Donald_M

@Kidfried They could have done it that way as I pointed out myself in a previous comment, but why should they need to? Why is that necessary? It's okay, I know you don't have an answer. I'm not that fussed over it either despite the volume of comments, just stuck at work all night, bored silly and slightly annoyed that this site considers a bunch of losers on twitter getting their panties in a bunch over nothing to be, "news". Didn't realize Push Square was that desperate for content.

Also does anyone have a guess why this, of all inaccuracies in the game, is the one attracting, "controversy" on social media. Anyone? Anyone? Beuller? Beuller?

@Kidfried You're going to have to explain to me how making the class all male has edu value, but pointing out the inaccuracy and explaining why the developer made the choice they did doesn't.

@get2sammyb Just one more thing. For real, this time. This isn't a text book, it's a fictional narrative simulation that's been retrofitted for educational purposes. The inaccuracy is not left to stand on its own as though it were the truth, therefore the educational obligation has been met, something that can't be said even about many actual textbooks.

An actual textbook however does have an obligation to accuracy. The example that you give, while seemingly reasonable, misses the fact that to push diversity a textbook need only acknowledge it. Women may not have been uniformed soldiers on the front lines, but they did fight in WWII.

@Th3solution Ultimately, it is not the obligation of a fictional narrative to be accurate, though accuracy is always appreciated. Any skewed view you have of historical events or figures due to Assassin's Creed games is not the fault of the games themselves, but your own for not seeking out better information despite awareness of inaccuracy and apparent interest in the subject. In this case, the inaccuracy is specifically highlighted, the truth given and the change justified. If that is done then there is no problem. Indeed kids have more to learn from it than just historically accurate information. They learn not to take things at face value, to look deeper than just the surface. Not to simply take things as they are, or were, but to understand why. There is no risk in the way Ubisoft has chosen to approach this matter save the risk that kids might actually learn something. Once again, historical accuracy is important, but its educational worth lies ultimately in what we are able to learn from it. Besides, if the student is made aware of the inaccuracy and proper context given then there is no inaccuracy. There are all sorts of ways to learn and many lessons that need learning.

@Th3solution if accompanied by narration, a vitual tour IS a lecture. Sounds like the narration could stand to be a bit more lively though. More interactivity is needed too. The ability for students to steer the narration in particular directions that interest them, or to pose questions and have them answered. At any rate, leveraging existing high-quality simulations for the education market is a brilliant and long overdue idea

There's room for improvement, but on the whole this sounds like a really cool and positive thing. It would be nice if they could add a similar mode to previous games and they definitely need to work on making the narration more lively. Kids aren't going to learn much from this if they get bored and zone out.

One last thing. There are many, many historical inaccuracies in Assassin's Creed Origins, both by necessity and by choice. Why, I wonder, is it this specific one that some have chosen to highlight? Of course, I don't actually wonder, but it's important not to let stuff like this stand completely out of context and let people take the wrong lessons from it or act like they're on the side of good for being against it without anyone challenging them.

@wiiware It might be jarring to some, but women did fight in WWII and technically, anywhere during a war that fighting relevant to that war occurs is a battlefield. The entire concept of a "battlefield" is a holdover from when people didn't mostly live in cities and tried their best to avoid fighting in them.

@get2sammyb to be clear I do not think that you in particular have a huge problem with this or that you are sexist. This subject is absolutely open to criticism, but not for the reasons you think. The greatest importance in criticism is in its ability to expose the reasoning behind, unspoken lessons in and true value of things.

@get2sammyb Personally, I expect educational materials to teach lessons worth learning. Kids don't just learn in the classroom, they are exposed to historical inaccuracies constantly in books, movies, television programs, video games and yes, even in the classroom. Historical accuracy is only valuable for what it can teach us. The lesson here is a good one and the inaccuracy pointed out. Given that straight up lying to kids about history to raise them to be bigots is already a thing, I'm not seeing why this is a problem or even slightly bothers someone except that they have an issue with inclusion even when it's done for a specific reason and that reason is pointed out and the inaccuracy highlighted.

Presenting information, accurate or not, then putting it in a proper context so that the truth is known but a positive lesson is also communicated is literally what education is.

@Neolit This is already done in the service of less valiant causes. It's a big part of why the United States is in the mess it's in right now. They could have handled it differently, like explaining in the narration why there are no girls learning alongside the boys, but this communicates the exact same message. But whatevs, I know exactly why this is bothering some people so much and it has nothing to do with rewriting history.

@RogerRoger Again, they're making people aware of the inaccuracy. What's the horrifying agenda here, that girls should be fully included in the classroom? Oh noes!

@ShogunRok What part of, "This is inaccurate, we changed it and here's why," isn't a warning, or fails to communicate the point better than absolute accurism would?

@get2sammyb They pointed out the inaccuracy. This isn't the problem, textbooks that rewrite history in order to indoctrinate children into a negative, bigoted way of thinking are. "Sexism is prevalent in history, but inclusion is important," seems like a good lesson to be giving schoolchildren to me.

They pointed out the inaccuracy and explained why they made the choice they did within the mode itself, so I don't see the problem. Censoring the art is kind of ridiculous though, that bothers me a bit more, though I suppose it's necessary to avoid screaming fits from busybodysoccer moms, though it should be something that can be turned on or off since this could also be potentially used in college classrooms, though there are weird prudes even in college.

A bit pricy for a remaster, even with all the DLC included, but on the other hand this is one of the only racing titles I ever played that I unreservedly enjoyed, so I'd be down for a second go and if this does well we might get a proper followup.

@get2sammyb Fair enough, I wasn't entirely sure what you were trying to say there. No worries.

Wanna check out the Discovery Tour because it sounds really cool and also like something that could potentially be leveraged for educational purposes. Like, release a version on pc that locks out the main game element and open up these games to a potential whole new market. Yeah the depiction of Ancient Egypt isn't entirely accurate, but pointing out those inaccuracies can be educational too and it's a way to get kids - and adults -engaged in history. If companies are already going to be making these multi-million dollar historical simulators, why not spend a tiny bit more money retrofitting them to educate people about important stuff?

Of the mentioned settings I'd say Vikings appeals the most. As for settings not mentioned, I wouldn't say no to an AssCreed set during the Vietnam War.

@Wesker There's nothing wrong with expecting games to be good, but knowing what you like and doing your research before buying something, which is a lot easier now than it was years ago, certainly helps. You've still gotta take a chance now and then of course and it doesn't always work out, but that's life. I have no idea what kind of person expects every game to be be good, but those people are fools and who has time to worry about what fools think, or the disappointments they bring upon themselves.

"There was a time when the Internet cost a penny a minute (absurd, I know)"

I'm confused, are you pushing this as a good thing from the olden days? Because I did the math and the internet costs me LESS than penny a minute for as much as I'm online and I don't have to subscribe to any additional services just to be able to do much of anything online, or pay any additional phone charges as I sometimes had to as a kid using dialup.

And don't get me started on CEX, aka where all my stolen games and consoles ended up. My own fault for trusting the jerk who robbed me, but still.

Also yeah, I don't miss the mystery as it frequently led to wasting fifty non-refundable bones on terrible games.

Not to rain on your parade Sammy, but nostalgia is a drug and drugs are bad, mmmm,kay?

@Deadlyblack Any game can be good or abysmal, but the description itself sounds freaking amazing. I'm picturing a Knight in a steel leisure suit fighting vampire ninjas lead by a werewolf pimp in an abandoned dojo.

Single player games will never go away, but it's probably inevitable that AAA publishers will gradually move away from them in favor of multiplayer service games they can continually monetize for years and years.

I have mixed feelings about that. I'm no fan of multiplayer and would be sad to see less AAA single player games coming out, but honestly indie developers are probably the future of single-player. They don't take their orders from big companies and are willing and able to take chances and do interesting things you'd never see in a big publisher's games.

@Dankestdankz It's a list of ten games, everyone is sure to disagree with some of them. This is indeed one of the best games of the year, though not everyone will think so and that's okay. Thankfully, games are more that whatever it is you think they are.

This sounds like pretty much exactly what I imagined, an off-brand Persona. Still, if the combat is fun as you say and the story and other elements at least passable it could be worth checking out, though certainly not at the $60 price tag it's currently going for.

I've been playing this all day since my copy arrived in the mail this morning and I'm absolutely loving it. I know some people are unhappy about the changes like removing the timer and I can understand that, but personally I don't miss it.

A pity, I was really hoping this one would turn out okay.

I've heard good things about Road Redemption. Whatever happened to the PS4 version of that?

Sony would be foolish to launch the PS5 next year when the PS4 is still doing so well. I think the PS4 still has a few more good years left in it. I'm betting the PS5 will launch in 2020, but whenever it does I probably won't pick it up right away like I did the PS4. I didn't have any other consoles at the time and I don't regret buying Ps4 at launch even if the wait for good games to start releasing with any consistency was long, but whenever the PS5 does get around to launching I'll still have more than enough of a PS4 backlog to tide me over until the price on the PS5 drops and it has enough of a decent library to justify the purchase.

I wouldn't mind seeing this franchise resurrected in some form, but honestly I'd much rather see a new Ape Escape. Easily my favorite exclusive franchise back in the PS2 days.

I've played a few hours so far and I'm loving it. The semi-open world and small town setting (at least so far) gives the game a very Silent Hill type feel, which is very welcome since I'm big Silent Hill fan and we're probably never gonna get another Silent Hill game again, sadly.

Agents of Mayhem was a deeply confused game that the publisher seemingly had no idea how to market, but for all that I enjoyed my time with it. Here's hoping Volition have better luck with their next project.

@Bobobiwan I can understand that, but you'll probably be waiting a while yet if you're looking for a deal considering it came out in January and still goes for $50+ brand new. I get most new games on PS4 physical mostly for the Amazon Prime discount, but have no real preference one way or the other. I'll happily get digital if there's a good enough deal. I picked up Yakuza 0 in a PSN sale a couple months back and I'm glad I did. Fantastic game.

@naruball Oh, Destiny would beat this in sales even if the first game were hugely popular, but not everyone cares about Destiny. I for one certainly don't.

@wiiware I would be so on board for an open world sequel to The Order, but as I said I really don't think a sequel is likely at all. Then again, not so long ago I thought the same thing about Knack, so who knows.

@wiiware I'd definitely be down for an sequel to The Order. Much like Knack, it was a game that I enjoyed mostly for the world and the characters and I'd like to see more of it just for that, though I'd hope any sequel would give us more exploration and interactivity in the world and not just be another corridor shooter where all the boss battles are the same QTE repeated several times. Talk about lazy design.

That said, I really don't think a sequel is likely. Knack is one thing. For a long time a sequel to Knack seemed unlikely, but for all the criticism and complaints I'm sure it probably got a major boost from being a launch title. Besides, as much as people liked to rag on it after the fact, nobody really expects all that much from launch titles anyway. The Order: 1886 on the other hand was the PS4's first big post-launch exclusive that was a new IP and had a huge amount of hype around it for that reason. Ready at Dawn blew it too badly to get another chance I think, especially since a sequel that actually does the property justice would be a big budget product, unlike Knack II whose $40 price tag reflects the fact that it's a smaller-budget title. Sony's not gonna put that kinda money into a sequel to a game that dropped the ball as badly as The Order did.

Anyway, looking at Metacritic it looks like with 31 reviews counted so far Knack already has nearly twice as many positive reviews as the original got and only one completely negative one so far, so it looks like Knack II really is a much improved sequel, but one that isn't likely to convince many that didn't care for the original.

I've checked out a few Knack II reviews and this was the first genuinely positive one I've seen. Personally, I liked the first Knack a lot and have little doubt I'll like this one as well given that it seems to be more of the same but with various improvements. That said, despite this particular critic's positive impression it look's like Knack II is set to divide critics and gamers just as much as the first one did.

I thought the first game was just okay. WB pulling this crap makes me want to skip this one entirely.

Was that supposed to come out this year? News to me. Never did play the first one, so figure I can handle the extra wait.

@Bad-MuthaAdebisi Whatever you say, Edgey McEdgelord.

@Bad-MuthaAdebisi ZeniMax thanks you for defending its honor. As a reward, here's a hat that reads, "Corporate Drone." Wear it well.

Seriously dude, "disgusting excuse for a human being"? He's an old guy who clearly doesn't like or understand video games, but so what? If ZeniMax didn't fully abide by the contract they signed to use his song, they deserve to be sued so that maybe they will next time. Some artists are content to let their songs be used anywhere and anyhow as long as the check clears, others want a little more control than that. Are you saying you don't think artists should have any say in how their songs are used if that's what they want?

@viciousarcanum The contract was made through a third party but apparently had a clause that required ZeniMax to get his direct approval regarding how the song would be used, which they apparently never did. He objects to the use of the song in the particular ad it was used for, which he feels depicts objectionable content, implying that an ad could have crafted which would have been more to his liking had he been consulted or else they could have paid him more to compensate overriding his objections. At least, that's my takeaway.

@BraveFencerZan Exactly right. As video game fans we can fault Dion's reasoning, but if the clauses of the contract under which his song was licensed were violated he's within his rights to sue. ZeniMax will most likely settle the lawsuit anyway. They can certainly afford to take the hit. There's no need to rush to ZeniMax's defense here, they're a big company, they can look out for themselves and at any rate appear to be in the wrong here, though that's ultimately for the court to decide.

@rjejr DriveClub was never meant to be fully for PS+, it was always meant to be a stripped down version as a preview for plus members with a discounted buy in if they wanted the full game. That said, it took so long to get the PS+ version out there that when it was finally released no one cared, especially with all the bad press the game had been getting.

Games like this make me wonder why some games don't have a platinum trophy. Platinums in games like this and that Mayo game seem to show that it's not Sony that's stopping platinums from being put in some games. I mean, trophies don't really matter, they're at best a cool extra that are only worth going for until it stops being fun, but why would a developer choose not to include a platinum, especially when there are people who actually factor that into some of their purchases.

I already own Until Dawn and Game of Thrones, but still an excellent month for those that don't already own them. I'm sure some people will still find reason to complain though as that's par for the course with PS+.

I had been thinking that the second half of this year feeling kind of barren compared to the first, but there are games I'm looking forward to. Agents of Mayhem, Everyone's Golf, South Park, Knack II, Wolfenstein, Undertale finally on PS4 and I'm sure there are others. Next year is looking huge though, possibly even better than this year

@Bad-MuthaAdebisi

"Sony probably didn't want to bother publishing a 2 hour walking experience"

It's really too bad if that's the case as it's probably the best "walking simulator" the genre has yet produced. A far cry from the massively padded and terrifically dull, "Everybody's Gone to the Rapture". It may be that game that turned Sony off of publishing a superficially similar title in, "Edith Finch" though they did give it a pretty decent push regardless.

@iSillyBoiJudas

If you've enjoyed other Telltale games then you should like Borderlands. It's one of their best and you don't need any knowledge of the other Borderlands games to enjoy it.