Ben-DutkaSorry, I think I forgot about the last Week in Review; I've been pretty busy lately. 🙂 Anyway, Happy July 4th Weekend!
Might have to get that Bioshock Collection…
Though I may not replay any of the games, I always like the idea of having collections of some of my favorite franchises. And as the Bioshock series is undoubtedly one of my all-time favorite IPs, the recently announced compilation should end up in my library.
I don't remember the original so well these days, but I do recall the sequel and the last entry without much problem. Bioshock 2 was wonderfully atmospheric and challenging; it tasked you with understanding your foes and your environment, perhaps better than any other game at the time. And the blend of FPS and RPG elements was just awesome. Bioshock Infinite was a perfect progression, giving us a slightly more open – yet still wonderfully tantalizing – landscape, another excellent story with memorable characters, and one of the best combat mechanics of the recent generation. Again, balancing the "magic" aspect (your Plasmids) with the regular firearms infused the game with a depth and style totally unique to this franchise.
It annoys me that Ken Levine has moved on to other things and this IP is sorta left to languish. Or is he actually working on a new Bioshock , and it just isn't a regular entry for consoles, or something…? I think this was confirmed a while ago but I don't remember now…
Why should Capcom shy away from the "ghost story" label with Resident Evil 7?
Come on, guys. Looks like you're finally making a Resident Evil survival/horror fans have always wanted, and it's precisely because you're re-embracing the "ghost story" vibe of the original games. I know RE is supposed to be more about zombies and freaky demons and monsters as opposed to supernatural elements, but so what? To me, "ghost story" could mean just about anything, and it almost invariably focuses on Hitchcockian thrills and chills as opposed to simple shock value brought on by gore and titillation. Therefore, I don't think the Capcom bosses should be so quick to dismiss the "ghost story" concept , because I believe a lot of long-time franchise followers really love it. Hell, Silent Hill was very much a "ghost story" (at least with certain segments of each story), and that's what made those adventures so spine-tinglingly great.
Of course, we'll still need to see some actual gameplay before I get all excited. I imagine long-time fans are in the same boat…
Well, I would HOPE the PS4 Neo and PS4 Slim would be the last console upgrades for the generation
Still don't know if I like the idea of either upgrade at this point, but I wasn't surprised at all to hear Sony confirm that both new systems would be the last in the cycle . I know Microsoft revealed the Xbox Scorpio at E3 but did Sony say anything about Neo or the Slim? Do we know about the specs for either? I mean, let's say they both come out this holiday season…why should I buy one or the other? Is the PS4 Slim basically just a more efficient version of the current PS4 with a larger hard drive? I have to assume it's not the Neo, which is just going to be significantly more powerful and obviously, more expensive. In other words, my current PS4 will be outdated when compared to either new console, correct? See, that's my problem.
It's not a huge deal but I just wish the manufacturers had stuck with their consoles a bit longer. Not Nintendo, though; they desperately need that NX or whatever it is because the Wii U was a joke from the start.
Personal gaming update
I'm almost done with Mirror's Edge Catalyst . It's not a great game but it's still fun, despite the immensely frustrating extras. The free-running is actually great; I just wish they hadn't decided to make everything timed. The only respite I have from the clock is when I'm trying to find the collectibles scattered around the map or attempting to scale and hack one of those billboards. Well, there are three Grid Nodes you have to bypass to open up different Safe Houses on the map, and those are all about a platforming puzzle, though they're not especially difficult. By the way, I have a digital code for Catalyst ; if anyone wants it, just email me.
When I'm done, I plan to start the Blood and Wine expansion for The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt , which is my second favorite game of the generation behind Uncharted 4: A Thief's End . Problem is, the latter title is just so superior to everything else right now that whenever I play another game, I feel spoiled. It's like, "yeah, it's fun but it's no Uncharted ." 😛 Oh, and I know the new Star Ocean is out but unsurprisingly, it's not really scoring all that well. I usually ignore JRPG reviews from main sources for obvious reasons, but even trusted sources for that genre say the game isn't very good. Nah, I'll just wait for I Am Setsuna , which isn't far off now. 🙂
I've only played about half of the original Bioshock. From what I've played I know the franchise is worth it's time. Once these games receive their PC-side updates I'll continue where I left off.
Had the PS4 Neo and Xbox One S been the only refreshers this gen I'd believe we'd see another full-fledged platform lift off in the coming years.
It's the Scorpio though that gives me cause for doubt. The power of that hardware appears to be closer to next-gen than it is current gen and it's blurring of generational lines is just asking for even more cross-generational developed titles.
We'll see how things turn out but things are looking really fragmented going forward for traditional hard-resets of gaming platforms.
The Xbox One S btw is a good value. An UHD-Blu Ray player, with 4k streaming, and HDR support is actually a great value for $300. The hardware is a nice improvement over the standard XO. It now has an enhanced controller, and internalized power brick. I won't be surprised if MS gains some state-side ground with it going into the holidays.
I hope Sony gets their Neo news out soon.
PGU: I finished Metro Last Light. Thought it was great. I moved onto restarting Darksiders 2, now playing the Deathfinitive edition. I just felt compelled to come back to it. So I did.
Last edited by Temjin001 on 7/2/2016 10:54:31 PM
There's really nothing they can do for the PC updates is there?
World, Bioshock 1 & 2 could get some cleaner visuals. They arent bad, but could always be better.
Last edited by wackazoa on 7/5/2016 11:00:31 AM
the whole series is amazing.
bioshock is one of the best games ever made. i will never forget it. bioshock 2 wasnt as good, because it felt like they rushed it for the sake of releasing it. infinite was another gem. the story with elizabeth from infinite had me balllling at the end. it made me cry due to the story being very similar to my life. #lesigh
i will def be picking this up for the ps4 and cant wait
You must have had some kind of life meng
I got a Sega Saturn! I sold mine back in the day when Sony surprised me and had good games and got Final Fantasy, I was skeptical because who the heck thought they could compete with someone like Sega or Nintendo at a time when those were the names? So now I'm playing Panzer Dragoon Saga and others. Checking out the wild and fun confusion that IS the 32-bit era and kind of seeing how we are ACTUALLY inside of our own wild 32-bit confusion era right now in my opinion.
I got Star Ocean 5. The scores are modest because it lacks the finesse of modern games and hasn't been updated functionally from the time of The Last Hope International and in some respects could be considered a little rushed. But realistically from a Japanese game enjoyer's standpoint, Other than it taking forever for the battle system to pick up skills and moves to make it interesting it's still clearly far above anything that I can see Final Fantasy XV is going to be just for being an authentic Action JRPG trip that doesn't compromise its identity due to confusion about what kind of world or battle system the public wants, doesn't outlaw females, keeps a solid frame rate and gorgeous character models, even has good English voicework this time if you want it, stays an RPG, etc.
It's more straightforward than previous entries, although there are plenty of side quests, but I find that straightforward storytelling and city to city world to world questing refreshing. It's like, for Gods sake every damn game is so open ended and your main quest is typically only roughly as important as your side quests these days so there's hardly a story going on any more, and there's so much focus on getting you lost in some massive land full of crap you don't need that it's made us all forget what we sat down to do.
It's really time to start getting away from these great big worlds and focus on telling great stories. Then have a nice big world as a stage. Yes we will need our Fallouts and GTA's but if you look at a Final Fantasy you don't need that game to have a real time post apocalyptic world that's that huge just to say you ran across it. The classics like FFVII were big but you really were funneled from town to town across the world with the option to use a world map to go back and explore areas. Give me areas, not massive endless worthless dumpsites for a lack of imagination. Even Phantom Pain suffered from that.
Last edited by WorldEndsWithMe on 7/3/2016 1:34:57 AM
Saturn, havent seen one of those in forever.
"It's thinking!" We (me and my brother) went from Sega Genesis (along with CD and 32X) straight to PS1. Always wanted to know if the Saturn was any good. Hope your having fun.
Coincidentally, not to long ago we were cleaning out the garage at my parents, and I found an old Atari and my cache of old PS1 and PS2 games. Tried out the Atari but it wouldnt work, and I didnt have a PS2 to be able to play any of the old games. 🙁 I might have to go get me a PS2 now though. I know most people look at the old stuff as garbage now, but I like to play with it when I can. Makes me remember the fun of the past, but also amazed at how far the tech has come! 🙂
Last edited by wackazoa on 7/5/2016 11:08:16 AM
Its been a long time Psextreme. I haven't checked this site out in a month. Been busy gaming and not caring about other people opinions on games. Frankly as of last month i haven't cared about a single review score and it felt great. For now on i am buying games without reading some dudes opinion.
PGU: Been on a Mars theme kick lately. Got the technomancer day one and its a good game. I am really enjoying it. Besides the technomancer. Im also playing a oldey but a goody in Red Faction Guerrilla. How i miss the Red Faction games.Happy Gaming all.
UC4 is great and all and pretty much warrants a purchase, but it doesn't put W3 to shame at all as far as pacing and storytelling. But UC4 is definitely a great example of what linear gaming use to be not too long ago.
I bought the GOW3 remaster yesterday and I am having a blast. No sidemissiom crap. No pointless open area. Just pure straight forward cinematic action with a mythological story. GOW3 definitely aged well. This game looks great on the PS4.
Anyway, W3 can only hope to achieve what GOW3 and UC on an lineae action scale, but W3 shows what great stories can be like in an open world setting. The new is expansion is freaking AWESOME.
And I'll be buying the Bio collection for mainly the same reason as you. Though I will play most of it eventually.
PGU:
Finally sat down with the legendary GTAV. Trying my hardest to blast through it before going to the snow.
I'm about halfway through my second run of Catalyst and couldn't disagree more (I know, you're surprised, right?). I think the game is fantastic, and the timer on side missions and dashes doesn't bother me because I didn't really start on them until I'd fully upgraded my movement options. I'm currently in the top 3% for Birdman's Route, feeling pretty good about that.
Of course, I played the shiiiiiiit out of the first Mirror's Edge, like more than a rational human being probably should, so I'm probably both A) a little more biased and B) a lot more practiced at the mechanics than the average player. I can understand Catalyst not being everyone's bag, but for me it's GOTY so far.
DOOM and Overwatch are both up there, too, though. So far this is a pretty good year for games.
the whole series is amazing.
bioshock is one of the best games ever made. i will never forget it. bioshock 2 wasnt as good, because it felt like they rushed it for the sake of releasing it. infinite was another gem. the story with elizabeth from infinite had me balllling at the end. it made me cry due to the story being very similar to my life. #lesigh
i will def be picking this up for the ps4 and cant wait
You must have had some kind of life meng
I've only played about half of the original Bioshock. From what I've played I know the franchise is worth it's time. Once these games receive their PC-side updates I'll continue where I left off.
Had the PS4 Neo and Xbox One S been the only refreshers this gen I'd believe we'd see another full-fledged platform lift off in the coming years.
It's the Scorpio though that gives me cause for doubt. The power of that hardware appears to be closer to next-gen than it is current gen and it's blurring of generational lines is just asking for even more cross-generational developed titles.
We'll see how things turn out but things are looking really fragmented going forward for traditional hard-resets of gaming platforms.
The Xbox One S btw is a good value. An UHD-Blu Ray player, with 4k streaming, and HDR support is actually a great value for $300. The hardware is a nice improvement over the standard XO. It now has an enhanced controller, and internalized power brick. I won't be surprised if MS gains some state-side ground with it going into the holidays.
I hope Sony gets their Neo news out soon.
PGU: I finished Metro Last Light. Thought it was great. I moved onto restarting Darksiders 2, now playing the Deathfinitive edition. I just felt compelled to come back to it. So I did.
Last edited by Temjin001 on 7/2/2016 10:54:31 PM
I've only played about half of the original Bioshock. From what I've played I know the franchise is worth it's time. Once these games receive their PC-side updates I'll continue where I left off.
Had the PS4 Neo and Xbox One S been the only refreshers this gen I'd believe we'd see another full-fledged platform lift off in the coming years.
It's the Scorpio though that gives me cause for doubt. The power of that hardware appears to be closer to next-gen than it is current gen and it's blurring of generational lines is just asking for even more cross-generational developed titles.
We'll see how things turn out but things are looking really fragmented going forward for traditional hard-resets of gaming platforms.
The Xbox One S btw is a good value. An UHD-Blu Ray player, with 4k streaming, and HDR support is actually a great value for $300. The hardware is a nice improvement over the standard XO. It now has an enhanced controller, and internalized power brick. I won't be surprised if MS gains some state-side ground with it going into the holidays.
I hope Sony gets their Neo news out soon.
PGU: I finished Metro Last Light. Thought it was great. I moved onto restarting Darksiders 2, now playing the Deathfinitive edition. I just felt compelled to come back to it. So I did.
Last edited by Temjin001 on 7/2/2016 10:54:31 PM
There's really nothing they can do for the PC updates is there?
World, Bioshock 1 & 2 could get some cleaner visuals. They arent bad, but could always be better.
Last edited by wackazoa on 7/5/2016 11:00:31 AM
I got a Sega Saturn! I sold mine back in the day when Sony surprised me and had good games and got Final Fantasy, I was skeptical because who the heck thought they could compete with someone like Sega or Nintendo at a time when those were the names? So now I'm playing Panzer Dragoon Saga and others. Checking out the wild and fun confusion that IS the 32-bit era and kind of seeing how we are ACTUALLY inside of our own wild 32-bit confusion era right now in my opinion.
I got Star Ocean 5. The scores are modest because it lacks the finesse of modern games and hasn't been updated functionally from the time of The Last Hope International and in some respects could be considered a little rushed. But realistically from a Japanese game enjoyer's standpoint, Other than it taking forever for the battle system to pick up skills and moves to make it interesting it's still clearly far above anything that I can see Final Fantasy XV is going to be just for being an authentic Action JRPG trip that doesn't compromise its identity due to confusion about what kind of world or battle system the public wants, doesn't outlaw females, keeps a solid frame rate and gorgeous character models, even has good English voicework this time if you want it, stays an RPG, etc.
It's more straightforward than previous entries, although there are plenty of side quests, but I find that straightforward storytelling and city to city world to world questing refreshing. It's like, for Gods sake every damn game is so open ended and your main quest is typically only roughly as important as your side quests these days so there's hardly a story going on any more, and there's so much focus on getting you lost in some massive land full of crap you don't need that it's made us all forget what we sat down to do.
It's really time to start getting away from these great big worlds and focus on telling great stories. Then have a nice big world as a stage. Yes we will need our Fallouts and GTA's but if you look at a Final Fantasy you don't need that game to have a real time post apocalyptic world that's that huge just to say you ran across it. The classics like FFVII were big but you really were funneled from town to town across the world with the option to use a world map to go back and explore areas. Give me areas, not massive endless worthless dumpsites for a lack of imagination. Even Phantom Pain suffered from that.
Last edited by WorldEndsWithMe on 7/3/2016 1:34:57 AM
the whole series is amazing.
bioshock is one of the best games ever made. i will never forget it. bioshock 2 wasnt as good, because it felt like they rushed it for the sake of releasing it. infinite was another gem. the story with elizabeth from infinite had me balllling at the end. it made me cry due to the story being very similar to my life. #lesigh
i will def be picking this up for the ps4 and cant wait
You must have had some kind of life meng
Its been a long time Psextreme. I haven't checked this site out in a month. Been busy gaming and not caring about other people opinions on games. Frankly as of last month i haven't cared about a single review score and it felt great. For now on i am buying games without reading some dudes opinion.
PGU: Been on a Mars theme kick lately. Got the technomancer day one and its a good game. I am really enjoying it. Besides the technomancer. Im also playing a oldey but a goody in Red Faction Guerrilla. How i miss the Red Faction games.Happy Gaming all.
UC4 is great and all and pretty much warrants a purchase, but it doesn't put W3 to shame at all as far as pacing and storytelling. But UC4 is definitely a great example of what linear gaming use to be not too long ago.
I bought the GOW3 remaster yesterday and I am having a blast. No sidemissiom crap. No pointless open area. Just pure straight forward cinematic action with a mythological story. GOW3 definitely aged well. This game looks great on the PS4.
Anyway, W3 can only hope to achieve what GOW3 and UC on an lineae action scale, but W3 shows what great stories can be like in an open world setting. The new is expansion is freaking AWESOME.
And I'll be buying the Bio collection for mainly the same reason as you. Though I will play most of it eventually.
PGU:
Finally sat down with the legendary GTAV. Trying my hardest to blast through it before going to the snow.
Saturn, havent seen one of those in forever.
"It's thinking!" We (me and my brother) went from Sega Genesis (along with CD and 32X) straight to PS1. Always wanted to know if the Saturn was any good. Hope your having fun.
Coincidentally, not to long ago we were cleaning out the garage at my parents, and I found an old Atari and my cache of old PS1 and PS2 games. Tried out the Atari but it wouldnt work, and I didnt have a PS2 to be able to play any of the old games. 🙁 I might have to go get me a PS2 now though. I know most people look at the old stuff as garbage now, but I like to play with it when I can. Makes me remember the fun of the past, but also amazed at how far the tech has come! 🙂
Last edited by wackazoa on 7/5/2016 11:08:16 AM
I'm about halfway through my second run of Catalyst and couldn't disagree more (I know, you're surprised, right?). I think the game is fantastic, and the timer on side missions and dashes doesn't bother me because I didn't really start on them until I'd fully upgraded my movement options. I'm currently in the top 3% for Birdman's Route, feeling pretty good about that.
Of course, I played the shiiiiiiit out of the first Mirror's Edge, like more than a rational human being probably should, so I'm probably both A) a little more biased and B) a lot more practiced at the mechanics than the average player. I can understand Catalyst not being everyone's bag, but for me it's GOTY so far.
DOOM and Overwatch are both up there, too, though. So far this is a pretty good year for games.