You might detect a certain theme in this week’s What We’re Playing. It was to be expected I suppose. In a month of stellar titles and exciting betas/demos, the staff here at TheSixthAxis, as the Dude says, abides. You’ll find a few instances of God of War III (yes, we know it’s not out yet) and the scent of Heavy Rain still lingering. Some old favourites also appear and, a first I believe, only one person played Modern Warfare 2 last week. Make of that what you will.
Gastos84:
I haven’t actually played anything this week. I’ve spent all my time checking facts and info for Abridged Too Far and I can quite firmly say that I am sick of Heavy Rain. It just annoys me now! I think I’ll give it some breathing space for about a month.
Oh but I am still playing Angry Birds. I’ve 3-starred 90% of it and there are a few tricky levels that have me stumped but I am enjoying every second of it. Angry Birds FTW!
I really need to check out the Just Cause 2 demo, is it any good?
Wotta:
This week I have been playing…..God Of War III. Kratos is back and he has never looked so good. Straight from the off I knew that this was one game that was going to grab me by the balls and not let go, and one thing’s for certain, it sure has a hard grip. I have been playing since around Wednesday and thanks to the sheer challenge of the game I am currently stuck fighting against a boss that I just can’t get past. However, I am savoring every moment of this wonderful title which is sure to be a game of the year contender.
I also can’t get enough of Singstar. I tend to play it at least once a week with all of the family. It’s great fun and we always end up with at least one video that has us in stitches. This week’s video belonged to me and my son as we head banged to The Offspring, I don’t think I’ve ever seen my wife laugh so much (we loved the video so much we uploaded it, so check it out on the Singstar viewer). Singstar to me defines Sony and all they stand for, it’s always been unique, its social features are unsurpassed and it’s just genuinely great fun.
Zuler:
I finally got the Borderlands platinum this week. Considering it’s been a while since my last platinum, I was most pleased! Also, I managed to snag myself God of War III (Oh. Yes.). My brain couldn’t handle it while playing at night, I had to reach the first save point and quit. You need to play this game with an alert mind.
Tuffcub:
Batman: Arkham Asylum – I rented this from Blockbuster when it came out but never finished it. As they now charge £6.50 for a week’s rental, I’ve joined Boomerang Games Rental which is proving to be very good – and Batman is the first game I’ve rented. Due to deadlines and work I’ve only had time for about an hours play but, as of today, I should have plenty of time for gaming. Time to get my trophy level up!
BioEye:
I found Peggle this week. Peggle on the iPod Touch. Yet another week passes by without my PS3, and the iPod is getting all the attention. I’ve never played Peggle before, and with the game being so addictive, I haven’t played anything else. If you’ve got an iPod or iPhone, you need this game. It’s awesome. Not much else can be said. I’ve just finished the spooky ball thing in the adventure mode if that means anything to anyone.
Raen:
This week was the week of a demo, a beta and a shiny new phone. I’ve briefly touched on both the Just Cause 2 demo and the Blur beta, but they really need more time to be properly discussed.
So firstly the Blur beta. This is where I’ve invested most of my gaming time this week, and this game is incredible. As it is a beta I’ve detected a few bugs, mostly a few lag issues and once when I couldn’t connect to any game. The cars handle very similarly to Bizarre Creations other racing title, Project Gotham Racing, and the powerup based action is fast, frenetic and absolutely brilliant. Overall, the gameplay in the beta feels like what would happen if you mixed Mario Kart and WipeOut and then took a mild hallucinogenic before playing.
Moving on to Just Cause 2, this demo is incredibly impressive. The sheer scope and size of the world is pretty amazing, and the amount you can see it all stretched out beneath you as you parachute from a cliff is almost breathtaking. The grapple hook is a great weapon as well, although it would be great if you could chain more than one item together, creating a huge chain. I think Crackdown 2 will allow that kind of chaining, so I’m looking forward to that. The one major thing I’d like to see in Just Cause 2 is a mode with the enemies turned off, allowing you to climb, glide, steal and drive all you want. In fact most open world games could do with this.
Finally my new phone. Last weekend I got a Palm Pre on contract from o2, and it’s a great phone. It doesn’t have quite the App Catalog of the iPhone or an Android phone, but there’s still a good number of games and currently everything seems to be free whilst the catalog is in beta. I’ve got a nice variation of the iPhone classic Flight Control, which is incredibly addictive. I have a version of the Sims 3 and Need For Speed installed, but haven’t tried them yet. Sadly there’s no version of Tetris on the phone yet, Tetris is the ultimate phone game.
Lorcan:
After the third demise of my PS3 last week, there was much Pokemon Platinuming to be had. That was until I managed to locate a working console for few days so that I could play Heavy Rain. Unfortunately I was only half way through the title when life got insanely busy again and I ended up having to set it aside without getting another chance to play it before leaving Shetland once again to be off on my travels.
What I did play though, I enjoyed. It was very slow to get going and the pace took a while to get used to, but when I left I was really starting to care about the characters. Though with only one playthrough, it’s difficult to understand the full effects of the choices you’ve made and at no point have I felt like something has worked out the way it has because of my actions. With a second play through however, I’m sure consequences will become much more clear.
The other downside I’ve found to the game is that after learning how to make a murderbird during the install, I’ve developed a compulsive need to turn all square pieces of paper into the origami figures.
Now we just need to wait and see if I can return to the PS3 in three months time without having had the ending spoiled.
ColossalBlue:
It’s been a strange mix for me this week. I started off with a lot of Resident Evil Gold Edition for the review and then went straight into MotoGP 09/10, again, for review. In between those I’ve finally finished Heavy Rain – a game with huge and obvious flaws which should still be played by everyone, more for what it might mean for the future rather than the actual quality of this title, although it is pretty good.
I’ve also been squeezing in the odd game of FIFA 10 and, bizarrely, I re-installed Championship Manager 97/98 on a whim and have been messing about with that. I wish they would update the database for modern players (there are still community members doing that) and re-release it on the iPhone.
Next week is looking a little quieter for me so I’m hoping to catch up on some stuff I’ve had on the back burner, mostly Toy Soldiers and Scrap Metal.
CaptainMurdo:
Final Fantasy XIII, the game I’ve been waiting years for and, more recently, the game I’ve hoped will reignite my faith in modern gaming arrived. And it’s done exactly as I expected, instantly reminding me of Final Fantasy X and pulling me into the series again. I expect to be playing this long into the future.
Battlefield Bad Company 2 came through from LoveFilm and it’s much better than I expected. I’m not a big fan of the online side of it but the story plays very well, especially the first level. Once the singleplayer is completed, I think I’ll send it back.
Through recommendation from fellow TSAers, I bought Doodle Jump and, as predicted, I’ve become addicted. It’s only 59p and it is very good.
I also returned to Heavy Rain but this time with a guide in hand so I can try to get the platinum. Going well so far.
ColinBarr66:
This week I rented Final Fantasy XIII and managed to play a little of it. Surprisingly I’m enjoying it but I don’t think I’ve played enough to get a good enough feel for the game or decide whether I should make it a purchase. Hopefully will get a few hours play in before it goes back on Tuesday.
I’m still behind with my demos but got round to playing Just Cause 2 and Moto GP 09/10. Just Cause 2’s destruction was fun but overall the demo was a little disappointing. Going to play through it again though to see what more I can do but this is a rental at best for me. My first impressions of Moto GP 09/10 weren’t good, but after a few qualifying laps and finally a race it is a pretty enjoyable game. But again a rental at the very most.
Last weekend I managed to pick up Uncharted 2: Among Thieves for a great price. I’ve completed it once before when I got it on rental back in October so have started this play-through on hard to pick up some extra trophies. A superb game with a solid online mode which I’m planning to spend more time on.
Apart from the usual sessions on Killzone 2 and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 that’s it from me, this week should be quieter which is always good news for gaming.
djhsecondnature:
Aside from completing my second insanely different playthrough of Heavy Rain, I’ve had a brief session on the single player campaign of BattleField: Bad Company 2. This coming week should hopefully hold a more fulfilling gaming week.
Kovacs:
I was utterly despondent when I saw the credits for Angry Birds roll. Then, after a somewhat mysterious and serendipitous act of updating my Apps, a shed-load of new levels flew their way on to my iPhone. These ones are quite tricky, and I’ve also decided to ration them out. After all, who knows when those crazy Finnish bird-lovers will create any more.
I’m about three-quarters of the way through Heavy Rain, a game that will be remembered – at least in my mind – as a monumental milestone in gaming. It will also go down as having some of the most infuriating flaws in a modern game, something to be expected considering how novel and groundbreaking it is. Here’s hoping that in Heavy Rain 2 Quantic Dream at least solve the problem of how the characters move around the environments. I don’t know how many times I’ve yelled “No Madison! You useless bint! I said walk LEFT! Not fall over the bloody coffee table again!”
Other than that, and don’t tell anyone, but I’ve managed to crack the hitherto indecipherable code that is Greed Corp. And guess what? Beneath its arcane stratagems, and beyond what is literally a vertical learning curve, it’s a gem. I’m just disappointed that W!Games, its creators, didn’t tweak the tutorial and early levels to make it more accessible. I’m sure numerous people bought this, played it for fifteen minutes and then evoked despicable and colourful hexes upon the heads of its designers. Or, and this is completely possible, I’m just really shit at it.