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.

DIRT 5 Review Xbox One

 

I've never been a big fan of driving games, with only a few clicking with me be it RalliSport Challenge 2 or the Forza Horizon series with their off-road antics. 

Which is why Dirt 5 was on my radar from the trailers we have seen, with its outlandish feel to it with the use of pink and purple smoke along with speakers around the tracks blaring out music.

And how its career mode is told in a rather simple way of picking an event which could be racing around an ice circuit drifting around every corner or racing against 12 classic rally cars like the Ford RS200 to get the finish first, whilst the guess you'll call it story is told via a Podcast with some enthusiastic characters talking of your progress over the game's 5 chapters.

 

You'll find 120+ events to do in the career mode, along with some special one on ones to unlock some neat decals for the 60+ cars, you don't have to do all these to see out the career mode and myself I've done about 40%  of them but I plan to come back to do the rest when my Xbox Series X arrives as Dirt 5 uses Smart Delivery and one of a few games that has a 120fps mode if you have the right setup.

Outside of career mode you have online and playground which is a tad like Tony Hawk create-a-park or the stuff you find in Trials Rising where you build or play playgrounds created by the community. I'm hopeless at building but from what I've seen from the few playgrounds I've played a lot can be done in the mode and can see this keeping people busy for a while.

 

Overall Dirt 5 is a fun arcade racer which come along at the right time as the racer to check out at the start of a new console generation and you won't be left behind on current gen either, just maybe single player is a tad lacking as maybe some simple time trail modes or basic cups could have added a bit more to the overall package. 

 

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

 

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

10 Most Anticipated PS5 Games (October 2020)

As we move ever closer to the launch of the next gen consoles and since my last Top 10 Anticipated lists there's been some more events and info on titles, that I've decided to update my lists and add a third as well.

Demon's Souls

 

Final Fantasy XVI

Ghostwire: Tokyo

God of War: Ragnarök

Goodbye Volcano High

 

 

Horizon Forbidden West

 

Kena: Bridge of Spirits

 

Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart

 

Sackboy: A Big Adventure

 

Spider-Man: Miles Morales

 

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.

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.

Get Your Gaming Credit Here

Best Games of 2019 + Honourable Mentions

Games of June - Persona - Crash Team Racing - Super Mario - The Elder Sc...

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.

My VITA Collection (May 9th 2019)

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.

Get your Xbox codes and more here

Games of December 2018 - Just Cause 4, Super Smash Bros, Persona

Get your Xbox codes and more here

The Gardens Between Review

I just want to start off by saying that I asked on Twitter for some feedback regards to reviews as I was offered a code for The Gardens Between a game I very much was looking forward to that I jumped at the opportunity to review TGB but wasn't sure where I'd actually put the review.

After the feedback I got, yes this will stay primarily as an Xbox focused blog however you seem to be interested in what else is happening outside of Xbox and with a title like The Gardens Between being available on PC, Mac, Linux, Switch and PS4 (where I played TGB) meaning even if it's not on Xbox, you may have a way to check it out and check it out you should.

The Gardens Between focuses on teenagers Arina and Frendt, who live next door to each other. One stormy night the pair sneak out and hide out in their treehouse, built on a small garden square next to both houses when a light sphere causes the treehouse to enter a dream-like a state.

In this dream-state, Arina and Frendt come across islands made up of there experiences over the years that are played out over 19 levels spread over multiple islands.

These levels consist of a beautiful art-style which sort of remind me of Oxenfree if that was in 3D. The core gameplay is centred around puzzles that are simple in nature based around when you move forward time moves forward and vice-versa for backwards.

This leads to some really clever puzzles as you have to get the light sphere that you see at the start of the game to the end of each level which seems rather straightforward but you come across obstacles that may be a planet which eats the light for instance, so you have to get rid of the planet and this is made more difficult as only Arina can carry the light whilst Frendt can use switches, which means you have to manipulate the flow of time to get past each level. 

When you do get past all the levels in an island, you get a sort of cut-scene which shows a memory linked to the level's you've just played.

The Gardens Between is a lovely looking and challenging yet simple puzzle game that is a great few hours of fun to play on a Sunday afternoon.

 Get your Xbox codes and more here