J4MES OX4D

It's better, on the ball control is decent,  but the rest is still kind of lame, particularly the ai

I might give that another look sometime - can't believe it's been 3 years already. I'm sure it's improved a lot but it sounds like the free to play model is still destroying the basic experience. 

I get around this problem by playing games on a console or PC 🫠

I tried FC2 recently on recommendation of Diddums, what a great game.

How I picture Oxford v Millwall today:
 
 
 
 

I've lined up Far Cry 2, SWAT 3, Kingpin Life of Crime and Unreal Gold this month. Some proper classic shooters! 

I've also tried Half Life 2 on the SteamDeck, plays really well. 
 
 

I use an iPhone for personal and an Android for work and it really boils down to what you are used to in terms of the interface and if you use Google applications as a primary i.e gmail. If you don't want to have a phone contract and don't wish to pay £700-1300 for a new iPhone either, then Android at is worth exploring as you can get very good brand new phones in the region of just a couple hundred quid whereas a 5 year old refurbished iPhone will still cost that on eBay.
 
Personally I prefer iPhone because it's what I've used since 2007 and I am used of the interface and functionality more. Android is still great as it covers a multitude of devices of varying quality and costs but I'm not a fan of a lot of Google shit as it's just needlessly convoluted most of the time. Anything Apple is a total rip-off though but if you can get a good value contract for a device worth supposedly 4-figures then that is probably more appealing than a cheaper Android. 

In a time where phones are all the same, it doesn't matter. If you insist on super user level control then sure, have at it. It's splitting hairs this day and age. If you need it it's just as easy to jailbreak an iphone as it is to install a root kit on an Android. 

I use an iPhone for personal and an Android for work and it really boils down to what you are used to in terms of the interface and if you use Google applications as a primary i.e gmail. If you don't want to have a phone contract and don't wish to pay £700-1300 for a new iPhone either, then Android at is worth exploring as you can get very good brand new phones in the region of just a couple hundred quid whereas a 5 year old refurbished iPhone will still cost that on eBay.
 
Personally I prefer iPhone because it's what I've used since 2007 and I am used of the interface and functionality more. Android is still great as it covers a multitude of devices of varying quality and costs but I'm not a fan of a lot of Google shit as it's just needlessly convoluted most of the time. Anything Apple is a total rip-off though but if you can get a good value contract for a device worth supposedly 4-figures then that is probably more appealing than a cheaper Android. 

Surely not? There is a few clips this guy compiled into his vid. 
One of them is somebody pumping almost 30 rounds to someones head on Nuketown. 
The most wonkiest grenade I've ever seen. 
 
Do people believe there is more evil behind the scenes, on top on SBMM? 
 
What's everybody's thoughts? 
 
 

No real surprise. Despite initial 'success', the numbers plummeted alarmingly and everyone returned to the usual suspects as the game struggled to maintain a stable audience. The game was never going to be profitable and Ubisoft have also shut down two of its studios as a result, affecting over 270 developers. 
 
I do like the ethics behind the development but the game was released too late in the day after multiple heavily-publicised delays and having Ubisoft's unpopular game factions as the brand was actually remarkably weak and uninspiring. 

Didn't expect this tbh. Although shows how hard free to play games need to perform. Executive Producer confirms this on X:
 
Hello XDefiant Fans,
 
I am unfortunately here today to announce that XDefiant will be shutting down.
Starting today (December 3, 2024), new downloads and player registrations will no longer be available. We will still release our Season 3 content in the near future (exact date TBD) and the servers will remain active until June 3, 2025.
 
For those who purchased the Ultimate Founder’s Pack, you’ll receive a full refund. Players who made any purchases within the last 30 days will also be fully refunded. Those refunds should happen automatically within 8 weeks of today and you can find more details on our official website, http://XDefiant.com.
 
A few years ago, Ubisoft and the SF Dev team embarked on a bold adventure to develop a new arcade shooter called XDefiant. It was from the start, an incredible challenge. Not only were we trying to shake up the genre by removing Skill-Based Matchmaking (SBMM) while bringing back a more “old-school” arcade shooter experience, but we were also diving into the high-risk, high-reward realm of free-to-play. And for that I want to applaud not only the Dev team but also Ubisoft leadership for taking that chance!
 
Free-to-play, in particular, is a long journey. Many free-to-play games take a long time to find their footing and become profitable. It’s a long journey that Ubisoft and the teams working on the game were prepared to make until very recently. But unfortunately, the journey became too much to sensibly continue.
 
I am, of course, heartbroken to have to be writing this post.  Yes, this game has been a personal passion for me for years and yes, I know that not all challenges lead to victory, but I also want to recognize all of the developers who are being affected by this closure. Each and every one of them is a real person with a real life separate from our own and they have all put so much of their own passion into making this game. And I hope that they can be proud of what they did achieve. I know that I will always be proud and grateful to have worked with such a great team! A team that really punched above its weight class.
 
And what they achieved is truly remarkable. The early response from players when XDefiant launched was amazing—we broke internal records for the fastest game to surpass 5 million users and in the end we had over 15 million players play our game! That is something to be extremely proud of, especially considering how tough this genre is. So, thank you to all of the developers who put their passion into making this game!
 
If there’s one thing, I hope we can all take away from this experience, it’s the importance of open, honest communication between developers and players. This “player-first” mentality along with respectful, non-toxic conversations between developers and players has been one of the standout differences that made XDefiant so special. From my very first post about XDefiant, this was the vision I wanted to champion, and I hope it leaves a positive mark on how the game industry treats its players and communities.
 
To our players, THANK YOU! From the bottom of my heart, I want to express my deepest gratitude for the incredible community that has grown around XDefiant. Your passion, creativity, and dedication have inspired us every step of the way.
 
With the utmost of love and respect,
Mark
 
 

I'm loving this game, warts and all. I'm mostly exploring and doing side quests, I only progress the main story when it's needed but I'm ok with it.
I hear it's best to not go further than the first Clear Sky mission for now as there's a game breaking bug for some folk that fucks their saves.
I'm looking forward to fixes, but yeah I agree should not have been released in this state. They waited this long lol so why risk everything by releasing with major issues is beyond me. It's money of course behind everything.
 
Still, I fucking love this game 😍

I've done about 20 hours so far and it's been good fun! Unfortunately immersion is broken way too often where you can be having a great time but something completely takes you out of the experience. The game runs well but it's definitely a demanding title but the only noticeable issue I had was in the first town with some severe, but momentary slowdown similar to what Phil encountered. The survival aspect is not great though - everything is way too easy to come by yet the economy for things like repairs and upgrades is insane. Needs some serious balance especially in the early game. Far too many degraded weapons floating around also. 
 
The story is incredibly weak and the writing isn't great either. Even Bethesda would be mildly embarrassed at some of the lame face-to-face interactions this game has!  Combat is fine but the mechanics can be slow and cumbersome which can be very annoying as the AI is broken right now - enemies can spot you a mile off and they spam grenades and direct hits non-stop. Mutants are way too spongy and seem unfazed with being shot most of the time so some battles can be brutally unfair especially as you faff around with reloading, medikits, nades and bandages. Not being able to mantle can also be annoying in places plus the stamina system can see you too tired to even swing a knife. It's also way too easy to become encumbered and for all the stuff you come across, the default leaves you incredibly light. 
 
Even with all that, there's still a great game here but much work still to be done by the devs. A lot of the jank is pretty inexcusable though and if this game was published by someone like Ubisoft, it would be critically lambasted and rightfully so. Thankfully the community have saved the day with a  string of essential mods which I will probably have to download and incorporate into my current run. I'm also a bit weary of broken quests and softlocks which can arise and those fixes, if possible, are way more complicated. 
 
7 Essential Mods to Install for Stalker 2 - STALKER 2: Heart of Chornobyl Guide - IGN
WWW.IGN.COM While the Exclusion Zone in Stalker 2 is meant to be challenging and ruthless, mods can implement some quality-of-life adjustments to make your time in the  

11 hours in now and have a few more impressions.
 
I haven't come across any bugs but fps deffo takes a hit in settlements. I don't get any stuttering or anything else like that though.
 
The AI needs tweaking, they appear too suddenly sometimes and they spot you too easily and can hit you from too far away imo
 
The day and night cycle needs extending, particularly as bad weather means even daytime can be dark. Days needs ro be longer for sure.
Torch needs to be brighter.
 
Game needs some updates for sure bit I'm loving every second so far.
 
 

Lampard to taking over as Coventry head coach will be entertaining for certain 🤪

Some more S.T.A.L.K.E.R 2

Some more S.T.A.L.K.E.R 2

S.T.A.L.K.E.R 2







 

Only Spurs could lose 2-1 at home to Ipswich and then hammer Man City 4-0 away🤣

0-4 away from home against city not enough ey? 

Totally in love with this game right now. I'm methodically exploring everything and soaking in the atmosphere. Hope it comes to PS5 sooner than later, so those without PC or Xbox can enjoy this game.
 
The first patch is coming this week.
 
 

Crazy to think that Harry Kane has competed in the Premiser League, German Bundesleige, German Cup, FA Cup, League Cup, World Cup, European Cup, Champions League and Europa League yet his first career success is getting England promoted in the Nations League - not that even counts🤣 I think he has possibly two more tournaments in him at international level. 

I don't use it much now but I have an iPod Nano which has hundreds of songs on it that doesn't require an internet connection, has a headphone jack, has a battery that would last longer than a day and is so easy to use by its smart design.
 
If I want to do that now with a modern device, I have to use my phone, carry around separate bluetooth headphones, connect to the internet, obtain some subscription service and then drain the fuck out the battery streaming a fraction of songs.  
 
Also if I had the time and space, I'd be playing on the PS3 and Xbox 360. The last 10 years of console gaming has been dismal.