Christmas and New Year have come and gone so it’s time to reflect on what games we’ve been playing over the festive period and share our thoughts on them. It’s been a busy time gaming for some of us that’s for sure!
Stephen Jackson
This has probably been one of my busiest Christmases when it comes to gaming and I haven’t complained one bit! With the Steam Winter Sale providing me with a range of new games to try, I’ve been trying to spread out my time as much as possible as I’m having a tonne of fun playing the likes of Squad, Running With Rifles, Next Car Game and The Long Dark to name just a few.
Squad and Running With Rifles have been my two most heavily invested in games, however. I am loving Squad for its realism and teamwork as when it works, it works better than any other game when it comes to a realistic, hardcore FPS. I’m really excited to see where it goes in the future, especially with the addition of vehicles which should be arriving later this month. Running With Rifles on the other hand was a game I wasn’t sure I’d enjoy but decided to give it a try as it was on sale and honestly, it’s a tonne of fun. It’s a game you can spend hours in at a time or can play in short bursts between tasks and other menial duties life throws at you.
Daniel Garcia-Montes
As I mentioned in my last snippet in the previous Gaming Respawn Plays, I am replaying my Spider-Man games simply because it’s been a long time since I’ve played them and I missed them. Still, due to the holidays, I had been taking it easy with the gaming, so I’ve only managed to finish the first two movie-based games Spider-Man and Spider-Man 2. Both were fun, but of course I find Spider-Man 2 to be the far superior game, which wouldn’t surprise those who happen to read my weekly Gaming Life feature. Spider-Man 2 isn’t perfect, but overall, I find it to be the best Spidey game. I’m currently playing Spider-Man 3, which actually has a better collection of diverse missions than any Spidey game, even Spider-Man 2. Unfortunately, Spider-Man 3 doesn’t have the best combat and its camera is definitely wonky. I still look forward to playing more of it and then playing the rest of my Spidey games, some of which I’ve only played once. I shall update you all on my progress next week.
Michael Fitzgerald
I picked up two games for my Wii U this Christmas, those being Yoshi’s Woolly World and Splatoon. I’m currently yet to play Splatoon, but I did manage to work my way through the first world of Yoshi as my Christmas Dinner settled, and I really enjoyed it.
The game is outrageously cute, as you could probably guess. Yoshi is already one of the most endearing and adorable creations Nintendo have ever come up with, and turning him into wool only pushes that sentiment even further. When Yoshi runs, his feet turn into little wheels and his hums of concentration as he prepares a projectile will turn even the stoniest of hearts to melted butter in an instant.
In previous games, Yoshi could consume an enemy and then turn them into an egg with which he could throw at other enemies. Being that everything has now had a wool makeover, Yoshi instead turns enemies into yarn balls instead. Not only does this raise very important questions about Yoshi’s digestive system, but it also works as a fun game mechanic. You will occasionally come across hollow platforms that you cannot stand on. You can fling a yarn ball at them, which will proceed to “fill in” the platform and make it usable. One of the first levels involves you having to negotiate windmills, of which some have hollow platforms. Thusly you have to aim the yarn balls just right or face a tumble to woolly doom.
As previously mentioned, I’ve only completed the first world so far, but I’ll stick with it and will probably do a full review once I’ve reached the games conclusion. Experienced gamers probably will find the game too easy, but I’ve instead viewed as just a fun experience and it works as that immensely.
Splatoon is really just all round fun. I’ve sunk about 4-5 hours into it thus far and I’ve enjoyed my time with it. I can see how some have tired with it, as there is a lack of game modes and stages in comparison to other shooters across different platforms, but I can also see why some keep coming back to it time after time.
There are few new IP’s that were hyped as much to me asSplatoon was and I’m happy to say that it does a fine job of living up to that hype. Nintendo just knocked it out of the park last year when it came to fun gaming experiences. Splatoon isn’t a very deep game, but it is wildly entertaining and fanciful, and it’s nice to have some games that are all about fun and bright colours.
Games like this certainly have a place and I’m looking forward to playing Splatoon more in the coming weeks.
James Haxell
This week I watched Star Wars: The Force Awakens, I know about time right. When I got back I felt it wasn’t enough to sustain my fix of Star Wars, even though Disney has made it their duty to market Star Wars with everything they can, even oranges for some reason. So I picked up Battlefront and I was right to do so. Now I’ve not played much but what I have has been spectacular. It’s a very beautiful looking game, and seeing the size of the maps and amount of people playing it is impressive and it doesn’t drop frames or quality. Nostalgia is the best part of the game and continues to prove that if you could bottle nostalgia you would be a billionaire. This is all fine and dandy but the main thing is whether it’s any fun to actually play as I wouldn’t warrant buying a game to just look at some sand and listen to some gun fire. Luckily the answer is yes, the game is great fun. Sure some heroes are more fun to play as others with my favourite being Luke but everyone’s bound to have their own preference.
For the first time in a long while it’s an online multiplayer where I have a good chance of doing well. I am no longer killed constantly by people half my age, that’s not to say I’m one with the force, it’s just the game allows for people of all skills to have good games. People who are good are not rewarded with killstreaks that will help them to continue to be better, instead perks are based on being in the right place at the right time. My favourite mode so far is Walker Assault and that is down to the fact it is chaotic, but that’s not to say the other modes are write-offs. One mode I hope they add is speeder bike racing on Endor, GTA style, so you can shoot those in front making the games able to change in an instance. Sure my excitement for the game is inevitably going to dwindle and it’s not a game you can play for days on end, instead it’s one you pick up for an hour or two once in a while. For now I’m just enjoying fighting the rebel scum.
Ian Cooper
