Toomanywires

Haven't done one of these for a while. 1. God of War Ragnarok and What's Next I really enjoyed Ragnarok. Far more so than I did God of War 2018, and considerably more than I thought I would. Atreus might be the biggest reason, as he basically grew up and became a far more agreeable lad. I was more interested in the relationship between he and his father, Kratos, this time around, and I felt more invested in the wan Spartan and his largely successful attempts to repress his anger, while still being very good at disembowelment. I welcomed the opportunity to go to war with different allies at different junctures; Mimir is still the best head, and I looked forward to spending time with the larger-than-life rulers of Asgard. Odin in particular was not as I expected, and all the better for it. A very distinctive and memorable take on the all-father, and a thoroughly enjoyable one at that. It wasn't perfect, sure. Its insistence on constantly showing you just-out-of-reach treasur...

1. Vita-ing in 2020 As I mentioned a few weeks back, I recently un-retired my Vita. Unfortunately, my memory card was corrupted so I lost all of my saves and everything needed to be re-downloaded. So, over the last month, I have been reinstalling my library piece by piece. While I was at it, I decided to try some of the dozens of untouched titles that I'd accumulated over the years, most of which came from PS+. Severed was the best of the bunch. I bought it in 2018, but discarded it early on; I just wasn't in the mood. My experience was very different this time around, however. I love the art style, the manic swiping and the dark, vague story, and I played it right through to the very end. I also finished Burly Men at Sea , an adventure as short as it is charming (it is quite charming). I was starting to get into Titan Souls, but the 15-20 seconds delay between dying, respawning and re-confronting your foe is too long in a game where death is constant. It desperately nee...

I haven't done one of these Musings posts for three years . In the last edition, I was opining the end of my Witcher 3 DLC journey, saying farewell to the Wii U and discussing the newly revealed Switch and the possibility of it running Skyrim. As we now know, Skyrim runs on everything. A future far greater than I could have ever imagined. Video games, then. 1. Sayonara Wild Hearts Yes it has a very silly name, but Sayonara Wild Hearts is a wonderful little game about pop music and moving very fast through purples and pinks. It's Rez-like in places, which I love, though the marriage between music and gameplay is not as tight. It's short, which I also love, stylish - love - and it always makes you feel like you are doing something awesome, even if you are essentially just guiding your character down a tube. The pop-electronica score is decadent and perfectly fits the visuals - or perhaps it's the other way round? My interest never wavered, in part thanks ...

1. The Nintendo Switch The NX is now the Switch, a home console/portable hybrid that may or may not run Skyrim. It looks smart and the trailer suggests a more mature target audience than we might usually expect from a Nintendo product. That being said, I'm sure that Nintendo will also be courting their usual, youthful demographic. I like the idea of a take-away tablet that will play everything that runs on my TV, though I do wonder if I'd dare take something that large and fragile looking outside the house. In this instance, I think portable might mean play-in-bed and on the toilet. It's certainly not something that I can imagine kids playing outside the home. The 2DS is a typical child's machine, sturdy and compact, and I expect Nintendo will continue to push that as their platform for younger gamers. If Nintendo are positioning the Switch as a gadget for adults, then it will be compared to other tablets, a comparison that may be unfair and unflattering. An...

It's been a while, so let's catch up. 1. When is a Snake not a Snake? We all had a bit of a moan about Metal Gear Solid 5: Ground Zeroes. Some called it a glorified demo, yet Konami had the gall to charge £25 for entry. There wasn't a Platinum trophy for us to hunt and, to top it all off, it featured an ill-conceived audio account of sexual violence between a woman and child. Kojima deserved to be taken to task for the inclusion of such sensitive subject matter in a series so gloriously and self-consciously far-fetched. However, I don't feel the need to drag him over the coals about length and value. In thirteen hours, ten of which I'd call hugely enjoyable, and across multiple replays, I absolutely got my money's worth and I’m now greatly anticipating Phantom Pain. Job well done, Koji Pro. However, one thing that did bother me, even more than I thought it would, was Kiefer Sutherland's turn as Big Boss/Snake. While he may have the acting chops ...

I'm writing a series of posts about the games and consoles of the seventh generation (PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Wii, PSP and DS). It includes a Top 20 countdown, thoughts on the industry and lots more. 1. Just Missed Out Selecting games for my 7th Gen Top Twenty was easier than I had expected. There was one game, however, which I really wanted to include but could not: Far Cry 3. It almost made an appearance at the expense of DJ Hero, but just missed out. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare was the best FPS of the last gen but Far Cry 3 was undoubtedly the most fun. It did away with dark corridors and chaotic battlefields in favour of wide open, tropical playgrounds and reminded us that shooters don't have to be about grizzly men doing depressing things. The Rook Islands were begging to be explored and the silly attempts at narrative rarely got in the way of the fun. Had I expanded my top twenty, there a few other titles that would have been guaranteed a look-in. ...

1. The Walking Dead I'm sorry The Walking Dead, I misjudged you. Zombies are my least favourite undead-type by a country mile, and I thought your text heavy, QTE ways would bore me rigid. As it turns out, I was dead wrong. I spent the last week playing through all five episodes and can’t remember the last time I was so engrossed in a video game narrative and cared this much for the characters featured within. TWD boasts an outstanding ensemble, but it’s the relationship between protagonist Lee and a young girl in search of her parents, Clementine, that really stood out. Time sensitive dilemmas and dialogue options brought out the best (selfless sacrifice) and worst in me (meat locker, pre-emptive noggin smashing), as I looked to protect favoured characters whilst plotting the demise of anyone who looked at me funny. The first two episodes are sublime, but it took a dive through parts three and four, before picking up again for the fifth and final episode. I enjoyed the a...

1. 1UP Community focussed video game website 1UP.com is winding down after ten years in the business. Since 2003, it has been home to one of the most active and passionate video game communities on the net, and has featured a wide range of industry talent. Although its stature has lessened in recent years, 1UP's overall influence should not be overlooked. It played a vital role in a transitional period for games media, as well as being an early adopter of features that we now take for granted, such as weekly podcasts and community blogs. I haven't been a regular there since 2011, yet it continues to be an important part of my online experience. My Twitter and PSN friend lists are full of 1Uppers past and present and I’d imagine that many of the people who read this blog may be traced back to 1UP. It excelled at nurturing community, as well as blurring the lines between professional and enthusiast writers; it was an ideal place to meet new people from all over the world, all of...

1. Nintendo Direct - E3 in January Last week, Nintendo confirmed what we have long suspected: E3 is rubbish and mid-January Wednesdays are where it’s at. In the latest Nintendo Direct, Iwata-san gave us an unseasonal helping of announcements, though little news of the immediate kind. The first half of 2013 is short on Wii U releases, lacking the first party games that have traditionally been so vital to the success of Nintendo consoles. Iwata must have apologised half a dozen times for the “launch window” slim pickings, and the overall message was clear: we have plenty to offer, but almost none of it is ready yet, sorry. The Wonderful 101 offered some near-immediate gratification for Wii U owners, so long as you don’t mind that grating style of voice acting. Platinum had very little to show of Bayonetta 2, other than leather trouser textures, which makes you wonder when exactly it’s going to be ready. There was very noncommittal talk about a new Zelda, which will arrive at...

1. Farewell to the PlayStation 2 Sony has confirmed that production of the PlayStation 2 has come to an end after twelve hugely successful years. The PS2 was a global phenomenon, building upon the PlayStation brand and achieving a level of success that will never be seen again in a home console. With Nintendo slipping, SEGA all but finished and Microsoft just starting out, the market was Sony's to dominate in the early 2000s, and that's exactly what they did to the tune of 150 million units sold worldwide. The PS2 is far and away the most successful home console of all time, selling over 50 million more units than the second place PS1. It had a staggering number of games, over 10,000 individual titles, ranging from the sublime to the atrocious. More than 1.5 billion PS2 games have been sold since 2000, some of which weren’t FIFA. It almost made it to a third generation and is the success that all future Sony consoles will be measured against. Looking at sales figur...

1. Yakuza 5 The Yakuza 5 demo is now available on the Japanese PS store and, as expected, I loved it. The demo offers a teaser for one of the five cities available in the full game, providing a brief look at Kazuma Kiryu's story and allowing you to explore the many distractions that are bound to turn a fifteen hour adventure into a thirty hour investment. Kazuma has once again moved away from Tokyo in an attempt to turn his back on a life of crime and ugly suits. He must’ve lost interest in running his orphanage, as he is now moonlighting as a taxi driver, a driver who might just knock out your teeth with a toffee hammer if you don’t have the correct change. As is always the case, Kazuma has failed to move far enough away from his old life, having been tracked down by some respectful but violent gangsters, who get their heads kicked in. The combat is brutal, the dialogue over the top and brilliantly macho, and the city feels alive, but it was the optional activities, m...