Archive for January, 2017

Tony Hawk Games

Posted in Blog, Games, Tony Hawk Series on January 9, 2017 by slateman

For many years the Tony Hawk franchise of videogames was part of me and my everyday life. Sadly, it’s not the case any more. And in light of losing an entire HDD full of 20 years of history, I was refreshed to see what wasn’t lost. One such item was this graphic I made way back in 2007. It was one of the rare times I was featured on the likes of Insert Credit (RIP) and maybe even Kotaku. I figured I’d update these as well as toss some new info over on the Hawk History page which merely serves as a catalogue for the now-defunct and often-painfully-remembered PlanetTonyHawk. In any event, here are the two graphics from a decade ago replete with the wonderfully-titled updated games Ride, Shred, Motion, Vert and THPS HD and THPS5. It’s funny. I forgot about the latter’s existence. Hard to believe I and those I know, who were all faithfully intertwined in the shaping of Hawk history, haven’t ever even touched Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 5. Perhaps I’m glorifying out involvement, but it just shows how far the series fell. Sad, really. Anyways…visuals…

2016’s Games I Didn’t Play

Posted in Best / Worst, Blog, Games, Lists on January 1, 2017 by slateman

While deciding on a GotY for 2016 hasn’t proven easy, it seems like part of my problem is that I simply didn’t play as many games as I typically did in the past. It seems unfair, therefore, to actually choose a winner if many recipients of the much-coveted title weren’t even experienced by yours truly! Ultimately, nobody gives a shit about what I think, so this may just be a way of delaying my announcement. Without additional unnecessary ado, let’s look at some of what I missed. Mind you, I don’t expect all of these to truly be in contention; Uncharted 4 and Rise Of The Tomb Raider are in the sights for the title.

Overwatch
I don’t know about MMO games. They’re not usually my thing, but with such clamor over this game’s awesomeness, I would be remiss to not even consider it.

Titanfall 2
Despite my lack of interest in the first title, I’ve heard stellar things about the campaign of this game. There’s no chance a straightforward FPS could win this title, but I would like to give the story mode a go. They’re usually pretty brief, right?

The Witness
Now we’re talking. A curious puzzler that I somehow didn’t get around to? My PSN purchases have been far more infrequent than several years ago. I want to get this one to try out with the wife.

Final Fantasy XV
Without nearly as much spare time to play games as I used to have, do I really even want to start this one? That’s a tough question. But if the desire is there, I think I’d fully enjoy this title.

Gears Of War 4
Gears and Gears 3 were both phenomenal 3rd-person action titles and they may be the best co-op experience I’ve ever had in a campaign. While I missed Judgement and I don’t own an Xbox 1, I sure would love to try this one out. At least not owning the console is a good excuse not to have played it!

Inside
Everyone is claiming this game is wonderful but my time with the demo underwhelmed. I’ll get around to playing this one day. But a 3-4 hour campaign for GotY? No way.

Battlefield 1
Another game that everyone says is the bomb. Another game I’ll just have to get around to playing, even if it’s low on my priority hierarchy.

Doom
Don’t think I care enough about this one but it got good reviews. My experience with the demo showed it was a lightning-fast shooter that seems to hearken back to the roots of the series. *shrug*

The Last Guardian
I never actually beat Ico or Shadow Of The Colossus! So what would make me think I would get around to actually completing this one?

Ys VIII: Lacrimosa Of Dana
Another game I can’t be faulted for missing out on. This came out on the Vita with a PS4 version coming in a few months…but only in Japan so far. I’ll have to wait another year for this game, I fear.

So…next up is actually figuring out which games are in contention. A bit late, I realize.