April & May 2024 Channel Update – No Time To Think of a Cute Title
Added 2024-05-08 01:17:09 +0000 UTCHi hi,
First of all: apologies for the delayed update! I’m going out of town next week for a wedding* and have been desperately trying to get the schedule figured out. This was the thing that had to give… BUT, I’m ready to get down to some vidja games now!!!!!
(FYI I usually mention delays in advance on Twitter and Discord – if at any time you wonder about what’s going on those are good places to check. Or you could just straight up ask me!)
TL;DR
Finished: Open Roads, Metal Gear Solid 1
Ongoing: Final Fantasy VII Rebirth (on the cusp of finishing), INDIKA
Upcoming: Hellblade II, But Also Just Let Me Get Through The Next Week First
Finished Stuff
Open Roads (3 videos): By members of the team that worked on Gone Home and Tacoma - a story of a mother and daughter’s relationship unfolding via the exploration and uncovering of their family history. It’s a mellow story that might be hit or miss depending on how much you can relate – personally I loved how it invited quiet introspection. It made me think about how much I love my mom... 🥺❤
Metal Gear Solid 1 (10 videos): Finally got around to this classic! I thought the story and even the pixelly look aged really well for 2024 and I loved getting to check out Kojima’s work pre-Death Stranding. Good or bad, he seems like a guy who always likes to try different things. It was tons of fun & I’m looking forward to more of the series. (BTW: I can confirm the PC Master Collection version is playable without issue now, but it’s also a straight up port with zero quality of life features.)
We also had first looks of:
Dragon’s Dogma 2: I said I wasn’t going to check it out last time lol but had the chance to thanks to Capcom. This had some interesting and unique systems with the party of AI NPCs following & assisting the player. It doesn’t seem to have a big narrative focus and is more about emergent gameplay and medieval life simulation a la Skyrim though. Personally I had fun with the hourish I spent, but the jank gave me doubts as to whether that enjoyment would continue all the way through.
Harold Halibut: Point & click story of 250 years into the future after humanity escaped on a spaceship to the oceans of an alien planet. The art is handcrafted with clay and is gorgeous – you can see every detail of every little object in the scene. It’s quite a slow burn though, after the intro hour I’m still not sure what the conflict of the story is going to be lol.
Let Bions By Bygones: Another point & click, but this time with a 2D-pixel-art-crossed-with-3D-lighting-effects aesthetic. Looks great, but it could’ve used more time in the oven with the bugs and UI oddities. First hour of the story is a standard detective affair: not awful, but nothing crazy either.
Current Stuff
Final Fantasy VII Rebirth: I’ll likely finish the main game at 80 parts, spend a few more videos on some optional stuff, and then it should be a wrap.
I’m going to detail this more in the ending thoughts video but I’m mixed on Rebirth. There are great character moments and I enjoyed whenever the plot was advancing, but as a player here primarily for the story, it pains me to say I don’t feel this game has anywhere near enough narrative content to support the playtime commitment it asks for.
INDIKA: The full release of the weird nun game we checked out in February! I planned on just a check of the intro but the weird stuff is making me sooo curious so we're continuing lol. This should be a short one (~ 4-5 hours).
Upcoming Stuff
As mentioned, I’ll be away for next week. I’m trying to sort out how things will be but it’s looking more and more like it’s just going to be thin on content… sorry! I physically don’t have enough hours in a day to work out a whole week in advance 😭
My priorities, roughly:
Wrap up FF7 Rebirth (the last few optional videos will take more time to play & edit)
Continue INDIKA
One offs/few parters checking out recent releases (I’m looking at you Hades 2 EA stealth drop 🫠)
I should be back in time for Hellblade II’s release. After FF7 Rebirth’s wrap-up, I’ll have capacity to take on the next Big 10000 hour game too ( I wonder what possible candidates could fit this description.....…) Somewhere between all this I’d like to get to Metal Gear Solid 2 as well. This all works out well in my mind - there's a mix of long/short games, old/new games, and everything is in a different genre. I just have to execute it well lol.
(An aside: I want to apologize for maybe having set the wrong expectations in the past few updates - the interest check poll and some stuff I said previously probably gave off the impression things were going to happen a lot sooner than I could realistically get to them. Sorry! I try to avoid mentioning a game unless my plans are set in stone exactly because of this, but sometimes it’s hard to straddle the line between letting you know what I’m thinking of vs. getting you too excited and then making you feel let down...)
Anyway, I think this short break will be good refresh and reset to my schedule. I'm really looking forward to being back and having a whole bunch of new games to check out already. I hope you are too!
Thanks for your support as always, and feel free to let me know your thoughts/comments/suggestions below!
Cheers,
Welonz
* yes it’s the one with the karaoke on stage ☠️: https://twitter.com/Welonz/status/1782686097841266979
Comments
I can't believe it's finally happening after such a long anticipation! I've been eagerly waiting for this moment not only because BG3 is one of my favourite RPGs but also because I believe you are a perfect YouTube LPer to play it. Thanks for the update, and I hope you will enjoy it as much as I did. As for the tips, I was wondering what could be the best way of helping you enjoy the game more without backseating or making you feel intimidated even more than you already seem to be. So, here's my best attempt at compiling a list of things that may enhance your experience of the game: 1. Initially, the game may give you the impression that terrible things may happen if you dally too long, but that isn't the case. I've seen a few streamers miss out on essential cutscenes because they didn't rest often enough, misled by this assumption. In fact, there's no negative impact of long resting with a notable exception, which I'm sure you won't need any help to figure out. 2. BG3 is an incredibly "dense" game, meaning it's filled to the brim with optional content that can be easily missed. For example, every animal in this game has *two* different sets of unique dialogues, one for animal noises and another for actual conversation. The latter can often be hilarious and even helpful in solving problems. Still, most new players only realise it after passing by many such opportunities because it requires a spell or potion called "Speak with Animals" to unlock them. A similar thing can be said of the spell "Speak with Dead", although not every corpse has something to say in this case. 3. On a related note, this game has many hidden areas or alternate routes, which may require some creative thinking to access. However, while thoroughly exploring the map may be beneficial because of it, opening every random container could be more tedious than rewarding unless you are low on resources (e.g. potions, thieving tools, etc.) 4. Combat in Larian cRPGs rewards "outside the box" creativity more than min-maxing in general. It's not an RPG where you are expected to spam spells or skills at enemies until they die. If you see a health bar of an object, you can probably destroy it. If you see a wet surface, you can electrocute or freeze enemies stepping on it. You can also throw most of the objects at an enemy or even an enemy at an object. To give you an idea of how much "outside the box" strategy is allowed in this game, here's an impressive combat I watched from a random streamer: he summoned a cat near a group of enemies outside the combat (you can engage the turn-based mode any time, by the way), which made them come closer to investigate. Then he blasted them all off the cliff with a single Thunderwave spell. It's just one example of endless possibilities you may be interested in exploring. 5. DnD can feel daunting for beginners, with its countless rules and mechanics. Thankfully, BG3 has a decent tooltip system that you can use to learn most of them in-game. So, if you see a highlighted text in an item description or wonder what things like "[Dexterity]" mean in dialogue options, try hovering your mouse over the area. I've seen too many streamers complaining about why their hit chance is so low without ever checking out the tooltip of the "Disadvantage" label or status effect icons. Understanding the difference between "ritual" spells and regular ones may make your life much easier in BG3, but you won't find it out unless you carefully examine the tooltips on these spells, for example. 6. The first obstacle you'll probably encounter is the character creation screen, with myriad jargon and confusing options. But you don't have to be concerned too much about them since BG3 lets you respec your character any time with a minimal cost. The only thing you can't change is your race, so you may want to spend some time to find out what would be the best choice for your character. However, maybe the most crucial choice in this stage is whether to choose a custom character or an "origin" one. While many players think it's best to go with a custom character for the first playthrough, I feel that it's purely a matter of preference, with their respective pros and cons. Even the "Dark Urge" origin, which is generally not recommended for the first-time player, was initially meant to be the default background for player character for a good reason. In short, a custom option is best if you prefer a blank slate on which to imagine your own character. In contrast, the origin option may give you a more engaging narrative, especially the Dark Urge route, because your background is more tightly tied to the game's main story. ...... I hope I didn't make you feel even more intimidated by the game than you already seem to be by writing such a long-winded list of tips. But probably it's because I got carried away from my excitement that I failed to keep it concise. I'm confident you'll do just fine whichever way you play. After all, that's what "RP" initially meant in RPGs before the genre deviated from its origins for more action-oriented gameplay and things like collectables or achievements. Thankfully, BG3 is a game that takes player choices seriously by making failures and mistakes as entertaining as successes. In fact, my favourite moment of another LPers' playthrough involves the permanent death of a companion caused by a game bug. Also, it's a pretty accessible one despite its uncompromisingly complex game mechanics. Otherwise, it wouldn't have appealed to many gamers who have never played a CRPG before. So, you don't have anything to worry about going into the game without knowing too much about DnD or CRPG traditions. I just hope you will enjoy it as much as I did.
Xavier Cho
2024-06-24 08:44:50 +0000 UTCI can't believe I'm going to see BG3 on your channel soon. I was eagerly waiting for it, not only because it's one of my favourite RPGs but also because I believe you might be the best LPer to try it. Thanks much for finally taking your time to begin this series! Anyway, I was thinking about sharing some tips of the game without backseating or making it feel even more daunting to you (I suspect it could be a part of the reason why you've been putting it off for so long). So, here's a list of the few things that I might help you enjoy the game more: 1. The game may give you a false impression that bad things may happen if you spend too much time without achieving the main objective. This has misled a few streamers to miss out important cutscenes by avoiding long rests. In fact, there's no negative impact of long resting with a notable exception, which you'll mostly likely figure out as you go. 2. BG3 is an incredibly "dense" game, meaning it's filled with contents to the brim that can be easily missed. With your completionist style, I don't worry too much about it. But one notable exception is the fact that every single animal in this game has *two* different unique sets of dialogues. Aside from their "animal noise", you can also have an actual conversation with them if you have "Speak with Animals" spell. Many of such dialogues are hilarious and sometimes helpful in solving your problems. But most new players don't seem to realise it until they pass by a lot of such opportunities. 3. As a related not to the above, the game features many optional areas or alternate routes that may seem not accessible by normal means. To access them, you'll need to think outside the box, as well as being thorough in exploring the map. On a side note, while it's often rewarding to carefully checking every corner of the map, it could be more exhausting than fun to open every random container in the game unless you are low on resources (e.g. potions, camp supplies, thieve tools, etc.). 4. Combats in Larian cRPGs tend to reward creativity more than min-maxing, and they emphasise elemental effects and interactable objects, which may or may not be to your liking. It's not the type of a game in which you can spam your spells or skills until every enemy is dead. So, if you find the combat is too difficult or too boring, I suggest try something unconventional before lowering the difficulty level. To give you an idea of what kind of "outside the box" creativity I'm talking about, here's an example of what can be done in this game: I watched someone summoned a cat near an enemy group outside a combat, making them approach to investigate. Then he blew them into the cliff with a single Thunderwave spell. Again, this is just one example of countless such possibilites. If you see something with a health bar in BG3, it's probably breakable. You can drag and drop to move objects, or throw most items to an enemy, or even an enemy to an object. Elemental combination is also a thing, so you can set fire to oil, or electrocute wet enemies, and so on. 5. DnD can feel overwhelming with its highly complex game mechanics. Thanksfully, BG3 does a decent job of explaining most of them with its nested tooltips. So, it's a good practice to keep an eye out for status icons or interactable keywords to check their associated tooltips. For example, there's likely to be a good reason why you have such a low chance of hitting your opponent, but I've seen more than a few streamers not caring to check the tooltip of the "disadvantage" label to see what it means or why it's there. 6. Despite of 5, there are a few mechanics that are not fully explained in the game, notably, how sneaking works or why you should switch to a melee weapon when ending your turn next to an opponet, for example. Probably you won't need to know them all to enjoy the game. But in case you happen to wonder about such things, don't hesitate to read guides or watch videos from seasoned players. 7. Probably the first obstacle you may encounter in BG3 is in the character creation screen, which may feel intimidating with its sheer amount of options. Even though I've played quite a few cRPGs, I don't know every spell or subclass myself. So, I'd suggest not to worry too much about spells, skills, or classes at this stage, especially when BG3 allows respec anytime with a minimal penalty. Possibly, the real important choice to be made here is whether to go with a custom character or an "origin" one. Each option has its pros and cons, even the "Dark Urge" one, which isn't generally recommended for the first playthrough but was initially designed to be the default player character for a good reason. In short, it's a choice between having complete freedom in imagining your character vs. having a bit more engaging narrative with a predefined background. So, it's just a matter of choice. ... Sorry if I just gave you yet another reason to feel intimidated of the game with such a long winding tips. Probably, I'm too excited to see you finally starting the series after such a long period of anticipation. I'd suggest don't worry too much about it and just go with the flow while enjoying the journey. There's a reason why the game appealed to so many people who had never played any cRPG before, even with its uncompromisingly complex game mechanic. It's a kind of game that can make any failure or mistake as much enjoyable as a success. So, I'm pretty sure you'll do just fine however you may decide to play it. I suppose that's what "roleplaying" originally meant in RPGs, after all, although the genre has been drifting away from focusing on player choices to a more action packed style with things like achievements and collectibles. That's why I'm so excited to see you try such a rare exception to the trend as BG3, and I hope you enjoy it as much as I did playing it.
Xavier Cho
2024-06-24 06:14:34 +0000 UTCI simply can't wait, Welonz!
Tyko Brian
2024-06-21 09:57:44 +0000 UTCI'm aware of it & trying to figure it out!!
Materwelonz
2024-06-10 03:56:08 +0000 UTCHey Welonz! The Alan Wake 2 DLC is out soon, yay! When do you plan on playing it?
Mikey S
2024-06-08 03:57:19 +0000 UTCI'm super excited for Hellblade 2, I loved the first one (both the game and your playthrough). Have lots of fun at the wedding!
captain carrot
2024-05-11 15:40:57 +0000 UTCIt do be like that sometimes! In fact I am 100% sure if I wasn't running a channel, I'd be like that too lol. Take your time!
Materwelonz
2024-05-10 19:48:24 +0000 UTCI don't think you should worry about a lack of content. Because you release so much this will actually help me to catch up ! Hellblade 2 is probably a good choice as a next game. The game is only 8 hours long according to the devs (same as Hellblade 1) which should help you "wind down" after Rebirth. I assume the biggest candidate for the next "10000-hours-long game" is BG3. IMO it is good that some time passed since they have released a bunch of big patches and you will be playing kinda the "definitive edition" (if you play it). I think you recently mentioned that you would like to play JRPGs but they are very long usually. I wanted to make a suggestion for the game "Grandia 2". It is a classic with a fantastic story/characters and probably the best turn based combat system. The game should take you as a first timer around 30-35 hours so for JRPGs it is on the "shorter" end. It is an old game (initial release in 2000) but got a great remaster and is available on Steam: https://store.steampowered.com/app/330390/GRANDIA_II_HD_Remaster/ Other than that I wish you a lot of fun at that wedding!
nunululu0101
2024-05-10 03:55:41 +0000 UTCI've been in kind of a gaming funk for a while now; I just haven't felt like playing much of anything. So I appreciate your channel more than ever, for keeping me up to date as well as for pure entertainment. Harold Halibut in particular really stood out to me, and I might have to give Dragon's Dogma 2 a look also. Have a great time on your trip!
Blue72
2024-05-09 21:48:29 +0000 UTCHa, karaoke and travel, must be some friend! 😁 Hope you have a blast!I had a couple game recs queued up, but I'll save them for next month. Enjoy your time off 😊
Sharrow
2024-05-09 21:31:12 +0000 UTCHey, Welonz! Thanks for all the content you create at an unbelievable pace and with such an amazing consistency! About two years ago I suggested you a game called "Little Kitty, Big City". You said you'll keep an eye out for it. It has finally been released on Steam today. 😸 I know you're super busy right now. But I implore you to make a first look at least, when you can. 🥺🙏 https://store.steampowered.com/app/1177980/Little_Kitty_Big_City/
Denis K.
2024-05-09 16:31:55 +0000 UTCYes to Part 3! No matter what, I didn't play through 2 games to not see Cloud & gang's journey through to the end!!
Materwelonz
2024-05-09 07:05:10 +0000 UTCI haven't forgotten about Omori, and I'm definitely gonna check out Hades 2 EA too! The wedding not too far from me - in Toronto!
Materwelonz
2024-05-09 07:03:43 +0000 UTCTake all the time off you need and no need to worry about it. I hope you enjoy the wedding and get some much needed and well earned rest. In regards to Rebirth, I can kind of see where you are coming from. As an OG player, I was actually shocked how much plot we get in this. For OG, this span of the game is just go from place to place and follow the black robes which we learn nothing at all about in this part of OG but they actually give some answers here in Rebirth. I knew it wouldn't be until the Temple and after when the story starts picking up both in OG and Rebirth and even then it doesn't really get going until even after the end of Rebirth so I totally get your criticism of it even if I had no issue with it at all. I was so in love with the massive world, awesome side content, and seeing this world I grew up with envisioned in such gorgeous detail that unless they really fumbled it badly at the end, Rebirth would easily be in my top 3 of all time and sure enough, it is lol
Jordan Back
2024-05-08 19:31:19 +0000 UTCTake all the time you need! Love your stuff. I think Rebirth ran into an issue of adapting the section of FF7 with probably the least plot. Knowing the game, I would expect the third entry to have a lot more going on in terms of plot with a lot of pay-off. You probably cover this in Episode 80, but will you be returning for the third game? Looking forward to more Metal Gear!
Michelle C
2024-05-08 19:19:38 +0000 UTCTake whatever break you need, Welonz. You have so much content that we want to view there's no way we can possibly keep up with it as is. I view LPers like you as treasures with a huge catalog of interesting stuff, I rarely watch any series until it's wholly finished. I'm sure there's some algorithmical concerns you have but as for those of us who are already fans, I'm willing to bet almost all of us have no problems with you doing whatever you need.
Teyhr
2024-05-08 17:06:01 +0000 UTCDon't worry about the break there's no problem. Hope you enjoy your time. I really love your let's play on metal gear solid and I'm pretty sur you would really like MGS2 and 3(the 4 and 5 are different tho maybe you'd like maybe not). But then again there is no rush it's good that you take your time and I don't mind seeing you play other games anyway. Enjoy the wedding:)
Victor
2024-05-08 15:14:44 +0000 UTCRe: VII Rebirth not having enough narrative content - having played the original and knowing where this game would end it was obvious to me the main plot in this game would mostly be spinning its wheels until close to the end unfortunately. One of the downsides of splitting one game into three parts is that the "downtime" portion of FFVII now encompasses an entire game. Yet ironically I think this is also one of the most complete feeling FF games in a long time, with a big playable party (last time we had up to 7 characters was FFX in 2002!), a world-spanning adventure with lots of diverse environments, several modes of transportation, lots of content to sink ones teeth into and the absolute most massive soundtrack not belonging to an MMO. Anyway, the plot's definitely gonna pick up quite a bit again in part 3, so look forward to that...in like, 3 or 4 years...o.o
Tetsujin
2024-05-08 10:54:50 +0000 UTCI'm actually very hyped about both Hellblade 2 and (specially) Hades 2. Hope you enjoy them, by extension, make us all happy. Good luck with the wedding thing xD
Luis Muratet
2024-05-08 10:28:50 +0000 UTCHey Welonz! I meant to write a comment back in like, December, but I kept forgetting until now. So in terms of delays, I think you're handling things better than me lol The fact that you've consistently released content over the years is nothing short of spectacular. I'm about 2 years into a programming job (first big job post uni), and I'm already finding that I'm too worn out and would rather sleep than game/watch TV or movies, half the time. So no need to apologize, I think this is a well earned break! There were a few games I'd love for you to check out (Omori, etc), but it sounds like your repertoire of games is filled for the time being. I would especially love for you to take a first look at Hades 2's Early Access sometime - I might have to start playing myself since spoilers are abound in the wild interwebs I hope you have a great time at the wedding! If it's not too intrusive, can you give some hints on how "exotic" the wedding destination is? Ie. Outside of North America, etc - I understand you obviously can't give too exact of a location. I've been to some pretty luxurious weddings with an open bar and the like (though I was underage at the time and couldn't exploit it haha), so hopefully this celebration is one for the books. Enjoy yourself and take care!
Brad Jung
2024-05-08 10:13:46 +0000 UTCGood luck with the karaoke!!! I hope you have fun and also get to rest a bit!
claireminator
2024-05-08 09:03:30 +0000 UTCI was waiting for the update and this made my day. Thanks! And please, don't worry about taking a break. Although I'm eagerly waiting for new contents on your channel, a major part of the enjoyment I get from watching your videos is seeing someone as enthusiastic about video games as I am, when I can no longer play them as often as I'd like to, due to time constraints. I wouldn't want to see you play games as if they are some chores on a checklist instead of a source of excitement. So, please take this opportunity to refresh yourself and I hope to see you as excited for a new series as I would be when you return.
Xavier Cho
2024-05-08 03:19:34 +0000 UTCHonestly, after these years your channel has quite a big library, so even if you're going to vacation (or social suffering knowing as wedding lol), we still have a lot of content to watch - either revisiting beloved games (LIS series or Tunic) or for the first time seeing "new" games (I enjoy going through Uncharted and Undertale series currently). So you really shouldn't be hard on yourself (even if we're understand that having schedule is what helps you mentally to play game after game for... *checking notes* ... 9 years (omg, is 2025 will be your jubilee - 10 years and 100k subscribers?! wow!). I know that Minecraft videos are 12 years old now, but I think we're all agree to count Life is Strange as your first serious LP which was 9 years ago. Sorry, if all this a bit embarrass you, I didn't mean to lol It just another proof that you gave us so much and still continue to do so with the same passion about games. We pledge allegiance to Welonz and the power for which she stands! (lol)
Dylan Hearts
2024-05-08 03:09:43 +0000 UTCYay Hellblade!!
Mikey S
2024-05-08 02:00:57 +0000 UTCAm I the only one who wants to see you sing at the karaoke?
Paulo Victor De Aguiar
2024-05-08 01:49:59 +0000 UTC"yes it’s the one with the karaoke on stage" OOH I know, pick the bow wow wow song! Its so catchy that everyone else won't be able to resist singing along with you XD
Zak Kollatz
2024-05-08 01:46:11 +0000 UTCI'm honestly just happy you are still releasing videos! Thank you for the commitment and don't stress over a week of having a life outside of the channel. We'll still be here when you're done singing on stage.
Tagra
2024-05-08 01:27:51 +0000 UTCWelonz and exhausting herself for content, name a more iconic duo (fr though, please take all the time you need getting back into those big games!! It's a lot of pressure, but we'll be here when you tackle them! Have fun at the wedding!!!)
Elias Smith
2024-05-08 01:23:53 +0000 UTC
