This weekend has seen indie gaming descend on Birmingham, as the Rezzed expo shifted half the way up the country for this year’s show. I’ll be writing about many of these games over the coming week, but have you made the trip to see the indie games on show? Even if you haven’t been, what games are you looking forward to getting your hands on?
Of course, it’s the “AAA” games and huge companies which have dominated the headlines, none moreso than Facebook’s purchase of Oculus VR, with plans to use the Oculus Rift to spur on a transformation of social media over the coming years. Gaming will still be the starting point, but this was not a popular move.
Bmg_123 opened the comments section with the delightfully succinct “Nononononononononononono-nonononononononononononononono. No.” while Webby_15-0 was a little more articulate when he said, “I was so hyped for the Oculus Rift. It might be a bit premature, but I find this news absolutely devastating. Honestly can’t stand social media being tacked onto everything.”
However, there were those who saw things in a different light. Murdo pointed out that “Facebook has a fairly good record of keeping their ‘big’ purchases running independently but with the huge benefit of Facebook’s cash and tech experience.” while bunimomike added that “Oculus VR has made a very shrewd move. There is absolutely no proof that it was going to become a commercial success.”
The key thing is to give Facebook an opportunity to do well by the fans and gaming community that supported the project originally.
A more bizarre story was that the Wolfenstein: The New Order Collectors Edition won’t actually include a copy of the game!
Nate pondered, “Surely selling the ‘Wolfenstein: The New Order Panzerhund Edition’ without Wolfenstein: The New Order falls foul of the Trade Descriptions Act. Even if not, this is definitely going to cause them more of a headache than it is worth.”
And yet, with several saying that they would have been tempted as long as it included the game, LethalX08 stood out from the crowd:
Lately I haven’t been enjoying games but I still want the CE, so something like this is perfect for me. Wish there was an Elder Scrolls Online version with just the Molag Bal statue and the book, as while I have ES online CE pre ordered, my laptop barely runs the game and I probably won’t play it, yet I really want the extras.
An almost universally enthusiastic reaction was seen as PlayStation Turkey’s VP stated quite simply that The Last of Us would be coming to the PS4, something which has gained more credence since.
Lyts1985 is just one of many voices stating that it’s “One of the few games I’d happily buy again. Thoroughly enjoyed it, even the multiplayer.” The Von Braun’s heavily edited comment added that he “missed out on the PS2’s killer games like Shadow of the Colossus, God Of War II, Jak And Daxter, etc. and was delighted to pick up HD versions on PS3, so I’d love to see key PS3 games brought to PS4.”
Phizzy gives another compelling reason for these updates, stating that “there have been a load of times during the multiplayer when something bizarre has happened and I’ve wanted to hit share. Glad that’ll actually be possible now.”
Do you agree that a TLOU update and release will be a good thing? Is it a trend that you’d like to see continue, following on from the successful HD releases of PS2 games?
It looks like crazy_del’s gaming fridge has sparked a little more interest in Gaming Places, and I’m more than happy to feature anything that is sent my way (see the bottom of this page for more details).
This week, we have Germanos sending in his quite impressive rig. I’ll get out of the way right away, and let him give a quick explanation of what you’re seeing:
Here are a few pics of my rig. My collection currently holds 215 boxed games and five PlayStation consoles (PSX, PS2, PSP, PS3 and PSV).
The PSX (with a Spike Spiegel figure next to it) on the second picture was my first game console and it still works, but often has problems with reading discs. The third picture contains a notification sticker, which I had to make, because I was always forgetting to recharge my headset after usage, and the final one is a shot of my “IKEA made” racing stand!
It’s quite an impressive collection, that’s for sure, but the lip which sticks out from the cabinet gave a slight optical illusion, so that I thought the wood was bowed under the weight!
Thankfully that’s not the case!
A huge number of people have been playing inFamous Second Son, and there’s quite a few platinum trophies to come from it. I earnt it myself last night, as I joined ranks that include element666, lyts1985 and crazy_del, who also bagged an obscenely speedy record.
I also took part in McProley’s successful escape from Call of Duty: Ghosts’ new Extinction map, as he ran through it with Youles and Wick15 and a relic in tow. I would take credit, but in truth I basically just joined for the final battle!
Salvodaze completed the well reviewed SteamWorld Dig on PS Vita, just wishing it had an endgame that could rival Terraria. Since then he found his copy of South Park had been hidden behind a bulletin board for the last few weeks, so has been enjoying the early parts of that game, while Spence1115 has been taking the platinum.
DividSmyth earnt the last platinum of the week, with Wonderbook’s Walking with Dinosaurs, while freezebug was busy earning 1000 stars by hurling their evolutionary descendants at pigs, in Angry Birds on the Vita.
Eldave0 got around to finishing the Killzone Shadow Fall campaign, enjoying some parts but not others, saying that the game was at it’s best when you are just shooting Helghast.
Finally, we turn to R1MJAW, who has worked his way through all of the single player trophies for John Daly’s Prostroke Golf. However, he faces troubles to get the two online trophies, and needs two more people with the game to get a foursome together. If there is anyone with a copy of the game who fancies helping a trophy hunter out, then I’m sure he’d appreciate you giving him a shout.
We’re nearly done, but you can head over to page two for the return of the Fastest Platinum boards. To finish off this page, we have the usual submission form for photos and accomplishments.
If people want to keep sending photos in, I’ll be happy to post them, but gaming places is no longer a regular feature. If you fancy it, just use the submission form below, get in touch with me on Twitter at @teflon, or just send me an email out of the blue to [email protected].
Mick939
Quick check guys, whats the correct way to submit entries to get on the platinum board?
R1MJAW
Just post any potential records in the Fastest Platinum thread on the forums. Make sure to include the date, time and format (PS3, PS4 or PS Vita).
Mick939
Ahhhh, and here i was gonna send them in
Mick939
Cheers for that man, done that now, looking to get myself abit more active in tsa, meet some new players etc, its been a long time since the uncharted 2 meets ;-)
R1MJAW
Cheers Tef for the mention of my quest to find some players for John Daly’s Prostroke Golf. It would be nice to get those last two trophies … although I’m not holding my breath, it is a very old game.
freezebug2
Cracking rig, looks neat and compact with everything at hand in the cabinet. Especially liking the makeshift racing wheel stand which is so similar to mine, albeit mine started life as a fold up camping table!
Managed to get 3 stars on every Classic level in the first of the three Angry Birds Trilogy which was just over 1100 stars altogether, just the Mighty Eagle feathers needed in that world. Then made a start on the Rio levels which seem a lot calmer so far :P
@R1M I’ll check around a few mates, I’m sure one of them bought that game a few years ago but didn’t rate it, but might possibly still own it.
R1MJAW
Cheers freeze. Yeah, it’s not a great golf game but it’s not bad, just a bit more challenging than most other golf games.
Nice going on the AB front, I’ve not really played it much (I think I’m up to about 250 stars).
Germanos
There was a time when I was looking around for a good racing stand, but all of them were really expensive, so one day at IKEA I saw this table for like 12 pounds and problem solved ^^
gazzagb
Nice collection and rig, I was expecting far more cables after you mentioned all those consoles!
Germanos
Thank you ^^ I tried to hide them as most as possible. Some are visible behind the PS2 and PS3, so I still have some work to do :)
LethalX08
Hahaha i’m always the odd one out. Still lately i prefer the extras of CEs more than the actual game. Gone from being a gamer to being a collector which is a bad thing as i don’t have money to burn & need to be smart with my purchases.
I’m playing ES online early access right now, it’s making me want the game, can’t afford CE but could get the imperial digital download if i trade in my arcade stick, i won’t do that though, since i want the Molag Bal statue & the Emperor’s guide to Tamriel more than the game -_-.
I think i’m a bit broken haha.
DividSmythe
Cheers for the mention, even if it’s spelt slightly wrong :-D
Lyts1985
Love that gaming rig! Wish I had a room for a similar setup but sadly my gaming rig consists of my living room TV and 5.1 setup with my bookshelf of games tucked away in the spare\junk room.
Good work :-)