Avowed. This is a game that does almost everything right - it looks fantastic, has decent world-building, great combat, interesting upgrade paths and entertaining characters - yet it's relentlessly, almost aggressively 7/10 and I'm not sure why. I think it's the pacing - it's quite a plodding game, really, despite everyone constantly screaming at you about the Dreamscourge, and every area plays out in exactly the same way as you methodically work your way through side quests to upgrade your equipment before you tackle whatever the story has in store. It also goes on far too long, I've just started the fourth area and it really should have ended by now. I like it - on a mechanical level at least, it's lots of fun to play - but it's hard to imagine people getting really excited by it and I'm kind of ready for it to be done.
Ghost Trick: Phantom Detective - I'm at least ten years late to the party on this one but it's really great, a point-and-click adventure from the minds behind Phoenix Wright that must have been absolutely astonishing on the DS and still looks pretty impressive to this day. It's funny, puzzly and has some of the best animation I've ever seen in anything. Lovely stuff.
Want
I'm increasingly keen to finish Avowed so I can get stuck into Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 before everyone moves onto the next exciting thing. Game Pass really has been nuts lately, I've barely been able to touch half the stuff I want to play; maybe it's just too many huge RPGs coming out all at the same time.
I'd still like to get Assassin's Creed: Shadows - I'm guessing no-one here has bought it? It's an Ubisoft game so it should begin plummeting in price right… about… now.
Bin
Game prices, console prices, subscription prices - everyone seems determined to price us out of everything right now. I don't see how it's sustainable. When even us middle-aged, middle-class nerds are starting to look at £700 consoles and £80 games with raised eyebrows, you do wonder how on earth younger people are going to pick up the gaming habit. Shit cellphone games, probably.
And oh god the state of the world right now. The apricot hellbeast they somehow put in charge of the USA is still on his demented rampage and as I write we're about five hours out from the result of local elections which will probably mean Farage's smug froggy features all over the press for weeks and weeks. I used to think we were making some progress in the world - I don't think that any more.
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is great, but I'm starting to worry a little about how big it is. The story, characters and world are fascinating, though, so I'm definitely gonna see the story through even if I can't get through all the side stuff (much of which, I'm convinced, I've not even found yet).
Want
Switch 2 is the obvious one, at least in part so the kid will stop asking how many days 'til it's out. He apparently had a nightmare last night that it was delayed to next year.
Play
Mass Effect - Still great. I'm 5-10 hours into ME3 and I'm loving how bleak it is. Proper end of days stuff. I'm looking forward to finally playing the Citadel dlc.
Citizen Sleeper - This is really good. I wasn't expecting a gamebook.
Citizen Sleeper - This is really good. I wasn't expecting a gamebook.
Citizen Sleeper is great. I loved it to bits, eventually – when I first tried it, the oppressive, creeping anxiety was a bit much for me to handle.
Not totally sure how I feel about the sequel; it's slicker in a lot of ways, but the structure of the story has you moving around a lot more. You don't get to know the locations as well as you do The Eye, and that detachment harms its impact a little.
Avowed
It also goes on far too long, I've just started the fourth area and it really should have ended by now.
Yeah definitely agree with this. It's mad that everyone was moaning about how short it is. As much as I loved it, I didn't get around to the ending before Oblivion, so it's on the (huge) pile of unfinished games.
I don't really have a problem leaving games unfinished, though. In 99% of games the narrative is nonsense designed to keep you playing, so it's not like abandoning a good book before the end. I've loved my time with Avowed, but I couldn't care less what the Dreamscourge is.
Want
I'd still like to get Assassin's Creed: Shadows - I'm guessing no-one here has bought it? It's an Ubisoft game so it should begin plummeting in price right… about… now.
I have £35 sat on a CEX voucher. By the time it's dropped in price I'll hopefully have some free time, although you're right about Game Pass atm. It's been solid bangers for months.
Bin
as I write we're about five hours out from the result of local elections which will probably mean Farage's smug froggy features all over the press for weeks and weeks.
Play
Oblivion, at the expense of everything else. Everyone has that one all-consuming game that they'll happily replay again and again. Oblivion is mine, and now it has horse shadows and realistic carrots.
Want
Switch 2.
Oblivion to break its spell on me, so I can finally get round to playing Expedition 33, Lord of the Rings Online, the 'new' Myst world they just patched in, Avowed, Pillars of Eternity, Thronebreaker, Metaphor, Black Mesa, God of War Ragnarok, Dragon's Dogma 2, and Star Wars Outlaws. That's my currently playing list, not my 'need to start' list. Mad times.
Final Fantasy VII (PS1) - I'm at Cosmo Canyon and everyone who said it was always obvious Red XIII changed his voice from wise old man to a young teen like he does in Rebirth is full of absolute shit.
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 - The postgame is really chill, but the balance has absolutely fallen off a cliff. This isn't game ruining or anything but if I wanted to I could one shot everything and bypass the great combat system which is a shame as some of these superbosses are so FUN.
Oblivion - I dunno' if I'm going back soon, I was enthralled all over again when I jumped in on release but when I got out for Clair Obscur I feel like I'd rather just play new games, I dunno. We'll see if I dip in and out, no rush I guess.
Xenoblade X - man, after really evangelizing this for years I have to say I really wanna' be done with this now, it's a great game when you are interacting with the world, doing segment recon and finding probes and stuff but any time you do sidequests it becomes pretty insufferable, some and I mean a fraction of them are cool and the rest of them are straight up 'skip cutscene' tier. Next time I'm on the Switch I'll show you how insane my map screen looks for quest icons, it's so depressing.
The world of X is actually amazing and it will always be a highlight of the series to explore it for the first time and get your own mech and finally fly but that doesn't make it the best game in the series like people like to act by a long shot. I think 2 and 3 at least are better, maybe not in world design but they still have their moments in that regard and they're not aslog in the other parts
Want - I want to get round to Lunar Remastered Collectionsoon, simple RPGs that I can't really explain what makes them good, I think its in the same way that you'd like Dragon Quest but in some ways there's even more of a classic adventure quality to them. Reminder it has the best PS1 FMV
Bin - I think Clair Obscur broke the RB button on my Xbox pad lmao
Bin - My Series S controller, apparently I parried too hard in Clair Obscur because it's the only button that stopped working. I can't exactly ignore it because the Xbox decided it was going to be valuable recently so I'll be using it for a bit more.
Not gonna' lie I kinda' wanna' play Gears of War on the PS5 just to say 'I played Gears of War on a PS5'. (Also it's still a good game, very much enjoyed playing it in co-op with Boss Man a few years ago)
It is Gears of War Remastered Remastered though which is kind of becoming a trend. A decent game, but like the re-release of Metroid Prime, should have been a remaster of the whole trilogy.
That's the 1000/1000 done for Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 done! Very chill process, however getting all journals and music records was pretty boring and the constant back and forth really started to get to me. That said, I don't consider that an integral part of the post game, which remains fun to do to the end even if it is pretty much a victory lap IMO.
Think I might start Lost Odyssey again, Clair Obscur nottaking a million hours to beat has me fiending for more sadlad and sadlass RPGs, that and it's also a great game!
I've just been let down by both Dragon's Dogma 2 and Oblivion in the space of 5 minutes.
I was cracking through Dragon's Dogma 2, still loving it, when it suddenly went all end-of-the-world JRPG bollocks. No more pretty scenery, just a red hellscape of endless bosses and tough enemies. And it wipes your previous saves (by design), so you can't go back unless you delete your cloud saves and start again.
Deflated, I decided to uninstall and load Oblivion up instead. Aaaaand my Oblivion saves are all corrupted. Which is par for the course as far as Elder Scrolls games are concerned, but still annoying after 30 hours of play time.
There's potential for a hat trick of disappointment with Clair Obscur and you hating having to parry! (not saying you will but s it the most likely issue people will have)
This is a game I want to know as little about as possible going in so I'm trying to avoid media stuff but the new previews today have me actively excited for a game I was more passively excited for. (I loved Death Stranding a lot but was very much in the 'not sure why it needed a sequel but I'm there I guess')
