Topic: Games you've recently beat

@Thrillho @LtSarge I followed down the Gregg path mostly too because he just made me laugh loads.

Never really interpreted Mae as arrogant though. Just an aimless, do what ever you want sort of person. Reminds me of myself 😂. When you have best friends, you argue. Especially when you are young and you think loads of stuff matters that actually doesn't and you are fuelled by your own insecurities. I've had those pointless, "I'm doing this, so why don't you?" conversations when I was that age. Arrogant? Maybe a bit. More just ignorant than anything else. Ignorance caused by inexperience.

@ralphdibny But that's what I'm saying though, she's not arrogant in the slightest in every other situation besides when she was with Bea during these two parts, lol. That's why I didn't like these sections because they made Mae behave very out of character. You missed out on seeing this because you only hanged out with Gregg.

And the thing is, they're not that young. Mae is 20 years old, at that point she should be a sensible adult. I would've given her a free pass if she were maybe 15 years old but not at 20. At that point you'd know better than to return to a town and hang out with people you haven't been with for a long time and then start judging their lives.

@LtSarge hahaha sensible adult at 20! I wish someone had told me that 😂. Drugs, promiscuity and loud music were the order of the day for me back then 😂. I wish I'd done more of it to be honest because there's none of that going on for me at age 31. Being an adult is so boring 😅

But yeah, people are complicated. I act differently around different people. Moreso when I was younger. The school reunions were great in the term breaks at uni for that very reason. Young people are passionate, tiringly so. Which can come across as arrogant but it's just what young people are like. I was like that back then, always thought I was right about everything. Then real adult life kicked seven shades of doodoo out of me and now I am just the same boring apathetic person that almost every other adult is. I could kid myself that it didn't happen to me and attempt to function normally in society but you can't kid a kidder as they say. Especially if that kidder is yourself. Just gotta be happy with my lot. As painful and as hard as that can be.

I beat Yakuza 4 and it's my favourite of the Yakuza games so far I think. I usually don't like it when you have to play as multiple characters in a game like this, but I think it worked well as a few small stories that combine into some kind of story Megazord at the end.

I also played Alan Wake and reviewed it and made lots of people sad.

@johncalmc Good to hear an honest review on AW. I can imagine it can't be easy saying how you feel, potentially knowing that a lot of people are going to be upset about it. I'm looking forward to playing Alan Wake just to form my own opinion but I'm amazed that people get so angry when yours doesn't align with their own.

@render My least favourite bit of a review is when it's submitted and I sit and I wonder to myself what the other reviews are going to be like. Alan Wake was fine because I knew some people were going to have a tantrum because it's got a cult following. But generally speaking, the bit leading up to an embargo can be a bit weird because you never know if you're going to be the outlier giving a game a 4 when everyone else is at a 9 or a 10 and now the comments section is a swamp of people calling you names because you dragged the Metacritic score down.

It's pretty strange. Like I don't think there's any review, ever, that has made me even slightly aggrieved.

@Iver I'm on Yakuza 5 now too. I'm still in the first bit as I've only played three hours or so but I'll be back on it soon. I suspect I'll like this one a lot too. To be honest I've liked them all so far. I was a bit sketchy on the opening of 3 but after a while I liked that too.

@Foxy-Goddess-Scotchy The extra missions are the "Full Burst" bit of the title, as the UNS games have a habit of renaming themselves whenever they get expanded (like how UNS 4 officially became Road to Boruto after its major DLC dropped). It's not much, but it's another tough fight, so brace!

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@johncalmc I just wanted to say, I absolutely loved your Alan Wake review. I have zero opinion on the game (at least for now; I was mildly curious to check it out at some stage, and I think I still am, but I'll wait until it's at a better price point thanks to your note of caution) but every point you made was fair, valid and measured. I guess the internet hadn't found something to be outraged about today, and so it became your turn. Bad luck but, if it's any consolation, you've got my thanks and appreciation!

@johncalmc @RogerRoger I thought the review was great too, I mean that's what we all want isn't it - honest reviews? There is always outcry when publications like IGN put out a 10/10 review for a game because people think it's been influenced in some way so then why are people getting upset when the opposite happens?!

I think the best thing about your reviews are that you go into detail and really say what you think about the different aspects of the game. I'd almost rather have that than the overall review score as then you actually have to think about if those things would influence how you feel about the game and can make a more informed decision.

@render @johncalmc I guarantee you 80% of those reacting negatively to the review didn't even bother to read it, and just skipped down to the score. Which is my biggest problem with putting scores on reviews, but I get why they're necessary in this day and age. Particularly in a field as crowded as games journalism.

@RogerRoger @johncalmc Sadly you make a very good point.

@johncalmc Damn son, you're rattling through the Yakuza series!

I think the series needed the variation in Y4. It was a brave move but one that I think they pulled off well and Akiyama and Saejima are really good additions to the cast. The other bloke is a bit forgettable (and obviously not that popular to get straight up dropped for Y5). I also liked that they had the side missions for each character and slimmed sub stories down.

Y5 is a bit bloated but still great.

@johncalmc Late to the party, but felt like you needed to know I also enjoyed your Alan Wake review. There’s nothing about it that sounded unfair or biased, and your reasoning was sound for the opinions you expressed. Like others have said, I’m grateful for the candor and although I’m planning to still play it one day (based on my adoration for Control) I’ll not push it up the priority list too high.

Out of curiosity, how do you rank Control?

@Th3solution I think Control is pretty overrated but still good. Like I saw it getting 10s and GOTYs and I'm like okay, let's settle down. If I was reviewing it I'd be on an 8. If we did .5s maybe an 8.5.

The combat is rad but I think it overstays its welcome a bit. I started getting a bit bored towards the end. Less is more, sometimes.

Storywise I liked a lot of it even though it was quite confusing. I would probably play it again although I'd probably play it again on easy and just smash everyone up.

Oh, and I just remembered, the map was absolutely terrible in that game and I never knew where I was supposed to be going.

On Alan Wake, I'd still play it if you wanted to, or if you were a fan of Control and wanted more context for the AWE bit. Like, Alan Wake is a 6 to me because sure it's got good bits to it but also some really rough stuff, and you gotta review the whole thing. If you're the type of person that can stomach some boring fights to get to the cool story moments you'll be fine.

Problem is too many people see a game get less than an 8 and its immediately the worst thing ever. Then you've got too many people who desperately need validation in their own opinions for some reason. Like why does it even matter that some person on the internet who you don't know doesn't like a video game that you like quite as much as you? It's so weird.

@johncalmc I had to laugh at the people comparing the review scores of Alan Wake on Push Square and Pure Xbox like they had to be the same or something?!

And if people are only looking at one review before deciding on buying a game, more fool them. Does anyone actually do that though? If I'm ever unsure of a game I always look at a bunch of reviews to help me decide, not make the decision for me.

@johncalmc Thanks and that’s fair. With that context I’ll probably still try Alan Wake at some point. I’ll let higher priority titles take precedence and then maybe it’ll be even cheaper by the time I’m ready. Or maybe it’ll be on PS Plus my then.

I might rate Control a little higher than you, but I played the Ultimate Edition/PS5 version from the get-go and the performance was great, which I know was one thing that hampered the original release version. In fact, it was the first full native PS5 game I played (after Astrobot) so it probably gets a subconscious bump from me just for the newness of the experience. But if you’re thinking 8-ish for Control then we’re in the same ballpark so I can draw some conclusions about how Alan Wake might sit with me.

@JohnnyShoulder Yeah, the forums are a great way to get a lot of real world impressions. Looking over a couple professional reviews, then hearing feedback from players, especially those who tend to like the same types of game as you is the best way to go. And sometimes I just flat out have to try something myself if opinions are too varied.

@Th3solution Control was the first PS5 game I played after Astrobot, too! I waited because I'd heard it ran badly so I saved it for the new console and it ran fine.

@johncalmc Great minds and all that. 😄

I look forward to your next review. Any hints at what that might be? Perhaps it’s classified and privileged information, but how do you all get assigned who gets to review what? Is it a lottery system? Or does Sammy always get first dibs and then the rest of you fight over what’s left? 😂

@Th3solution Sammy has a look at all of the codes and then he picks the ones he likes the look of and then... well, have you ever seen the movie Battle Royale?

@johncalmc Haha! No, haven’t seen it but I can only assume it’s the inspiration for the battle royale video game genre.
Well, good luck duking it out with Stephen, Robert, Liam, and Co. for the next one!