The Biggie: Look, I know you are still trying to get that Platinum trophy or 1000 Achievement Points in Assassin’s Creed III but listen, there are more games coming out this year. We are right in the middle of the holiday schedule. I bet you didn’t even know Need For Speed: Most Wanted came out on Friday, did you?! I thought not. It was developed by Criterion, the Burnout folks, so yeah get that game now!
The real lesson here is not to put your head in the sand just yet. This week and next see the latest releases of two of the biggest franchises this generation. On November 6th, Master Chief (or Chef, whichever you prefer) returns in Halo 4. The reins of the series were handed over to 343 Studios after Bungie moved onto pastures new and it's exciting to see where they will take it. Halo will always be Halo but I’m hopeful that 343 can give the series a breath of fresh air.The next game to look out for is a little game named Call of Duty: Black Ops II. What is there to say about this really? It’s CoD, it is Treyarch, it will have multiplayer and you will buy it regardless of what I or anybody else say about it. Treyarch have completely overhauled the way the multiplayer loadouts work this year. Its uses a card based system (well the prototype did!). Finally, all those years playing Yu-Gi-Oh! will pay off! The Cheapie: This week’s game for the price conscious gamer is Hotline Miami. It is in a similar vein to the recently released Retro City Rampage. HLM has garnered rave reviews and is, frankly speaking, a celebration of the ultraviolent. Games and gamers tend to get a lot of stick for the violence and gore that encompass the industry today. If you are one of the gamers that hand out those hurtful comments you might want to look away. Hotline Miami is brutal, honest and unforgiving. It is a top down shooter that sees you carry out assassinations for a local gang in the most garish manner possible. The more brutal the kill, the more points you get. It is wrapped in an 80s aesthetic and has an 8 bit soundtrack that is eerily similar to Drive’s OST. It isn’t the longest game in the world but you will play it, replay it and then play it some more. The Freebie: No monies? No worries! If you want some hectic, fast paced box collecting action you MUST download Super Crate Box on the PC. It’s available for free (duh!) from the website www.supercratebox.com or through Steam. The gameplay is simple. You must collect a box to increase your score, each box contains a different weapon and you must dodge, duck and shoot your way to each box. It all takes place on one screen (think old school Donkey Kong type screen) and it doesn’t take long for things to get chaotic, especially on the harder difficulties. So what are you waiting for?! Go get you some boxes! The Favour: This week I’d like to ask everyone to take the time out of their day and pray for some quality Vita games. The horizon is looking bleak for it with only a handful of quality titles on the way. Assassin’s Creed III: Liberation has received middling reviews and Call of Duty: Black Ops Declassified is being developed by nStigate Games (formerly Nihilistic Software). The people who made Resistance: Burning Skies...so yeah. Let’s just pray for the Vita while we all enjoy Persona 4: The Golden.
