lost ark(s)

I found the lost Ark! I beat the game!

jk jk it turns out there are like seven more lost Arks scattered across the globe, so my adventure has only just begun. shocker

I’m still having a lot of fun just casually strolling through the main questline. There’s been no grinding so far, but eventually there are points where you’ll need to improve your gear to progress the main story. HGR’s at one of those points. He’s busy doing daily chaos dungeons and guardian raids and a host of other daily/weekly tasks, collecting mats to hone his gear.

“Sounds like a pain,” I said, but HGR is enjoying himself. “Haven’t you ever had fun progressing a character over time?” he asked. And it’s true, I have. I enjoyed postgame gear grinding in both Diablo 3 and Path of Exile, and Lost Ark isn’t so different in principle, just with more content and variety. I guess it hits different because in those games, the grind is all optional postgame stuff, whereas here, it gates the main questline, so only the most dedicated players will ever be able to finish the story. It feels bad.

(But if I’m honest, it’s no great loss if I don’t finish the story. There are some cool setpieces and cinematic moments, but the writing and character work is low quality. This ain’t FFXIV.)

Anyway, I’m just going to keep playing the game as long as I’m enjoying it. HGR plays it rather more religiously than I would, but that’s just how the two of us play games. (“My pants have failed so many times,” he says mournfully.)