Talking Point: What Are You Playing This Weekend? (January 13-14)

Elex II. It's a janky/messy/broken mess that for some reason I can't put down. I got it for 8 bucks and I wouldn't recommend paying a cent more lol.

Finished the great Yakuza: Like a Dragon a few days ago (even got all the Achievements!) so I'll be playing Like a Dragon: Ishin! now.

I completed Final Fantasy XVI on Ps5 last week and I’m currently replaying Final Fantasy XII: The Zodiac Age on my Switch.

Also trying to reach level 200 in Fortnite Chapter 5 Season 1 on Ps5/Switch/Xbox before Like a Dragon Infinite Wealth and Final Fantasy VII Rebirth release.

Beyond that gonna play some Powerwash Simulator on XSX

Still playing Tribes of Midgard with my wife. We beat the ancient Fenrir last night and are doing some leveling & exploration before the next ancient.

@Kaloudz did you try Avatar? I know you like your Ubisoft games, if so how did you find it? Thinking I might grab it this weekend as I got a voucher for Christmas!

Some Quake 2 and some Hell Let Loose for me this weekend, I did also start Far Cry 6 in the week too.

a bit of baldurs gate 3 and avatar.
I decided to pay one month of ubisoft plus to play prince of persia so avatar is really a plus. I like it so far...

Throughout the week I finished my “Insanity” playthrough in Mass Effect (Legendary Edition) and got the platinum trophy. There were a few difficult moments but I managed to scrape by with my Adept Shepard. This trilogy is peak science fiction. What I like most all, particularly with the first game, is that it’s a compact 25-30 hour RPG experience. I more than likely won’t start Mass Effect 2 for a while due to other games releasing soon, and risking burnout, but I will absolutely platinum the entire trilogy. And to keep me absorbed in this world, I’m reading Drew Karpyshyn’s Mass Effect: Revelation and it’s excellent.

On a side tangent — most of my playtime was on the PlayStation Portal. This machine has been an absolute game changer for me. It has given me the desire to play certain games that I prefer to play handheld such as old school PS1 games, particularly JRPGs (Wild Arms), or even PS2 gems like the GTA trilogy. I may go as far to suggest the upcoming Persona 3 Reload is ostensibly better in this format. For me, these types of games are better suited in a smaller screen. Maybe that’s my nostalgia kicking in since I used to play these games up close with a small boxed television.

I’m also starting up Dead Space Remake. The original is a classic, and it’s been nearly fifteen years since I played it, so it should feel like a fresh new captivating experience. What I remember vividly is how the USG Ishimura felt like a living character rather than a story setting. There aren’t too many games that feature a location that feels just as intertwined with the main protagonist as it does as its own separate entity. I’m really looking forward to this journey again.

Last night I finished off Spider-Man 2, which was incredible. With a good story, amazing graphics, and fun gameplay, I really enjoyed it.

This weekend I won't have too much time to game so I'll probably keep it simple and just play through a few missions of Duke Nukem Advance. I put it on my Steam Deck and re-mapped the controls to make it play as close to a modern FPS as possible, which feels pretty okay actually. It's a cool little game for what it is.

Plodding away at Starfield and Street Fighter 6 then breaking it up with short sessions of Mario Wonder. I might also play some Drainus or Vampire Survivors on the steam deck.

Uncharted: Golden Abyss (Vita) - Left off at chapter 8, need to pick it back up.

Real Soccer 2013 (Windows Phone) - Finally getting used to touch controls for this.

Angry Birds Rio (Windows Phone) - Still three starring levels.

Not much time for playing this weekend as family obligations keep me busy but did try the We happy few and got through the first chapter… not quite sure if I like it or not… the story seems good enough but undecided at this point…

This weekend I play;
1 - Stranger of Paradise: Final Fantasy Origin
2 - Nioh 2
3 - Space Vikings
4 - Cursed to Golf

Playing Syberia 4. Real good game.

Finished Hoggwarts Legacy last weekend, started thirsty suitors then stopped, too Strange for my taste, then started Gotham knights which is an ok game and I Will stick with it.

Finally finishing Gears 4 after giving up on "At the Door" like 3 years ago since it was too hard (on Insane, being able to be downed just makes it too easy otherwise).

This was before the Gears 6 production rumors, so it's like it was meant to be...

Switch: TotK
PS5: AW2
Series X: BG3

I'm currently playing Zelda Tears Of The Kingdom..

It's the other way around for me as my son is with me weekends so he hammers the Series X and my main TV and I get to play more in the week.

I still have my Fortnite challenges ritual, as I just enjoy the game and it's my chill out thing. Zero Build only though!

Having finally tore myself away from putting too much into EAFC (career mode was always my thing in the past) when the game infuriates me way more than is enjoyable, I'm now pushing myself to delve into a few games I've always wanted to explore along with a new one...

Currently beginning from scratch on GTA V, Red Dead 2, LA Noire, The Witcher 3, The Mass Effect Remasters and Assassins Creed Mirage.

My just go crazy and destroy everything blitzes are also Just Cause and Red Faction Guerrilla (picked the latter up for £3 something over Christmas and the destruction available is just SO good for the game's time. Still holds up for me too!)

Got many to get to aswell. The Resident Evil 4 remake is there along with the new versions of 2 and 3 (have all the games overall) and some others.

still playing through the career of Forza Motorsport, having the occasional game on my FIFA 23 career mode and also dipping in and out of Gears 5 !!

I've dabbled with the Assassin's Creed series for many years, but aside from the Ancient Greek one, it's just not my jam.

This weekend I'll be spending most of my time on Xbox Series X playing through Life Is Strange: True Colors.

Been playing some AC: Valhalla and making steady progress. Having fun with a game that I can just sort of turn off my brain for and mash buttons on auto-pilot.

And also dipping my toe back into Baldur's Gate 3, took a bit of a break and slowly getting back into Act II.

Finally got around to starting Alan Wake 2. Loving it so far but I feel like a nervous wreck, got me jumping at my own shadow

Had a go on the Granblue Fantasy Relink demo yesterday. Looks great, combat pretty cool, but the vibe is too 'childish' for me. Might give it another go tomorrow. If not, will continue FF7 Remake which is one of my fav games of recent times.

Mostly Diablo. Leveling on D2R and a bit of grinding on D4 waiting for the new season.

I'm going to have a retro weekend for the 3 day weekend. I've been playing Diablo 1, Series Sam 1st encounter, and Quake 2. Might dive into a jrpg if I finish a couple of those. Something like Final Fantasy 9 or Vagrant story.

I'm hoping to finish the Halo infinite campaign tonight as I'm onto the last mission now. It's been ok, I guess. I'm not really keen on the open world aspect of it.

What do I play after that? I'm going to let the XBox game pass picker decide.

Happy gaming everyone 👍👍

I am hammering through Psychonauts 2 in preparation of the direct next week for xbox.

On switch, only ghost trick at the moment. Hoping to finish by prince of persias release.

On the Pi, all sorts of little gems, but I'm taking more time with the original RE2.

@Lup is it worth dipping into this or any of the others if you've never played one before?

I have this habit of thinking I must play through game series in order...which only means I end up never playing the majority of great games I want to!

I've had to force myself out of that to start enjoying certain games from certain series, but I'm aware that some series are much better played in order or with some experience than others.

It’s the weekend, so my son and I usually play some Skywalker Saga. We got an hour in earlier. He absolutely loves it, so it’s a lot of fun! I think I will pick up some of the older Lego Star Wars ones at some point too.

@Kraven Dead Space always reminded me of the movie Event Horizon with you saying about the ship feeling like a living thing.

I'm not sure it it was ever said officially but I'm pretty sure they used the movie for some inspiration.

@ANJB78

Yeah, I'm like that too. When Assassin's Creed Origins came out I played the entire series to play that one, haha.

I'd say Kiwami 1 and Yakuza: Like a Dragon (7) are good starting points. They're all on Game Pass in case you're suscribed.
Kiwami 1 is literally a remake of the first game so that will tell you if you'd enjoy the series or not. And 7 brings a new protagonist so could also work (old chatacters appear tough).
Kiwami is action oriented and 7 is turn-based (the only in the series so far).
Some would say 0 is a better starting point since it's a prequel but Kiwami is waaaaay shorter if you're not sure.
All the games have pretty good stories and the side content is really crazy.
Be warned that ALL the games have really long cutscenes too.
They're great games, but at the same time they're not for everyone. I'd say give Kiwami a try if you want 3D beat'em up gameplay or 7 if you like turn-based RPGs.
The series is always more of the same so if you like one you'll probably like all of them.

Sorry for the long reply haha.

This weekend I'm finally back home after my apartment went through some much-needed maintenance which means I can return to my usual gaming habits.

So!
This weekend I'm finally starting Trails of Cold Steel III(on the Switch even) and I will probably try the demo for Granblue Fantasy Relink aswell.
On Xbox, I'll probably just play chill games like OlliOlli World and such.

Playing Valhalla. I bought it before it went to Game Pass and that’s all fine with me. It’s truly stunning. Breathtaking visuals and I just love the freedom and scope of the entire game.
Gonna be hooked into this for a while yet!

Still playing through Sea of Stars and loving it. Also, some Mario Golf on the Switch with my family. I also squeezed in the phenomenal Prince of Persia The Lost Crown demo, it’s Ori good when it comes to platforming, which is the pinnacle of platforming, in my opinion.

Restarted FH1 on Xbox One

Beat Gylt, now playing Grounded, Fortnite and Generation Zero with some friends

Working on sea of stars. It is pretty much my first old school jrpg since the snes so I'm hoping I still have the nostalgia. Haven't played a game like this since 1990s

Final Fantasy XVI - Im really enjoying it and I really like the story. The game is a bit unevenly paced though, the epic parts followed by slow parts with pretty uninteresting quests maybe could have been done better. And the sidequests are not the highlights of the game…. It really looks great this game, both artistically and technically very impressive. Great game all in all, cant wait to play more and find out where the story goes.

Hot Wheels 2 - needed a game in between when not able to play for very long and Hot Wheels 2 fits in perfect. Is basically more of the same, so if you liked the first game you’ll like this one but dont expect much more than that.

I’ve put Prince of Persia on the to-play list, liked the demo thats out. Also might pick up Vertigo 2 for VR as a game in between sessions of FF 16

@Lup no need to apologise, thanks for replying in detail

Alright here we go another week another WAYP. Been a relatively quiet week. Tried Dave The Diver. Absolutely love it think that’ll be how I spend my weekend after work today. Terrific lovely little game. Did some Splatoon Splatfest yesterday too. Always love dipping into it for a little bit of fun. Can’t wait for that Side: Order DLC. Other then that I’ve been really going hard on Granblue in every form. Watching Relink Footage, playing some Versus Rising story mode and some matches with friends. Y’all ain’t ready for Lucillius in either game and just the force that is PARADISE LOST. Fate/Samurai Remnant, Assassins Creed they all continue to be nice. I think I might wanna check out and get that Prince Of Persia game too. Honestly I’m really just waiting on two games now. Another Code at the end of the week and Golden Sun on Wednesday. Golden Sun I’m really excited for because I’ve never played it before. Again it really do just be those January vibes where all you feeling is just…… meh. Anime of the week I finally get to shoutout the first of the winter anime as I’m checking some out today and tomorrow so shoutout to Solo Leveling, Shangri La Frontier, Undead Unluck, High Card and Sasaki And Peeps. Will let y’all know how those go next week. Podcasts of the week of course are the usual. Castle Superbeast, Big Think Dimension, Minnmax, Remap, Windbreaker, Firelink, Nextlander, RPGsites Tetracast and Into The Aether. As always I’ll ask to show some love to my friend over at Twitch.tv/akibread. Otherwise hey let’s hope that with stuff like Xbox’s Developer Direct this week we start getting a bit more hype with the weeks going forward. Have a awesome weekend everyone and happy gaming.

@stinkyx I don't remember that mission title, but I comment your return the fight. 😄 I do remember a few of those Gears 4 missions on Insane were...insanely difficult. One side effect was that became pretty deadly with the magnum in hipfire.

@xeofate Ohhh Drainus... I love a good SHMUP... but not played that one yet.

@Kaloudz awesome, well i ended up buying it this weekend. I know nothing about Avatar but it seems like a really good game if you like Farcry. It’s basically a bit like Farcry Primal with a bow and arrow, except your playing as an Alien on a different planet! Oh and the enemies are humans with guns and mechs. So a bit different to primal

It’s stunning on series s, best looking game on the console in my opinion and the sound is amazing through headphones as well.

If you do get round to trying it, I hope you enjoy it! I’m A couple of hours in but so far, really like it.

@Kaloudz yeah same i saw the first in 2010 or whenever it was! I saw it in 2D right at the end of its run as they had stopped showing it in 3D ha. Liked it, but didn’t love it, and certainly didn’t expect to be playing and enjoying an Avatar game in 2023! EDIT oops it’s 2024!

Yeah something like that. I might try rewatching the first film and then watch the second one if the game hold my interest, but I think it’s more the world and the gameplay that I’m enjoying so far, less so the story.