Watch Dogs

[CoolFunkMan]

Well, finally completed the story missions. I do have ro admit, it definitely didn't live up to my expectations and was incredibly frustrating at times, but was still quite decent. Still have a ton of side missions to do though.

 

Also, at the end...

 

...what did peeps do about Maurice? I decided to walk away, although I doubt the decision had much impact. Mind you, after how much of a dick Aiden Was throughout the game, it only seemed like the right thing to do.

 

[Diageo]

I shot him. He was only gonna cause more trouble and I shot a lot of guards for less so...

[Hero-of-Time]

New patch on the way.

 

Single Player Added Features

 

- REPLAY OPTIONS – After having completed the main story line, players will now have the option to reset previously played Gang Hideouts and Convoy Missions. – (ALL PLATFORMS)

 

- DRINKING GAMES – The Drinking Games were re-tuned based on community feedback. – (ALL PLATFORMS)

 

 

Multiplayer Added Features

 

- HACK YOUR FRIENDS – You can now select available friends via the grid and hack or tail them without their knowledge. This can be disabled under online options. – (ALL PLATFORMS)

 

- CTOS MOBILE – Mobile players disconnecting will no longer result in the gameplay ending for the console/PC player. Console and PC players will play their match to the end and receive some Notoriety points for doing so. – (ALL PLATFORMS)

 

- MULTIPLAYER BAD BEHAVIOR – Players who are frequently disconnecting from multiplayer matches will be pooled together and paired only against players with similar online behaviors. – (ALL PLATFORMS)

 

Time to get that platinum trophy, @Tales!

[Tales]

That's great. It's the only one I miss.

[Rummy]

So who got/played this on a 360 or PS3 and what was your general experience of it?

[Diageo]

I've only played it on the PS3 and it's very good. I don't know what I'm missing from the PS4 version but it seems to have everything except the one multiplayer mode.

[Jimbob]

I'm still plodding along with this, have yet to complete it. Had a random tracker on me yesterday, after i had "hacked" a Blume operative. They were hacking me, but i found them (they were not being very good at hiding we'll just say that). So i ended up chasing them, blew up a steam pipe to disable the car then ran them over to claim the bounty.

 

What happened next was pretty good. The chap whom was tracking me sent me a message over PSN, this is how it went

 

Them: Why did you kill me

Me: That's the name of the game, you tracked me so i do a Taken and kill you by any means necessary

Them: I wasn't running away or going to kill you

Me: Sorry, but that's how it is with this mode.

Them: I'm reporting you for unfair play

Me: Ok then

 

They send me a friend request, and the conversation continues

 

Them: Accept my friend request, you can track me and watch me kill you

Me: No thanks, i don't know you and only accept from people i know

Them: You noob

Me: Charming, have a good night.

 

So i continue with my game as normal, doing various missions

 

There was a mission in Act 2 which reminded me of Taken, the scene where people are buying the women in the boathouse. Reminded me of that very scene in Taken.

 

[Sheikah]

I started playing this somewhat properly yesterday. I have to say, I'm quite enjoying it. It sorta feels like GTA but with a novel touch to it (hacking). Then again, I do like sandbox games. Seems a very marmite game, this.

[Fierce_LiNk]

I started playing this somewhat properly yesterday. I have to say, I'm quite enjoying it. It sorta feels like GTA but with a novel touch to it (hacking). Then again, I do like sandbox games. Seems a very marmite game, this.

 

I spent a lot of time with the game over the summer and loved it. Really, really enjoyed it. I've still got a few more missions to finish off and I'm right near the end of the game. For some reason, I jumped onto something else and didn't get back into it.

[EEVILMURRAY]

I spent a lot of time with the game over the summer and loved it. Really, really enjoyed it. I've still got a few more missions to finish off and I'm right near the end of the game. For some reason, I jumped onto something else and didn't get back into it.

Same here really. I don't even think I'm that far into it. Just comes across as a modern day Assassin's Creed with hacking attached. And like the Hitman games you try to do it perfectly steathily but one thing doesn't happen (such as a guard failing to notice something when it's right next to them) or it takes too damn long so you just end up tearing everything down in a hail of bullets.

 

Then when the cops get on you, it's straight into the river.

[Sheikah]

I finished this game yesterday and really enjoyed it. It was really fun being able to hack as you drive along and the last few missions felt like quite a bit of a challenge in terms of the amount of chaos being thrown at you.

 

What I really liked about this as a sandbox game was that it took the GTA-esque elements and added some purpose to the surroundings, what with the need to navigate across buildings to find entrances, or follow wires to locate the switch and whatnot. Most of the time in sandbox games the surroundings tend to be more style over substance, so it was nice to see some actual gameplay in terms of interacting with the environment.

 

Overall though this was game was a joy. I think actually hearing that some people were less than impressed meant I went into it with a lower expectation that I might have perhaps otherwise had, which only helped boost my opinion of what I actually played.

 

It's still £9.99 preowned for PS4 on Grainger Games which is a great price for anyone who hasn't played this yet!

[Ronnie]

Started this a couple of nights ago and played until you made it back to your hideout after the opening stadium mission. Wasn't feeling the game at all and didn't think it was for me. Just played a couple of hours of proper gameplay and it's clicked a lot more, really enjoying it now.

 

It's my first experience of a sandbox game, and have to admit the scale and scope of the world is fantastic. Just being able to freely roam around this massive open world is great fun.

 

So far I've stopped 4 crimes, hacked a ctOS tower (what does that do exactly? Does it make crimes pop up automatically in that area?) and done the Big Brother story mission where you have to stop the guy who harassed the sister by phone.

 

Must admit though I'm finding the whole thing pretty intimating, especially as someone who's mostly stuck to the more simplistic Nintendo games until now. There just seems to be so many things to do and a ton of options on how to achieve objectives. I'd appreciate any tips from people on the best way to proceed, what skills to unlock early on etc.

 

- The Car on demand thing, am I buying these cars or are they free to rent?

- Progression wise I'm at 4/20 of Crimes solved, does that mean there are only 20 to solve or is that just how many you need to get the trophy?

- How are you supposed to find these burner phones that Maurice has left lying around?

- Is there a day/night cycle where certain things happen at certain times?

- What should I be buying and crafting at this early stage?

 

Any advice would be much appreciated! Looking forward to diving in some more tomorrow

[Nolan]

The game never really clicked for me, but I can still tell you that typically in an openworld game you aren't going to limit yourself or accidentally buy an upgrade and be unable to fix the issue. Like wise all (or very unlikely just most) events are unmissable. You should always have another chance.

 

If you find yourself liking the Open World style give Infamous Second Son a look as well, or Assassin's Creed series (3&4 are on the Wii U also) Just beware starting too many at once. Thats overwhelming.

[Hero-of-Time]

Any advice would be much appreciated! Looking forward to diving in some more tomorrow

 

My advice would to be just try and enjoy the experience and if you find you are getting stuck or bored of one thing, then simply try something else. I know when I play open world games I tend to advance the story a little and then branch off to do other stuff, then go back to the story. Doing stuff like this usually keeps the experience fresh.

 

I feel Infamous would have been a better starting point for you. It's open world but not on the scale of Watch Dogs. It's also a much better game.

[Jimbob]

Take Watch Dogs as it is, there is plenty to do. The cars on demand thing, the car remains yours as long as you don't destroy it. It's not like GTA, where you can park it into a garage and come back later and it's there. Most of the missions (including burner phones) pop up once you've hacked the CtOs tower in the area.

[Fierce_LiNk]

Started this a couple of nights ago and played until you made it back to your hideout after the opening stadium mission. Wasn't feeling the game at all and didn't think it was for me. Just played a couple of hours of proper gameplay and it's clicked a lot more, really enjoying it now.

 

It's my first experience of a sandbox game, and have to admit the scale and scope of the world is fantastic. Just being able to freely roam around this massive open world is great fun.

 

So far I've stopped 4 crimes, hacked a ctOS tower (what does that do exactly? Does it make crimes pop up automatically in that area?) and done the Big Brother story mission where you have to stop the guy who harassed the sister by phone.

 

Must admit though I'm finding the whole thing pretty intimating, especially as someone who's mostly stuck to the more simplistic Nintendo games until now. There just seems to be so many things to do and a ton of options on how to achieve objectives. I'd appreciate any tips from people on the best way to proceed, what skills to unlock early on etc.

 

- The Car on demand thing, am I buying these cars or are they free to rent?

- Progression wise I'm at 4/20 of Crimes solved, does that mean there are only 20 to solve or is that just how many you need to get the trophy?

- How are you supposed to find these burner phones that Maurice has left lying around?

- Is there a day/night cycle where certain things happen at certain times?

- What should I be buying and crafting at this early stage?

 

Any advice would be much appreciated! Looking forward to diving in some more tomorrow

 

I'm glad that you're getting into it and are starting to enjoy it. For what it's worth, I really, really liked the game and it didn't disappoint me.

 

With the progression (4/20), that's only until you unlock the trophy. These missions can still pop up, if I remember rightly.

 

I can't remember exactly about the burner phones...I think they appear on the map though, so you just go to the areas and do the mission stuff there. I don't think you can even start doing this side mission until a certain point in the story.

 

The world does have a day/night cycle in the sense that there's less people around at night, although I can't remember if that really alters things. I think you're still able to access your side missions no matter what time of day. I don't think it plays a huge part, tbh. Although, driving in the rain at night can look pretty good.

 

With regards to how you approach missions or purchase skills: Do what you feel is the most fun. Upgrade what you feel that you'll need or enjoy using the most.

 

There's a cool IGN video here that gives you tips on what to upgrade and when to do it.

 

I sunk a loooooot of time into this and played it for hours and hours. Mostly just fucking around and looking at different ways to approach things.

[Blade]

The game never really clicked for me, but I can still tell you that typically in an openworld game you aren't going to limit yourself or accidentally buy an upgrade and be unable to fix the issue. Like wise all (or very unlikely just most) events are unmissable. You should always have another chance.

 

If you find yourself liking the Open World style give Infamous Second Son a look as well, or Assassin's Creed series (3&4 are on the Wii U also) Just beware starting too many at once. Thats overwhelming.

 

I agree about starting too many open world games at once. I'm playing through Witcher 3 at the minute and I just dont have the stomach to play another game alongside it nevermind another open world game!

[Ronnie]

Woke up at 5am this morning, couldn't sleep, went down to play Watch Dogs and all of a sudden it was 9am. Having loads of fun with this, though it's pretty daunting just how much there is to do. The variety is pretty good too so you're not stuck doing the same things over and over.

 

Some random thoughts...

 

The one button hacking mechanic is fantastic.

 

The criminal convoy missions are pretty tough, not so much taking out the main car but the goons who're protecting it as well.

 

I'm finding money a little pointless though. I'm happy to just sticking with my silenced pistol and assault rifle. Car wise there isn't much point when you can just steal anything you see.

 

The gang hideouts and ctOS centres you need to break into are the most fun I reckon. Love the stealth involved.

 

The IGN review mentioned something about framerate drops and performance issues the more you play the game, I've sort of started noticing this a couple of times. I hope it doesn't get worse, that'd really break the immersion in a game like this.

 

So far have managed not to have any negative rep, don't think that'll last long though.

 

I'm trying to work my way through one district at a time, side-quest wise but whenever I think I've done them all, more pop up on the map out of the blue. I'd love to platinum this but it's just way too much to do ! I also don't really like the online hackings, so switched those off.

 

All in all, loving it so far Shame there's no Photo mode, would be nice to take some cool screenshots

Edited September 3, 2015 by Ronnie

[Jimbob]

Glad you are enjoying the game @Ronnie. You have hit a nail on the head, money does become close to pointless. I did buy a few extra guns to assist later in the game, but otherwise i mostly used the UPlay car that i got for free.

[Fierce_LiNk]

Hey up, @Rummy. What do you think of Watch Dogs then?

[Rummy]

Different. Quite challenging at times too - find it hard to get the stealth paths down well and then subsequently get shot to shit etc. I've not done tons of story so far despite spending lots of time in game - had been just doing the activities/events that come up - there's something about the structure that I'm enjoying - but then I also very much liked a lot of the side mission stuff in GTAIV(stealing vehicles, vigilante missions, etc).

The possibilities/approaches available per mission are very interesting though - I'm enjoying the fact there seems to be multiple ways to the end goal and not necessarily a 'right' way to do things. Managed my first gang hideout earlier where I somehow got to the guy after going through maybe half of them, and then was out of there so fast they never really even began to find me! I enjoy it gives you the two options of flee or fight as it were.

I thought after playing for a good chunk of yesterday that the appeal would wear off - but after a bit of playage this eve I still ended up on longer than I planned.

[Rummy]

Keep jumping on this for 'just a bit' most days and I end up on it for ages. Checked my progression wheel last night and I'm actually on about 13% already despite doing probably less than 10 main missions so far. Been enjoying taking on the side stuff - again mostly enjoying the gang hideouts and criminal convoys(was shit at crimes last night though, kept alerting people). Think I managed about 2/3 gang hideouts though(the one I struggled with before was suddenly a doddle...no stealth just drove a nice car through that bad boy!) and another ctOS backdoor thingy, then thought about checking these skill points I apparently keep earning - had about 10 to spend!

Obvs I've got Destiny on the way, and still TLoU to play - trying to think whether to soldier through with this before touching anything else or to hope if I go to something else that I'll still come back to this. I think for a tenner I definitely haven't gone too wrong though!

[Ronnie]

I took a month or so off the PS4 (Mario Maker, duh) but finally returned to Watch Dogs today and played about 5 or 6 hours between morning and evening sessions. Really loving it. I'm sure in the grand scheme of things people might have many valid complaints, but coming from someone who's never played an openworld GTA style game before, I'm having a blast. Still on Act 2, but towards the end, recently got the access code from Iraq's dogtags and just rescued the nephew from some building. The storyline is a little all over the place, but I'm enjoying the campaign quite a bit. I think it helps that I love the stealth/third person shooting gameplay. The NPCs are fantastic and I don't even mind Aidan Pearce that much, a bit bland but decent enough.

 

I've realised I'm never going to do everything in the game so I'm concentrating on the side missions that I can 100% like the gang hideouts, privacy invasions, QR codes, missing persons etc. Fixer Contracts and Criminal convoys I'm not bothering with, too much effort, though I do love driving around the city in a nice car. As opposed to the Order where a new trophy popped up every play through I think I've noticed about two so far in 30 hours of gameplay.

 

Anyway, I'm really really loving it. I'm enjoying the more presentation-focused games on PS4, quite different to the gameplay-focused ones from Nintendo.

[Fierce_LiNk]

I took a month or so off the PS4 (Mario Maker, duh) but finally returned to Watch Dogs today and played about 5 or 6 hours between morning and evening sessions. Really loving it. I'm sure in the grand scheme of things people might have many valid complaints, but coming from someone who's never played an openworld GTA style game before, I'm having a blast. Still on Act 2, but towards the end, recently got the access code from Iraq's dogtags and just rescued the nephew from some building. The storyline is a little all over the place, but I'm enjoying the campaign quite a bit. I think it helps that I love the stealth/third person shooting gameplay. The NPCs are fantastic and I don't even mind Aidan Pearce that much, a bit bland but decent enough.

 

I've realised I'm never going to do everything in the game so I'm concentrating on the side missions that I can 100% like the gang hideouts, privacy invasions, QR codes, missing persons etc. Fixer Contracts and Criminal convoys I'm not bothering with, too much effort, though I do love driving around the city in a nice car. As opposed to the Order where a new trophy popped up every play through I think I've noticed about two so far in 30 hours of gameplay.

 

Anyway, I'm really really loving it. I'm enjoying the more presentation-focused games on PS4, quite different to the gameplay-focused ones from Nintendo.

 

I really enjoyed the criminal convoy and gang hideout missions. My favourite thing to do with convoys was to place an ied on the road or a series of them. Then, hide. When they'd approach, detonate the ied and instant win.

 

Only just realised through youtube that you can detonate or shoot the ieds in midair to create a bigger blast radius. D'oh.

[Rummy]

I haven't touched anything but Destiny and Terraria for the last few weeks(and PS+ games) but I'm definitely planning to get back on this soon methinks. Surprised at the lack of love for the criminal convoys, I loved them though did them pretty vanilla with driving etc. - some of the gang hideouts have been a bit more challenging from what I recall but I think these posts highlight one of the great things about the game - the different amount of ways of going about doing the same thing!