The morning Inbox is unimpressed by Shadow Of The Tomb Raiders story, as one reader celebrates completing the Shenmue remaster.
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Easy option
As someone that can take or leave superheroes what I want to know about Spider-Man is how is yet another successful single-player game going to affect other publishers? After God Of War and all their other exclusives Sony (and Nintendo) have proven again and again that single-player games can be the biggest sellers around and yet I still other companies continue to rush towards multiplayer-only instead.
Microsoft are one of these and I hope that this event of theirs this autumn will see some major announcements that show they take single-player seriously and still have the ambition to compete with Sony. They used to, but now they just seem to be avoiding any comparisons as much as possible.
For other publishers I suppose its just that multiplayer games are easy to make, or at least make better as they go along with patches and updates. Weve seen some games, like Rainbow Six Siege, have a complete turnaround months after release and you cant really do that with a single-player game. Sadly that means that the multiplayer option is the less risky and thats why I think the status quo wont change much but those that do make single-player will benefit more and more from being the only ones.
Gantz
Reveal remastered
I hope Sony does have a PSX event this year as I was hoping to learn more about The Last Of Us Part II and Days Gone. We still dont know when The Last Of Us is going to come out and Id like to see if theyll confirm its a next gen game as well. My assumption is that its going to be like Zelda: Breath Of The Wild and come out on both new and old systems, but with improvements on the new that will encourage people to buy the console.
Days Gone seems like the black sheep of the Sony line-up, with a lot of people assuming its not going to be very good. But they havent really shown much of it and it wasnt at E3 at all. My hope is that it has a new reveal which shows new work and calms everybodys fears. Especially as its out quite early next year.
I know some people dont like too many previews but one of the benefits that doesnt get mentioned often is that it allows a developer to change course a bit before the final game. I bet Days Gone has changed a lot since it was first shown off and I cant imagine the complaints about unnecessary violence in The Last Of Us didnt lead to some kind of reaction.
Hogie
Romp of the Tomb Raider
Ive just beaten Shadow Of The Tomb Raider and I dont think Ive ever been so conflicted about a game before. From a purely gameplay point of view I think it is probably the best series has ever been, at least in modern times, but everything to do with the story and characters is just awful.
Im a bit limited in what I can say because of spoilers but everything to do with the hidden city and the people there makes no sense and constantly seems borderline offensive. If not to the people of South America then definitely to me who has to suspend disbelief like a champion to get anywhere.
The thing is I really like the challenge tombs and stealth lite combat, it was good. I enjoyed myself playing the game but the second anyone started talking I just felt embarrassed for everyone involved, including myself. I genuinely think they should fire Lara Croft into space next time – go uncover some Martian ruins or something – or journey to the centre of the Earth or something. Although I bet even then theyd try to take it seriously, and thats whats dragging these games down. They need to be a romp not a serious drama (thats seriously stupid).
Shira
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Mainstreamvania
Been playing Hollow Knight for a couple of days now and its just as good as I was hoping. Heard a lot of good things from the PC and Switch version and I have to agree that the production values are fantastic. Considering its a 2D Metroidvania with cartoon bugs its really creepy and sinister, and the combat feels really weighty. You can definitely sense the Dark Souls influences.
As someone that was always largely uninterested in indie games in the last gen I have found them consistently more impressive than most triple-A games nowadays. Even though Metroidvania games are pretty common amongst indie developers I play Hollow Knight and I have no idea whats coming next or whether I will be able to handle it, and that never happens with mainstream games anymore.
Hemsey
Streets Of Yakuza
Over the weekend Ive put in some time with Yakuza Kiwami 2 and as with Zero and Kiwami 1 they have done it justice and then some, heres hoping Yakuza Kiwami 3 isnt far behind.
It got me thinking though, with the recent Streets Of Rage 4 news, why they havent they just used the same engine as Yakuza? since the basis is already there. I think if they just worked on the combat and used the game as a starting point it could be just what fans are after.
R1CH5TER
PS: Whilst playing the Forza Horizon 4 demo as the season turns to summer a blue BMW appears with the number plate PG RACER, Could this possibly be a hint to Project Gotham Racing coming back?
GC: Not necessarily, there are lots of ex-Bizarre Creations developers at Playground Games and theres more than one reference to Project Gotham Racing, MSR, and other classic racers.
Worst Fantasy
Since I doubt youre going to have a Hot Topic on least favourite Final Fantasy game can I at least get my vote in? Final Fantasy XIII might be the obvious choice but for me its Final Fantasy XV. At least in XIII the bizarre awfulness of it all was kind of endearing in a way, and I sort of liked Lightning sometimes, but I hated everyone in XV the minute I saw them and resented every minute I had to spend with them. Which is kind of a big deal when theyre the heroes.
Theres something about the way XV tries to appeal to everyone at once that really grinds my gears because it means end up being nothing to anyone, with a terrible combat system where you never seem in control and yet isnt really very tactical either. The storys nonsense too and I hate the semi-real world setting.
For me the best modern day Final Fantasies are Bravely Default and Octopath Traveler. Not because they look old school but because they play well. Id much rather see the guys behind those games get to do XVI than anyone else but Im pretty sure thatll never happen.
Roche
Sailors found
Just got platinum on Shenmue and just have to say I enjoyed every minute of it. Game was just as enjoyable now as it was all those years ago. Truly stood the test of time, in my opinion.
Shenmue has amazing atmosphere, lets hope they have managed to keep that magic in Shenmue III.
Now on to Shenmue II, am sure Ill enjoying getting platinum Trophy every bit as much as I did the first.
D313R1UM (PSN ID/NN ID)
PS: Really looking forward to Red Dead Redemption II and Resident Evil 2.
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Save to spend
Just to through my two bobs worth in the new debate of PS4 Pro and Xbox One X over the base models (I dont like using the term base). I previously owned an original Xbone and PlayStation 4 and then upgraded to an Xbox One X and PS4 Pro when I got a large screen 4K TV. In my personal opinion I feel theres not a huge difference in the PlayStations. There is perhaps more of a difference in the Xboxes but still not massive due to Microsofts limiting factor of all games being compatible on both.
Ive ran videos side by side and to me the differences are negligible. I dont wear glasses and I even got my eyes tested, as I was expecting a picture revelation thats never quite materialised. While Im talking about picture dont get me started on Blu-ray vs. 4K ultra HD movies, Ive spent the last eight months replacing as many of the former with the latter at a decent cost only to find out that its only the latest movies – and still not all – that are full 4K and that the vast majority are upscaled 2K (Blu-ray) transfers. Thats why most movies look identical and it goes the same with the games, minor improvements thanks to HDR which is currently NOT a game changer.
To my point, thats taken a while to get to, if I was buying today and looking to take up the next gen ASAP Id get an Xbox One S and PlayStation 4 to tide me over. The reason for this being that its becoming widely accepted that both new consoles are going to be at least announced, if not sold next year. Both can be bought for almost half the cost of the 4K consoles. I could still play all the games available, and that are due to come out, and I can pocket almost £200 each if I got both to put to the PlayStation 5 or Xbox Two.
It might just be me, but Im actually worried about the next gen, and that it will underwhelm, thanks to these 1.5 consoles. Lets face it, a £400 to £500 console is a bottom-end gaming PC. I dont own a gaming PC but Im a realist and know that 500 notes aint going to get me much.
Who knows, perhaps Sony or Microsoft can usher in a new era of technology by next year, inventing actual artificial intelligence, cold fusion, or quantum physics wrapped in a black plastic case thats cheaper than an American style fridge freezer. Launch ice cubes, please Cortana.
Mr.Saveloy
Inbox also-rans
You can thank me later, but of all the people commenting or writing in why has no one mentioned Adidas Power Soccer? Epic and hilarious.
Ian Nash
RE: PlayStation Classic. Can I vote for the T-Rex? Oh, and Motor Toon GP please.
Wkma
This weeks Hot Topic
The subject for this weekends Inbox was suggested by reader Gannet, who asks what generally disliked game do you think is actually good?
The game can be a commercial flop, have poor reviews, or just be something that nobody else you know likes. But why do you enjoy it? Do you think the complaints against it are unfair or do you acknowledge them but still think its fun anyway?
How often do you find yourself disagreeing with the majority opinion on a game and does it worry you when you seem to be out of step with the consensus?
E-mail your comments to: [email protected]
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The small print
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