Every day, Warframe shows me just how grindy it is.. time to find another game

Posted on 01-21-2019 by Benie

This is probably going to be my last Warframe recap for a long time, or it might be for a short time. It depends on if I can get quick help on getting the fast grinds. The quicker the pay, the less painful it is.
Yesterday was a grind too. Doing the optional side mission ‘The Silver Grove’, and the only main storyline quest I can do right now until the 25th, when the Void Trader pops in and hopefully I can grab a specific blueprint from him, to do the next to last.
The last one requires to get to Observer rank with The Quills, which requires me to kill the small robots at Cetus during the night and gather their goods. But I’ll get more on this in just a bit, as it plays in to what happened today.
–
So the mission I did yesterday, had to do with making these vials and gathering specific herbs (by scanning them). This had me traveling to several planets, all doing them in Solo mode and with my Operator/Excalibur Umbra going. Trying to find these needles in a haystack was somewhat frustrating (of how long it took). Not to mention at the same time, I was also doing a Cephalon Simaris daily of needing 50,000 standing with him to get this ‘widget’, that gives the scanner a 45% chance of what you scan, you’ll get two.
It’s extremely frustrating when only one of the four shows up that be scanned. And then you have to do the mission, three more fucking times to complete it. But hey, the devs feel “it’s not all bad, you’re getting other mats that you may or may not need later!” *groan*
–
Going back to the mission, as video game logic goes, the third vial is all I needed to get to the final parts of the mission, which had me defend this shrine for two minutes as Grineer forces ran in and started torching the place . …Two minutes? I couldn’t defend it for 10 seconds before I failed (as I couldn’t see the god damn enemies as it was so dark).
After calming down an hour later, I tried it again with using a specter. This time, we were holding the Grineer at bay. It was looking really, really promising. I as my Operator, also trying to defend. Somehow I got too close…and I failed. There was 30 seconds left on the clock. The shrine was full on health, and I failed. WHAT THE FUCK, I call bullshit!!
Has to be a bug! Tried it again, this time staying away from the enemies attempting to pour into the room, and it worked! So that failure was definitely a bug.
—
Other thing about this quest, this is also how you get the warframe ‘Titania’. I thought “oh cool, a new warframe to try out that I don’t have to grind the parts for!”.. until I heard the word “her”. God DAMNIT, game! Plus the other person is all “the Operator will honor this frame by wearing it, I swear it”
Image result for Fuck this shit I'm out
Back to the ship. Sell this frame. I am not, going to wear a warframe with boobs, even if you put a gun to my head. I. have. standards. Call me homophobic all you want.
Anyway, let’s move on to what happened today. And today, I wasn’t really planning to even play. I am getting really bored with this game. And if it wasn’t for the fact that I decided to google on how to get rep with The Quills, I wouldn’t had played today at all.
Remember when I was saying how I didn’t really like my new MOA, how it wasn’t really doing anything.. well, Defensive as it claims it’s supposed to? With this being a thing, it gave me an incentive to try to get another MOA (by restarting the whole grinding process again). It eventually got to a point where I have been farming for an hour and a half, looking for this specific mat, and it’s not dropping from where it’s supposed to.
Finally said fuck it, flew back to Fortuna and used my purchased platinum to get myself out of this grindy hell.
All there was left was to get lots and lots of standing points, that I turned sour for. If only I could use platinum to pay my way out of this grind.
—
Soon I had more than enough standing points to get the blueprints I need, and bought them from their respected vendors. Went back to my orbiter and to the ship foundry. Turns out I had miscalculated the mats needed for 1 of the four parts of the new MOA.
Now I did still have enough mats to make nearly everything needed, just have to go BACK out there and get fishing…
Decided to think instead. I remember telling Kovo how I never use my Kuburo as it’s only a distraction of when it goes down, that I have to pick it back up while being shot at from all directions (as I can’t do anything while trying to revive someone).
He told me that I could put Forma in the dog, and it would get stronger just like a weapon. Now MOAs have a similar thing, called being ‘Gided’. Went back to Fortuna, just to tell myself “if this doesn’t work, then it proves why not many use a MOA, because it’s pointless.”
Found out getting the MOA Gided, requires me to get to Rank 3 with the faction.
*eye twitches*
After I spent, all of those standing points to get a new MOA, where hopefully I’ll have something better, you’re saying I have to go back out there and do even more bounties. Plus, even though I paid for platinum, I’m not seeing a way to buy the standing points I need?
Hmm. DE, we need to have a ‘little’ chat.
Me: *clears throat and holds up hand* Excuse me, Digital Extremes? I have a question.
DE: Yes, what is it?
Me: Ah yes, um.. *inhales*…
Related image
Are YOU FUCKING HIGH?!?!

…Yes, yes I do need to find another game to play. At least until the main questline gets extended further, which I hear might explain why a certain key thing happened. And other than getting that specific blueprint from the Void Trader, I no longer see an incentive to play this game.
I’ve been thinking of getting SUPERHOT VR. Played this free demo that WMR provided, and I really liked it. It’s quite fun, how time moves only when you do, where you can plot out your method of attack and then execute it.
Probably going to buy it, and may do a recap on it instead. Because like I said, I’m done with Warframe (for now).

In closing… it’s just, when it came to a game like WoW, I had many.. many options to play it the way I want to play (such as soloing low level dungeons). This game, doesn’t give me that option. It doesn’t give me the option to do my own way– it forces the grind.
Even Wurm, gives me more options. Though of course, Warframe’s level designs aren’t about running about killing random things, and turning quests in.
Warframe has its demographic, and I don’t fit in it.

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New MOA / The Credit Sink Gambit / Platinum and Twitch Prime

Posted on 01-19-2019 by Benie

Several things on my mind for this Warframe recap. I also say this with a big time winter storm coming today; starting as rain, and ending with possibly 3″ inches of snow (with 45+ MPH winds).
So yeah.. blizzard conditions might be possible. The ones that cause accidents, and that’s all we need …some dumbass driver who’s going too fast, hitting black ice (as a flash freeze is likely for any standing water) and ramming into a telephone pole, knocking out powerlines (while also possibly killing the driver).
Not really worried about Saturday. Sunday, is when we get the snow and the high winds.

*clears throat* Sorry, where was I?
Oh yeah. Time to talk about the past, present and future of me playing Warframe (for the third time this year). Believe it or not, a lot has happened since I last chirped in.
Let’s go to the list, as you folks seem to like that format better;
–Got to MR10. Doing the MR10 challenge was quite tricky, but I still did it. Kovo’s friend Valethos Glem gave me the info that I needed. Basically, this one has nine platforms infront of you, and four ledges. The challenge is to kill enemies while watching the floor before it comes out from under you (as these platforms disappear).
They disappear within 8 seconds after stepping on it, and saying “a thousand one, a thousand two” etc.., told my brain just when to get to the next platform. And it worked!

–Grinded at Orb Vallis (fishing/mining, getting the mats I need, and doing bounties for standing points) until I had enough to buy and customize my first MOA companion.
The point was where it would have a shield to protect me, but… it’s not really working for me. Even with the mod it uses being maxed out, I don’t feel it’s protecting me. Thinking of grinding again to try the other two types of MOA (Defensive and Aggressive), but I want this effort to not feel like a failure (like it did with this).
Look, technically I’m getting all of this for free (not paying RL money for it), but effort has a pricetag. It’s called my patience. And I’ll be getting more into this a bit later.

–The Glast Gambit. The name of this optional questline (‘gambit’), should had raised red flags. As in, gambling. As in, it turned from a potential game-breaking bug of blast doors blocking access to the mission point, to a reason I went back to VRChat as I needed to step away before I choke a puppy.
What I’m talking about, is The Index. To keep this part short, I’ve linked where you can find more info about it here. There’s a part in the quest, where the guy who asked me to free his people, said to keep my victory within a margin of 10. Score too much, I lost. Score too little, I lost. 500,000 credits, I lost. That’s why I had to step away, before I turned my controller into a fine dust of burning electronics.
One random was able to help me, taught me where I’ve been fucking up. And even introduced me to the original. Doing the ‘High Risk Investment’ option (50k wager), nearly everytime I did it, I got 250k back. This won back all of my lost credits (and then some). It’s also something that Sarge never told me about. Though it’s possible he forgot, or it wasn’t a thing when he actively played.
I’m extremely happy I got all my credits back. This is a fantastic way of having more than enough to afford these really expensive (nearly 500k) fusions to mods (to get them maxed). Such as maxing Serration, which quads the damage of my Soma Prime.
If only I can get Endo as easy, because I’m unfortunately going through it quite fast.

Three more things to talk about. The first one is being not sure if I should listen to Sarge or listen to my gut. I remember asking him a long time ago, if the secondary and melee weapons matter. He says no, yet I’ve been seeing lots of people going melee only and kicking lots of ass. So clearly, they see the importance of modding the hell out of those weapons.
Problem is, I can’t really find any weapons for my MR that I would potentially like. Trying to ask others, just gives me that dreaded three letter word that starts with a T.. ‘try’. I’d rather have recommendations from others with a similar playstyle to mine, thanks anyway. Aka, let others try who have a lot more patience than I do, but give me your findings.. aka, do the work for me. 😛

Right, that’s all done. It’s now time to talk about one other thing. Something that has been going through my mind for a very long time, but didn’t feel like it was worth posting as it would be too whiny.
Platinum. Why, is the only way to get it (without giving money to the devs), through trading stupidly rare goods and hoping I get someone to bite? …Why? Why can’t there be less grindy ways to getting this legendary tier currency?
Well, there is. It’s called RL money. It’s called supporting the game, and there’s no shame in it. But going back to prime part farming, what stings is what Sarge told me.. and I quote: “the one thing they want normally is something vaulted”. And the only way to get something vaulted without paying platinum for it, is to get it before it goes in the vault.
And the only way to do that, is to pray to RNGesus that you’ll get a good roll.
A few days ago, I was trying to get the stock for this prime sniper rifle (called the Rubico Prime). I had three relics ready to go, all maxed out to possibly give me the highest chance of getting my hands on it. And all three, were failure rolls.
Who in the fuck has the patience to deal with this?!
…That’s why I did something that I’m currently regretting (in more ways than one). I bought 1,000 platinum, for $42.73 (20% off, by the way). Or so, my bank took the money out, but I have yet to receive the platinum, because of a bug on Steam’s side.. failing the authorization that I made the payment.
Made a ticket with Warframe Support. The rep asked for proof, but this proof only shows the $42.79 was put in my Steam Wallet. I have gotten no response since then, and I would have had to wait ’till Monday… if it wasn’t for a sudden thought that popped in my head.

It wasn’t Warframe that took the money out, it was Steam that did. It’s been sitting in my Steam Wallet, waiting to be used. All of this time, I was confused, because I never used this feature like this. Last time I used Steam Wallet, was to use leftover funds to save 10 or so cents from buying a game, from selling those dumb trading cards (which is no longer as easy). Damn kids.
With this error in my mind, I decided to try to purchase the 1000 platinum again. This time it didn’t ask me to take more money out of my bank (as it was already in the Steam Wallet), and it went through this time! I also got my 1000 platinum, as promised.
As to who’s fault it was for not telling who, I would say both. My fault for not remembering how the Steam Wallet works, and the rep’s fault for not telling me how it works.
—
Two other related (yet final) things to talk about, is this Twitch Prime thing. Currently the devs have a thing that you can get a free trial of Twitch Prime. You put in a code, and they’ll give you free prime weapons and stuff– even some platinum.
What I wasn’t told… Twitch has partnered with Amazon, so you have to get prime through them. And since I’ve already used my free trial, this is out of the question.
Half of me feels like doing it, getting this stuff, then going up to Amazon and telling them “WTF, why was I charged for a free trial!? Refund PLOX!!” But I don’t think it’s going to work in my favor, no matter how much I try to act the part of a surprised frustrated customer. I doubt they’ll believe me.
In a way, I kind of deserve to have a free trial (through Twitch Prime), as I never used it. But since they linked it to my Amazon account.. greedy assholes.
Discord also has a thing, where if you pay the $10/mo thing to get games (and install Warframe through Discord), they also give you platinum, skins for your warframes, and a 7-week booster pack. The boosters alone are tempting, but they don’t pause when you log out.

So, that’s about it for now. Wish me luck with this storm. Just hope if our power does go out, it’ll come back up without me freezing to death (from the bone-chilling wind on Sunday).

Posted in PC | Comments Off on New MOA / The Credit Sink Gambit / Platinum and Twitch Prime

Warframe recap, what’s been going on so far

Posted on 01-13-2019 by Benie

I’m actually surprised how many are asking what’s been going on with me in Warframe. For two reasons, actually.
1. It’s free for pretty much everyone. If you folks want to join (PC only) and say hi, maybe do a few Void Relic runs, we can.
2. I do appreciate you folks actually caring for me, even after what’s been going on.

And, there’s been a lot. But before I start, I feel I’m (very soon) going to reach Endgame. I have access to every planet in the Origin System, and working on doing every mission node in the game.
What I really want to do is A: Get the final four story mode missions started and completed. And B: Make a personal MOA companion from Fortuna. For the second thing, I still remember Kovo suggesting of waiting ’till you get Rank 2 with Solaris United (the main faction of Fortuna), before you consider building one. And I’ll be focusing on that when I can.
–
Right, now it’s time for the main course. Started off with getting a free Soma Prime. Due to how ridiculous the parts are to farm, Sarge sold some of his useless stuff to get the final part I needed to make it. And I fucking love it! There’s no spool-up time. It mows down enemies as soon as I pull the trigger. Can’t thank him enough.
I’ve also finally managed to get past MR8. Bullet Jump saves lives.. it saved my sanity at least. Got to MR9 as well. It’s a ‘kill enemies without being spotted’ test. Bit of a pain, but using the Glaive throwing melee weapon, made it somewhat easy. Wouldn’t call it a ‘breeze’, as it has a limited range and I have to be accurate when I throw it (knowing where the enemy would walk the second the glaive reaches it).
—
Finally got enough credits to get the Ingis (extremely useful for missions with the Infestation being the faction of it) properly modded. Even got an Orokin Catalyst on it. Funny story with that. I’m like “shit, I need a catalyst to do what I want with this thing”, and the game’s like “huh, funny that you say that, check your navigation.. I have an Invasion giving the very thing you require as battle pay!!”
Soon as I saw it, it was dinnertime. Thankfully it was still available when I got back.
A shame the Ingis Wraith isn’t available in Kovo’s dojo. According to the wiki, it was a once in a blue moon event.
–
Speaking of Wraith weapons, I got my hands on the Karak Wraith and all of its parts from random Invasion missions. Just so happened to be on, and there’s the blueprint. It took about 4 days until all the parts became available (and the blueprint to be crafted into a gun).
Trying it out… I think I feel sick. Or rather, feeling that my eyes have been open to the truth of what Sarge had told me. Comparing this to the god tier Soma Prime (even the standard Soma), it…. SUCKS! The fire rate is abysmal– the damage even worse on
Level 40+ enemies. No wonder why very few actually use it at my stage of the game.
Of course, Sarge also told me that even the Soma Prime is going to fall short once I hit MR15. Going to have to find a new favorite once I eventually get there.
—
Next to final thing, I got my hands on a new warframe, for free– Excalibur Umbra, for completing the solo quest ‘The Sacrifice’. And he has abilities that make fighting those fucking annoying immune to every attack you can throw at them (Sentients)… extremely easy. Ergo, he’s my frame for dealing with those fuckers. Dunno if I’m going to use him for anything else, due to his exclusive mods designed around fucking Sentients up.
The mission alone, has managed to fill up holes in my head of this game’s lore; explaining what the hell even is a “Warframe”, and why the ‘Tenno’ have the ability to control them for combat.
And speaking of frames, I’m also making a dojo-exclusive frame; Nezha. Sarge says it’s “like Rhino, but with fire”.. and I like fire. It should be done by either Wednesday night or Thursday (frames take three RL days to craft).
If I like it enough, I might end up selling Rhino. But it’s going to have to really win over me, to beat Rhino’s ability to ignore damage (making it a good soloing frame).

And finally, most of this, I’ve been doing this either on my own or with randoms. Something happened between myself and Kovo, that had a trickle down effect which made nearly everyone not want to talk to me.
I’m hoping I can resolve this situation in a sensible matter, which totally wasn’t my fault I’m in such a depressing mess, that I’ve totally haven’t been trying to not talk about as it makes me ashamed to think about.
–
–
Actually, before I wrap this up, there’s one thing I need to say, about Void Relics. Actually, two things about them.
The first thing is their importance of being cracked open. Sarge told me that I need to get them now, before they get valted. One such example is the Helios Prime (a prime version of the Helios robot companion), was vaulted just last month on the 18th. Though.. that was when I was ‘taking a break’. Yet he also said to hold on to rare relics, as they’re worth more to the right buyer.
The problem is.. what is considered ‘rare’? Axi relics? Or the weapon, paying attention to when it was last vaulted? I can already feel a headache just thinking about it.
Especially that Sarge said, this is the main way to get more platinum– to farm for these parts, make them, and then sell them to the highest bidder using one’s dojo. I don’t know how the market works, so I seriously doubt it’s that easy.
I wish Sarge would walk me through it, to get me comfortable with the process. I want to believe it’s the same process as selling in WoW, but at least with that, I had a mod that would set the price for me (based on the prices of others).
For what I’ve seen, it seems more similar to Wurm. Both use real world means of acquiring their ingame currency, or you can exchange goods for it (instead of dirt or stone, it’s prime weapons or frames). And instead of silver, copper and iron being the ingame currency, it’s platinum.

.
So, that’s about it that I have for you folks.

Posted in Other, PC | Comments Off on Warframe recap, what’s been going on so far

Job Simulator developer.. incompetence? The argument I’m having

Posted on 01-11-2019 by Benie

So I believe why this game hasn’t been getting high praise (as I stated in my opinion). And yes, it’s the Office Worker job hang bug.
Those that don’t know what I’m talking about, the game crashes upon load after putting the Office Worker job cartridge in the machine. The dev has tried a fix asking people to use a specific beta version, but sadly it doesn’t work for me.
Emailing is the other option, which I have. And what I got in response.. was pure incompetence.
–
They’re telling me “the reason why you’re getting a hang, is because you need to set your room-scale through SteamVR”.
Let me tell you something– no other VR game (that I’ve played) through SteamVR, has made this a requirement to play their game. Maybe I’ve just been lucky? Who knows. Plus, why is this game any different, when it claims it 100% supports WMR? If it was like GORN, then I would understand the reasoning.
I don’t think these guys know how WMR works, and that I literally didn’t have a choice of when it was time to set up my boundary.
Something that’s funny about this, the other three job minigames work just fine. So why is it only the Office Worker job, that’s having an issue? Why is it such a special snowflake? The answer could be literally anything, like a required room-scale that my room cannot give (hence the crash).
In that case, then just give me a refund. Because I’m not going to play a game that 1/4 of it doesn’t work for my room. Or, they could redo this job minigame to be more friendly for a very small room-scale.

I’ve been back and forth with them, where twice they have sent me the same exact response to where I swore I was talking to a bot. They finally have assured me that I am actually talking to human beings, but that doesn’t make up for these BS responses (and lack thereof, of why the other three jobs are working fine).
What they say in their next response, would probably determine if I try to ask for a refund. Probably won’t get one though, as I played the game for over two hours.
–
EDIT: It’s been a few weeks since we last spoke (myself and the devs), and they haven’t gotten back to me. Two possible reasons;
1. They chose the bad option, by just never responding to me again (since I don’t want to do what they want, with them thinking they know more than I do).
2. They actually took my words to heart, and are testing a WMR. I really, really hope for this outcome, and they will (eventually) get back to be with their findings.
–
Hell… I even tried to set up room-scale through SteamVR last night (just to see if they were right). After awhile it finally recognized my controllers, but failed to understand the trackers are in the fucking headset (instead of on the sides of my room). Basically, you’re supposed to trace your playspace with your controllers, instead of your headset. So that’s not going to happen with WMR.
Funny, huh? Exactly like I said. I don’t own a headset with trackers outside of it, so it’s impossible to do it. This proves they have absolutely NO idea how WMR works, and shouldn’t have support for it. Even more hilarious, GORN works better.. and it doesn’t 100% support WMR.
Incompetence, all around.

Posted in Other, VR | Comments Off on Job Simulator developer.. incompetence? The argument I’m having

Warframe, what happened to the move, and other questions answered

Posted on 01-07-2019 by Benie

So, first off, happy new year. First post in 2019. And, you all have sent me lots and lots of questions in my inbox, and it’s gotten to a point that I’d stop ignoring them and actually say something.
And the reason why I’ve been ignoring them, is I didn’t know how to properly answer to the over 120,000 emails I’ve gotten since the 1st! You guys and gals are awesome by the way.

Right, time for the answer to the question that most of you have been asking..
What happened to the move to GoDaddy? You can see the new post in the General blog for a full explanation of that, and why I’m staying with Arvixe.
And the other question.. I saw you playing Warframe again, I thought you quit. What happened? This is going to be a giant post, so I hope all of you are comfortable. So yes it’s true, I have been playing it again. But this time, I’m actually getting the guidance I mentioned I needed; a few actually willing to help me out and tell me what I should be aiming for. Unfortunately, the words I’m being told are also clashing with others, who are finding alternate (but not as efficient) means of getting stuff.
—
So, here’s what’s been going on in Warframe;
-Epical Sarge (one of Kovo’s friends from VRChat) is a veteran in the game, and sounds like he knows his shit. He even gave me 300 platinum to buy new warframe and weapon slots!
–Getting the Soma to replace the Karak, as much as I loved that rifle, this… I wish it was a girl, so I can make sweet love to it. It sounds and looks powerful, and ready to cut a
Level 30 in half.
–Sarge taught me modding to where it actually makes sense to me– stop focusing on the three damage types (Impact/Puncture/Slash) and focus on pure Damage and Crit chance.
–Joined Kovo’s clan, and proved that you do indeed have to be in one in order to access Clan Dojo research panels. Why a “You need to be in a clan to access this panel” popup couldn’t be put in, is beyond me. But, at least I got the Archwing launcher blueprint.
–Got to complete a few story missions, which has made me mentally drained. Trying to kill a Level 30 that’s immune to all of my attacks, I’m going to have nightmares.
–Got past Saturn, Uranus and even Neptune.
–There’s no way I’m going to get to MR8. Absolutely, positively, no fucking way. I’m going to be stuck at MR7 forever. Why? …It’s parkour. There’s no time limit, just a ‘fuck up counter’ that fails after four attempts. And I lost count on the times I’ve failed from doing the Practice runs… think it was 50? Just shows how much I suck at parkour.

So what I mean about “advice clashing with others” (aka the reason why I haven’t been playing today), is Sarge was going to give me the parts to Soma Prime. Except, one part is in a relic that he has proven is ‘valted’, and has been for 3 & 1/2 years.
Kovo yesterday, told me that I could still get this elusive void relic from doing a specific bounty through Fortuna. It’s like, something snapped in my mind and I felt like everything I was taught was a lie. And what’s worse, one of Kovo’s friends was in the same call and heard what was going on, and laughed. This person doesn’t believe in what veterans say, feeling “the game’s been updated since then”. And now that I saw proof, I really didn’t know who to believe in anymore.
Going to Sarge, it’s like I was offending him or something, showing me his own proof and saying that yes, you can get it this way, but it’s not as efficient of a chance to get that specific relic as grinding them.
I, I just don’t know what to say or think. So that’s why I just stopped playing. I hope I didn’t lose Sarge as a friend.

So, that’s why I’ve been back in Warframe, and why I haven’t done the move (yet).

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Benies-Blogs.com’s VR Awards of 2018

Posted on 12-28-2018 by Benie

Hello and welcome to Benies-Blogs.com’s VR Awards of 2018!! Where we take a look back of the best games for VR (that I have played). Note this list isn’t restricted to games that were made this year (even though most of them have, or were released this year).
Now you’re probably wondering.. “why only VR games? Why not PC too?” I haven’t actually played many PC-only games this year. Getting my Lenovo Explorer, actually encouraged me to get back into gaming again (as VR gaming is the future).
–
So let’s get to it! First, honorable mentions that sadly couldn’t make the cut, but are good in their own way (and you should definitely try them out for yourself);

Honorable Mentions

MSI Electric City: Core Assault
Rolling Line
Waltz of the Wizard
Cave Digger
VR Flush

[collapse]

I have split the winners into several categories. Please understand, the winners are my opinion;
-Best story in VR
-Funniest VR game
-Best community-driven VR game
-Most immersive VR game
-Most intensive VR game
-Best use of game mechanics
-When the gameplay was better than graphics
-Best VR game with friends
-Best VR game of 2018

And here we go… the winners (and why I chose them) will have spoiler tags.
The winner, of the best story in VR, is…..

Winner of "Best Story in VR"

Moss
The way the game was done, where the player character isn’t the hero, but a tiny mouse. This is absolutely beautiful.
I want to see a Moss 2. I want it NOW!

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The winner, of the VR game that made me laugh out loud, is…..

Winner of "Funniest VR game"

Accounting
Most of you probably saw this a mile away. This game is absolutely hilarious, from the start to the finish. And as I said before (and I say it again), this is a MUST own if you’re new to VR.

[collapse]

The winner, of the best community-driven VR game, is…..

Winner of "Best community-driven VR game"

Beat Saber
For the ability to download custom songs via ‘Beat Saver’, and the other awesome
tools (such as multiplayer support), make this the best community-driven VR game of 2018.

[collapse]

The winner, of the VR game that immersed me in its gameplay, is…..

Winner of "Most immersive VR game"

TO THE TOP
If you were reading the opinions I made about the three VR games I bought, you already expected this to be the winner. No other game has immersed me so much, to where the direction I leap depends on the angle I’m looking.
Rolling Line came very close to winning this, but it sadly fell short.

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The winner, of the most intensive VR game I’ve played (and might be awhile until a worthy contender challenges it in the near future), is…..

Winner of "Most intensive VR game"

Beat Saber (again)!
I don’t often praise a game more than once, but this game deserves it. It will give you a workout (when your body isn’t used to it), and make your arms beg for death.
That’s why this game wins this additional award.

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The winner, of the VR game with the best use of game mechanics, is…..

Winner of "Best use of game mechanics"

SightLineVR
The devs are nuts when they made this, and it nearly won the ‘Most immersive VR game’, because this game feels like you’re in VR, and loves to fuck with your mind (in a damn good way).
Look at this plant. Look away, look back… holy fuck, where did the plant go?! Are you even the only one playing this game?
This, is why it has won the ‘Best use of game mechanics’ award!

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The winner, of the VR game where the gameplay was better than graphics, is…..

Winner of "When the gameplay was better than graphics"

Robo Boop
Insanely addictive game. The player has full control over how easy or difficult they want to make their gameplay, with a simple mechanic; change boxes to match the color of the sticks you have in your hand.
This award shows that you don’t need good graphics to be a good game.

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We’re getting close to the winner of the #1 best VR game of 2018, that you absolutely HAVE to own!! There’s just one more award, before it’s that time. So let’s get to it.
The winner, of the VR game that is best with friends, is…..

Winner of "Best VR game with friends"

VRChat
This was a reward that is to be expected. I’ve met so many new people through this game (with a few of them being close friends). It’s also a runner-up that nearly won the ‘Best community-driven VR game’, if it wasn’t for all the drama, that is.
So I don’t often say this, but I just want to thank the VRChat team for all the friends I’ve made (and the many more that I’ll make in the near future).

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….
And now, the moment you’ve all been waiting for (or at least I hope so).
Drumroll please.

The winner, of the BEST, VR game, of 2018 (in my opinion)…. IS…

Winner of "Best VR Game of 2018"

Beat Saber (yet again)!!
Modding support, familiar songs to beat your saber to, and full customization to adjust the game to your playspace. No other game has come anywhere close to this level of freedom! It has just the right amount of challenging (yet fun) gameplay, and balance. This, to me, is the perfect VR game. And I can’t recommend it enough.
Buy it, now, while it’s still on sale during the Winter Sale! You will not be disappointed.

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So that’s all I have for you. Hope you enjoy what I’ve done here, and I can’t wait to see what devs come out for VR next year. Maybe a Lenovo Explorer that doesn’t feel like a 5LB brick on my face (with proper head straps like the Vive and Oculus have to counter the weight to the back of the head).
I would love to see better-fitting WMR headsets.

Posted in Other, VR | Comments Off on Benies-Blogs.com’s VR Awards of 2018

GORN and Job Simulator, my thoughts

Posted on 12-27-2018 by Benie

Bought two more games, and it’ll likely be the last two I’ll buy from the Winter Sale. Curse you Gaben and your sweet deals! You nearly murdered my wallet!
I’ll be expressing my thoughts the same way I did with the last ones. Also, these games will not be included in my upcoming VR Awards post.

GORN
Good..
-Very satisfying and fun to beat the shit out of people with deadly medieval era
weapons (flails, 1H axes, and the like), having realistic blows based on the angle on my swing. I can make someone stumble forward by smacking them in the back.
-You can rip their arms off in a comical Gmod-like way of it ragdolling.
-Runs alright on my computer, to an extent. But this isn’t enough to warrant it as a ‘bad’, just a sign of poor hardware (has nothing to do with the game).
-The game doesn’t let you know that if you take too much damage, you can save your life by killing someone. You figure out this mechanic on your own (I like this).
-The game gets a bit too immersive for me, having uppercutted the furniture in my
room (twice). I have the scars on my right hand to prove it.
-Once a ‘bad’ (no option to auto-hold a weapon without holding down the primary trigger), pressing the Menu button instead does this awesome thing.
Bad..
-No way to pause a match in progress. To me, this is great disappointment.
-2H weapons like the spear, I don’t really like how the pointy end flails around like it’s made out of rubber. If it was more solid, I feel I would have a better chance at using these weapons.
-Non clear instructions on how to unlock new weapons. Aka, I got 8 kills with a spear, yet it says I still need 0/5 kills with it to get the bow. It doesn’t tell you that you have to kill with a spear and survive an Arena match to get the credit. This is stupid.
-Would had liked to see an option to not randomize your unlocked weapons when doing an Arena match.
Overall..
Even though it doesn’t fully support WMR, it still runs great. Just would had liked to see more user aid features (such as Seated support). That’s really all I can say.
Good game, though.
———————————–
Job Simulator
Good..
-The game is [GOOD] for all humans, and has full WMR support (works well with Playspace Mover).
-‘Office Worker’ job crash bug is well known, to where the dev is asking you to email him your specs and when it happened (happens to me as well).
-Infinite Overtime mode allows you to play the various jobs, well.. infinitely (until you’re tired of it). It even awards you with [RANKS].
Bad..
-Given the date of the release, I wish the game had more jobs by now.
-Wish there were new twists when it comes to Infinite Overtime mode, instead of do the same job type you already did 10 minutes ago. Like, actual robberies, or having a health inspector come, or someone that restocks your stuff. Just something different the game throws in, to keep it feeling new and fresh.
-Overcharging robots in the Store Clerk/Auto Mechanic job, doesn’t bother them. Takes the fun out of making them pay $4,500 for a burrito (while they try to use a coupon).
Overall..
A pretty chill game compared to GORN. As said before, I would had liked to have seen more jobs (feels too little for the $20 pricetag).
I hope the Office Worker crash bug gets fixed soon, though. I can see why this is possibly making most people not recommend the game (the fact it’s taking a very, very long time to come up with a fix).
———————————–

And there you go. Likely the last two games I get until I get up the money for new hardware for my computer. Had to take advantage of the savings (given how I had no money for the Halloween and Autumn sales).

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Give the gift of a pissed off VR user with a Steam gift (by crashing them)!

Posted on 12-25-2018 by Benie

I was going to celebrate Christmas by playing VRChat all day, but since most friends were offline with friends and family (or playing other games), I decided against it and watched YouTube videos (while listening to shitty Christmas music via DirecTV’s all-year Christmas music channel).
Talked with a friend who wanted to personally wish me a Merry Christmas (and we talked awhile). Really appreciate the conversation, and even got to know a bit more about them. Not to mention, he was also worried about me getting all depressed over Warframe’s complex game mechanics. It’s cool that someone actually cares about me.
–
Late that night (after going through hell with SteamVR, MR Portal, and my computer not wanting to cooperate with me, for what felt like I fix one issue and another pops up), I finally got in VRChat. Soon as I get in and hear the regulars talking, someone DMs me in Discord to not tell this person my Steam name, for this person can send a gift and crash your VR equipment. Luckily for me, no one there knows my Steam name (as it’s not related to my Discord account).
As hilarious this sounds (of crashing someone that uses VR with the true meaning of Christmas (by gifting them a game))… this is a pretty serious thing they need to patch very soon, before more people exploit it on unsuspecting VR users.
But hey, it’s all good, you’ll get a free game out of it. Better hope that game is going to pay for a new headset if it doesn’t turn back on after doing a reset.

..Oof. Merry Crashmas!

Posted in Other, VR | Comments Off on Give the gift of a pissed off VR user with a Steam gift (by crashing them)!

Three new VR games bought, my opinions

Posted on 12-22-2018 by Benie

Just happened to have some extra money (even though I’m still saving up for PC parts next year), and bought three games via the Steam Winter Sale..
Rolling Line
Accounting+
TO THE TOP

So, what did I think of them (while also using Playspace Mover when needed)?
Rolling Line
Good..
-I feel like a kid again. 😀
-How you can ride in engines (inside and outside). Using Playspace Mover made it even cooler (how I was simulating climbing on the side of a locomotive).
-Steam Workshop support. Download new sets and cars/engines.
-Once you get the hang of it, it’s easy to build a train.
-Customizable weather/sun position and time, and the ability to freeze time and weather.
-Apart from when loading a new layout, the game runs beautifully on my hardware.
-Long trains use realistic physics (takes time for the train to get up to speed).
Bad…
-No way to fully automate trains (aka, respond to signals and stop to allow other trains to pass safely, or automatically switch tracks at junctions to avoid incoming trains). Plus no one seems to care for it (find that quite odd).
-I don’t know how to go back to the main menu, to select another layout. I’m sure there’s a way, but I haven’t found it yet.
-The game’s physics engine starts to freak out overtime, and it happens when the player doesn’t constantly babysit them (trains forget junction settings and cross into incoming tracks of other trains (or hit a one-way track and crash), and cars glitch through eachother).
Five negative comments about the tutorial;
1. The window that pops up takes nearly 1/4 of my vision, forcing me to turn my head in order to see if this or that is what I’m supposed to be clicking on.
2. It took a half an hour to find this ‘car in a station’. A simple arrow pointing down at a certain point of the layout, would had been a lot more helpful of where to go.
3. Controls taught to me assume the user has a Vive (when the game fully supports WMR), which made things quite confusing for me.
4. I was never told to look down and see I had two remote controllers attached to the player character’s waist, or even how to get more (as there’s four slots that I could see).
5. I was never told how to delete unwanted cars/engines. In WMR, you pick it up with the secondary trigger and then drop it, then you can destroy it. Feels a bit clunky though.
Overall…
As cool and fun as this game is (almost like a VR version of Microsoft Train Simulator), the physics bugs were killing the mood, and it was making me regret my purchase.
However, these issues were (unsurprisingly) not happening as frequently when running the game through the standard Desktop mode (which had a similar feature that Playspace Mover has).
—
Also, the game is being developed by one guy who sadly can’t devote all of his time to working on it (has a job). But, he promises new updates, official layouts, and changes next year.
So if you love trains as much as I do, get this thing. Because, where else are you going to get this level of immersion, without spending a fuckton of money on a model train set (and having to renovate half of your house for it)?
———————————–
Accounting+ (the ‘sequel’ to the original I played, that I found out I could play Vive games in WMR)
Good…
-It’s Accounting, but with new segments.
-Sitting/Standing Play options at the start (with teleport points for Sitting play).
-Classic Rick and Morty memes (that even give people that never watched the show, a brief history of them (such as ‘Pickle Rick!’)).
-Multiple endings (and secret areas), find them all… including this secret Zoo level.
-Subtitles! I can finally see what the tree guy and the guys on the phone are saying at the same time! Fuck YOU, tree guy!
Bad…
-In the ‘boning’ room, the sound was strangely getting quiet and going back to normal, at a constant pace.
Overall…
Think of Accounting with a paid DLC, because this is that game. There’s not much to say about it. It’s still as hilarious as the last, but with new hilarity.
But (IMHO), the original Accounting felt more immersive. Might try this game again in Standing Play, and see if I feel that same immersion.

Now, fuck you. Don’t buy this game! Just don’t! For this game requires you to have an IQ of 300+! And you clearly don’t have that! So, don’t bother buying this game! Just fuck you! Don’t even look at the game! Fuck you! Go awa– NO! Put down the game! I said DON’T buy the game! Put DOWN the game and walk away! Just get out of here! You don’t belong here! Fuck you!
———————————–
TO THE TOP
Good…
-Mirror’s Edge if it was done in VR, except you jump on blue things instead of red.
-Movement is taught as you play (best kind of hand-holding), and it doesn’t show up in your face.
-Core gameplay is simple to understand (get to the finish as quick as you can). But you also don’t have to be quick if you don’t want to. The game allows exploration to get used to the level.
-Getting through a level is insanely fun and immersive (even when sitting down, it forces me to turn my head to make sure I’m always going in the right direction). This is the kind of forcefulness I actually love.
Bad…
-Why is Sitting Mode (enables being able to play the game while sitting down) spinning the camera around for no reason? And it seems to enjoy spinning to the right.
-Load a level, black screen (yet I hear sound in the background)… why? Is this a ‘feature’, or a bug? I have to take off my headset just to get the game to render.
Overall…
When I’m actually able to play (without a unnecessary black screen filling the headset), being able to take a leap based on the position of my head is freakin’ awesome! Absolutely love this feeling of movement freedom.
But… if the devs fix the black screens, I would enjoy this game even more. Not to mention I’m also have to fight the controls when the camera starts snapping to the right for no reason.

.
And so, there you go. My thoughts of these three VR games. One of them, I wish I could get my money back (but hope the issues will be fixed).
Would had liked to buy GORN and Job Simulator, but I think both of these are room scale (and GORN is going to be hard even with Playspace Mover).

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Turns out, I can play (most) Vive games in WMR :O

Posted on 12-18-2018 by Benie

No, you’re not reading the title wrong. I found this out in a pretty interesting way.
Now you’re probably going to tell me “Benie, you could play Vive games in WMR since last year!”.. I didn’t even know this was a thing.
So anyway, there’s this Game Theory video talking about the VR game Accounting+. Before they do the main video, Mat talks about a contest to win an Oculus before Christmas, that all you have to do is be subscribed to the channel and post anything in the comments section. I personally am not a fan of this (as I never win). But he says that Oculus themselves (on their website) are doing a contest. He finally mentions that you can buy an Oculus for $50 less than normal (so about $250, that’s pretty sweet.. if I had a better CPU to run it).
–
So anyway, I looked up this game on Steam (remembering Dan playing this a long time ago), and yep.. it’s for Vive and Oculus (not WMR). Then I noticed (don’t remember where I saw it), the words “any headset will work”.
This got me thinking, and did a Google search. Holy shit the results, saw GORN could be played in WMR as well!! There’s even video proof, with him saying the game works 90-95% well with WMR. Wow, this is awesome! It opens up so many doors for me. No longer am I limited to WMR only games.
And how this is possible, I read that SteamVR is using what’s known as ‘OpenVR’; allowing a WMR headset to emulate the Vive (using ‘Windows Mixed Reality for SteamVR’, aka what’s allowing me to play VRChat in WMR).

Before I wrote this blog post (because at the time I was quite skeptical of what I was reading), there’s a free version of the game called Accounting (Legacy). It’s made for the Vive only, but what I read, it can be played in WMR.
…Time to test that theory.
–
And sure enough, it does!! 😀 Though I did have a few issues;
-Being Room Scale only, I had issues with furniture in my room getting in the way (as standing up and walking (very carefully so I won’t trip over anything) in my playspace is the only way to move in this game.
-After the game’s title appearing behind me (as I was sitting down in my chair when launching the game), the game got stuck in a long loading session (about 30 seconds). Thought for sure this was a sign of incompatibility, but it worked great since then.
—
The game itself, it was short, though disturbing yet extremely hilarious. I loved it. This is a MUST have for anyone who’s getting in VR. Just, one warning. If you’re getting VR for your kid, don’t let them get this as it has adult humor in it (and foul language).
Let’s just say, there’s a part where you’re.. boning skeletons by playing on a Xylophone made out of bones (and I got the most awkward boner from doing that, with one of the skeleton heads sounding like it’s having an orgasm ..lmao). Sex jokes.
God damn I love this game.

Overall, what can I say.. this is AWESOME! I can play Vive games in WMR!!! 😀
Wonder what other Vive games would work in Windows Mixed Reality.

Posted in VR | Comments Off on Turns out, I can play (most) Vive games in WMR :O