Horizon Forbidden Sidequests
Plus Cyberpunk returns, crying out for co-op and the greatest generation (of consoles).
Hi there! It’s a huge week for blockbuster AAA releases, which is always exciting, but can also be stressful. The games press and social media have a tendency to fetishise new products and “being part of the conversation”, which makes sense for journalists and enthusiasts but can create feelings of FOMO and guilt in those not jumping on the new hotness as soon as possible.
But we’re here to tell you that not only is there something to be said for waiting on big games (they’re only going to get less expensive and more stable), but that you should never feel guilty for your game consumption choices. Have fun!
The apocalypse can wait
By Tim
Maybe my brain is broken, but in every massive RPG I find the side activities much more attractive and satisfying to complete than the main quest.
And I never stop finding it funny that a hero given an onerous task — usually one with world-ending stakes and a ticking time limit — can choose to spend their time hunting for 100 hidden nymphs or getting really good at alien Yahtzee instead.
In Final Fantasy VIII monsters are falling from the moon, but who could pass up the opportunity to play Triple Triad against every rando in the street?
In Skyrim an evil dragon and his legion threaten to wipe out the entire continent, but isn't it also a grouse time to become the headmaster of a magic school, build a home with your hands and adopt some kids?
I've been playing Horizon Forbidden West ahead of release and it's stunningly beautiful, well written and acted, filled with opportunities for brilliant combat. The planet is rapidly dying and Aloy needs to get to a very specific place to prevent that. It's a long trek, through an open world besieged by dangers.
But the biggest threat to the planet's saviour making it in time may be that the land is spotted with towns and outposts, all filled with idiots who have very trivial tasks that need doing.
I’ve salvaged scrap from the top of old towers for a sketchy merchant, helped a loser inventor surpass his grandfather, even assisted an exasperated chef in replacing his favourite griddle. These are absolutely, definitively things that could wait until after the ongoing existence of life itself has been secured. But what are you going to do.
There's also a full Chess-like tabletop tactics game you play with collectible miniatures and, unfortunately for the denizens of Horizon that face certain death from an unstoppable plague, it's really fun.
What to play
Cyberpunk 2077, which was brilliant but horrendously underbaked at launch in 2020, is back with a surprise update dropping today. Unsurprisingly given it’s taken more than a year to build, the patch is massive and promises to not only fix glitches but tweak a lot of the systems and add new content too. Existing players get the update for free, while those on console can also upgrade to a native PS5 or Xbox Series X/S version at no charge. If you’re looking to jump in for the first time the game is currently half price on the console stores, so whether you get it digital or physical it should go for $40–$50.
If you are picking up Horizon Forbidden West on Friday, make sure you buy the PS4 version, even if you have a PS5. At RRP it’s $110 for one and $125 for the other (both less on Amazon), but Sony is offering a free upgrade so definitely grab the less expensive one. This also works with digital copies; the PS4 version won’t show up on the PS5 store, but you can buy it in a web browser.
It's a good week on Game Pass for lovers of high-challenge sidescrolling combat. First up is the brand new Infernax, which mashes together the NES Castlevania and Ninja Gaiden games while adding gore, more modern progression and a bunch of RPG elements. Then there's the year-old Skul: The Hero Slayer; where you play as a generic skeleton bad guy left behind after heroes swept through the Demon King's castle. The twist is that you can swap your skull for any of a hundred others, changing your combat abilities, and can even combine two skulls for endless playstyle options.
SongPop Party is having a renaissance over on Apple Arcade. It’s a simple competition of who can pick the song first, but it’s a fun party game whether your fellow players are near or far. It’s perfect for when you and a companion don’t quite have time to watch something, but also don’t quite want to move on to the next task yet.
Also on Apple Arcade, Bloons TD Battles 6+ just launched. It’s a silly tower defence game for kids, featuring weaponised monkeys and sinister balloons, but it’s free of the in-app purchases that irritated me about the original Bloons TD Battles 6. It’s a great game to introduce the next generation to real-time strategy, or just tinker with in front of the TV.
Whatever happened to couch co-op?
By Alice
With St Valentine’s Day and the spirit of togetherness comes the excuse for me to get out my couch co-op soapbox. Couch co-op games used to be all the rage, until that damn internet thing got so popular (probably just a fad, though).
I understand the business reasons for why everything is going to online multiplayer: you can sell so many subscriptions for it. Not only does Sony/Microsoft/Nintendo get to charge you for online play, but then the game company can take your cash for Battle Passes or whatever.
But, and here’s the thing, subscription services suck. There are way too many tiny vampires taking $10 a month for too many things and it’s exhausting.
Also, one of my favourite things about games is how they can bring people together, whether you’re beating each other up in Injustice, or platforming in Sackboy: A Big Adventure. What’s more fun: being sniped by a Bulgarian 13-year-old or saving the world with your best friend by your side, conspiring, laughing and bonding? Both are great experiences but, currently, one is significantly easier to find than the other.
Co-op games were my family’s sanity over assorted lockdowns, but it’s been so long since a good new couch co-op game came out that we’re running out of things to play in our evenings.
The good news is that are heaps of good older games out there,. Almost anything Mario, the Lego games, Overcooked, Snipper Clips, Rock Band, Guitar Hero, Unravel, Rayman Legends, and Stardew Valley are the main ones that immediately come to mind. But I do wish that list would grow significantly each year.
That’s nothing against online co-op, which is important too. Not everyone lives with their best friend and I love how games can bridge that gap. Surely there’s room for more of a balance, though?
Bricks, Boards and Beginnings
by Alice
The best part about playing board games as apps is that they’re portable, you don’t need to set up on a flat, clean surface, and you can’t break the rules. The bad thing is that they’re frequently broken and rarely get updated.
One of my favourite games is Hardback. It’s a beautiful deck building word game, where you accumulate victory points and cents with which you can buy better letters to get more victory points. It’s simple and fun, and makes more sense to play in app form because wild cards are just easier to see when you can actually change their letters.
But during a long game, we’ll probably have to fully exit out of the app and restart five or six times, purely because of bugs that freeze cards or randomly spread them over the screen in different sizes. Thankfully, a restart of the app rights it for at least a few turns, so then you can play again.
It’s understandable there might not be the funds to keep updating an independent board game, and at least it works well enough to push through.
But then you get a game like Ticket To Ride, where the iPhone app crashes every second turn (if you’re lucky). It’s a popular enough game with enough players that it should be well maintained. And yet.
As I wrote a few weeks ago, video games don’t often make great board games. But board games can make great apps to improve portability and onboard people to the rules.
I do still recommend the app version of Hardback, as long as you go in expecting to restart a few times. The more people who play board game apps, the more they’ll improve, and it really is a great way to discover new board games to fall in love with.
Retro Esoterica
by Tim
If you ask someone which is the greatest generation of game consoles, they'll generally reply with whatever was at full swing when they were between 8 and 14 years old.
But since I started very young and have spent a lot of time since with every machine, I find it hard to make an instinctive choice. Right now I feel like the sixth generation was the greatest, despite (or perhaps because of) not interacting with it much in its heyday.
Sixth gen has four distinct but incredible machines; Dreamcast, PlayStation 2, Gamecube and Xbox. Each has phenomenal exclusive games, and while the Dreamcast skews older and has some of the best versions of many fifth gen games, the other three share a huge library of early 2000s classics; of an era where 3D worlds were confidently built but the elements of play and interactivity within those worlds were at an experimental phase.
Games were at once variously cartoonier and grittier than ever before, and the medium ran the gamut from expansive space operas that pushed the boundaries of game narratives, to a new breed of at-home high-fidelity arcade fare.
At around 20 years old these machines are a sweet spot between retro and new school gaming; beautiful in design but still toyetic, filled with historical significance but still mostly working, with games that are complex and accessible but old enough that you don't shouldn't feel bad for acquiring them without paying.
And theses systems make satisfying projects too, as each one requires only a moderate effort (and budget) to achieve wireless control, clean video output, and the ability to play digital files rather than discs or cartridges. My personal top five games of the generation: The Wind Waker, Prince of Persia: Sands of Time, Metroid Prime, Resident Evil 4 and Halo.