20/03/08 - 03/03/08

So, due to the fact I haven't had exposure to any new games recently (due to not buying them, among other things), I thought I'd use the past two weeks to reflect on games that I've spent a large amount of time on. Games I keep returning to.

PC:

Total Annihilation: I've spoken before about Total Annihilation. It's a game I've always loved, even from before I had a computer that could actually run it properly. I have fond memories of playing skirmish battles and only building air units and just bombing everything I could find. I've recently discovered there's a fully 3D remake called "Spring" available (it even runs on Linux!), so I shall be looking into that soon.

Worms 2: A game I will definitely never get tired of. I even have a version of it on my old phone. The humour and the fun of the damage you can cause when using suicidal tactics is great. Also one of the few games I've ever completed, though with only 17 short missions, this is no great feat.

Dreamcast:

Shenmue: Now almost 9 years old, this game still stands up as excellent. Games like GTA might have made the idea of a fully explorable environment somewhat commonplace, but Shenmue is still great, thanks to an excellent storyline and great characters. It really saddens me that Shenmue 3 (and thus the end of the Shenmue saga) will likely never see the light of day.

Soulcalibur: Like driving games, I've always enjoyed fighting games on a basic level, but I've never been that good at them. While I'm still not exactly great at Soulcalibur (I still get beaten in multi-player games fairly often), I've managed to complete a fair amount of the missions (though they are fairly one-dimensional, you're fighting someone, just the why or how changes) and I've made it through arcade mode a few times. I mostly play for enjoyment, rather than because I feel the need to complete and unlock everything.

Playstation 2:

Canis Canem Edit: Another of the few games I've actually completed (storyline-wise, at least). The storyline and the humour of this game just make it insanely fun to play and quite addictive to boot. One of the best parts of the game is how the richness of the environment really encourages you to explore and do things your way. This definitely ties into my post on narratives as while there is a definite pre-defined story but it allows you to explore that story with a great degree of freedom.

Kingdom Hearts: Again, a game where the story and the characters are the draw. The great part is that while most of the characters are familiar, they're used in interesting and new ways and the story of the game is still very strong.

Burnout 3: I think I've said enough about this game before. Definitely another game I've become addicted to. The lure of just doing one more race is something that can easily eat away at my time...