Another exciting year of gaming lies ahead! With the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One at a mature point in their lifespan, and rumors of their successors looming, this could be the last hurrah for our current gen hardware. Also, with the Nintendo Switch just having gotten Pokemon and Super Smash Bros., where does the platform go from here?
Lots of questions to be answered in the days to come. For now though, here’s a handful of games that I’m looking forward to playing this year!
Part of what make’s the Celeste experience so special is its music. Blending 8-bit chip tune sounds and melodies with acoustic instruments and complex composition makes for a soundtrack that is lush, beautiful, and evocative, all while perfectly setting the tone for the action.
My favourite song of the bunch is “Resurrections”, the track played during the 2nd level of the game. Its melancholy vibe that builds into a panic is one I haven’t stopped listening to long after I set the game aside. The song is particularly effective at being my soundtrack to the moments where I find myself “in my feelings“, as Drake would say. In fact, it’s quickly skyrocketed towards the top of my all-time favourite video game songs list, and may someday reside at the very top. [Note to self, make an all-time favourite video game songs list]
Recently, I discovered this cover of the song performed by Katherine Cordova. Stripping away the synthesizers and downbeat drums, she performs the song with just the piano and still makes it feel just as haunting as the original. I can’t stop listening to this, so I thought I’d share!
Buy the Celeste Soundtrack Now From Amazon.com
While I am no stranger to reviewing bad games for my own site or others, I generally pass on the opportunity to do so. As such, I don’t play a lot of bad games per se. However, even though I go to great lengths to avoid duds, some games just fall short of my expectations. While these games aren’t considered bad in the grander sense, these games did let me down more than any others in 2018.
Representatives from Pokemon, Fire Emblem, and The Legend of Zelda show no mercy to my Ken in this assortment of Super Smash Bros. Ultimate online matches!
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Buy Super Smash Bros. Ultimate for Switch Now From Amazon.com
This fighting Pokemon carries my team as we try and defeat everyone in World of Light!
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Buy Super Smash Bros. Ultimate for Switch Now From Amazon.com
I thought my search for a main character in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate was over before it began. Ryu is one of my all-time favourite video game characters and much of his tool set carries over quite faithfully into this game. However, his reliance on varying button input timings makes him one of the more execution-heavy characters in the game. With so much more for me to learn about the game, now’s not the time to be working about transitioning between regular and feathery button presses for every single combo.
Because of this, I’ve been keeping an eye on the roster as a whole and making preliminary mental notes on who I like based on my time using them in the Classic mode and World of Light. Keep in mind that I am not a Smash Bros. expert, so in no way is this expert analysis. Just what I’ve observed and what I’ve liked so far!
70+ characters, including every single playable character from past iterations. 100+ stages. 800+ songs. Virtually no game has gone to the lengths that Super Smash Bros. has in order to earn the Ultimate moniker. The numbers are certainly there, but does the package come together to create the definitive Super Smash Bros. experience?
The shelf-life for Super Smash Bros. Ultimate will depend entirely my ability to “git gud”. I don’t have to be as good as Mango or HungryBox, but I want to get past the button-mashing stage and have the ability to approach and play the game with purpose. I wasn’t able to do it with Smash 4 due to the high difficulty curve of translating my traditional fighting game skills to this game, along with a lack of commitment to really push forward. But without another competitive game taking away my focus, maybe I’ll finally get there this time.
Helping me and others along the way are some great videos from traditional fighting game players Justin Wong and jmcrofts!
The grind continues! This time, we were able to unlock a bunch of characters in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, including Mega Man, Captain Falcon, Sheik, and more! Thank you to everyone that dropped by the stream and I hope to see you next time @ twitch.tv/inthirdperson!
Buy Super Smash Bros. Ultimate for Switch Now From Amazon.com
Super Smash Bros. Ultimate seemingly has everyone on its roster. But does it have Jesus? Fight of Gods does.
First released as a Steam Early Access game in 2017, Fight of Gods already had a novel concept going for it, as it’s a fighting game where Gods of different faiths duke it out. But it really caught the spotlight (and my attention) when Jesus was added to the roster. There’s a sizable portion of the world that’s going to take offense to his inclusion in any game, let alone one where he’s battling other Gods. As such, I never thought this game would see the light of day on a console.
But surprise! In Asian regions (or if you have an Asian eShop account), you can buy Fight of Gods on the Nintendo Switch eShop today. Also, based on the tweet from the developers above, the game is coming out in English, though they specifically don’t mention in what region. I’m hopeful for a North American release, but I wouldn’t be surprised if that never sees the light of day in the western world.
In Third Person 