So, what are you playing?
[illustration by Xavier Henry]
The gamer that made a swatting call on a random address now faces involuntary manslaughter charges. "I had physical things thrown at me as a result," says Seamus Blackley, talking about his design of the dinner plate-sized Duke controller for the original Xbox; The Duke is being re-released at the end of March. And the ESA, the video game publishers' lobbying group that runs the annual E3 convention, condemned President Trump's disparaging remarks toward Haiti and African countries.
So, what are you playing?
Russell Archey, Staff Writer, @NeoScyther
I'll be going back and forth between an upcoming review and clearing out my backlog. For the former I'm checking out The Escapists 2 on the Switch. I didn't play the original, but after going through the tutorial for this one, I'm kind of worried. Not that the game won't be good—I am enjoying it—but that I'm usually not that good at games that require me to not be noticed. It's probably why I've never gotten anywhere in a Splinter Cell game. As for my backlog I started up Batman: Arkham Asylum prior to Christmas, and while I haven't played it in a couple of weeks, I've actually made more progress than the first time I played it, so I'm slowly making my way through it.
Kinsey Danzis, Staff Writer, kdanzis@gamingnexus.com
I'm putting off the final fight with Calamity Ganon in Breath of the Wild for as long as possible. And just so you know, I typed Clamity Ganon and am subsequently imagining the beast at Hyrule Castle as a giant flying clam. I just downloaded the Expansion Pass and immediately went for the Ancient Bridle and Saddle, and am currently cavorting around Hyrule Fields trying to find hidden chests. It's definitely freeing not to be afraid of Guardians or Lynels anymore; the fully upgraded Champion's Tunic is a bit OP, but not enough to make the game feel broken, which is great for someone like me who plays mainly for the story and the cool loot.
Eric Hauter, Staff Writer, ehauter@gamingnexus.com
I'm continuing my playthrough of the first season of Batman: The Telltale Series. Telltale continues to surprise me with their narrative choices, throwing certain Batman traditions to the wind, while still hitting major story points. Playing this game is like looking at the Batman universe through a slightly warped glass, and I'm loving it.
I completed my playthrough of the story missions in Star Trek Bridge Crew with my sons last weekend, and I think we might dip back in this week to try to wrap up some trophies and take another run at the Kobayashi Maru challange. We have managed to get at least 100 folks off of the doomed ship, and we should be able to pull together a run that gets us 120 and the "No-Win Scenario" trophy.
In the evenings, I've been playing the PSVR port of Vive's early hit Out of Ammo, in anticipation of my review on the January 30 release date. Between that and Bridge Crew, my mind is pretty locked up in military strategy.
Charles Husemann, Editor-in-Chief, @chusemann
Darkest Dungeon is out for the Switch and I'm planning on diving in this weekend. I logged a lot of ours with the PC version (which I Kickstarted) but the Switch seems like the perfect platform for the game—well, other than for tablets.
I'm also hoping that I get in the closed beta for Sprint Vector this weekend as I've been looking forward to the game since it was first announced. It looks great and I'm always on the hunt for another VR game that gets my blood pumping.
Outside of those, I'll be logging time with the multiplayer portions of Call of Duty: WWII and Battlefront II.
Randy Kalista, Staff Writer, rkalista@gamingnexus.com
As an act of self-discipline, needless or otherwise, I've deleted all but one game from my PC and all but one game from my PS4. This is how I'll finally glue myself to one game until completion on either platform. When I'm on the PlayStation, it's Mass Effect: Andromeda. When I'm on the PC, it's Elite Dangerous. Wait wait, play Elite Dangerous "to completion," you say? How, exactly, might one do that in a sandbox sci-fi flight simulator set in a 400-billion-star Milky Way? Well, one doesn't. One doesn't do anything to completion there. Unless you set up an arbitrary goal for yourself. Which I have. It's to reach the center of the galaxy, using any meandering path I choose. Not to mention making a Scrooge McDuck pile of money exploring stars, planets, and their moons along the way. I crossed the 200-hour mark in Elite Dangerous last weekend, taking photographs of mountain passes on rocky planets somewhere between Cepheus Dark Region and Veil West Nebula. But Elite Dangerous is the distraction. Mass Effect: Andromeda is the goal. 2018 is still a year of second chances, for me. And when it comes to games that need a second chance, Andromeda is my obvious choice.
Rob Larkin, Staff Writer, @Rob_GN
There are all sorts of goings on around my home nowadays with renovations happening downstairs. Unfortunately the noise is causing a big disruption in my infant son’s sleep schedule and my wife might take him to Montreal this weekend for some peace and quiet. If that happens, I’m breaking out the PSVR that still sits unopened from Black Friday. I’ve decided to keep both the PSVR and Vive until I play through the small handful of PSVR exclusives on my mind and then maybe eBay it to fund a Vive Pro. So I’m hoping to jump in on the handful of PSVR games I’ve already got, like, Arizona Sunshine, EVE: Valkyrie, Skyrim, and the PS Plus freebies from months past.
Nicholas Leon, Staff Writer, nleon@gamingnexus.com
Ha! I think the real question is: What do you have time to play?
In between what readings I have and finishing my thesis, as well as two birthday parties (ha, is that considered too much information?), I think that the only thing I'll really have time for this weekend is a quick match of Battlefield 1, just to keep from getting rusty. And I really don't think that's too bad.
Kevin O’Connell, Staff Writer, koconnell@gamingnexus.com
I am at a standstill with GN gaming for right now, so I am putting some time into the Mass Effect Trilogy. I was going to save my replay for a remastered version of the original, but it seems to be a hope dream rather than a happening. Love the story of ME1, though I am ignoring the less-than-spectacular gunplay right now.
Am planning on a South Park marathon in February (I and II) when my brother visits. But for now, it is still shelved.
Awaiting my new HP computer at the end of this week. I will be working to get everything moved and set up as soon as it arrives. Hope I can get all my old games to work...they are a staple to my video gaming life.
