(Part 2) Best products from r/ShouldIbuythisgame

This is a timely thread. I've been thinking about taking my DSL out of its little corner and playing with it again.

I have some recommendations for you, OP. I will second the suggestions of Animal Crossing: Wild World, Harvest Moon: Sunshine Islands, Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney, Professor Layton, and Ghost Trick, but wanted to give special mention to the following:

• Elite Beat Agents - This is a rhythm game where you tap circles and draw lines while following the beat of a song, as secret agents dance in the background and try to save the world. I know it sounds kooky, and it is, but that's half the fun. The Japanese original, Osu! Tatakae! Ouendan, was such a huge cult hit that they came out with the English version in Elite Beat Agents. There are a bunch of great songs on it, and the covers are actually decent (a couple are better than the original). Each song opens with a story that introduces someone in need of your help -- and somehow it's your dancing/cheering which pushes him/her to succeed. The stories are often hilarious, but there is one that will rip your heart out and make you teary. Absolutely love this game. (Screen protector strongly recommended!)
  
  
• Rhythm Heaven - Another rhythm-based game, but these two are just really fun and I decided to recommend both. Rhythm Heaven is different from Elite Beat Agents in that it's more a collection of mini games you need to beat in order to advance. There are about 5 mini games (I think) in a collection, and once you beat each one individually, you are given a 'recap' round that basically mashes them all together. This game looks deceptively simple but can be so damn difficult at times that achieving success is so satisfying! The beats in this game are very catchy.
  
  
• The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass - Lovely RPG. I thought the visuals were beautiful, and it was fun to play. Not much to say except it's a Zelda game, an awesome and fun one at that. The game makes use of the DSL's touchscreen. Controls may be kind of a bit hard to familiarize yourself with if you're used to normal console controls for Zelda, but after a while you get the hang of it and it's really fun to slash your sword around.
  
  
• Advance Wars: Dual Strike - Tactical turn-based strategy game where you try to battle it out with enemies and crush them all. I didn't think I'd like it, but I'm SO glad I gave it a try. I remember staying up late into the night playing this. It's really addicting. There's a sequel, Days of Ruin, but I've never played that so can't give a personal opinion on it. It comes highly recommended, though.
  
  
• Rune Factory 3: A Fantasy Harvest Moon - Take the original Harvest Moon games that were about farming and raising animals and getting to know people in your town, and add in some RPG-ish dungeon crawling (where you can also tame monsters to help out on your farm), and you have Rune Factory. I will always have a soft spot for Harvest Moon games; this just adds another element to it.
  
  
• New Super Mario Brothers - The DS iteration of Mario. Not sure what to really say except it's a fun platformer, and it reminds me of Super Mario 3 when I played.
  
  
• Mario Kart DS - This is fun, and there's just something addictive about it that kept me coming back for yet another round. I liked this version, though some people do say the controls are a bit off, but I never experienced that.
  
  Other games that have been strongly recommended by others (but I have not played):
  
  
• Final Fantasy III
  
• Golden Sun: Dark Dawn
  
• Dragon Quest IX
  
• Radiant Historia
  
• Kirby Canvas Curse
  
• Advance Wars: Days of Ruin
  
  
  

First off I'll simply say if you're looking for a game that you can sit down and play for hours on end, avoid the Animal Crossing games(at least the first one and the newest one) unless you're the type of person who enjoys messing around with making clothing designs or just wandering around enjoying the sights.

If you have experience with the AC franchise after the first game, I can't give a good review compared to anything but the first game as I've never played the sequels, but as someone who was really hoping for something very similar to the first, it was more than worth my purchase.

What is there to do?
The game is entirely in "real time" based on your 3DS clock, so if your clock is set to, say, 10PM, when you start up the game, it'll be 10PM in game as well and most of the shops will be closed and many of the villagers asleep(this can be changed a little, more on that later. Some villagers also stay up longer than others but others also may go to bed earlier than others).
Edit Holidays/events also happen every so often. Things ranging from fishing or bug catching contests, to a summer solstice to an april fool's day event and many many more. Some aren't terribly game changing(the solstice, for example, making it just look like it's day time even at midnight and making villagers stay out very late) while others like the catching contests can give you plenty to do during the day it's going on.

Disregarding time restrictions, you can run around and collect fruit to sell, talk to villagers(more on that later also), visit shops to buy clothing, furniture, wallpapers, carpets, etc etc. Over the course of a week or two, so long as you're playing regularly, you'll likely unlock an island that you can visit to do mini games and(if you're so inclined) collect a crap load of bugs/fish to rake in easy bells(the currency in game).

Speaking of bugs and fish, catching them is a major part of the game as well as not only is there a museum to donate them to to eventually reach 100% with it, but they're also a major source of money, especially early game with the "mainland" bugs.

Regarding my earlier comment about being able to change the times shops open, this is because you're the mayor of the town on the first character you create. You'll be allowed to enact ordinances such as making the town a "night owl" town which causes shops to close later and villagers to stay up later, make a "rich town" making things sell for larger amounts, but also making buy prices go higher, and a few others. You'll also be able to create "public work" projects which amount to you building things such as simple light posts, wells and bridges to things like a campsite, a police station and a club, to name a few of them.

One of, if not the* main draw of the games, though, are the villagers. There's dozens of potential villagers in game and upon making your village you're randomly assigned 4(I think) and can have a maximum number of 9(10 I think with the campsite but that one's temporary). Villagers can move out and be replaced with other random ones so you'll rarely be wanting for variety, though it can lead to some sad times if a favorite moves out unexpectedly. Personality wise there's about 8 or so "types", 4 for each gender, that they can act as, though it may just be me, but it seems very much like each individual one also has their own unique mannerisms to a degree. You can talk to them every day, be given "quests" ranging from picking fruit for them, delivering items for them and going to their house(so nothing too epic or anything). They'll sometimes, if you're on your mayor, also ask you to build certain things for them. There's other things you can do with them, but that should give you a relatively quick overview of them.

Other than the villagers moving in and out, the town also evolves to a degree. After spending certain amounts of bells at certain places or doing other things, the "main street" area which is the main area for shopping will expand it's buildings or add new ones for you to use.

A big time sink for many people is the clothing as well. Not only can you collect various types like shirts, pants, shoes, socks, glasses, helmets, etc etc, but you can also make your own designs for shirts and dresses. On the 3DS they've also included a QR system in which you'll eventually unlock the ability to download QR codes that are all over the net and even upload your own.

The other main draw of the game is the housing system. Upon arriving at the town you'll be given a house that you can pay off the loan for and, if desired expand it several times. You can obviously collect and fill it with furniture but also now customize the outside, from the fence around it, to the mailbox, to the walls and roof and door. A fun system is also the feng shui which can give you better luck with various in game mechanics by putting colored pieces of furniture in the "correct" places in your house. You'll also eventually get to have your house graded each day based on various factors.


Sorry for the long post, but that should basically sum up everything you can expect from the game, for the most part. Feel free to ask if you have any other questions, too!

Verdict: If you enjoy games that are pretty primarily geared towards a more casual "pick up for an hour a day" style, then I'd say definitely go for the game as it's worth the money. Totalbiscuit described it well, in my opinion, in saying that it boils down to basically being a "daily quest", but you don't actually have to do anything each day as the only way in which that harms you is that some things may take longer to build. All in all it's a game about having fun, not challenging yourself or trying to overcome obstacles. You can set your own goals, but nothing in the game is really "forced" on you after the tutorial, and even then you don't have to do the entire thing.

EDIT The game's also on sale for about $5 off on Amazon at the moment. http://www.amazon.com/Animal-Crossing-New-Leaf-Nintendo-3DS/dp/B0053BCML6

Hah, I just made a post that was vaguely similar... I'd actually say check it out and see if there are any you haven't played but that sound interesting to you. I'd be really happy to elaborate on the appeal of any of the games on that list that I enjoyed.

The first one I'd say you should give a try is Bow Street Runner, though, which is a surprisingly good flash detective game with a nice historical element to it. The puzzles aren't that difficult but are enjoyable enough, the acting is actually reasonably good, you get to be a detective in Georgian England, and it's just fun.

I'd also say Ghost Trick should be something that you would definitely enjoy. It's basically your brief - a high focus on story and character development, solving puzzles & intrigue, and a bit of a pressure element (difficulty). You can't go wrong here. I loved the shit out of it, and I think you will too. Since you mentioned having a DS, try this!

Also, if you have an Android phone, Layton Brothers: Mystery Room is definitely a must try. It's a series of Locked Room Murders that you have to solve, and it resembles the AA games much more than it does the Layton games in terms of how it goes. The characters are all pretty fun as well, and I really enjoyed this and would strongly recommend it as well.

Edit: I also totally forgot to mention - 9 Hours, 9 Persons, 9 Doors. It's a puzzle/visual novel kind of thing, and I found it very engaging. The plot is definitely sort of a brain twister kind of thing in the 'what even is going on' sense, but everything is explained in a pretty satisfactory way at the end. Definitely consider this one. It's basically Room Escape: The Game, but it does that very well.

Dark Souls - You’ve probably heard about this one plenty of times. Fantastic game, brutally challenging. It has one of the most eerie atmospheres I’ve ever experienced in a game. It’s just come to my attention that Amazon will be giving accounts that bought Dark Souls through them a $5 credit towards Dark Souls 2 (post from Tony, Amazon’s gaming rep, here). Some advice if you get this game: 1. Play with a controller. 2. Get DSFix, a fan-made mod that fixes various things about the port like making the game run at true 1080p and unlocking the framerate so you can get 60fps and not 30fps.

Mount & Blade: Warband - I have logged over 160 hours in this hack’n’slash medieval simulator, and that’s just me playing the singleplayer campaign. There are people with thousands of hours played in the game’s multiplayer. Its graphics are not the prettiest, but the game is ridiculously fun. I’ve never seen it go under $5 so if you haven’t played it and you have any interest at all in being a badass sword fighter, leading a mob of knights or vikings or archers around and pillaging or saving villages and sieging/defending castles, becoming a lord or even a king/queen, get this game. Warband also has some awesome mods worth looking into, like a Roman era total conversion if you’re into that.

Metro Last Light - This game is best played after its sequel, Metro 2033 (also on sale, though it was next-to-nothing in price in that one THQ Humble Bundle). It seriously is a great FPS, better (in my sincere opinion, please don’t downvote me) than Bioshock: Infinite by miles and miles. Probably my game of the year. Insanely atmospheric and beautiful. If you enjoyed the Fallout series at all, or post-apocalyptic settings, this game is a super treat. The only drawback is that it doesn’t have much in the way of replay value since one playthrough will be enough for most, but there is a lot of detail crafted into the game’s world that’s worth exploring. On harder difficulties, the game is very tense, with scarce amounts of ammo and very dangerous situations. You can go through most of the game stealthily as well, so you may have one playthrough where you’re Rambo and another where you’re Solid Snake; a choice I always find nice.

Those are my top 3 recommendations, but there are a lot of others (the new Tomb Raider, Bioshock: Infinite for $20 holy cow, Civilization V, et cetera) that are really good games as well. One thing’s for sure: this sale combined with the Greenlight sale and the new Paradox Humble Bundle… I have too many games to play. Too many games.

You've hit onto several of the better co-op games already, but there is more out there to experience. In no particular order:

• Path of Exile -- This is a free and modern take on the ARPG (action RPG). Many people like it because it has darker thematics than similar games such as Torchlight 2 and Diablo 3. It does have some rough edges but nothing that is likely to rub you the wrong way. In all, there's a lot of fun to be had with this game, and several reasons to support it despite its unweighted entrance fee.
  
  
• Titan's Quest -- TQ, along with its expansion pack, Immortal Throne, is a flavorful and well-done ARPG that can be picked up for just a handful of dollars. (Amazon has the Gold Edition for less than $10.) It has aged very well and is a ton of fun in co-op play. Many people really take to the theme as well -- based on the mythology of Greek, Egyptian and Asian cultures through 4 different acts -- and everything from itemization to character development is polished and interesting. I'm inclined to recommend this even over POE, from above.
  
  
• Neverwinter Nights 1 & 2 -- Both games are fantastically fun, with NWN2 being the more graphically appealing and (now) patched and polished of the two. Both have incredible modding communities and excellent expansions. Let me stress the latter of those points for a moment; Hordes of the Underdark (for NWN1) and Mask of the Betrayer (for NWN2) are two of the best expansion packs made for any game, period. Great stories, great gameplay, huge amounts of replayability, and tons of character development and strategy available with these titles. Keep in mind that there is a learning curve for those unfamiliar with the D&D 3.0 RPG, but it is well worth the effort because of the depth and replay value it affords. These games probably strike most to the heart of what it sounds like you want to play together. Don't forget to check out the NWN2 Character Builder here, if you decide to try the game.
  

As someone who's owned a Switch since launch, I say the joycon and comfort grip are fine i'll try to put this in sections.

Controller: You can try the pro controller, but in my experience with the two i've bought, I've found that the left stick if you flick it on direction it bounces back the other direction, you may not find this to be an issue right away, but it caused a lot of issues for me when playing Sonic Mania and other games that require quick stick movement.

Cases: If you can get your hand on the Zelda Special Edition case that'd be great, but otherwise [This](https://www.amazon.com/TAKECASE-Nintendo-Switch-Case-Microfiber-Guarantee /dp/B06XYPPJ6M/ref=pd_cp_63_3?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=RBHQCTFZSKGBBVMX8GZ2) and This seem to be pretty good hefty cases.

Also This protective slim case should serve as nice armor to protect it from scratches.

Games: Personally i'd reccomend, Zelda: Breath of the Wild, Splatoon 2 (my fav), Sonic Mania, Mario Kart 8, Snipperclips (if you have someone to play with), these are all games I mostly enjoy, i'd recommend ARMS as well, but i found the game more frustrating than fun.


Screen Protector: This one shall do they're all mostly the same, just different price points and popularity, the on difference between some is tempered glass vs plastic.

I say always go with Tempered glass, unless you prefer the plastic for one reason or another

your everything else should be compatible, unless the MB is like really old (5+ years old, and even then, it sould be compatible but the GPU would run at a lower speed 'cause the bus was only 8x instead of 16x). see, I currently have a GTX650Ti running on an amd2+ MB (nearly 10 years old). I should really upgrade the MB+CPU+ram, though... (my MB only supports ddr2, sigh).

tbh, you may need a new PSU - depending on how powerful is the one you currently have, and how much power needs your new GPU.

as for what GPU to get, for your budget, and after a quick amazon search (and a quick checkup at google to make sure I wasn't saying anything stupid), I'd recommend this one. if you want to save a bit, the GTX750Ti looks good too.

it looks like a nice beast to me, but then, I've never been one to ask for 60fps. so IDK how well will it fare on newly-released games. probably really good for a couple years, though.

do note, my way of picking a new anything, is set a max price, then see which is the highest possible number (version) it can afford me (also considering, e.g a 680 will probably be more powerful than a 750 - it all requires a bit of practice, you see). then check on google for comparisons on whether I'm right or not.

in this case, the options in your budget were the 750Ti, the 950, or the radeon 370. and the (IIRC) first result was this one ;)

random thought: i must not get a new GPU, as good as that 750Ti looks (I'm cheap, okay?). I first need to upgrade the rest, a new GPU ain't gonna do anything if the bottleneck is the CPU and the ddr2 ram. :/ (do note: I'm running an athlonII640x4@3Ghz... yep, my bottleneck is the CPU. don't worry - yours is not. you have a damn good CPU).

I have over 300 hours in an Oculus Rift. Actually, I have three Oculus Rifts, because I accidentally dropped and broke two of them. (Not a design fault per se, I was just careless twice. If you drop it on a hard surface from 5 feet up, it WILL shatter the screen.) I also possess a HTC Vive--which is in a box on the shelf.

I decided to try this "VR thing" when I found a good deal on a used Oculus. It blew me away. Holy crap. I dove so deep that I decided to also get a Vive, to play around with them both and possibly sell whichever one I didn't want.

What I found is that the Vive controllers are obnoxiously heavy and unwieldy, especially with my favorite game, Beat Saber. I felt like I was swinging cleavers around. By comparison, the Oculus Rift touch controllers were more balanced around my palm. Especially in my "Beat Saber grip", which I found was easier to play with if I moved my fingers up into the ring until the outer ring rests against my knuckles. This centers the weight of the controller squarely in my palm, and makes it so that I can swing the controllers faster than humanly possible.

Either of the headsets will do pretty good tracking. However, I do strongly recommend getting a third sensor, regardless of which set you choose--adding another sensor DRAMATICALLY helps with tracking for any game that requires you to turn around, and even helps with tracking on games that you face forward but sometimes your hands go in weird angles. Set the sensors in a triangle formation around the room.

I can go over cons of both if you want, but my absolute endorsement is going to go to the Oculus Rift, based primarily on the controllers. The controllers are your window into the world, and the Rift Touch controllers are phenomenal digital extensions of your physical hand. The controllers are BY FAR the most important thing to consider when choosing a headset. And, when the next-gen headsets come out, I will be making my choice based solely on the controllers.

A few things you will want to accessorize with if you pick the Rift. You'll notice that half of these are to keep your equipment clean--this is a lot more important than you think at first.

• Wear a sweatband if you're going to play any physically demanding game, like Beat Saber. You'll get sweaty. You don't want to get sweat all over your headset.
  
• Baby wipes or makeup remover wipes, use on all smooth skin/hair contact surfaces (headset harness, handsets) after each session.
  
• Get this washable faceplate cover, or two of them, and wash them regularly. Guests to your Oculus will thank you. :\
  
• Get disposable foam earpiece covers for the same reason.
  
• Get a AA battery charger and some good rechargeable batteries.
  
• Get a third sensor (mentioned above)
  
• If you want to mount the sensors on your wall, either buy or 3D print these.
  
• Get a USB 3.0 extension cable and an HDMI extension cable so you don't have to worry about the cord length.
  
  There are kits out there to let you suspend the cord from the ceiling, but I feel like that's overkill--I always just have it run between my legs to the computer. I can feel it against my lower leg or calf and know where it is so I don't trip. Note that this is fine for beat saber, but for games where you are turning around constantly, it may be a problem. The main thing is to have plenty of slack on your cord so if you trip you don't yank something, you can really damage the USB cord if you yank it at an angle. If you can somehow pin the cable against or under furniture so that a hard yank does not tug at your USB port, even better.
  
  Finally: some games are a goddamn workout, like Beat Saber. Treat these games like you would treat cardio: stretch beforehand, warm up, drink water, have a towel nearby, and have a fan on you. AND KEEP YOUR EQUIPMENT CLEAN.

Hey!

> Does your boyfriend enjoy buying physical copies of the games or are electronic copies fine?

Personally, I buy electronic versions for environmental reasons and so I have a 128GB microSD card. You can probably get a good deal on that given Black Friday. If you don’t have environmental reservations, I would say go with physical copies and a 32 or 64GB card because your bf can sell the game if he’s done with it. You can’t return electronic copies or sell them, so you’re kinda stuck with them forever.

> Switch V1 or V2?

Tbh, I wouldn’t recommend getting the second Switch only for the fact that you cannot remove the controllers. Having V1 off the bat allows your bf to pop the controllers off for 2 player games, the Switch Lite or V2 doesn’t allow that... and it’s something to consider imo. To me, Nintendo is all about playing with friends so I definitely enjoy being able to share immediately. This also removes the need for buying a separate controller.

> Games?

Classic many player games are Mario Kart and Super Smash Bros, closely followed by Mario Party. However, if your bf enjoys single player games, Zelda Breath of the Wild and Mario Odyssey are fantastic.

If you also wanna join in and play with him, I would suggest Overcooked 1 and 2. They’re amazing games and I know many nongamers that got hooked on these two games.

> Accessories?

I recommend getting a bag. You can buy something like this. It’s slim and perfect for carrying the Switch in his backpack.

If you have any questions, I got you! ;)

Animal Crossing: Wild World: It's an amazing game and was one of my first games on a Nintendo DS. There's so much to do in the game and I would really recommend it. Also, the more recent Animal Crossing (New Leaf) is a huge improvement from Wild World. I would deeply recommend that aswell, but it's for 3DS.

Harvest Moon: Sunshine Islands: Harvest Moon is a game that's similar to Animal Crossing but it's mostly about looking after your farm, growing crops, raising animals, etc. It's extremely fun and a huge time sink.

Pokemon Black 2: It's a Pokemon game, you can't really go wrong. It's like every other Pokemon game - Fun as heck! You can also buy Pokemon White 2 which is just about the same with little differences like the UI. A list of differences can be found HERE.

My list may not really be descriptive as they're my personal opinion on the games, but if you want to know more about the games, ask me :)

I would hold off. I've played all the C&C games to date. Although this deal isnt on Steam, its origin, I would get this: Command and Conquer The Ultimate Collection

It encompasses nearly all of the Command and Conquer games all in one bundle. Although that deal is restricted to the US, I did see it drop 50% (from its regular $19.99) to $9.99. A much better deal considering it's got all the games.

Since some of the games are quite older, they do come with some inherent challenges getting them to run. Here are some links with workarounds should you choose to buy.

http://www.commandandconquer.com/forums/index.php/topic/26695-fixed-launchers-for-the-ultimate-collection/

http://answers.ea.com/t5/Command-Conquer-The-Ultimate/Common-Problems-Read-This-Before-Posting/m-p/222052#U222052

Happy Command & Conquering!

I would look through the Amazon MAYhem Sale

Tons of good games on sale on there.

A few highlights:

Mark of the Ninja, $3.75

Sleeping Dogs Bundle, $12.99

Firaxis Complete Pack (X-Com EU, Civ V, Civ IV), $19.99

Desert To Sea bundle (Bioshock 1 & 2, Spec Ops: The Line, $9.99

I'd go with Mark of the Ninja. It was a really fun game! Also, you can get a Steam key for $3.75 on Amazon

in regards to red alert 3, this pack on amazon contains it:

https://www.amazon.com/Command-Conquer-Ultimate-Collection-Online/dp/B009IR1SR0

i grabbed it for $5 about 3 years ago now.

Hotline Miami if you're a fan of fast-paced top-down perspective that Monaco had. There is some stealth but it isn't a big part of the game at all. It's in the current Humble Bundle for cheap, you should check it out!

But if you like indie stealth, you can't go wrong with Stealth Bastard Deluxe or Mark of the Ninja. Mark of the Ninja is currently $3.75 on Amazon for the rest of the day

If you didn't buy it already, it's $5 on amazon.