Week 10

   I wrapped up on Super Mario Galaxy 2 then, and as I said last week, it was great. The truth is, after last week, I only had the very last level still to do, but i figured it might take a while, because final bosses and so on, but I was done in about 20 minutes. Not that I want to complain about it too easy after saying last week that I didn't want to have to face bosses 50 different times before I could beat them, it's just that facing Bowser/ King Koopa was always the same fight, running around a planetoid while he tries to punch you and you had to stamp on rocks at him, except every time you faced him, something new would be added to it, but it was pretty samey after the second one, so I figured that the 3rd (and final) time you faced him (you only face him in alternate worlds, with Koopalings in between), something different would happen, but it didn't. Still, the rest of the level was good, and the game as a whole.

  I am aware that, that makes 11 games completed, and leaves just one to reach my goal, however, I started playing 2 games simultaneously, so I guess I'm going for more than 12 now. So, first I went with World of Goo, i game I picked up on a Steam sale a long time ago, but had never started before. So, basically, it's a puzzler where you have to cross bridges and such by attaching goo together. That's a terrible description, so:

   I hope that helps. Anyway, it's another great looking game, and with a great soundtrack (though I'd be lying if I didn't admit that when I've been playing mostly I've had Pointless on the TV as well (but that's the beauty with a puzzle game with no time limit, you can just put on something else to the side, and if your concentration slips, it doesn't matter)). I get reminded of Rayman Origins a lot, because the noises that the Goo's make could come straight from that game, except for the fact that World of Goo was out 3 years earlier (however, 13 years after the original Rayman, but I never played any of those ones to know if those sounds were included). It kind of has a similar aesthetic to Origins too with a beautiful cell shaded look (kind of like Archer), an yet with some changing of environments, like night time an underground.

   There is a lot more to come for me from this, I've only finished 2 of the 5 worlds, so I expect lots of good challenges to come. The only problem I've had so far is picking up the wrong Goo when they're all gathered around, and you end up wasting a one use goo, rather than a re-usable one that would help me rescue another Goo.

   So, what's the other game then, I hear no one ask? Well, it's another game I got for free (assuming that I'd pay for XBL Gold anyway (which I would)) and it's Hitman: Absolution. I've never really played a hit man game before, aside from what came on PS2 demo discs with the Official UK Playstation magazine (if that's what it was called), but I had an idea what it was about (it's kinda in the title). You play a hitman, and you have to take out your targets, ideally stealthily (well, that's the theory, when I'm playing though...).

   I'm not sure how much story has played in to the past, but this time around you're not completing hits for cash of government upheaval (don't know if that was ever a Hitman thing, just seemed like a reliable videogame trope) or whatever, but to clear your own name because you're organisation has been corrupted and turned against you. Hell, in the first mission you have to take out your handler of all these years (the one that's been giving you jobs and such) and get outta dodge, which might have been impactful had I ever played others in the series. I do get the feeling like the story isn't really there for me, and that I'm missing a lot of what's supposed to be happening, but I'm hopeful I'll figure out what's going on at some point.

   

   I must say though, I'm not overly enthralled by this one. Don't get me wrong, it's not Mafia 2, but it's not great. It's mostly smaller bits, like the knife, which just seems to be an easy way to take out your target, throw a knife, walk away, it's worked every time for me so far. There's also a lot of escaping, through multiple different areas after you've finished the assignment, sure, I could understand having to get out of the area your in, but when you appear in an area for a kill, then once it's done you have to traverse through 3 or 4 more to escape that you just bypassed on the way in, well, it annoys me. Checkpoints, save the location you have gotten to, but not what you've done, so if you had taken a guard out before you saved at the checkpoint, he'll be back if you respawn. Also, I don't like his voice, I don't know whether it's always sounded like that or not, but I was expecting more of a Solid Snake gruff voice rather than the almost nasally one he does, it just doesn't fit the character right for me.

   What's annoying me most though is the plot holes, there's more than in Red Dwarf! How come I finished a mission in a costume I 'borrowed' (see killed and stole), but by the cut scene I was back in the usual suit, an, instead of leaving in the ice cream truck I entered the mission in, I took a car, and the ice cream van had completely gone. And how come you can wear hats whilst crawling through vents? They could at least add an animation where he carries it instead or something? Right? Okay, rant over, as I said, it's not that bad, hopefully it'll pick up (oh no, I said that about Mafia 2).

No Grid 2

Completed:
                 Mark of the Ninja
                 Donkey Kong country: Tropical Freeze
                 Crimson Dragon
                 Toy soldiers cold war
                Metro: last light
                South Park the stick of truth
                Titanfall
                Brothers: a tale of two sons
                Metal gear solid V: Ground Zeroes
                Mafia 2
               Super Mario Galaxy 2

                

Underway: 

                 World of Goo

                Hitman Absolution

Week 9

   It's over! That's right, no more Mafia 2, ever, it's finally finished. Praise be! To be fair, the ending actually got pretty interesting and I played the last 3 chapters straight through (perhaps more to just have it out of the way than any enjoyment based reason, but nevertheless, I can't have been hating it (right?)). The story got good, the gameplay was still the same, but there wasn't a 2 hour long stand off with one checkpoint 5 mins from the end like I expected, so maybe it set my expectations so low that the ending only could be better (clever boys).
   Spoiler for the ending. Joe dies! But it happens off screen and is right at the end of the game, so it means nothing! Yeah, he's your friend and he's dead, but then the games over, there's no reaction time or anything, I couldn't have cared less. If anything, I was glad for Vito not having to drive to his apartment again. Plus, he did this whole turning on you thing, but you could have seen it coming from a mile away, but then Vito talked him back around, which you could have seen from the same mile away.

   On the plus side, pretty much every character in the game wounded up dead, friend or foe (see Falcone above). At least it's over now, and I need never think of it again.

   So, the other game I've played was Mario Galaxy 2. I've already talked about this a bit during my 50 greatest games of all time when talking about the first one. I loved the first game, but by the time the sequel was out, my Wii had long gone, but when I got a Wii U I figured it was time to give it a shot. I was very disappointed (at the time), it seemed like it was full of hand holding and repetition from the original, even though many reviewers had claimed this was the greatest 3D platformer of all time.
   Well, I don't know what I was talking about,  fired it back up, and it's great. Maybe it's because I've played a more traditional 3D mario game in between in Super Mario 3D world that made 2 seem so innovative again, whereas playing it without an alternate 3D Mario break made it just seem like more of the same from the original (despite the 6 year break I had between playing them), who knows? Point it, it's great.
   First things first, when I started this (9 weeks ago) I said that if I were to play any games that I'd played before and never finished, then I would start from the start. I also said that I would tell you of any shortcuts that I took. Well, it's pretty obvious then, that I loaded up my old save and carried on, I was about 1/3 of the way in, but, in my defence there is a lot of backtracking to go and get extra power stars. Whilst on the subject, I hate backtracking, I always have, in many of the extra stars instances it's like a second level of the same world (or however you want to put it), but in some you have to progress through the same level until some slight difference at the end, and this annoys me. Thankfully, many of the levels I hadn't played for over a year (the last time I played this game and the save I loaded from) so I didn't mind re-doing those, and it kind of feels like a fitting punishment for going back on my word of starting every game over as well.
   So, the basics is it's a 3D mario game, set in space, where you go around galaxies collecting power stars by planetoid hopping. It's exceedingly inventive (just like the first) which leads to some brilliant play. There's levels that have just tiny planetoids you're jumping between, some with rhythm challenges, some with giant enemies, time slowing, gravity switching and many, many more (maybe I should've written down a list (or maybe I could turn the console on now for 5 minutes and have a look...)).

   It does add something that I'm very fond of that I much criticised when talking about Donkey Kong country: Tropical freeze, which is easy(ish) bosses. Not so easy that you can just roll up and do them first time without taking any damage, but not so hard as it takes you 30 lives to get past them. They some more interested in making the bosses fun and different than hard, which is definitely right up my alley. Especially when I was taken to fight a monster in a sandy pit, but it turned out not to be the Sarlak. I'm definitely not one to play videogames for frustration, as a controller will be broken (probably on about 30/40 in my lifetime (and it's an expensive way to deal with anger)). One thing that can be frustrating though is the control on the nun chuck, and with the camera control, which isn't great. The camera is only controlled by the D pad, so you can only get a 1 in 4 option on view, and the thumb stick on the nun chuck is very loose (control wise). Still, it's not too bad, and even though at times it can frustrate, so long as you're paying attention, you should be fine.
   Well, as I've not finished it yet, I'll need to save something for next week (needless to say no Grid 2), I've just got to think what I want to play next week now, seeing as there's nothing new out that is interesting me until Watchdogs (6 weeks away), I guess I'll just keep going through the games I already own and haven't played / PS plus/ games with gold games that I wont have to pay any more money for.

Completed:
                 Mark of the Ninja
                 Donkey Kong country: Tropical Freeze
                 Crimson Dragon
                 Toy soldiers cold war
                Metro: last light
                South Park the stick of truth
                Titanfall
                Brothers: a tale of two sons
                Metal gear solid V: Ground Zeroes
                 Mafia 2

Underway:
               Super Mario Galaxy 2
             


               Grid 2

Week 8

   Well, Mafia 2 has certainly slowed me down, it's a second successive week without completing the game and the reason is that Mafia 2 is bad. I'm just not having fun at all, and I'm treating it more as a chore sitting down for about an hour a night to do one more chapter until it's done. Thankfully, I'm nearly at the end now, yet you may ask yourself, why am I still playing this? The honest answer is that I'm not sure, I guess I started, assumed it would pick up (you see, there's a 6 year time jump about a third of the way in to the game and I kept thinking (for a reason that no longer makes any sense to me) that it would pick up after that, of course, it hasn't) and I'd enjoy it more. Don't get me wrong, the story's fine, I don't hate it, but it's certainly not enthralling. The main problem is that it just seems so outdated. It released in 2010, but seems more like something you'd expect from a PS2 game, circa 2003. Obviously, that's only in the gameplay areas though, graphically and in reach it's bigger than that, but the gameplay is diabolical.
   Somehow, this game has gotten mostly positive fan reviews on metacritic (although many of their 'reviews' are defending against criticisms from media outlets, so I know I'm not totally alone in my thoughts) and I don't believe that games have come so far in 4 years. There's so much time spent doing menial stuff, like driving between locations to start missions, and this has enough annoyance attached to it anyway. As I said last week, if you speed past a cop car, you'll get chased (it's easy to lose them mind you) and if you have a passenger they'll start complaining about your reckless driving. I tell you, it's like my driving test all over again, just because I ignore all red lights, go as fast as possible and run over pedestrian who are in the way of me saving half a second around a corner is no need to fail me. Not only that, the handling is poor, sure, it could be blamed on old timey 1950's cars, but the stopping distance of these cars is massive, if you've hit about 80 mphs, you'd better be prepared to start braking about 5 junctions before the one you need to turn, else you'll be flying past. Also, it seems like half of your time is spent driving to and from Joe's (your partner in crime (literally)). I barely know any of the map except about 8 roads that are all around his flat which i could traverse with my eyes closed because it seems to be the only location in the game sometimes. Then there's the checkpoints, which are ridiculously far apart, and I'm not just talking for shooting and car chases and the like. Just travelling between locations is a nightmare. You see, if you go head on in to a ;pillar or oncoming traffic at significant speed, then you'll die (to any none gamers Reading this you probably think that's a ridiculously obvious statement, but gamers will know that, that kind of stuff shouldn't kill you), and if you're in the part of the chapter where you inevitably have to drive between 5 places to pick someone/something up, you'll always have to go right back to the start, even if you've made 3 or 4 stops already, an sit through the same in car 'banter' and moaning about your driving abilities. Yes, there's nearly been many a smashed controller whilst playing this game. On the plus side though, the music on the radio is better in the 50's, an you can personalise your number plate, so make sure you come up with some 6 letter gags before you start.

   There also seems to be quite a few bugs as well, I've had cutscenes where one character wouldn't say their lines, another where they would disappear, and several frustrating instances where you park your car outside of a location, go in to see someone, come out, and the car was gone, so then you end up having to nick some total piece of crap car because there's inevitably nothing anywhere near as good as what you left parked outside anywhere to be found. There was also mention of a wire tap, did they have those is the 50's? if so, where's McNulty? plus, one of the guards in prison asked me to do something with 'would you kindly', so where's Fontaine? I'm begging to think there isn't going to be a Bioshock or The Wire crossover in this game at all!

   However, it's not the only thing that I've been playing this week, as The wolf among us, episode 3, 'a crooked mile' also came out. I think I've touched on this game series before, but if not, then a basic overview is that it's made by telltale games, and done very much in the same style as the Walking dead (cell shaded, interactive story style, terrible animation etc.) except it's set on the 'Fables'  comic book series instead of the Walking dead (but it can't be called fables due to the pre-existing videogame series 'Fable' (also, as with the walking dead, it's an episode and not a full game so wont count towards the completed tally)). Got it? Good.

   So, I couldn't remember the ending of episode 2 at all, and when I did get shown what it was, it didn't jog my memory at all. In fact, I could hardly remember anything from episode 2, although I remember episode 1 almost perfectly. It's hard to really talk about a game that's nearly fully story focused without spoiling it (especially when you're already half way in), so I'll keep it light. You're deep in the middle of a murder investigation, and you finally have a suspect, you spend the majority of this episode attempting to track the suspect, but when you do find him, plot twist!

   Just remember. don't trust the B in apartment 23.

Hopefully by this time next week I'll have finished Mafia 2, if not and there's no post next week, just assume I've killed myself out of boredom. No Grid 2 btw.

Completed:

                 Mark of the Ninja

                 Donkey Kong country: Tropical freeze

                 Crimson Dragon

                 Toy Soldiers: Cold war

                 Metro: Last light

                 South Park the stick of truth

                 Titanfall

                 Brothers: a tale of two sons

                Metal Gear solid V: ground zeroes

Underway: 

                Mafia 2

                Grid 2 

Week 7

   So, the big month of March (for gaming) has come to an end, as well as all the games I've rattled on about here, there's been other big releases too, Infamous: Second son, the big PS4 system selling exclusive (supposedly) dropped this month to race reviews (I'd have liked to have played it, but I'm not buying a PS4 for one game) as well as Dark Souls 2, which, if I wasn't so easily annoyed, I'd probably have had a go at as well, but I know damn well that if I play a Dark souls/ Demon souls game then the controller will be through the TV screen in about an hour, so best give it a miss. There was just time for one more thing for me to play (it was DLC though, so won't count towards the tally (not gonna stop me going on about it though)) which is Bioshock Infinite, Burial at sea episode 2
   I've spoke before about my love of the main game, and episode one (of the DLC) was pretty disappointing, but episode 2 turned the heat back up, and was awesome. You're playing as Elizabeth now, and back in Rapture (the setting of the first 2 Bioshocks (though episode 1 also took place there)), which makes for some interesting changes to the gameplay experienced in Infinite so far. The gameplay came in for a lot of criticism throughout the main game, which is understandable as it had one of the greatest gamimg stories ever, but merely passable FPS mechanics, but hats off to Irrational (for one last time) because they've obviously took the criticism and changed it up, your health bar has been cut in half, you can't take on a Big daddy, and the only way you can melee someone down is if they do not see you. So, it's stealth basically, and they give you the tools to do it with. There's a nice crossbow for silent kills, a plasmid that lets you turn invisible and see through walls, and plenty of hiding spots for sneaking in.

   So, the start is exceedingly weird, and yet kind of awesome, it's like walking through an early Disney movie, hell, there's even cats in it (Okay, they look like monsters (unintentionally, I think maybe Ground zeroes spoiled me for graphics and this is just what they were always like on what is now last gen (urgh I've become such a graphics snob already)), but exciting none the less)! Then it's back to the meat and potatoes of Rapture (and no, that wasn't a xenophobic comment against Atlas) and the main story, that has you trying to save a little sister, but having to do a lot of things that you don't like (well, Elizabeth doesn't anyway). There's a lot of fetch quests, but it doesn't really make it boring in any way as there's always more to see and do, with logs to pick up and listen too, interesting bits around the scenery to investigate and an engaging story. I don't want to spoil it too much, and it really is great, except for one section, that comes back from Metro last light, where you suddenly get charged at and attacked in a small room by waves of enemies, going completely against the rest of the game, and it annoyed the hell out of me (there was nearly a broken controller). Other than that though, brilliant.

   But it wasn't the only thing I've had a go at this week, as I turned to PS Plus again and started on Mafia 2. It's a GTA style game, set in the roaring 40's in an Italian suburb in America (New York I think, but don't quote me on that). I don't want to go in to it too much as I'm only about a third of the way in, and there'll be more on it next week, I'll just say that it's a little rough around the edges, and it did a very interesting way of giving you a tutorial, setting it in WW2 where your character got sent to for robbing shop and then just standing there. 

   I'd have to say so far, there's a lot of things that are bugging me, like the old Driver problem, where if you speed past a cop, you will get chased, which is a pain in the arse. There is a handy speed restricter though that stops your car going past the speed limit, but I don't play a game to enjoy the drive between mission starts, let's just get it going. Especially when all you can get on the radio is 40's music, which is definitely not my bag. Fortunately though (given the situation) the cops are stupid, and very easy to lose. The collectibles are old Playboy magazines though, which s kinda funny (collecatalol's?). More next week on this though,

so.

Completed: Mark of the ninja

                  Donkey Kong country tropical freeze

                 Crimson dragon

                 Toy Soldiers: Cold war

                 Metro: Last light

                 South Park the stick of truth

                 Titanfall

                 Brothers, a tale of two sons

                 Metal Gear solid V: Ground zeroes

Underway: Mafia 2

                  Grid 2