So we've just had E3, and the year is half over. We have the PS5 and the Xbox Scarlet on the horizon, as well as rumors of a Switch hardware revision. But there are a lot of games coming down the pipeline, including some games which finally havs a release date after God knows how many years. So here is what I'm looking forward to.
Sales
Sorry it has been too long.
Sable and Sea of Solitude stood out to me as far as indie games I'd like to play. I'm not entirely sure what Sable is, but the art style looked really cool. SoS (oh ... OOOOHHHHH, how did I not catch that before?) has a unique art style as well, and while I skipped past whatever the woman was saying about it, since I was watching in the living room and trying to skip ahead to trailers so my dad could watch cable, I am interested in the seemingly introspective inspiration behind it to boot.
3DS games that should make the Switch
The trend of highly anticipated things releasing around my birthday receiving mixed reviews and performing below expectations continues this year as Mass Effect: Andromeda receives 7.7 from IGN and a 6 from GameSpot, and an overall score of 75% on Metacritic thus far. By no means is that bad, but when you release a game in the wake of Horizon: Zero Dawn and The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, both of which have had massive commercial and critical success, it's not great either.
So another E3 came and went and honestly, I did not pay a fraction of my attention that I usually do. Blame now having an adult life and responsibilities. However, I did look up quite a few things and here's what I think.
When I asked for any games people wanted me to talk about, Cary gave me a list of games I mostly don't own and in some cases, haven't even heard of. But there was one game in there I do own: Klonoa. Remember picking it up cheap, maybe even as part of a B2G1 Free sale, but never got around to it until now.
Honorable Mentions:
First, I mention this at the end of the blog too, but if you could take this short survey, it sure would help myself and my fellow grad students out. It's only 17 questions and responses are kept anonymous. Please and thank you. https://jfe.qualtrics.com/form/SV_bE0s9GgNM1bpsmV
For me anyway. Tried lowering graphics and resolution etc., but it makes no sense that stuff like Tomb Raider and Arkham Origins run fine while the HD remake of a Gamecube game is giving me problems.
So we're getting GBA games on Wii U today. I don't get why Wii U either, but I'm not complaining because I LOVE the GBA. I've enjoyed it more than most systems out there (thanks in part to SNES games, but I won't mention those here). So I thought I'd give my ten favorite GBA games.
So it finally happened. Crash Bandicoot was coming onto a system I actually owned. I could not be any more excited to play the hell out of that game, it was the first GBA game I was super excited for. At the time, I played the hell out of it, and upon returning to it, I found that there was a lot to like.
It’s fascinating to go back to the original Sonic the Hedgehog after so many years and so many new entries in the series. These days, everyone wants to convince you that Sonic is a game all about speed. Without it, it’s simply not the same – not like the original titles on the Genesis. What the original game has reminded me of is that Sonic is a platformer first and foremost and a game about speed second. Very rarely does Sonic hit breakneck speeds in his debut; more often than not he’s taking calculated jumps in a sidescroller that’s merely more mobile than the one that features his Italian plumber counterpart.
I finally got Platinum in Ragnarok Odyssey- and Soul Sacrifice seems like it'd give me nightmares compared to bashing those adorable squishy Porings. I'm pro-cute, not a big fan of ruining my trousers in fright... what video game stereotypical dynamic have I been missing? Sexy!
Those of you who followed me at 1up may remember a blog entitled, "I Feel Like Pissing People Off, So Here's Opinions," which was exactly what it sounded like. Well, I thought it was about time to give a part two to this because well that's just the kind of guy I am.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Turtles in Time Re-Shelled
Due to its rarity, Tomba has become highly sought after for fans and collectors alike. The title, created by the now defunct Whoopee Camp, was the brain child of Ghosts'n Goblins creator/Mega Man producer Tokuro Fujiwara. While the multi-plane sidescroller has Fujiwara's signature, it doesn't quite capture the magic of his prior works, especially 15 years after its release.
Given the great succes of New Super Mario Bros. Wii, Nintendo is bringing back the franchise for the launch of their brand new Wii U system. With a healthy dose of new power-ups, New Super Mario Bros. U is set to offer more than a Mario sidescroller has ever seen before.
Q-Games is celebrating its ten year anniversary and the five year anniversary of the PixelJunk series with a blowout sale on PixelJunk games. Starting today for one week, PixelJunk Racers, PixelJunk Monsters, PixelJunk Eden, and PixelJunk Shooter will be one dollar, while PixelJunk Monsters Deluxe, PixelJunk Shooter 2 and PixelJunk SideScroller will be half price.
Last year Sony offered up 11 PS3 games at a discounted price as part of their “11 for 2011” sale; this year they look to up the ante by bringing 12 discounted titles to the PSN. The “12 for 12” sale offers a wide array of titles that is likely to please every type of gamer out there. PlayStation Plus members will enjoy additional savings. Here is the full list with details:
Sometimes the old gaming soul just wants something simple that harks back to a time now past. A time when gamers walked through dimly lit arcades, token stuffed pockets jingling and jangling like boot spurs; electric cowboys scrawling their initials into the annals of history one high score at a time. It was a magical time and someone out there must feel the same way because otherwise we wouldn’t have PixelJunk: Sidescroller -- a shooter made for the old school but a game that most will be able to enjoy.
Get ready to blow some serious cash on the PSN because Sony announced "Only On PSN" today, a promotion for the month of October that will give gamers exclusive content on the PlayStation Network. Starting tomorrow, October 4, new titles will be released every week this month.