FEATURE: The Games I'm Currently Playing - Volume 1!

Games include the 1992 SNES game Pocky & Rocky right up to the recently released Skyrim.

The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim

System: PlayStation 3

I think this is on everyone's "now playing" list, picked it up yesterday on launch, got home equipped with energy drinks to keep me awake (I previously had 3 hours sleep the night before) and started playing the hell out of this game.

I've nearly clocked 12 hours in-game time, and in just that short amount of time, I've managed to do a lot of stuff that isn't even to do with the main quests at all - the sheer scope of this game is absolutely astonishing and I don't believe any game can beat it any time soon...unless Elder Scrolls VI came out tomorrow.

Like previous Elder Scrolls titles, the sense of freedom you get after the initial opening story sequence is immense and over-whelming; I sat there in my chair just wondering what should I do? - pursue the main quest, go in any direction of the world and see what happens, seek out side-quests, join a guild, and so on, there's just so many options, it's hard to never not do anything.

In the first 12 hours played, I've felt like I was in this massive immersive world with limitless things to do and I can't wait to play more tonight! I will be writing a full review once I've clocked at least 50 hours as I want a thorough review.

Resistance 3

System: PlayStation 3

In between my massive Skyrim sessions, I am finding myself playing Resistance 3 for the multiplayer, it's a nice break and relatively fun, when I popped in the disc, there was quite a large update for the game and it was definitely for the best

Online multiplayer has been updated quite a bit, there are maps that I've never played before in it, the experience system is a lot more generous now (I levelled up almost 3 times in one match), and something just feels generally better about the flow of the gameplay. Either way, I like it. A lot. 

Castlevania: Lords of Shadow

System: PlayStation 3

I have actually finished this game recently, still a little confused about the ending cut-scene after the credits but I'll figure it out I'm sure.

However, I am still playing this game - I want to go back to each episode and collect any missing gems, weapon upgrades, etc that I missed the first time through, there are a lot of trials that need finishing too. 

Ratchet & Clank

System: PlayStation 2

I finally found a copy of this in a used-item shop for just 99p - an absolute bargain for such a classic (thank God these types of shops don't know how to price games properly).

I had always played this at a friends when it was first out (2002, maybe?) but never got around to actually finishing it so I decided for a game this cheap I can't go wrong, I'm about half way through it and I'm having a lot of fun - the game has aged very well with gameplay that flows perfectly.

Pocky & Rocky

System: Super Nintendo Entertainment System

This is actually a game that's part of my "SNES Alphabet-A-Thon" that I'm doing with a friend on Backloggery, in which we take turns picking a letter, choosing the game with that letter and then completing the game, then continuing onto the next letter.

Either way, this was his turn to choose and he chose a strange, yet very fun game - I'm currently only at the 2nd stage, and actually having problems getting past it, but I'm sure I'll persevere eventually. Definitely need to make time to carry on with this. Feature1

FEATURE: Resistance 3 - Another Victim of Bad Matchmaking?

With so many games incorporating online multiplayer, will we ever get a matchmaking system that truly works?

Fall of Man had a fantastic matchmaking system when it was released,
 which was fair and consistent.

I've been playing the Resistance series online now and again since Fall of Man was released as a PS3 launch title and I had a lot of fun playing online - there was always a sense that I was playing against players with the same skill level as me, and if players weren't interested in serious competitive play, there was a separate way of finding matches to suit your play-style and favoured game-types. Resistance 2 followed in these footsteps, there was a ranked matchmaking system and an unranked, which made the game far more enjoyable for me and I imagine a lot of other players out there, a ranked matchmaking system allows for players of all skill levels to shoot it out against players of the same level as them, which can make competitive multiplayer a thoroughly fun experience.

Call of Duty has the same matchmaking problem as Resistance 3 -
 go into matchmaking and simply hope you play against
 players like yourself...which is unlikely most of the time.

As I write this, I have literally just come back from an online session of Resistance 3 and managed to rack up 32 kills and 4 deaths against extremely low-level players, I am currently a level 29 and I was pitched against level 5-15's, which seems insanely unfair to me. Yes, I know, I took advantage of them to get easy kills and experience.....but that's besides the point - I have also been on the other end of the stick many times, leading to general frustration and a bad kill/death ratio at the end of the match, I am always up for a challenge but it's a bit extreme when you find yourself against max-ranked players during your first match ever (This happened to me a lot the first day I got Resistance 3). It's not just  Resistance 3 that has this problem - every Call of Duty game i've played online has had the same issue; I want to go into matchmaking and face off against players of the same skill but somehow manage to find myself against max-rank prestige players, tell me - how does that work? There needs to be some barriers within matchmaking in online games, for example, the Halo series has always had a clever matchmaking system - you go into a ranked playlist of your choice and the game will put you against players of the same level or very close, which is fantastic, more games should do this, it would make playing them online a greater experience for everyone.

More developers should take note of how
 Bungie went about matchmaking

I'm aware that Halo Reach' matchmaking system is drastically different to previous instalments  but after a year and over worth of playing the game, I find myself playing against people who are similar to my skill level, regardless of the departure of the levelling system previous titles had - my point is, Bungie/343 Industries know exactly how to match up players of equal skill levels and experience, sure Reach isn't perfect, but it's a lot more better than Call of Duty and Resistance 3, so why can't other games have a fair ranking system? Evidently, Call of Duty players don't seem to care that they could be playing against extremely low level players or extremely high level players because it's the best-selling FPS ever. It's a personal thing for me - it's not nice being a bunny facing a lion. Feature1

FEATURE: HD Game Collections - Genuine Fan Gifts or Easy Money?

With HD gaming making its mark on the map in recent years, game companies are producing bundles of older games like there's no tomorrow.

Could Sony be working on God of War 4 instead
of spending their time remastering old games?

Now, I know the demand for past-favourites remastered in high definition is incredibly large, especially with the HD-obsessed world we currently live in - everything must be HD or 3D...or both. What is wrong with simply playing the original versions of these games like they were originally intended?
Have the "new generation" of gamers grew up with too much exposure to current-gen games; that they don't want to accept that some games were in regular resolution at one point? Either way, I do believe there are pros and cons in HD collections but I can also see why companies like Sony are so eager to put out as many possible.

The addition of Peace Walker is a nice extra in this collection,
 but how well will a PSP game convert to HD?

Don't get me wrong, the idea of playing classics such as God of War (PS2) and Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty (PS2) is a very exciting thought and I'm sure it will be as pleasurable a gaming experience as it was the first time I played these particular games, it will also be interesting and enjoyable to collect the trophies in these games because obviously the PS2 didn't have virtual e-penis boosting trophies - seriously though, I consider trophies in these HD collections to be a major pro, it is genuinely fun to collect trophies and even more so in games we all loved and played years ago. Now I've babbled on about trophy collecting, here's my two cents on why I think a lot of games are being remastered in HD - all a company needs to do is edit the resolution of the original content and convert that into a higher resolution (there is probably much more work but still at a cheap cost), which really can't be that expensive, and then they can simply put these collections on shelves at almost-full price, resulting in the company gaining max profits for little effort at all. It's a genius idea from a business perspective but it does make me question if companies are simply doing these HD collections for profit or because they genuienly want the fans to experience classic games again in fantastic HD resolution.


Will gamers shell out the cash for essentially a game(s) they've already played and beaten years ago or pass on the HD hype and save money for an actual original title? Are these HD collections a good thing for the people who never played the originals and aren't willing to buy the original consoles? Evidently, it's all down to your own opinion, so comment below on your take on this. Feature1