PlayStation Afterwards

Just over a week ago now Sony held a PS5 showcase which showed us games such as Final Fantasy XVI and many more including Spider-Man Miles Morales and SackBoy Big Adventure which we later found out after the showcase those two and Horizons sequel Forbidden West will be coming to the PS4 as well as the PS5.

 

This is a bit of a back track of the previous statements of new generation new games, with PlayStation head honcho Jim Ryan talking about how they've supported previous consoles in the past after the new one had released and that is what they're going to do again. 

I was curious, so I did some research on what did Sony bring to the PS1 for instance after the PS2 had launched and so on, as I could only think of a few games but not many.

Going through what I could find that Sony had published on the old console after releasing a new console is a tad interesting as we do see some big hitters that could easily be compared to Spider-Man Miles Morales at the time.

I'm in the UK but I used the North American dates as those seemed the simplest as PlayStation's have moved round in other regions for launch dates.

This might not be a hundred percent accurate and you may think of something I've missed.

 

Anyway the PS2 released in late 2000 and after that date from what I can find Sony published 34 games for the PS1. Looking at what was published out of the 34 games it does include four NBA ShootOut, five NFL GameDay games and oddly a bunch of Disney games such as Monsters, Inc. Scream Team.

You might be thinking those aren't very big games well Crash Bash, Spyro: Year of the Dragon and    Syphon Filter 3 are all rather decent.

Similar story for the PS2 after the PS3 launched in late 2006, the PS2 had 38 games published from Sony which again included nine Buzz, five EyeToy, five MLB The Show games. I can certainly see a pattern of sports and more family friendly games still coming out for the older console for those not moved on to the next gen.

 

This still doesn't mean the PS2 didn't get some big hitters, even though the PS3 was out the most famous and the first game I thought of when doing this was God of War II which came out four months after the PS3 did in North America and it doesn't stop there as the PS2 got things like SOCOM: U.S. Navy SEALs Combined Assault, Wild Arms 5 along with a few games shared with the PSP such as Jak and Daxter: The Lost Frontier.

At the moment Sony are averaging 36 games on the previous console when the new one is out, well that's not the case with the PS3 even though it was getting a 10-year life cycle. Now I don't know if this is down to the PS3 being less popular than the PS1 and PS2 (PS3 still sold 89m) or the PS4 took off so fast that the PS3 didn't get many Sony published games as I can only find 11 with two being MLB The Show and Wonderbook games.

 

I feel there might be more than 11 games due to games on PSN that Sony published, yet out of the ones I can find there was still a rather big one and due to the PS4 not being backwards compatible, I know I didn't play it and that's Gran Turismo 6.

So yeah Sony have in the past supported the older console rather well even with the new system on the market with some big titles such as Spyro, God of War and Gran Turismo.

Panasonic 3DO in 2020 - My First Impressions

 

Yesterday afternoon I picked up a Panasonic 3DO from my local independent game shop. This is the first time I've owned a 3DO and one of a few relatively decent consoles I've never owned as well. 

That I was really curious to get my hands on this and I have some thoughts with my first day with the machine along with games I managed to get as well so far.

First the console, I like the look of it personally and nice to see the different connection options to connect to a TV that I had mine running via a Scart to HDMI adapter, decent in terms of picture quality all told.

The OS is basically a screen saver over and over, which is a tad annoying as to get to the saved data for games you have to use certain games or the sampler disc which I do have.

On the sampler disc is just a chap narrating going on about enjoying your new 3DO and what it can do like play Music CD's and VCD's with an adapter which only came out in Japan in the end. Does have 5mins of Batman the animated series which is good but overall this will be only used if I need to delete stuff of the memory. 

Controller has a super long cable, which was handy how I set it up as the power supply is attached to the console I had to put it close to an outlet. Controller is like a big SNES pad, which is fine part from the tiny d-pad.

Now on to the most imported part the games as this is a games console at the end of the day. First up is Starblade which has the honour of being the first 3DO game I've ever finished, Starblade is a port of the arcade game which has two modes on 3DO. First is Arcade Mode which looks like Star Fox with the graphical style of the low 3D polygons but really impressive for something from 1991, this is the mode I finished which takes about 30mins that I may have been annoyed if I bought this new for my 3DO being that short.
 

The other mode is the 3DO mode which adds textures to those low poly graphics. Which in practice looks impressive especially in 1994 yet everything now is grey and boring & harder to see that I prefer the low poly mode instead. The game itself is fun to play it's an on rail's shooter like a Star Fox but in First Person, just be nice if more than two levels unless you really want to chase high scores.

 

Next game I took a look at was Blade Force this has awful poppin and the box mentions how it runs in film like 24fps which I find hilarious as selling point where in 2020 people moan if a game 30fps, will say though the cutscenes with the characters are like the early Fallout games.

PO'ed, I did the first level and seems an okay FPS but the second level due to everything being purple I had no idea where I was going but gives me hope for Wolfenstein 3D which is a near perfect port.

Then the big'un which may have been a system seller back in the day Wing Commander III, I didn't play much but the FMV stuff is fantastic with Mark Hamill so far and the game bit wasn't bad either, can see me coming back to this one soon'ish.

First impressions are mixed as nothing part from Wing Commander III really stood out on why you maybe want one of these but with what I know about the 3DO if I can get my hands on the likes of D, Street Fighter II (like the best console version), FIFA, Road Rash, Gex, Night Trap from the 300+ games then it be a good time.

I can see why at one point this was deemed the best place for games especially for sports titles compared to the Mega Drive and SNES but it's in the same gen as the Saturn, PS1, N64 which will all blow it out of the water.

Feels it either came too late or to early depending on what you compare it to.

10 Most Anticipated PS5 Games (June 2020)

A few days ago now we had the PS5 Reveal where 25+ games were shown and with previous events over 50 games are confirmed for the upcoming console. 

These are my 10 most anticipated games that will be coming to PS5. 

 

Deathloop this Action Adventure FPS from Bethesda will launch first on PS5 in 2020.

 

Where it all began with the souls series returns to PS5 in this remake from Bluepoint.

 

Ghostwire from Tangoworks will be coming first to PS5 in 2021.

 

The sequel to one of my favourite PS4 games comes to PS5.

 

Kena will launch this year on PS4 and PS5.

 

The due of Ratchet &  Clank are back this time on PS5 to show of what the SSD can do with the rift game mechanic.

 

RE8 looks to continue in the direction of RE7 in this next gen Survival Horror. 

 

From the team that brought us Hyper Light Drifter comes this spiritual successor.

 

The game that that looks to be launching alongside the PS5 in this Spider-Man title starring Miles Morales. 

 

Yeah, so you play as a cat with this little backpack it seems, what's not to like?

10 Most Anticipated Xbox Series X Games (May 2020)

This past week we got our first look at some Xbox Series X games, now some of these are coming to Xbox One and PlayStation's that you might be excited about them coming to your PS4.

I do also want to point out that 13 games were shown on the Inside Xbox but actually over 30 games have been confirmed to becoming to Series X and from those 30+ games I've picked the games I'm excited about.

Ubisoft will be bringing Assassin's Creed to Series X in what looks to be a great Action Adventure game set in Britain with Vikings.

The first game shown during Inside Xbox was this time travelling FPS from a one man dev team. A previous entry is on PC if you want a taste of what is to come.

Call of the Sea is adventure game which from the trailer to have Firewatch vibes which continues as Cissy Jones will be voicing the lead in this Game Pass title.

Cyberpunk 2077 was a one of the few games confirmed for Series X awhile ago and to use the Smart Delivery system meaning you can buy on Xbox One and when the game becomes available on Series X you can upgrade for free.

Dirt 5 from the trailer looks a lot like Forza Horizon which is never a bad thing and always good to have a racer on a new system.

Now Xbox list would be complete without Halo which will be launching alongside the Series X and in Game Pass.

The Xbox One's biggest misstep for me has been the so-so Japanese support that to see a game like this shown is a positive.

My favourite game from the Inside Xbox this new horror title from the team behind the recent Blair Witch game along with the composer of Silent Hill working on the score for this Game Pass title.

The trailer was a tad rough that was shown for this but the overall look has me excited to play this Vampire RPG.

I was very pleased to this as for the longest time the Yakuza series has been on associated with PlayStation that the seventh entry to come to Xbox at the same time is great for gamers as more people get to play right away.

That's my 10 games, the one I was tempted most to include was Hellblade 2 but till we see more I decide to leave of this list which I will comeback to update every so often.

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Most Anticipated Games of 2020 + Giveaway

Best Games of 2019 + Honourable Mentions

Cloud Gaming - My First Impressions

My title is a bit of a lie as I have played some Onlive (Anyone remember that?) and PlayStation Now but not since it was in BETA as I've not really had any need to use it. What I'm really talking about regards to first impressions is XCloud from Microsoft and Stadia from Google.

A few weeks ago I got an invite into the XCloud BETA programme, which allows me on an Android device play around 50 games via the cloud all linked to my Xbox Account.

Meaning I can continue where I left off with Forza Horizon 4 and earn achievements, play with friends like I would using my Xbox One X.

First time using XCloud was on my phone, which to be honest was not the best as I found the screen to be just too small with only really Bloodstained giving me a decent experience.

To improve this I bought a Samsung 10" Tablet and got one of those cases that double as a stand, this was a game-changer as I could see what was going on.

Which is all well and good but how do the games run on it, you ask. Well, that's a mixed bag as I've played Bloodstained, Yoku's Island and even Killer Instinct a game with any lag makes a difference perfectly.

Those are all single-player, multiplayer is a different story as I found Halo 5 borderline unplayable, Gears 5 just playable and Sea of Thieves whilst playing as part of a two-man crew to be fine with a tad hit to the resolution. I'm thinking this may improve over time when out of BETA along with servers closer to home as when you go on the Xbox Dashboard via XCloud the time is Pacific Standard Time.

XCloud isn't the only new cloud-based gaming in town as Stadia recently launched and I have to say I've heard mixed things on it. If you go by social media it's rubbish then my mate EoFGiz who's bought a premiere pack (his thoughts here) be rather positive on the service.

I've not bought anything to use Stadia, I managed to get a Buddy Pass from someone who had a spare code on Twitter. This gives me access to the service on mobile (I think it's just Pixels, which I have) or via Google Chrome and currently four games.

As my experience hasn't been great on mobile with XCloud, I've only used Stadia via the browser option. At the moment I can play four games with my buddy pass or buy more if I wish but at the moment I'm sticking with what I've got available to me.

 The first game I played was Samurai Shodown as a fighter, any lag could be a real issue but nope was flawless. I then tried Tomb Raider which I was really impressed with, then came Destiny 2 which has sort been the marque title for Stadia with the community on the service gathering around the game.

Destiny 2 even though much better than Halo 5 and Gears 5 in terms of playability, was still not the best experience. Which leaves me to believe Single Player is fine on these services and Multiplayer isn't, of course, there are caveats like XCloud is in BETA and the centre is likely in the states, is it my internet speed (Stadia test I should be able to get 4K HDR though), would Stadia work better via a Chromcast (people do tell me this is the best way to play) and more.

Then there are other issues like prices of games on Stadia but that's whole different subject to can I play a game via the cloud from either of these services, yeah sort of.

My VITA Collection (May 9th 2019)

Games of April - Mortal Kombat - Days Gone - Nintendo VR and more

Battle Princess Madelyn Review

 

Battle Princess Madelyn is a modern take on Ghouls 'n Ghosts which you set out to defeat a wickedly evil wizard who's kidnapped the family of Princess Madelyn and killed your dog Fritz, whilst trying to protect you.

The game mechanics should not surprise you if you've played Ghouls 'n Ghosts and indeed, you will feel like you have reinserted a cartridge into a SNES.

Madelyn starts protected by a simple dressing gown and with the only possibility of making small jumps and armed with a spear barely suited to take out some carnivorous plant or some skeleton.



Along the way in the story mode, which is probably the most interesting mode because it is enriched by secondary quests given by NPCs whose completion is rewarded with gadgets; there is also a locksmith who can upgrade Maddy's weapons. In this mode there are some influences from Metroidvania: some areas are initially not accessible, and only after having obtained special skills or keys will they. In addition, the difficulty is lower than the arcade version which has more "compressed" levels to complete simply by continuing from the left to the right of the screen.

If you're a fan of modern retro games BPM could be for you with a soundtrack that deserves a special mention, which can be activated in both orchestral and midi style. Longevity of the story mode will keep you busy for at least a dozen hours.

Games of February 2019 - Anthem - Crackdown 3 - Jump Force - Metro and more

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Sony can get away with anything with PS5 due first party as important as Nintendo's

Now in 2019 and late last year more and more talk about next-gen consoles has been happening, I've been thinking for a while about the PS5 and Xbox Scarlett with what they will bring to the table. I'm not going to talk about the Xbox Scarlett for the minute as I've got some interesting thoughts on the PS5 and PlayStation in general.

Sony has just announced numbers for the PS4 which has now sold 91.6m SKU's worldwide along with numbers for Spider-Man which has sold 9m. Because of things like that and if you go back further with the PS2 then PS3, I believe Sony will (and they have already) become arrogant with the announcement of the PS5.

Can do whatever a Mario can do

Now I don't think it will be as bad the PS3 with the whole get a second job deal or $599 in 2006.

I do however think Sony can get away with it due to the first party games and this might sound a bit controversial are as important and sell consoles as much as Nintendo's first party.

That might sound a bit daft and you might be thinking The Last of Us or Uncharted isn't as big a Zelda or Mario and maybe not but if you look at the 1m club for first-party titles on the PS4.

MLB The Show 1m (avg)
Shadow of the Colossus 1.07m
The Last Guardian 1.29m
The Order 1.62m
Until Dawn 1.87m
Knack 1.88m
Detroit 2m
LittleBigPlanet 2.02m
Ratchet and Clank 2.33m
Driveclub 2.37m
Uncharted Lost Legacy 2.88m
Infamous 2.98m
Killzone 3.02m
Bloodborne 3.06m
Gran Turismo 3.63m
Uncharted Collection 5.66m
God of War 5.67m
Horizon Zero Dawn 7.6m
The Last of Us 6.66m (12.93m with the PS3 version)
Spider-Man 9m
Uncharted 4 10.26m

PS4 or PS5?

I know it's slightly hard to compare The Legend of Zelda Breath of the Wild to Uncharted 4  (both have sold almost the same) due to each console's install base but I do think four generations and over 24 years in the gaming market Sony has built up a fanbase along with people knowing a Sony first party game is going to be good.

That going into the PS5, I believe Sony can be arrogant if they have titles like God of War II, Horizon Zero Dawn 2, Spider-Man 2 a much-rumoured Uncharted from someone that isn't Naughty Dog, a new IP from Naughty Dog, some sort of shooter from Guerrilla.

Those are very much system sellers and as important as a The Legend of Zelda or Super Mario is to Nintendo and due to those games, Sony very much can go here's a PS5 enjoy it.

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Game of the Year Awards 2018

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Games of January - Kingdom Hearts III, Resident Evil 2, Tales of Vesperia and more

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Best Games on Xbox Game Pass

To be honest, I don't have the most original of ideas, someone will talk about their favourite RPG's which will get me thinking what are my favourites and I'll go write a blog post or do a video on them.

This past week, a friend on twitter brought up that she was looking at getting an Xbox One S which led to replies from a few people, including myself, bringing up the great value you can get from an Xbox One S due to its price and the services on offer such as Backwards Compatibility and Game Pass.

I've done a few videos on Backwards Compatibility which you can find on the blog but never on Game Pass.

Game Pass has some great games on it but as I know my friend has never owned an Xbox console, which got me thinking what are the best games on the service and is this good for someone new to the ecosystem.

With rumours of a fourth entry, using Game Pass you can go back to Albion to play the three main games including the Xbox 360 HD Anniversary version of the first which might still be the best Fable out of the three.

FH4 shows the incredible value of Game Pass, it's one of the best games of the year and is available just to play with a sub to the service. I'm not even the biggest racing fan but FH4 gameplay just rewards you for playing, that you can come 6th in a race and still feel you've progressed.

Much like Fable, with a fifth mainline game upcoming Game Pass allows someone to go back and experience this great series, also both the 360 and Remaster of the first are playable through Game Pass.

With the recent addition of Halo Master Chief Collection to Game Pass, and Halo 5 on it as well this brings all five mainline games to the service and not only that but the excellent Halo Wars and its sequel are also playable.

I only played this one recently due to it being on Game Pass, I don't know if I ever would have if it wasn't on service. And it's decent 3rd person action game with a neat idea due to the blend of gameplay and live action. 

Yep I mean the studio Rare as if you're new to Xbox you might want to check out some familiar faces with Banjo-Kazooie and what Rare has been up to after becoming an Xbox First Party Studio, not everything has been good or on Game Pass but with likes of the three Banjo-Kazooie games, Perfect Dark Zero, Kameo, Sea of Thieves and Viva Pinata there's bound to be something for someone.

All the games on here are Xbox games and shows what Xbox is all about but like I said at the start, Game Pass does have some big third party games on service and Rise of the Tomb Raider is one of the best plus if you've got an Xbox One X then you're in for a real treat.

RotTR also showed me some great things about Xbox One as I played RotTR on release and since sold it. One day I decide to download it via Game Pass and my game save from my old Xbox One S was right there on my One X due to the automatic cloud saves and being in Game Pass I get a discount on DLC, that I decided to continue Lara's adventure.

This is the most criminally overlooked game on Xbox One, it's just a fantastic action platformer, which you should be playing.

A great 3D platformer which would have felt right at home during the late 90s / early 2000's, that is well worth a look.

Game Pass might allow us to play Xbox One first party games on the day of release, go back to some classic games and big 3rd party games but it also allows us to checkout some great indies which we may have never played if it wasn't for the service.

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Games of November - Battlefield V - Darksiders III - Fallout 76 and more

Out this Week: Red Dead Redemption 2 and more

 

23rd: Paw Patrol: On a Roll

Join Ryder and all eight Paw Patrol Pups for an awesome adventure. Help them use their unique abilities to rescue friends, complete 16 exciting missions, and save the day. Venture to eight awesome Adventure Bay locations including Farmer Yumi’s Farm, Jake’s Mountain, and more. Get ready for fun puzzle-platforming action that is pawfect for kids of all ages.

 

23rd: Project Highrise: Architect’s Edition

Your job as the architect and developer is to build world-famous skyscrapers that will be the envy of the entire city. In Project Highrise: Architect’s Edition, you’ll create gleaming office high-rises to attract business leaders from around the world, construct urban apartments with penthouses for the rich and famous, and keep travellers and tourists happy in soaring hotel towers. Your steady hand is needed to keep it all running smoothly and efficiently.

 

23rd: Just Dance 2019

The ultimate party game returns with Just Dance 2019 with over 40 hot tracks from chart-topping artists like “Bruno Mars,” “Cardi B,” and “Daddy Yankee.” Use your smartphone to track your moves and jump into a personalized experience as the game learns your dancing moves and makes suggestions.

 

23rd: Nickelodeon Kart Racers

Race across 24 different slime-filled tracks including Bikini Bottom, NYC sewers, Tommy Pickle's house, Arnold's school and more! Select a racer from one of your favourite Nickelodeon series, including SpongeBob, Patrick, and Sandy from “SpongeBob SquarePants,” Leonardo, Raphael, Michelangelo, and Donatello from “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles,” Arnold and Helga from “Hey Arnold!,” and more. Race your friends in up to 4-player local multiplayer or check out the Battle Arena for a variety of challenges.

 

23rd: Spintires: MudRunner – American Wilds

Xbox One X Enhanced - Drive a wide selection of more than 30 powerful all-terrain vehicles, including iconic U.S. brands like Western Star, Hummer, and Chevrolet. Take charge of incredible all-terrain vehicles, venturing across realistic, physics-simulated landscapes with only a map and compass as guides. Overcome muddy terrain, raging rivers, and other obstacles that all realistically react to the weight and movement of your vehicle powered by the game's advanced physics engine.  

 

24th: Skyhill

World War III is over, the world's infested with mutants, and your supplies are running out. Fight your way down this damned hotel, from your penthouse on top to the first floor. Craft weapons, search for food and reach the exit. Otherwise, you'll be torn apart, starve to death or maybe both...

 

24th: Midnight Deluxe

The world of Midnight is a dangerous one thanks to the likes of spikes, circular saws, and plenty of other dangerous objects. Even if you do manage to get Midnight into the safe zone to advance to the next level, there’s the added challenge of trying to complete each level in the least amount of shots as possible to get all three stars in this unique golf-like game with a perpetual darkness setting.

 

26th: Red Dead Redemption 2

Xbox One X Enhanced - From the creators of Grand Theft Auto comes an epic tale of life in America at the dawn of the modern age in the year 1899. After a robbery goes wrong in the town of Blackwater, Arthur Morgan and the Van der Linde gang are forced to flee. With federal agents and bounty hunters massing on their heels, the gang must rob, steal, and fight their way across America to survive. As deepening internal divisions threaten to tear the gang apart, Arthur must choose between his own ideals and loyalty to the gang who raised him.

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