xMightyMatt14x

About a year ago I mentioned on here that I had missed most of the call of duty games, with my last game being Cod2 on 360. I was curious about the games that connected as I was preparing to get into the campaigns of the series. I knew that cod4mw - mw2 - mw3 was a connected trilogy for obvious reasons. So I finally got around to playing them for the first time and wow was it a great experience! I thoroughly enjoyed this trilogy of the original modern warfare games. However now I’m looking at playing another series of story linked games.

Someone told me world at war then goes into black ops 1 and then black ops 2. Is that the only connected series of the remaining games? Does black ops 3 continue black ops 2? What other story linked series are there?

@TJ81 I have to disagree. In my personal experience , I skipped out of cod after cod 2 in the early 360 days. Was too into halo and didn’t like the change to modern warfare as I was a big historic shooter and Medal of Honor fan. Fast forward to 2024 and with the acti-blizz purchase I grew curious about what I’ve been missing the last 17 years. So on sale I bought cod 4 modern warfare and modern warfare 2. I’m about two-thirds through mw2 now and I can’t believe I missed these back in the day. I wouldn’t just say they hold up. I’d say the campaign experiences are BETTER than a majority of fps campaigns today. The setting and set pieces are great. And shooting has been smooth. I’m gonna play mw3 and then go back and do waw and the black ops games. But these campaigns are definitely worth adding to gamepass.

Also. Whoa! That “No Russian” mission. Had no clue about the controversy back in the day (was under a rock for that one I guess). And whoa that was crazy!

@Kooky_Geezer just speculating but is it possible that after the studio head left Tango things had just been getting rough there? Like there’s a possibility that the studio was shut down for more reasons than just financial. Just speculation of course.

Finally firing up Hogwarts Legacy. Know very little about it.

@Tacoborn anytime! I’m super excited for the potential story here after learning about that.

@Tacoborn @_jamiie on the surface it sounds strange. But it’s an actual historical reference. There are some alignments of significant religious sites around the world and the alignment has been referred to as the great circle. To me this was a historical legend that is both intriguing and gives the motivation to travel to numerous locales all in one game. Seems perfect for the ideal Indy game!

@MrMagic hey it still lives on in my heart! In my top 3 IPs of all time. Though the latest movie was just okay, this is by far my number 1 on most anticipated games and has been since the teaser three years ago.

@ParsnipHero Halo Infinite has been great this year! Hoping they just keep this as the MP and release campaigns separately.

@Vipor007 totally forgot about Antstream! A major highlight for me too!

B for me. Starfield was a solid 8.5 for me and loved the plot and action flexibility but wasn’t the 10 I hoped for. Hifi Rush was awesome and Minecraft Legends for me was a surprise thrill. Forza was good as I expected. But overall solid B. Technically COD released as an Xbox game but I don’t play COD (or at least I’m waiting til the gamepass release of older games to start getting into COD).

Curious. I bought the 30 dollar early access. Does that count as a sale or am I still considered in GP because all I “technically” own is the digital art book?

@tallythwack Enjoy!!

@tallythwack I think that’s a good call. Though you should at least do the main quest to the midway point and get your powers. That will make doing the other quests even more fun.

@tallythwack In new game plus? Like traditional ng+ it’s like a restart to the game, and all quest lines/side quests appear again. So they aren’t permanently gone, but they do reset. They are slightly different though, in that there are ng+ specific dialogue options. These can affect the story differently than playthrough 1.

@tallythwack what I’ll say is there is a big change after completing the main quest, and like any new game+ you’ll need to essentially restart the game, carrying forward only your skills. But it is unique.

As someone who blazed through the main quest due to influence from journalists, I understand why, but also slightly regret it and wish I would’ve spent more time on faction quest lines and side stories my first time through.

@Nightcrawler71 I got the kids trait as well but haven’t sought out my parents yet. Interested to see how that works!

Loving it so far. A few hours in and I’ve been exploring all of New Atlantis, completing activities and meeting people. So far, to me, this is like Fallout and Mass Effect had a baby and I’m soaking in all the lore.

Got a year subscription. What’s funny is my dad (who doesn’t game at all) worked at an arcade in the 80s for a while and said the only game he was ever good at was Lasso, but we could never find it anywhere (outside of emulation). He’s almost 60 now but I’m gonna show him this has Lasso and I’ll bet his face lights up.

@Juanalf it’s not political is the casual left v. Right sense. But more in a personal political career sense for Lina Khan. She has been overreaching and losing poorly picked battle after battle in an attempt to give an image of “tough” against the corporate and tech world. That’s why she’s testifying today before Congress. Not just her behavior here but in her entire time as FTC chair.

@101Force I read One idea that said since the FTC head Lina Khan is testifying before Congress today, she can use the appeal to say she disagrees with the decision and is appealing, which will help alleviate some of the scrutiny she will be receiving as she testifies before Congress. It’s possible the appeal was literally just to give her some short term political cover at the precise time she needed it.

Finally! Now there’s an outside shot for a resurgence in IP like Tony Hawk, Spyro and more. Which is what I’m excited for! And gamepass benefits of course!

FTC lost! The Pi was denied!

FTC lost everyone! The PI was denied @FraserG

Halo 3 release date. Skipped my college classes.

This one is lower on my must have list. Oddly enough it’s this an Everwild hat I cared the least about upon reveal.

But Indiana Jones and SoD 3 are getting me. I really would like an official update.

People are either gonna pay for it or not. Many won’t. Many will. Everyone has the right to their own cost-benefit analysis. We also have the right to express ourselves. It is what it is. Another wonderful day on the internet!

Full disclosure, I’ll pay a few more dollars and keep it. I play several of the ongoing games (Sea of Thieves, Halo Infinite, Grounded, etc. ) and look forward to the coming games.

Interesting to think about. But for me I’m not sure how different it would be. And I mean this in a positive way. The gun play of Halo Infinite itself is great. Best since Reach. To me personally the story was great, but even for those who disagree they would have to believe better story writing would come from another studio. Story writing is going to be hit or miss and subjective. There’s no guarantee there. Just look at how all over the place COD has been there. At the very least it’s subjective. Maybe A-B studios would handle the live service content better, but I doubt they would have spent the time to make this forge mode which is incredible. It would be a give and take. About the only thing I would expect is more efficiency and timely development above what 343 gave us.

Ultimately, with the layoffs affecting Halos single player future I’m up for anyone with a GOOD story idea taking the reigns on Halo. I just want more story. But idk if we could guarantee anything better from an A-B studio.

@pip_muzz I’m super pumped for the game itself. But I’ll give you credit on the annoying level of the music. Not a fan of how everything from movies to games focuses on hipster persona and taste as if the world centers around that culture.

I’m glad most here agree with me on liking it. This is an example of why I don’t like the internet. Granted maybe more people are not happy than are. That could be a reality. But this reeks of a campaign, and in my opinion, this isn’t quite the Metroid Prime Federation Force situation some might see it as.

I’ll give the nay sayers credit on the music though.

@MustachioFurioso looks so awesome!

This and Sonic look so good!!

@TheSimulator it definitely needs to continue the story. But respectfully I disagree. Halo 4s campaign was uninspiring to me and we all know Halo 5 was a train wreck. But this one I actually really liked. The soft reboot they did, I feel, sets us up for more mystery and potential epic story turns. As a long time Halo (story) fan, for the first time since the original Halos, I’m genuinely excited and curious where the story is going. Which is why the news about cutting the single player team down hurts so much.

@TakeItEasy I’m expecting 3 instead of 4 as of now. Starfield in September. Forza in the later fall. Hellblade next spring. But I’d love to be surprised!!

Indiana Jones! Fable! Halo Infinite story follow up! (Last one is definitely a dream but would love to see it!)

@Cherip-the-Ripper agree on the Uncharted direction! I’m really curious as to where this game will fit in the timeline. And which characters will be in it. The characters are half of what makes the Uncharted games so great.

@Solidchief numbers 3 and 4 on your list would be epic! Along with Indiana Jones official trailer.

Really hoping Fable has something to reveal about its gameplay. But considering it won’t release until like late 2024 or 2025, that leaves at least one more “Xbox Showcase” between now and then. Which to me says this isn’t a deep dive, but maybe a brief show of what to expect visually and thematically about the game.

@Cherip-the-Ripper respectfully I disagree. I’ve been watching them the last few years as my son is a huge fan of them. I think Last Crusade lost a bit for me, but in my opinion the others held up well, and I even came around a little to KOTCS after hating it when it released. I’m super pumped for all things Indy!

@FatalBubbles I’m excited about Fable too! Really hoping it shows up. I’m downloading Fable Anniversary and playing through it again right now.

@SplooshDmg ok this officially made me laugh harder than I have for a while. Appreciate it! Lol

We’ve done this for years (during E3) but my friends and I have a guys day. We play classic games (local multiplayer) in a mini tourney around the showcase. Then watch the showcase together. Then play some more. Pizza, wings, and snacks make it a party.

Granted, it was way more fun when there were four conferences in a day and we played in between. (MS, EA, Ubisoft, Sony like it used to be).

The way the judge was acting, this appeal actually has a decent shot! At the very least, a quick resolution.

@BobCoffee yes on the Halo 3 remake!!

Indiana Jones gameplay and launch window for spring 2024. Anything story related for Halo (definitely a pipe dream with the layoffs there). Fable gameplay. Costume Quest 3. Battletoads sequel (I really loved the arcade game the other year).

Non-XB related but always hype game announcements for me that could be found at any showcase.

New TMNT action game that can be co-op or Single Player but built similar to Insomniacs Spider-Man with NYC traversal and epic TMNT story.

A new Tony Hawk Underground style game.

A sequel to Star Wars Republic Commando, or finally SWKOTOR 3.

Prince of Persia Sands of Time trilogy re-release.

@NEStalgia you stated very well what I was alluding to. Cinematic, linear experiences have a more controlled experience with more obvious aims. Open games allow for one to identify things that are wrong, even if there is far more gameplay that is “right” and much more offered than a controlled, linear experience. That’s why I’m predicting a 9 (if it’s amazing) and a 7 (if it’s surprisingly not). And I agree that the fact we can identify that and even WHY that will be says everything about game reviews.

@Banjo- Honestly I feel like the perspective of gaming media is a 10 is only possible when something is hand crafted, cinematic and more linear. There are exceptions to this rule, but there generally seems to be knocks on very open RPGs for being too long, having too much filler, or having any level of repetition, even if the experience had by many is better than critics say it will be (due to the open nature of the game). Even PlayStation games like Horizon generally get this knock which puts them at 9s. So due to this I’m expecting a 9. Some of the new experiments, such as with ship building probably won’t land the way they want or be “robust” enough for some, but I think it’ll be closer to Skyrim in quality than Fallout 4. Meaning in my opinion it will be very very good, and probably a 10 for many players.

Now if it starts getting 8s and 7s from critics then that will mean alarm bells should be going off.

@BAMozzy I get that. Luckily Phil Spencer came out and said in the Kinda Funny interview that we would get “updates” on several of the games they asked him about (Any mixture of Fable, Avowed, Hellblade 2, Perfect Dark, Compulsuons game, Everwild, etc.). Im expecting that the “disappointing” part will be that Hellblade is next spring when some are wanting this fall. But still I think not only are they set up by Sony for a hit, but I think Phil has been preparing anyway and they’ll have several more First Party games to show off, establishing a better roadmap at least into next Spring. I’m not expecting a Home Run, but I’m expecting a surprise double or even triple.

@BAMozzy “Whilst I will agree that this was more a 'generic' showcase you'd expect from Geoff Keighley, not a First Party specific Showcase, its not that dissimilar from many 'Xbox' shows over the years that had 30+ games at E3 of which only a 'small' selection were ever Exclusive.”

I was actually getting this vibe while watching. I’m an big Xbox guy, but over the years had to watch shows where there were TONS of games, many of which turned out to be great, but little first party firepower. As I watched this showcase it felt like an Xbox showcase from a few years ago.

With your point at the end about Xbox needing more than Forza and Starfield, I do agree. However I do think that Starfield is going to be something special. It’ll be a 9/10 game because of bugs and openness with people complaining that not all filler is great. But it’ll be played for years and and be regarded greatly barring a complete meltdown by a team that really hasn’t missed. I think a good Starfield showing alone will carry some weight. But yeah they could use a few more nice showings from First Party.

Honest question for all of us guys. What would it take for MS to have a showcase that kicks Sonys a**? Like give me your list of games that would be “just enough” to do it (Not an unreasonable list of everything possible, but a proper list of what, at minimum it would take in your eyes).

@S1ayeR74 I think it’s just a practice in good manners. It gets more attention because of articles like this. But I think he just wants to reflect how people “should” act on social media, whether he feels it or not.

Don’t get me wrong, as a guy who has gotten behind Xbox I got a sense of pleasure from seeing the surprisingly bad showcase. Still, as a gamer, some of those games did look to be super fun. I’m just glad I’ll get to play most of them on my Xbox, and I’ll just buy Spider-Man 2 on Steam when it gets there.

The picture on this article is what I’m loving. Maybe. Just maybe. We will see these long lost IP return.