Tuesday, 7 December 2021
Sunday, 3 January 2021
My Top 10 Games of 2020
It's that time year again when we look back at the games released the previous year and rank the best ones we've played.
Now I didn't play everything and can think of some games like Hades or Yakuza Like a Dragon maybe making this list if I had played but from the 50+ I did these are the best 10.
10. Call of the Sea (Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, PC)
Call of the Sea is adventure style game which released late 2020 from Out of the Blue and Raw Fury starring Cissy Jones as the leas voice actress. CotS could have maybe placed higher, but the ending lets it down a tad.
9. Assassin's Creed Valhalla (PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, Stadia, Luna, PC)
Ubisoft's continued its success of the previous AC games Origins and Odyssey with this new outing set in England.
8. If Found... (Switch, PC)
If found won't be for everyone being a visual novel, and it's themes, yet you will find a well written emotional story very much taking a look at.
7. Spider-Man Miles Morales (PS4, PS5)
Insomniac helps usher in a new PlayStation generation with this Spider-Man spin-off starring Miles Morales in the lead over Peter Parker.
6. Tell Me Why (Xbox One, PC)
Dontnod continue their brilliant way of story telling (Not so much with Twin Mirror) with this Xbox exclusive Tell Me Why, which is my Xbox Game of the Year.
Before we get to the Top 5, we have the worst game of the year G.I. Joe: Operation Blackout (PS4, Xbox One, Switch, PC) which is just awful.
5. Final Fantasy VII Remake (PS4)
I had been waiting since the PS3 tech demo for this remake, and it was the worth that wait for what is my remake of the year and possibly the best soundtrack as well. Now we wait for the next entry.
4. Ori and the Will of the Wisps (Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, Switch, PC)
Moon Studios made it 2 for 2 with this awesome sequel to this Metroidvania series.
3. Ghost of Tsushima (PS4)
Sucker Punch moved away from platforming raccoons and superheroes to this open world adventure during the first Mongol invasion of Japan, in what I hope can become a new series for PlayStation much like Horizon.
2. Animal Crossing: New Horizons (Switch)
ACNH is my Nintendo Switch Game of the Year and could be argued to be the GOTY especially in 2020 as it's a game a lot of people needed this year and sells numbers are phenomenal.
1. The Last of Us Part II (PS4)
But there can only be one GOTY and that's Naughty Dog's follow up to 2013's The Last of Us with its sequel which might not just be the best game of 2020 but one of the best on the PS4 and the 8th generation as a whole.
Sunday, 11 October 2020
10 Most Anticipated Current Gen Only Multi-Format Games (October 2020)
In my last post I brought up my ten most anticipated multi-format games that will be on either Microsoft's and Sony's next gen systems, those games that will take advantage of the new consoles in some way. I did mention however that there are still a few games that I'm excited for which won't be on the new systems.
Now these will still be playable on PS5 or Xbox Series X|S via backwards compatibility but just won't have things like ray tracing or other next gen features.
Alex Kidd in Miracle World DX
Digimon Survive
The Good Life
Kingdom Hearts: Melody of Memory
Nier Replicant ver.1.22474487139...
Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time Remake
Scott Pilgrim vs. the World: The Game - Complete Edition
She Dreams Elsewhere
Shin Megami Tensei III: Nocturne HD Remaster
Twin Mirror
Saturday, 3 October 2020
10 Most Anticipated Next Gen Multi-Format Games (October 2020)
The last two days I've listed ten games that are PlayStation Console Exclusive and same with Xbox, which will be coming to PS5 and Series X|S respectively.
Now it's the turn of the Multi-Format which I'm looking forward to play regardless of the system I will be playing them on. Some of these will still be arriving on PS4 or Xbox One but will take advantage of the next gen features the new consoles will have.
I will also point out that I'm excited to play likes of Nier: Replicant ver. 1.22474487139... which isn't coming to PS5 or Series X|S but that is a list for another time.
BALAN WONDERWORLD
Cyberpunk 2077
DIRT 5
Gotham Knights
Immortals Fenyx Rising
LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga
Pragmata
Resident Evil Village
Scarlet Nexus
Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines 2
Wednesday, 23 September 2020
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.
Sunday, 31 May 2020
Maneater Review
Maneater recently released on PS4, PC and Xbox One. I've been playing Maneater on Xbox One for the past week and have mixed things on the game.
Maneater starts out with a tutorial on how all the controls work along with the game's setup of it being a reality TV series over 8 episodes much like Deadliest Catch, just narrated by Jerry from Rick & Morty.
This builds around the plot of you playing as a baby shark who is out for revenge on the antagonist Scaly Pete.
Over the game you level up, get stronger, unlock new abilities and eventually go from baby shark to a mega shark who can spit lightning. You do this in various ways such as a mission to chew up 10 humans or take down an alligator.
The narration over this and the games overall tone, makes it what it is, a quite funny game and reminded me of things like Goat Simulator and Untitled Goose Game in a lot of ways.
However, that is also an issue as over my almost 10 hours to finish the story and do every sidequest (I didn't get all the collectables, so missing the1000G) which was needed to level up to take on one of the bosses, is the joke gets old.
Why I said at the start I've got mixed feelings on Maneater as the first few hours was really fun but by the end I just wanted the game to be over.
This is very much an example where less is more, as I would have much sooner had a 3hr game which fun all the way through then this what just becomes boring at the end due to lack of variety in the missions as you can only chew up so many humans.
Sunday, 10 May 2020
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.
Sunday, 5 January 2020
Thursday, 4 July 2019
Car Mechanic Simulator Impressions
A few years ago I played Tour de France for review and it was an odd experience, now in 2019, I've just had similar with Car Mechanic Simulator.
This is more of an impression than a review, as to be honest, I did only really spend a good 4hrs one day playing and my thoughts are based on that and a few other plays here & there.
You might think that's not enough time or I've not seen everything, that's part of the problem with a game like this.
As I got my car to fix which needed the oil changing, simple enough. After that, I got another car to fix which needed new brake pads.
Which means you have to unscrew the wheels, in almost mini-game fashion, take off brake calipers and so on.
Then once you have done that the next car will need new brake discs, and that seems to be how the game progress, this does make a lot of sense as you seem to be a new mechanic starting out doing simple jobs.
Just after 4hrs of changing brake pads, I wanted to buy my own car from the junkyard to do up.
If the progression was faster or I could go buy a car almost right away, then I may have had more fun, yet after a while of doing the same thing, I just found myself becoming bored.
CMS is a hard game to recommend, as it's been made for a certain audience who will see past any of the games flaws to find eventually a rewarding experience.
Sunday, 23 June 2019
Saturday, 18 May 2019
A Plague Tale: Innocence Review
Bonjour everyone, I recently had the pleasure to review A Plague Tale: Innocence. Which I've had on my radar for a while now and even featured in a YouTube video of mine just before E3 2018.
Apart from popping up now and again on gaming news sites, there hasn't been a great deal of buzz around APTI. Which is a real shame as developers Asobo Studio has done a fantastic job on what is a tad old fashioned approach to games especially in 2019.
I say this because a lot of games now are open-world, have a boatload of sidequests, different endings and the like. Where APTI is a linear level-based experience.
With Asobo just wanting to tell you this story of Amica and Hugo are two leads during the Hundred Years' War in the French countryside, whilst a plague has broken out. This is done incredibly well through the interactions between Amica who you mainly play as and her younger brother Hugo, who turns out to be rather special.
As you're rather regular people, the gameplay is very stealth based which won't be for everyone as you can't go in guns blazing (a sling in this case), meaning you will need to figure out how to get past soldiers and plague-infested rats in the various puzzles in each level. On your journey, you will meet various allies who will teach you new things and give a helping hand to puzzles.
I really enjoyed my time with APTI as what it does it does very well be it the aforementioned story, the gameplay and sounds design, also it looks fantastic especially one scene in Chapter IV if you're using HDR.
If you enjoyed The Last of Us, Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons and similar games then you will enjoy APTI. I do know the length, it took me about 9hrs and lack of replayability part from trying to find all the collectables will put some of you off otherwise an excellent game.
Tuesday, 2 April 2019
Monday, 25 February 2019
Sunday, 20 January 2019
Wednesday, 9 January 2019
Sony can get away with anything with PS5 due first party as important as Nintendo's
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.
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| Can do whatever a Mario can do |
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.
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
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| PS4 or PS5? |
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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Wednesday, 2 January 2019
Sunday, 25 November 2018
Tuesday, 20 November 2018
Storm Boy Review
Storm Boy: The Game is an adaptation of Australian Authors Colin Thiele's 1964 novella for Xbox One (how I played the game), PS4, Switch, PC, Mac, and Mobile from Blowfish Studios.
To be honest and it might be because I'm the UK, I've never heard of Colin Thiele or his works, however what I gather from playing the game and a section in the menu talking about the novellas history, it's clearly an important piece of literature.
After reading the history section before playing, I think Storm Boy is an interesting game not in terms of playing but more in educating you about relationships with people be it your father Hide-Away Tom or your buddy a pelican called Mr Percival and few others along the way in this half an hour or so game.
Yeah, the game is short and rather simple as really all you do is just wander around a beach, playing some simple mini-games such as fetch with Mr Percival in what is a fairly beautiful oil-painting-like visuals which I can imagine is based on illustrations straight from the book.
Storm Boy won't be for everyone but if you have young kids, I could see this being a great introduction to gaming in the same way as you might read them the actual novella.
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