I played a lot of digital titles this week and stuck with almost none of them (no respawns) but enjoyed myself quite a bit. Also some disc-based ones I did stick with a little longer.
I'm currently playing Skylanders: Spyro's Adventure again for any remaining achievements and to look at my figure collection. Here's an overview of the complete figures for the game.
I'm getting closer to the end of my 360 games now, but it may be a few more weeks still before I move on to PS3 or Wii. I really can't wait to start those.
It’s time for my “Best Video Games of 2025 Awards Show!” Keep in mind that this is my list only and no other outside opinions contributed. And if a game isn’t on this list, it either just didn’t appeal to me as much or I haven’t had a chance to play it yet. Ok with that out of the way, let’s begin!
I got through a lot of GBA/PS2 stuff this week and retro on Xbox Series S. I got some good purchases on sales this week too. Also progress through the Power Rangers Lightspeed Rescue show, books and podcasts.
I downloaded every 2000s era game I owned digitally on Xbox and started going through them. I added a bunch to my wish list as well in case a sale comes up.
I've been going through my games like they were parts of a mini-game collection like NES Remix. I play to determine if I'm going to keep them or not. Or, I set some high bar of difficulty that gets me killed fairly quickly. It's also a test to see if I get sucked into a game for longer. Here's half of the stuff I sampled (I'll write up the rest tomorrow).
I really played through all the 90s games I had ready to go this week before wrapping it all up. Next month will be the 2000s starting with PS2 and GBA.
Around this time of year, I like to make a list of my best games SO FAR, because usually the AAA titles are released later in the year during the holiday season, and the titles that came out earlier tend to be forgotten. So here’s when those games get their due. Keep in mind that this is my list only and no other outside opinions contributed. And if a game isn’t on this list, it either just didn’t appeal to me as much or I haven’t had a chance to play it yet. Ok with that out of the way, let’s begin!
New game reviews I’ve recently written are blooming over at GamerDad.com, so here’s a bouquet of them for you. Please click on the links and read as many as you can, and maybe post a ‘like’ or comment or two I’d appreciate it. OK let’s begin!
I never thought I'd be looking back at the Xbox One and needing it, but I finally found some games I can only play there. I can get one for $100 too, which is a nice price for a console.
The 3DS was released this year. Minecraft came out of beta. The highest rated games were Batman: Arkham City, Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, and Portal 2. Here's a list of what I put the most time into that year followed by stuff I played later and then a wish list.
Pokemon finally got topped in sales by Grand Theft Auto this year with Vice City #1 and GTA III #3 in the U.S. . Critical acclaim went to GameCube's Metroid Prime and Zelda: Wind Waker. The Sims topped all-time PC sales beating out Myst this year. Microsoft bought Rare and Gametrailers began online. Remember Gametrailers? I used to check out that site all the time. Now for games I wouldn't mind playing again or for the first time.
2000 was the year of the PS2. Remember the lines as people wanted not just a game system but a DVD player? I got one later. However, Pokemon still ruled home game sales: Red, Blue, Yellow, Gold, Silver and Pokemon Stadium all contributed. Microsoft bought Bungie and PopCap was formed. Mad Krammer and I were really into the Dreamcast, and I bought a PC I could finally call my own. Here is a list of stuff I've played or want to play today in 2023 (darn it, that's 23 years ago!).
I broke 200k in achievements on Xbox the other day. The top scorers worldwide are over 3 million. The top gamer on my friend's list has around 400k. My score reflects 15 years of playing on Xboxes. But enough of that, on with what I played this week so far.
Just a day and half of gameplay this week 'cause work, like, gotta work when they tell me to. But, I still got to a lot of stuff even though I'm trying to get more focused. To do that I looked up the top Xbox Series X games on Metacritic. Elden Ring was first with Hades second. I'm waiting for a sale for Elden Ring, so I downloaded Hades, which is on Game Pass, and I've played it before and liked it. I'll try and go deep with it this time.
How can I maximize my plays, I ask myself? Why by limiting myself to a single achievement per game. When an achievement unlocks, it's off to the next game. I'm currently third on the leaderboard of my Xbox friends. I'm right behind number 2 but far behind the leader, PhantasyStar77, who has clearly been achievement hunting from the begining of the month. I'm not so much hunting for them as using them as a goal marker, or playtime limiter. Anyway, here are my plays so far this week:
Got some Happy Meals at McDonalds to get a few Thor Love and Thunder toys just for fun. I had a lot of rewards points for using the McDees app, so why not? I had hoped the figures worked a bit like Skylanders on the Happy Meal web site, but I couldn't get the one I got to work. I think the "game" just plays a song tied to the figure anyway. Then I played some actual Skylanders on 360 and then switched to Series S for the usual routine. I skipped out on the Switch that day not wanting to plug it into my TV, which only has two HDMI jacks. But I have Triangle Strategy and more Mario + Rabbids to play there.
I'm trying to get more pics into these blogs. I've figured out how to do screenshots on my phone, and in conjunction with Onedrive, I can get these pics over to Pixlbit.