October Gaming

Only 2 games completed, and one of those barely counts. Decent amount of games played though, so here we go.

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Games completed this month

Oxen Free – Xbox One

This was an absolute joy, and although I’d heard positive things, I had no idea what it was about (or even what kind of game it was). Turns out it’s a creepy little adventure game, and well worth your time.

The Beginners Guide – PC

This is one of those games that I heard great things about, and after playing it I was left wondering why. Some mild existential stuff going on, but it’s mostly just drivel. Only finished it as it took about 80 minutes, and by the time I’d finished hoping it was going to improve, it ended.

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Also played in October

Forza Motorsport 7 – Xbox One

Not entirely sure how I feel about this. The Career mode is easily the best it has been since Forza 2 or 3, later games in the series became so very stale. However it has also tripled down on heinous micro-transactions. Plenty has been written about the mods & loot crate systems elsewhere, but for my two cents: the mods are an annoying distraction at best, and the loot boxes (and by extension the pointless driver clothes that you only see when your avatar is loitering in menus) are completely out of place and soil the the rest of the game. Once in a race, it’s the best serious racer I’ve ever played, but the mods and loot box systems are absolute trash. Hence Forza 7 manages to also be both my favourite and least favourite Forza Motorsport game yet. Urgh. Roll on Horizon 4 and let’s hope they don’t ruin this one with sleazy cash grabs.

Sherlock Holmes: The Awakened – PC

I’ve somehow got loads of these Sherlock Holmes games across my various digital libraries, and never played any. Decided to start here with the Lovecraftian influenced Awakened, as it seemed appropriate for Halloween and who doesn’t like a bit of Cthulhu? I’m enjoying it and certainly expect to get to the end. Not sure if I’ll play any others from the series though.

Doki Doki Literature Club – PC

My experiences with visual novels haven’t been great. The two I’ve attempted previously lasted barely half an hour each. The first left me mildly traumatised as I discovered it was some kind of horror porn (this was about 20 years ago and the internet is a scary place kids), and the second was the frankly bizarre Hatoful Boyfriend. People raved about Hatoful Boyfriend but the characters were just too annoying for me to get far enough to find any story. At any rate I’ve decided to give this one a go, given the promise of some fourth wall breaking psychological horror. Jury is out.

Sky Force Anniversary – Vita

Passable shmup on the Vita, not blowing me away but it was free on PS Plus, and entertaining enough to play a few lives when hungover. Fully expecting to get bored of this before I get anywhere near the end, but I might give it a bit longer.

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Retired / Thrown in the Sea* this month

The Evil Within – Xbox One

Buying this was a mistake really. Found it in a charity shop for a couple of quid and should have left it there. The gameplay is pure Resident Evil / Silent Hill with added Amnesia style hiding in cupboards. Not a fan of any of those tropes and I lasted less than an hour before I turned it off. The second time I climbed into the obviously person sized locker in a room to successfully evade a massive chap with a chainsaw (or something else sharp), my suspension of disbelief collapsed. Your mileage may vary.

*Not actually thrown in the sea…

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October pick ups

Grabbed a couple of games in the Halloween sales that I’ve been meaning to play for a while…

Vampire The Masquerade: Bloodlines – PC

Not sure how I’ll take to this, but heard so much good stuff, it was certainly worth a punt for £3. As written about previously my RPG tolerance is generally low, but I can sometimes overcome that with a good setting.

 

Fahrenheit: Indigo Prophecy – PS4

Think this is the third time I’ve bought Fahrenheit. Had it previously for Xbox & PC, but don’t seem to own either anymore and never got round to playing it. Maybe this time…