Talking Point: What Are You Playing This Weekend? - Issue 407

Gonna start Knights and Bikes and continuing making progress with Lego DC Super-Villains on PS4. Happy gaming all!

I have about an hour left of Deathloop so I’ll finish that up. There’s AC Valhalla waiting on the other end so I guess I’ll take my time! Elsewhere, I’ve been playing Persona 2: Innocent Sin on my Vita for the second or third time which is brilliant. Also I’ve taken Wrexham to League Two in FM2022 but at the cost of Ryan Reynolds stepping down as chairman. Lots to play!

Still Pokemon Brilliant Diamond. Trying to grind BP at the battle tower, probably be doing that for a while.

Been meaning to get back to DBZ: Kakarot, but Raditz keeps kicking my a… . Seriously Raditz

@nessisonett one of my favourite gaming memories is promoting Stockport all the way to the premier league & winning the champions league 5x in a row in FM14. How I miss my uni days…😂

@Fight_Teza_Fight Stockport were my rivals that whole season! Ended up three points behind and facing each other on the final day of the season, which after a victory meant I won the league on goal difference. Spare a thought for poor Maidenhead though, who got 9 points in 44 games, including -73 goal difference 😂

Spiderman Miles Morales - had it in my backlog for an age so really looking forward to it. Looks stunning on PS5
Battlefield 2042 - enjoying it despite my initial disappointment, really getting into the maps now
Crusader Kings 3 on PC - utterly compelling and addictive in a one more go kind of way
Have a great weekend guys ❤️

Still on the fantastic Cyberpunk2077! The only true GTA competitor right now. R* knew it'd be difficult to get a GTA world and all its density with RDR2 type graphics to work on PS4/XOne, so they decided to skip the gen entirely. This is why I give CDPR props for trying. Hangar13 tried with Mafia3 and ended up with inconsistent and blurry vehicle textures, they got better with the MafiaRemake though but only possible in an empty world. FarCry manages to do it with repetitive vehicles and a world that isn't too packed. Yet, CP2077 pulls it off with good looking textured vehicles and a heavily packed world - of course it's gonna have bugs. Like Skyrim in its early years, most great games start with lots of bugs and pay the price for being daring. Even with all it's bugs CP2077 is much more fun and better than a lot of boring non-buggy games. Plus it emphasizes why I respect R* so much, there are hardly any true GTA competitors.

Then, it's running some laps in the free online weekend in GT Sport else it would've been exclusively CP2077.

I definitely have to check out DNF Duel.
Wow just checked out Varvarian. Can't believe I didn't know about this game, it looks sick.

Currently playing the Get A Booster game, not a lot of fun. 😒

Finished the main story of God of War the other day so just spending a bit more time with Kratos and Atreus before calling it quits. Might take me beyond the weekend, might not.

If it doesn't, will try a bit of AC Valhalla as not sure what to play next. Maybe A Plague Tale, a proper Christmas game. 😉

Enjoy!

@nessisonett That’s amazing. Love a good FM story. I was obsessed with the youth intake day- for pretty much every footballing country. I’d spend hours going through all the players.

Funnily enough I ended up with Zidane’s son, that’s how many seasons I went & it wasn’t even Enzo (his actual footballing son).

Bit disappointed that FM22 skipped PS, it’s on Xbox now so that gives me some hope 🤞

On the last chapter of A Plague Tale Innocence, great game very surprising, even though it reviewed well I had my doubts, really enjoying the story and characters. Will definitely pick up the second when it is out.

Finished Kena earlier in the week and decided to give Death Stranding Director's Cut a try.

It's interesting. Played an hour so far.

@lolwhatno We don't have GTA6 for PS4 do we...

I see you're enjoying PREY, you need to play all the Dishonored, seriously. And RDR2 is in its own untouchable space, nothing comes close.

PS5 Chicory, Kena, Lost Judgement. Series X Death's Door, The Gunk, Psychonauts, Silent Hill 3. Switch Ender Lilies, Eastward, Hades

@Sorteddan I really liked Knights and Bikes- it’s based near me (Cornwall) and it very much reminds me of the Goonies. Great game.

I am playing GTA 3 via PSNow and actually having a great time with it. There is a lot of content- I’m aiming for 100% and I’m surprised at how much there is to do!

Completed Guardians of the Galaxy last night. What a game!

I’m not overly familiar with the characters - I only know them from the movies - but this game really did them a service.

The story is brilliantly wacky, in true cosmic Marvel fashion. And the writing is genuinely funny/heartfelt - the random team banter is hilarious. Every character gets a chance to shine.

I really love how the dynamic of the group changes throughout the game. Like how Drax doesn’t like Gamora at the start (referring to her as ‘assassin’ and ‘murderess’) but gradually they become friends (eventually calling her by her real name).

Level/Character design is extremely high standard. I was blown away by the graphics and the facial animations.

I did have a few technical issues... one trophy not popping, collectibles glitched, character skins reverting back to the default version during cutscenes. And there were things I would improve if they make a sequel... mainly the combat. But overall the pro’s far outweigh the cons and I had a blast with this game.

I love the GotG movies but I think I actually prefer these versions of the characters even more, which I wouldn’t have beloved possible before playing the game.

A surprise hit for sure.

SWITCH
Metroid Dread - Continuing my playthrough of this amazing game! Loving it so far.
Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl - In celebration of crossplay and voice acting being announced, doing some online matches! Currently maining Nigel and Garfield.

PC
Horizon Zero Dawn - Starting this one today! Heard great things about it.
GTA Online - As always, multiplayer madness with friends tonight!

Have a great weekend everyone.

Playing hotshot racing on switch, man this game reminded me of ridge racer psone so much, with this and horizon chase, it's an arcade racing weeks for me

Praey for the Gods. Backed it on kickstart back when I was less cynical. Just taken down the first boss and enjoying it so far.

On Crash Bandicoot 3 before playing Crash Bandicoot 4 for the PS5, & then platinum it at a later date on the PS4 too. Halo infinite & Gear's 5 multiplayer & horde, I brought Battlefield 4 for £4.99 last night to not only play but get the achievements too, platinumed on the PS4. Battlefield Bad Company 2 multiplayer was why I picked up Battlefield 4, the older Battlefield game's are so good. If I do get the new Battlefield it'll be on sale & for the Portal mode, why they are changing the core of the game I don't know. From team focused classes too specialists, and there is so much missing from the game.

I’m nearing the end of Halo Infinite, I’m loving every minute of it.

Snake on a Nokia 8210.

Catching up on some relaxing backlog stuff with The Unfinished Swan and Firewatch today and I'll be hitting up Fez and Flower on Vita tomorrow. Have a good weekend all!

@Mhoney
Excellent. Who doesn't love the Goonies? Though now you've brought it up I will be disappointed if I don't get to do the truffle shuffle!

I tried DNF Duel for a short while and unfortunately didn’t like it. It looks nice but I didn’t like how it plays at all. Maybe it’s just not for me.

Back to GGST then.

Recently I've been playing a lot of Riders Republic,absolutely love the game and even though I've played it more or less every day,ever since finishing Guardians Of The Galaxy I've been putting a lot more time into it.
Also I've been playing Resident Evil 3 remake which considering it was my least favourite back in the day I'm really enjoying this remake.
I'm also considering whether to start Scarlet Nexus or go back to The World Ends With You.
Enjoy your weekend all.

For xbox I will finish up the gunk, I'm 3 hours in and does already seem like the end is near 😢, then I will continue with some aliens fireteam which so far I've enjoyed more than back 4 Blood

On playstation 5 I will continue my slog through blue reflection second light and start a new game on horizon zero dawn so I can do the dlc before the new game comes out

On nintendo I've recently bought Bioshock remastered collection so will be playing that and pokemon brilliant diamond

@Col_McCafferty Have you tried beating any Valkyrie 😆😆. I'm stuck on the last one - the Queen - only because I don't wanna stress my controller.

I'm playing AC Odyssey through its free weekend trial. Put about 3 hours in so far, and am really enjoying it. It's by no means the best in what it does, with spongy enemies and not the most in-depth combat, but for some reason, it's just so enjoyable. It's like open-world action-RPG comfort food. Hopefully, I don't get sucked in too much to the point where I feel immensely sad once the free trial period gets over.

Other than that, I'm excited to try out the DNF Duel open beta. It just looks like a lot of fun.

Still playing ratchet and clank.god of war and days gone.all times favorite of mine.watching martin.good times.the Jeffersons.saved by the bell.the 🏠 on the bayou movie.ncaa college basketball 🏀 Michigan wolverines.and my 💛Pittsburgh Steelers🖤 NFL 🏈 football game tomorrow.word up son

I'm on the 14th mission out of 15 in the Halo Infinite campaign. Have done everything on the map too. found all the skulls, and other collectibles, etc.. Really enjoying the game, though am dreading some of the encounters that I will face on my Legendary run, which I will probably start some time this week, as even on Hardcore some have proven very challenging...

@Fiendish-Beaver can't wait to play Halo Infinite - my Mrs has bought me a series S for Xmas so saving Halo and Forza Horizon 5 until then...I feel like an excited kid, can't wait lol

Steamworld Dig 2. An awesome little digging game with a lot of charisma.

Gonna box off Batman: Enemy within this weekend. Up to episode 2 so far. Dunno if I'll start anything else this weekend.

I'll be trotting around Tsushima and slowly approaching bands of ronin to annihilate them with perfectly timed, balletic swordplay.

I'll be immersing myself in the fantastically atmospheric world of Unsighted.

I will forget what I was on my way to do in Forza Horizon 5 (which runs beautifully on my last-gen xbox, btw).

I will lust after Guardians of the Galaxy, Chorus and Returnal, wondering exactly when over the next two weeks I will cave and purchase them.

All this to distract from the intensity of the final weekend in retail before Christmas (I run a bookshop).

Happy weekend all and happy gaming!

Mortal Shell (ps+). unexpected. I didn't like lords of the fallen, the surge and even Nioh, but mortal shell is something else. I wish it was longer.

I'll be playing Watchdogs Legion, it's a banker, I know what I'm getting with it. I put about two hours into Detroit Become Human, but housekeeping and taking old men to the bathroom aren't really the type of escapism I look for in games. Maybe it would have got better, but the whole intro to the game was mind numbingly awful.

Told myself I wasn’t going to play the PS+ Mortal Shell because I was disappointed not to get the upgrade, however after platinuming Death’s Door I needed something else to play and so decided to give it a go. Am actually really loving it.

This weekend I’m finishing off my umbrella run for the Death’s Door platinum and plodding along in the fabulous Ghost of Tsushima: Director’s Cut. Two outstanding games!

Finally finished halo infinite- which imo is terrible. Couldn’t get into the story, the open world was repetitive & it got to the point where there was nothing really to do outside of the main missions. Boring missions of finding power cells, operate machinery then repeat. No variety in missions. For me I found it very boring & I'm surprised on how highly it got reviewed. If this is what’s the future of halo games-then I’m def out. Infinite just felt like a arena game- constant wave of enemies, similar to doom. But I did enjoy the gameplay side of it-but playing through infinite- dunno. Just felt really bored & I ended up just skipping the story cutscenes, just so that I could complete the game faster. Anyways, currently playing outriders-which ain’t that bad. Also watched the new spidey film which was bloody excellent.

Finishing Shin Megami V on the Switch. I love the game, but 60 hours in, the difficulty is kind of exhausting. Probably going to take a break from turn-based games after this one.

Mahjong by Microsoft (Android) - Daily challenges and puzzle packs as usual.

Bad Piggies (Windows Phone) - Going back to finish this off finally.

Tiki Towers (Windows Phone) - Just getting into this.

I’ll be playing Kena bridge of spirits, GTA3 DE and continuing my death march through halo infinite enemies.

Continuing my extended annual leave by going out for my booster shot and hopefully getting out of the building by 5 lol. Apart from that currently playing Rage 2 which is actually quite fun.

Well worth the wait, @KingPev. If you do everything, it's not a short game either.

@nessisonett never played a footbal manager game myself but i still have fifa 15 which (and for this reason only) i still play because its the last fifa game that stockport county were in..also wrapping up kena bridge of spirits this weekend..awesome game..

I'm curious, @Cyrus29; on what difficulty did you play the game. Maybe it's because I really enjoy Halo, but my experience seems to be very different to yours...

I'm on a sucker punch studio kick. Just finished sly 3 and have now got the platinum for it. Now I'm playing infamous, just finished 1st main area.

Plan on checking out the Yule festival in Assassins Creed Valhalla. Just finished A Fated Encounter with Eivor and Kassandra. I really loved their relationship, I wish there was more content with them teaming up. Never thought I would describe an AC add-on as adorable but here we are.

King of Fighters 15 and Dungeon Fighter Betas. Then probably jump on Street Fighter V to mess around in arcade mode.

I’ll be wrapping up Chorus. Cannot recommend it enough. Wonderful space shooter that has ruined all others for me. Then off to relatives for the week with consoles in tow to work on Valhalla and Hot Wheels campaign.

Still playing GOTG. Such a fun game and that soundtrack is bliss!

Gonna get a little bit further on Psychonauts 2 which I haven't touched for a while.
Dunno why cos it's a great game.

@Fiendish-Beaver hello, I played on normal. I’m a fan of the previous halo games. Just infinite I felt like it was a chore to play. Again, gameplay was fun-but outside of that the game just felt way too boring for me. Traversing the world was boring & felt pointless-the world felt empty. For me, there was never a need to want to wander the world- just getting to missions as quick as I can. Also them terrible power cell missions were way longer then should be & if they were taken-it would’ve been the shortest halo game. Personally I just found the missions very stale & basic. Variety in missions would have been nice & would have freshened the game up for me. It’s a shame cause I was expecting something great after seeing all the positive reviews. I’ll just stick to playing the master chief collection.

I bought Great Giana Sisters Twisted Deams for less than a pound on Switch sale. First played the demo back on PS3 years ago, but it didn't run well there. Seems a fun little game on Switch... maybe I'll go play the C64 original again.

Also been playing Rise Race the Future and Wonderboy 3, which were also on sale, a good arcade racer and a Master System classic!

Someone uninstall Skyrim from my PS5 and hide my disc and credit card. I just can't stop playing this game!

PS5
Life is Strange 2
Still playing more mellow games as my hand recovers. Enjoyed the other entries so thought to give this one a spin...meh its ok. Some intresting mechanics and decent moments, not a fan of the blatent agenda though, sortve kills the stories nuance.

Switch
No More Heores
Finished this one back in the day on the Wii
but it was censored version, happy to play this one in its full glory without motion controls. Absolutle insane Suda 51 fun...they dont make em like this anymore.

PC Game Pass
AI The Sominian Files
Pretty enjoyable anime murder investigation piece. Never played a visual novel before, bit am enjoying the genre so far. Some cute humor and an intriguing murder mystery. Am playing on my phone using touch controls.

1. Halo Infinite (PC)
2. Chorus (PS5)
3. Sherlock Holmes (PS5)

@Agramonte How’s Chorus?

Chorus
FNAF SB
Maybe I'll get Praey for the Gods, too idk

@TheArt Yeah, Kara. Not too hard really.

Not sure I'm going to try to beat all of them, once I finish the main story in a game it's hard to find the urge to continue playing.

Round and round in Hades. Good game.

Thank you for the detailed response, @Cyrus29. I'm just finishing off a Hardcore run, doing everything, going everywhere. I've really enjoyed the game. Leading up to it's release, I revisited both 4 and 5 (mainly to remind me of the story, though it's proven unnecessary as the events of those games is barely touched upon really). I often find that when games are too easy, wherein there is no real challenge, that they can quickly become stale, and maybe there is an element of that for you. I say that because other than the occasional bit where it is either a really hard hitting end-level boss or just such a big mob that you cannot move for getting hit, even on Hardcore the game is generally very doable (particularly if you use vehicles, or heavy weapons). The Developers have said that for Infinite you will get the best experience on Hardcore, which suited me as that is how I always the do my first play-through of a game (any game for that matter). However, I always think that Halo really hits it's stride on Legendary because (particularly if you play solo, as I always do) then it's not just a matter of out-gunning the enemies, but being tactical about how you do it; the right weapon for the task, etc. I know it's horses for courses, but I was interested by the fact that we were having such a different experience of the game from me...

@Fiendish-Beaver thanks also for your response. Gameplay wise I can see why your experiences are different to mines.when I play games it’s very rare that I play them twice. But as I found the game not very good, normal mode was a chore for me-I can’t see me replaying it again never mind on a harder difficulty. It’s weird as I actually prefer playing 4 & 5 over infinite. But for me anyway-the game as a whole just didn’t click for me.

Started Kena this week. It looks stunning but the camera and some of the movement is a bit ‘floaty’ I’m looking forward to playing more but I have some reservations at this point

That's completely understandable, @Cyrus29; if I don't enjoy a game, I wouldn't go through it again. No Achievement or Trophy is worth getting if you're not enjoying the game. I also enjoyed 4 and 5. I wasn't one of those that slated the games as many did when they were released. People complained because they were different to the first 3 (or 5) games, yet had they basically trodden the same ground, others would have complained then too. You're never going to please everybody...

@Fiendish-Beaver very true mate👍🏻

I’m playing Death Stranding: Directors Cut. Outstanding game. I’ve finished the main story, and now I’m just keeping playing towards the platinum. It’s the first game I’ve played where the platinum grind doesn’t feel like a chore, because in a way, grinding IS the game. But what a beautiful game it is.

Too much talk about Halo on here, take it to another site.

😉

The winter wonderland event of Overwatch started, so I will be playing said game over the weekend to get into the Christmas festivities.

Kingdoms Of Amalur: Reckoning. 109 hours in and I've still yet to sail to Mel Senshir.
AC Valhalla. Got back into this to see Kass and Eivor together. No nonsense wit meets clever brawn.
Control. I bought the Ultimate Edition on Series S for a tenner. Taking down Hiss amidst the exploding scenery in 60fps is so bloody good.

Five nights at freddys new game

I got my Kena plat this morning so I'm in limbo with whether to finish FF7r intergrade plat and play dlc or start Death stranding directors cut.

Despite having the likes of Ghost Of Tsushima and Miles Morales unfinished on my PS5, I'm once again totally hooked on The Binding Of Isaac.

Hadn't played it much recently, but purchased the Repentance DLC and once again every other game seems trivial. I'm not even that good at it, but I find it hugely addictive and there's a seemingly endless amount of new stuff.

I busted out the ol' Sega Game Gear and played both Sonic 2 and Sonic Spinball. Good times.

At the end of Rachet and Clank and then it'll either be Gaurdians of the Galaxy or Kena...both are just sitting there unopened.

Animal Crossing New Horizons

Xcom 2 and Thronebreaker: The Witcher Tales.

Far Cry 3: Classic Edition. The graphics are PS3ish, but the game overall has aged well.

Fenyx rising, about 6 hours in and liking it more but not loving it yet...

@Voltan I am a fan of space shooters so enjoying it. Story is ok, a bit heavy handed and sometimes dumped on you. Production value are a bit all over the place (but space and weapons effects look great). Love the Music. Controls are solid (if not at start, after a few upgrades it is crazy what you can pull off) and combat is fun. Side missions are also a bit all over the place from good to "meh" (I do all of them because no idea when I get another space shooter) and main character is just not Kena or Kass. For $39 I am entertained.

@Agramonte Thanks, putting it on the “play eventually” list then

@LittleToyTitan I'd do that for you but then Todd Howard would turn up to your house a minute later with a new copy for you to buy😂

@Cyrus29 I’m having the same reaction to it. I’m like six missions in and I don’t know if I’m going to go back to it. It’s fun to play but it’s just not what I go to Halo for. I’m glad I got it on game pass. If I’d payed full price for I’d be upset. I think I’ll go replay ODST or Combat Evolved again.

started playing Judgment. gameplay is same as yakuza zero but story is very interesting

Returnal - I'm one of the 1000% of people who haven't completed it. And I never will if I'm honest with myself, but sometimes I get the notion to do a few runs and then turn it off.

P5R - been a few years since I completed P5 and loved it, decided to pick up Royal in the sale for another run through over the holidays

Sackboy - picked it up a while back for me and the kid to play through, gonna start it later today.

Deathloop was sitting in shrink wrap for a few weeks while I sludged through some backlog. I'm completely addicted.

@tselliot Game of The Year for me !

I'm still making my way up the mountain in Celeste. Almost there.

@F1at8mot0 the only reason that I completed it was because I brought it. My feelings were the same as yours. After playiing the game flelt flat to me-like the hook wasn’t there to keep me interested in it. Again, gameplay is fun, but just found the game boring. I’m currently replaying odst, which is a amazing. On another note, I’m further into outriders- enjoying it so far. Like a cross between the division & gears of war. Controls could do with being more smoother- but then gears of war had perfect controls.

@GorosBat Haha, true! I'm enjoying every second of it, though. Such a shame we won't be seeing Starfield and The Elder Scrolls VI on PS platforms. Skyrim and Fallout 3 were my favorite games of the PS3 era, even though they were buggy as hell. Fallout 3 was my first platinum. Fond memories!

Ps5: Ratchet and Clank Rift Apart
Xbox Series X: Halo infinite & Forza Horizon 5
Switch: Metroid Dread

GTA3 Definite Edition on PS4, Psychonauts 2 & Halo Infinite on XSS and Pokémon Ruby on GBA (emulator)

Still playing Halo, I'd like to finish the campaign before I go home for Christmas but the multiplayer keeps distracting me so we'll see! Also, I need to finish TLoU2 and I've just started Dark Souls 3 again as I'd like to do a playthrough before Elden Ring comes out.

Taking it easy and bathing in the glory and worship of my acolytes after nabbing my 300th Platinum. Just run out of grapes but my particularly nubile young virgin disciple has kindly popped to Tesco to pick some more up and enquire about the availability of thermal togas …