Games Completed 2021

[seansthomas]

Loved hearing your account of Bloodborne Miririn!

I felt very similar once I beat that game. And now I could read people's posts about their experience of it forever more!

Lady Maria beat me and I had to summon for that. Wish I hadn't sometimes. But I did Orphan of Kos solo which to this day remains one of the best achievements I've managed in a game.

[seansthomas]

January 15th - Spiderman (PS4)
January 17th - Labo VR goggles and camera (Switch)
March 19th - Labo VR blaster (Switch)
March 19th - Bowser's Fury (Switch)
April 12th - Bloodborne + Old Hunters DLC (PS4)
April 18th - Star Wars: Battlefront 2 campaign (PS4)
April 19th - Journey (PS4)
May 24th - Rise of the Tomb Raider: 20th anniversary edition
June 23rd - Vanquish (PS4)
July 15th - Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes (PS4)
July 24th - Alba: a wildlife adventure (Switch)
October 9th - Hitman 2 (PS4)
October 31st - Metroid Dread (Switch)
November 16th - Outer Wilds (PS4)
November 19th - Unpacking (Xbox Series S)
November 29th - Exo One (Xbox Series S)


December 10th - The Matrix Reawakens: Unreal tech demo (Xbox Series S)

So it's not a game. And it only has an hour or so of content really unless you're mad keen on photo modes. But holy crap, this is the first thing I've seen that feels truly, hugely next gen.

The visuals of Neo and - in particular - Trinity are jaw dropping. Wasn't sure if they were footage or renders. I think it plays with both to confuse you but it's staggering.

And then you take part in an on rails car chase to show off damage, action etc which is pretty cool.

But it's when you hit the city it's staggering. Walking around, your character feels a bit floaty above the street. And driving is rubbish.

But the lighting, amount of processing, draw distance, detail, reflections, etc when you fly through the city is breathtaking.

First time I've seen a game on Series S and thought it is a huge, ginormous jump from my base PS4.

[Miririn]

Loved hearing your account of Bloodborne Miririn!

I felt very similar once I beat that game. And now I could read people's posts about their experience of it forever more!

Lady Maria beat me and I had to summon for that. Wish I hadn't sometimes. But I did Orphan of Kos solo which to this day remains one of the best achievements I've managed in a game.

Thank you so much

I was the opposite with DLC bosses - I handled Maria solo but I was so keen to get to Gehrman that I summoned help for Kos, Orphan of and Laurence rather than being patient and improving. Like you, I kind of regret it, and would like to try again sometime without the pressure of wanting to complete the game!

Fwiw I think it's amazing that you beat him. He's so intimidating and he hits so hard! I was really struggling.

[seansthomas]

Loved hearing your account of Bloodborne Miririn!

I felt very similar once I beat that game. And now I could read people's posts about their experience of it forever more!

Lady Maria beat me and I had to summon for that. Wish I hadn't sometimes. But I did Orphan of Kos solo which to this day remains one of the best achievements I've managed in a game.

Thank you so much

I was the opposite with DLC bosses - I handled Maria solo but I was so keen to get to Gehrman that I summoned help for Kos, Orphan of and Laurence rather than being patient and improving. Like you, I kind of regret it, and would like to try again sometime without the pressure of wanting to complete the game!

Fwiw I think it's amazing that you beat him. He's so intimidating and he hits so hard! I was really struggling.

It took me ages. Days!

There are some fights in FROM games though where you think you'll get there one day and others where you simply don't.

I summoned for Laurence as after 100 odd hours, I wanted to see the back of the game. I also summoned for Shadows of Yarnham, Ludwig and (maybe?) Laurence. But the last two were deliberate as I wanted to tackle them with someone.

I do think it's fun to do a couple of bosses coop to mix it up. Or if you get totally stumped. Which I did on Ornstein and Smough on DS1!

[Alex79]

JAN - 80 Days (Android)
JAN - What Remains Of Edith Finch (PS4)
JAN - Judgment (PS4)
JAN - Donut County (Android)
FEB - Gorogoa (Android)
FEB - Horace (Switch)
FEB - Castlevania (NES on Switch)
FEB - Akumajō Dracula (Famicom on Switch)
MAR - Pinball FX3: Back To The Future (Switch)
MAR - Pinball FX3: E.T. (Switch)
APR - Fantasy Zone (1cc) (Arcade on Switch)
APR - Assassin's Creed: Unity (PS4)
APR - There Is No Game: Game Jam Edition (Android)
MAY - Ni No Kuni: Wrath Of The White Witch (Switch)
JUN - Super Mario 64 (Switch)
JUL - Silent Bomber JP (PS1 on Vita)
AUG - OutRun 2 (PSP on Vita)
AUG - OutRun 2 SP (PSP on Vita)
AUG - Ashen (Switch)
AUG - Papers, Please (Vita)
AUG - Scramble (1cc) (Arcade on Switch)
AUG - Bayonetta 2 (Switch)
AUG - Pinball FX3: Family Guy (Switch)
AUG - Shovel Knight: Shovel Of Hope (Switch)
SEP - FAR: Lone Sails (Android)
SEP - The Artful Escape (Xbox)
SEP - Pinball FX3: Portal (Switch)
SEP - Pinball FX3: Aliens vs Predator (Switch)
SEP - EA UFC 4 (Xbox)
OCT - Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order (Xbox)
OCT - Pinball FX3: Aliens (Switch)
OCT - Pinball FX3: Alien Isolation (Switch)
OCT - Pinball FX3: Attack From Mars (Switch)
OCT - Superliminal (Xbox)
OCT - Haunted Castle (Arcade on Switch)
OCT - Castlevania III: Dracula's Curse (NES on Switch)
OCT - Gears Of War: Ultimate Edition (Xbox)
OCT - Castle Of Illusion (SMS on Vita)
OCT - Land Of Illusion (SMS on Vita)
OCT - Akumajō Densetsu (Famicom on Switch)
OCT - Castlevania: The Adventure (Gameboy on Switch)
OCT - Super Castlevania IV (SNES on Switch)
OCT - The Red Strings Club (Switch)
OCT - Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance (Xbox)
NOV - Guacamelee: STC Edition (Switch)
NOV - Bastion (Switch)
NOV - The Walking Dead: Season One (Xbox)
NOV - Red Dead Redemption (Xbox)
NOV - Assassin's Creed Liberation: Remastered (Switch)
DEC - Halo: Combat Evolved (Anniversary) (Xbox)

DEC - Transistor (Switch)

I've started this countless times across PS4 and Switch, but never made it past the first hour or so until this time. The game is undoubtedly stylish; it looks great and sounds incredible. The voice acting it also top notch. However, I think this is a good game, and not a great one. I've not really clicked with any Supergiant game until Hades, but it's easy to see the evolution through their games up to the point of their last release. I liked Transistor a whole lot more than Bastion, which I really don't rate at all. The story is completely baffling though - some group in the city have accidentally released a load of robot alien type things loose, and Red is mopping up the mess? I don't know how or why they were created, and I don't really have much idea of what was going on. But the combat is fun, and the semi-turn based type thing of queuing up attacks stayed fresh right to the end. The final boss, incidentally, was a pushover - in fact the whole game was a bit easy. I didn't die once, and only lost abilities once or twice throughout my playthrough. But still, glad I finally finished it after all these years!

[Scrustle]

Spoiler: show

05/01 - Brutal Legend
07/01 - Amnesia: A Machine for Pigs
13/01 - Sludge Life
17/01 - AER: Memories of Old
19/01 - Devil May Cry 4: Special Edition (Human - Nero/Dante)
05/03 - CrossCode: A New Home
14/03 - Dragon's Dogma: Dark Arisen
17/03 - Mario Kart: Double Dash!! (100cc)
02/04 - Drakengard (Endings A-D)
14/04 - Drakengard 2 (Ending A)
28/04 - Drakengard 3 (Endings A-D)
02/05 - Rain
10/05 - God of War: Chains of Olympus HD
15/05 - God of War: Ghost of Sparta HD
24/05 - NieR Replicant ver. 1.22474487139... (Endings A-E)
08/06 - Final Fantasy XV (NG+)
02/07 - God of War II HD
15/07 - Scarlet Nexus (Yuito)
20/07 - TRON: Evolution
21/07 - Sky: Children of the Light
01/08 - Scarlet Nexus (Kasane, NG+)
12/08 - Forza Horizon
18/08 - A Plague Tale: Innocence
21/08 - Contrast
31/08 - Forza Motorsport 7
04/09 - No More Heroes III
13/09 - Metal Gear Solid
23/09 - Metal Gear Solid 2 HD
09/10 - Psychonauts 2
15/10 - Unsighted
17/10 - Sable
18/10 - Halo: Reach (Master Chief Collection)
23/10 - Split/Second
29/10 - Darq
11/11 - Deus Ex: Human Revolution - Director's Cut
14/11 - Darksiders II (Apocalyptic)
21/11 - Kid A Mnesia Exhibition
23/11 - Forza Horizon 5
27/11 - Exo One
29/11 - Omno

11/12 - The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask (N64HD)

So thus ends my revisit of one of my personally most important games ever, and the one that got me in to games in the first place. Despite being such a big deal to me it’s been ages since I last played it. I think the last time I actually finished it was way back on the Gamecube with the Zelda Collector’s Edition, although I did recently remember I gave it a shot on the Wii U at some point too, but dropped it once I got to Ikana for some reason. But either way this game has a lot to live up to in my mind, and it’s been long enough that I wasn’t sure how it would hold up. It did end up still being a solid experience that has a special character to it that I appreciate a lot, but there were certain things about it that I definitely wasn’t so keen on this time around. It also managed to surprise in some positive ways too though.

It’s still great at creating a sense of atmosphere and an introspective tone beyond what one might expect from a game like this. It’s got dark themes and does deal with loss and mortality in some pretty subtle ways at times, and the aesthetic mood that it wraps everything up in is great too. Especially once you get to Ikana. The side characters are also a great way this gets highlighted. The strong focus on sidequests does a great job of fleshing out characters and showing their problems and inner thoughts, and examining the themes the game goes for. The Anju and Kafei sidequest is of course a stand-out, with such a bittersweet ending. Some of the dialogue in the Romani quest line is really good for that too.

The game is also really impressively compact and dense in content in a way that never quite struck me before. Everything is packed together with no wasted space, but still big enough to feel like a real world. Practically everything and everyone you come across plays some larger role in the game too, as they’re usually part of some sidequest or something else useful. And with many of the characters being on a schedule over the three day cycle that gives them a sense of believability and a lot of time for them to be used in many different ways. These are the points where the game still shines as well as ever, in the world of Termina itself and the people you find in it.

The main quest and dungeons however are kind of a mixed bag. I’ve heard this game catch a lot of flak over the years for this, and while I always had my own issues with them, I didn’t feel like it deserved such harshness. But this time I think I understand the sentiment better. The dungeons are pretty inconsistent in how fun they are, but for a pretty consistent reason. Three of the four are built around a central gimmick, where there is some large mechanic that dictates the layout of the dungeon itself, and your path through it. Snowhead has the giant central pillar, Great Bay has the water rotation, and Stone Tower has the ability to flip the whole dungeon upside-down. These are good ideas in theory, and when they work they do make for some very fun puzzle solving, making you think of the big picture and re-framing how you interact with a space. But it also creates a problem, in that these dungeons have a very specific intended way to progress through them, and if you stray off that path and get out of sync with where the game expects you to be in relation to these central gimmicks, it very quickly falls apart and becomes confusing and easy to get lost. I’ve never particularly liked the Great Bay Temple in this game because of that reason, but I figured it was just because it was a bad dungeon. This time however my progress through it was rather smooth. Instead Snowhead caused the headaches, despite that being one I rather liked before. I don’t have much memory of Stone Tower outside of what the gimmick was and that it was tough in general. This time it was excruciating to get through, like pulling teeth. I got to a point late in the dungeon where I needed a key that I missed before, and I must have looped around the dungeon something like three times failing to find what I was looking for.

Similarly, bosses aren’t great in general. Either you have the Woodfall and Snowhead bosses that are total pushovers, or the Great Bay and Stone Tower bosses that do a terrible job of communicating essential information to you. The latter makes it really unclear when you can hit them and they can easily creep up behind you with really strong attacks, and the latter drains massive amounts of magic power and also has a totally unmarked outer limit to the arena that if you fall outside you get kicked out of the boss room and have to start again. The final boss fight against Majora is fine, but perhaps is undermined by the Fierce Deity Mask being so powerful.

When the dungeons work well, they are pretty cool and imaginative. There are good moments there, and good ideas. But it’s such a delicate balance that is very easy to ruin if you’re not on the exact wavelength the game expects. That’s a balance that is very hard to maintain when searching for those Stray Fairies especially.

But I still have a lot of appreciation for the game overall. I love this world and its mood, and all the people you meet in it. It’s clear the game was rather rushed and didn’t get to polish some of its ideas. Some of those ideas are also ones that were probably very hard to pull off even at the best of times too. But I think it’s worth praising that the things it did get right are the things that make this game stand out from other games in the series. Every Zelda game has dungeons and bosses, you can find many good examples out there. But no other Zelda game has Clock Town or any of these characters that are so well fleshed out, or the three day cycle that gives the world a sense of believability like things are going on whether you’re there or not. No other Zelda deals with themes like this either, at least not in such an open way. That makes it something special.

And once again I have to praise this HD texture pack made by Nerrel that I used for this run. It looks so great. It’s extremely faithful and looks very natural, as if it was done by the original artists themselves being freed from the original hardware. It totally gets the art style of the original, and interprets it perfectly. It adds an impressive amount of detail without looking out of place with the low poly models or the overall aesthetic. It’s not hard to say this is the definitive way that this game should be presented. Part of this mod pack also included a hack that tweaked a bunch of game features that were excellent as well, like giving properly implemented widescreen support, and a bunch of little QoL additions that make the overall experience better, and it’s also a great and very natural way to enhance the game that I recommend a whole lot. It took many years of waiting around for this mod, but it was certainly worth it.

I also recorded my entire run of the game and am in the process of uploading it all to Youtube for anyone who wants to see that as well. Playlist link here:https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=P ... kL22GmsUV1

[Indiana747]

(Jan) Call of the Sea - Series X.
(Jan) Remember Me - PS3.
(Jan) Ghostbusters Remastered - Series X
(Feb) Disney Infinity 2.0 - PS4 Pro.
(Feb) Batman: Arkham Knight - PS4 Pro.
(Feb) Sacred 3 - PS3.
(Feb) The Darkness II - PS3.
(Feb) The Bureau: XCOM Declassified - PS3.
(Mar) Gears 5: Hivebusters - Series X.
(Mar) Silent Hill: Downpour - PS3.
(Mar) The Medium - Series X.
(Mar) Donut County - Series X.
(Mar) Astro's Playroom - PS5.
(Apr) Outriders - Series X.
(May) Lego City Undercover - Wii U.
(May) Ghost of Tsushima - PS5.
(May) Resident Evil Village - PS5.
(May) Dantes Inferno - Series X(BC).
(May) Streets of Rage 4 - Series X.
(May) Dead Space - Series X(BC).
(June) Matterfall - PS5.
(June) Battlefield 4 - Series X.
(Aug) Metro Exodus + DLCs - Series X.
(Aug) Mass Effect 1 Legendary Edition - Series X.
(Aug) Maneater(1000GS) - Series X.
(Sept) Dead Rising 4 - Series X.
(Sept) Limbo - Series X.
(Sept) Raji: An Ancient Epic - Series X.
(Sept) The Ascent - Series X.
(Sept) The Artful Escape - Series X.
(Oct) Mighty Goose - Series X.
(Oct) Alan Wake Remastered - Series X.
(Nov) The Evil Within 2 - Series X.
(Nov) Minecraft Dungeons - Series X.
(Nov) Forza Horizon 5 - Series X.
(Nov) Unpacking - Series X.
(Nov) Totally Reliable Delivery Service - Series X.
(Nov) Titanfall 2 - Series X.
(Dec) Guardians of the Galaxy - Series X.

[Jobobonobo]

Spoiler: show

January 30: Celeste
February 12: Katamari Damacy Rerolled
February 28: Panzer Dragoon Remake
March 26: Donut County
April 4: Yakuza Kiwami 2
May 11: Gris
May 23: Untitled Goose Game
July 24: Bug Fables: The Everlasting Sapling
Sep 1: Bird Game +

Dec 11: Dragon Quest XI S: Echoes of an Elusive Age

After nearly 140 hours, I finally finished up this absolute behemoth of an RPG which is easily the most I have ever dedicated to a single player game, even outdoing the likes of the Yakuza series. This was my second Dragon Quest after the unconventional IX and I completely adored it. It starts out fairly generic but I think once you meet up with Erik, the story really gets going and I was sucked into it. The battle system is old school and turn based but with a lot of customisability so you can change strategies on the fly. Battles being non random and the leveling system being paced well means that grinding was rarely if ever a necessity (with the exception of act 3, some battles are really brutal to get through at this point). The Character Builder and the Fun sized Forge also were addictive little systems which made customising your characters a real joy. While for some it could be overly safe in its design approach, for me everything was just so well polished that it showcases just how wonderful JRPGs can be when all the pieces come together. Your party members are likeable and typically all fill some sort of niche in battle. Especially of note are the gorgeous graphics and the exquisite soundtrack, they really being the world to life. Localisation is also phenomenal with a witty script and some really high quality voice acting. The charisma in general of this game is something else with the daft puns and parodies all over the shop and the wonderful monster design which give Pokemon a run for its money in sheer quirkiness.

If there is any issue I had with the game is that I wished the main protagonist was not silent. I know it is a recurring theme in the series but when the other party members were such memorable characters then it is a real shame that the main character is so blah in comparison. Also, I was a bit let down that

Spoiler: show

Veronica remains in her child form after everything ends. Everybody else gets a happy ending but she is stuck like that, that’s a rough deal!

But overall, Dragon Quest XI has made me feel like a child again with its joyous sense of adventure and showcases the JRPG genre at its very best. Has definitely got me interested to try out more entries in the series but since they are such massive games, will definitely have a bit of a breather before trying out another entry. But regardless, I am now a convert to Dragon Quest. So yeah, this is a real modern day classic which I fully recommend for anyone who wants a lengthy adventure.

[Alex79]

JAN - 80 Days (Android)
JAN - What Remains Of Edith Finch (PS4)
JAN - Judgment (PS4)
JAN - Donut County (Android)
FEB - Gorogoa (Android)
FEB - Horace (Switch)
FEB - Castlevania (NES on Switch)
FEB - Akumajō Dracula (Famicom on Switch)
MAR - Pinball FX3: Back To The Future (Switch)
MAR - Pinball FX3: E.T. (Switch)
APR - Fantasy Zone (1cc) (Arcade on Switch)
APR - Assassin's Creed: Unity (PS4)
APR - There Is No Game: Game Jam Edition (Android)
MAY - Ni No Kuni: Wrath Of The White Witch (Switch)
JUN - Super Mario 64 (Switch)
JUL - Silent Bomber JP (PS1 on Vita)
AUG - OutRun 2 (PSP on Vita)
AUG - OutRun 2 SP (PSP on Vita)
AUG - Ashen (Switch)
AUG - Papers, Please (Vita)
AUG - Scramble (1cc) (Arcade on Switch)
AUG - Bayonetta 2 (Switch)
AUG - Pinball FX3: Family Guy (Switch)
AUG - Shovel Knight: Shovel Of Hope (Switch)
SEP - FAR: Lone Sails (Android)
SEP - The Artful Escape (Xbox)
SEP - Pinball FX3: Portal (Switch)
SEP - Pinball FX3: Aliens vs Predator (Switch)
SEP - EA UFC 4 (Xbox)
OCT - Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order (Xbox)
OCT - Pinball FX3: Aliens (Switch)
OCT - Pinball FX3: Alien Isolation (Switch)
OCT - Pinball FX3: Attack From Mars (Switch)
OCT - Superliminal (Xbox)
OCT - Haunted Castle (Arcade on Switch)
OCT - Castlevania III: Dracula's Curse (NES on Switch)
OCT - Gears Of War: Ultimate Edition (Xbox)
OCT - Castle Of Illusion (SMS on Vita)
OCT - Land Of Illusion (SMS on Vita)
OCT - Akumajō Densetsu (Famicom on Switch)
OCT - Castlevania: The Adventure (Gameboy on Switch)
OCT - Super Castlevania IV (SNES on Switch)
OCT - The Red Strings Club (Switch)
OCT - Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance (Xbox)
NOV - Guacamelee: STC Edition (Switch)
NOV - Bastion (Switch)
NOV - The Walking Dead: Season One (Xbox)
NOV - Red Dead Redemption (Xbox)
NOV - Assassin's Creed Liberation: Remastered (Switch)
DEC - Halo: Combat Evolved (Anniversary) (Xbox)
DEC - Transistor (Switch)

DEC - Halo 2: Anniversary (Xbox)

Oh my god this was so fucking good! I think it's even better than the first game!

Played about half of this back on original Xbox and gave up halfway through because I thought it was boring, but this time, totally different. I'm really invested in the story now, I can't believe it ended on such a cliff hanger. Downloading Halo 3 right now.

Man, I really think everything about this game was an improvement on the first. The fights seemed more fun, I really liked the Arbiter as a character, and dual wielding is a great addition. I can see why people love this series so much, I've always thought it was a bit dull, but my golly it's great!

[floydedna]

I complited Assassin's Creed unity

[Alex79]

I complited Assassin's Creed unity.

What did you think of it? I completed it earlier in the year and enjoyed it, although the story was a bit dull compared to some of the other games in the series (and that's saying something...)

[Tolkientaters]

Assassin's Creed Unity is the only "classic" Assassin's Creed game I played, but I enjoyed it mostly because Parkoring around Paris is a lot of fun.

[ThirdDrawing]

#32 - Beyond Good & Evil

Heavy mythologised, put on a pedastal, I hadn't played it in about 15 years or so. I remembered bits of it but had forgotten a lot.

I enjoyed it a lot more than I expected. My general memories of it were "meh", and I think I enjoyed it more this time than last time, but that last boss battle really is a cheap bastard.

[Scrustle]

Spoiler: show

05/01 - Brutal Legend
07/01 - Amnesia: A Machine for Pigs
13/01 - Sludge Life
17/01 - AER: Memories of Old
19/01 - Devil May Cry 4: Special Edition (Human - Nero/Dante)
05/03 - CrossCode: A New Home
14/03 - Dragon's Dogma: Dark Arisen
17/03 - Mario Kart: Double Dash!! (100cc)
02/04 - Drakengard (Endings A-D)
14/04 - Drakengard 2 (Ending A)
28/04 - Drakengard 3 (Endings A-D)
02/05 - Rain
10/05 - God of War: Chains of Olympus HD
15/05 - God of War: Ghost of Sparta HD
24/05 - NieR Replicant ver. 1.22474487139... (Endings A-E)
08/06 - Final Fantasy XV (NG+)
02/07 - God of War II HD
15/07 - Scarlet Nexus (Yuito)
20/07 - TRON: Evolution
21/07 - Sky: Children of the Light
01/08 - Scarlet Nexus (Kasane, NG+)
12/08 - Forza Horizon
18/08 - A Plague Tale: Innocence
21/08 - Contrast
31/08 - Forza Motorsport 7
04/09 - No More Heroes III
13/09 - Metal Gear Solid
23/09 - Metal Gear Solid 2 HD
09/10 - Psychonauts 2
15/10 - Unsighted
17/10 - Sable
18/10 - Halo: Reach (Master Chief Collection)
23/10 - Split/Second
29/10 - Darq
11/11 - Deus Ex: Human Revolution - Director's Cut
14/11 - Darksiders II (Apocalyptic)
21/11 - Kid A Mnesia Exhibition
23/11 - Forza Horizon 5
27/11 - Exo One
29/11 - Omno
11/12 - The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask (N64HD)

15/12 - Halo: Combat Evolved (Master Chief Collection)

Still stands up fairly well, and the PC version is good, although not perfect. Being able to increase FoV is a very nice addition, but some of the graphical bugs that were supposed to be fixed are still an issue. Most of my thoughts on this I posted about the other day, so not much more to add. The original graphics do maintain a sense of vastness and awe that the remaster graphics lack somewhat, which are also too bright in a lot of places. But that kind of goes the other way too. A lot of areas in the old graphics are too dark. While sometimes it's definitely more atmospheric, in other places it simply makes it hard to see what's going on. Even though I think I prefer the old graphics on balance, part of me still wishes there was a version that could give us the best of both worlds. Maybe if someone modded this PC version one day.

Although the last quarter or so is a bit of a slog. These levels do have a reputation, especially The Library of course, but it never stood out to me quite as much as on this run, just how much of the end of the game is you running back through levels you've already been through. The Library isn't even the worst for that.

It's pretty interesting playing Infinite at the same time as this and comparing the two. I think I'll leave until finishing that game to go deeper, but one thing I will point out is how each game treats music. Infinite has pretty good music, easily the best of the 343 game, if only because it's just reusing old tracks again. But even then, the music feels much more prominent and interesting in this original game. It has a bigger place in the mix, really emphasises the percussion more, and has a wider range of moods with much more synth instruments and groovy moments. Still a really memorably and enjoyable soundtrack.

[Indiana747]

(Jan) Call of the Sea - Series X.
(Jan) Remember Me - PS3.
(Jan) Ghostbusters Remastered - Series X
(Feb) Disney Infinity 2.0 - PS4 Pro.
(Feb) Batman: Arkham Knight - PS4 Pro.
(Feb) Sacred 3 - PS3.
(Feb) The Darkness II - PS3.
(Feb) The Bureau: XCOM Declassified - PS3.
(Mar) Gears 5: Hivebusters - Series X.
(Mar) Silent Hill: Downpour - PS3.
(Mar) The Medium - Series X.
(Mar) Donut County - Series X.
(Mar) Astro's Playroom - PS5.
(Apr) Outriders - Series X.
(May) Lego City Undercover - Wii U.
(May) Ghost of Tsushima - PS5.
(May) Resident Evil Village - PS5.
(May) Dantes Inferno - Series X(BC).
(May) Streets of Rage 4 - Series X.
(May) Dead Space - Series X(BC).
(June) Matterfall - PS5.
(June) Battlefield 4 - Series X.
(Aug) Metro Exodus + DLCs - Series X.
(Aug) Mass Effect 1 Legendary Edition - Series X.
(Aug) Maneater(1000GS) - Series X.
(Sept) Dead Rising 4 - Series X.
(Sept) Limbo - Series X.
(Sept) Raji: An Ancient Epic - Series X.
(Sept) The Ascent - Series X.
(Sept) The Artful Escape - Series X.
(Oct) Mighty Goose - Series X.
(Oct) Alan Wake Remastered - Series X.
(Nov) The Evil Within 2 - Series X.
(Nov) Minecraft Dungeons - Series X.
(Nov) Forza Horizon 5 - Series X.
(Nov) Unpacking - Series X.
(Nov) Totally Reliable Delivery Service - Series X.
(Nov) Titanfall 2 - Series X.
(Dec) Guardians of the Galaxy - Series X.
(Dec) Exo One - Series X.
(Dec) Horizon ZD: The Frozen Wilds - PS5.

[Alex79]

Halo etc...

Hey, you going to play any of the other games? I'm doing a full series play through, up to 3 at the moment, so I've got the rest of that, then ODST, Reach, 4 and 5 to go before Infinite.

If you fancy trying any co-op on any I'm playing at the time give me a shout.

[Alex79]

JAN - 80 Days (Android)
JAN - What Remains Of Edith Finch (PS4)
JAN - Judgment (PS4)
JAN - Donut County (Android)
FEB - Gorogoa (Android)
FEB - Horace (Switch)
FEB - Castlevania (NES on Switch)
FEB - Akumajō Dracula (Famicom on Switch)
MAR - Pinball FX3: Back To The Future (Switch)
MAR - Pinball FX3: E.T. (Switch)
APR - Fantasy Zone (1cc) (Arcade on Switch)
APR - Assassin's Creed: Unity (PS4)
APR - There Is No Game: Game Jam Edition (Android)
MAY - Ni No Kuni: Wrath Of The White Witch (Switch)
JUN - Super Mario 64 (Switch)
JUL - Silent Bomber JP (PS1 on Vita)
AUG - OutRun 2 (PSP on Vita)
AUG - OutRun 2 SP (PSP on Vita)
AUG - Ashen (Switch)
AUG - Papers, Please (Vita)
AUG - Scramble (1cc) (Arcade on Switch)
AUG - Bayonetta 2 (Switch)
AUG - Pinball FX3: Family Guy (Switch)
AUG - Shovel Knight: Shovel Of Hope (Switch)
SEP - FAR: Lone Sails (Android)
SEP - The Artful Escape (Xbox)
SEP - Pinball FX3: Portal (Switch)
SEP - Pinball FX3: Aliens vs Predator (Switch)
SEP - EA UFC 4 (Xbox)
OCT - Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order (Xbox)
OCT - Pinball FX3: Aliens (Switch)
OCT - Pinball FX3: Alien Isolation (Switch)
OCT - Pinball FX3: Attack From Mars (Switch)
OCT - Superliminal (Xbox)
OCT - Haunted Castle (Arcade on Switch)
OCT - Castlevania III: Dracula's Curse (NES on Switch)
OCT - Gears Of War: Ultimate Edition (Xbox)
OCT - Castle Of Illusion (SMS on Vita)
OCT - Land Of Illusion (SMS on Vita)
OCT - Akumajō Densetsu (Famicom on Switch)
OCT - Castlevania: The Adventure (Gameboy on Switch)
OCT - Super Castlevania IV (SNES on Switch)
OCT - The Red Strings Club (Switch)
OCT - Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance (Xbox)
NOV - Guacamelee: STC Edition (Switch)
NOV - Bastion (Switch)
NOV - The Walking Dead: Season One (Xbox)
NOV - Red Dead Redemption (Xbox)
NOV - Assassin's Creed Liberation: Remastered (Switch)
DEC - Halo: Combat Evolved (Anniversary) (Xbox)
DEC - Transistor (Switch)
DEC - Halo 2: Anniversary (Xbox)

DEC - Halo 3 (Xbox)

Not much to say about this other than I really enjoyed it and continue to have a great time with my series playthrough. This might be my favourite one yet. I really liked the whole game, and didn't think there were any weak points, other than the final stage going through the Flood ship was a bit annoying. But overall really brilliant. ODST next!

[dezm0nd]

I finished The Gunk. Not what i hoped for but overall a pleasant experience. Looking forward to more 3D games from I&F as they clearly have the chops for it. Just need another shot at it

[Scrustle]

Spoiler: show

05/01 - Brutal Legend
07/01 - Amnesia: A Machine for Pigs
13/01 - Sludge Life
17/01 - AER: Memories of Old
19/01 - Devil May Cry 4: Special Edition (Human - Nero/Dante)
05/03 - CrossCode: A New Home
14/03 - Dragon's Dogma: Dark Arisen
17/03 - Mario Kart: Double Dash!! (100cc)
02/04 - Drakengard (Endings A-D)
14/04 - Drakengard 2 (Ending A)
28/04 - Drakengard 3 (Endings A-D)
02/05 - Rain
10/05 - God of War: Chains of Olympus HD
15/05 - God of War: Ghost of Sparta HD
24/05 - NieR Replicant ver. 1.22474487139... (Endings A-E)
08/06 - Final Fantasy XV (NG+)
02/07 - God of War II HD
15/07 - Scarlet Nexus (Yuito)
20/07 - TRON: Evolution
21/07 - Sky: Children of the Light
01/08 - Scarlet Nexus (Kasane, NG+)
12/08 - Forza Horizon
18/08 - A Plague Tale: Innocence
21/08 - Contrast
31/08 - Forza Motorsport 7
04/09 - No More Heroes III
13/09 - Metal Gear Solid
23/09 - Metal Gear Solid 2 HD
09/10 - Psychonauts 2
15/10 - Unsighted
17/10 - Sable
18/10 - Halo: Reach (Master Chief Collection)
23/10 - Split/Second
29/10 - Darq
11/11 - Deus Ex: Human Revolution - Director's Cut
14/11 - Darksiders II (Apocalyptic)
21/11 - Kid A Mnesia Exhibition
23/11 - Forza Horizon 5
27/11 - Exo One
29/11 - Omno
11/12 - The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask (N64HD)
15/12 - Halo: Combat Evolved (Master Chief Collection)

19/12 - Halo Infinite

Originally I wasn’t intending on playing this, given how burned I was by Halo 5 and a lot of red flags that kept showing up during the development of this game. Even hearing early positive reviews had me feeling put off by it, not being too convinced by what they said and remembering how 4 and 5 both had a glowing reception upon release as well. But I gave this one a chance, and honestly it’s not bad. Still has a lot of problems, but it manages to do enough well that I have to give it credit for.

The most surprising and most positive thing about the game is that the combat is excellent. It might even be the best playing a Halo game has ever been. And that’s not something I say lightly at all. Even though I wouldn’t say any Halo game plays badly, I don’t think the series has had any major improvements on the formula since 3. Everything since has mostly just been small redundant tweaks, or simply downgrades that made things worse. But not so here. It feels fast and dynamic, speeding up the rhythm of fights, but while also retaining the back-and-forth pacing that is key to Halo’s character. This game’s version of aim-down-sights feels like it has actual use cases that make it valuable, but without being dominant or restricting movement. Armour abilities add a new element to the gameplay loop that actually feels like a natural and meaningful addition, especially the grappling hook. It allows you to interact with elements of the battlefield in new ways, and lends itself to interesting movement possibilities too. The D-pad selection method is a bit clumsy however, and switching between them in battle can be confusing, as the default mapping doesn’t have much logic to it. This can be fixed by setting your own custom mapping, but doing so also means you lose the ability to manually switch grenades, which seems like a really silly oversight. It was a trade-off I was willing to take for the purpose of being able to use those armour abilities more though, as they really add a lot to the experience. The new weapons are really good as well. Old weapons get a lot of tweaking and refinement, but the new stuff feels distinct and fun to use, and not just another faction’s version of the same thing. A lot of weapons have fun unique quirks to them.

I’m not really sure on the open world though. On one hand it does feel like and expansion to the open level design Halo has always had, but on the other it does make the game feel less like Halo and more like it’s chasing trends to an extent. It adds unnecessary busywork that doesn’t really improve the game, but it does bring in a level of dynamism to how you approach objectives. That means you don’t find yourself pinned down at a choke point like could happen in older games. It helps the game to not feel frustrating when you die in a fight, which happens pretty often, and you don’t have to do the same thing each time and can easily try a different approach. Individual areas of interest in the world do provide different experiences despite a lot of reuse of the same concept or assets. Every Banished Outpost for example feels quite different. Despite being constructed of a lot of the same parts, they way they are organised and how they are placed in to the landscape means each one does offer a distinct sequence of events. But if you take the game broadly across its whole runtime, the experience doesn’t change much. Outside of the gradual unlocking of new weapons and vehicles, you are largely doing the same thing from start to finish. I’m not really convinced Halo needed an open world at all, and despite it not being a disaster, it does kind of make the game feel less like Halo and more like just another game chasing the Ubisoft design trend. But that does feel a bit harsh to say. Perhaps it’s more like Breath of the Wild, in that on paper it has many similarities to an Ubisoft designed game, but in practice it’s quite different. That comparison feels like giving it too much credit however. As well as being a bit of a dumb cliché.

The aesthetics are really good. The best a 343 Halo has ever been, but it still doesn’t get it quite right. The change back to the old Forerunner style architecture is great, and they did a good job of at least getting much closer to the feeling of the vast and imposing eeriness they used to have, rather than the somewhat generic and overly clean look it had in 4 and 5. This new ring does have some of that slightly surreal natural beauty, and the hexagonal columns are a real nice touch. They are something new and unique, but also feel very fitting to the existing aesthetic. The way they jut out of the landscape in a clearly artificial way, yet are reminiscent of basalt columns you see in the real world, like they could be a natural geological phenomenon of some mineral we don’t understand. This landscape makes for some dramatic vistas, especially during sunrise and sunset. The broken up chunks of the ring are a cool touch too. It’s fun to be able to walk up to the edge of one and look down directly in to outer space.

But there isn’t much variation. Like with the structure of the open world gameplay feeling rather similar throughout, the game world itself is kind of the same all the way through. It’s a nice aesthetic, but it’s only really got one. None of the different weather patterns or biomes that older games had. It doesn’t do much to emphasise the feeling of being in this space either. Sometimes alludes to it with off-hand dialogue, and it is possible to stop and smell the roses, but it doesn’t feel like the game is “about” the ring like the old ones were. It’s pretty, but it lacks that sense of reverence.

The music is good, as it goes back to the character of composition from the old games too, but it’s perhaps cheating a bit by reusing old tracks. Halo has always done that though, but they at least mixed in new stuff as well. But probably worse than that is the music is less prominent in general. It has less of a kick to it, and way less variation in mood and style. Percussion is toned down, and there’s much less interesting use of instruments and synth elements. It feels like it’s being neglected and pushed to background, but music has always been a huge part of character and mood in these games. That’s just mostly gone here, and it suffers for it. Bringing back old favourite tracks doesn’t help much if you don’t use them well. There was only one point in the game where it brought the music to the forefront, near the end of the story, and it was actually a great little moment. There was nothing else like that in the whole game.

Audio in general has a similar story. While sound design feels good on a kinaesthetic level, it has a huge lack of character. It’s a common problem in a lot of similar games, so I don’t want to spend too long going over it again. Weapons have a punchy feel to them, but that’s basically all they have. There’s nothing that stands out of it memorable. This didn’t have to be a trade-off, you can have both, yet this game doesn’t.

The story is pretty terrible too. There isn’t a sense that there’s much of an arc to it, without the situation changing much as you go through it. The villains are all just brooding, paper thin cut-outs, spouting nouns and trying to seem imposing throughout. They are extremely one-note. It also feels like there are huge omissions here, like there was an entire game’s worth of story that was simply missed since Halo 5. That ended on a massive cliffhanger where the major threat wasn’t dealt with, and now that’s gone and we’re on to a completely different set of antagonists now. The main leader of the Banished also has a tedious habit of going on and on about a certain Atriox, the previous leader of the group who only appeared for a few seconds in the opening cutscene. He plays zero role in this story, but they won’t shut up about him, to the point where I know his name way more than anyone else in his faction. From what I have gathered, this seemingly missing game actually exists however, and it’s called Halo Wars 2. Supposedly that is where The Banished are from, but I’m not sure if that’s where they wrapped up Halo 5’s loose ends too. Either way a very poor way to do things. I find it pretty baffling that 343 keep trying this, having their stories rely so much on outside knowledge that the vast majority of players won’t have. That got heavily criticised in both their previous games, yet they still think it’s a good idea somehow.

I don’t like the new characters on the UNSC side either. The unnamed pilot who carries you from place to place, and I assume is meant to be more of a relatable audience surrogate is extremely grating and annoying. He’s also an example of that cliché of shallow character writing wherein we’re expected to connect with him simply because he has a family. That we never see or interact with. There comes a point where he and Chief have a heart-to-heart where he explains why he acts the way he does, but it falls totally flat. It doesn’t change anything about the character or their relationship. The new AI companion simply called “The Weapon” I just find extremely creepy. She’s supposed to be like Cortana, but a younger version. More chirpy and naive. But instead her performance feels very forced and strained. She comes off more like a corporate PR spokesperson who has been blackmailed with something horrific if she didn’t smile enough. Again this game is making the same mistakes of previous 343 stories by trying to have a heavy focus on character-driven stories, despite them being awful at writing characters. I’ve never been sure why they decided to go down this route when that was never an appeal or strength of Halo at the best of times either.

I don’t think it’s unreasonable to say this story is on the same level as that of Halo 5. A story so bad I basically gave up hope of this series ever being good again. But it manages to not ruin Infinite because of the change to the overall structure of the game. You can to a degree ignore it, as it doesn’t feel like the driving force of the experience here. Instead the open world and various other gameplay changes are what grab your attention.

Despite having many issues with the Infinite, I’m actually somewhat positive on the overall game. It’s undeniably a big step up from previous 343 games, and is much better than I was expecting it to be going in. There’s still a very long way to go in getting this series back on track, and I have many issues with this entry, but it is an impressive move in the right direction. Although there are many negatives I can point to with this game, the fact that the combat is so good is a pretty big deal. It is after all the core of a shooter, so that being so well done goes a long way to earning good will. That deserves credit. This game clearly bears the scars of a very troubled development, but the achievements it does make in light of the situation it has been through are pretty admirable.

[seansthomas]

January 15th - Spiderman (PS4)
January 17th - Labo VR goggles and camera (Switch)
March 19th - Labo VR blaster (Switch)
March 19th - Bowser's Fury (Switch)
April 12th - Bloodborne + Old Hunters DLC (PS4)
April 18th - Star Wars: Battlefront 2 campaign (PS4)
April 19th - Journey (PS4)
May 24th - Rise of the Tomb Raider: 20th anniversary edition
June 23rd - Vanquish (PS4)
July 15th - Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes (PS4)
July 24th - Alba: a wildlife adventure (Switch)
October 9th - Hitman 2 (PS4)
October 31st - Metroid Dread (Switch)
November 16th - Outer Wilds (PS4)
November 19th - Unpacking (Xbox Series S)
November 29th - Exo One (Xbox Series S)
December 10th - The Matrix Reawakens: Unreal tech demo (Xbox Series S)

December 19th - Halo Infinite: Campaign (Xbox Series S)

Hmmm tricky one this. My first ever Halo.

Story was rubbish and tedious. But the gun play, variety of improvisation on the battlefield and sections in the open world were great. Totally understand the BOTW comparisons in how it's structured and the feel.

The rest of it... I'm less sold on. I liked the first few locations, getting onto the planet, the big mining machine, and the section where you find a training camp.

But I hated a lot of the bosses. I was only playing on Normal and it has been a real slog. Now that might be because I only realised late in the game you could upgrade your shield, but by the time I'd realised that I had hit a point on no return and was funneled to the endgame. Meaning a lot of enemies and certainly the bosses could one shot kill me.

I did it eventually but was irritated by it more than elated. And the architecture and pattern of the final four chapters, The Road aside (which was awesome and one of the few times it mixed things up) was almost identical. Identical enemies. Identical corridors. Identical lifts. Identical power cells.

All in all I think I should have put it down earlier today, given it a break and come back as blitzing it all in one go might not have been the best idea.

I adore the multiplayer. And think there's a good game here when outside, even if it does gets pretty repetitive. But the bits indoors... Yeah, not such a fan.