Late to the game, PS3 games? [Archive] - Giant in the Playground Forums

Warlawk

2011-12-19, 02:21 PM

So we're getting a PS3 for the kids this xmas and I figured I would see if I could get some recommendations for good games. I will probably play it a little bit but I'm mostly a PC gamer.

FOr me... I like RPGs and classic action type games. not a fan of too many puzzles (if you don't think in the same pattern as the guy who wrote it you're just out of luck). I'm an old fart that cut my teeth on Final Fantasy 1, dragon warrior 1, super mario etc. Good fighting games are a plus too.

Friv

2011-12-19, 03:35 PM

Based on my own experiences...

I'm a huge fan of the Fallout games, but you can get those for the computer too, and they're probably less expensive on Steam than on PS3.

If you like sandbox-style games, Infamous was a ton of fun, and I've heard good things about Infamous 2. Parkour + electric superpowers = entertainment. The story in I1 was a hilarious mess, but the game was still awesome.

If you like strategic RPGs full of humour and plot (and several hundred hours of sidequests), just go and buy Disgaea 3 (and probably 4, I'm meaning to pick it up soon and take a look at it). Disgaea is one of my favorite series out there, and I can't talk it up enough.

Yora

2011-12-19, 03:36 PM

For the kids or for you? And how old are the kids?

Tengu_temp

2011-12-19, 03:44 PM

Maxios

2011-12-19, 03:48 PM

I suggest:
InFamous
InFamous 2
3D Dot Game Heroes

Yora

2011-12-19, 03:56 PM

Final Fantasy 13 is good, despite what its detractors say (the vast majority of whom didn't even play it). If you don't mind a tactical RPG, then Valkyria Chronicles is excellent, and Disgaea 3&4 are very good.

For a fighting game... BlazBlue, BlazBlue, BlazBlue. Just bear in mind that some of the content might be a bit too perverted for kids.

I agree with all these games.

However, even though I love it, FF13 is a very mixed game. It does have severe shortcommings and it's easy to point out where they could have improved it easily to a great deal.
The main issue is that the learning curve is held very, very flat. The combat system is fun and exiting, but they let you learn each new aspect for such a long time before they introduce the next one, that you're already halfway through the game when you finally get to use the full combat system. Once you get there it's great, but it takes just a very long time.
That pretty much all the characters start out as appearing stupid and unlikeable actually works quite well in the long run, but it doesn't help you like the game when you only play the first four hours or so. Once you get to the real combat and the characters start to act more like reasonable persons, it's a good game, but it gets a bit tiresome getting there.
That being said, the game is very easy, but fun and looks great.

Valkyria Chronicles is even much much better, but for that way you need to have aquired your immunisation to japanese quirkiness. If you only ever played western games for young men, you will hate this game. :smallbiggrin:
When you are a bit familiar with japanese storytelling, it's an awsome game.

DiscipleofBob

2011-12-19, 04:05 PM

As others said, depends on the age of the kids.

If the kids are young, you can try Disney Universe, a simple beat-em-up which was pretty much built for young kids but can still be fun.

If the kids are old enough that some violence and language aren't really an issue, then two games I'd recommend are Borderlands and Saboteur. Borderlands is a wonderful, wonderful FPS with RPG elements (level up your character, find randomly generated guns, etc.) that even an anti-shooter guy like me loves, but it is pretty violent. Saboteur is basically Grand Theft Auto, except set in World War II Paris, and instead of killing hookers and gang members, you get to blow up Nazis (always fun).

If you're looking for a more traditional RPG, Eternal Sonata's a decent game with fantastic visuals and music, even if the plot falls flat and the game actually changes its own combat system parts of the way through the game.

SirDalyus

2011-12-19, 04:12 PM

The Star Ocean series come well recommended, and are an excellent JRPG series. Dragon Age 1 and Awakining are excellent RPGs. Dragon Age two is a good hack and slash. If you like James Bond alpha protocol has it's charms, and you should be able to get it cheap. It's a little buggy though.

DeusMortuusEst

2011-12-19, 04:16 PM

Skyrim, Deus Ex: HR, Little Big Planet, Heavy Rain and Assassin's Creed (Series) are all good games IMO. LBP is better if the kids are young, Heavy Rain is very mature, the others are violent, but not as dark.

Zevox

2011-12-19, 04:19 PM

Final Fantasy 13 is good, despite what its detractors say (the vast majority of whom didn't even play it).
As someone who did play it - thankfully as a rental - permit me to disagree. Final Fantasy 13's combat is fun, but the story and characters are atrocious, and I personally wouldn't recommend it to anyone.

Anyway, since you mentioned fighting games, there's two I'd recommend: BlazBlue and Marvel vs Capcom 3. The latter just came out with its second edition a month ago, Ultimate Marvel vs Capcom 3, and I've been playing it daily since. It actually got a new mode added via DLC just today. It's a ton of fun and I highly recommend it. Similarly, BlazBlue is coming out with a new edition, BlazBlue: Continuum Shift Extend, in February (assuming you're in NA), which should be the perfect game to get into the series with since it will include the story modes of both of the games so far, as well as all of the previously-DLC characters and a new character.

For RPGs, well, I'll second the recommendation of the Disgaea games as fantastic strategy RPGs, even though I haven't played 3 or 4 yet due to lack of a PS3. I also have to mention the game that's going to sell me a PS3, Tales of Graces F, which is releasing in March. I don't know if you've played any "Tales of" games before, but some of them are among my personal favorite games of all time, and even the ones that aren't are still good, so I can be pretty confident that the new one will be worth your time if you like JRPGs.

I'd have a hard time coming up with other RPG recommendations though, since, as I said, I don't have a PS3 yet.
Edit: Oh right, Bioware games. Unless you have them on your computer already, Mass Effect 2, Dragon Age: Origins, and Dragon Age 2 are all ones I'd definitely recommend (ME1 never got a PS3 release). Plus Mass Effect 3, coming out in early March.

Action games worth getting would definitely be Batman: Arkham Asylum and its recent sequel, Batman: Arkham City. Even if you don't like Batman (I don't), those are two great action-adventure titles.

Zevox

Yora

2011-12-19, 04:22 PM

Oh, since you probably don't have a PS2 yet, you should get the PS3 Box of Shadow of the Colossus (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7egvxQxnZR0#t=3m30s) and Ico. It's not a great improvement over the PS2 version, but if you don't have the games yet, get them!

Ice is a very good game, but SotC is one of the greatest games of all time! The only similar thing I know would be Portal. And Mirror's Edge. Speaking of which, I also recommend Mirror's Edge (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2N1TJP1cxmo).

Tengu_temp

2011-12-19, 04:43 PM

As someone who did play it - thankfully as a rental - permit me to disagree. Final Fantasy 13's combat is fun, but the story and characters are atrocious, and I personally wouldn't recommend it to anyone.

Eh, the game has a few corny lines but most of the story is at least okay, if not better, and the only character who's really annoying is Hope, who gets better later - and to make up for that, Sazh, Fang and Lighting are all pretty cool guys and doesn't afraid of anything.

The ending is bad though. I don't know anyone who liked it.

Zevox

2011-12-19, 05:05 PM

Eh, the game has a few corny lines but most of the story is at least okay, if not better, and the only character who's really annoying is Hope, who gets better later - and to make up for that, Sazh, Fang and Lighting are all pretty cool guys and doesn't afraid of anything.

The ending is bad though. I don't know anyone who liked it.
I couldn't disagree more. Saying FF13 has "a few corny lines" is like saying Batman and Robin has "a few silly one-liners." Most of the story is constant, grating melodrama that goes nowhere - heck, the entire story goes nowhere pretty much until the ending, as you yourself point out that ending is terrible - and everyone gets annoying at some point in the game. Fang and Sazh are okay outside of their personal over-the-top melodrama scenes (though Sazh's is perhaps the worst in the game), but the rest, no. Especially Snow and Hope, who were unbearable.

Zevox

Warlawk

2011-12-19, 05:11 PM

Starscream

2011-12-19, 07:42 PM

If you like strategic RPGs full of humour and plot (and several hundred hours of sidequests), just go and buy Disgaea 3 (and probably 4, I'm meaning to pick it up soon and take a look at it). Disgaea is one of my favorite series out there, and I can't talk it up enough.

I second this. I adore that series. Playing the 3rd one now, already got the 4th on deck.

BlazBlue, Infamous, Arkham Asylum and its sequel, Red Dead Redemption, the Assassins Creed games, Mortal Kombat, maybe the God of War games (I've only played the first two, republished as a single PS3 disc). All good choices.

Dimitri+2sword

2011-12-19, 08:09 PM

12 and 9......Batman: Arkham City is pretty dark and violent, but the fighting isn't glorified in anyway and the beat - ups are all justified.

Maxios

2011-12-19, 10:33 PM

12 and 9......Batman: Arkham City is pretty dark and violent, but the fighting isn't glorified in anyway and the beat - ups are all justified.

Dark? Compared to the Nolan films, Arkham City isn't that dark. The only thing that really is dark and slightly disturbing is the conversation between NPCs about one NPC's mother on prom night.

DiscipleofBob

2011-12-20, 09:08 AM

Don't forget all the classic games and DL-only games you can get off of Playstation Network. A lot of gems on there as well (though with the hacking scandal some months back, I wouldn't put your credit card info on there).

Starwulf

2011-12-20, 03:17 PM

Thanks all for the great thread.

I'm not too worried about finding things for the kids (12 and 9), we usually do ok on that front. I just haven't touched console gaming in years.

I am extremely hesitant of Final Fantasy. 7 Was great, 8 was playable and everything after was just horrible from the bit I tried. I played 9 and abandoned it before finishing because it was just terrible. I played another one after 9 but I can't recall which, it didn't do anything to win me back to the franchise.

Plenty of stuff in the thread though to get me started. Much appreciated.

I have to say, I'm a bit surprised. HOW MUCH of 9 did you play? 9 is often hailed as one of the best entries into the FF series, I don't think I've ever personally met anyone who didn't, if not love, at least liked it a good deal. Then again(and I mean this with as little offense as possible), if you thought 7 was great(really, it wasn't), you could just be one of those people who thought 7 was the be all-end all awesomest game ever, and you'll probably never enjoy another FF game again for whatever reason. Far to much hype around that game, and so many other FF's that were far and away superior to it.

Warlawk

2011-12-20, 04:16 PM

I have to say, I'm a bit surprised. HOW MUCH of 9 did you play? 9 is often hailed as one of the best entries into the FF series, I don't think I've ever personally met anyone who didn't, if not love, at least liked it a good deal. Then again(and I mean this with as little offense as possible), if you thought 7 was great(really, it wasn't), you could just be one of those people who thought 7 was the be all-end all awesomest game ever, and you'll probably never enjoy another FF game again for whatever reason. Far to much hype around that game, and so many other FF's that were far and away superior to it.

Honestly, I don't know how much of 9 I played. I played it when it was newly released and haven't touched it since. I think I made it to disc 2 and just gave up because it was cheesy cliche after cheesy cliche with characters that I had no interest or attachment to. I kept playing hoping to find something interesting to suck me in and it just never happened. I don't even remember any of the characters of the mechanics of the game in the slightest bit because it was completely unengaging.

FF7 wasn't the end all be all of the game, but it was cool at least. The mechanics were fun and interesting. The characters might have been a bit cliche in a lot of cases but they were more interesting than anything I saw in 9. I think the problem is that I enjoy playing a hero/badass not some random kid stuck in strange circumstances and 9 just didn't engage in that way at all. I really prefer fantasy, FF7 had magitech but it was still a solidly fantasy game environment while 9 just didn't feel at all the same to me.

There are plenty of games better than FF7 of course, heck I would probably say FF3 (US) is better... it's just so outdated that it's a bit painful to look at after being used to modern eye candy.

Starwulf

2011-12-20, 04:38 PM

Honestly, I don't know how much of 9 I played. I played it when it was newly released and haven't touched it since. I think I made it to disc 2 and just gave up because it was cheesy cliche after cheesy cliche with characters that I had no interest or attachment to. I kept playing hoping to find something interesting to suck me in and it just never happened. I don't even remember any of the characters of the mechanics of the game in the slightest bit because it was completely unengaging.

FF7 wasn't the end all be all of the game, but it was cool at least. The mechanics were fun and interesting. The characters might have been a bit cliche in a lot of cases but they were more interesting than anything I saw in 9. I think the problem is that I enjoy playing a hero/badass not some random kid stuck in strange circumstances and 9 just didn't engage in that way at all. I really prefer fantasy, FF7 had magitech but it was still a solidly fantasy game environment while 9 just didn't feel at all the same to me.

There are plenty of games better than FF7 of course, heck I would probably say FF3 (US) is better... it's just so outdated that it's a bit painful to look at after being used to modern eye candy.

At least you can defend why you enjoy FF7 and disliked 9 :). And if you didn't enjoy it by the second disk, you definitely at least gave it a fair shake. I just honestly kind of get tired of people praising 7 so often and trashing every other FF game(especially 8 ><), and then unable to name a single thing about why they liked 7 and disliked any other FF game. in other words, I hate FF7 Fanbois and band-wagoners. I can definitely see why you wouldn't like 9 quite as much, it always struck me as a bit of a throwback to the earlier games, just with a bit more story, and I loved that.

Also: FF3(US, FF6 IN japan) is definitely the better FF game :). I personally still play it on occasion and enjoy it quite much. I've never really had much of an issue with switching back and forth between modern graphics and older ones.

Balain

2011-12-20, 05:15 PM

My favorites on the ps3:
Little big planet 1&2
Gran Turismo
Lego [insert name]
Fat Princess
Deathspank
Deathspank thongs of virtue

Other highly recommended
Assasian's creed [insert name]
Brutal Legand
Infamous

Warlawk

2011-12-20, 06:52 PM

At least you can defend why you enjoy FF7 and disliked 9 :). And if you didn't enjoy it by the second disk, you definitely at least gave it a fair shake. I just honestly kind of get tired of people praising 7 so often and trashing every other FF game(especially 8 ><), and then unable to name a single thing about why they liked 7 and disliked any other FF game. in other words, I hate FF7 Fanbois and band-wagoners. I can definitely see why you wouldn't like 9 quite as much, it always struck me as a bit of a throwback to the earlier games, just with a bit more story, and I loved that.

Also: FF3(US, FF6 IN japan) is definitely the better FF game :). I personally still play it on occasion and enjoy it quite much. I've never really had much of an issue with switching back and forth between modern graphics and older ones.

Yeah, I know what you're saying about FF7 fanbois to be sure and being an MMO gamer I certainly have my share of rage at all the XxCloudxX XxSephirothxX clones that exist out there, it's just painful. I'm actually getting ready to grab a driver for the PS3 controller so I can use that to play some FF3 on the emulator on the computer.

FF8 I didn't like as much as 7 but I can easily pin down why. It had a good story and pretty cool gameplay over all but... Rinoa. Good lord she grated on my nerves so badly. On top of that I just didn't enjoy the system of collecting spells and binding them to your gear in comparison to the materia system for spells and abilities. 8 was a solid game but those mechanics and Rinoa just made the experience inferior for me.

Airk

2011-12-21, 10:45 AM

I second this. I adore that series. Playing the 3rd one now, already got the 4th on deck.

Disgaea is far from a universal hit though; I didn't enjoy it at all. I found the humor weak and the gameplay tedious and excessively grindy, so... to each their own in this regard.

Everyone should check out Castle Crashers, which is now, finally, available on PSN after years of Xbox exclusivity.

Drawing a blank on other stuff that hasn't been mentioned yet.

Maelstrom

2011-12-25, 09:59 AM

Loved Red Dead Redemption myself...

Spinoza

2011-12-27, 08:29 AM

I would say since your kids are younger look through the playstation store for some games you both would enjoy. I suggest checking out dungeon defenders. It has 4 player local co-ops and is a lot of fun to play. You might also consider getting a playstation plus membership. There is a lot of free content you get with one of those. I would not put my credit card information in the PS3 just buy cards at the chain stores if you need to purchase something. One other thing to note. DC Universe Online is a free to pay MMORPG on the PS3 and I think it’s really good.

So my recommendations are Dungeon Defenders and DCUO

Starwulf

2011-12-27, 03:11 PM

Hunter Noventa

2011-12-29, 11:41 PM

A lot of good mentioned here. Valkyria Chronicles, Disgaea 3+4 are solid games. The various LEGO games (Star Wars, Harry Potter, Pirates of the Caribbean, Indiana Jones) are all very interesting and kid friendly, as well as having some multiplayer support.

And on the downloadable front, you have some classic PS1 RPGs like FF7, FFTactics, Suikoden, Xenogears, etc.

blackjack217

2011-12-29, 11:50 PM

I'm going to have to strongly recommend Valkyria Chronnicals as well, my favorite game of all time.

Bouregard

2011-12-30, 03:06 AM

Uncharted, while there are some riddles most of them are highly enjoyable and the goal is always visible/obvious. The action scenes are in the first game a bit overdone but starting with part two extremly well done.

To sum it up it's an unholy marriage between Indiana Jones and Die Hard. The hero is not the standard hard boiled hero no it's someone with really bad luck who likes to play the badass but no matter what happens it will get worse.

To sum a fight up with Drakes comments:

"Hah, bring it on guys!"
"Whoa where do they come from"
"Oh ****, oh **** I'm going to die here"
"I'm still alive! Can't believe it..."

Graphics are gorgeous. Sound is superb the dialogue and the story telling is extremly good. From part two you also have very good controlls.

Karoht

2012-01-02, 01:36 PM

Ratchet and Clank comes highly recommended. It's fun and challenging, it's silly and lighthearted, they tell a fantastic tale. I haven't played the newest one yet (All4One) just yet but it is multiplayer and highly cooperative. It's kiddy enough that kids will like it, but the gameplay is solid and the jokes are just mature enough that even adults will laugh WITH the kids, rather than with the adults laughing and the kids shrugging their shoulders, or have the kids laughing and the adults rolling their eyes at the lame humor.

Ratchet and Clank 2 (PS2) still stands as one of my all time favorite games, with the PS3 installments being on par.

On that same note, I think you can get all the Sly Cooper games in a bundle on the Playstation Network, made by the same developer. I've been told the humor is about the same, the gameplay is equally good, and the fun factor is the same.

Warlawk

2012-01-05, 08:24 PM

Picked up several games, infamous among them. I gotta say... I haven't been pulled in by a console game like this in a long, long time. The controls are fantastic, the powers are a blast and the gameplay is just overall fantastic. I'm usually very much a fantasy gamer and stay away from stuff in a more modern setting, but this has just been great so far. Will have to poke around to find the second one once we finish up with this one.

If the controls are this good for Assassins creed 2 I'll be impressed. Found that one for cheap used at gamestop and grabbed it too. The kids have been having some fun with infamous, Soul Caliber 4, Marve V Capcom and Sonic. I've got The God Of War 2+3 package tucked away and Dragon Age 2 as well.