An unhappy gamer in need of a good game, please recommend.

[DoW Lowen]

Hey guys,

Long story short, I'm not entirely in a social/happy mood and I'm heading to the shops in about an hour and a half, I need a game that;

1) Gives me at least 15 hours of game play
2) Preferably story heavy, though I'm not fussed if it isn't. I would really like some strong characterization if at all possible.
3) On the Xbox 360, no Kinect stuff since I don't have one
4) Is not CoD:Blops, Fable 3, Dead Rising 2 or Brotherhood (with the exception of CoD, I've played them already)
5) Online not an essential feature for my experience

I was thinking Fallout: New Vegas, but the bleakness of the Fallout World is maybe something I'm not keen to jump into. Also I'm not looking for violence, yes I'm not in the best frame of mind but I'm not looking for a cathartic release with gore, though I wouldn't mind if the game had it.

So shoot me your ideas, and thanks in advance.

 

[Palademon]

The Orange Box?
It'll be cheap becuase there's usually only pre-owned copies, and the Half Life parts of it alone will last you longer than 15 hours.

 

[voetballeeuw]

Get New Vegas, it may take place in a wasteland but it's still quite a joy to explore. Besides the interesting characters, and gameplay, you can always get the Wacky Wasteland Perk for extra laughs.

 

[Littlee300]

Steam is having a lot of holiday sells... I will check if mass effect 1/2 has one..
Mass Effect two is 15 bucks right now!

 

[MisterShine]

Xbox 360 only? No PC?

1) Gives me at least 15 hours of game play
2) Preferably story heavy, though I'm not fussed if it isn't. I would really like some strong characterization if at all possible.

I was thinking Fallout: New Vegas, but the bleakness of the Fallout World is maybe something I'm not keen to jump into. Also I'm not looking for violence, yes I'm not in the best frame of mind but I'm not looking for a cathartic release with gore, though I wouldn't mind if the game had it.

First off Story-wise, I'd say check out the Bioware titles (Mass Effect, Knights of the Old Republic, Jade Empire, Dragon Age). All of them are 30+ hours RPGs with fantastic stories and characters.

Lost Odyssey is another RPG, its Japanese though so expect some good ol' fashioned back-n-forth turn based combat. I thought it was pretty interesting.

And I always recommend Castle Crashers for XBLA to everyone, it oozes with creativity and is a fun beat 'em up.

Sorry I can't offer more, I don't console game much Hope this helps!

 

[Worgen]

dark siders is really good... lets see... OH I know, resonance of fate, thats a good long game with an interesting story and likable chars

 

[DoW Lowen]

Ummm.... Mass Effect 1&2? I don't play my 360 much, sorry I'm not much help. Maybe Metro 2033, but that's a rent first, then buy if you like it kind of game. >.>

Thanks anyway, but I've already played Mass Effect 1 & 2 to death as well as Dragon Age. Also I'm not fussed about whether I'm owning the game for life or not, I just really want to play a game for now.

The Orange Box?
It'll be cheap becuase there's usually only pre-owned copies, and the Half Life parts of it alone will last you longer than 15 hours.

I already have the Orange Box. But thanks anyway.

 

[tlozoot]

Sorry to hear you're feeling down, but whatever you do...DON'T BUY LIMBO. That shits heavy.

A story heavy, Xbox 360 game with strong characterisation....

I'd prescribe Bioware. Either Mass Effect or Dragons Age have great characterisation, though I'd say ME has the better overall story. ME1 was, for me, lacking gameplay wise, though the sequel fixed all of that for me. Of course, if you're interested in story, playing the first would be a must.

Dragons Age goes in a very different direction gameplay wise. Characterisation is just as strong, but the overall story is standard fantasy doomsday stuff.

Red Dead Redemption has great characterisation, though the majority of the story is terribly paced. Ending is great though. The old west mood and atmosphere might be your thing. It's sedate and you can take you time to take in the truly beautiful scenery.

If you fancy a laugh for cheap then you could go for Deathspank. A light-hearted hack 'n' slash RPG that's genuinely funny. RPG elements are thin, but it's a nice game.

Hope this has helped!

Edit: Didn't see you've already played the Bioware.

 

[DoW Lowen]

dark siders is really good... lets see... OH I know, resonance of fate, thats a good long game with an interesting story and likable chars

Resonance of fate? Is that a JRPG, because I've been VERY skeptical of them lately.

 

[DoW Lowen]

Sorry to hear you're feeling down, but whatever you do...DON'T BUY LIMBO. That shits heavy.

A story heavy, Xbox 360 game with strong characterisation....

I'd prescribe Bioware. Either Mass Effect or Dragons Age have great characterisation, though I'd say ME has the better overall story. ME1 was, for me, lacking gameplay wise, though the sequel fixed all of that for me. Of course, if you're interested in story, playing the first would be a must.

Dragons Age goes in a very different direction gameplay wise. Characterisation is just as strong, but the overall story is standard fantasy doomsday stuff.

Red Dead Redemption has great characterisation, though the majority of the story is terribly paced. Ending is great though. The old west mood and atmosphere might be your thing. It's sedate and you can take you time to take in the truly beautiful scenery.

If you fancy a laugh for cheap then you could go for Deathspank. A light-hearted hack 'n' slash RPG that's genuinely funny. RPG elements are thin, but it's a nice game.

Hope this has helped!

Ready played Limbo, I honestly didn't get the whole "heavy down spirit" of the game, at least not in the second half of it. The aesthetics were really well done, and the spiders were quite imposing to say the least, but it didn't depress me when it should have.

As for your recommendations I've played the f**k out of all of them, though I haven't taken a look at Deathspank, is that on Live?

 

[MONSTERheart]

Alan Wake seems to be exactly what you are looking for.

Only thing is, if you're aiming for that '15 hour' goal, you might need to buy the DLC.

 

[DoW Lowen]

Xbox 360 only? No PC?

First off Story-wise, I'd say check out the Bioware titles (Mass Effect, Knights of the Old Republic, Jade Empire, Dragon Age). All of them are 30+ hours RPGs with fantastic stories and characters.

Lost Odyssey is another RPG, its Japanese though so expect some good ol' fashioned back-n-forth turn based combat. I thought it was pretty interesting.

And I always recommend Castle Crashers for XBLA to everyone, it oozes with creativity and is a fun beat 'em up.

Sorry I can't offer more, I don't console game much Hope this helps!

I do have a decent PC, but I'd really rather not wait for the downloads to complete since. I've played all of them, Lost Odyssey was a 4 disc game, to be honest it was barely worth it despite me getting it for a pretty cheap price. If it wasn't for the collectible short stories, which I thought were marvelous, it would've been a pretty mediocre if not standard game.

Also I got Castle Crashers when it came out, I'm on Newgrounds a lot and I was following it for quite a while. Bloody awesome it was.

 

[DoW Lowen]

Alan Wake seems to be exactly what you are looking for.

Only thing is, if you're aiming for that '15 hour' goal, you might need to buy the DLC.

Got it, played it, loved it...

Wrote a review about it here -

http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.196921-Alan-Wake-Because-some-stories-can-only-be-told-through-gaming

Thanks though. Any other games like it?

 

[tlozoot]

Sorry to hear you're feeling down, but whatever you do...DON'T BUY LIMBO. That shits heavy.

A story heavy, Xbox 360 game with strong characterisation....

I'd prescribe Bioware. Either Mass Effect or Dragons Age have great characterisation, though I'd say ME has the better overall story. ME1 was, for me, lacking gameplay wise, though the sequel fixed all of that for me. Of course, if you're interested in story, playing the first would be a must.

Dragons Age goes in a very different direction gameplay wise. Characterisation is just as strong, but the overall story is standard fantasy doomsday stuff.

Red Dead Redemption has great characterisation, though the majority of the story is terribly paced. Ending is great though. The old west mood and atmosphere might be your thing. It's sedate and you can take you time to take in the truly beautiful scenery.

If you fancy a laugh for cheap then you could go for Deathspank. A light-hearted hack 'n' slash RPG that's genuinely funny. RPG elements are thin, but it's a nice game.

Hope this has helped!

Ready played Limbo, I honestly didn't get the whole "heavy down spirit" of the game, at least not in the second half of it. The aesthetics were really well done, and the spiders were quite imposing to say the least, but it didn't depress me when it should have.

As for your recommendations I've played the f**k out of all of them, though I haven't taken a look at Deathspank, is that on Live?

I guess more than anything I found it incredibly desolate, and that had an affect on me. The night I finished it I had quite a poignant dream in Limbo aesthetics. It was insane, but quite cool.

Yeah, Deathspank is on Live. Check out the trial, as the humour might not be to everyone's taste. I myself found it incredibly endearing though.

 

[Worgen]

dark siders is really good... lets see... OH I know, resonance of fate, thats a good long game with an interesting story and likable chars

Resonance of fate? Is that a JRPG, because I've been VERY skeptical of them lately.

yeah its a jrpg but its not square soft, lets see, its combat is much more cinematic then most games... oh hell Ill link a review

overall I would say this review is really good, but I never found it as hard as they did, once you figure out the system its still fun but not that hard, at least I didnt find it hard but I have been playing games for a very long time

 

[bl4ckh4wk64]

Mass Effect. Def. at least 20 hours of gameplay for the first and 30 for the second. 60 for the first if you 100% it and around 55-60 for the 2nd if you 100% it.

 

[MellowFellow]

I would suggest Tales of Vesperia. I do not really play jrpgs, but this game is really fun. I would definitely recommend this game as a rental, maybe a buy.

I noticed you had not put Saint's Row 1 or 2 on there and if you have not played either of those game I HIGHLY recommend you play those. They are not really story heavy, but the characters in the games are great. The game does not take itself serious at all, and I always have a great time playing either game.

 

[bl4ckh4wk64]

Ummm.... Mass Effect 1&2? I don't play my 360 much, sorry I'm not much help. Maybe Metro 2033, but that's a rent first, then buy if you like it kind of game. >.>

Thanks anyway, but I've already played Mass Effect 1 & 2 to death as well as Dragon Age. Also I'm not fussed about whether I'm owning the game for life or not, I just really want to play a game for now.

Then ignore what I said... However, there are a couple games I've played that were great while they lasted. There's Brothers in Arms: Hells Highway. It didn't get great reviews, but it was pretty fun and it'll take around 15 hours if you go slow.