#the games we played
#the games we played
by Omar (@siegarettes)
Between spending more time in the arcades of Yakuza 5′s Kamurocho, and a general renewed interest in Wii games, I finally returned Namco’s Taiko no Tatsujin series in a big way. Taiko is dead simple, a rhythm game in the strictest sense. There’s one lane, and only two ways to hit a note, inside or outside, red or blue. After all, it’s meant to imitate the performance of Japan’s traditional festival drums of the same name.
M Marko (@em_being)
For the end of the year, we take a look at the Games We Played, and the effects they had on us. This year we’re starting with a piece by friend of the site, M, who is one half of the duo that is the very excellent Abnormal Mapping.
We’re three years past the critical consensus that the dadification of games was upon us, and for all the ink spilled on the issue it seems that games are still just coming into that intersection of creator age and storytelling opportunity, for better or worse. While much of the critique of this not-quite-a-movement has to do with who gets to make games and tell stories, it’s also a critique of the limited view of how protagonists in games can operate. If you aren’t saving someone or something, protecting them becomes the next logical paternalistic step.
By John (@Crono_Maniac)
The Games We Played is a year end round up of thoughts about games we spent time with.
When you put it into the context of the series as a whole, the original Legend of Zelda was something of an anomaly. From A Link to the Past onwards, the games were all interested in telling rich stories, full of intrigue, characters, mysteries, and climactic battles. The Hyrule in the first game feels almost barren in comparison. There aren’t really other characters or even a plot. It’s nothing but you, the monsters, and the mystery of the open wilderness.
The Games We Played is a year end round up of thoughts about games we spent time with.
By Paul @MrHarkinian) and Omar(@siegarettes)
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Paul
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There’s never a dull moment in a Smash Bros games, and that is especially the case with Smash Bros on Wii U and 3DS. Since the launch date, I could not put down my 3DS for a moment. Be it in Smash Run or in For Glory Online mode, the game provides fun and fresh content 100% of the time.
The best part about Smash Bros is that both games are virtually identical, with the Wii U version having a few more features. This is a great thing for two reasons; 1. For those of us who cannot afford a Wii U, the 3DS version is the next best thing. 2. Any sort of combos you learned in the 3DS version can be replicated on the Wii U version. Also, you have the ability to use your 3DS as a controller with Wi-Fi connectivity on the Wii U, so having your 3DS and the game with you just might come in handy.
The Games We Played is a year end round up of thoughts about games we spent time with.
By Omar (@siegarettes)
When Harmonix makes something, I pay attention. Their contributions to the Guitar Hero and Rock Band franchises creates a veneer of commercialization, especially after the former franchise over saturated the market, but look closely and you’ll find a constantly refined craft and passion for both music and games. (A bit perfect for our focus here at clickbliss). These are the people who brought both a new Dance Central title and the beat influenced shoot-em-up A City Sleeps to us this year.
In that context, who else would be better to bring us a 2014 update to Disney's Fantasia? Despite my reservations about how successful a Kinect based Disney game could be, I found it worth at least worth paying attention to with Harmonix at the helm. Besides, I needed something to justify my Kinect purchase aside from Child of Eden and yelling at my squadmates in Mass Effect.
Of course, what really drew me in was the tracklist. Leading with pop hits like Lady Gaga’s “Applause” and Lorde’s “Royals”, moving to well known classical pieces from the Fantasia movies, it then spin offs to Queen, Depeche Mode, Kimbra, and…Jimi Hendrix?
The Games We Played is a year end round up of thoughts about games we spent time with.
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RJ
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I swore to myself I would never touch a Pokémon game ever again since my experiences with Pokémon Y. It wasn’t a bad jRPG per say, but for once I felt that I was simply fatigued with the series that I hold dear to my heart. Then came Pokémon Omega Ruby.
By Omar (@siegarettes)
All screenshots taken using the in-game camera on the PS3 version.
There’s something hollow about Grand Theft Auto V. Upon reaching the story’s conclusion, I found myself left with a sense of dissatisfaction. Even before that I found myself dropping it out of my rotation due to its inane story plotting and thinly justified set pieces. It continually frustrated with prescriptive mission design that led you through interesting moments in uninteresting ways.
The core mechanics have been polished to their finest: the driving dropped the heavy handling of GTA IV for an appropriately Hollywood presentation. The cover system was tightened, with elements from the excellent Max Payne 3 added into the shooting. All of that only served to highlight how staid the moment to moment play of Grand Theft Auto has been. Rockstar provided a world whose structure and mechanics fell apart by themselves. It’s also undoubtedly provided one of the best realized digital worlds ever made.