Forums > Game Forums > Deus Ex: Human Revolution > First impressions
Unicorn Lynx (181775) on 8/31/2011 12:07 PM · Permalink · Report
Finished the first mission, exploring Detroit now.
So far, it looks like the game we've wanted. Certainly not one that surpasses the original, but definitely way better that Invisible War. RPG elements are very solid, shooting is satisfying, there is exploration, sub-quests, lots of secrets... looks like the guys from Montreal have done their homework.
Anyone else is playing this? :)
Slug Camargo (583) on 8/31/2011 11:55 PM · Permalink · Report
You haven't been very active around these parts, right? The last jorunal thread has been all about HR since it came out :D
Are you playing it on PC?
Unicorn Lynx (181775) on 9/2/2011 3:36 AM · Permalink · Report
Oh... sorry, I don't visit Game Talk and General Discussion any more.
Yeah, on PC, I don't have current-gen consoles.
Slug Camargo (583) on 9/2/2011 4:18 AM · Permalink · Report
[Q --start Unicorn Lynx wrote--]Oh... sorry, I don't visit Game Talk and General Discussion any more. [/Q --end Unicorn Lynx wrote--] And why is that? o_0 It's been pretty lively this past week. That particular thread anyway.
What's your Steam user? Aren't you in the MobyGames group?
Unicorn Lynx (181775) on 9/2/2011 4:22 AM · Permalink · Report
And why is that?
Just trying to focus on site features or discuss individual games rather than participate in general debates.
What's your Steam user?
Err... can we talk about something else, please? :)
Slug Camargo (583) on 9/5/2011 12:14 AM · edited · Permalink · Report
Well, to sum it up, we're all digging it, but we're as in love with the gameplay in general as we're perplexed/infuriated by the boss fights.
Adzuken made a case for the boss fights (something some guy at ArsTechnica also tried), but he didn't manage to convince anyone --the boss fights suck ass.
I noticed that HR shares this particular sucking point with Alpha Protocol, and then I concluded they're both trying to bring in what has to be the stupidest aspect of the already stupid enough Metal Gear Solid series, so I blame the stupid boss fights on the entirety of Japan and their stupid ideas (frankly it's Obsidian's/Eidos' own fault for even thinking about implementing them, but screw that, I'm mad at the Japanese).
Of course 雷堂承太朗 -raidō jōtarō- popped up with what he considers is an example of good Japanese-made stealth-involving boss fights, but I don't know the game he mentions so I can't say. Also he openly declares he likes Metal Gear Solid, so he's obviously wrong. Weeaboos, psh.
vedder seems to have found a pretty serious, quest-killing bug which is said to be common on the internet, but noone else here at MG reported nothing like that, so there's that. He still loves the game anyway (except, of course, the stupid boss fights).
He's also afraid that by the time he's halfway into the game he'll be way too overpowered, which is incidentally something that is happening to me right now. The game is still loads of fun, mind (taking down an entire, fully-alerted and very busy platoon that's spread around a rather large, multi-tiered area while under a very very short time limit and without being seen once is surely rewarding), but indeed, after the second boss fight the game got a lot less challenging all of a sudden.
Also another thing I don't think I mentioned is that I miss the intellectual-ish aspect of the original Deus Ex. All the philosophical counterpoints and the pseudo-History lessons and that fictional novel and all the Chesterton and all the Shakespeare and whatnot --nothing remotely as interesting has popped up in HR so far and I'm pretty certain it won't by now.
All I read are this mind-numbing technical docs that do sound convincing and whatnot, but frankly I'm not interested in biology, robotics nor some kind of mixture of the two.
And teh funnies in HR are way too subtle for my taste --DX was also subtle, but I seem to remember getting a lot more of the references and jokes.
Then again, maybe I'm just spoiled in that regard for having played too much Bloodlines recently.
So far the only two people reporting beating the game are Adzuken...
Without ruining anything, the endings suck. I wouldn't even call them endings. You'll see. I'm quite heartbroken.
...and Patrick Bregger ...
I just beat the game and I love the endings (well, except that you choose them during the last ten seconds of the game). You definitely have to watch the entire ending credits. I had tears in my eyes.
...needless to say, I'm very intrigued about what can possibly bring such strongly dissenting opinions. I'm assuming some sort of open, cliffhangerish ending, but I guess I'll see soon enough.
Interestingly enough, noone has reported on trying a shooter/lethal playthrough so far. Theoretically it should be rather hard since you're missing on a lot of XP rewards by just shooting/exploding your way through, which should make it at least an interesting experiment.
I for one am reserving the wall-punching and the Typhoon augs for such a playthrough.
All in all, Eidos Montreal has definitely entered the very very exclusive club of developers that I'll be following closely in the next years. They managed to come up with an atypically complex and solid game that has pleased what has to be the whiniest, bitchiest audience in the History of gaming while at the same time remaining commercial enough to be a success in every modern gaming system.
The only developer I can think of that fits that description would be Rocksteady, and they still had a much smaller challenge, relatively speaking.
BurningStickMan (17916) on 9/5/2011 3:00 AM · Permalink · Report
[Q --start Dr. M. "Schadenfreude" Von Katze wrote--] Interestingly enough, noone has reported on trying a shooter/lethal playthrough so far. Theoretically it should be rather hard since you're missing on a lot of XP rewards by just shooting/exploding your way through, which should make it at least an interesting experiment. [/Q --end Dr. M. "Schadenfreude" Von Katze wrote--] I'm not sure about this, at least judging from the hardest difficulty (I don't know if enemy numbers scale down at lower difficulties). It would seem those XP bonuses would be offset by the XP you get for killing enemies.
I don't remember exact numbers, but let's say you get 300 XP sneaky-sneaky bonus. Meanwhile, it's 10 per kill, plus 20 per headshot, so ten guys later and you're there. Easily possible with the numbers I was seeing per section.
Level 2 Typhoon makes mincemeat out of bosses, so I wasn't that annoyed.
There are so few wall-punching areas that it's almost not worth the aug.
Slug Camargo (583) on 9/5/2011 4:28 AM · Permalink · Report
I didn't know you got XP for killing, that might change things. What about ammunition? It seems to be rather scarce -every pick up gives you like 1 bullet-, so I guess you need to spend lots of money on that? I haven't killed a single person in my playthrough (other than the intro sequence and the bosses) so I have absolutely no idea about how playing lethal works.
Speaking of worthless augs, I was looking forward to the dual-knockout one, but it proved to be rather useless in the end. Conversely, the super jump and heavy lifting ended up being much more useful than I expected.
Also, while I'm playing a 100% stealth character with quite a few "Ghost" and "Smooth Operator" under my belt, I didn't get any of the augs in the Stealth section. I tried the one with the vision cones and it ended up making a mess in the mini map, so it was completely useless, especially when compared to the one that lets you see through walls; and the others didn't even sound interesting enough to try.
Unicorn Lynx (181775) on 9/5/2011 5:09 AM · Permalink · Report
Interestingly enough, noone has reported on trying a shooter/lethal playthrough so far.
I'm reporting. Not even one moment of stealth for me. Gun-blazing, maniacal, homicidal protagonist does it for me. They made him a Darth Vader, and now he is out for blood.
Oh, and he can hack. Boy, those turrets will remember the day I came and just... err... deactivated them all. But in a very manly way.
Anyway, I'll get back to you guys later. I haven't reached my first boss yet, hehe :)
vedder (70793) on 9/5/2011 7:09 AM · Permalink · Report
I'm doing things stealthily mostly, but I take most things out with the tranquilizer darts (that's 30 xp regardless of having a headshot).
But when I get an opportunity I won't shun some violence, as long as I'm not detected.
minor China spoiler
During the ambush in the hotel, when escaping I sneaked past everyone, but suddenly there was that turret in the bathroom. Hacked it and dragged it back to the courtyard. It took 'm all out without anyone ever seeing me. Loved it :D Great idea to make turrets drag-able!
Also, gangsters just get shotgunned. The double-shot upgrade insta-kills everyone as far as I could tell. But I only use it on the drags of society.
Slug Camargo (583) on 9/5/2011 7:55 PM · Permalink · Report
[Q --start vedder wrote--]I'm doing things stealthily mostly, but I take most things out with the tranquilizer darts (that's 30 xp regardless of having a headshot). [/Q --end vedder wrote--] Same here, I consider tranqs to be 100% stealthily correct, so there's that. It's pretty funny when I put one to sleep and another one comes to wake him up, so I dart him out just as the first one starts to react. If I don't time it correctly it can take quite a few darts to finally get them both down for good. And I'm afraid all that drug in their systems can't be good =P
Also, "stealthily" is a real word according to Moby. Fancy that.
[Q --start vedder wrote--]
During the ambush in the hotel, when escaping I sneaked past everyone, but suddenly there was that turret in the bathroom. Hacked it and dragged it back to the courtyard. It took 'm all out without anyone ever seeing me. Loved it :D Great idea to make turrets drag-able!
[/Q --end vedder wrote--]
My best I'M TEH KINGS OF STEALTHES moment was
Mild China spoiler
that part when the chopper is taken down and it's heavily gunned by a dozen troopers and their mothers (and some big robot). It took me like 7 attempts to get it well, but I finally managed to save the pilot's life by making a speedrun of the whole area taking down every single aggressor --without killing anyone nor being detected! =D
End spoiler
We need spoiler tags in this forum
[Q --start vedder wrote--]
Also, gangsters just get shotgunned. The double-shot upgrade insta-kills everyone as far as I could tell. But I only use it on the drags of society.
[/Q --end vedder wrote--]
I don't even kill those. I play my missions BY THE BOOK >:|
But I'm pretty sure I'm not getting the Pacifist achievement anyway, on account of some guy that stood up in a crossfire and got gunned down by his own peers.
Daniel Saner (3503) on 9/5/2011 6:44 PM · Permalink · Report
Wow, if even you guys like it there must be something to it. Guess I'll have to give it a go then. Just recently stumbled upon the original DX soundtrack again and thought I should replay it. Might even play IW as well, which I own but never played.
I'm conflicted between "fuck SteamWorks" and "fuck PC scorners" though, so I'm waiting for a big discount sale. Quite a "we're not amused" compared to the "screw you" I want to yell, but a compromise I can live with.
Slug Camargo (583) on 9/5/2011 7:36 PM · Permalink · Report
[Q --start Daniel Saner wrote--] I'm conflicted between "fuck SteamWorks" and "fuck PC scorners" though, so I'm waiting for a big discount sale. Quite a "we're not amused" compared to the "screw you" I want to yell, but a compromise I can live with. [/Q --end Daniel Saner wrote--] And what's your problem with SteamWorks? If you ask me, it's just about the best thing to happen to PC gaming. Second only to GoG, maybe.
Daniel Saner (3503) on 9/6/2011 9:30 PM · Permalink · Report
Mainly, the fact that my copy of the game depends on the presence and availability and function of a remote server outside of my control. There is a reason why I choose to buy a game as opposed to rent it. And if those advantages are taken away from me, the justified price of a game drops from €50 to max. €10 for me. I won't pay more than that for a game that isn't guaranteed to work always and forever.
And although I don't ever sell my games, I don't approve of the legal-grey-area tactics to circumvent the first-sale doctrine.
Sure they sugarcoat the downsides with a lot of really cool advantages, and by that they could probably be called saviours of PC gaming. But the disadvantages they impose on their customers are not necessary consequences of the new features, so they're not excused, and I don't see any reason to thank and/or support them.
Unicorn Lynx (181775) on 9/7/2011 2:32 AM · Permalink · Report
It's even simpler for me: if it's not a physical copy, then it's not worth buying. When I buy a game, I want to put the pretty box on the shelf and show it to people.
Slug Camargo (583) on 9/7/2011 3:22 AM · Permalink · Report
[Q2] the fact that my copy of the game depends on the presence and availability and function of a remote server outside of my control [/Q2] Kind of the standard anti-Steam discourse, then. Frankly, the only disadvantage I can think of is having to run a dedicated client, but then this one isn't nearly as intrusive and resource-hogging as others, and also it makes sure I'm always playing the most up-to-date version of every game while I'm doing any other stuff out there, so that's one big reason for actually wanting it right there.
But I admit it, I am a gigantic, certified Valve fanboi, so my opinion is seven kinds of biased.
[Q --start Unicorn Lynx wrote--] if it's not a physical copy, then it's not worth buying. When I buy a game, I want to put the pretty box on the shelf and show it to people. [/Q --end Unicorn Lynx wrote--] Hmmm, I might agree with that if the boxes were pretty, but if you ask me videogame cover illustrations have always been the most consistently ugly, generic garbage in the history of pseudo-art.
Seriously, I can think of maybe three game covers I would actually not be embarrassed to show to eventual guests; and not one of the games I own has a box that can be called anything remotely close to "pretty".
Hell, even in Windows Games Explorer I use custom images I pick around the internet because I can't stand the official ones.
Pseudo_Intellectual (66360) on 9/7/2011 3:42 PM · Permalink · Report
Seriously, I can think of maybe three game covers I would actually not be embarrassed to show to eventual guests
Heh, I use the Archon box art as my desktop wallpaper, but it's been pretty downhill since then!
GTramp (81965) on 9/5/2011 11:59 AM · edited · Permalink · Report
Just don't wanna start a new thread. Hey, guys, don't you think that the letter A in "Human" is more like a triangle? Take a look at any cover, for instance: http://www.gamefaqs.com/pc/944090-deus-ex-human-revolution/images/box-97917
P.s. Anybody to contribute screenshots for the game?
Unicorn Lynx (181775) on 9/5/2011 5:20 PM · Permalink · Report
A lot of screenshots were submitted with the new game entry, but I left them pending because there were too many similar ones.
Unicorn Lynx (181775) on 9/5/2011 5:24 PM · Permalink · Report
Okay, so now I'm in Hengsha, and it's positively mind-blowing. Detroit was... I don't know... a bit sterile, but Hengsha is just freakin' awesome.
Not to mention they speak authentic Mandarin there, and even with an appropriate slight Southern accent. My wife really liked that part.
The first thing I did in Hengsha was brutally murder a whore in a hotel room, drag her body onto the balcony for everyone to observe, and loot it for 3000 credits. It's those augmentations, man. They make me feel like I'm beyond good and evil and all.
The one boss battle I had until now was... err... okay. I could have lived without it. But it didn't exactly destroy the game, either.
Slug Camargo (583) on 9/5/2011 7:36 PM · Permalink · Report
[Q --start Unicorn Lynx wrote--] The one boss battle I had until now was... err... okay. I could have lived without it. But it didn't exactly destroy the game, either. [/Q --end Unicorn Lynx wrote--] I guess it's not that jarring an experience if you're already shooting things, but imagine that, after 10+ hours of carefully sneaking and outsmarting your way through, suddenly you're a helpless spectator, watching as stupid-ass Adam strolls carelessly through the door like it's his own living room, he gets that big guy all riled up, and then he gives you back control just in time to clean up his mess. So much for role playing. F'ing jackass >:(
On a related note, last night I noticed the name of one of the stealth-related achievements: "The Foxiest Of Hounds" --so I guess I was onto something with my connecting HR and f'ing Metal Gear Solid.
Ah, well. It's still an awesome game. Second time through Hengsha is a lot of tense fun.
Patrick Bregger (301024) on 9/5/2011 8:12 PM · Permalink · Report
If a cutscene kicks in you can bet that Adam Jensen mutates into a moron. It's true for all boss fights except the last. And the absolute worst is when he meets a certain Chinese woman.
Unicorn Lynx (181775) on 9/6/2011 7:29 AM · Permalink · Report
Well, the story and much of the dialogue in the game aren't exactly high literature. Like the first Deus Ex, it's very B-movie-like..
...though this one is actually in a lot of ways more like anime. I mean, just the story. Has anyone else felt this way? Or does it get more... serious afterwards?
I mean, all those super-enhanced freaks who talk while clenching their teeth... "I'll take you to hell!!" and "Deal with them!!" phrases (by the way, what is it with super-powerful archenemies always telling their subordinates to deal with the hero? Can't they f***ing do it themselves?) and so on... MGS comes to mind, indeed.
Adzuken (836) on 9/6/2011 2:09 PM · Permalink · Report
No, actually it's kind of goofy the whole way through. To me, though, it comes across more as spy fiction. You know, it has the whole hyper-capable, globe trotting hero and big super-villains who keep telling their ineffectual lackeys to "Seize him".
The whole climax, however, is absolutely bonkers. It's like it's written by someone entirely different, and I don't mean that in a good way.
BurningStickMan (17916) on 9/6/2011 5:36 PM · Permalink · Report
[Q --start Adzuken wrote--] The whole climax, however, is absolutely bonkers. It's like it's written by someone entirely different, and I don't mean that in a good way. [/Q --end Adzuken wrote--] THANK YOU! I'm glad I'm not the only one who wore a pained "WTF?" expression on his face for that entire ending.
And they never even explained the final... boss. Who would need to make a "machine" like that, except to slap you in the face with "LOOK HOW HORRIBLE AND CORRUPT THIS IS!" (Being vague to avoid spoilers).
Adzuken (836) on 9/6/2011 11:45 PM · Permalink · Report
[Q --start BurningStickMan wrote--] And they never even explained the final... boss. Who would need to make a "machine" like that, except to slap you in the face with "LOOK HOW HORRIBLE AND CORRUPT THIS IS!" (Being vague to avoid spoilers). [/Q --end BurningStickMan wrote--] I know, eh? It's like they painted them as being reluctantly evil and merely trying to serve the greater good, then suddenly you find out they're secretly making that in their basement and all subtlety is thrown out the window. I felt like I accidentally wandered into the wrong game.
Slug Camargo (583) on 9/11/2011 6:48 PM · edited · Permalink · Report
Just finished this.
*** MILD SPOILERS FOLLOW, I'M TRYING TO BE SOMEWHAT VAGUE, BUT I AM DISCUSSING SOME PLOT POINTS, SO THERE ***
Against all my predictions, at the last moment and after giving it some long, hard thought I decided to side with the anti-augmentation-ists solution (I had been fairly loyal to Sarif up to that point). I thought it was the one that made more sense, considering all that I had seen. That was pretty cool, how the story was handled in a way that, by the end, every position seemed reasonable to some extent.
This really made me remember the first game: Both belong to the very rare breed of game where each choice makes sense, because they're presented in such a way that they make you actually think, beyond the crappy good/evil dichotomy videogames like so much.
And as I said before, Sarif is one of the best characters in gaming ever: Just the fact that he's the head of a big corporation and he's not a backstabbing, moustache-twirling villain is a huge step forward in terms of writing.
All in all, this is yet another proof that the French really can be trusted to come up with great games. They're officially my second favorite game-developing nation, after the Russians (and all the post-Soviet gang).
Also, I rather liked the final "boss". Granted, it is way over the top in its insane grotesquery, but I think that's precisely the point: It's a clear cut demonstration of how far augmentation technology can go (i.e.: it's the cyborg-era version of a fully-autonomous AI), and it reasonably explains Darrow's breakdown.
I see it like the kind of thing he reached more or less by a kind of inertia, pumped by a scientific-breakthrough craze; and at some point he took a step back, watched at the whole thing and realized he had gone way too far --a kind of “Now we are all sons of bitches” realization, if you will.
The only thing I didn't like was the ending themselves, I hate live video in games to boot, let alone a random montage of images that bear little relation to what is being said. The epilogue is seven kinds of cool, though.
By the way, Adzuken, I noticed you missed the epilogue. You wanna sit through the entire credits sequence and wait.
Patrick Bregger (301024) on 9/11/2011 6:59 PM · Permalink · Report
It's made by The Canadians.
Slug Camargo (583) on 9/11/2011 7:28 PM · Permalink · Report
[Q --start Patrick Bregger wrote--]It's made by The Canadians. [/Q --end Patrick Bregger wrote--] And where did I get the French from? o_0
All right, go Canada then!
Unicorn Lynx (181775) on 9/12/2011 4:04 AM · Permalink · Report
And where did I get the French from? o_0
Because they are from Montreal. Also because their style of designing games is clearly French-influenced. Compare this game to other Canadian products, say those of BioWare. Deus Ex: HR is very European in many ways.
Adzuken (836) on 9/14/2011 12:55 AM · Permalink · Report
[Q --start Dr. M. "Schadenfreude" Von Katze wrote--]By the way, Adzuken, I noticed you missed the epilogue. You wanna sit through the entire credits sequence and wait. [/Q --end Dr. M. "Schadenfreude" Von Katze wrote--] Actually I did see the secret, post-credits ending. I don't know why it didn't award me the achievement. Also, in regards to the ending you picked, I might have gone the same way as you did if I didn't feel like punching every anti-aug in the face. Each and every one of them acted like some colossal asshole. On a few occasions I even quicksaved and then punched them out.
You know one thing that bothered me? In the early part of the game you're presented with the opportunity to save hostages. But the game doesn't tell you that your actions affect whether or not you'll have the chance to. If you take too long exploring Sarif's lobby, which is likely your first instinct, the hostages die. It plays against your typical gaming instincts by forcing you to actually listen to what people are telling you, rather than waiting for you to push the story forward. But that never happens again, to my knowledge.
It seems strange to me that something like that would present itself, as if to warn you that screwing around in the future would have consequences, then drop off the face of the earth. It's quite disappointing, as it could have been better applied.
vedder (70793) on 9/14/2011 7:33 AM · Permalink · Report
[Q --start Adzuken wrote--] You know one thing that bothered me? In the early part of the game you're presented with the opportunity to save hostages. But the game doesn't tell you that your actions affect whether or not you'll have the chance to. If you take too long exploring Sarif's lobby, which is likely your first instinct, the hostages die. It plays against your typical gaming instincts by forcing you to actually listen to what people are telling you, rather than waiting for you to push the story forward. But that never happens again, to my knowledge.
It seems strange to me that something like that would present itself, as if to warn you that screwing around in the future would have consequences, then drop off the face of the earth. It's quite disappointing, as it could have been better applied. [/Q --end Adzuken wrote--]
Yeah, exactly that! I was pleasantly surprised (if not rather shocked) when I got the news that my messing around had caused the death of all the hostages. But so far there are no similar moments in the game, unfortunately.
Captain Shiny on 9/9/2011 7:29 PM · edited · Permalink · Report
[Q --start Unicorn Lynx wrote--]Well, the story and much of the dialogue in the game aren't exactly high literature. Like the first Deus Ex, it's very B-movie-like.. [/Q --end Unicorn Lynx wrote--] That's actually why I like it quite a lot. I mean, I'm not overwhelmed by awesomeness but it's the entertaining kind of B-Movie likeness in my opinion.
As for the ending - the (SPOILER) buttonpressing isn't a very immersive way. I would have liked to see an ending which is generated by the choices I made and the style of playing instead of this. Well, at least it fits the title and that's sort of commendable.
vedder (70793) on 9/9/2011 11:06 PM · Permalink · Report
I'm stuck on the second boss fight. I tried it a couple dozen times, but there's just no way I can survive that fight because I have no defenses against electricity.
It's rather ironic that it tries to imitate the System Shock II boss fight. You know, that final boss fight that I never finished because always I had to use up all my equipment in the body of the many and came there empty handed.
Now I have stockpiled on weapons, but the problem is that the boss simply does not take damage. I have four grenades, and enough shotgun shells to feed a small army, but it simply does nothing to her.And whenever one of those energy pylons get hits I'm insta-dead because I have no EMP-shield.
Slug Camargo (583) on 9/9/2011 11:56 PM · edited · Permalink · Report
[Q --start vedder wrote--] Now I have stockpiled on weapons, but the problem is that the boss simply does not take damage. I have four grenades, and enough shotgun shells to feed a small army, but it simply does nothing to her.And whenever one of those energy pylons get hits I'm insta-dead because I have no EMP-shield. [/Q --end vedder wrote--] What EMP shield? I don't think I ever saw anything like that o_0
What I did was run away from her all the time, she's fairly innocuous if you keep your distance. Also, she's very sensitive to shocks from the stun gun and the PEPS or whatever it's called (the PEPS takes forever to reload and to switch for another gun though); and after she uses her electric superpower thingie three times she stays put for a while recharging, and she's a sitting duck then.
Also, cloaked enemies can be detected with the see-through-walls aug, and conversely she can't see you if you cloak yourself, so you may wanna take advantage of that (don't try to melee her, though, it won't work).
I got her down with a careful regime of stun shocks and revolver headshots. It took a while but it wasn't much of a challenge --more of a test patience than anything else. And now I know that the explosive rounds could've reduced that time significantly, so if you can restore a previous save and get your revolver upgraded with that, it will be worth it.
Also, you can quicksave in that fight, unlike the first one.
vedder (70793) on 9/10/2011 12:19 AM · edited · Permalink · Report
After more than an hour of messing about I finally got her.
I didn't have PEPS nor a stun gun nor a revolver. My set-up is: tranquilizer rifle, pistol, shotgun and sniper rifle.
But eventually I found out that that the EMP grenades did not cause the entire floor to be electrocuted, like the other explosions did. So I went back a bit in the level on an earlier save to get some mine templates and build a nice trap with a number of mines, then when she ran into my trap, stunned by EMP and a concussion blast, I threw in my four frag grenades. Which didn't kill her, but then half a clip of my shotgun finally did her in.
I did have the cloak and the walk-silent augmentation, but that doesn't work on her, she always knows exactly where you are. Spotting her also wasn't a problem, didn't even need the eyes augment, because you could see the ripples in the water and when she was further back you could see her silhouette against the wall lights even when she was cloaked. Because I don't have any of the health upgrades she kills me with one melee hit though, or one blast of her typhoon. So basically running was all I was trying to do, but her charge is also much faster than my sprint.
The battle wouldn't have been half so frustrating if there was just some feedback on what kind of damage my weapons did. I had absolutely no clue whether I was doing damage at all with my weapons, or whether she was recharging to full health again whenever she ran away.
I know these newfangled health-bars are a scary thing, that might not have been accepted yet by the general gaming population, because it's only been around for such a short time (only 27 years according to Wikipedia). But it sure would've been useful here. Or, you know 14 years ago Quake had these decals on the model's skin to show they had received significant damage. If you are going to build in totally unrelated and completely out of context retarded boss-fights, at least give the player some feedback.
Slug Camargo (583) on 9/10/2011 5:36 AM · Permalink · Report
[Q --start vedder wrote--] I didn't have PEPS nor a stun gun nor a revolver. My set-up is: tranquilizer rifle, pistol, shotgun and sniper rifle. [/Q --end vedder wrote--] I gotta say, the stun gun is a huge help, and not only for boss fights: If nothing else, it's a very handy replacement for takedowns would you ever run out of batteries (or feel the need to save some). Think of it as a close-quarters tranq rifle.
[Q --start vedder wrote--] I did have the cloak and the walk-silent augmentation, but that doesn't work on her, she always knows exactly where you are. [/Q --end vedder wrote--] I found that the silent walk is just about the most useless of all augs: You still set off mines, bosses can detect you, and the only people for whom it actually works can be fooled in about a dozen other non-augmented ways anyway. Pointless aug if there ever was one.
I did manage to hide from this boss with the cloak though. And quite often too. Maybe she was supposed to see me and she just bugged out on me?
[Q --start vedder wrote--] I know these newfangled health-bars are a scary thing, that might not have been accepted yet by the general gaming population, because it's only been around for such a short time (only 27 years according to Wikipedia). [/Q --end vedder wrote--] Aye-aye. I thought Alpha Protocol looked coin-op-ly stupid with those health bars during the (already stupid enough themselves) boss fights, but at least you did have some kind of indicator.
I mean, if you're going to stupidify your stealth game with tropes of crappy arcade games, you might as well go the whole nine yards and include a health bar.
Unicorn Lynx (181775) on 9/10/2011 2:54 AM · Permalink · Report
Also, you can quicksave in that fight, unlike the first one.
? I saved about three times during the first boss fight. Not quicksaved, just pressed Esc, went to the menu, and saved. You can do it at any time.
BurningStickMan (17916) on 9/11/2011 1:11 AM · Permalink · Report
[Q --start Dr. M. "Schadenfreude" Von Katze wrote--] [Q2 --start vedder wrote--] Now I have stockpiled on weapons, but the problem is that the boss simply does not take damage. I have four grenades, and enough shotgun shells to feed a small army, but it simply does nothing to her.And whenever one of those energy pylons get hits I'm insta-dead because I have no EMP-shield. [/Q2 --end vedder wrote--] What EMP shield? I don't think I ever saw anything like that o_0 [/Q --end Dr. M. "Schadenfreude" Von Katze wrote--] There's an armor upgrade (I believe on the skin slot) that gives you resistance to EMP effects, specifically grenades. What it doesn't tell you is that it also nullifies the effects of electric floors. You'll see at least one more electrified floor from that second boss fight.
Slug Camargo (583) on 9/11/2011 1:48 AM · Permalink · Report
[Q --start BurningStickMan wrote--] There's an armor upgrade (I believe on the skin slot) that gives you resistance to EMP effects, specifically grenades. What it doesn't tell you is that it also nullifies the effects of electric floors. You'll see at least one more electrified floor from that second boss fight. [/Q --end BurningStickMan wrote--] Well look at that. Never took one of those either.
Unicorn Lynx (181775) on 9/11/2011 4:44 PM · Permalink · Report
What it doesn't tell you is that it also nullifies the effects of electric floors
It does. "Prevents augmentation deactivation and energy loss from EMP grenades and electricity" :)
vedder (70793) on 9/17/2011 9:51 PM · edited · Permalink · Report
Supposedly last weeks patch added advertising in the loading screens. There's even an unofficial patch that says it removes it. Did anyone see such advertising, because I never did. Saw a lot of people making a fuss about it on the intarwebz.
Was it just for certain regions? Or did my adblocking hosts-file just do its work?
Adzuken (836) on 9/18/2011 12:00 AM · Permalink · Report
I actually hadn't heard that they were removed. I didn't see them myself since I've finished the game, but they were apparently for the Star Wars Blu-Ray release, George Lucas's latest attempt to completely ruin his most culturally significant creations. I can understand why people got upset about this. It's pretty sleazy to patch advertisements into a game that everyone has already paid for.