October 2nd 2023.
Starfield – one of the most talked about games of the year
It's been a big year for video games, with plenty of titles vying for the title of "game of the year". One such game is Starfield, a game that has been generating a lot of buzz ever since its release. This weekend, I decided to give Starfield a try, thanks to its availability on Game Pass. I have to say, it's not bad. It's not great either. It's just...fine.
The best parts of the game are probably construction of starships and the variety of weapons. But those don't make up for the fact that the game falls far short of the hype that was building before its release. For me, it's a huge disappointment. It's hard to believe that with all the technical advances we've made in the video game industry, a modern game with a huge budget behind it can still feel so lacking in ambition.
The one silver lining is that I'm thankful to have been able to try Starfield without actually having to pay full price for it. If I had paid for it, I'd be feeling even more disappointed than I already am. At least with Game Pass, I can just move on to the next game.
The Monday letters page wishes that Nintendo would buy Sega Sammy
It seems like every big publisher is trying to buy up other companies in the gaming industry. Microsoft has been sniffing around, wanting to buy new publishers, and both them and Sony have been eyeing Square Enix. One reader of the Monday letters page suggested that Nintendo should buy up Sega Sammy as well.
As someone who used to own a Mega Drive, I can tell you that the idea of Nintendo buying up Sega is a bit of a betrayal of everything I ever argued in the playground. But it's not completely crazy. If anyone can do Sonic justice, it's Nintendo. They could also bring back a lot of classic franchises, which is what fans have been wanting for a long time.
Unfortunately, I don't think Nintendo will ever make this move. It's just not the way they like to operate, especially since they'd have to buy Sammy as well. I can dream, though. I'd love to see a 10/10 Sonic The Hedgehog game or modern versions of Golden Axe or Panzer Dragoon.
The cancelation of Sega's Hyenas
The cancelation of Sega's Hyenas has some people worried, but I'm not surprised. The game looked terrible from the very first moment it was revealed. It was super generic and obnoxious, and just another live service game filled with pointless cosmetics and desperate monetisation.
What's funny is that Sony's Fairgame$ looks so similar, as if these kinds of games are just being auto-generated by some AI. I like a good online game as much as anyone, but I don't need it to become a second job that takes up all my spare time. That's why these games have been dropping in popularity, because there just isn't enough time to keep up with them.
The demise of arcades
Eric wrote a great Reader's Feature about the demise of arcades, particularly here in the UK. One thing he didn't mention was the role of online gaming in the demise of arcades. When it became popular to play against total strangers without having to leave your home, it completely reshaped the way people interacted with each other.
The heyday of London's Trocadero was a great time for arcades, with eight-player Daytona USA machines and live commentary. It's a shame we'll never see something like that again.
Far Cry 7
Far Cry 7 is shaping up to be another run of the mill save the damsels in distress and eliminate the villains game, just like the other instalments in the series. But wouldn't it be great if we could team up with the villain or even play as the villain instead?
It would be nice to wipe out resistance groups that seem to have no power and are copy pasted from game to game. It would be better than clearing out another outpost and wondering why fighting pointless wars is what we should be doing.
Ubisoft need to take a risk and make a big change. That's the only way to sell copies and avoid the same old, outdated, repetitive boredom. It's time for something new.
Starfield - One of the Most Talked About Games of the Year
The Monday letters page has been abuzz with discussion this week about Nintendo possibly buying Sega Sammy, and many are unsurprised to hear about the death of Hyenas. If you'd like to join in with the conversation, simply email email.
A Good Advertisement for Game Pass
I've been playing Starfield on Game Pass this weekend and I have to say, it's nothing special. Nothing about it is terrible, and yet nothing about it is great either. I can't even say there's anything about it that's even good - the best bits are probably the starship construction and the variety of weapons.
It's ironic that the game people have got most angry about this year is the one that, under normal circumstances, it'd be almost impossible to have a strong opinion about. Yet still, it probably counts as the biggest disappointment of the year, simply because it's so far from what the hype was suggesting about it.
Personally, I'm really disappointed. When I look back to classic games like Frontier: Elite 2, and see what games like that did compared to a brand new modern game with a huge budget behind it, it's a bit shocking.
At least, it's a good advertisement for Game Pass. If I'd paid money for Starfield, I'd have been really upset. But with Game Pass, I'm just disappointed and I'm ready to move on.
Fambe
Fine, I'll Do It Myself
With all the talk of Microsoft wanting to buy new publishers, and both them and Sony interested in Square Enix, I really do wish Nintendo would make their fans' dreams come true and buy Sega. I know that this would be a complete betrayal of my former Mega Drive life, but I think Nintendo are the only ones that could do Sonic justice and who would be interested and capable of bringing back the classic franchises.
I know that this isn't how Nintendo usually like to act, especially as they'd have to buy Sammy as well, but maybe they'll take a look at how things are going and realise that they don't want to get caught out as other companies get snapped up.
I'd love to see a 10/10 Sonic The Hedgehog, or modern versions of Golden Axe or Panzer Dragoon. But I just don't think it's ever going to happen, unless someone else buys Sega and forces them to do it.
Wotan
All Bad Things...
I'm really surprised to see that free-to-play games, including the mighty Fortnite, seem to be running into trouble. I would have assumed that they were pretty much going to last forever, since, you know, they're free and all.
So I guess people have finally got fed up of being manipulated and conned into buying microtransactions all the time. I'm not sure why this would happen now and not earlier, but then I don't play such games so I'm not sure if they've changed in some way recently that makes them worse?
I'm not getting too excited though. All these anti-consumer ideas always seem to be replaced by something even worse in the end, so I really don't want to think about what's next.
Wallace09
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Time Poor
I feel sorry for anyone that may be in trouble now with the cancelation of Sega's Hyenas, but that game looked terrible from the very first second they showed it. Super generic, super obnoxious, and yet another live service game filled with pointless cosmetics and desperate monetisation.
It's funny that Sony's Fairgame$ looks so similar, like these things are being auto-generated by some AI somewhere. I like a good online game as much as anyone, but I don't need to be making it a second job that takes up every second of my spare time, which is what these companies seem to want. I think that's why they're dropping in popularity too, because people are so short of spare time they just can't keep up.
Columbo
Last Throes
I really enjoyed Eric's Reader's Feature about the demise of arcades, particularly here in the UK, as it was bringing back memories of my youth. One thing I'd like to add that wasn't mentioned is online gaming. I believe this was the nail in the coffin of the arcades, as it was a way to play against total strangers without having to travel outside your home.
Once it became more popular - when it was a feature on the original Xbox - I think this completely changed the way we played against other humans, and it has become the accepted norm. It's a shame, because during the heyday of London's Trocadero I remember they had something like an eight-player Daytona USA with in-house live commentary, which I thought was really cool. I doubt I'll ever see something like that again.
orionz25
Pure Evil
I had a brilliant idea. We all know Far Cry, a franchise that has been around since 2004, and Ubisoft clearly show no signs of slowing down, since the seventh instalment may very well be due soon. But from what I've read, regarding the possible storyline and the heinous time limit, it seems like another run of the mill, save the damsels in distress and eliminate the villains - something we've seen in every instalment so far, in one way or another.
That fatigue has morphed into an insidious spiral. Wouldn't it be great if we could either team up with the villain or play as a villain instead? Why should I care about resistance groups that leave me to carry out every mission and clear out every outpost, but can do nothing of note and are basically copy pasted every game? It would be nice to wipe them out instead, slaughter citizens that we don't care about, and become pure evil.
It would be much better than clearing out another outpost, that are all the same, and wondering why fighting pointless wars is what we should give a damn about? At least Far Cry 4 and 6 had fantastic alternate endings. But Ubisoft doesn't listen. So, I'm not purchasing Far Cry 7. I'm done with the outdated, repetitive boredom and the callous and pointless design.
Ubisoft needs to take a risk and make a huge change - to the point of no return - and that would sell copies. Not another outpost and not another civil war. It's dated. It's lazy. It's a Far Cry.
Shahzaib Sadiq
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