Welcome to “GamerSushi Asks” Friday!
This week, I finally jumped into Far Cry 3’s sprawling green and blue playground of predators and pirates, and like many other gamers, have found myself enthralled by not only the emergent gameplay, but the sidequests that know just how to entice me off the beaten path. But before I started off-roading, gaining experience through stealth kills and skinning komodo dragons, I did what I do for every game — I tweaked the settings.
Starting a new game is equal parts excitement and ritual for me. I’ve got a bit of a ceremony whenever I pop in a new title. First, I turn on subtitles, since I’m usually trying to keep volume low so as not to wake up a sleeping baby (or worse yet, a sleeping wife). Then, I lower the overall master volume of the game. Next, I check controller settings to make sure that the y-axis isn’t inverted, and after that I lower the sensitvity to the point where it feels like the gun is dragging through molasses. No matter how engaging the beginning of a game, if these things aren’t set, I don’t feel like I’m in control of the experience.
So what about you guys? What pre-game rituals do you have before you start a new game? Do you mess with the audio? Is there a particular set of headphones you prefer to use? A particular time of day or a specific position you need to be in on the couch? Show us your OCD side in the comments.
I put on subtitles too, thought not because I want to understand the dialogue at low volume, but rather because I find the audio mix on most games bury the dialogue at some points. Then, I put my y-axis on inverted because I am a horrible monster.
Subtitles! Good plan, seems like I’ve been missing more and more dialogue of late. I usually drop music volume a bit, effects volume a bit more, boost dialogue, then open my beer. Most of my OCD touches have given way at this point for reasons, but I still prefer to have a clear desk with no distractions before I dive in. This is all PC-only, though. Console titles I insist on starting with all default settings and only changing something if it starts to really bother me, for whatever reason.
They should make turtle beach type headphones that connect to a baby monitor as well, the game audio will decrease when the baby monitor makes noise much like if someone talks in chat. Someone come up with a name and copyright that bitch!
I usually turn on subtitles because I like to read (I know I’m a nerd). Then I turn Y-axis on inverted (there is a special place in hell for people like me, I am aware of that). And finally, I look at the controls to make sure that everything seems normal, because you never know when they decided to make the A button “jump” or “activate/use.” Or when “aim gun” is Right Trigger and “shoot” is the X button (seriously Dead Rising, you just had to fuck with me like that)
Mitch – Sometimes I feel like you and I are the same person. We both invert our y-axis controls, we both love KOTOR 2. Neither of us are American. Why don’t you run away with me?
Getting back on topic, I prefer the subtitles on as well. As far as pre game rituals go, there isn’t really anything that I do all the time. Nothing that comes to mind anyway
Always subs on, always make sure the keys are correctly bound and make use of my multiple mouse buttons. Check out all the graphical settings, just to see how much play they actually allow. If the game allows for difficulty settings to be changed at any time, start on hard, if not, play through on medium.
If I’m playing on console or with a controller, /always/ invert y-axis. We should start a group.
I forgot to talk about my PC settings! I pretty much do the same thing as you, Julez, except for difficulty settings. These days I don’t have the patience to muscle through a game on a hard setting for the first playthrough.
team inverted y-axis!
@NovaCascade One day, my friend. One day.
You guys make me sick.
C’mon now guys! Friends don’t let friends play inverted. It’s a gateway drug to flight sims.
Be a man guys, I invert the X-axis
@holyfrijole
You might be a witch, bro. Just letting you know.
I’m much the same with subtitles, usually because i’ll have some music going in the background (unless I’m invested in the story of the game). In every MMO i’ve ever played the first thing i do is set strafe left/right to a/d and the camera controls to q/e. And because im a Elitist PC user i also crank all the settings to max.