A detailed overview of POE vs A Chicken Sandwich

STORYLINE 10 Points

POE
The game is set in a dark fantasy world. The player starts the game waking up on the shores of Wraeclast, a continent that once was the center of a mighty empire but is now a cursed land which serves as a penal colony for criminals and other unwanted individuals from the nearby island of Oriath. Regardless of the reasons for his/her exile the player must now face the unforgiving wilderness with its dangerous inhabitants, alongside the crumbling ruins and bloody secrets of the Eternal Empire and the Vaal civilization that came before, and band together with other outcasts to survive. SOURCE

A Chicken Sandwich
A Chicken Sandwich tells the harrowing tale of a courageous warrior who is raised in slavery, and grows to battle the oppressive regime of The Farmer. The Farmer, backed by shadowy and evil corporate overlords, has subjugated the warriors people, using them as a food source for a vicious alien race that has spread across the warriors home planet. Caught in a race against time, the warrior battles valiantly to gain the power and leadership necessary to free his people. Particularly poignant is the non-traditional ending, where our hero ultimately fails in his quest (SPOILER ALERT), but is ultimately able to gain vengeance by infecting the evil alien race with both Bird Flu and food poisoning. There are a number of cameo appearance from Butter, Mayonnaise and White Bread - and an excellent turn from Kitchen Knife in putting together the final set-pieces.

WINNER A Chicken Sandwich - The non-traditional story strays far from the genre defining tropes of the classic ARPG, and works as an excellent commentary on the machinations of corporate interference in our day to day lives.

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GRAPHICS 10 Points

POE
Using a bespoke engine developed by GGG from the ground up, POE is awash in colourful effects and cosmetics, with combat defined by blood, gore, and explosive spell effects. While somewhat dated in technology, the graphics are crisp and presented with a dark ambience that heightens the feeling of dread and oppression in some of the games more notable areas, such as Lunaris 3 (an underground temple littered with failed necromancy and thaumatergic experiments).

A Chicken Sandwich
The first thing you notice about A Chicken Sandwich is that it feels like it has WEIGHT, the textures are so crisply defined that it is easy to believe that A Chicken Sandwich is real. The soft, fluffy bread is beatifully executed, and offset by a golden brown and slightly chewy crust that holds together the meat of the experience. When you dive in deeper, A Chicken Sandwich is extremely well layered. The Mayonnaise and Butter add a sheen to the bread that draws the eye in, while the actual meat of The Chicken Sandwich is so well realised that you can almost smell the peppery coating it has been lightly dusted with. Options abound for those with hefty hardware, you can enable Foilage to give a healthy kick, take out the Mayo and Butter if you need a lighter experience, or even add a Side of Fries (not available in all regions, French Version uses a proprietry system called Pomme Frites).

WINNER A Chicken Sandwich - realism wins hands down in this category. The visual experience of A Chicken Sandwich will stay with you hours after you have finished it, and it is seemlessly integrated into Social Media allowing you to post and share pictures of it to all your followers and friends on facebook, twitter, instagram - or even use it as your Tinder profile picture.

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SOUND 10 Points

POE
Has the traditional ARPG sounds, the ring of steel, the boom of spells, the tortured screams of your victims and enemies. The sound is layered and well realised, but doesn't stand out against some of its more well known contemporaries. However, where POE shines is in its music. Some of the tunes are brilliant, bordering on soulful and joyous while also terrifying and moody. Stand outs? The theme for the Unique Map - Actons Nightmare.

A Chicken Sandwich
Unfortunately, the sound lets down A Chicken Sandwich. Generally lacking in sound, there is a subtle crunching and chewing as you move through it - but singularly lacking in music unless you provide your own. On some systems the crunching and chewing may be quite loud - it is best to avoid watching someone else playing A Chicken Sandwich due to this, especially if you suffer from Misophonia.

WINNER Path of Exile - hands down some of the best ARPG music in the genre, while the sound effects are generally well done and to a high standard.

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ENDGAME 10 Points

POE
Path of Exile has a variety of endgame options; chasing the level cap of 100 (which requires significant time investment), min-maxing builds to generate characters that are practically invulnerable to damage or can clear a whole screen of enemies with a quick button press, running stand-alone maps with a variety of often challenging mods, and questing for the ultimate collection of loot.

A Chicken Sandwich
Sadly, A Chicken Sandwich has no endgame - once finished there is also no replayability unless you purchase another copy. While some of the experience will linger with you, it is likely that in a few hours you will be seeking something else with a different set of tastes and appeals.

WINNER Path of Exile - while not unique in the way it provides endgame replayability, Path of Exile is strongly superior to A Chicken Sandwich in longevity.

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OVERALL IMPRESSION 10 points
While Path of Exile is a finely crafted ARPG, it has its share of bugs and quirks. One of the most notable of these is DeSync which affects how the player interacts with the game - what the player sees is a client based prediction of the actions being undertaken on the GGG servers, and due to lag or latency between the client and server, this prediction may be out of sync. This can cause some frustration, or in extreme cases character deaths as the player is not reacting to what is actually occurring.
However, despite this, it is a faithful representation of the core elements that made Diablo and Diablo II such succesful games within the ARPG genre. It allows for a huge diversity in the use of builds, skills and play styles, and offers the player a huge number of ways to enjoy themselves within the world created, the world of Wraeclast.
As an homage to the genre, GGG have penned a love letter that will surely appeal to huge number of those who truly loved and invested themselves in the classic ARPG scene, and offer a whole new world of appeal for younger and more casual players. While some of the frustrations may eventually drive people away, the game will likely forever change how they view other similar and non-similar titles.

On the other hand A Chicken Sandwich sets out with a very strict goal - provide a quick, tasty, and appealing experience that caters to a broad range of markets and can be customised to ensure that it meets the ever changing needs of the userbase. While A Chicken Sandwich loses out on the longevity of the individual experience, it's broad appeal allows it to truly flourish in an environment that has been needing a bit of refresh. The non-traditional story and ending, the customisable experience and it's availability in all markets make it very hard to beat.

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WINNER 30 Points A Chicken Sandwich - While POE is an excellent ARPG, A Chicken Sandwich easily takes the title in a contest between the two, providing a substantial experience without the extreme time and effort commitment that Path of Exile demands. If you want the best experience possible, enjoy A Chicken Sandwich while listening to the POE soundtrack!

I'm bored :(

-10

"

A Chicken Sandwich
Sadly, A Chicken Sandwich has no endgame - once finished there is also no replayability unless you purchase another copy. While some of the experience will linger with you, it is likely that in a few hours you will be seeking something else with a different set of tastes and appeals.

Your lack of endgame shows lack of creativity on your part, i dare say a chicken sandwich has many avenues to pursue in it's end-game.

1) the fungus game also known as "watch it grow over time"

2) the bacon test (does it taste better with bacon?)

3) the pallet test (can you distinguish between the different chickens?)

All valuable end-games not easily dismissed by the chicken consumer.

Peace,

-Boem-

"

Boem wrote:

"

A Chicken Sandwich
Sadly, A Chicken Sandwich has no endgame - once finished there is also no replayability unless you purchase another copy. While some of the experience will linger with you, it is likely that in a few hours you will be seeking something else with a different set of tastes and appeals.

Your lack of endgame shows lack of creativity on your part, i dare say a chicken sandwich has many avenues to pursue in it's end-game.

1) the fungus game also known as "watch it grow over time"

2) the bacon test (does it taste better with bacon?)

3) the pallet test (can you distinguish between the different chickens?)

All valuable end-games not easily dismissed by the chicken consumer.

Peace,

-Boem-

Good points, but as I said - you can't experiment too much without the purchase of another copy. I suppose you COULD try rerolling with bacon once you've started, but you're going to have to illegally modify it to do so, and a lot of places get upset of you use third party modifications on their products. You could turn bacon on at the start, but again you're going to have to pull the client apart if you want to remove it, and that can be messy.

I like A Chicken Sandwich very much too, but the post-game is pure shit.

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Upandatem wrote:

I like A Chicken Sandwich very much too, but the post-game is pure shit.

WHAT? Is a master piece, man. I loved it. Good laugh.

"

Particularly poignant is the non-traditional ending, where our hero ultimately fails in his quest (SPOILER ALERT), but is ultimately able to gain vengeance by infecting the evil alien race with both Bird Flu and food poisoning.

therefore, more Hardcore than PoE.
also, dem plot twists :)
you don't see Dominus winning at the end

Crafting in A Chicken Sandwich works well enough I think, since I can trade for the mats so I dont have to make it an actual career just to farm the damn things.