Shadow Complex

[toblix]

I don't know, it's well suited for book covers, like this:

ORSON

SCOTT

CARD

[elmuerte]

Does it occur to anyone else that Orson Scott Card is a really terrible name?

Yes. I'm still waiting for the Orson Scott Card Game to be released.

[toblix]

It's out, I repeat: you can now buy it.

[toblix]

Having just played about fifteen minutes of it, I can surely say I'll be enjoying this for quite a while. It seems the story will be ultra-lame (

Apparently, it can't be just that you're an ordinary guy stumbling upon this -- your dad has to be the president or some shit

), and I'm not sure yet if enemies respawn in your tracks (which will kill the completionist aspect of the game for me), and I'm sure there'll be some frustrating sequence later on that turns me off the whole thing, but for now it seems almost perfect. Polished, frequent checkpoints, very nice controls. Can't wait to play some more later.

[MrHoatzin]

Having just played about fifteen minutes of it, I can surely say I'll be enjoying this for quite a while. It seems the story will be ultra-lame (

Apparently, it can't be just that you're an ordinary guy stumbling upon this -- your dad has to be the president or some shit

), and I'm not sure yet if enemies respawn in your tracks (which will kill the completionist aspect of the game for me), and I'm sure there'll be some frustrating sequence later on that turns me off the whole thing, but for now it seems almost perfect. Polished, frequent checkpoints, very nice controls. Can't wait to play some more later.

Enemies generally respawn in your standard Metroidvania paradigm.

Also, didn't Orson Scott Card work for Lucas Arts in the early nineties?

[toblix]

Enemies generally respawn in your standard Metroidvania paradigm.

That sucks. Ah, we'll see if it isn't too much of a problem.

[MrHoatzin]

That sucks. Ah, we'll see if it isn't too much of a problem.

Generally I haven't found it to be as annoying as in other types of games.

[thl]

I guess I wouldn't buy an adventure game or RPG written by [Orson Scott Card]. It's sort of like buying a racing game by Hitler. Sure, he's crazy, but how much can he screw up racing?

oops! From what I understand, he helped write the insults in Secret of Monkey Island and he wrote the dialogue in The Dig as well.

Not to mention writing Ender's Game and Speaker for the Death which are both excellent books. He's just a super-mormon (which makes his views on homosexuality the least of his problems)... no reason to discount the quality of his work just because he's a weirdo. Michael Jackson and Woody Allen fans concur.

or do they!?

[Erkki]

I fucking hate the shitbox right now and the microsoft cockmongers. Let me explain:

I live in a stupid country called Estonia which has about 1M people, and maybe 1000 XBox live users... So MS doesn't bother with us. We have to pretend we're from Finland or UK or some other country so we can use XBox Live. But MS only accepts credit cards that are from the same country that you say you are from so my options for buying something on XBL are:

1) buy the physical points, help the world consume more plastic. Except that the local stores only occasionally have them (and right now is not one of those times)

2) buy them online. yeah right, here's what game.co.uk tells me: Unfortunately we are unable to ship orders weighing over 1kg (e.g. most hardware) overseas - please either select UK delivery, or delete hardware from your basket to enable an overseas delivery.

You fucking pieces of shit! MS Points, a currency more virtual than the already pretty much virtual real money, is now HARDWARE and weighs over 1kg?

3) have somebody in UK buy them for me (any volunteers? though I'm not sure how I would transfer money to you)

4) buy it from the grey market

[toblix]

I fucking hate the shitbox right now and the microsoft cockmongers blah blah

I know exactly how you feel and it fucking sucks. I hate that in this modern internet home page world companies still insist on dividing shit up country by country, and then only the most profitable markets (i.e. biggest, richest countries) get the premium treatment and the rest are treated like liquid shit.

I think MS points are region locked somehow. Are you sure you can use points bought in other countries? If so, I'll help you, no problem.

[Erkki]

I think MS points are region locked somehow. Are you sure you can use points bought in other countries? If so, I'll help you, no problem.

I think I can only use UK points (since that's where I lied I was from), but I'm not sure. But actually, I was thinking of maybe going to the UK for a week or so anyway next week, so I might buy them myself.

[Nevsky]

I think I can only use UK points (since that's where I lied I was from), but I'm not sure. But actually, I was thinking of maybe going to the UK for a week or so anyway next week, so I might buy them myself.

Have you tried places like Games Points Now? I've tried them a couple of times, and they just send over a scan of the back of a physical points card, and they're based in the UK.

Harsh on Estonia, though.

[Erkki]

Have you tried places like Games Points Now? I've tried them a couple of times, and they just send over a scan of the back of a physical points card, and they're based in the UK.

Harsh on Estonia, though.

Thanks! I'll give that a try.

Oh, and I forgot: thanks for the offer to help, Toblix.

(edit: it worked!! Thanks, Nevsky)

Edited August 19, 2009 by Erkki

[Nevsky]

Thanks! I'll give that a try.

Oh, and I forgot: thanks for the offer to help, Toblix.

(edit: it worked!! Thanks, Nevsky)

You're welcome! I'm glad it worked.

I'm enjoying this game a lot so far. Definitely bringing up those Super Metroid/Symphony of the Night vibes, but with some crazy abilities and mad bits. And pretty sweet graphics.

Story is terrible.

I don't think I've ever had the Xbox Live 'simultaneous friends list playing a new game' thing before. But it's very interesting, seeing a few people online playing through, and getting updates on your friends leaderboard score as you progress with certain kills or whatever. I now know TheJamesM likes punching guys. A lot.

[Patters]

Thanks! I'll give that a try.

Oh, and I forgot: thanks for the offer to help, Toblix.

(edit: it worked!! Thanks, Nevsky)

In future look at shopto.net , they don't always have them in stock, but are usually cheaper when they do.

[Tanukitsune]

People have beaten it already? And in less than AN HOUR?!

I'm getting close to the end and I've spent 3-4, but it's going to take me HOURS to get all the items...

The more I progress the more it reminds me of Metroid... Where is the lines from paying homage to ripping off stand?

Not that I mind, I'm having a blast!

[Erkki]

I'm also enjoying it a lot, despite the crap story. So this is what Metroid & Castlevania games are like? Maybe I should play one of them someday.

[Psych]

I love the game, but 4 hours in I was surprised to find that I'd beaten it. Last time I tried a Castlevania game I could swear it took at least twice as long. Over the course of the game I was never stuck on what to do, and it felt like I hardly backtracked at all. While these are certainly good things it made the experience shorter than I would have liked.

Now I'm stuck with a conundrum. I want to play more, but I don't want to have to start over without all of my abilities, and getting all the items seems like a hollow gesture, since I already have so much ammo for every weapon that I never need to worry about running out.

I wish there were more proving grounds missions.

[toblix]

Quick question: Do any of the stats affect my ability to not drown? I ask because I came upon this powerup that I can only get to by flooding the room, and I can't get out in time. So I'm hoping this is because I don't have the lungs yet, but I fear it might just be my timing's off.

[brkl]

scuba gear

[ThunderPeel2001]

I realize that this is a gaming forum and not a politics forum, but this game is based on the novel Empire written by the renowned homophobic shitbag Orson Scott Card. I'm curious whether other thumbers find that this poisons their perceptions of the game.

Yes, this has been discussed elsewhere on the forums, I think. He's a bit of a douche, it seems, but I don't think I'd let it colour my feelings about this game as I assume it's based on one of his "better" novels (not some unbalanced right-wing rant)? (Plus, it probably has nothing to do with his original story anyway!)

Awesome Scott Card? Orson Scott Cad more like!

[Psych]

I've heard about people starting over this game with all their levels and experience from the first game, anyone know how to do that?

Quick question: Do any of the stats affect my ability to not drown? I ask because I came upon this powerup that I can only get to by flooding the room, and I can't get out in time. So I'm hoping this is because I don't have the lungs yet, but I fear it might just be my timing's off.

If you mean stats like things you level up then no, but there is equipment for that. Although there's only one spot I can think of where you have to flood a room to get a power up, and you can pull it off without having any special equipment.

[toblix]

If you mean stats like things you level up then no, but there is equipment for that. Although there's only one spot I can think of where you have to flood a room to get a power up, and you can pull it off without having any special equipment.

Yeah, I actually found out I just sucked the first time.

[Erkki]

I've been playing 5-6 hours and still haven't beaten it (just got the FD, don't know how far that is).

[Nevsky]

Completed this last night. What a short, lovely game. Easily going to play it again, and that is something I very rarely do. Especially with games that have such terrible storylines.

Interestingly, picking up Awesome Pot Lard / Orson Scott Welles boycotting topic, there's an article on Gamasutra today about that very issue, written by Features Tsar Christian Nutt. (edit: it's a very good piece)

Edited August 21, 2009 by Nevsky