I am putting the Last of Us part 1&2 as a single paragraph. Not because they aren't great but because, in reality, they are short! The fact is 2 is the reason this blog came into existence. There was a debate I saw online. Was Ellie right, or is Abby right? I am gonna weigh in on that. Neither is right! Both of them get all murdery and both of them suffer for it. That's the whole point of game 2. Personally, I am an Ellie supporter. Of course, that is because of game 1. You play as Joel, and it is so well written that you start to grow attached to Ellie. So, of course, when someone brutally murders Joel, you gonna want revenge. Game 2 gives a different view; if you had been Abby or her father in game 1, we would have wanted revenge against them! Some strangers come and kill all your friends and murder your father; we would be rooting for Abby. It is legitimately the exact same thing that happened to Ellie. Strangers come and murder her father. The game does a fantastic job showing that you go from wanting nothing but revenge to understanding Abby. Maybe you don't support her, but you can know where she comes from. I did not think that would happen when Ellie left on her murder quest. Ultimately, I still support Ellie, but I saw both arguments. Abby's father was trying to save the entire world. Ellie kills way more people important to Abby, and Abby could have killed Ellie and Dena but doesn't. So, Abby is the hero or victim in this story? Those are all true, and Joel probably didn't need to murder the doctor. My counter is this, the doctor was about to chop up a child. I think most parents would have acted like Joel. Yes, Ellie kills a lot of friends. That's the whole game! They have to write it that way! Ellie needs enemies to get to Abby, or the game will only be 10 minutes long. On top of that, some of them are just bad people!!! Also, don't pretend Abby was innocent. She beats Joel to death, wounds Tommy, and kills Jesse. So, the whole Ellie killing more people is a moot argument. Also, Abby does spare Ellie and Dina, and that's true. Ellie spares Abby and Lev, so that evens it out! Plus, the fact is Abby brutalizes Joel after he saves her. While I totally understand Abby's views, I still side with Ellie. The whole point of the story, though, is revenge is getting you nothing but more suffering. It is mind-blowingly well-written. As for the actual gameplay, it is fun. The crafting, the weapons, and the little quests they make you do are all top quality. Admit, I played it on easy, and even that way, there were a few tricky places. This is an entirely story-driven game. If they make part 3, with how advanced consoles have become, I hope the graphics improve some, but I hope they keep the same writers cause wow.
I miss Mario! Probably REALLY dating myself, BUT whatever happened to a happy little plumber trying to rescue a princess? He didn't have a violent revenge story. It was rated G for everyone, and it was fun! I remember getting Super Mario 3 for Xmas and spending the entire next week before school playing. It was freezing and snowed so much that year; that was all I did. N64 might have been the last Mario I played, but it was always fun. It also inspired everything like Mario Kart, which is still outstanding, and my wife introduced me to Mario Party. That's actually an incredible game and multiplayer adults can get into. Why are there not more multiplayer games, by the way??? I don't have much to say, but Mario started the gaming crazy. Without it, I doubt my generation would have been so hooked on video games. No, it doesn't go down as one of my all-time favorites, but I fondly remember hours playing it, and without it, I don't think we have the gaming we do today!
The Legend of Zelda was probably my first "story" driven game. As a "gamer" (I really am not that much of a gamer), I prefer story-driven games. Ya, it's fun to run around and shoot shit. Some games, like the Arkham series, have a story but are still mainly action. Don't get me wrong, I still love it, but the RDR2 and the Witchers hit a guy right in the feels, and they are my favorite. Either way, Zelda was the shit. I admit 1&2 I was not hooked, BUT A Link to the Past blew my freakin mind. 1991 at 10 years old, that was the height of story games. Plus, it had that right mix of action. It was the first game where people died (Sort of). There was a sense of urgency, real good and evil. Not just plumbers and mushrooms. In total speculation, the success of this game led to the shift from just fun to a lot more story-driven games. Yes, they were at that point still for kids, but now they weren't just mindless fun. I admit I played the N64 Zelda, which doesn't stick in my memory, but A Link to the Past is on my all-time favorite list. I believe we now have a million Zelda games, but I am sticking with Link being the best they ever did
Along the line of story-driven games comes the Final Fantasy series. FF4 and FF6 are more games that impact my gaming life. 4 was the first RPG I ever played; FF is more story-driven than action. Selecting what to do, attack, magic, and hide isn't gameplay; it's just choices. You could name the characters, and the dialogue acknowledged that. The main character grows and changes from a dark knight to a Paladin. Your best friend betrays you! There is a family drama; yes, it was limited choices, and the ending isn't affected by the choices, but it was the start toward that. I made it to the moon, but I never finished it. So recently, I bought it on PS5, made it to the moon again, and still need to finish it. This year, I will. I have to mention FF6. It was the other one I rented quite often; now, this one, I didn't get nearly as far, but it was the same. I became lost in the story and the characters. This one was more steampunk, and I am more of a fantasy fan, but I really enjoyed it and keep contemplating repurchasing it as well; it is nice they take up so little space on the hard drive.
I have to throw in a few classic games right here. There were Ducktales, Aladdin, and Castlevania. Often, my mom worked Saturdays, and I would have to come to her office. What is a small child to do for a few hours?? Bring a Nintendo and plug it into the TV that is supposed to be for training videos and play games! This was 30-plus years ago, so I don't remember every game I rented. However, Aladdin, DuckTales, and Castlevania are favorites rented more than once. I don't even remember their plots, but I spent many hours enjoying myself playing them. Castlevania has spawned a whole market! Cartoons, comics, more games. I didn't follow them, so I don't know if they were any good, but I will always fondly remember these 3 games....
Did every teen in the late 90s love N64 Golden Eye? If I talk to anyone around my age, we all played it. In fact, if that 90s show doesn't mention it next season when it is supposed to be 1997, I will be mad! Hours and Hours in my grandparent's basement playing it against my best friend, my girlfriend, and her best friend. Probably the best thing was when the girls were just button mashers and killed my friend. It made him mental. Also, this is the door to the most popular games now, I would say. In all these shooting games we see (I don't play cause I suck), Goldeneye was the prototype. These huge online communities should give a big thank you to this game!
Telltale Games was terrific. Wolf Among Us was my first one, and I loved it. It introduced me to Fables, which was fantastic as well. Game of Thrones was awesome! I mean, it sucked; a couple choices I made I regretted in my first play thru, but that's what makes it so damn good!! Batman was fun, I didn't dig it all, but overall, it was good. I bought Guardians, but I don't think I finished that one. I can even handle the corny graphics; the problem is they are too short. I don't know programming, but I assume it is because so much can change. Maybe it was their business model making games so cheap to buy, or perhaps everyone else ripping us off, but I also loved the price. It is like a series created for people who loved choose your own adventure books back in the day. I would love to see part 2 of Game Of Thrones and see them put out more games. I HEAR they may be back; if they are, my credit card is ready to buy more!!
I do not give enough credit to Resident Evil. I spent countless hours with Ditch (See old blogs) playing this from midnight when we got off until 4 or 5 in the AM. It was fun, the puzzles, the limited ammo, and trying to survive. Then, the franchise got milked. The movies started awesome and just got worse. Then came cartoons, which were okay, but I still missed the originals. Then came Biohazard. All the things I loved about the first 2 came back. Plus, I love Louisiana, so that helps the setting. Also, my wife was into it. If I am honest, she isn't a horror fan, but for some reason, she really dug this game. In fact, I think she was the one who said buy it! She enjoyed the Umbrella Chronicles because she loves "track" games but liked watching this one. I loved it because it was survival horror and more about the puzzles than the guns. Then came Village, and damn, that one was fun too. Ethan's story keeps going, and even the add-ons all tie in. I like it because it isn't a "world ending." It is a fun story, intense, and not cheesy. Not the entire world is zombies. That is what killed the movies, too much cheese. Those 2 games get rid of the cheese and get back to fun. Now I hear the next one might be cheesy again, but if they keep the same riddle format, it may be good... A couple of things here. They milked the shit out of the franchise, and that sucked. The first few movies were good but just got awful. The cartoons were meh. The Netflix adaptation was hot garbage. Welcome to Racoon City; it hurts to watch. This is an amazing franchise, but they need a single, visionary leader to make it work. Too much going on!!! It did get me into horror games or opened my eyes to them. I did play the Quarry recently and should maybe try that again. It is somewhere between Resident Evil and Tell Tale, which is impressive!
Rock Star games. GTA. What a franchise. I vaguely remember GTA III. Vice City, I was into a lot more. I sucked at it, and I didn't finish it, but I remember it felt like the coolest game ever. Then, I dropped out of gaming for a bit. I don't remember; maybe I didn't have a console. Actually, I didn't until the Wii in 2006/07? So, I missed San Andreas on the original release, which is sad! This is one of the best-written games out there. I did not play San Andres until GTA V came out... By then, the graphics were so dated that it was hard to play and I never finished it. I, of course, googled how it plays out, and I loved it, lol. This is a classic; this is legit where Rock Star hits the GTA stride. The storytelling here was superb, and I wish I had played it when it was top-end graphics. 4 was/is my GTA. Niko is the man! I got this one when it came out or not long after, so the graphics were good, and the story was amazing to me. I loved the characters. I loved Roman, the Irish, and the mob. I loved the war story and, honestly, Nikos's take on America. How different he and Roman are. GTA does such a fantastic job at poking fun of America, and I loved it. I loved the open world and doing random shit. Then the add-ons came, and they were okay. I didn't mind the Lost and the Damned; Ballad of Gay Tony was meh, but neither was terrific. I liked Johnny in Lost and Damned, and honestly, his death in GTA V really pisses me off. So, 5 came out. I love the trailers; to this day, I can still watch and enjoy them. Frankly, though, it wasn't as good as 4. The gameplay itself is. I love the size of this game, and unlike Red Dead (another amazing Rock Star game), finding side stuff is more manageable in this one. Red Dead is fantastic, but it is annoying how hard side shit is to find. Hours wandering were as here, it just happens! So to be clear, I love the gameplay, the graphics, the side shit, and, of course, poking fun at America, but overall, the story was meh. I expected so much more. The characters are bland. Trevor is crazy! Mike is middle-aged! Franklin is a gangsta! The fact that they can write so much clever shit and make flat characters annoyed me. I won't get into Mafia cause I only played 3, but I have said it a million times. If you put the writers from that and the game makers of GTA, you would have a genuinely mind-blowing series!!! Mafia 3 is repetitive for missions, but the story is incredible. There wasn't a poorly written character. The one thing GTA does better than anyone is spoof the Western World. So many people (I am guessing Incels) say 6 is going to be Woke because it has a female lead. I really doubt it. GTA has been the anti-woke series. It has skewered all stupidity, and that has been a winning formula. Will it change? Probably somewhat, and I doubt for the bad. We will see, but having such huge success, I doubt we will see GTA go Woke. Also, I would like to see a Punisher game like this, with multiple missions and stories loosely tied together.
My wife bought me the first Arkham game when she was my girlfriend. Asylum. At that point, all I played was NHL, whatever year it was, and GTA 4. I didn't think superhero games would be that great, and at that time, I wasn't buying comics. It had been years. I would grab a graphic now and then, but that was it. I played Arkham, I loved it. I was hooked right away and flew through it. I have replayed it many times trying for 100% and have come awful close but I don't think I have ever gotten it. Love the puzzles and figuring out what character it is and what to scan for. How many people they cram in and how many backstories you can learn is fantastic. Even a guy like me who loves Bats found new things. City I have grown to love. The first play-through was okay. The main story was good, but too much spread-out stuff. I started to like it once I sat down to do the side stuff. Another one I have yet to get another 100%, and I doubt I will, BUT with a couple play thrus, I have come to love it a lot more. Strange is kind of a lame villain, but I do like that he is just a puppet. The Death of the Joker and Talia is a great story with fun gameplay. Even Harleys' revenge the download is fun. Origins I loved. Or I think I did. I played it through once, and I think that's when I got a new system and didn't play it again. So, from memory, I thought this game was awesome, was it really? Either way, I think I loved it. I am sad you must have a PlayStation membership to buy it now. I sometimes think of getting one just for that, but I don't think I will. Then came Knight. I have a love-hate with this one. Everyone wanted the Batmobile; I hate it. Overall, I love the game but hate playing World of Tanks or whatever that is!! I finished the game but not the story. It was clever how, even dead, they mix the Joker in. It is a fitting end to the series but it is my least favorite of the series. I would like to see a Daredevil game made like this. Pure action beating down bad guys.
Arthur Morgan is the greatest video game character ever made. Red Dead Redemption 2 is probably tied for my favorite all-time video game. Also, I played this first, so it was nice not to know Johns's fate while I played it the first time. Arthur starts off as a "bad" guy and slowly realizes he wants to be a good man. (Depending on how you play, obviously) The thing is, he is never really an evil man. He was dealt a shitty hand and for a long time was under the spell of Dutch. I know you can't avoid it, but I do the Downes Ranch as late as possible on all my play-throughs after the first time. I don't want to get sick!! The graphics are amazing, and the writing is mind-blowing. It is another Rock Star game, but I become way more attached to the "gang" or most of it than I ever did to Mike, Trevor, or Franklin. Even Keiran dying is sad. Sean, Hosea, and LENNY! Dying are truly sad moments. Like, this game made me feel feelings. Wtf!! Who doesn't want to kill Micah from the get-go! They did so well with this game. The challenges are excellent, and I like trying to finish all of them; I could spend hours hunting and fishing... The only problem is it is almost too big and open. I am not complaining about the size of the map but of the finding side things. From reading online, I know I have missed many side things because they are hard to find. This stuff should be easier to find. You read a board, and maybe a question mark appears (Yes, stealing from Witcher here) afterward, so you know where to go and look into it. I admit that I hate walking around for hours and not finding anything new when I know it is out there. Something crazy about this game is how many people loved it. My office is a lot of guys in their 40s. The first actual generation that is/was into gaming. Everyone owns a system, and whether or not it gets played is a different story. HOWEVER, everyone seemed to buy and love this game. More than any game I have heard of, including GTAV and Witcher 3. The last thing is the next Red Dead. I know people want it, and Rock Star will make it. I would LOVE to see it be about Jack Marston. You know he would be a crazy character after all the shit he has seen, BUT it's at least 1914 now, and the whole Western motif is gone or almost gone. Seeing him as a young gunslinger somewhere like "Liberty City" would be unique and tie GTA and RD together, but for me, most of the draw is the Old West. I'm not saying I wouldn't love an RD GTA crossover like that, but I would prefer a prequel to the prequel. A young Dutch, Hosea, or even better, a young Arthur and John. Others have said to make a Landon Ricketts game, which is neat but less popular since RDR1 is getting old. Or they could really dig up old stuff and make a tie-in to the original Red Dead Revolver. A Charles or Sadie game would also be excellent and get people out to buy it. It wouldn't even have to be Dutchs gang. Pull off something really clever like The Last of Us 2 did and show it from the O'Driscoll side. That could be a masterpiece of storytelling. Or go an all-new route with all new characters. Either way, let's get another going! If GTA6 and RDR3 were to go on sale the same day, I would buy RDR3...
They were terrific books before it became a fantastic game. I would say it is my all-time favorite, as both the story and gameplay are excellent. Of course, it's Witcher 3. Honestly, I played it first and tried to go back and do Witcher 2. I wanted the back story but I couldn't do it. Gameplay sucked, graphics were meh. I heard it was a great game once, but I skipped it. 3. You don't need to have played the old games or read the books (I didn't play in my first play-through), but it is nice, too. Some things make a lot more sense. Anyway, as a story gamer, I love the story here. Before Arthur made me feel in a game, or Joel and Ellie, it was Ciri and Geralt. When you find Ciris "corpse," I was legit upset, like she is gone after all that?! When Uncle Ves died, it was honestly, I think, the first time I felt sad for a game. The first time I got the best ending, I was even sad for a moment. You tell the emperor Ciri is dead, and I believe it. She was a hero who saved everyone. Then you hit the inn and saw the figure in the hood. I was so excited! Again, maybe too much of a nerd, but I felt great seeing she was alive and would carry on as a Witcher. Looking back, Zirael is a cool name for her sword, but even replaying recently, she should go with The Flash that Cuts! The gameplay is also superb, fun, and easy to do. In my first play thru, I didn't start leveling Geralt up or using my upgrades until Novigrad or further. Once I tried it, I understood it, and it was quick and user-friendly. Cyberpunk is much more confusing, so I almost don't want to do it. I don't know how old it is, but the graphics are still top-notch. I don't have much to complain about in this game. Okay, fine, you can get too overpowered. When you are hitting 20s in levels, you start to be too OP, and fights get too easy considering how hard the game can be, and you get killed by Drowners in the start. The story, the graphics, the gameplay. It is a masterpiece. I forget how many hundreds of hours I have put in and still can find new things on a play-through. Not many anymore, but I still see some. Even the game Gwent is cool in-game. IDK, if I had to find a beef with the game, it might be the designers were too horny. Sure, it's fun to bang different sorceresses, but it almost seems like they just wanted to be able to write sex scenes. Plus, at one point, you can strip Ciri. That is kinda creepy, considering she is Geralts daughter. I do like how if you are too horny, you can end up alone; that was clever. That was stretching to have a beef with the game... Oh, maybe a real beef would not kill the last crone. Its the "bad" ending to go back and fight her?? I want that bitch dead! Ciri should kill her for the good ending. The DLCs are also fantastic; Hearts of Stone isn't that long, but it is good. I love that Gaunter is someone you meet very early on in the main story. I almost wish you had heard more about him throughout the game. I do hope if there is another Witcher, he is in it. Blood and Wine is incredible. It could be a stand-alone game; it is big enough. I hear every month, a new Witcher is on the way. I will believe it when I see it. I think Geralt is done; leave him happily in his vineyard with whomever he is there with. I don't really want it to be Ciri, either. She is fabulous, and cameos by both in a new game would be awesome, but if they had their run, let them be in peace. If they can do Cyberpunk and make you start a new life with different options, why can't they make you a Witcher and let you pick your school? I say make a new game 200 years earlier. I bet if you look at the games, there is a way to do that, something they hint at. Anyway, to me, Witcher 3 is pretty well a perfect game.
Oh, and that reminded me of my closing thoughts. Stop fan-casting Henry Cavill for every role ever. He is great, but that doesn't mean he should be a lead in a Red Dead show a Game of Thrones spin-off, or any of the million other things I see him fan-cast in! I wrote this last line and then went and saw Deadpool and Wolverine.... good gawd Henry doesn't need to be everyone!!
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