Weekend Whammy: What Are You Guys Playing?

20180922170041_1

The weekend has steamrolled into our lives yet again like some sort of demented rhino looking for its lunch. As I write this I’ve just gotten back from walking the dog and taking my two nieces to the funfair that’s in town, so now it’s time to sit down and fire up some games!

So, I’ve managed to resist spending all my time on the absolutely amazing Spider-Man on the PS4 and instead have focused on getting through two games, the first being the new Bard’s Tale title that I got my hands on a good bit before its official release and yet have still somehow managed to fly past the embargo without posting up a review. The problem is I have really mixed feelings on the game that have proven tricky to put into words. It’s a bit of a mess at times with numerous technical failings as well as a bunch of questionable design choices, but buried underneath it all is an interesting little RPG with great turn-based combat and some enjoyable puzzles.

I also bought a copy of Shadow of the Tomb Raider and finally got started on it earlier today. So far I’m not seeing any big leaps from the previous game, but man it looks gorgeous and I’m still a sucker for its cinematic style of adventuring, so I’m looking forward to getting some more hours under my belt. At the end of the day even if it isn’t a huge improvement on the other two I still think it’ll be quite good. Keep your eyes out for my review.

Speaking of buying games I got my grubby mitts on God of War, because if I haven’t played that by the time the end of the year “best games of” post comes around then people are going to be pissed. I mean, my very life might be in danger. And I picked up Ratchet & Clank since I want to catch up on some PS4 exclusives and it just looks like some nice, lighthearted fun. ParticleBits post about it has really got me excited to get it installed and get playing.

And then I spent even more money on an Asus Strix GTX 1080Ti graphics card which will replace my standard GTX 1080. Not the biggest upgrade in the world, but the reviews for the new GTX 2080 range didn’t impressive me. Sure, the pure performance of them is amazing, but the pricing is just absurd for what you get.

Finally, I’m going to wrap this up by saying just how happy I am to see lootboxes finally getting taken more seriously by governments around the world. EA are trying to flex their muscles by defying the Belgium government, and I pray to whatever God might be in the local area that they get their backsides royally whupped.

Oh. Wait. One last thing; a shout out to all the guys and girls over at Telltale games who have lost their jobs. Today the company officially announced its closure with some 250 folk being laid of while a skeleton staff of 25 people are staying behind to fulfill their obligations. While I’ve never personally been a fan of the Telltale games it’s never nice to see hard-working people lose their source of income, and there are obviously many people around the world who love Telltale’s games. I hope all of the fine folk at Telltale find employment at other studios and go on to create awesome games.

So, what are you guys up to this weekend?

Like this:

Scythe Board Game Review

Designed by: Jamey Stegmaier Published by: Stonemaier Games Players: 1-5 Playtime: 90-120 Minutes Review copy supplied free of charge by Esdevium Games. You don’t gently put Scythe down on a table like a baby that must be coddled. Oh no, instead you thump it down with authority, the sizable box dominating the space and demanding that all present pay attention to its beautiful artwork! And then you open the lid revealing decks of cards, wooden pieces, plastic miniatures and a variety of tokens, as well as a substantial board and a bunch of other stuff. It’s a veritable feast of components. Despite its size and somewhat daunting visage, however, Scythe is actually quite easy to learn; every turn you choose one of four quadrants on your player board and perform one, two or none of the actions there. Simple. Well, kind of. Scythe is a 4X game – which means it wants you to explore, expand, extort and exterminate – set within a unique world that mixes agricultural farming with towerin...

Defective, Or Effective?

The first mission of Defector is like a glorious homage to every over-the-top spy movie to have ever appeared on a screen. There’s a handler feeding you information, a bad guy to converse with and then the possibility of driving a car out of a plane before leaping out and landing in a different plane. Oh, and then gunning down a bunch of fighter jets using nothing but an assault rifle because that’s how the real world works. It’s a bombastic introduction to Defector , but then the game never does manage to reach the same highs again. It’s perhaps no wonder that it was this first level which was shown off in the demos and previews. But that doesn’t mean Defector doesn’t give it a shot and does so by mixing in a bunch of different ideas. In another of the five missions you get to pose as a masseuse, gently massaging away the suspect’s worries. There’s even an interrogation sequence involving questioning, punching and dangling the target out of a window. Hell, Defector even manages to ...

Lisboa Board Game Review

Designed by: Vital Lacerda Published by: Eagle Gryphon Games Players: 1-4 Playtime: 60-120 Minutes Review copy supplied free of charge by Asmodee UK Jesus Christ, I have absolutely no idea where to even start with Lisboa, the latest table-hogging, mind-destroying eurogame from the highly respected Vital Lacerda. I’ve reviewed one game from Vital previously and utterly adored its lavish production values and stellar gameplay, but damn was it hard to review simply due to the way every mechanic tied to everything else. To explain one thing meant having to digress into about a billion other things before stumbling back to the original topic like a drunk emerging from a pub lock-in. It was confusing. Lisboa is just as complex and tricky to discuss, so please forgive me as I muddle through talking about Lacerda’s latest attempt to turn my already worryingly overheating brain into a melting pot of pink goo. The entire game is based around Lisbon, which is actually Lacerda’s hometown an...

The Best PC Game of All Time

Search This Blog