Wow I'm actually quite impressed, happy and frankly relieved by this news. This is for physical only too? Even more impressive. Good job Sony and From Software. My hat is off to both companies and the PlayStation brand in general
It was a great month for episodic gaming content too with Life is Strange episode 2, Tales From The Borderlands episode 2 and Game of Thrones episode 3 all being highly entertaining and impressive
@Jaz007 ha I suppose some people did like that technique then that's cool. I personally don't mind it, it was something different at the time and required precision
@sinalefa yes the Nazi zombies perhaps could have been implemented better but it was a neat twist to throw at us after we spent the entirety of the game before that getting adjusted to the duck and cover system and now suddenly it was a horror game for about a half hour lol but definitely agree with all your points
@sinalefa yes the Nazi zombies perhaps could have been implemented better but it was a neat twist to throw at us after we spent the entirety of the game before that getting adjusted to the duck and cover system and now suddenly it was a horror game for about a half hour lol but definitely agree with all your points
@sub12 agreed completely! Look at it this way, Drake's Fortune came out in 2007, Resident Evil 5 came out in 2009........ And guess which game allows you to move while you aim and shoot while the other doesn't? Haha nuff said
The last of us does it best thus far in my opinion. You get a new game plus for every difficulty level you've beaten the game on and carries all your weapon and ability upgrades over. It also gives you separate trophies for beating it on plus mode each time. Incentive! It's a wonderous thing
@get2sammyb heck I just played Resistance Fall Of Man for the first time last week and aside for it not having trophy support, that 2006 launch game surprised me a helluva lot with how well it still holds up. On the sequel now, which I'm loving that much more. There's nothing else out there like PS exclusives
@get2sammyb Coming from someone who just played the entire series for the first time about a year and a half ago and still play them to this day, Uncharted Drake's Fortune still holds up better than you'd expect. For a 2007 title it's actually still quite impressive except for the siaxxis motion control grenade throwing. If they could fix that and make it at least U2 style, and give a few other areas polish, I believe people would still have a blast with the original like I still do. I tell anyone who's first getting into the series to play the original first regardless, because it makes the immediate transition to among thieves and Drake's Deception that much more amazing. Just some thoughts
Proud that this game did well in the long run, this was an excellent reboot with some awesome gameplay and set pieces all around. The story wasn't too shabby either. Part of me hopes this Xbox exclusivity backfires though
Cool idea. Kinda wish the ps3 had something similar because last night I felt so much pride earning the gold trophy in the last of us when I managed to fully upgrade all of Joel's weapons near the end in New game+ hard mode. Still can't get enough of that masterpiece. It allowed me for the first time since I first played the game to eliminate every infected including the 2-3 bloaters in the tunnel before you reach the fireflies lab. First time I completed that part without sneaking by all those guys, and first time I really put Joel's flame thrower to good use and it paid off! The cool part was hearing new dialogue from Joel and Ellie I had never heard before either after I took all of those fools out. Only in gaming can that level of satisfaction be realized in my opinion. Game on my dudes!
Looks pretty freaking amazing damn. My only slight nitpick would be the hand to hand combat looks untouched for the most part at least in this video, even down to the slow motion last enemy knockout animation looked ripped straight from arkham city lol. Still very excited and the batmobile integration looks pretty epic
@kupo yeah you're right the game still looks and performs superb on the ps3 no questions asked. It does run at 30 frames though and I had just come from playing the first two remastered at 60fps and ill admit the transition was a tad jarring at first. Still an amazing experience, and glad they're not trying to charge $60. $40 is acceptable in my eyes and for those who haven't played it yet, they're in for one hell of a treat
Deep article Sammy and really makes you think on things a bit. Makes me really sadly wonder if the 7th gen was the unofficial end to triple A developers taking real risks and trying new ideas. People really do need to ease up on expectations and realize that game developers are only human like the rest of us. At the same time, these studios need to stop letting the consumers dictate how they go about developing and releasing their product. Hopefully the open minded spectrum of us gamers will prevail in the end and if the industry really does start to publicly struggle across the board, we can come together and support our hobby from falling by the wayside. Excellent article regardless
Looking forward to this! Between telltale and dontnod my episodic gaming habits have been well fulfilled! Glad to see these developers take chances on something different like this and hope there's enough support for these games to see a prosperous episodic gaming future
Brilliant game it still looks stunning on ps3 at 720p. I can only imagine how nice a 1080p 60fps remaster would look and play on the ps4. I'm somewhat sick of remastered games there's been a few too many this gen so far but some games are simply worthy and GOW III is definitely on that list.
Disappointing but not a huge shocker considering how little we've seen and heard all in all. Naughty Dog is such an amazing developer though that if they feel the need to delay and put more work in to make UC4 amazing, then I'm all for it. The Xbox fanboys are gonna be all over this one lol
I feel like I'm in the middle of the two sides in this debate. I agree that cross-gen games are indeed holding back the potential for the newer consoles and it's a good thing that developers have been realising this recently. Those on the ps4/x1 deserve the best experiences possible on their new machines. However, I'd like to see PSN to continue to support the ps3 for as long as possible and for us to still have access to download only/indie games for the foreseeable future. Though aged technology, the ps3 still offers consumers a lot for their money with their amazing library of games (many of which still rival the best ps4 has to offer thus far),a great blu-ray player, Netflix support etc etc. Not to mention all of the patches games needed over the years, without online support, consumers would be getting incomplete games. It's been a funny generational transition to be sure and both sides bring up great points but I think my solution is the best for both parties at least for the next few years before everyone officially makes the jump.
My first introduction to the yakuza series thanks to the good old faithful PS2. All my friends in high school got ps2's so me being me, going against the popular trend, saved up and got myself a platinum colored GameCube another vastly underrated console. However, I still have many great memories with the ps2 especially late nights playing 2k football with some buddies with the trusty multitap lol those were the days. Ps2 still has the best wrestling games ever made too in my opinion. Will always respect this console and what it did for the industry though ill always have more fond memories of the ps1 and ps3 for one reason or another. Heck my ps2 slim still sits next to my ps3 slim and still works perfectly 8 years later! Happy birthday!
I'm currently on my 3rd or 4th play through of RDR and have only owned it for a year lol such a masterpiece and still holds up 5 years later in my opinion. Can't wait to see what rock star has in store for us next regardless of IP.
I actually just bought just cause 2 from amazon last week and am currently still playing through it I'm not even close to finished. Its definitely a fun time and im having a blast with the grapple/parachute combo ive heard so much about and it is cool that you earn upgrades and unlock missions simply by reeking as much havoc as possible but like everyone says there really isn't a plot to hold your interest, the gameplay and sandbox world do all the heavy lifting. When I read the game informer cover article a couple months back on JC3 the developers mentioned still keeping the overall tone in line with the franchise, but delving deeper into Rico's past and Rico as a character in general inferring they're at least gonna attempt to put more effort and emphasis in the narrative this time around. The trailer doesn't show us enough, just giving us a taste, but im not really shocked by the more serious tone of it, and am happy to hear they're planning to bring it out in 2015. Just keep it apart from uncharted 4s release date if you want this game to succeed lol
@tonyp1987 that's actually a great starting lineup though I've played all of those except for one on the PS3 (Killzone Shadowfall obviously). However, if you haven't played these yet, they're all excellent games in their own right and the remastered games look damn pretty on ps4. Last of Us is a masterpiece, gta is probably the prettiest and most ambitious sandbox game to date (plus first person mode), Tomb Raider is the best re-boot in years and an excellent adventure, and despite what many say about Watch Dogs, i thought it was solid and they got right what they needed to. My advice would be to not compare it to gta and let it breathe on its own, I think you'll be surprised if you dont have crazy expectations going into it, that's how it was for me anyway. Hope this helps and congrats on the ps4 man, that's some woman you've got there! She's a keeper!
@Splat I'm sort of with you there. That's a game I debated getting for a long time because the whole premise seemed really cool but there were things about it that made me question whether it would be fun or not. Once I finally gave in and bought it, it's kind of a mixed bag. The concept is cool, the world is intriguing, the graphics are great for 7th gen hardware and the abilities your character can use are pretty bad ass. On the other hand, main character Corvo just isn't very interesting since he never speaks, and being in first person mode you never see him so it's hard to connect with him. Adding to that, the overall story itself isn't the most interesting and not that fleshed out (you need to read random letters, journal entries etc you find in the world to get the most out of it), and as cool as it is to have the freedom to choose one of many paths to complete missions, the game wants you to sneak by everyone or use non lethal takedowns because excessive killing gets you penalized in the long run, kind of taking the steam out of the "choose your own path" premise and while it's ambitious and challenging, it also leads to less fun and more frustration especially since you get a hefty lineup of weaponry and powers at your disposal. Honestly I can see a sequel with the kinks ironed out being amazing if done right though.
Eh idk I love telltale and almost all of their work especially since walking dead season 1 but this pairing seems a little strange (I'm admittedly not a mine craft guy). My only worry is that telltale is spreading themselves a little thin since they have both Game Of Thrones and Borderlands currently happening (both amazing so far by the way) and we know the walking dead season 3 is surely in the pipeline, and Im personally still crossing my fingers for a Wolf Among Us season 2. Hoping this minecraft partnership doesn't take away from the more interesting and mature projects us fans are accustomed to, but who knows we'll see how it comes out. I may just give it a go for telltales sake, but definitely approaching this one with caution.
Completely agree with this article and the opinion of the writer. I'm also tired of almost EVERYTHING being rooted in fantasy like elements. I'd much prefer being a normal everyday guy/gal (a la Nathan Drake/Lara Croft) and battle against the odds and use my cunning and athletic abilities to get through my adversaries. There's only so many times shooting lightning out of a characters hands or being able to fly superman style stays interesting. Luckily I have enjoyed the grounded games that have released through the years, uncharted I do consider a grounded, real world game with real characters with a tad bit of fantasy sprinkled in the final chapters of every release thus far which is fine because they dont overdo it and make an attempt to explain why things are what they are. I give rock star games all the credit in the world for generally sticking to their roots and putting out games all based on reality (gta series, red dead, la noire, max Payne, bully, etc) and many are critically acclaimed and fun with relatable stories and characters for the most part. Telltale is very good at taking fantasy like settings and characters and grounding them in more real world relatable settings and situations (play wolf among us you'll understand). Sleeping dogs, mafia 2, watch dogs, and the AC series are all real world based with nothing really fantastical except for each games own "mechanics" that will remind you that yes, you're still playing a game at the end of the day. Many more games i could comment on but I'm getting long winded per usual so ill end with again, I agree we need more games that are relatable and reality based because the possibilities are endless with what can be done. Sometimes more really is less, and in the camp that really enjoyed what life is strange is bringing to the table and look forward to what it has in store for us.
Great article man it's great to see you guys give the Yakuza series the love and credit that it deserves because there really isn't anything else like it on the market. A serious, deep intricate storyline that spans across 5 or so games yet each game can stand on its own, more content than you can shake a stick at (I dare anyone to seriously try 100 percenting this game, you'll be there awhile), Japanese culture and humor represented unlike any other (apart from the almighty shenmue series), and a hand to hand combat and weapons system so brutal it can be cringeworthy. Can it feel slow and dated at times? You bet, it's definitely an acquired taste and you need to be willing to put some time into the game to discover it's intricacies but I encourage anyone and everyone to give this one a try especially if you can pick it up for free, immerse yourself and thank us later.
Oh man this is such a loaded topic I could go on for days discussing it and breaking it down. I guess I would say that technically Shenmue on the dreamcast was my first journey into the open world genre before open world was really even a norm and trust me by today's standards Shenmue would be considered linear in comparison but I fell in love with the freedom of exploring a living, breathing Japan setting at my own will without many limits. Then the Yakuza series, again, smaller than most modern "open worlds" that are popular today but fun nonetheless and a series that makes sure you have plenty to do and are never wandering around aimlessly. As far as taking that real big leap into modern open world sandboxes, I was hesitant for many years because I thought I would become bored and lose focus especially after titles such as the Uncharted series, the last of us, Tomb Raider 2013, heavy rain and telltale games brilliant story centric games had quickly become my favorite in the medium. Then I decided to buy the rock star 4 game pack deal a year ago because I was really interested in LA Noire which gave you an open world but kept the actual storytelling linear, which was a stepping stone. Included in that pack however was also Red Dead Redemption a game I had heard praise of for years. Unsurprisingly, I loved red dead and la noire both amazing titles with beautiful worlds and great character driven stories to go with it (I was never really a gta fan). thanks to those titles it kind of went from there where I tried both Mafia 2 (similar structure to LA Noire in nature) and Sleeping Dogs which I thought was nailed pitch perfect (Hong Kong setting, great melee combat, gritty undercover cop story). This lead to me swallowing my pride and giving GTA 5 a chance despite not being a super fan of the others and I'm one of those that really does love Los Santos, the three character story arc, and all the refined gameplay improvements made me a big fan despite my hesitancy and one of those guys calling gta overrated beforehand. I've also played all of the seventh gen AC titles which I did enjoy but understand the complaints by people. Watch Dogs was good too more so because of the hacking element rather than its open world. Saints Row the third was okay too but nothing particularly memorable, and had a great time conquering rook island in Far Cry 3 which ill give credit for opening me up to more FPS games. Next week ill finally be checking out just cause 2 which I've heard mostly great things about. (I've also completed the hero story for Infamous 1&2 which were fun once I got into the groove, preferred the 2nd titles world and story over the first) I just went on a whole spiel but to answer the actual question, open worlds are compelling when done right, when you're immersed and it's somewhere you want to spend time in as opposed to grinding through it to complete it's checklist. The story and characters still need to be compelling in my book however, open world or not those rules still apply to me and a beautiful open world backdrop and playground is just icing on the cake but developers can't simply rely on the world itself to sell the title, the content in the world as well as it's characters and plot are what makes day one purchased for this guy a guarantee as opposed to "eh maybe it'll be fun."
Would definitely be a great thing to hear a sequel get announced starring Ellie in her own game. She's already universally loved from just about anyone thats seen or played TLOU and the whole 'gay' aspect is already knocking down doors, breaking boundaries and paving the way for more diverse protagonists in the future. I know many would prefer to see TLOU as a standalone title and I completely get why, it's already a masterpiece in every sense of the word. However, I've always said from day one that I don't think Ellies full story has been told yet and the potential for a groundbreaking sequel on par with UC2 is no doubt in the cards. As long as naughty dog is the company that steers the ship, I have absolute faith.
Comments 109
Re: Submerged Plunders the Depths of the PlayStation 4
Definitely intrigued
Re: Avalanche Studios to Blow the Doors Off Just Cause 3 Next Week
@get2sammyb awesome! Can't wait!
Re: Sucker Punch Wants Its Next PS4 Exclusive to Drop Jaws
Hopefully Cole can come back somehow that'd be cool
Re: Mortal Kombat X Fights Its Forebears for Franchise's Fastest Selling Accolade
Erron Black my new favorite fighter
Re: Bloodborne Sales Are Off to a Bloody Good Start
Wow I'm actually quite impressed, happy and frankly relieved by this news. This is for physical only too? Even more impressive. Good job Sony and From Software. My hat is off to both companies and the PlayStation brand in general
Re: New PS4 Patch Gives The Order: 1886 a Glorious Photo Mode
Kinda sucks they released this update after most everyone has beaten this game and returned it by now....
Re: Game of the Month: March 2015
It was a great month for episodic gaming content too with Life is Strange episode 2, Tales From The Borderlands episode 2 and Game of Thrones episode 3 all being highly entertaining and impressive
Re: This Certainly Isn't Confirmation of a PS4 Uncharted Collection
@Jaz007 ha I suppose some people did like that technique then that's cool. I personally don't mind it, it was something different at the time and required precision
Re: This Certainly Isn't Confirmation of a PS4 Uncharted Collection
@sinalefa yes the Nazi zombies perhaps could have been implemented better but it was a neat twist to throw at us after we spent the entirety of the game before that getting adjusted to the duck and cover system and now suddenly it was a horror game for about a half hour lol but definitely agree with all your points
Re: This Certainly Isn't Confirmation of a PS4 Uncharted Collection
@sinalefa yes the Nazi zombies perhaps could have been implemented better but it was a neat twist to throw at us after we spent the entirety of the game before that getting adjusted to the duck and cover system and now suddenly it was a horror game for about a half hour lol but definitely agree with all your points
Re: This Certainly Isn't Confirmation of a PS4 Uncharted Collection
@sub12 agreed completely! Look at it this way, Drake's Fortune came out in 2007, Resident Evil 5 came out in 2009........ And guess which game allows you to move while you aim and shoot while the other doesn't? Haha nuff said
Re: Want a Post-Apocalyptic RPG on PS4? The Technomancer May Be the AnswerÂ
Definitely sounds interesting
Re: Soapbox: We Need More New Game Plus
The last of us does it best thus far in my opinion. You get a new game plus for every difficulty level you've beaten the game on and carries all your weapon and ability upgrades over. It also gives you separate trophies for beating it on plus mode each time. Incentive! It's a wonderous thing
Re: Deus Ex: Mankind Divided's Debut PS4 Trailer Is Augmented with Action
@Gemuarto chill buddy. Play your games
Re: This Certainly Isn't Confirmation of a PS4 Uncharted Collection
@get2sammyb heck I just played Resistance Fall Of Man for the first time last week and aside for it not having trophy support, that 2006 launch game surprised me a helluva lot with how well it still holds up. On the sequel now, which I'm loving that much more. There's nothing else out there like PS exclusives
Re: This Certainly Isn't Confirmation of a PS4 Uncharted Collection
@get2sammyb Coming from someone who just played the entire series for the first time about a year and a half ago and still play them to this day, Uncharted Drake's Fortune still holds up better than you'd expect. For a 2007 title it's actually still quite impressive except for the siaxxis motion control grenade throwing. If they could fix that and make it at least U2 style, and give a few other areas polish, I believe people would still have a blast with the original like I still do. I tell anyone who's first getting into the series to play the original first regardless, because it makes the immediate transition to among thieves and Drake's Deception that much more amazing. Just some thoughts
Re: Tomb Raider Reboot Plunders 8.5 Million Sales
Proud that this game did well in the long run, this was an excellent reboot with some awesome gameplay and set pieces all around. The story wasn't too shabby either. Part of me hopes this Xbox exclusivity backfires though
Re: Ryo Hazuki Will Finally Get His Revenge Against Lan Di
haha you nearly tricked me too! Still, this is pretty darn cool
Re: Turn Your PS4 Trophy Hunting into a Scrapbook of Screens
Cool idea. Kinda wish the ps3 had something similar because last night I felt so much pride earning the gold trophy in the last of us when I managed to fully upgrade all of Joel's weapons near the end in New game+ hard mode. Still can't get enough of that masterpiece. It allowed me for the first time since I first played the game to eliminate every infected including the 2-3 bloaters in the tunnel before you reach the fireflies lab. First time I completed that part without sneaking by all those guys, and first time I really put Joel's flame thrower to good use and it paid off! The cool part was hearing new dialogue from Joel and Ellie I had never heard before either after I took all of those fools out. Only in gaming can that level of satisfaction be realized in my opinion. Game on my dudes!
Re: Review: Life Is Strange: Episode 2 - Out of Time (PlayStation 4)
About to play this soon
Re: Review: Game of Thrones: Episode 3 - The Sword in the Darkness (PlayStation 4)
Brilliant episode from an amazing series thus far. Telltale continues to win me over again and again.
Re: God of War PS4 Theme Celebrates Series' Anniversary with Discount
Going to be playing the two psp titles soon. Heard great things about both
Re: Review: 5 Star Wrestling (PlayStation 3)
Lmao wow
Re: Batman: Arkham Knight Evens the Odds with 7 Minutes of Brand New Gameplay
Looks pretty freaking amazing damn. My only slight nitpick would be the hand to hand combat looks untouched for the most part at least in this video, even down to the slow motion last enemy knockout animation looked ripped straight from arkham city lol. Still very excited and the batmobile integration looks pretty epic
Re: Rumour: Holy Remaster, Batman! Arkham Duo Set to Swoop onto PS4
Huh............taking this rumor with a grain of salt. Great games but Idk a remaster isn't highly necessary especially with ps now as an option
Re: Review: Tales from the Borderlands: Episode 2 - Atlas Mugged (PlayStation 4)
I really enjoyed this episode
Re: God of War III Remastered's PS4 Price May Make Olympus Mad
@kupo yeah you're right the game still looks and performs superb on the ps3 no questions asked. It does run at 30 frames though and I had just come from playing the first two remastered at 60fps and ill admit the transition was a tad jarring at first. Still an amazing experience, and glad they're not trying to charge $60. $40 is acceptable in my eyes and for those who haven't played it yet, they're in for one hell of a treat
Re: Soapbox: Has It Just Been a Bad Week for Games, Or Is This Simply a Sign of the Times?
Deep article Sammy and really makes you think on things a bit. Makes me really sadly wonder if the 7th gen was the unofficial end to triple A developers taking real risks and trying new ideas. People really do need to ease up on expectations and realize that game developers are only human like the rest of us. At the same time, these studios need to stop letting the consumers dictate how they go about developing and releasing their product. Hopefully the open minded spectrum of us gamers will prevail in the end and if the industry really does start to publicly struggle across the board, we can come together and support our hobby from falling by the wayside. Excellent article regardless
Re: Life Is Strange Gets Out of Class Early Next Week
Looking forward to this! Between telltale and dontnod my episodic gaming habits have been well fulfilled! Glad to see these developers take chances on something different like this and hope there's enough support for these games to see a prosperous episodic gaming future
Re: Rumour: God of War III Spills Guts on PlayStation 4
Brilliant game it still looks stunning on ps3 at 720p. I can only imagine how nice a 1080p 60fps remaster would look and play on the ps4. I'm somewhat sick of remastered games there's been a few too many this gen so far but some games are simply worthy and GOW III is definitely on that list.
Re: Japanese Sales Charts: PS4 Steadies Its Stance as Yakuza Zero Lashes Out
Hope we see yakuza zero out this way sooner rather than later!
Re: PS4 Exclusive Uncharted 4: A Thief's End Has Been Delayed into Spring 2016
Disappointing but not a huge shocker considering how little we've seen and heard all in all. Naughty Dog is such an amazing developer though that if they feel the need to delay and put more work in to make UC4 amazing, then I'm all for it. The Xbox fanboys are gonna be all over this one lol
Re: Talking Point: Is This the End for the PlayStation 3?
I feel like I'm in the middle of the two sides in this debate. I agree that cross-gen games are indeed holding back the potential for the newer consoles and it's a good thing that developers have been realising this recently. Those on the ps4/x1 deserve the best experiences possible on their new machines. However, I'd like to see PSN to continue to support the ps3 for as long as possible and for us to still have access to download only/indie games for the foreseeable future. Though aged technology, the ps3 still offers consumers a lot for their money with their amazing library of games (many of which still rival the best ps4 has to offer thus far),a great blu-ray player, Netflix support etc etc. Not to mention all of the patches games needed over the years, without online support, consumers would be getting incomplete games. It's been a funny generational transition to be sure and both sides bring up great points but I think my solution is the best for both parties at least for the next few years before everyone officially makes the jump.
Re: A Very Happy Birthday to You, PlayStation 2
My first introduction to the yakuza series thanks to the good old faithful PS2. All my friends in high school got ps2's so me being me, going against the popular trend, saved up and got myself a platinum colored GameCube another vastly underrated console. However, I still have many great memories with the ps2 especially late nights playing 2k football with some buddies with the trusty multitap lol those were the days. Ps2 still has the best wrestling games ever made too in my opinion. Will always respect this console and what it did for the industry though ill always have more fond memories of the ps1 and ps3 for one reason or another. Heck my ps2 slim still sits next to my ps3 slim and still works perfectly 8 years later! Happy birthday!
Re: Grand Theft Auto V's Online Mode Is Getting More Than Just Heists
Sounds fun! Time to start ripping gta 5 again can't wait!
Re: Rockstar Keeping Red Dead Redemption PS4 Holstered for Now, Reckons Pachter
I'm currently on my 3rd or 4th play through of RDR and have only owned it for a year lol such a masterpiece and still holds up 5 years later in my opinion. Can't wait to see what rock star has in store for us next regardless of IP.
Re: Life Is Strange: Episode 2 Grounded Until Undisclosed Date
This kinda sucks :/ hope it's worth it
Re: Grand Theft Auto V's Online Heists Finally Make a Getaway Next Month
Bout damn time
Re: Feature: Four Ways Ready at Dawn Could Make a Much Better The Order: 1886 Sequel for PS4
This is kind of a sad day I agree
Re: Just Cause 3's First Trailer Is Far More Serious Than It Needs to Be
I actually just bought just cause 2 from amazon last week and am currently still playing through it I'm not even close to finished. Its definitely a fun time and im having a blast with the grapple/parachute combo ive heard so much about and it is cool that you earn upgrades and unlock missions simply by reeking as much havoc as possible but like everyone says there really isn't a plot to hold your interest, the gameplay and sandbox world do all the heavy lifting. When I read the game informer cover article a couple months back on JC3 the developers mentioned still keeping the overall tone in line with the franchise, but delving deeper into Rico's past and Rico as a character in general inferring they're at least gonna attempt to put more effort and emphasis in the narrative this time around. The trailer doesn't show us enough, just giving us a taste, but im not really shocked by the more serious tone of it, and am happy to hear they're planning to bring it out in 2015. Just keep it apart from uncharted 4s release date if you want this game to succeed lol
Re: You Terrible People Have Hunted 1,630,255,159 Animals in Far Cry 4
@tonyp1987 that's actually a great starting lineup though I've played all of those except for one on the PS3 (Killzone Shadowfall obviously). However, if you haven't played these yet, they're all excellent games in their own right and the remastered games look damn pretty on ps4. Last of Us is a masterpiece, gta is probably the prettiest and most ambitious sandbox game to date (plus first person mode), Tomb Raider is the best re-boot in years and an excellent adventure, and despite what many say about Watch Dogs, i thought it was solid and they got right what they needed to. My advice would be to not compare it to gta and let it breathe on its own, I think you'll be surprised if you dont have crazy expectations going into it, that's how it was for me anyway. Hope this helps and congrats on the ps4 man, that's some woman you've got there! She's a keeper!
Re: Bethesda's Bringing Something Big to E3 2015
@Splat I'm sort of with you there. That's a game I debated getting for a long time because the whole premise seemed really cool but there were things about it that made me question whether it would be fun or not. Once I finally gave in and bought it, it's kind of a mixed bag. The concept is cool, the world is intriguing, the graphics are great for 7th gen hardware and the abilities your character can use are pretty bad ass. On the other hand, main character Corvo just isn't very interesting since he never speaks, and being in first person mode you never see him so it's hard to connect with him. Adding to that, the overall story itself isn't the most interesting and not that fleshed out (you need to read random letters, journal entries etc you find in the world to get the most out of it), and as cool as it is to have the freedom to choose one of many paths to complete missions, the game wants you to sneak by everyone or use non lethal takedowns because excessive killing gets you penalized in the long run, kind of taking the steam out of the "choose your own path" premise and while it's ambitious and challenging, it also leads to less fun and more frustration especially since you get a hefty lineup of weaponry and powers at your disposal. Honestly I can see a sequel with the kinks ironed out being amazing if done right though.
Re: How Did Telltale Games End Up Working on a New Minecraft?
Eh idk I love telltale and almost all of their work especially since walking dead season 1 but this pairing seems a little strange (I'm admittedly not a mine craft guy). My only worry is that telltale is spreading themselves a little thin since they have both Game Of Thrones and Borderlands currently happening (both amazing so far by the way) and we know the walking dead season 3 is surely in the pipeline, and Im personally still crossing my fingers for a Wolf Among Us season 2. Hoping this minecraft partnership doesn't take away from the more interesting and mature projects us fans are accustomed to, but who knows we'll see how it comes out. I may just give it a go for telltales sake, but definitely approaching this one with caution.
Re: Soapbox: Why We Need More Grounded Games
Completely agree with this article and the opinion of the writer. I'm also tired of almost EVERYTHING being rooted in fantasy like elements. I'd much prefer being a normal everyday guy/gal (a la Nathan Drake/Lara Croft) and battle against the odds and use my cunning and athletic abilities to get through my adversaries. There's only so many times shooting lightning out of a characters hands or being able to fly superman style stays interesting. Luckily I have enjoyed the grounded games that have released through the years, uncharted I do consider a grounded, real world game with real characters with a tad bit of fantasy sprinkled in the final chapters of every release thus far which is fine because they dont overdo it and make an attempt to explain why things are what they are. I give rock star games all the credit in the world for generally sticking to their roots and putting out games all based on reality (gta series, red dead, la noire, max Payne, bully, etc) and many are critically acclaimed and fun with relatable stories and characters for the most part. Telltale is very good at taking fantasy like settings and characters and grounding them in more real world relatable settings and situations (play wolf among us you'll understand). Sleeping dogs, mafia 2, watch dogs, and the AC series are all real world based with nothing really fantastical except for each games own "mechanics" that will remind you that yes, you're still playing a game at the end of the day. Many more games i could comment on but I'm getting long winded per usual so ill end with again, I agree we need more games that are relatable and reality based because the possibilities are endless with what can be done. Sometimes more really is less, and in the camp that really enjoyed what life is strange is bringing to the table and look forward to what it has in store for us.
Re: Sony's Suddenly Released More The Order: 1886 Videos Than We Thought Possible
Can't wait for release this could very well be the title that pushes me to finally make that ps4 purchase we shall see.
Re: Feature: What Do You Mean You've Never Played... Yakuza 4?
Great article man it's great to see you guys give the Yakuza series the love and credit that it deserves because there really isn't anything else like it on the market. A serious, deep intricate storyline that spans across 5 or so games yet each game can stand on its own, more content than you can shake a stick at (I dare anyone to seriously try 100 percenting this game, you'll be there awhile), Japanese culture and humor represented unlike any other (apart from the almighty shenmue series), and a hand to hand combat and weapons system so brutal it can be cringeworthy. Can it feel slow and dated at times? You bet, it's definitely an acquired taste and you need to be willing to put some time into the game to discover it's intricacies but I encourage anyone and everyone to give this one a try especially if you can pick it up for free, immerse yourself and thank us later.
Re: Talking Point: Are Bigger Open Worlds Really Better?
Oh man this is such a loaded topic I could go on for days discussing it and breaking it down. I guess I would say that technically Shenmue on the dreamcast was my first journey into the open world genre before open world was really even a norm and trust me by today's standards Shenmue would be considered linear in comparison but I fell in love with the freedom of exploring a living, breathing Japan setting at my own will without many limits. Then the Yakuza series, again, smaller than most modern "open worlds" that are popular today but fun nonetheless and a series that makes sure you have plenty to do and are never wandering around aimlessly. As far as taking that real big leap into modern open world sandboxes, I was hesitant for many years because I thought I would become bored and lose focus especially after titles such as the Uncharted series, the last of us, Tomb Raider 2013, heavy rain and telltale games brilliant story centric games had quickly become my favorite in the medium. Then I decided to buy the rock star 4 game pack deal a year ago because I was really interested in LA Noire which gave you an open world but kept the actual storytelling linear, which was a stepping stone. Included in that pack however was also Red Dead Redemption a game I had heard praise of for years. Unsurprisingly, I loved red dead and la noire both amazing titles with beautiful worlds and great character driven stories to go with it (I was never really a gta fan). thanks to those titles it kind of went from there where I tried both Mafia 2 (similar structure to LA Noire in nature) and Sleeping Dogs which I thought was nailed pitch perfect (Hong Kong setting, great melee combat, gritty undercover cop story). This lead to me swallowing my pride and giving GTA 5 a chance despite not being a super fan of the others and I'm one of those that really does love Los Santos, the three character story arc, and all the refined gameplay improvements made me a big fan despite my hesitancy and one of those guys calling gta overrated beforehand. I've also played all of the seventh gen AC titles which I did enjoy but understand the complaints by people. Watch Dogs was good too more so because of the hacking element rather than its open world. Saints Row the third was okay too but nothing particularly memorable, and had a great time conquering rook island in Far Cry 3 which ill give credit for opening me up to more FPS games. Next week ill finally be checking out just cause 2 which I've heard mostly great things about. (I've also completed the hero story for Infamous 1&2 which were fun once I got into the groove, preferred the 2nd titles world and story over the first) I just went on a whole spiel but to answer the actual question, open worlds are compelling when done right, when you're immersed and it's somewhere you want to spend time in as opposed to grinding through it to complete it's checklist. The story and characters still need to be compelling in my book however, open world or not those rules still apply to me and a beautiful open world backdrop and playground is just icing on the cake but developers can't simply rely on the world itself to sell the title, the content in the world as well as it's characters and plot are what makes day one purchased for this guy a guarantee as opposed to "eh maybe it'll be fun."
Re: Spotify Streams to PS4, PS3 in Partnership with PlayStation Music
Glad I just happen to use spotify for my music and play my games on Sony consoles. Win-win.
Re: The Last of Us' Ellie Is Poised to Become One of the Most Famous Characters in Gaming
Would definitely be a great thing to hear a sequel get announced starring Ellie in her own game. She's already universally loved from just about anyone thats seen or played TLOU and the whole 'gay' aspect is already knocking down doors, breaking boundaries and paving the way for more diverse protagonists in the future. I know many would prefer to see TLOU as a standalone title and I completely get why, it's already a masterpiece in every sense of the word. However, I've always said from day one that I don't think Ellies full story has been told yet and the potential for a groundbreaking sequel on par with UC2 is no doubt in the cards. As long as naughty dog is the company that steers the ship, I have absolute faith.
Re: UK Sales Charts: Grand Theft Auto V Sits Pretty at Summit
@eliotgballade lol well done sir