Games Completed - December

PC:

1. The Swapper
2. Batman: Arkham Origins
3. Diablo 3
4. Fallout: New Vegas

3DS:

1. The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds
2. The Starship Damrey
3. Luigi's Mansion 2

GBA:

1. Wario Ware Inc

Games Completed - November

PS3: 

1. Medal of Honor: Warfighter

PC: 

1. Shadow Warrior
2. Fallout 3: Game of the Year Edition

360: 

1. Syndicate (2012)

Summary - October - September

Planescape Torment
Excellent setting and story. Reasonable gameplay.

Splinter Cell: Blacklist
Better than Conviction, not as good as Chaos Theory.

The Stanley Parable
GOOD!


Pokemon X
More enjoyable monster collecting. Slightly by the numbers, but good online.

The Last of Us
Everything it's cracked up to be.

Assassin's Creed 3
Worst of the series, but overall fine.

LA Noire
Good stories, awful body animations.

Deadlight
Weird story, but good puzzles and overall a decent 3 hour experience.

Bastion
Fantastic music, but drags slightly.

The Walking Dead: 400 Days
A decent link between seasons.

Mark of the Ninja
Overall disliked it.

Musaic Box
Fantastic short music puzzle game.

Gunblade NY & LA Machineguns
Hilariously over the top dizzifying on rails shooter for two players on Wii.

Halo 2
The second Halo game. It is the second Halo game.

Games Completed - October

PC:

1. Planescape Torment
2. Splinter Cell: Blacklist
3. The Stanley Parable

3DS:

1. Pokemon X

Games Completed - September

PS3:

1. The Last of Us
2. Assassin's Creed 3
3. LA Noire

PC:

1. Deadlight
2. Bastion
3. The Walking Dead: 400 Days
4. Mark of the Ninja
5. Musaic Box

Wii:

1. Gunblade NY & LA Machineguns

Xbox:

1. Halo 2

Summary - Summer 2013

Killing off the joke awards because I'm running out of bad puns.

Battlefield 3:
The campaign is everything wrong with modern FPS's. Commits the cardinal sin of having scripted "allies" shove you into fire to take their places in cover.

Infamous: Festival of Blood:
Brilliant bite sized "what-if" goodness. Vampire powers are good, but not perfect.

Max Payne 3:
One of my favorite games of the shooter genre. Gunplay and mechanics are borderline perfect. Story is fairly interesting and I love the characters.

DMC: Devil May Cry:
Went into this one completely open minded. While being a fun brawler, it is a fairly good reboot with some weird design choices.

Saint's Row: The Third:
An absolute joy to play in coop, but the whole "gangsta" shtick isn't for me. Would never bother playing it solo.

Hitman: Absolution:
It's not as good as blood money. The disguise and instinct systems are garbage. Story is weird but the game overall is quite fun, barring some incredibly frustrating moments. I'm looking at you, Lenny.

Papers Please:
The most original puzzle/documentary/paperwork game I have ever played. Designed by the brilliant Lukas Pope, the weird story and 20 endings kept me going for several nights. Loses points for not including my name. Boo!

Medal of Honor (2010):
Surprisingly, this is FAR better than the aforementioned Battlefield 3 Campaign. I never hated the AI, the missions were more varied, and barring the helicopter gunner stage, I was relatively engaged in the action from start to finish. Has a great snow level. I did not mind the 4 hour length.

Rayman: Origins:
Everybody praises this game for "reinventing the platforming genre" I enjoyed it, but the final couple levels really annoyed me. I will probably play Legends at some point though. Especially since I love the music and art style.

Heavy Rain:
Played with a friend throughout and with move controllers. Some slow bits but overall a really original premise and I cared about most characters. Good use of music and acting.

Haze:
Shite.

[Prototype 2]:
I loved the original and this is literally more of the same. The motives and actions of the protagonist made little sense, but I didn't care. It was a fun sci-fi-esque action romp.

Guacamelee:
While this is a VERY good metroidvania and was a joy to play on my Vita, I have two issues. The first is the over reliance on the flying moves once acquired, and the second is the design. The art style is great, but the game overall is a bit too clean. Every hidden path and entrance is a giant colored block and you always know how to pass one. Great music though.

House of the Dead: Overkill:
It's an all right lightgun game, but it REALLY drags in places. Fun use of grindhouse tropes.

XCOM: Enemy Unknown (Normal, non-ironman)
Also one of my favorite games to play this year. It has tons of issues from inventory to sight lines being messed up, all the way to cheap deaths from aliens firing through walls, but I DON'T CARE. It's TOO MUCH FUN!

Far Cry 3:
Tons of fun to play. Has some great weapon customization, but drags on FOREVER in the last couple of chapters. Endings were garbage, but not entirely unexpected. Some good dream sequences, and role playing as Rambo was great fun.

Bioshock Infinite:
OVERRATED AS HELL!

Tiny and Big: Grandpa's Leftovers:
Delightfully short puzzle platformer with a Revengeance like ability to slice off the environment to create platforms. Some utterly confusing parts at the start. Great music though.

Little Inferno:
You put things in a fireplace, ignite them, get coins from them, order more things, repeat. Has a weird bit at the end. I don't know how I feel about this "game".

Offspring Fling:
Adorable puzzle platformer where you save your babies as a fuzzy bunny-like thing. Fun throughout

Streetpass Quest 2:
Uhh...

Journey
Played from start to finish, in a single sitting, with my love next to me. We met a stranger who showed us all the secrets. I wish I had gotten to play this before. What an absolute JOY of a game.

New Super Mario Bros 2
Ehh...

Mirror's Edge
Indoor sequences suuuuuuck!!!! Rooftop hopping is great. Didn't use a gun until the final room. Armored dudes suuuuuuck!!!

The Walking Dead
Now THIS was great. I played each sequence in a single sitting. I hated it when someone died in part 3. I will be playing season 2.

Games Completed - August

PS3:

1. Battlefield 3
2. Infamous: Festival of Blood
3. Max Payne 3

360:

1. DMC: Devil May Cry

PC:

1. Saint's Row: The Third
2. Hitman: Absolution
3. Papers Please
4. Medal of Honor (2010)

Vita:

1. Rayman: Origins 

Games Completed - July

PS3:

1. Journey

3DS:

1. New Super Mario Bros 2

PC:

1. Mirror's Edge
2. The Walking Dead

Games Completed - June

PS3:

1. Heavy Rain
2. Haze
3. [Prototype 2]

Vita:

1. Guacamelee

Wii:

1. House of the Dead: Overkill

PC:

1. XCOM: Enemy Unknown (Normal, non-ironman)
2. Far Cry 3
3. Bioshock Infinite
4. Tiny and Big: Grandpa's Leftovers
5. Little Inferno
6. Offspring Fling

3DS

1. Streetpass Quest 2

Monthly summuary - May

The "Reboot of the year" Award

Tomb Raider

Keeping with the tradional gameplay with room size puzzles and massively improving the platforming and action, without too much dumbing down, TR2013 is probably one of the most enjoyable action and story romps of the year. Would play again/purchase sequel. Get it on PC for the best experience.

The "Hardly a game" Award

Dear Esther

There is no gameplay other than walking and occasionally walking the wrong direction. The story makes hardly any sense unless you read into it far too much. Not worthless, but only for the connoisseurs of the strange and weird.

And the rest:

Machinarium + Samorost 2: Not the best point and click adventures games I've played, but there is a lot to love and they've been borderline free several times. Do try them at least.

Bushido Blade: Completed story mode with one character. A very strange and creative fighting game, but I'm guessing the sequel is better. The one shot kills were sometimes unfair. Sometimes...

Games completed - May

PC

1. Tomb Raider (2013)
2. Dear Esther
3. Machinarium
4. Samorost 2
5. Bushido Blade

On track for May

I'll be killing off the "In progress" posts because I find them annoying. In its place will be a shorter list of things I am playing that I am fairly certain will be complete by the end of the month.

1. Haze
2. Far Cry 3
3. Bioshock Infinite
4. Fire Emblem Awakening
5. Tomb Raider (2013)

Monthly Summary - April

Forgot to publish this one so it's a week late.

The "Crowning moment of epic JRPG" Award

Tales of Graces f 

Took me somewhere between 30 and 40 hours, and it was totally worth it. I haven't completed many JRPGs but games with this sort of quality make me want to try harder. Got a tad too hard at the end, but it was easily alleviated by changing the level of difficulty. Utterly awesome! Get it on PS3

The "Like a surgeon" Award

Surgeon Simulator 2013 

You control a hand with the mouse. You control the fingers on the hand with the A, W, E, R and Space keys. Now do surgery on an operating table with somewhat realistic physics. Good. Get it on PC, via Steam.

The "Boxing day" Award

Thomas was alone

A character drama starring colored rectangles. It's an indie puzzle platformer that doesn't outstay its welcome and has a lovely narrator. Good times! Available on everything with a screen.

And the rest:

Dishonored: Very fun, but annoyingly limited in that you're punished for doing the killing itself. The problem is that your non-lethal options are limited to choking and sleep darts. One is cumbersome and one is slow. The story is fine, but more open areas with more assassination targets would have been more enjoyable in my opinion. Get in on anything with a screen.

DLC Quest: Another indie platformer that lampoons the current state of DLC in games. Perfectly short and very cheap. Get it on Steam or directly from the developer.


The Cave: Ron Gilbert's adventure puzzler. I played as the Time Traveler, the Scientist and the Adventurer. It's good fun, and I got it for free via PS+, I do think however that it would've been far more enjoyable, were it an old school point and click adventure. Possibly in the same fashion as Day of the Tentacle or indeed Maniac Mansion. Get it on everything with a screen.

Games Completed - April 2013

PC:

1. DLC Quest
2. Dishonored
3. Surgery Simulator 2013

PS3:

1. The Cave
2. Tales of Graces f

PS Vita:

1. Thomas was Alone

Monthly Summary - March

The "Lol vertically sliced" Award

Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance

The story is a mess but the gameplay is glorious. Wish it was a tad longer and had some longer stealth sequences. Well worth both a second and third playthrough. Get it on 360 or PS3.

The "Far too long for its own good"-award

Red Dead Redemption

It's an amazing game, but good GRIEF it takes far too long to get from one place to another and I realize there's supposed to be some kind of pacing but the missions are far too slow for their own good. I'm VERY happy to have played it, but I will not be popping it in again for a long time. Get it on 360 if you can as it's the superior version to the PS3 one.

The "Surprise of the month" Award

God of War: Chains of Olympus & God of War: Ghost of Sparta

Got these on the cheap via PS+ and played both back to back. Fantastic fun and the powers and weapons really make these stand out in the spectacle brawler genre. Get them on the Playstation Portable, HD collection on PS3 or digital download on PSN.

And the rest:

Bayonetta: Fun, but the story is needlessly confusing and some levels are too long without checkpoints. I also HATED the fact that it just wouldn't end. It just goes on and on and the fun doesn't keep up. Get it on 360 if you can as it's the superior version to the PS3 one.


Wolfenstein (2009): Why is this game a sandbox game? The missions themselves are perfectly fine and fun. The factory, zeppelin and archaeological dig were some of my favorites. But the bland trudging between them is an absolute chore. This game is STUPID cheap on all platforms so check it out for some simple fun. Get it on everything with a screen.

Games Completed - March 2013

Xbox 360

1. Bayonetta
2. Red Dead Redemption

PS3:

1. Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance
2. Wolfenstein (2009)

PSP:

1. God of War: Chains of Olympus
2. God of War: Ghost of Sparta

Games in progress - March 2013

3/DS

1. Tenchu: Dark Secret
2. Pokémon Diamond
3. Pokémon Soul Silver
4. Eledees: The Adventures of Kai and Zero
5. Ghost Trick
6. Last Window
7. Pokémon Ranger
8. Sonic Colors
9. Elite Beat Agents
10. Time Hollow
11. SMT Devil Survivor
12. Pokémon Dream Radar
13. Liberation Maiden

PC

1. F.E.A.R
2. Dishonored
3. Bastion
4. Deponia
5. Analogue: A Hate Story
6. Dragon Age: Origins
7. Hitman: Blood Money
8. Mark of the Ninja
9. Saint's Row The Third
10. Snapshot
11. They Bleed Pixels
12. The Walking Dead
13. Sniper: Ghost Warrior
14. Kingdoms of Amalur
15. Hitman Absolution
16. Far Cry 3

Nintendo 64

1. Perfect Dark
2. The World is Not Enough
3. Blast Corps
4. Castlevania: Legacy of Darkness
5. Banjo Kazooie

Xbox

1. Max Payne
2. Gunvalkyrie

PS3

1. Splatterhouse
2. Resident Evil 6
3. Heavy Rain
4. El Shaddai
5. LA Noire
6. Tales of Graces f

Xbox 360

1. Silent Hill Downpour
2. Enslaved
3. Call of Juarez: The Cartel
4. Dragon Age 2

Wii

1. Kirby's Adventure Wii
2. Kirby's Epic Yarn
3. Gunblade NY & LA Machineguns
4. The Last Story
5. Pandora's Tower
6. Xenoblade Chronicles

PS2

1. Cold Winter
2. Castlevania: Curse of Darkness
3. Parappa the Rapper 2

GCN

1. Lord of the Rings: The Third Age
2. Baten Kaitos: Origins
3. 007 Agent Under Fire
4. Minority Report

PSP

1. God of War: Chains of Olympus
2. God of War: Ghost of Sparta

Monthly Summary - February

The "Storytelling brilliance" Award

To The Moon

It plays a little like a classic RPG like Chrono Trigger, but with no real combat to speak of. It's funny, dramatic, thoughtful, sad and exciting all at the same time. It has some similar elements to Total Recall and Inception. I won't say anything about the story, just GO BUY IT NOW! I completed it in a single sitting together with someone very dear to me and it was like watching the most brilliant romance movie conceivable. Just BUY IT ALREADY!

The "Overrated Game of the Month" Award

Borderlands 2

Locate quest marker, shoot something, out of place reference, find mediocre guns, run of out inventory space. Pathfinding is frustrating sometimes with several quests and quest items being located in spots with very vague routes to the,. Worthless in single player, fine in coop, mediocre overall. Good controls though. Get it on PC or PS3/360, but the PC version is vastly superior.

The "I can't decide which is worst" Award

Mindjack & Legendary

These are LEGENDARILY bad. Mindjack is a nonsensical, stupid and uncontrollable mess. Legendary is a 4 hour snorefest with random difficulty spikes and no proper ending. I paid a total of 10€/12$/8£ for these two combined. I got a few laughs from them. There's nothing more to say. Available on PS3 and 360, and PC too in Legendary's case.

The "Yeah, that was okay..." Award

Bioshock 2

While it lacks some of the twists and turns of the original, the combat is superior by far. The story picks up about 3 hours in with a lot of interesting areas and a real sense of exploration. While the linearity of the first game was more of a plot point than a gameplay issue, this game gives you more freedom to explore and rescue Little Sisters. Overall a great game. Get it VERY cheap on PC, PS3 or 360.

The "Game of the Year Contender" Award

Zero Escape: Virtue's Last Reward

Sequel to 9 hours, 9 persons, 9 doors. It's a mix of point and click adventure/room escape games and visual novels. Fantastic story and great use of multiple timelines. Get it on 3DS or Vita.

The "Repetitive Sounds, Repetitive Sounds" Award

Spider-Man: Shattered Dimensions

This is the blandest game ever. Sort of. I love the rogue's gallery and the controls. I hate the gameplay and the inane repetitiveness. This game has the same problem as the Force Unleashed games. If something's worth doing, it's worth doing a hundred times. Some levels are brilliant and others are just utterly inept. Pouring a water tower on to Sandman is fun once. Getting told that you're going to do it twice more upon doing it the first is stupid. Saving scientists from future, genderbent Doc Ock is is fun, doing it 12 times is ridiculous. Has a great Deadpool cameo. Get it on Ps3, 360 and, oddly enough, PC. DS version is a different beast.

The "Black" Award

Black

This game is REALLY black. It's also fun, and 7 years old. The destructible environments were impressive at the time. Story makes little sense and the voice acting is so muffled and not subtitled, making it all a bit of a mess. I hated the last few levels with the unforgiving checkpoints and borderline unkillable juggernaut enemies. The bridge and forest levels were great though, and it's definitely worth a look if you own a PS2. (Or original Xbox)

And the rest:

Singularity: Bland. Just so bland. Knocks off everything from Bioshock to Half-Life 2 and does a halfway decent job at it, but it's just sooo generic. I also hate game enemies that swarm you while being too hard to hit. Lots of interesting guns, but the limit to carrying two at a time is frustrating. This one gets a massive "MEH". Loved the endings though.

Soul Calibur V: Completed the story mode in 40 minutes. It's so generic that I couldn't tell you a single plot point right now. The mechanics of the game are fine, but why on earth does the main character forfeit his shield to use a TERRIBLE "alpha" version of his fighting style and is suddenly awful is combat for the last half of the game. Dull, and pointless.

Streets of Rage 2: Yes, I wanted to play a side scrolling beat'em up for some reason so I figured why not. I can't recall completing it before so it totally counts. I liked it. Got a little hard on the final boss so I had to continue once. Overall, just simple fun.

Mafia 2: A little too much driving, but the story is EXCELLENT! The gunplay is tight and the length is perfect. A very nice game that I would recommend to anyone. Just don't expect something with the scope or madness of Saint's Row or GTA.

TRAUMA: Very artsy and the narrative is weird. The voice-overs vary greatly in quality and the live action aesthetic is both amusing and frightening. It does what it does reasonably well, but I'm not entirely sure what it tried to do. I didn't hate it by ANY stretch. I just completed most endings with a "Well that was certainly different."- Feeling. Try it out.

Games Complete - February 2013

PS3

1. Legendary
2. Mindjack
3. Soul Calibur V
4. Spider-Man: Shattered Dimensions
5. Singularity

PS Vita

1. Zero Escape: Virtue's Last Reward

Xbox 360

1. Mafia 2
2. Bioshock 2

SEGA Genesis

1. Streets of Rage 2

PC

1. TRAUMA
2. To The Moon
3. Borderlands 2

PS2

1. Black

Games in progress - February 2013

PS Vita

1. Zero Escape: Virtue's Last Reward

3/DS

1. Tenchu: Dark Secret
2. Pokémon Diamond
3. Pokémon Soul Silver
4. Eledees: The Adventures of Kai and Zero
5. Ghost Trick
6. Last Window
7. Pokémon Ranger
8. Sonic Colors
9. Elite Beat Agents
10. Time Hollow
11. SMT Devil Survivor
12. Pokémon Dream Radar
13. Liberation Maiden

PC

1. F.E.A.R
2. Dishonored
3. Bastion
4. Deponia
5. Analogue: A Hate Story
6. Dragon Age: Origins
7. Hitman: Blood Money
8. Mark of the Ninja
9. Saint's Row The Third
10. Snapshot
11. They Bleed Pixels
12. The Walking Dead
13. Borderlands 2
14. Sniper: Ghost Warrior

Nintendo 64

1. Perfect Dark
2. The World is Not Enough
3. Blast Corps
4. Castlevania: Legacy of Darkness

Xbox

1. Max Payne
2. Gunvalkyrie

PS3

1. Splatterhouse
2. Resident Evil 6
3. Heavy Rain
4. El Shaddai

Xbox 360

1. Silent Hill Downpour
2. Bioshock 2
3. Enslaved

Wii

1. Kirby's Adventure Wii
2. Kirby's Epic Yarn

PS2

1. Black
2. Cold Winter
3. Castlevania: Curse of Darkness

GCN

1. Lord of the Rings: The Third Age
2. Baten Kaitos: Origins

Monthly Summary - January

Hello again!

In these posts I will be writing some general thoughts on the games I managed to complete. In addition I will hand out some random awards to the various games.

The "Short and Sweet-Award"

The Cat and the Coup (PC)

This free game was a pleasant surprise that I downloaded ages ago but never even tried. It literally takes 20 minutes to complete and you might learn some history from it. Install it for free via Steam.

The "I am a Terrible Person-Award"

Spec Ops: The Line (PC)

The first game I completed in 2013 is also one of the best. I wonder how many people expected this to be a generic MMS like Call of Duty except in third person. Despite the somewhat generic controls and gameplay, the story and imagery is so gruesome, yet amazing, that I simple can't refrain from recommending this game to everybody. It's really cheap now too, so if you've been waiting for a story-driven dramatic and borderline terrifying third person shooter, then here's your game. I saw all endings during my playthrough thanks to the level select. Buy it on PS3/360 or get the excellent PC port on Steam, or via retail release.

The "Golf Club to the Face-Award"

Hotline Miami (PC)

A brilliant and extremely violent game. Many games have been unjustly called "murder simulators" This IS literally a murder simulator. I greatly enjoyed the DOS like visuals and the music was fantastic. I only got the regular ending, but I may try for the extended one at some point. Please purchase this game and support the amazing developers. Available on Steam, or via GOOD OLD GAMES.

The "I'll bribe you to play with me-Award"

Torchlight 2 (PC)

Played the entire story mode in 25 hours with two friends. I found the embermage class to be somewhat annoyingly weak to play as, but I still had a great time. Until the final version of Path of Exile arrives and possibly proves me wrong, Torchlight 2 is simply THE best multiplayer action RPG on the market. Doing everything right that Diablo 2 used to do right, whilst adding several modern elements giving the game amazing value for money. Bonus points for having offline single player and LAN coop. Get it on Steam and possibly some other sites.

The "It's FIIIIIINE award"

Ninja Gaiden: Dragon Sword (DS)

It's really quite generic, the story is nothing special and the gameplay got a bit carpal-tunnel after a while. I still just had to complete this game. It was such simple fun and I actually cared a little about the characters. It might have helped that I LITERALLY paid 2£ for this game on Amazon. Buy it at Amazon or at any used game store that might have it.

The "NOEP-award" 

Super Hexagon (Android)

I CANNOT complete this. I last about 20 seconds before I lose and it would probably not be that impossible if the whole board didn't spin the opposite way of the openings. I heard the rumor that there is an ending, but I will not attempt this again. Bleurgh.

The "New Game Plus-Award"

Persona 4: Golden (Vita)

After over 50 hours I just had to begin again on a NG+. This is simply THE BEST GAME I played this month. Absolutely fantastic. Buy a PS Vita, then buy Persona 4: Golden. Utterly fantastic!

And the Rest:

Home:
Fun, short and cheap horror game with a subtle story. Didn't really blow me away, but it was quite all right. Get it on Steam and support the indie team that made it!

Shank 2:
I had to get this after enjoying Shank last year. I loved the way the last game channeled the old Western and revenge flicks, and the way this alluded to the 70ies and 80ies Italian and American exploitation genres. The weakest point is the music that is instantly forgettable and the very low voice acting that's difficult to make out. Get it on any digital distributor.


Gunman Clive:
The cheapest game I completed this month if you don't count the free "Cat and the Coup". This is a enjoyable and very short platformer that plays almost exactly like Mega Man on NES with a little space shooting á la Super Mario Land thrown in for good measure. I completed it in a day and unlocked the option to play as a duck. What more can you ask for. If you own a 3DS and like classic platforming you owe it to yourself to check it out. It is only available in the Eshop for about 2€ or your regional equivalent.

Final words for January

Great month and I'm VERY satisfied with completing 10 games. Next month I will try and finish some more console games and also some longer retail games, and not just random indies.

Thank you.

Games Complete - January 2013

PC

1. Spec Ops: The Line
2. Hotline Miami
3. Home
4. Shank 2
5. Torchlight 2 (3 Player coop, veteran)
6. The Cat and the Coup

Vita

1. Persona 4 Golden (Bad End 41 hrs, Good end 55 hrs)

3/DS

1. Gunman Clive (Clive, Hard mode)
2. Ninja Gaiden: Dragon Sword