January 15th 2024.
Have you had the chance to play Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice League yet? It's been making waves in the gaming community and I'm curious to hear your thoughts. Speaking of games, the Monday letters page is abuzz with discussions about classic Sega games and their potential revivals. Readers are sharing their most anticipated games for 2024, and you can join in on the conversation by emailing us.
I've been lucky enough to play the Suicide Squad beta and I'm happy to answer any questions you may have. While I'm not a professional reviewer, I'll do my best to give you an overall impression. And to be honest, it's just okay. As a huge fan of Batman: Arkham, I was excited to get my hands on this game. But as you may already know, the story revolves around the Justice League turning evil, with the exception of Wonder Woman.
Now, as a DC fan, my first complaint is that the game doesn't feel true to the characters. And despite the constant wisecracks, it's not very funny. It's not necessarily bad, but the humor feels forced and doesn't quite hit the mark. The gameplay itself, which is essentially a shooter, is decent but not very unique. And some of the special abilities can be difficult to obtain and activate. Turning the Suicide Squad into a four-player shooter just doesn't seem like the best fit, and the excessive acrobatics also feel out of place. But my biggest issue with the game is its repetitive nature, which becomes apparent after just an hour or so of playing.
Playing with others can be fun, but I have to be honest and say that the beta actually turned me off from the main game rather than building excitement for it. I'll wait to see the reviews, but I don't have high hopes for them being positive.
Moving on to other gaming news, there has been a lot of talk about Sega reviving some of their old games. Personally, I'm a bit skeptical as we haven't seen any concrete plans yet. They've mentioned Streets Of Rage and Shinobi, but there are already talks of reviving more obscure titles. And let's be real, Sega hasn't exactly had the best track record with these franchises in the past 20+ years. I would feel more confident if they handed them over to a different company.
My gut feeling is that these revivals will be part of a larger compilation game, where you can purchase individual games to add to it. And they may even be indie titles at that. But I hope we get some more information soon.
On a different note, a reader recently asked about any similarities between Panzer Dragoon and After Burner, and I have to say that the powerful lock-on system in both games does make it seem like there could be some overlap in terms of developers. However, it's difficult to say for sure since the credits from that time period didn't list full names.
In other news, a few months ago I wrote in about my love for Rocket Knight Adventures and its sequel, Sparkster. I even suggested that Konami release all three games in a bundle, claiming I would buy it twice if they did. And now, my wish has come true! Limited Run Games has announced that they will be relaunching all three games for PlayStation and Switch, along with a line of Rocket Knight merchandise. I couldn't be more excited, and I'll definitely be getting that plushie too, just in case the Inbox gods are watching.
As a long-time Xbox gamer, I'm not too bothered by the speculation that Microsoft may be going third party. My main reason for sticking with Xbox was for the achievements, and I also appreciate the interface and online services. But I've always had a secondary console, and the Switch has definitely become a primary contender in the current market. However, it's unlikely that we'll see games like GTA 6 and Red Dead Redemption 3 on the Switch. That's where a PlayStation comes in for me, as their single-player games are more my style. So if Microsoft does end up going third party, as long as they keep Game Pass and some sort of rewards system, I'm all for it. I just hope that Sony doesn't become the sole controller of the console market and start charging exorbitant prices for their consoles and games.
And finally, let's talk about Baldur's Gate 3 and the recent controversy surrounding its depiction of nudity. While the game has received praise for its mature handling of sex scenes, some have criticized it for being too explicit. As a 53-year-old gamer, I don't see the issue and believe it's just a matter of cultural differences. But moving on to a different topic, there has been some discussion about Microsoft releasing games on rival platforms. And while some see it as a positive move, there are concerns that it may lead to Sony becoming the dominant force in the market and potentially cutting back on expenses and production values. It's a double-edged sword and only time will tell what the future holds for the gaming industry.
Have you had a chance to play Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice League? The Monday letters page is discussing classic Sega games and their potential revivals, as readers share their most anticipated games for 2024. If you want to join in on the conversation, don't hesitate to email us.
I've been lucky enough to play the Suicide Squad beta, so if anyone has any questions, feel free to ask away. I'm not much of a reviewer, but I can give you my overall impression of the game, which is... okay? I signed up for the beta because I'm a huge fan of Batman: Arkham, but as you may know, the game's story revolves around the Justice League turning evil, except for Wonder Woman.
As a DC fan, my first complaint is that the game doesn't feel authentic to most of the characters. And despite the constant wisecracking, it's not as funny as it tries to be. It's not terrible, but they spend way too much time on it and it just doesn't work in my opinion.
The gameplay itself, which is essentially a shooter, is solid but not very unique. And some of the special abilities can be difficult to get and activate. I also don't quite understand why they turned Suicide Squad into a four-player shooter, and there's a lot of acrobatics that feel out of place. But the biggest issue is the repetitive nature of the game, which becomes apparent after just an hour or so of playing.
Although I did have some fun playing with others, I have to admit that the beta actually made me less excited for the full game. I'll wait to see the reviews, but I'm not expecting them to be very positive.
Moving on to a different topic, I've been trying to stay positive about the Sega game revivals, but it's concerning that they've announced so many without showing us anything yet. I'm already skeptical about the Streets Of Rage and Shinobi remakes, and now they're talking about even more obscure titles.
To be honest, I haven't seen anything from Sega in the last 20 years that gives me confidence in their handling of these franchises. I would feel much better if they handed them over to another company.
My suspicion is that these revivals will be part of a larger compilation game, where you can add individual games as indie titles. That's just my guess, but I hope we get more information soon.
On a different note, I recently saw a connection between Panzer Dragoon and After Burner. They're both Sega on-rail shooters with a powerful lock-on system. I wouldn't be surprised if some of the same people worked on both, although it's hard to say for sure since arcade games from that era didn't list full names in the credits.
Moving on to a more personal topic, back in 2022, I wrote in about Rocket Knight Adventures and its sequel Sparkster, and how I wished Konami would package all three games together like they did with Castlevania and Contra. And now, it looks like my wish has been granted! Limited Run Games just announced that they're relaunching all three games for PlayStation and Switch, along with a line of Rocket Knight merchandise. I couldn't be more excited! Sparkster is one of my favorite 16-bit mascots, and it's great to see him getting the recognition he deserves.
As a gamer who has primarily stuck with Xbox for the past three generations, I'm not too worried about the speculation that Microsoft may go third party. I've always had a secondary console (and the Switch is definitely not secondary), but there are certain titles that I know I'll only be able to play on Xbox, like GTA 6 and Red Dead Redemption 3. However, I do appreciate that Microsoft is making more of their games available on other platforms, and I hope they continue to do so while also keeping Game Pass and rewards programs intact.
But I can understand the concerns about Sony potentially having a monopoly on the console market. While competition between Nintendo and Sony could still drive the creation of quality first-party games, there's a possibility that Sony could prioritize profit over investment in new titles. I'm not sure if this move would be ultimately for the better or worse, but as someone who has invested in the Xbox ecosystem for over 15 years, it would definitely make me reconsider my choices.
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