Where have I been?

Okay... so I got a PS 3 in September. Keep in mind that the last console game I bought before then was probably Final Fantasy XII.

I've never been a big action gamer. When I have, it's been 2D action games like the portable Zelda, Metroid and Castlevanias. The simple fact that a game is in 3D sometimes overwhelms me. Still, I've managed to get through the first three Metal Gear Solids without too much trouble, and the N64 Zeldas were fine too.

The PS 3 is a little wanting in terms of RPG's. I've tried three different non-RPG games for PS 3 which are all supposed to be great - inFamous, Uncharted, and LA Noire. And I have absolutely no idea what I'm doing.

The very first fight I get into, I get shot. Repeatedly and fatally. Even on the easiest setting. Apparently there's some kind of "cover" mechanism, but I can't figure out how to use it. I don't mean that I last a while before dying, and do some damage before I go - I die almost instantly. It's happened in all three games. It happens even if there are only one or two enemies; it's not like they're sneaking up behind me.

Have I missed some kind of interaction evolution in the last few years? Is there some accepted gaming mechanism that I'm expected to know or else die? Was there some groundbreaking game with a great tutorial that told everyone how to do this, so that all the games that come later assume you already know?

I'm finding this extremely frustrating since it seems that even a lot of RP Gs tend to have this third-person-shooter mechanism nowadays the same way they used to have "action RP Gs" like Alundra and Ys. Am I doomed to stick to portable gaming forever?

Yes, astute RPGamers will note that I posted this there too. Cross-pollination FTW!

First of all: Did you read the manual? Or look at gameplay videos for these games? Those can be extremely helpful in regards to figuring out what to do.

And yes, many 3rd person games have cover systems now, usually activated by pressing a button next to a wall.

I don't have too much to say.

Having just beaten Infamous (good mode) the whole way through, I must say, the cover mechanism leaves something to be desired. I think, if it wasn't the same button used for a combat roll, it would work better, since a number of times what I wanted was to duck behind cover, and instead did a combat roll right out into the open. What actually works better is usually to climb up on something and then snipe*

down at them. That said, it works better than Fallout3. The other thing that works, if the badguy is on the top of a building, is you can hang off something and still shoot, so you hang just off the edge of the building, and pop up long enough to take a few shots at him before climbing up the rest of the way.

That’s the epitome of privilege right there, not considering armed nazis a threat to your life. - Silasw

L.A. Noire should have pop ups that explain the buttons for you. You now have to hold down a button to aim your gun (left bumper, or w/e its called on the ps3) and another to fire. Never played infamous or uncharted but they're probably similar. Taking cover is normally one button press to stick yourself to it but in some games it's better to just poke your nose around the corner for pot shots.

Is using "Julian Assange is a Hillary butt plug" an acceptable signature quote?

I feel that I'm rather out of the loop in regards to relatively mainstream games. I missed the chance to play a lot of polygon games when they were new. And with the ones I tried, I often ended up going in circles, getting lost, and forgetting which button caused which action. (Attempted to get into Mario 64, Ocarina of Time, Halo, KOTOR, and Dragon Age... with little success.)

I suspect my attitude might be the problem. By thinking "I'm too old to understand this," that might be self-defeating behavior.

Let's see... I read the manual for LA Noire, yes, and it's not particularly useful. It tells me what buttons do what but by the time I'm in a gunfight it doesn't ease me in slowly with a tutorial, allowing me to get used to using them in concert. inFamous and Uncharted were downloads, hence no manual.

In inFamous, I'm stuck in the very first mission. I tried running around a crate to hit enemies, got creamed. Tried jumping on top of the crate to hit enemies, they just aimed up at me. Tried using the cover system, which meant me being stuck behind a crate while people shot at me. The instant I snuck my head out the enemy went back under cover, meaning I could never get a shot in. But oddly enough they had no problem sniping me. Part of the problem is that there is no "insta-aim" button, meaning as soon as I jump out I have to use the right stick to aim, which is either slow or inaccurate or both, and before I can I'm dead.

I didn't spend that much time in Uncharted because it was just a demo and it frustrated me so immediately that I just deleted it. As for LA Noire, it's not quite as bad as the others (especially since I can skip the action sequences) but it's quite demoralizing. My issue with that is just the sheer number of buttons that do things. You can't just run and shoot, no, you have to run, pick up your gun, aim, shoot, drop it again to run again... it's pretty overwhelming, especially considering there are three or four other modes with just as many commands, all of which are different from the gunfight ones.

Most of the enemies at the beginning of inFAMOUS are actually really lousy shots. If you hang off the edge of the crate, pop up to aim, and if they start hitting you, drop down for a little bit and try again. Or use the crates as cover to flank them. I don't remember if you have grenades at the very beginning; if you do, just aim up and throw them over to hit the badguys. All the energy sources regenerate after a minute, so you can go nuts throwing grenades and then replenish yourself if they're not dead.

[edit] Also, your default lightning bolts don't take energy to shoot, so you can go hog-wild and spam then as fast as you can hit the trigger button. Which is how I usually deal with enemies; duck out of cover just enough to shoot at them, then spam lightning bolts and/or grenades until they're all dead.

edited 20th Jun '11 8:41:55 AM by BlueNinja0

That’s the epitome of privilege right there, not considering armed nazis a threat to your life. - Silasw

I didn't know you could hang off the edge of something...

I dunno, these guys have machine guns and they aren't lousy shots at all - as soon as I peek my head out they target me and shoot me several times per second until I'm dead. I wonder if there's something I'm missing.

And no, I have no grenades, nothing except the regular lightning bolts and the Shockwave move.

edited 21st Jun '11 6:14:51 AM by Cidolfas

The actual machine gun turret posts are something different - far more firepower than regular guys. Either you need to have perfect aim to hit them in the head through the tiny gap in the shields ... or find a way to flank them and beat the crap out of them melee style.

That’s the epitome of privilege right there, not considering armed nazis a threat to your life. - Silasw

@dork I had that problem when 3D gaming first came out. I thought "this is too complicated for me" and so it was, and I removed myself from at-the-time modern gaming for several years. Oddly, it was Ocarina of Time that confused my 2D sensibilities into submission and then it was Ocarina that convinced me to get back into gaming. Persevere! Something in your head will click eventually so long as you're up against a game that's well designed.

i. hear. a. sound.

I actually found that evasion action and melee attacks worked well early on in inFAMOUS. You just how to know when to flee.

Politics is the skilled use of blunt objects.

Wow. Never knew that some people have a hard time trying to play 3D games. I never had that problem when I first picked up Mario 64, it was getting used to the new controller and the swimming sections that gave me problems.

edited 21st Jun '11 8:15:28 PM by SgtRicko

So I went back and tried again, and I found the one piece of information I'd been lacking, completely by accident:

Standing still heals back all your health.

Seriously - you've been shot multiple times, you've got blood spattered on the screen, your vision is graying and sound is muted, and all you need to do is duck back down behind a crate and wait for about seven seconds and it all goes away? O_o I would never have guessed that. It gave me a lot more time to case the situation and figure out that, as Blue Ninja said, the machine gun turrets need exact aiming in order to beat them. I finished the mission, thanks!

You missed the whole regenerating health phenomenon? Wow, you really haven't been into this for a long time.

Draining electricity from things also regenerates your health, so it's quite useful to run, hit a lightpole or a power box, then turn around and throw bolts at them. Once you have enough XP and Karma to upgrade your bolt, the Good side also regenerates your energy from hitting an opponent.

That’s the epitome of privilege right there, not considering armed nazis a threat to your life. - Silasw

> You missed the whole regenerating health phenomenon?

I've first seen it last year, I think. Not counting Mirror's Edge.

edited 24th Jun '11 12:15:04 PM by Aminatep

   I will consume not only your flesh, but your very soul.