Ten... console games you may have missed
Playing for keeps
Product Round-up Although the release schedule for console games hasn't been quite as unenventful as its PC counterparts, Q2 has been pretty quiet with the majority of top titles shelved to swamp the autumn setlist.
Indeed, you'd usually expect a steady flow of quality retail games, but this has all but evaporated. While various disappointments still made up the numbers, gathering ten games worth considering has been a tall order. Titles such as Game of Thrones, Doctor Who: The Eternity Clock and Kinect's Steel Battalion all failed to make the cut after disappointing impressions.
Still, with all the, ahem, summery weather of late, I've at least had plenty of time to sit in front of the goggle box, bashing controllers louder than an anti-establishment peace march. So here are ten titles you may have missed to tickle your fancy should you wish to splash the cash.
The Amazing Spiderman
To kick things off with a movie tie-in doesn't bode well, but when it comes to such titles, Beenox's efforts are admirable. Don't get me wrong, there's nothing that amazing at all about the game, but it certainly kept me entertained for hours and oozes more value than a cinema trip to see the flick it's based on.
The Amazing Spiderman is essentially a lighthearted mix of Prototype and Arkham City, two games a mature audience would probably enjoy more. Still, you can at least introduce this one to your kids and aside from a couple of glitchy moments, the line between all three in terms of gameplay is finer than a freshly spun spiderweb. And jumping between buildings Spidey-style has always appealed since the majestic PS2 version first surfaced.
Perhaps it's a result of my initial low expectations, but TAS took me by surprise and could be worth a punt when it inevitably hits the bargain bin in a few months time, particularly if you're a superhero aficionado.
Dirt Showdown
Following last year's highly rated Dirt 3, is this arcade-style spin-off fresh with wacky modes and stunt-packed thrills. While the game itself feels more of an expansion pack for Dirt 3's explosive rally action, it won't disappoint, particularly if you enjoy gymkhana trials, reckless driving and automobile carnage.
Showdown revs on the starting blocks without a hoard of licensed rally cars and fails to match the impressive physics of Codemaster's third edition, but it's still an exhilarating ride. Controls do feel a little dumbed down, though, with little variation between vehicle specifications, it's never too challenging.
If it was a downloadable expansion pack for under a tenner, I'd highly recommend it for an extra weekend of Dirt action, but until the price drops to single digits, I'd probably give it a miss. Bring back Destruction Derby, I say.
Next page: Dragon's Dogma
COMMENTS
I hate to be that guy, but £2k is phenomenally expensive, even for a brand new extremely high spec gaming PC if you build it yourself.
£600 will do for a good gaming PC. I realise that's still a lot of money, but I'm posting in the interests of accuracy, not sanity. My current machine was about £1300 in total, but it'll last me 4-5 years unless I get the itch to be a bit childish and go spunk more cash on it.
Are you guys allergic to giving a game less than 70%? This is another reason why I can't take you seriously on gaming (the Halo reviews aside...). You basically called several games on this list crap, then gave them 70%. And El Reg is hardly alone in doing this,
This is why I prefer the scoring of people like Angry Joe. Dude isn't afraid to mark your game down. If a game is average, it gets 50%, if it's great it gets 70%, and it has to be ball-bustingly brilliant to get 90% or above. Otherwise you can't differentiate between the scoring on the games, and you end up with a bunch of games with the same score that vary wildly in quality.
TL;DR - knock it off. Stop being afraid to give games crap scores if they're crap.
well at least playing games into your 30's has given you some experience on consoles.
Me too... then I got married had two kids and started again :)
