February 2024 Update - Ichiban goes to Hawaii

 

Playing NOW

Like A Dragon Infinite Wealth (PS5)

Easily my most anticipated release this year, Like A Dragon Infinite Wealth does not disappoint. Back with another adventure with Ichiban & Kiryu also decides to tag along.

It took me a while to get familiar with the turn-based combat after enjoying all the previous action based games since Ichiban's first game. It has a nice quick smackdown feature similar to the Persona "All Out Attack" where you can wipe out lower levelled enemies with a press of the L2 button.

The mini-games are as always great timesinks and I am enjoying Sujimon & Dondoko Island.

Fortnite (PS5)

A mid-season update has dropped a TMNT (teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles) mini-battle pass which unlocks a shredder skin, I have also completed the Solid Snake challenges and unlocked the skin.

 

Playing COMPLETE

Assasins Creed Mirage (PS5)

I enjoyed this shorter experience than the previous games & the focus on stealth combat and tools is my default playstyle.

Playing NEXT
After Infinite Wealth it will most likely be Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth. My aim for this year is to focus first on games released in 2024 that I want to play, if nothing is available then I will go back and look at my backlog.

Playing BACKLOG
These are games I already own that I really need to find some time to enjoy.

Starfield
Spiderman 2
Judgment
Life is Strange
Sackboy
Lost Judgment
Outer Wilds
Shadow Tactics
Disco Elysium
Empire of Sin
Bioshock Collection
Dragons Dogma Dark Arisen
Like A Dragon Ishin

January 2024 Update - Fortnite Multiverse

 

Playing NOW

Fortnite (PS5)
Back on Fortnite again!
The game has had a huge update with lots of different modes including Lego Fortnite & Rocket Racing. The current season pass also has a Solid Snake Skin!

I have spent a lot of time playing Lego Fortnite with my daughter, now just waiting for some new content drop. Rocket Racing has a lovely arcade feel and nice drift mechanic but also needs to introduce some quality of life features in terms of the lobby & track choice.

Assasin's Creed Mirage (PS5)
Going back to it's stealth roots, AC Mirage is a much more shorter concise expereince set in Baghdad.

Playing BIN
Persona 5 Tactica (XSX)
I went off Persona 5 Tactica because it just seem to repeat the same formula of stage battles leading up to a boss fight with no new mechanics & became very repetive.

Forza Motorsport (XSX)
Rocket Racing is currently scratching my racing itch so I have left Forza alone for now.

Playing NEXT
Like A Dragon Infinite Wealth (PS5)
Pre-order placed with Shopto, probably the only game I will buy on release this year. I need to finish off AC Mirage over the next few weeks.

Playing FUTURE
Starfield
Spiderman 2
Baldur's Gate 3
Cyberpunk 2077
Star Wars Jedi Survivor
Midnight Suns
Shadow Gambit - Cursed Crew
Final Fantasy VII Rebirth

Playing Backlog
In no particular order I own the following I still want to play.

Judgment
Life is Strange
Sackboy
Lost Judgment
Outer Wilds
Shadow Tactics
Disco Elysium
Empire of Sin
Bioshock Collection
Dragons Dogma Dark Arisen
Like A Dragon Ishin

December 2023 Update

Playing NOW

Persona 5 Tactica (XSX)

It's got mixed reviews but I'm enjoying it. I've not played a turn based xcom like game for a while (last was in 2021 Mutant Year Zero).

Forza Motorsport (XSX)

I've played the tutorial section and first cup but have not been back to it since Persona 5 Tactica was released. I expect I'll be playing this very slowly over 2024 in small bouts.

 

 

 

Playing NEXT

Assassin's Creed Mirage (PS5)

I managed to pick this up cheap £15 on facebook. I've not touched the PS5 since I purchased the XSX late August this year. I know I'm going to miss the XSX quick resume feature already.

 

Playing FUTURE

Starfield (XSX)

I think this needs a little bit longer to cook, reports of memory leaks/crashes, I'm going to a wait a while longer.

Spiderman 2 (PS5)

Not purchased it yet, will wait now until I've completed Assassin's Creed Mirage.

Baldur's Gate 3 (PS5)

Again not purchased, with the physical version being released in 2024 I'll wait for now, also you never know Microsoft may splash the cash and make it available on gamepass

Like a Dragon Infinite Wealth (XSX)

Probably the only game I'm going to buy on day one in 2024.

Cyberpunk 2077 (XSX)

With the complete edition releasing soon will definitely be playing this in 2024!

Star Wars Jedi Survivor (XSX)

The XSX is now my preferred console for multiplatform releases because of quick resume. I was hoping for a decent Black Friday deal but will wait for the inevitable gamepass release.

Other titles on my wishlist are

Midnight Suns

Metal Gear Solid Collection 1

Shadow Gambit - Cursed Crew

Final Fantasy VII Rebirth

 

Playing Backlog

In no particular order I own the following I still want to play.

Judgment

Life is Strange

Sackboy

Persona 5 Strikers

Lost Judgment

Outer Wilds

Shadow Tactics

Disco Elysium

Empire of Sin

Bioshock Collection

Dragons Dogma Dark Arisen

Like A Dragon Ishin 

The Sparta Kick!

One of the most fun abilities in video games, I give you the Sparta Kick!
That satisfaction when looking at your foe fall to their doom.

Assassin's Creed Unity - Completed

Ubisoft always use the same copy & paste formula with a map full of icons in the Assassin Creed & Far Cry games.

It's a formula that is beginning to tire & I ignored most of the icons to focus just on the main campaign. This time you are running around the Paris rooftops, the game has lost of all future sections from the previous game which is a shame.

There were obviously lots of issues with this game at launch, waiting six months meant the issues were all fixed & I experienced no problems during the game.

After completing the main campaign, I have started the Dead Kings DLC which was given away free by Ubisoft. I've also purchased Battlefield Hardline so will be playing that next.

Assassin's Creed Unity - Indiana Jones Raiders of the Lost Ark Gun vs Sword

New Game - Assassin's Creed Unity

I tried Metro Redux but I just could not get into it, not sure why but I was not enjoying it. So I went with Assassin's Creed Unity instead, Paris looks lovely & thankfully the game has been patched a million times so I've had no issues playing.

Yes it's more of the same but I'm enjoying it so far running around Paris rooftops. This time round you play as Arno, so far he has experienced his father dying, being adopted by a Grand Master (Templar) who is also murdered with Arno being accused & thrown into Jail.

Yes it is the same old formula with the map fully loaded with icons etc but it's enjoyable pleasure getting the various viewpoints, taking part in a crowd event & lock-picking the odd chest or door. It's a formula that Ubisoft have used for quite a few years in many games but the story is what changes, this is what keeps me interested & coming back to the AC Series.

I've played quite a bit of the game now onto Sequence 4, the story moves along at a swift pace but I've taken time out to focus on the Cafe Theatre side missions & upgrade my various weapons & armour.

Assassins Creed 4 - Completed

The past few years, Assassin Creed games have been Christmas gaming for me & this year AC4 did not disappoint with a swash buckling pirate adventure. It is the Journey of Edward Kenway from a man leaving England looking to make riches whatever the damage he may cause to eventually finding a purpose & a meaning to his life.

I did not enjoy the ship battles in AC3 but in this game they have been redesigned & you have full control of your Jackdaw. All the weapons are available with easy access from he mortar, fire barrels & heavy shot. Once you have damaged an enemy ship enough you get the option to board which then involves you killing a certain number of the enemy crew & other small tasks depending on the ship. The option to repair your Jackdaw after a boarding is an easy way to avoid your ship getting destroyed when taking on a fleet.

There are so many side quests in the game from Assassin contracts, Mayan puzzles, Treasure Maps, Underwater wrecks, Kenway's Fleet mini game & much much more that you can very easily get distracted from the main quest. I managed to complete most of these with only a few shipwrecks left to explore, on the world map you can also collect animus fragments & chests but these don't really reward you much in the game & I had begin to tire of the 'gotta collect them all' gameplay.

Playing the game on the PS4 with all it's hardware prowess really made the experience that much more enjoyable & the share ability allowed me to take screenshots & create videos with ease.

The Ubisoft formula (main quest will added pointless filler collectibles) being applied to almost all of their releases like the AC, Far Cry & upcoming Watch_Dogs is getting very predictable but where do excel is in the main quest & relevant storyline which is why I expect that next Christmas I will be playing the next assassin creed game in the series.

Assassin's Creed 4 - Ahoy !!

I am sailing across the Bahamas with the crew singing “Drunken Sailor”, looking through my spyglass I see a Spanish Brig in the distance which is carrying some Metal. Full speed ahead to chase it down, I fire off the chase cannons to grab it’s attention & launch a few chain shots at the mast. Pull up alongside & pummel it with two shots from the broadside cannons. Time to board but before I do a quick use of the swivel gun to take out some soldiers, then swing across for some sword based combat. Defeating the crew I send the Brig to join my fleet & return to the Jackdaw.

Ubisoft have jam packed this game with side missions, collectibles, assassin contracts, hunting & treasure maps that I have not progressed much in the main story. I have spent the majority of my time just looking at the map picking a location & sailing to that destination whilst getting distracted along the way by many ship battles to loot materials required for upgrading the Jackdaw or getting another ship to join my fleet. Kenways Fleet is a mini game which has you controlling a fleet of ships to send to various locations across the oceans. You mainly sell goods to gain money but you will also discover various items like treasure maps, ornaments & new routes The companion app that comes with this game you can use to control your fleet, check your treasure map & whilst playing the game doubles up nicely with a game world map.

Through the main mission the game slowly introduces tutorials explaining a new distraction for you, I have not yet taken on any of the various forts on the world map or any harpooning. I also do not know what else the game has hidden to surprise me with but for now I am just happy being a pirate. The Jolly Roger is waving in the wind, time to drink back some rum & set sail for my next adventure.

New Game - Assassin's Creed 4

Pirates & that is all you need to know. Now go enjoy...

Assassin's Creed 3 - Completed

Anyone who has played the last few games of the series will tell you they miss Ezio. Having played three games with Ezio you became comfortable with the character, so it was a brave move by Ubisoft to end the Ezio storyline & start again with Conner.

Playing Conner you relive the sequences of the American revolution whilst continuing the fight against the Templars & try to protect your home village. The previous games have mainly been set in one large city but in AC3 you are given the cities of New York & Boston. The vast Frontier land & Homestead give you the wilderness to explore.

The sequences flow the storyline along whilst allowing you the option to pause for any of the many side quests from homestead, liberation to various challenges.Completing the main campaign Connor has his revenge & Desmond make his choice to save the world.

It is not the reinvention on the series but does offer some glimpse of freshness & I am curious to see what direction Ubisoft takes with the games.I never did complete the first game but I have thoroughly enjoyed the trilogy of Ezio games & Assassin Creed 3 whilst not quite matching the standard set by those three is still an enjoyable experience & a game worth playing.

I'm here Huckleberry

Time? maybe partly. Apathy? yes a little. Chore? quite possibly.

For whatever reason I've not been posting much on his blog for the last few months.

I'm still playing Assassins Creed 3, finishing a sequence & then completing the various side quests from The Hunting Society to the Homestead missions. Abbas has complained much about this game & is overall disappointed. I think the main issue is after three games with Ezio he misses the character.

I however am enjoying the game very much & like how they have not forced any of the side missions on you, the climbing of trees can be a bit hit & miss & the generation of money is a slower process.

Apart from AC3, I have Borderlands 2 overkill with four games on the go, two UGVM pmgs (usually Monday/Thursday), local co-op with my daughter & a single player campaign I have not touched for weeks.

Fifa 13 I have hit the inevitable decline partly due to the fact I now have a full Liverpool squad including Gerard, Suarez & Sterling. I have not played a match in a few weeks but I am keeping an eye on my trade pile via the web or iphone app.

Everything else on the consoles is in limbo.

iOS gaming is mostly still multi-player in Carcassonne, Ticket to Ride, Lost Cities, Disc Drivin & Words. Single player is taken up by the Angry Birds advent calender in Seasons & current favourite Middle Manager of Justice.

Expect a few more posts on some of the above games over the next few days whilst I try to rekindle my love for this blog  I also need to update the splurge since August.

New Game - Assassins Creed 3

The problem with this time of year is that far too many games get released that I want to play.

Borderlands 2, Fifa13, Need for Speed Most Wanted, Halo 4 & of course Assassins Creed 3.

There are of course many other games released (Dishonoured & X-Com are on my radar) but my approach of buying a game to play now & not later will make me wait for those (Yes, I know Guild Wars 2).

Not to forget the games in limbo, hello Skyrim, Fallout New Vegas DLC & Uncharted 2.

Anyway back to my current dilemma, after a couple of weeks of Borderlands 2 overload this game has now fallen into the regular Monday PMG thus I am playing the story with the Claptrap Boys.

FIFA 13 after a few weeks of ultimate team will now fall into the regular quick fix gaming slot.

Conveniently this leaves a slot open for another game, yes like the three I have in limbo. So step forward Assassins Creed 3 & the playground of colonial America awaits.

The culmination of Desmond's story & the impending destruction of the world is more than enough to enjoy but with AC3 we also get the chance to play with a new character in Connor.

I have only played the first few hours of the game which has you controlling Haytham Kenway (Connor's father).

A British assassin who arrives in America with a key to what? A temple? Lair? Chest? I don't know yet but so far I am enjoying the story telling & gameplay.

With the 21st December approaching fast I don't think I'll be playing anything else much.

Note - with the possible exception of Halo 4 Spartan Ops.

Assassins Creed Revelations - Completed

Wow !! I enjoyed that (apart from the Desmond sequences). I have really enjoyed playing these games & to think that I passed on the first game when released.

AC Revelations is the culmination of Ezio's storyline which started with AC2 but it also gives you flashbacks to play with Altair.

Ubisoft felt they needed to introduce something new to the game with bombs, zip line hook & a tower defence game. Some of these play well in the game but others I don't see the point.

The reason I play the AC games is for the storyline & running around rooftops assassinating soldiers. I did not play this game on release due mainly to Skyrim (which I have still to complete) but I don't think there is anything else coming out this year that will stop me playing AC3 on release. If you have not played this series of games I highly recommend you do they are approx only around 20 to 25 hours each game on the main quest-line.

Looking forward to fighting during the American Revolution

New Game - Assassin's Creed Revelations

Running around rooftops, killing Templars, looting chests & falling to your death. The latter has happened to me on a few occasions already so not much has changed from Brotherhood, well apart from the obvious that you are now in the city of Constantinople. Desmond is in some form of recovery mode & thus must relive Ezio’s adventures to recover the masyuf keys left by Altair.

The changes so far I have noticed from Brotherhood are you can now craft bombs used to distract, poison or kill your enemies. There is a new defend your assassins den mode which basically plays like a tower defence game. I hate this mode & if you keep your Templar awareness meter low it will not activate.

Fundamentally the gameplay has not changed much from the previous games so you are really just playing to see the culmination of Ezio’s storyline and the continuing war between the Assassins & Templars. Speaking of which back to the rooftops I go …

Assassins Creed - Story Recap

A recap of Desmonds story so far - looking forward to playing the the next game AC Revelations (not until I have completed Rage)

Game Completed - AC Brotherhood

Loose ends, lots of loose ends to tie up even after I completed the main quest. Subject 16 puzzles, collecting flags to Christina quests.

Firstly the main quest, it continues from AC2. Ezio is sitting at home chilling with family & friends then BOOM !! the town is under attack by Cesare Borgia. The game throws you into the thick of the action, you are fighting enemies with your trusted swords & then get the opportunity to fire some cannons at the advancing forces to save your town.

Alas it was not to be & you are forced to retreat. In the attack your uncle "It's me Mario !!" is killed. Oh! dear Mama Mia !! Revenge !! Revenge !!

The game now moves to Rome, it's huge !!, lots of famous landmarks are there for you to climb & get viewpoints & then those lovely leap of faith. There are some changes from the previous game, you can now recruit people to become assassin's & join your brotherhood (I know let's call it Assassin's Creed Brotherhood). These assassin's can then be sent on missions to gain experience points & level up, you have a 3-bar charging meter & when one bar is full you can call a group of assassins to fight for you. When all three bars are full you can perform an arrow storm attack which will kill all enemies.

But where is the fun in letting your trained assassin's do all the killing for you? Combat in this game is great fun & you have lots of weapons from crossbows, pistol to smoke bomb & poison darts at your disposal. You need money to shop & you can generate this by rebuilding Rome. Each area will have a tailor, bank, weapon shop , doctor & other buildings to restore. It is simply a case of you purchasing these buildings to generate income you can collect from the bank. You can then use this money to purchase weapons or restock on supplies like medicine. But you do not need to spend money on supplies if needed because you can always loot your enemies.

There are a ton of side quests in this game from Romulus Lairs, Subject 16 to Abstergo Agents. The main quest ultimately leads you to a final showdown with Cesare Borgia. The timer starts & you have to run to go grab the Apple of Eden. This section of the game I found way too easy because all you had to do was hold a button to release the power from the Apple to destroy your enemies. After avenging your uncles death you then decide to hide the Apple of Eden in the Santa Maria temple.

Now return to the present day, Desmond & his crew have been doing all this just to find the location of the Apple of Eden. So off you go then, go get it. When you reach the temple you have the most annoying jumping sequence in the game which if you do not do within a certain time limit it resets & you have to go back to the start. I managed to complete it after a few attempts & then Desmond touches the Apple. He is then controlled to stab Lucy & THE END.

Sit back & watch the longest credits in a game ever !!

It has a few annoying bits in the game, I hate the countdown timer events, the chase me & catch me sequences but overall it is an enjoyable game & continues the story of Desmond & Ezio.

Recently announced AC: Revelations will be the next game releasing Winter 2011. Ubisoft are milking the cow, but like the zombies who buy release after release of Fifa or COD games at least the AC game have a story that you are playing & for this reason I will probably be buying AC Revelations on release.

New Logo - Assassin's Creed Brothehood

Time for a new logo, the completed game post will be coming soon. Enjoy the view of the Colosseum.

Assassins Creed Brotherhood - Easter Gaming

This game has a lot of "follow-me" quests where you have to tail an enemy without getting detected. I hate these quests, even more so when you are put under pressure because of a countdown clock.

I recently completed the Micheletto Corella quest which has you following him to various Borgia strongholds to recruit soldiers into assassinating an actor during a play at the Colosseum.

It helps to use your trained assassins to take out the soldiers, whilst avoiding being detected by any other Borgia guards. The Colosseum part of this quest is very difficult, you have to scale the building without being detected by any guards. Once you have made it to the checkpoint, you have a countdown timer to assassinate 4 Borgia snipers. After this you just need to play your part in the play & then attack Corella with your hidden blade.

Completing all the Leonardo Weapon side-missions rewardw you with a Parachute you can deploy by pressing X when jumping off a high building, useful for doing air assassination kills.The game has quite a few side missions & challenges which you should really complete to unlock special items & weapons. I managed to unlock the Sword of Altair by completing all the assassin guild challenges, this is easily the best sword in the game.

Having just completed Sequence 7 & I could very easily rush through the game and complete the remaining few sequences but there is so much still left to do in the game from the Shop Quests, Guild Challenges, Romulus Lairs & I have not even started the gylph puzzles.

My plan was to finish this game over the Easter break but I think I may be playing it for a while yet.

AC Brotherhood - Leonardo Weapons & Romulus Events

I’m still enjoying playing this game, after a few sequences in you receive weapon upgrades from your old friend Leonardo & he asks you to take down some weapons he has created for the Borga. I have taken down the machine gun which was fairly easy apart from you had to stay undetected & the naval ship. This was an enjoyable quest and had you using the invention to destroy the Borga ships.

On my first visit to the Coliseum I also unlocked the Romulus Lairs quests which generally have you jumping around underground lairs & chasing after an individual to kill. These are similar to the tombs in Assassins Creed 2, they are difficult & challenging. There are six in Brotherhood to unlock & once you have completed them all you get access to some rare armour & weapons, so worth doing.

There is so much to do in this game from missions, shop quests, contracts, treasure maps & lairs. I think I will be playing this game yet for a while.