100, had just about everything I wanted, and was about $200 cheaper than any alternative I had seen, I pulled the trigger and purchased it.

After some tinkering and ordering a DisplayPort cable (cause that’s the only way you can get G-SYNC to work apparently?), my monitor was ready for prime time. I decided instead of putting this new framerate capability through its paces, I would just do things the way I normally do to see how it all holds together. So I booted up NBA 2K20 and turned on a movie on the second screen.

Doing this actually helped me feel better about my purchase of a 1080p monitor in 2020. My computer couldn’t maintain the 144FPS I was aiming for while watching a movie, which I can’t blame it for, instead I averaged around 100-110FPS. The movie would stutter anytime I managed to get close to 144FPS, and even out when I dipped back around 100FPS. So I capped the games refresh rate at around 90hz, and everything has been running really nicely.

I always knew that higher framerates were better, and thought and still do think that 60FPS is just fine for gaming. But man, if you have the chance to play a game at 120FPS, you might never want to go back. That’s kind of where I’m at right now with my new monitor. I’m still feeling it all out and trying to find the optimal settings that work for me and my computer, but I’m genuinely happy with my new monitor. If you’re looking to upgrade, I would strongly suggest finding something with at least 144hz as a refresh rate. I think you’ll be happy with that decision.

Blog: The Darkest Timeline – 02/05/20

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A few weeks back I wrote about Call of Duty Modern Warfare and how it brought up memories of playing games with my friends after we had graduated high school. It was spurred on by the realization that my friends and I had fragmented once again, but as adults. We’re still friends, but we rarely find time to sync up and talk and even less of that is spent playing games. But that’s about to change.

Well, considering that I’m currently writing this in late January, it hasn’t actually happened but it’s about to. See, after a conversation with my friend about his absence from our Discord server, we somehow drilled down on the fact that he’d been dedicating a lot of time to the World of Warcraft guild he had put together.

You probably can see where this is going.

In his extreme generosity, mixed with his desire to play games with me, and my loneliness, he gifted me a a copy of Battle For Azeroth, the latest expansion to World of Warcraft, as well as one month of game time. Once again, a very generous thing to do, but also the darkest moment of my gaming career.

See, about 15 years ago or so when World of Warcraft came out, I tried playing this game for the exact same reasons with mostly the exact same people. I didn’t enjoy it then, but maybe I can appreciate it more as an adult. What I sure as hell didn’t appreciate or expect, (although it is a 16 year old game so why wouldn’t I expect this) was the 61 gigabyte download required for a game that I’m so on the fence about. Watching it install was agonizing, giving plenty of opportunities to smash that cancel button and run away from my computer screaming.

But that didn’t happen and now there’s a new icon on my desktop that’s taunting me. I’m excited to talk to my buddies again, but less excited about how it all came together. What’s even more interesting is that I’m going from abject silence and nothingness, to jumping into a populated Discord server with people who I don’t know that are all way into a game that I know I’m going to make fun of. Like, it’s going to happen. I’m going to say something about how asinine a mechanic is, and the chat will go silent and I might get a pity chuckle before the conversation shifts.

I’m also terrified at the idea that I actually have to do stuff. These guys are in a guild, and they raid and do important missions that I assume all involve collecting pieces of animals they kill in the woods, and they might eventually ask me to do something important that I know for a fact I will mess up.

But none of that happened as of writing this. As of the date it actually is, all of that might have changed. I will have booted up the game at least once since writing this blog and I literally have no idea what to expect. I’m so grateful I have a friend who enjoys my company enough to cover my entrance fee. He didn’t have to do that, and I appreciate the hell out of him. But all I know for certain is that I get to talk to my friends again because I gave into peer pressure.

Blog: Big Delay Energy – 01/29/20

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Less than a month into 2020, several high profile games have already been pushed back and delayed. More time to work on a game is generally a good thing, but the finish line for the current generation of consoles is in sight. Not only do these games have to compete with other titles, but new hardware, which makes their delays a little more worrisome.

Before we talk about the games in question, it is important to know that Microsoft has already committed to Xbox One games working with the Xbox Series X, mitigating some of my reservations about migrating player bases. We don’t know what Sony has in store on that front, but I’m willing to bet this is all a moot point because every game on this list is going to get a next generation re-release.

So with all of those caveats, here are the big delays in question along with the effect it will have on the product as a whole… I assume.

FINAL FANTASY VII REMAKE

First on the list is a game that I honestly could not care less about, but the gaming audience at large loves, Final Fantasy VII. It got bumped from a March 3rd release date, to April 10th.

In the grand scheme of things, this one isn’t so bad. People have waited a hilariously long time for this game to come out that I don’t think another month is too much to ask. It doesn’t matter anyway consider no matter what happens, people are still going to complain about the changes that were made.

This delay is far enough away from the launch of the next consoles that sales won’t be impacted at all.

MARVEL’S AVENGERS

So here is where we get into the more concerning delays. Marvel’s Avengers is an already strange product, marrying single player and cooperative third-person action with a live service model. I’m not saying it can’t work, but it’s a weird fit for a long awaited Avengers game.

Regardless, the game was pushed from May to September 4th of this year. We can assume that the next consoles will come out around November meaning that this live service game has roughly 2 months or less of capturing an audience.

Now yes, I understand that not everyone is going to buy a console the second it’s released, and yes I understand that Xbox is doing their “all games work on both consoles” thing, but with it releasing so close to a new console launch, there’s no way that Marvel’s Avengers doesn’t either get re-released on the new consoles, or just get delayed and released as a launch title.

I’m so curious about this game, and every time I hear more about it I get more and more concerned. Hopefully someone who gets paid to make these decisions has a plan, but from the outside looking in, it doesn’t look great for Marvel’s Avengers.

CYBERPUNK 2077

There’s no possible way that Cyberpunk 2077 can possibly live up to the hype, but I’m still hopeful. Originally slated for April 16th, Cyberpunk 2077 is listed for a September 17th release date.

While it isn’t a live service game like Marvel’s Avengers is, Cyberpunk 2077 is a massive, open-world action-RPG that’s going to take some time to get through if The Witcher 3 is any indication. This one isn’t so much as me being worried that the new consoles are going to eat Cyberpunk‘s lunch, but more me just wanting it to be a next generation title at this point.

In fact, I kind of wish Cyberpunk was planned as a next generation title in the first place. Everything that they’ve shown looks beautiful and ambitious, and I worry that the hardware it’ll be running on won’t hold up its end of the bargain. Maybe an Xbox One X or PS4 Pro will handle it better, but for those of us with launch hardware, I’m not convinced that we’re going to get a technically solid experience.

With all that said though, I’m sure that this game is going to get some sort of “game of the year” version with all the DLC or whatever after a year or so into the next console cycle. Cyberpunk 2077 is gonna be just fine.

DYING LIGHT 2

Now this one is concerning because it went from having an ambiguous “spring 2020,” release date, to not having one at all. Dying Light 2 was pitched as a highly ambitious game, particularly in the storytelling department, promising players vastly branching paths with difficult decisions that have actual impact on the story and world. It sounds great, but it also sounds like something that could be oversold very easily.

More to the point, without a window of time to expect Dying Light 2, it’s easy to assume the worst for the game, but I don’t think it’s on the verge on complete cancellation or anything like that. What I do think is that the pitch and scope of the game vastly overshadowed what the team at Techland can actually deliver. That isn’t an indictment of them as a studio, it’s just me pointing out that the initial pitch was lofty to begin with.

Do I think this game is doomed? No. Do I think that it’s going to be scaled back? Yes. Do I think it’ll be a next generation game? 100 percent. Am I any less excited to play it? Nope.

Full disclosure; this was written over a week ago, so I’m sure 15 other games got delayed since then. I welcome all delays, but if Nintendo bumps Animal Crossing back once more, I will riot.

Blog: Like the Old Days – 01/22/20

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Sometimes games strive to endear themselves to you through a healthy smattering of nostalgia, which usually yields mixed results at best. But some games exist solely for the purpose of reigniting old flames you thought had died in you long ago. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare is a prime example of the latter.

For context, the original Modern Warfare came out in 2007 when my friends and I had all graduated from high school. It was the perfect time for a game like that to keep us all together and talking considering we wouldn’t be forced to be in the same place for five days a week. It was a nightly ritual that involved us playing long into the night and talking to one another. It isn’t a unique story by any means, but it’s one that I look back on fondly.

Fast forward to today where everyone is scattered about and doing their own thing. I bought Call of Duty: Modern Warfare out of some weird longing mixed with the general hype I’d heard since it released. Within the first few minutes of playing it, I immediately was flooded with memories of those long nights we would spend together online, and how important that was to me.

Nowadays my gaming buddies and I have drastically different tastes in games, making it hard to sync up on a purchase we can all enjoy, so I knew this game wouldn’t appeal to them. But I picked it up anyway, just for my own curiosity. It’s still incredibly fun and chaotic just like I remembered it, except this time around I’m flying solo. That sounds sadder than I intended it to, but it’s no less true.

There’s still something satisfying and endlessly replayable about the core mechanics and progression in the Call of Duty games that few other titles have matched. While I may not have my friends in my ear, cracking jokes and complaining about how “cheap” the enemies tactics are, I still get that endorphin rush of just running laps around a map and ~~blasting my enemies away~~ getting killed constantly.

Yet for as much fun as I’m having playing Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, it still feels like half of an experience without friends to play with. I know I’ll never get those late night game sessions back and quite frankly, I don’t think I really want them. Hell, I can barely stay awake past 11 o’clock these days let alone play a game until 2 in the morning. But there’s something about Call of Duty that makes me wish I could. I guess that’s the power of a good nostalgia trip.

Blog: Virtually Real – 01/15/20

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For the past few weeks I’ve had ample access to an HTC Vive, showing it off to family and friends alike, but mostly just messing around with various physics playgrounds and breaking things. Aside from the setup, the sweating, and occasionally knocking things over, it’s been pretty great. There are a handful of games that I’ve been playing, some old and some new, that I thought I’d highlight.

VACATION SIMULATOR

Recently a new feature was launched on this site called Gut Check wherein I talk about the opening hour or so of a game and go over my impressions of them. I decided to start out with Vacation Simulator, a game I ultimately ended up enjoying a lot. Now, you can read my initial take on it here, but not much has changed from that.

I still find some of the design decisions questionable, but I’m still having fun with it and its charming atmosphere. There’s just something fun about picking things up and throwing them around in VR. I will say that after playing it some more, I find that a lot of the objectives are pretty rigid and don’t allow for much in the way of creativity. It feels more like a puzzle game than its predecessor Job Simulator, but it’s still a fun VR experience nonetheless.

I EXPECT YOU TO DIE

Speaking of throwing things around and solving puzzles, I Expect You to Die is a really cool puzzle game that puts you in the shoes of a secret agent trying to escape from various traps and accomplish missions.

The first case you’re assigned on is to escape a car that’s in the back of a cargo plane that’s filling up with noxious gas. In what’s basically a tutorial, I had to do things like disarm a bomb and dodge laser beams along with less exciting things like burn notes to find the secret note hidden underneath.

It’s a game that doesn’t take itself too seriously and let’s you mess around with everything you can reach. My only complaint is how much it relies on trial and error, making you replay the entire level in the hopes of making it to where you died and hopefully figuring out the solution. It just feels a little tedious sometimes, but it’s still a lot of fun.

BLADE AND SORCERY

So I’ve basically been playing Blade and Sorcery every time I put on the headset. You play as some sort of fighter in a suit of armor, and go to different levels and take on different combat challenges. Sometimes it’s one on one fights, sometimes you’re vastly outnumbered, but no matter what, it always feels good to swing a sword in VR and this is no exception.

For as fun as the core loop of just sword fighting fools is, I found the overall game to be pretty thin at the moment, not really offering anything in terms of progression or diversity in objectives, but it is in early access to be fair.

I also found that sometimes the movement controls just don’t work which might be a game problem or my specific VR kit problem, I can’t be sure. But I really would like to see more sorcery from a game that has sorcery in the title. As of now, you can only really zap people with lighting which stuns them and will kill them if sustained long enough.

But the real highlight of Blade and Sorcery isn’t what’s in the game, but what you can mod into the game. Full disclosure, I got this game because I saw there was a mod that turned it into a Star Wars experience. So whenever I want to hop into some action, I grab a light saber, a blaster, and mow down an endless horde of Sith and Jedi alike. And that’s all made better when you install the infinite magic mod which allows you to have infinite slow motion. It let’s me feel like the baddest of asses and I’m 100% onboard with whatever they add into the core game.

I really enjoy VR, but it just doesn’t have enough quality content available to move headsets. Along with that, we’re still a few iterations away from getting a powerful, wireless headset that wont set your head on fire and somehow has a decent battery. Till then, just find a friend with VR and experience it through them.

Blog: Gut Check – 01/08/20

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Last year I found myself struggling to find the time or enthusiasm to play and finish all of the games that came my way. I felt obligated to suffer through some games I really didn’t enjoy and some that just did nothing for me all for the sake of having something to write about.

The truth is, if a game doesn’t hook my early on, it probably never will. That’s why I went ahead and came up with Gut Check, a feature in which I describe why a game hooked me or why it didn’t within the . This isn’t a review of the product as a whole, but more of a look at the earliest parts of a game and how it left me feeling.

As it stands, the format will involve me playing at the very least, one hour of a game. After that, I’ll either continue or back off, but I’ll explain my reasons for both scenarios. Also, I’m well aware that doing this might be unfair to certain games and genres, so I’m being a little more discerning in my selections making sure that the games in Gut Check actually belong here.

Not all games can be judged in an hour, but I feel that if a game can’t get its claws into me in the first hour or so, it probably never will. There are always exceptions to the rules and I’m sure this formula will change as time goes on, but for now I hope you come back to check out the first post when it goes live later this week.

Blog: Backlog Blunders – 01/01/20

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Firstly, Happy New Year to each and every single one of you, let’s hope it doesn’t suck as much as the last one did. Secondly, I made some purchases over the past few days, adding to the pile of games I already have. I’d like to actually start the year off right, and make sure I’m only buying games I genuinely want to play. That’s why I technically made all these purchases last year, so I’m still good. So here’s what’s on the list.

WATTAM

I played a little Wattam when it dropped earlier in December and found it to be a pretty thin, yet charming experience on the whole. It’s not something I’m actively wanting to go back to, but I do have this odd curiosity with it that makes me want to power through and see what else Wattam has to offer.

THE SOJOURN

I’m always game for a good puzzle or adventure game, and that’s what appealed to me about The Sojourn. In the early parts of the game, it hasn’t been particularly gripping, but hopefully that changes as I get further in. I don’t think I’m at a point where I can recommend The Sojourn to anyone just yet, but I’ll see if that changes as I play more.

A KNIGHTS QUEST

A Knights Quest is an action-adventure game that treads on the same ground that most of the 3D Zelda games do. In my short time with it I found it pretty average on all counts. It’s been a pretty unspectacular journey with middling writing, mindless combat and bland level design. That sounds a lot harsher than I want it to, but it made a pretty lousy first impression that’s making me reconsider if I want to follow through with it at all.

OUTWARD

Outward is a cooperative survival RPG that has a lot going on. Just from playing the tutorial I felt mildly overwhelmed, worrying about status effects, encumbrance, crafting and survival mechanics. By all counts it is not a game I think I would venture forward in alone. Luckily, Outward can be played cooperatively, which is my way of justifying this purchase knowing that maybe one of my more RPG savvy friends might shepherd me through it.

CITY GAME STUDIO

City Game Studio is an early access game development and management game similar to the very popular Game Dev Tycoon. Being a fan of this subset of management games, I dove in headfirst and felt pretty comfortable with the mechanics at play. There are a lot of things that aren’t super well explained, but it is in early access, so I’m guessing the tutorials and tool tips aren’t fully fleshed out yet. I’ll keep an eye on this one though.

PARKASAURUS

I actually haven’t had the chance to dive into the charming world of Parkasaurus just yet, but I’m really looking forward to it. Much like a Zoo Tycoon or Jurassic World Evolution, your job is to provide a safe and entertaining place for your dinosaurs and customers respectively, in the form of a park. It seems like a cool idea to be able to build your own dinosaur zoo without all the worry of them breaking out and killing all the people. I really look forward to when I can sink my teeth into this game.

HYPNOSPACE OUTLAW

Hypnospace Outlaw has been a game I’ve been interested in for so long, but never pulled the trigger on. It’s a story/adventure/puzzle game that involves you policing the early internet, flagging various copyright infringements. Eventually this all coalesces into some bigger mystery for the player to discover and navigate the way they see fit. It’s definitely the kind of game I could get lost in for a while. Luckily I now own a copy of it, and I’m going to make time for it in the coming weeks.

MORDHAU

Hey so it turns out I was right about Mordhau being a really fun game as well as having no desire to play it without my friends. I specifically told myself I wouldn’t buy it unless my friends were onboard, but here we are. I really enjoy the combat in Mordhau and think that there’s a lot to enjoy here, but I think that buying copies for my friends might be the only way I sell them on this.

Blog: Happy Holidays – 12/25/19

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Hey y’all, just wanted to say that I hope this holiday season is going well for you and is relatively stress free. I also wanted to thank you for sticking with The Bonus World and reading our stuff. It truly means a lot to me to know that I’m not just shouting into the nothingness that is the internet, and instead, people are into what I do here.

But that’s not what this is about. What this is all about is wishing each and every single on of you a happy holiday season and a tremendous New Year. By the time you read another one of these it’ll be 2020, which I think we can officially classify as “The Future.”

I won’t belabor the point any more than I already have. So happy holidays and have a fantastic New Year. Now go spend time with your families, or do what I’m probably doing and hide in the bathroom and check social media to see how many other people are doing the same.

Blog: End of the Year Stuff – 12/18/19

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Pardon the self serving post, but I just wanted to get out in front of what’s coming up next week. See, every year I try to compile a list for Game of the Year and that’s worked for me so far. Yet this year, I’ve found it a little harder to build that list. There were a lot of external factors that made it tougher, but I won’t bore you with the details.

The point is that somewhere in my brain I decided that because it was difficult this year to make one list, I made four. What that means is that every day next week there’s going to be something to peruse on the site. I’m really proud with how it all came out and I hope you all enjoy it as well.

The lists are pretty self explanatory, so I won’t go into it here. But yeah, for as much work as all of it was, I’m very happy with the results. So yeah, short blog this week, but it felt necessary to keep you all in the loop.

Happy holidays, and I’ll see you next week.