It's hard to believe it has been so long, but I haven't blogged since May of last year! Not that I didn't like this site or that I stopped playing video games, I just have felt really critical of my writing skills and have had no urge to write whatsoever. Perhaps partly because I am playing more games right now than I have in years (but mostly because I can't sleep at the moment), I finally have a new blog!
Anyway, not a lot to report on the personal front. Things seem the same as it probably was last time I blogged. It should come as no surprise that I got an Xbox One in my absence though! Lets get to the games I have been playing.
Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain
This one is looking like Game of the Year for me. Which makes me more ashamed that I haven't actually beat it (after 58 hours of play). I made it up to Mission 47, but the difficulty really got on my nerves. I might go back to it eventually, but right now I am really satisfied with the experience I got and I don't want to spoil that.
Halo 5: Guardians
Wow, this game is beautiful. This might be the first game I have played that looks "next-gen." That said, I don't have a ton of experience on other modern games. Before a few months ago, my Xbox One was mostly a console for replaying the old Halo games on the Master Chief Collection and watching Blu-rays. The single-player so far may be one of my favorites in the series too! Jury is still out on the pretty limited multiplayer though. Regardless, I'm happy with this game.
Ultimate NES Remix
I have been on a 3DS kick recently and this game has been an absolute blast. It's basically a massive collection of challenges for every major Nintendo-made NES game. It's just a huge thrill to unlock stuff, tackle a tough challenge and revisit some of these games I have forgotten.
Rare Replay
Speaking of collections, I was also pretty addicted to Rare Replay not too long ago. I put at least 100 hours into about 25 of these games (there's still some I haven't played). The collection has a ton of stinkers but they all were worth my time thanks to all the bells and whistles Rare added on the game. Surprisingly, my favorite game in the collection might either Kameo or Jetpac (the oldest game on the disc). Perfect Dark Zero multiplayer bots are also actually really fun!
That about covers every major game I've played lately. Hope everyone else is doing great. I'll try to comment on your blogs... that is if everyone is still around!
Good to hear from you. It's really been over a year? Wow.
I have Rare Replay. I got it before I got a Xbox One. I may play it Sunday, but I also have a bunch of games I previously downloaded with Games With Gold for Xbox One, so we'll see. It'll just be fun to hook it up and check out the dashboard. I'm really excited for screen shot shares and playing around with Twitch streaming. Oh yea, and saving gameplay highlights.
Rare Replay is a backlog in itself. Best wait for that one. That reminds me, I haven't really checked out Xbox One's new features very much.
I watched a bunch of video clips and screen shots from friends today. Love that.
I friended you there too. Or, it says I'm following you now. It doesn't seem to send a friend request like on Xbox 360. Maybe I did something wrong though.
Yeah, it's a bit different but you did it right. Both people have to add as friend.
Man, I remember playing Jetpac via the arcade cabinet in DK64. Hard to believe Rare was around that long before their epic partnership with Nintendo and move to Microsoft.
I need a 3DS.
Halo 5 is first next-gen looking game, but you have MGSV? It really looks that much better than MGSV? Wow.
I still only have the free demo (Ground Zeroes) of MGSV.
I miss arcade cabinets.
I considered MGSV to be next-gen, but then I remembered Ground Zeroes looks nearly identical on PS3 and Xbox One. Halo 5 has lots of impressive lighting and loads more detail, IMO. Get going on Phantom Pain though. Even if you haven't played the other Metal Gears, you'll enjoy it and get most of the story.
Wonder if it looks the same on PS3 and XBO but not PS3 and PS4. Gonna be a fanboy and say PS4 looks better. Yup. Way better. 
You are not wrong. I hear the Xbox One version is 720p while PS4 is 1080p. Not that I can tell the difference in reality!
Good to see you back man. Agree on MGSV despite its flaws, but not gonna lie: I hated Halo 5. I feellike gaming lost something it may never get back after playing.
Good to be back. That's too bad you feel that way about Halo 5. I'm such a Halo fanboy though. I even warmed up to Halo 4. At least it's not Destiny, am I right? Right?
Ehhhhh.....wait for my review. They both make me sad
If I had an Xbox One I would get Rare Replay without a doubt -- and mostly to play Jet Force Gemini. I don't know how well it's aged, but it would be a nostalgic moment to enjoy.
Great to hear from you again!
Jet Force Gemini has not aged well. It's still fun but prepare yourself for old-school "collect-everything-to-progress" nonsense!
MGS5 is definitely my Game of the Year as well. There is so much cool hidden stuff in that game and nods to older games as well. I love it.
Oh yeah. If this is the last Metal Gear game, hardcore fans should be glad they will spend months exploring this game!
That Rare Replay compliation looks awesome. Too bad I don't have a console that will play it. I've also seen that NES Remix game and wondered if it was any good.
NES Remix will be worth your while, trust me!
Welcome back! I haven't done a lot in the blogging in the six months myself, though I have kept up with my monthly recaps. Been playing a lot of different things but been very consistent on Destiny. The Taken King expansion is excellent, especially if you have some people you know to play with regularly.
I have some friends who play Destiny a lot, even though I didn't like the vanilla game, I might get Taken King just as a way to play with them.
Hey welcome back! I wouldn't worry about writing skills. I'm sure folks here are more interested in your thought about what you played. Heck my skills are far from great, and if my enteries were to be graded there would be a lot of red ink.
I had the same problem you did but on the PS4. For a while it felt like the PS4 was relying on rehashes of last gen games. I made it a point to not re buy games I already own on an older console (I made this point after I bought GTA V). I want new stuff to play!
Ultimate NES Remix sounds fun and hopefully it will be one of the games on sale during Black Friday so I can add it to my library.
Glad too see you active again.
Rare Replay it's one of the few things that make me want an Xbone (that and Halo in general). Rare did a very wise choice with its pricing.
