TinhmanDer

2018 has been a series of ups and downs for me. Most of the positives were from the new releases that came out this year and some were not so much. Last year was a stellar year for video games, this year, was better. I feel like video games can only go up from here. I won’t be surprised if 2019 tops this year. But we can wait until next year to really see how 2019 is for video games, for now let’s talk about some of the amazing games that came out this year. This year’s list is going to be a little different. I’m going to add more games to the list, but they won’t be ranked. There were so many games that I consider putting on my that just won’t fit and ranking them doesn’t really make sense, especially games from this year. I want to celebrate video games in 2018, not create competition, ill leave that to the pros. God of War I know that I didn’t want to put a ranking on the games but, God of War is my #1 game of the year. Not only was I excited about God of War when they

Ahh, Tetris. A game that your parents and almost every other parent knows. The longevity of it has made it evolve over its existents with the “hold” mechanic – which I’ve grown up with -- and doubling down on the competitive nature of Tetris with Tetris Battle, Tetris DS, Puyo Puyo Tetris, and more. Growing up I was terrible at Tetris – making lines with falling blocks was simple enough, but I didn’t understand how to fix my mistakes. There are many insane Tetris players that I can’t even think about competing with. The stress of trying to keep the best layout of blocks while trying to keep up with my opponent is too intense for my taste. However, Tetris Effect is the total opposite of all those competitive Tetris incarnations. The way Enhanced Games and Mizuguchi plays with music and players emotions to then incorporate it into a puzzle game or even something like Rez: Infinite can give old concepts like Tetris a new breath life. Everything in Tetris Effect is amplified by x

Destiny 2’s competitive scene has always been a second thought compared to the co-op PvE activities. At the launch of Destiny 2 Bungie tried a different more team-play orientated approach with an all 4v4 pvp match-up. Over time players got tired of that formula, especially, the way players were strategizing. The only way to be competitive is to team-shot a player at long distance, this was the only way everyone played. This kept the matches long and stale. Bungie understood the frustration and decided that they will change something about the Crucible (PvP). In July, Bungie pushed an update that changed the 4v4 format for Crucible to a 6v6, just how it was like in Destiny 1. Adding two more players on a team might not seem like a big change, but it completely changes how freely your team can strategize, this is especially true with solo matchmaking. Bungie knocked it out of the park with this change, of course they had a lot of help from the community. The community wanted th

Mario Tennis Aces is the latest entry to the Mario Tennis series. This time around Nintendo did no wrong with their tennis series giving us an adventure mode where you move from level to level to complete a series of challenges, a fun online/offline tournament, and exciting local play. I haven’t played the Mario Tennis series since the GameCube days, but I’m having as much fun as I did back then, expect for one mode that made me hate motion controls. During the lead up to launch I had questions about full motion controls, if they would support it for full matches? Can it be an alternative? and will it be like Wii Sports or will it have depth will in the base game? These questions were answered just a couple of days before launch and I was disappointed in how Nintendo implemented the motion controls. Coming from the developers of Wii Sports and how well the motion controls worked with the tennis mini-game gave me hope that Nintendo could do something great with motion

It’s finally E3, but for some it might have started earlier in the week. This is always an exciting time for gamers. Seeing all the announcement, trailers, gameplay, all those juicy video game tidbits that we want to know about for the upcoming games. First up on the podium is EA. Expectations 2017 was a rough year for EA, with Star Wars : Battlefront 2’s loot box controversy. From my perspective, this was the best thing that could happen for EA and the gaming industry. Sure, EA took some hits with sales and players’ perception, but it made the industry act. Loot boxes are now in the back end of any developer’s minds, it even went as far as to banning loot boxes in curtain regions. What EA needs to do in this conference is to just communicate to the players. They need to be as transparent as possible to give some reverence to the players. Explain how they’re handling loot boxes and microtransaction going forward. Anthem needs to blow players minds, they need to go

Nintendo Japan is releasing a new Switch bundle for ¥26,978 ($246) saving about ¥5000 ($50) from the original – if you can still call it a bundle, but here’s the catch, it’s only available in Japan. This bundle will come with the Switch, L + R Joycons (Color of your choice), and the L + R Wrist Straps. This lesser bundle is specifically for having a “second set” for households that already have a Switch and dock. This handheld-only bundle is a great response from Nintendo for the players that only use it handheld, especially in Japan, as handheld gaming has taken over Japan. One thing that is necessary for the Switch to work and is missing in the cheaper bundle is the USB-C Charger. This isn’t new to Nintendo as the new 3DS didn’t come with a charger either. Other accessories that are missing from the handheld bundle are the Dock, Joy-Con Grip, and HDMI Cable. For players that want all the tv functionality grab the original bundle, as you will have to give-up some cash for al

Fortnite has become this huge juggernaut in the gaming industry ever since Epic released their Battle Royale mode in late September. The Battle Pass implementation gave the player a progression system that gamify the Battle Royale mode, of which PUBG does not have. Having something to accomplish in-between gathering and fighting during each match creates a sense of accomplishment. In a game where there is a 100-player free-for-all fight, your chances of winning are low, allowing the Battle Pass rewards gives the player this satisfaction of accomplishment even if you lose. Over the past month, Epic has been teasing and creating ARGs in-game for the lead up to Season 4. Hearing about the meteors crashing down on Tilted Towers was cool but I didn’t think anything of it, as I thought it to be a cosmetic choice. But after seeing the video where Titled Towers got hit with small meteors during a match made me believe that the rumored Superhero themed Season Pass might be true. Long a

At launch, Destiny 2 was the biggest game for many gamers. For a good month almost, every gaming website was playing or writing about Destiny 2 and how much fun it was. It was the first thing I like thought about after work and before I sleep. Just like the first Destiny, I was hooked, but this time I got a crew to play with. This made my time with Destiny 2 much more enjoyable. However, after the initial release, Bungie ’s decisions in adding or changing aspects of the game failed me, my friends, and everyone else in the community. Then after Curse of Osiris launch, there was no fuel for me to keep playing, my friends stop playing and slowly I drifted away. Now that another Destiny 2 expansion is right around the corner, and the “go-fast update” launched not that long ago, Bungie has peak my interest once again. I haven’t had the chance to try the go-fast update, but from the way the community reacted it seems it was the sandbox change they wanted since the first month

Bloodborne was the first Souls-like game that I’ve played. I really enjoyed what I’ve played during its initial release, but I wasn’t prepared for what Bloodborne had in store for my frustration level. Outside of combat, everything triggered me. Squaring up with a simple enemy I’ve encountered multiple times to then just died was unforgivably frustrating. If I had a great run with an abundance of Blood Echoes my first goal was to cash in those Echoes , however looking for a laturn (checkpoint) can be tricky as they are hidden in curtain areas of the map and the only way to get back to The Hunter’s Dream to redeem the echoes . These frustrating elements co-mingling was just a nightmare. However, last week I wanted to finish something in my backlog and for some reason Bloodborne came to mind. Loading in for the first time in almost a year, I decided to create a new playthrough. After the first 3 hours, I thought to myself “Wow, how come this didn’t click with me before?” I k

This month Ubisoft are adding an in-game feature that can change the way you, and your enemies play. Ubisoft calls it the “ Animus Control Panel ”. For Players that have the PC version of the game, you will soon be able to change some of the rules of the game. Though it is only available on the Uplay Launcher, there are some neat things that can be changed. They have Screenshots and examples of having multiple animal companions and sliders that changes how we behave, but also how the NPC behaves. There are few options presented and the post doesn’t have much information, however they did list off things we can expect with:           75 parameters within 11 categories          Three pre-created presets           Presets created by players can be shared          The Animus Control Panel is embedded in the Uplay Overlay This seem amazing for players loving the game and would want to try something new with the sandbox. And having the feature to share the

Outside the opening hour of the game, the setup for this cult fails at impacting me in a deep and meaningful way. The leader hasn’t shown much of himself, but I’ve ran in to one of his family heretics, John Seed. John Seed the recruiter to Project Eden seems one noted. Nothing from what I’ve seen from him resonated with me. His backstory about abuse from his father to then finding his way because of Joseph Seed is like any cliché bad guy. So far, these characters don’t feel memorable, but the open-world sandbox moments that fill the gap in-between story moments are ridiculously fun.   Once I’ve accumulated the perk points, more of the sandbox opened up. I recommend using your first nine points on an additional holster, this perk allows you to hold another weapon. This is helpful it multifaceted situations, which I’ve been in on many occasions. Going in stealthily can feel rewarding, but most of the time I fail and need to change from a ranged sniper to a close-up shotgunner.

In 2017 PUBG took the video game industry by storm. The quickness of every match, the simple loop of “drop, loot, and shoot” is a great place for new players to drop-in for a few matches. Although the gameplay loop is simple and easy to pick up the button layout is a small hill to climb. On mobile they remove all the knowledge you need to know about the inventory system and added support for better aiming. PUBG on PC movements are identical to any other shooter but navigating the inventory and managing weapons/mods takes time – in a game where every moment is crucial being in a menu for any extended time can be the end of your match. On the mobile version if you walk over the items it will automatically equip anything you don’t have filled – like a secondary gun, ammo, or energy drinks/pain killers – this also applies to mods as it will equip any unfilled mod slot on the appropriate weapon. Knowing the weapons and mods gives you the upper hand because you can hand pick mods