Entertainment
Games Inbox: Best PS5 game so far, Astro Bot: Rescue Mission 2, and Super Mario Sunshine joy
The Wednesday Inbox is pleased to hear that Sony is making a VR headset for PS5, as one reader falls in love with Assassin’s Creed Valhalla.
To join in with the discussions yourself email gamecentral@ukmetro.co.uk
A big decision
I finally got lucky with GAME on Tuesday and my PlayStation 5 is bought and paid for, and apparently on its way with the courier now. That’s obviously great news but now I feel slightly unsure about what games to get. The console is the Digital Edition, to save money and because I’ve kind of given up on buying any physical media nowadays.
That means I haven’t had to make any decisions about what games to buy until now but obviously less has changed since launch than I was hoping for. So there’s really only two obvious choices, as far as I can see, of Spider-Man: Miles Morales and Demon’s Souls, plus Sackboy: A Big Adventure as an outlier.
However, I’m thinking of getting Sackboy as it’s co-op and I figure it might be a better way to prove the worth of the PlayStation 5 to my girlfriend than either of the other two (especially Demon’s Souls, which I know she’ll hate). I know GC gave it a decent review but how have other players found it, especially as a two-player co-op game?
I was also seriously considering Godfall as I heard it was nearly 50% off on the PSN Store. Until I realised that still meant it was £40. These games aren’t cheap, so you can understand why I don’t want to make a mistake.
Koffey
Second Mission
I must confess to being rather happy that Sony have not given up on VR and are bringing out a new headset. There’s plenty of reasons to celebrate but the main one for me is that it now seems certain that there will be a new Astro Bot game.
Bloodborne and Zelda: Breath Of The Wild were amazing games and top the last gen list but nothing brought a jaw to the floor experience like Rescue Mission. More of the same would satisfy me but integrating the DualSense features with the added power of the PlayStation 5 is a tantalising prospect.
The PlayStation VR library was arguably the strongest feature and having some exclusive Sony games (and maybe that Silent Hill remake in VR) is great for the market.
Wonka
GC: That was one of the first things we thought of too.
One possible future
Very happy to hear today Sony confirm the existence of PlayStation VR for PlayStation 5 and that development kits are just about to go out. PlayStation VR for PlayStation 4 sold around 5 million units, good but no guarantee Sony would continue their interest in VR so it really is great news that they are.
It won’t be wireless but will only have one wire to the PlayStation 5 and will have proper controllers. Good news as those were two big weak points on the original PlayStation VR. It’s some way off, as Sony has said it won’t launch in 2021, I’d be pleasantly surprised if it was late 2022. But just knowing it’s coming is great news. I wouldn’t say VR is the future of gaming but it is a magnificent experience and I can’t wait to see what the new headset can do.
Simundo
E-mail your comments to: gamecentral@ukmetro.co.uk
An affair to remember
Loving Assassin’s Creed Valhalla. Or should I say Assassin’s Creed Valhalla: Doors Barred Edition.
Anyway, it’s become clear to me that Eivor likes a good drink and likes to sleep around. I’m playing as female Eivor and I have been drunk more times than I can remember and have also had five affairs so far. And I’m sure they’re still plenty more characters out their eager to get into Eivor’s pants.
It’s all good fun though and it looks fantastic. But has anyone who has played it experienced right stick problems where it locks up in intense fights? I have, it’s a nuisance. Also, the river raids mode needs more put into it. Oh well, it is free. I’m just hoping the DLC turns out to be great.
icelticghost
Postponed generation
A funny couple of reviews with Persona 5 Strikers and Ghosts ‘N Goblins Resurrection, GC. Keep up the good work. If nothing else it’s a relief to see some actual new games come out. Even if you understand why this year is look like a desert all the way to Christmas. I mean, May to the next (first?) big release, who ever imagined something like this happening?
I can understand where that reader is coming from too, wondering what’s going to happen to gaming once people are out of lockdown and there are no games to pull them back. My feeling is that there won’t be any major dip as the elastic band snaps back but it is clearly going to be years and years before the industry is back to normal.
I can’t work out whether this all happening as the same time as the next gen starting is a good or a bad thing either. My feeling is that it’s mostly good, because these first two years are always slow anyway and at least now there’s an excuse. I just hope it doesn’t end up being four years until we get to the good stuff now.
Focus
A delayed game is eventually good
Please tell me I’m not the only one who found Super Mario Sunshine to be a mix of joy, absolute frustration, and mindboggling level and camera design!
I finally watched the credits roll after unlocking and besting the final level but was left with a lingering feeling that there were far too many times where the level design, combined with how the camera works, left you literally trying to complete certain areas staring at question mark silhouettes obscured behind the geometry.
I just can’t fathom how the game passed through developer playtests, Super Mario Club, and got shipped with these instances occurring when playing the game end to end. It definitely feels like a rough diamond and an anomaly in Nintendo’s string of high-quality titles.
I also had to actually look up how to unlock the final level, as unlike in Super Mario 64 and Super Mario Galaxy, it wasn’t clear how to actually get to the end level beyond attempting to obtain every shine in every level.
The frustrating thing is that some parts of the game are great, including the music, the general aesthetic, and the feel-good vibe of Delfino Plaza. The frustration of trying to achieve core parts of the game whilst fighting against the game itself and Joy-Con drift really takes the shine off of the overall experience.
thesmaul
GC: Those were certainly the ingredients, but we think you tasted more joy in it than we did. Like The Wind Waker, the game was very rushed, which led to the problems you describe. Thankfully it’s not a mistake Nintendo has made again, no matter how urgently they need a new game.
Burying the lead
What a weird interview that GQ article was. Why did they put the most important stuff, about more PlayStation games coming to PC, in the intro. It feels like either they forget half the interview or were just making that bit up.
For what it matters I have no strong opinions on the concept, but I don’t understand the thinking from Sony’s point of view. If you own a gaming PC what possible reason would you have to buy a PlayStation 5 now, if all the games are coming to the format you already know?
Foggy
Story focus
As someone who was fortunate enough to get a PlayStation 5 on launch day one of the games I was most looking forward to playing was Horizon Zero Dawn, coming from Xbox previously and it being a PlayStation exclusive I hadn’t had the chance to play.
55 hours later and having managed to platinum it I have to say what a truly fantastic game it is, but the main point I wanted to commend it on was the low difficulty story mode you could play the game in.
As a more mature gamer (I’m 51), my reflexes and reactions are basically shot and although most games I play offer you the option to play on easy mode I still find myself getting frustrated at the amount of times I die or fail an objective, which impacts my ability to truly follow the story.
The story mode offered in Horizon was absolutely perfect for me, definitely too easy for most people but I was able to follow the whole story and thoroughly enjoy all the combat and other objectives with no hint of any frustration at all!
Hopefully other developers will follow suit and offer this option in future games as I know other older gamers who like me have picked up games and grown frustrated with their difficulty at an early stage and just given up on them.
Anthony
GC: Whatever you do, don’t play Ghosts ‘N Goblins Resurrection.
Inbox also-rans
I wonder if the next version of Forza Motorsport will harness the power of new hardware to create computer opponents that don’t have a massive pileup on the first corner…
Mr Brutus
Got my PlayStation 5 today from GAME! A long time coming I know but finally I have something to go along with those copies of Demon’s Souls and Spider-Man: Miles Morales I got for Christmas.
Goldenrod
This week’s Hot Topic
The subject for this weekend’s Inbox is based on the fact that it was the 35th anniversary of The Legend Of Zelda on Sunday and so we want to hear about your memories of the series and where you’d like it to go in the future.
What’s the first Zelda game you ever played and in what circumstances? What’s your favourite Zelda game and how do you think it might influence future releases in terms or remasters/remakes and inspiring new games? What did you think of Breath Of The Wild and what do you hope for from the sequel?
It also happens to be the 25th anniversary of Pokémon on Saturday, so if you’d like to discuss that as well, or instead of, Zelda feel free.
E-mail your comments to: gamecentral@ukmetro.co.uk
The small print
New Inbox updates appear every weekday mornin, with special Hot Topic Inboxes at the weekend. Readers’ letters are used on merit and may be edited for length and content.
You can also submit your own 500 to 600-word Reader’s Feature at any time, which if used will be shown in the next available weekend slot.
You can also leave your comments below and don’t forget to follow us on Twitter.
MORE : Games Inbox: Fallout 5 release date estimate, Destiny: The TV Show, and Splatoon 3 trailer analysis
MORE : Weekend Hot Topic, part 2: most impressive retro graphics
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