That was quick

Morning my readers,
Surprised to see a post from me? I would be since it's been nearly a month since the last one which promised I would update more regularly. I have been rather busy with work since this time of year is jam packed with plenty of new releases then what little time is left goes to family/loved ones then gaming time so it doesn't leave much time to write blog posts. I will try harder but I know I'm going to be more busy over the next few weeks, might try and at least dedicate an evening once a week just to get one post up. See how it goes anyway but on that note let's talk about games! it's what we are here for is it not.

So we are now slap bang in the middle of the quarter four release window, Assassin's and Battlefield have been released. We have Call of Duty about to hit along with the November line up across the next two weeks then at the end of the month the next generation consoles. Plenty to keep us busy with that's for sure and it really does surprise me how fast this time comes around, does not feel like it's been a year since the last time we did this.

I'm currently working on Assassin's Creed for the Xbox 360, could not wait for the end of the month to get my hands on the next generation version (still going to get it of course). I have clocked the story for Batman and Beyond Two souls last month, so quite happy with my progress so far. By the way Beyond Two Souls is my game of the year by far right now, honestly the story was so gripping that I cannot believe I almost did not pick this game up. Those reviewers who gave it six out of ten have no clue what they talking about, it's not Heavy Rain 2 and it was never trying to be. The story levels jumping back and forth through her history makes sense straight from the start. Just think they wanted to pick faults and want Heavy Rain 2. Anyway the game was outstanding for me and I just could not stop playing it, very rare a game makes me want to play this much.

Batman was good but it could not dislodge Beyond from the first place mark, if you loved Arkham Asylum and Arkham City you will feel right at home. Bit annoyed with some of the button mashing moments but overall a very good game and a decent story, some very geeky moments as well. I be interested in seeing where they take it next year with the Arkham City sequel, hoping for some amazing changes this time around.

So with those two games clocked here is the full list so far for my game of the year in order, of course there are more games to add once I've given them a few more hours of gameplay.

Game of the Year 2013 (Work in progress)

1. Beyond Two Souls

2. Tomb Raider

3. Batman Arkham Origins

4. Saints Row IV

5. Starcraft 2 Heart of the Swarm

6. Bioshock Infinite

7. God of War Ascension

8. Gears of War Judgement

 

So Beyond takes first place by miles and Batman is in third, it was a hard choice for second but I felt I was more excited to play Tomb Raider then when I was playing Batman. Like Beyond if I wasn't playing Tomb Raider I wanted to, I wanted to know what would happen next and the story kept me gripped. Batman was brilliant don't get me wrong but if I wasn't playing it I was not rushed to get onto my console to load it up.

 

Be interesting to see where the other releases will stand since I've got Assassins, Battlefield and Pokemon X sitting by my TV right now. Call of Duty out in a few days and end of the week Professor Layton will arrive. Right folks I need to end this post now since I've got a lot to do and I'm only just getting over my cold so I really could do with having a rest in a bit. I promise to try and get a evening dedicated each week for at least one post. Don't forget to comment and I would love to hear what your game of the years are so far.

 

Have a good one,

Iznic

Gaming Overload

Morning folks,
First before I go into my weekend I should apologise for the bad link in my last post for the Batman Collectors edition. Did not realise that the trailer link was not working so I've just corrected that so you can now watch the latest trailer. Again sorry about that not sure why I did not spot that when I put the post up, must been in a rush or something.

Anyway back to the original point of this post, two more games completed this weekend! that's right folks I finally finished Phantasy Star Universe. This was a big one for me since I've had this game for years and no doubt it was one of the first few games to start my pile of shame off. Plus the fact it was my first Japanese RPG game that I've fully completed to the end. Not a bad story but I would not say it was great or anything, same for the controls and gameplay just ok.

Wish I had played this a lot sooner though because I would have given the multiplayer more time now that I know what to do. Unfortunately the servers have closed so the last three expansion DLC achievements are beyond my reach now. Traded the game in anyway yesterday so that will go towards Diablo 3 next week for the PlayStation 3, looking forward to that game right now.

So what was the second game I completed you ask, well believe it or not Saints Row IV was clocked on Monday. Not all the game just the main story so I still have quite a few side quests to do and the collectibles. Really enjoyed it and I mean it was one of the better games this year, at first I was a bit worried that the super powers would ruin it but instead it turned out like Crackdown where it was a ton of fun. Also there are ton of brilliant parts to the game that are just worth buying for, a Metal Gear Solid level and a Streets of Rage level just quote two.

I'm really happy I got this clocked and hopefully I can do the same for the other games I picked up Friday, also got Disney Infinity and Splinter Cell. Disney Infinity is amazing and so addictive, the toy box is amazing which is sort like Minecraft but not as in depth. Can not describe how much fun this game is anyway, last night I was racing around the wreck-it-ralph track with the soundtrack playing while riding a Mickey Mouse car as Jack Sparrow. This game as potential and I just hope they release some more playsets later on and really expand it.

Splinter Cell I've not touched yet since I wanted to get Saints Row out of the way first, it will be my next game this week to play just waiting for spare hours. Really hoping to get an hour or two today but might be the weekend instead. That's it anyway folks for my weekend, busy with buying and playing games. Plans for this week onwards is to start Splinter Cell, try and finish Pokemon Black 2 sometime and continue to have fun with Disney Infinity.

Before I leave I will update my Game of the Year progress so far, Saints Row was amazing but I still think Tomb Raider was better out of the two so it's taking second place right now. It will be interesting to see where Splinter Cell goes. Disney Infinity I want a few more hours before I make a decision with this game and same goes for Plants vs Zombies 2.

Game of the Year 2013 (Work in progress)

1. Tomb Raider

2. Saints Row IV

3. Starcraft 2 Heart of the Swarm

4. Bioshock Infinite

5. God of War Ascension

6. Gears of War Judgement

 

Right I'm off folks, have a good one and hopefully you enjoying the new games.

~Iznic

Game of the Year

For a long time now I've been meaning to put this list up, well actually I needed to decided on the order which I'm doing right now as I type this. Basically I wanted a list or chart of the top games far that have come out this year that I have played. My Game of the Year 2013 chart to show off who is top right now plus what games I found outstanding. So without any more delays here is the full list...

Game of the Year 2013 (Work in progress)

1. Tomb Raider

2. Starcraft 2 Heart of the Swarm

3. Bioshock Infinite

4. God of War Ascension

5. Gears of War Judgement

So there you have it folks the list so far and yes I know I've bought more games then that this year, example being Ni No Kuni, The Last of Us etc. but I don't think I should include them until I've played for a good few hours or completed them. For all I know the game could turn out terrible half way through and make me hate it.

Anyway Tomb Raider is my top dog right now and Starcraft 2 Heart of the Swarm was pretty sweet, the other three had some good moments but they was missing something. If Tomb Raider gets knocked down I would still given it a "Outstanding Game" title. 

I will keep updating this list through the year as I play more of the new releases so keep your eyes open for it, cannot wait to see the end of year line up.

~Iznic

Game of the Year 2012

Morning folks,
Woke up to a winter wonderland this morning so I'm staying inside today, forget getting my haircut it's too bloody cold for my liking (also knowing my luck it will get worse and cancel my buses leaving me stranded). So this morning I decided that it was about time I sat down and have a think about what could be my Game of the Year for 2012, I got to say it was a tough one.

So no beating around the bush, my game of the year is .... drum roll please.....

Mass Effect 3

Finding it very hard to put into words what made this game great, what made it game of the year for me was the story. I felt apart of the game all the way through, here we have this alien menace that was destroying the entire universe. You felt hopeless as world after world fell apart while you try to muster everyone together to fight back. Every where you went you felt the effects of the war, several moments stood out to me. The one that was at the top was a teen girl in one of the refugee areas talking to a guard about how her folks had sent her on the first shuttle and they would catch up with her. We all know what happened but you could not help but feel a little chocked up, what was amazing though if you kept going back through out the game the story would progress. The guard would take pity on her and look after her, it was the small details like that made me impressed with this game.

But it was no just the small details that made it happen, the bit cut scenes as you watched different species finally put aside their differences to work together. Of course it was not just the story that made this game brilliant, the graphics were beautiful especially on some of the new planets (Asari home world for explain). Game mechanics with the theatre of war, I love how everything effected the outcome. It was not just a simple get all the main armies there, you needed everything from engineers to food supplies, even taking part in the multi player could help effect the stats. 

It was brilliant game and yes I was one of those who was not a big fan of the ending but only because it was just dropped in your lap with no real explanation. The new ending which is just the same with a bit of back story added on was much better. But anyway Mass Effect 3 was my Game of the Year for 2012, great graphics, good mechanics and a brilliant story. Still a few more posts to come folks since there was quite a few great games last year that deserve Outstanding Awards plus I've got planned a post about the year ahead.

~Iznic

P.S. What was your Game of the Year?

Game of the Year 2001 + Outstanding Games

For the last few weeks I've been finding it hard to pick what was my game of the year for 2011. I narrowed the search down to two games with one more game to play (Lord of the Rings War in the North) which has turned out to be amazing so far. In the end though it was close to being a split game of the year, but in the end I decided that only one game should be given the title. This lead me to decide on making another award for the blog.

The "Outstanding Game Award", this award will be for the other games that were above and beyond, they should had been Game of the Year but only just missed it. Brilliant story telling, amazing graphics with wonderful controls, not just any old good games. We are talking the best of the best, the games you cannot stop playing and just like Game of the Year they will be announced at the end of the year.

With that cleared up it's time to announce my Game of the Year 2011! drum roll please!

Assassin's Creed Revelations

It was a tough choice between Assassin's and Batman but out of the two I found Assassin's Creed the clear winner. Batman was brilliant but I did feel like they stuffed it with too much and that a lot of things was just rushed to get it over with so they could get on with the next part which was a shame since they could had done so much more with all those bad guys to work with. Anyway Assassin's kept me entertained throughout the entire game, this time around I was very interested in the entire story and not just the endings. I loved the mini side quests with my Assassin Brotherhood and loved a lot of the new gadgets, in the end it was clear that it was my game of the year. I will go back and review both games in detail at a later date.

Of course Batman Arkham City will be given an Outstanding Game Award, although I did feel like there was too much and some things rushed it was still amazing. Also joining Batman is Ghost Trick on the DS, its game play was unique and the story was written so well I always wanted to know more.

So there you have it, three great games! and no doubt you will see a post giving Lord of the Rings an outstanding award but first I need to give it a good play through first.

Until next time,

~Iznic

So what's game of the year so far

Been meaning to post this for a while now, in fact I was meant to be updating every time I play a new 2011 release but oh well its here now. So what is game of the year for me so far? well check out the lovely list below, oh and a few things. First off the list can change since some of the games on there I'm still currently playing and finally I've only added games I've played which makes sense anyway.

Game of the Year 2011
-!Work in progress!-

1. Ghost Trick (NDS)
2. Bulletstorm (X360)
3. Lego Star Wars 3 Clone Wars (X360)
4. Pokemon Black (NDS)
5. Crysis 2 (X360)
   
6. Total War Shogun 2 (PC)
7. Homefront (X360)
   
8. Gray Matter (X360)

So what's got your game of the year so far? I know this list is going to change for me quite a lot since of the huge line up at the end of the year.

How GOTY will work

I'm in the middle of finishing off my review for Ghost Trick so I thought I would post about how the game of the year 2011 will work before I finish. As I said in a earlier post several weeks back there will be a new label called Hall of Fame where the winners will be found, the game of the year label is for the posts keeping track on my thoughts of who should be game of the year etc.

Also I did say I was thinking of doing categories (rpg of the year etc) which I think I will go ahead with. So the following will be tracked through the year and at the end of the year the winners will be announced and added to the Hall of Fame.

• Game of the Year 2011
• RPG of the Year 2011
• Strategy of the Year 2011
• Action/Adventure of the Year 2011
• Shooter of the Year 2011
• Other Genres of the Year 2011

So there you have it, of course this can change depending on my mood through out the year.

My Game of the Year 2010

Going to cut straight to the chase, so drum roll please!

Mass Effect 2

No shock really since I'm a big fan of the series and the sequel blew me away at the start of the year and I'm already excited for the third one. The story kept me on the edge of my seat, I wanted everyone to survive, I wanted to know what the Reapers where up to.

It was fun, the controls where good and the new abilities menu was easy to us and did not bog you down with too many options. Also there was several great downloadable content patches realises adding some more great side quests.

I can honestly say I got my money's worth, so fair play Bioware for making another great game! You deserve this Game of the Year


~Iznic


Here is the review I did early on in the year for it Mass Effect 2 Review

GOTY10 Update

Ok time to update the list

2010 GOTY
Mass Effect 2

Runners Up
Dante's Inferno

Still ME2 taking the lead with DI just added but only taking the silver so far. If the story and length had been better (See my review) then it would had been GOTY easily. Looking forward to seeing the next couple of weeks since we have Bad Company 2, FFXIII and God of War 3 coming out. Three of the biggest AAA games this year

Game of the Year (2010)

Like last year i will be keep a upto date list of this years games i play and in what order I think they deserve the title. Of course so far I've only played one game fully so the list is kinda short lol

2010 GOTY
Mass Effect 2

I really did think Mass Effect 2 would be outstanding and hold the title this year. But there are so many amazing games coming out soon, it makes me wonder now. Espically since we only two months into the year, there still another 10 months of releases to go lol. We got games like God of War 3, FFXIII, Star Wars Force Unleashed 2, KOTOR, Splinter Cell to come and we have Dantes Inferno and Bioshock 2 already out. I think Mass Effect going to have tough competition

2010 is a good year for gaming, that's for sure!

Game of the Year 2009

Sorry it's took so long to sort this post out, it was mean't to be up yesterday but with my PC dieing it couldn't be helped.

So anyway lets get on with it! Going to start with the runner ups list..

8th Halo Wars
7th Borderlands
6th Dawn of War 2
5th Dragon Age Origins
4th Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2


In 3rd Place is Assassin Creed 2

I really thought this would be my game of the year, but I don't know...something more was needed but I just cannot put my finger on it. It's still amazing and worth every penny, just...it was missing that spark to make it beyond words.

In 2nd Place is Time Hollow for DS

This game held first place for most of the year thanks to the gripping storyline that kept me addicted to the end. Even throughout christmas I wanted to sit down and replay but stopped myself since I got other games need completing lol.

Review Score: 10/10




Finally game of the year for me is....

Batman Arkham Asylum
It sucked me in, I really did not think I would enjoy this game but yet I could not stop for several days until I had finished it. I found it amazing how the combat and stealth blended in so perfectly without it mattering if you where seen or not.
It was amazing! It really does deserve the game of the year award

Well that's it, I know the post was anything amazing (no fance trophy pictures or anything) but who cares. It's not like I'm famous, just my personel opinion :-)

For reference here is some of my past "game of the year"

2006 - Shadow of the Colossus
2007 - Mass Effect
2008 - Gears of War 2