Next week the video game world goes bonkers with announcements and news that tantalize us with all the shiny new things to come in the near future.  So before that happens, I wanted to just do one last games roundup before the storm hits and my motivation to continue playing these titles dries up.

THE OUTER WILDS

The Outer Wilds is a game I desperately want to put more time into.  The basic premise is that you’re a creature whose people have figured out the most ramshackle way to explore their solar system.  They’ve hobbled together spaceships out of wood and glue, and have conscripted you into their space program to have you explore the depths of space and learn about a mysterious race of technologically advanced aliens that have essentially vanished.  Or at least that’s what I’m aware of so far.

The game is purely about exploring and learning as you follow the many weaving and winding story threads that bring you to every planet in your solar system.  Each planet is hand crafted and has it’s fair share of hidden secrets and stories to uncover.  There isn’t much in the realm of gameplay aside from steering your ship and trying not to fall in big holes or run out of oxygen, but the sense of tension this game is capable of instilling is unreal.  That and the mystery gets really good after about the first thirty minutes of playing.

I am so excited to see where the game goes from here.

DAUNTLESS

I’ve written about Dauntless before, so my thoughts on the game as an early access product are pretty well documented.  But, it did recently get a full release on PC, PS4 and Xbox One, which warrants a little bit of discussion.

Since it released, I’ve only been able to play it once.  The servers have been getting hammered by the ridiculously high amount of people trying to play the game.  That’s a good sign for the creators I bet, but less fun for me.  But from the one session I did play, the game is still good, and something that I’ll be checking in with periodically.

X-MEN DESTINY

I don’t know what’s wrong with me, I actively went to the mall the other day to buy this hunk of shit game from 2011.  I remember it being bad, and surprise, it didn’t age like fine wine.

It sucks too, because X-Men Destiny has a cool concept, where you basically choose a new mutant to become an X-Man, and go on adventures with them.  Unfortunately, everything else in the game sucks shit.  The combat requires you to know just how to hit the X button over and over.  The art is terrible and the game runs like garbage.  Every ounce of “quest design” in the game is lifeless and uninspired.  From tip to toe, this entire game is bad… but I still wanted to play it again.

That’s been my past week in video games.  High highs, and low lows.  But with E3 around the corner, who knows what I’ll be doing with my time outside of just writing things for this website along with the occasional snarky tweet.

THIS IS THE ONLY PICTURE I COULD FIND WITH DING DONGS IN IT!

Oh, and real quick, there’s a game on Steam that’s currently listed as a “top seller” called Bonecraft whose presence on Steam fascinates me.  Not because I’m eager to play it, but just how awful it looks.  The pictures are of Orcs and elves and stuff just boning down.  And I just watched the Steam trailer and it’s worse than anything I’ve ever seen before.  There’s penis monsters and people doing George W. Bush impressions, so I think this game is from like 2006 and is meant to parody World of Warcraft… but with dicks and stuff.

I don’t think I’m exited for E3 or even video games in general anymore.  Maybe I’ll take up knitting.