Wow, and we thought that May was a weak month. To be fair, the rules of Game of the Month state that we can't include re-releases of any kind that have appeared on a PlayStation console in the past, so the likes of the great Devil May Cry 4: Special Edition missed out on a chance at victory by default. Plus, with us still badgering away on our review of The Elder Scrolls Online: Tamriel Unlimited, that avoided making the cut, too. Still, June was pretty lacking when it came to big new releases, but nevertheless, we eventually managed to scrape together a somewhat decent list of wannabe winners. Bet you can't guess what took our coveted Platinum Trophy, though.
Bronze Trophy: Samurai Warriors Chronicles 3
Adding to the Vita's already good selection of Warriors titles, Samurai Warriors Chronicles 3 is a solid release. Taking the main elements of the fantastic Samurai Warriors 4 and smashing them together, we wrote that "the personal touch of following the grand tale of Japan's unification as your own custom character is something that fans will adore, while the combat mechanics which Samurai Warriors 4 introduced act as the always enjoyable core of the experience". It scored a 7/10.
Silver Trophy: J-Stars Victory VS+
Blasting onto all of Sony's platforms last month was J-Stars Victory VS+ - a title that throws many of anime and manga's most popular personalities into one big brawler. It's pretty crazy, but we mostly enjoyed the ride. "A solid character roster coupled with some eye-catching combat is what this beat-'em-up is all about – even if it could afford to take some more risks, given the wealth of source material on offer," we concluded in our 7/10 review.
Gold Trophy: PlanetSide 2
Yes, we know what you're thinking, and you're right - for now. We haven't quite finished our review of PlanetSide 2. Reviewer Matt Adcock is still getting stuck into this massive title, but he assures us that it's well worth a download on PlayStation 4. The gigantic multiplayer shooter has enjoyed huge success on PC, and now that it's finally on Sony's latest console, there's apparently little reason to miss out on the sci-fi madness, complete with futuristic weaponry and awe-inspiring battlefields.
Platinum Trophy: Batman: Arkham Knight
You definitely didn't see this one coming. According to reviewer Ben Tarrant, while Batman: Arkham Knight "doesn't leave your jaw agape like Arkham City seemed to manage with such ease and finesse", it's still more than good enough of a game to be crowned June's best. The caped crusader's final escapade features elements that are "fine-tuned to perfection", and overall, it's a "superior game that plays brilliantly". Rocksteady's done it again, then, and The Bat's curtain call earned a great 8/10 in our review.
And that just about wraps up another month of PlayStation gaming. What was your favourite game in June? Are you batty for Batman, or did something else grab your attention? Vote in our poll, and let us know in the comments section below.
What was your favourite game in June? (31 votes)
- Batman: Arkham Knight
- J-Stars Victory VS+ 0%
- PlanetSide 2
- Samurai Warriors Chronicles 3
- Other
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Comments 25
Whilst May and June may have been 'weak' or at least lacking in terms of numbers/competition, I would argue that we have seen two games likely to feature in many peoples top games of the year - if not the actual winner with the Witcher 3 last month and Batman: Arkham Knight this month.
@BAMozzy True dat!
@BAMozzy Quality over Quantity the last couple of months for me.
@Mrskinner very true. I am struggling to find a game of note for the next couple of months though. August only has 'old' games with Rare Replay and the remastered Gears of War. September only has Mad Max and I am not sure about that yet. October - another remaster with the Nathan Drake collection before November drops BO3, SW:BF, Rise of the Tomb Raider and Fallout4 well that's how my next 5 months is currently looking...
As a result, the last 2 months are definitely looking like my GotY's for 2015...
Shows how June was another mediocre month in gaming.
@BAMozzy I doubt Batman will be considered GOTY at the end of this year.
I'm still on an E3 high, looking for FF7 news every day. Something tells me I've got a long wait!
@AyeHaley Well I expect for many it will be. I know PushSquare only reviewed it as 8 and there is problems with the PC version but a lot of other sites reviewed it far higher. Its much better than City overall I think and I do think its the most complete Batman. Story wise its not as good as Asylum but I think it suffers from the Open World nature. The Batmobile - particularly the combat - is a bit one dimensional but its great fun to drive around. The combat is every bit as good as any of the previous Rocksteady games too. If Arkham City can get a GotY, this is superior in so many ways so I see no reason why this won't. Looking ahead there isn't much that I think will rival it. I do think the Witcher 3 is likely to win more awards but I can see this getting a lot too. There are more than 1 Game of the Year awards and I expect this will be up there....
FFXIV's Heavensward for me.
I beat Batman just yearstoday. And think that the game is very bad, like 4 out of 10 or something. I felt myself stupid playing it.
I'd still vote Bloodborne as my GOTY.
Not sure how long that vote will last though with Fallout and Uncharted coming out this year.
@BAMozzy Metal Gear Solid: Phantom Pain is also a September release right?? Abit of hype for that one!
@BAMozzy what about mgsv phantom pain. Think that drops september 1st
Batman is awesome, j stars is good too. I don't get why ppl are saying this is a lack luster couple of months, could be worse, look at the Wii U's releases
July has f1 2015 and Rory McIlroy golf
Batman: Arkham Knight is great. Though it's a re-release, the game I've been playing almost as much, and maybe liking more than Arkham Knight, is Devil May Cry 4: Special Edition.
@jonny_aces @Mrskinner I have no interest in MGSv. Its the whole reason I didn't mention it my next 5 months of gaming. If its anything like 4 it will be one of the best interactive movies. visually impressive but boring game from my perspective....
@BAMozzy Not just saying this as I'm obviously a big MG fan but based on everything I've seen of 5 and what I've played of GZ its very unlike MGS4. If your main problem was the really long cutscenes in the previous games it's been addressed for GZ and PP.
Did you try GZ on PS+ this month? What did you think of it?
@kyleforrester87 In truth I have downloaded it but just can't bring myself to play it yet. The draw of Arkham Knight and the Witcher 3 have been much stronger. Its not just the cut-scenes although they are way too excessive in MGS4, I just couldn't get into the story or characters.
In theory,I should like MGS as it has many of the elements I enjoy from other games but all the ones I have tried/owned just haven't connected with me. As a result, MGSv, no matter how good the Ground Zero's game is will not be a day 1 or even 2015 purchase - the draw and appeal of the other games - particularly Novembers line-up are more likely to be purchased. If I have the budget to buy it, I would rather wait and buy 1 of the latter releases that I may not be able to afford.
@BAMozzy I get your point and appreciate it's tough jumping into any franchise by the 5th instalment, let alone MGS!
Give GZ a go for a couple of hours though (that's all it'll take you, in fairness), the gameplay and controls are nicely refined and it's just a different MG experience.
My vote goes to Shenmue 3. I didn't vote as that would be silly. I've not bought or played anything new really since witcher, I didn't much appreciate planetside 2, has a lovely ps3 feeling but not for me.
@kyleforrester87 Its not like its my first experience of any of the Metal Gear games. I tried one or two of the earlier ones before 4 (although they were my sons and I didn't play from the start) and have tried multiple times to get into MGS4. Every time I get a few hours in, I have completely lost interest. I thought the lure of the trophies (when they added those) might give me more incentive but that made no difference.
Having watched a few videos of Ground Zero's, I saw nothing that intrigued or enticed me to play. I can't deny the presentation is good and I am sure that for those that enjoy the franchise, the Phantom Pain will deliver. However I cannot get excited by it - not even the MP.
The fact that Mad Max is out and even despite my reservations over that, it appeals a lot more.
@BAMozzy Fair enough, as you already have it on your hard drive do give it a go if you have a spare hour, maybe you'll be surprised at the changes.
@kyleforrester87 I will give it a go - just because I have it and its free. I have just watched this 30min video...
To be honest apart from the visual presentation, I still struggle to see the appeal but I guess there are games that I enjoy that you fail to see the appeal in too. If anything it actually put me off of jumping into Ground Zeros and not just because of the Japanese commentary. I don't this to turn into an argument or discussion as to why MGS has no appeal or where I think it gets things so wrong from my perspective. Its obvious a franchise you hold in high esteem and I will give GZ a fair go - probably more than just the 7mins I could (attempt to) speed run it in... ;D
It doesn't change the fact that 2 of the biggest games of the year have released the past couple of months and likely to be on many peoples list for top games of the year. I guess MGSv is likely to make your list.
From my perspective, the games releasing over the final months of the year, the only game that I can see to rival these is potentially Tomb Raider. However that is pushing it! SW;BF doesn't have a 'campaign' and to me still seems that it will be reliant on its social scene to get the most from it, Fallout 4 could surprise me but after 3 and the E3 demo, I think the Witcher 3 is likely to get my RPG vote. CoD maybe fun and a return to form as well as its usual excellent Zombie mode but its CoD and unlikely to be a GotY game - kind of like a Michael Bay or similar blockbuster movie is never going to win an Oscar. Mad Max looks like it could still go either way and most of my other games look likely to be remasters and/or collections (Rare Replay, Gears of War, Nathan Drake...) Unless we get some big surprise announcement from Gamescom...
@BAMozzy Sorry I didn't see your post until I put the english version of the video you linked in the forum Fair does for giving it a look, though! Would be interested to hear your thoughts on GZ, even in terms of graphics it's worth a look as it does look very nice running at 60fps on your big telly.
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