I’ve seen a lot of people say they have skipped Horizon: Forbidden West to play other games like Gran Turismo 7 and Elden Ring. I’m in the middle of Elden Ring now, and I feel like I have my training wheels on. But I wouldn’t skip Horizon: Forbidden West, as I feel like this is going to be one of the best games of 2021.
It’s a great example of when you start with a clean slate, improve all of the graphics and game systems, and then wind up with a much better product than the original. This remake of a classic goes to show why video games just get better with the passage of time.
Lake has always been a good spokesman for the game. He talked about Remedy’s “dream game” a while back and said, “Where we are now is fiction becoming reality.” It’s kind of a cliche that you expect to hear from the lips of Alan Wake, but it’s a good description for what goes through you head as you play this outstanding game that messes with your mind but still leaves it in a better place than most horror games do. Call it a masterpiece or a work of art. Both apply. I rate the game as five stars out of five.
But make no mistake: Red Dead Redemption 2 is a masterpiece. I see these flaws as small distractions, but they don't kill my enthusiasm for the game. Those bugs seem like nitpicking against scenes like the one in the video above, as Arthur rides to the sound of a beautiful song.
The ending of the game will leave you wondering just what was real and what was an illusion. I thoroughly enjoyed the dramatic arc of each major scene. It starts out calm, moves to disturbing, and then descends into chaos and madness. I think the storytellers and designers exercised tight creative control, with a game that is understated as well as explosive.
The improvements that Naughty Dog made in gameplay and graphics showed that they were able to completely overhaul a system that wasn't all that bad to begin with, and the result was gameplay that kept me entertained even though it was the longest game that Naughty Dog had ever made. As I said, the action in this game is intense, grueling, and raw.
My hat's off to the developers at Sledgehammer who are helping a new generation understand the sacrifices of those who died in the Second World War.
Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare delivers a familiar Call of Duty gameplay in an innovative new setting that should satisfy gamers who are tired of playing the same old thing.
Call of Duty: Black Ops III is a big step forward on multiplayer play, the quality of the single-player story, the imaginative story paths, and the outstanding quality of the wide-open landscapes, and the wide variety of enemies. I suspect that Activision has a very good chance of restoring the series to record levels in comparison to the last couple of years.
Rise of the Tomb Raider is an epic adventure, and it's a story well told and well played.
Quantum Break is a memorable game. It makes me truly wonder if any of us can truly escape the reach of time, and it reminds me we all have to live with the choices we make.
The game really lives up to its promise and vision, and that's a rarity in an age of hype.
It took me around 36 hours and 13 runs to beat the game. And when I finally beat it, I felt so good. Now I'll have to get started all over again.
Gears 5 has a lot to offer, with multiplayer, co-op modes, and a single-player campaign with wide range of emotions, from humor and laughter to despair and tragedy. It leaves the fans with a bit of a cliffhanger ending, but that just means that fans will want Gears 6 to come soon.
Just when you thought power fantasies couldn’t get any better, Doom Eternal comes along with its universe of blood and gore to put you in a state of flow.
Call of Duty: Vanguard is a balanced game across the vectors of historical interest, good gameplay, variety, and a strong narrative. It ties everything together in a competent way that makes sense. That doesn’t mean it’s a spectacular game on the order of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, which was a breakthrough game for the franchise because of its thoughtfulness and disturbing material.
I can’t predict if it will outsell Modern Warfare 2019, but it is off to a winning start. For sure, it is running fast out of the gate, and it’s going to get a big boost from the free-to-play Warzone 2 release in 15 days, as Warzone serves as a kind of gateway drug for the full title. I do think this game will have longer staying power with its multiplayer combat, so long as the stats and other new maps arrive in time.
As I noted in an earlier preview, whether I was fighting against humans or the computer AI, I never got the sense that war was too easy and my opponent was too easy to be. And so there was always a cost to fighting, and that’s the way it should be.
To me, the multiplayer experience we got is a Call of Duty game worthy the franchise’s 20 year anniversary.
As with Rome II, the positives outweigh the annoyances. Creative Assembly has been very ambitious with Total War: Attila, and the game is a lot more compelling than its predecessor. It feels more balanced. The A.I. is smarter, but a human general can still beat it. But the unrelenting weight of a collapsing empire pushes a human ruler to the limit. If you simply survive for a while, you'll feel like you've won the game.