Pinball special!

Date played: June 30th
Platform: PS3/Vita
Session fun rating: 9/10

I bought a bunch of pinball tables for Zen Pinball 2 and tried out the free tables I got for Pinball Arcade, both available on PS3 and Vita. While it's a bit harder to see the details on Vita, these types of games lend themselves well to the handheld. Pinball Arcade has four real tables, the best of which is Theater of Magic. For Zen Pinball 2, I bought the Avengers pack which features The Avengers, The Hulk, The Silver Surfer and some God from Thor. I also bought three Star Wars tables and a Street Fighter table.

The Empire Strikes Back is a great table!

My favorite so far is the Clone Wars table as it has tons of fun features and cool ramps. The Avengers table is also a lot of fun. I don't really like the Street Fighter one too much... it doesn't have enough fun stuff in it. Either way, I'm really happy I bought Zen Pinball and will probably buy more tables later.

New Super Mario Bros U

Luigi next?

Date played: June 30th
Platform: Wii U
Session fun rating: 6/10

I played the first four levels of the game with my two people to check out the Wii U. They liked the game itself and had a lot of fun tapping the screen to add blocks to the levels. I think I should buy that Luigi DLC.

Rayman Legends demo

Date played: June 30th
Platform: Wii U
Session fun rating: 8/10

I played through the demo (AGAIN!) with a friend to show off the Wii U and my new 55 inch tv! There's really nothing I can add that I haven't said about this demo before except that I can't wait for it to come out...

The Last Of Us

Pittsburgh

Date played: June 29th
Platform: PS3
Session fun rating: 10/10

We found a working truck after escaping the high school! After a gauntlet of enemies in the way of a rolling start, we finally left Bill and his town and reached Pittsburgh. That's when we got ambushed by a bunch of nasty gangsters. After losing the truck in the ambush, we started making our way towards a large bridge to escape the city. This included a ton of abandoned security checkpoints and human enemies. 

The Last Of Us

Date played: June 27th
Platform: PS3
Session fun rating: 9/10

I met Bill. After navigating some nasty traps, including an amazing shooting segment where Joel is suspended in the air upside down, we finally got to talk to the crazy dude. Bill is definitely a character... He and Ellie have enjoyed many arguments, including Ellie flipping him the bird. He has a great setup in the town and was able to provide Joel with much needed supplies. He owes Joel a big favor, so now we are on a sort of treasure hunt to find parts that will help us fix a car to continue our journey west.

Joel got a lot of upgrades from Bill's stuff. I can now use a shiv twice before it breaks, I can make explosive scissor mines, I added a scope to my rifle, got a shotgun that fucking destroys enemies, upgraded listening mode and health and expanded my weapon slots so I can carry two pistols and two long guns without using the backpack. I feel a lot more powerful now, which I needed for the next few segments. I used the bow a few times but it's a bit hard to aim. Fortunately, it takes out regular enemies in one shot so it's useful to clear the way to a clicker.

A Bloater

I killed dozens of infected and clickers, mostly using stealth. We reached the town's school, which is supposed to have parts we need, when I encountered a new enemy, the Bloater. This is a person that has been infected a very long time. This was the first boss of the game. He is pretty dumb as all he does is lob spore grenades and charge blindly. I fucked up a few times though, he killed me twice before I got the hang of it. The big guys rip off Joel's jaw if they get too close. It looked amazing! 

The Last Of Us

Date played: June 25th
Platform: PS3
Session fun rating: 8/10

Bill's Town

I didn't have much time to play games but I still managed to get through the woods. I had to take out a couple of clickers but nothing too crazy. This was more of an exploration level. When I reached the village where Joel's friend lives, I was given the opportunity to search a few buildings, including a record store and a shitty restaurant. There are tons of hints that Joel's friend is close such as a rocking chair and rifle on top of a truck, warnings painted on the walls and even some tripwire activated explosives. I also found a bow but haven't had a chance to use it yet. It seems Ellie is really interested in that thing but so far, Joel won't let her touch it. Hopefully, we meet Bill soon!

The Last of Us

Date played: June 24th
Platform: PS3
Session fun rating: 9/10

Joel, Ellie and Tess continued their progress towards city hall, where Ellie has to be dropped off. After a bit of navigation in the streets, we were forced to go through a small museum. The place was crawling with Clickers. I took out one with a shiv and I herded the other two towards an area where I could burn them with a molotov. Once we got out, after a few instances of plank and ladder navigation, we reached City Hall. The area was a bit flooded though and I learned that Ellie can't swim.

Once inside, it was evident that there wasn't a soul left alive from the group... These events triggered one of the best scenes in the game so far. I won't spoil anything, but the acting is simply amazing. I really felt the emotion of the characters, like you do in a good movie or play. They had to make hard decisions that had a lot of weight to them, themed around "the greater good". Either way, Joel and Ellie had to leave Tess behind in a very emotional scene.

Tess's actress is amazing...

Joel and Ellie then had to fight their way through City Hall, now filled with armed and armored guards. I also picked up my first rifle, though I haven't used it yet. I took down all the soldiers stealthily by just sneaking around and strangling them. I received my first upgrades too. I chose to upgrade one of my revolver's fire rate and Joel's weapon sway.

The last segment I played was a flooded subway station. This proved to be most boring chapter in the game. I mean, they are combining a water level and a train level and manage to make it feel like a fucking sewer level. It was uninteresting and ugly... We made it out after taking out a few soldiers and using a wooden pallet as a raft for Ellie to get across some areas since she can't swim. We are now in the woods outside the city, trying to reach one of Joel's friends who owes him a favor. It seems he might be able to get us a car so we can continue our journey west. 

Tetris Axis

Date played: June 22nd
Platform: 3DS
Session fun rating: 5/10

Yup. This is Tetris all right.

X-Men Pinball

Date played: June 22nd
Platform: Arcade
Session fun rating: 10/10

This pinball is beautiful

I guess this isn't really a video game... but whatever. I was at the movie theatre to watch Monsters University (it was amazing!) and decided to spend a buck on a game while waiting. I chose the best thing in the whole damn place. This is easily the most fun I've had with a pinball game in a while. For a dollar, one play, I managed to keep it going for about 10 minutes! The thing has lots of ramps, multi-ball, a giant Wolverine and a towering Magneto.

The Last of Us

Date played: June 21st
Platform: PS3
Session fun rating: 9/10

I had my first encounter with a clicker, as well as it's humanoid fungal cohorts. The clickers require a shiv for a one hit stealth kill. The secret though, is that these fuckers are blind, that means I can use the flashlight, I can move slowly around them and I can bait them easily with bricks and bottles. However, they have an amazing sense of hearing and will kill Joel in a single hit.

Joel is about to die folks.

The encounter took me a few tries as I first drew too much attention, then I walked too quickly. After that I ran around like a chicken trying to kill them with a piece of lumber. Finally, I made it through by stealthily taking out the clickers and infected, keeping the shivs for the former. I fabricated health kits, shivs and molotov cocktails using items found in the world. The molotov made it possible for me to take out three clickers with shivs, two with a molotov and the three infected with strangles or melee.

Whew! Our three person group made it a little closer to the town hall, the maguffin of the story so far. 

Yoshi's Island

This is the first game I ever bought with my own money

Date played: June 21st
Platform: 3DS
Session fun rating: 7/10

I played a little bit of Yoshi's Island before going to bed. I loved this game as a teenager so of course, it brought back memories. It still plays well though. I played through the first four levels, nothing challenging really. The highlight was the fourth level, a castle, which featured the funny blue bouncing men that spew starmen when shot. 

Mario vs Donkey Kong

The last level felt like this

Date played: June 20th and 21st
Platform: 3DS
Session fun rating: 8/10

I finished Mario vs Donkey Kong! At least, I finished the main story. World 6 was very difficult, forcing me to restart and scratch my head more than once. The mini Mario level was particularly devilish, combining the pied-piper mechanics with switches, conveyor belts, spikes, electric beams and even a garbage can used as a stepping stone. The DK level was pretty easy as it had me step on switches to route a Bob-omb to DK's head, all while avoiding electricity beams.

At the end, because DK's bag of tricks is empty, Mario, the minis and three toads mock DK. He responds by kidnapping the three toads and challenging Mario to one last battle. The level was very reminiscent of the original Donkey Kong game. I had to find three keys to unlock the Toad's prisons, then wait for them to deliver an over-sized barrel meant for DK's noggin. After three hits, he went down. I was surprised to see more levels appear after the ending, a sort of "Plus" mode. Honestly, I'm happy with what I've played and will probably never touch the extra stuff.

Grid 2

Date played: June 19th
Platform: PC
Session fun rating: 6/10

Fuck, I can't seem to get any better at this game. I couldn't manager a podium today... in fact, I placed 5th in one of the races and got trounced in all others. I'd say my average position was about 9th place which is awful. It might also have a lot to do with the fact that the races were mostly Tier 3, for which I only have a Dodge Charger, a powerful but bulky car. It's acceleration is garbage... It wouldn't be so bad if I was allowed to buy a new car but I'm only level 5 and Tier 3's unlock around level 8. Also, I played with assholes today. There was this Boston guy arguing with some sort of hick dude throughout three races. They also distracted others in the race as they would often just ram into random cars instead of racing the fucking track. I got frustrated and quit.

Mario vs Donkey Kong

Date played: June 19th
Platform: 3DS
Session fun rating: 8/10

I played through World 5 and beat up DK with some Bob-ombs. The little black explosives come out of canons throughout the level which I then had to carry to the top of conveyor belts to throw at DK. The mini-Mario level also had Bob-Omb's that could take out my minis pretty easily. I finally found the perfect path that let me through safely. I really like this game and I expect I will complete it soon, unless the last world is the devil.

Lego City Undercover

Woo!

Date played: June 19th
Platform: Wii U
Session fun rating: 8/10

I played through one mission and explored a new area for a bit. Chase is still working his way up in the Triads. To prove his driving skills, he was tasked with driving a very rich and snobby guy from his hotel to the theater. I got into the limousine, drove to his pick up spot and rescued him from the paparazzi. The mission was supposed to be about avoiding them while driving the guy to the theater and I saw them chase us on the mini map but I never once saw them in the streets. The best part of the mission is the awesome dialogue between Chase and the rich dude.

I also explored a new part of the city, a sort of Malibu looking place, filled with sandy beaches, beautiful buildings, cute little shops and an amusement park. Aside from the usual brick collecting, I also built a roller-coaster and rode it to get some secret items. The perspective comes in close and shows Chase waving his arms in the air, yelling "Woo" over and over again, it was definitely worth the bricks!

Mario vs Donkey Kong

This is a lot harder than it looks.

Date played: June 18th
Platform: 3DS
Session fun rating: 8/10

Holy shit, this game got hard fast. World 5 is definitely a step up from the rest of the game. I struggled with one section in particular that had me throwing a key around conveyor belts that were also blocked by red and blue platforms. It took me a while and four Game Overs before I even figured out what to do. I died mostly to the timer running out.

The solution was to throw a key on one of the conveyor belts and make a quick run through the top of the level to get back to the appropriate switch. The problem is that it's there is absolutely no room for mistakes in the platforming after dropping the key since it also has a timer on it. I eventually made it through but it took me a long fucking time. I made it all the way to 5-5, though I definitely spend more time on each level now that I did at the beginning. 

Yoshi

Japanese Yoshi approves

Date played: June 18th
Platform: Wii U
Session fun rating: 7/10

I've played Yoshi extensively throughout my life. When I was a dating my first girlfriend as a teenager, the NES version served as a time killer when I had to wait for her. She had this old NES in her basement with Yoshi, SMB3 and a few others. Years later, I played some Yoshi on 3DS as part of the ambassador program. This week, I bought the 30 cent version on Wii U and played about 15 minutes. It all came rushing back to me and after a bit of a stumble in my first round, I managed to get to level 10 on my second attempt. The game has really interesting mechanics but I feel like it's best played in short intervals.

The Last Of Us

Date played: June 17th
Platform: PS3
Session fun rating: 10/10

Incredible. Simple incredible.

Naughty Dog has just released The Last Of Us, a stealth action game set in a post-fungal apocalypse world. The game has one of the strongest openings in a video game, it's up there with the first five minutes of Dead Space 2. It starts 20 years before the game proper, with Joel living a normal life with his teenage daughter. His daughter is the first controllable character. She wakes up to a phone call during the night from her uncle who seems distressed. She starts looking for her dad who comes in the house, yelling that they need to leave as the neighbors are acting weird. Then the neighbor crashes through the window and Joel has to shoot him to protect himself. They escape and make it to a police checkpoint. Tragically, the daughter is shot by the officer as they think she is infected.

What makes the whole thing great is the presentation and atmosphere. It feels....real. First, the graphics are jaw-dropping. The attention to detail is insane and really makes the world feel believable. The character's face animation is stunning too, relaying their emotion very well. Combined with amazing acting, it makes everything feel super polished.

The Last Of Us starts really strong

20 years after the intro, Joel is some sort of smuggler who is working with a girl named Tess. They are after a guy named Raymond for some reason. It seems he may have stolen some of Tess's gear or something. There's also a group called the Fireflies that seems to be some sort of organized resistance. It's not quite clear yet. Either way, Joel and Tess made their way to Raymond's hideout and that's where the actual gameplay started. This is a stealth game so far. Joel crouches behind cover and walks around slowly, trying to take down guards without getting shot too much. Ammo is extremely limited and I've had to rely on silent takedowns, shivs, wooden planks and even bricks to take down enemies.

The stealth is enhanced with a "listening" mode, where Joel can focus on his hearing to see where enemies are when they make sound. It works really well and I like the mechanics so far. The shooting is a little stiff but it works and feels powerful. We got to Raymond, he told us he got a deal with the Fireflies and sold them our weapons. This resulted in a bullet to the head from Tess. We then found a person that would help us recover our weapons in exchange for a delivery job. The catch is that the cargo is a 14 year old girl, Ellie. She was infected by the virus but is not turning into a monster, which is probably why she is so valuable. Joel is now tasked with bringing the girl outside the city safely. I cannot fucking wait to play more of this game...

Mario vs Donkey Kong

Date played: June 17th
Platform: 3DS
Session fun rating: 9/10

This game is getting better and better, even if it's now a lot harder than the first few worlds. I've completed the last few levels of World 3, played through World 4 and started World 5. World 3 was pretty easy and simple throughout, with the simplest boss fight yet. It's called Fire Mountain and of course, features a bunch of lava all over the place. I had to navigate areas that had rising and falling lava, ferrying keys up and down some switch activated platforms. I also met some fiery birds that dropped flaming turds.

Flame-throwing Shy-Guys and birds that shit fire

World 4 is called Spooky house. Obviously, this part features some Boo's as it's pretty much just set in a ghost house. I also had to avoid Thwomps, the falling stone monoliths. I was forced to use more advanced techniques in this world. Things like throwing keys, back-flipping and using switches to create platforms out of ghosts. The puzzles were good, challenging and not frustrating, with the exception of one that had a stray ghost that kept getting in my way. I made lots of mistakes too and got a couple of Game Over screens as a reward... The boss battle was all about picking up shy-guys at the right time to throw them at DK. It was pretty easy.

World 5 is called Mystic Forest and introduces a new switch that controls the direction of conveyor belts in the level. Of course, I had to use those to bring a key to the door, but I also had to use block switches to make a path. There is also an enemy type that can push Mario through small openings since he can't crawl. Add all those things into a level and you have an interesting puzzle. 

Call of Duty Black Ops 2

I felt like this chick when using a shotgun

Date played: June 17th
Platform: PS3
Session fun rating: 6/10

I played a few matches but I was kind of absent-minded and not very awake... Needless to say, I didn't quite perform as well as usual, even scoring an abysmal 2/12 in my worst match. I also tried a shotgun but hated it fiercely. I managed only one kill with it, it really doesn't fit my style at all... The only match where I did pretty well was on Studio, the Firing Range remake. 

Mario vs Donkey Kong

Mario vs DK is btter than expected

Date played: June 16th
Platform: 3DS
Session fun rating: 9/10

Mario vs Donkey Kong is a Game Boy Advance game that I received as part of the 3DS ambassador program. I played through the first two worlds and a good chunk of the third. There are only 6 worlds as far as I can tell so this should be a pretty short game, though some of the puzzles are starting to get pretty difficult.

This is a puzzle platformer that has Mario getting a key to a door, gathering collectible gifts and saving miniature Mario clones. There are also special levels where Mario controls the mini-Marios and has to bring them safely to a toy box. The last level of each world featured a battle against DK himself. The first one was very simple, but the second fight had me throwing barrels at him from platforms while avoiding attacks. This game is surprisingly addictive and fun.

Final Fantasy VI

Uh?

Date played: June 16th
Platform: Vita
Session fun rating: 4/10

Everytime I leave an old school RPG for more than a couple of weeks, I forget where I left off. I should have checked out this blog to see what I was supposed to do, which was to return to Zozo to see Celes again. Instead, I used my airship to explore the world a bit. I found a few little towns but nothing useful. I did manage to find a new Esper though, it was given to me by a hidden citizen in one of the towns...

Fire Emblem Awakening

Date played: June 16th
Platform: 3DS
Session fun rating: 9/10

I finished Fire Emblem Awakening! I first played through Paralogue 22 and a few random battles though. Paralogue 22 was the most interesting of the free DLC missions. It pit my team and Aversa (the dark witch) against an evil twin team. The other team consisted of copies of every unit I had on the field. That meant I had a crew of fucking bad ass enemies to beat. Thankfully, they don't pair up so I paired up everyone, put my strongest units at the head of a choke point and took out the opposing team one by one. Gerome and My Unit were by far the toughest to beat, both having high defense, resistance and amazing avoidance.

After a few random challenges, I checked out Paralogue 23 but it seemed more like a bonus mission than anything else because it featured an obscene amount of units, something like 30 or so. I don't have enough depth to take out a strong team of that size so I just skipped the mission and went to the last battle.

Chrom and Lissa in the epilogue

The last fight wasn't very hard, but it had to be completed quickly as the fell dragon Grima calls in reinforcements every turn. If not dealt with quickly, I could have been overwhelmed. I also had to choose whether to kill off Grima forever by using my unit or sealing him away for a few hundred years with Chrom's blade. I chose to end the madness and sacrificed my unit to kill Grima. During the credits, I read eulogies from all my fighters, a nice touch. There was a short epilogue suggesting that my unit survived and was found by Chrom and Lissa put it wasn't super clear.

This is easily my favorite game of this year. After 47 hours of play, I'm really happy I bought this. Nintendo really knows how to create interesting games, I wish they would have more mechanics heavy titles like Fire Emblem. Maybe they will revive Advance Wars?

Outrun 2 SP

Racing cabinets fucking rock

Date played: June 15th
Platform: Arcade
Session fun rating: 8/10

I spent the day at La Ronde in Montreal, a large amusement park. Of course, it has an arcade (it actually has two...) with a ton of cool games, though most of them are at least 5 years old. I saw the Outrun 2 SP two player cabinet from a distance and decided to play it right away. I love racing games in general, but in an arcade, I love them even more!

I managed to play the default event all the way to the 5th and final leg of the race but ran down the checkpoint clock before I could finish... I had a lot of fun playing, mainly because my daughter was sitting on my lap for a good chunk of the race. I should also mention that the game plays really well, the drifting mechanics are tons of fun to use. This game is perfect for an arcade, I just wish it had better graphics.

Grid 2

Date played: June 13th
Platform: PC
Session fun rating: 9/10

I scored my first real online podium!!! My trusty GT-R proved to be enough for me to hold on to 2nd place until the finish line. I lead the race for quite a while but a good player in a BAC Mono passed me during the second lap. This race felt really good, I was in complete control of the car and had a very good, if not impeccable, racing line.

My sexy flowers set the mood before a race

I did well in other races too. I placed 4th many times and never placed below 7. This is my best so far. The Golf always does a good job in the lower classes, but now I've upgraded it all the way to the top end of Tier 1. Interestingly, the cars can be levelled up beyond their initial tier. I've also spent a good amount of time (and in-game money!) on a good custom paint job for the Golf. I would have done it with the GT-R too but the game doesn't allow me to modify it's paint for some reason.

Now, I MUST capture my first win.  

Civilization V

Date played: June 12th
Platform: PC
Session fun rating: 10/10

The Irish are taking over the continent... I fought a very long and strenuous war against China. In fact, I am still nibbling at their last city, a coastal town that they built a few turns before I declared war on them. I did manage to annex both Beijing and Shanghai as well as another small town. Shanghai and the other city weren't too much trouble but Beijing was a fucking bitch to crack. I used mostly cannons, lancers and musket-men to take it over but it cost me a lot of units. The fact that the Chinese built the Great Wall didn't really help matters much. Eventually though, I managed to overpower the city.

My nation of Irish Muslims at war with China

I also conquered the city-state of Prague as it stood in the way of China's last city. They didn't put up a fight. I'm not quite sure of the direction I want to take with this game yet. I think a cultural victory is possible but I have a lot of cities, which makes it harder. I think the scientific victory is the most realistic for this game...

Skullgirls

Date played: June 12th
Platform: PS3
Session fun rating: 9/10

I played about an hour of Skullgirls against my roommate. This was her first time playing this game so it took a few rounds for her to get used to the controls and feel of the game. One thing that always stands out when I boot up Skullgirls is just how fucking amazing the animation is. It's really in a class of it's own...

The Skullgirls

I used a few different characters but as usual, I settled back into using Valentine and Parasol. Valentine really fits my style and Parasol has some cool assists and ranged attacks. I beat my friend in almost matches but a few of them were really fucking close. She managed one win using Pinwheel.

Labyrinth Legends

Date played: June 12th
Platform: PS3
Session fun rating: 2/10

This game sucks

I got Labyrinth Legends for free as part of the PS Plus program. Long story short, this game's local multiplayer mode sucks donkey balls. I didn't try the single player but my roommate and I tried the three modes included. This game is played from a top-down perspective in single screen arenas. Survival mode pit us against increasingly difficult enemies until we died. The combat all melee and only features two attacks, at least as far as I could make out. This mode was the most boring as the game doesn't "feel" good when fighting. Domination mode was even stupider, though definitely more fun, as it was basically a 1 vs 1 button mashing battle. The best mode was Treasure Hunt which had us navigate a maze to gather a gold pile. Since gold respawns after every pickup, the mode feels a bit like Pac-Man in a lot of ways. Also, the art style is shitty and the graphics are not interesting.

Civilization V

Date played: June 11th
Platform: PC
Session fun rating: 10/10

ONE.

MORE.

FUCKING.

TURN.

This game has a way of redirecting 100% of my mental capacity into playing it. It's amazing how time becomes a fucking joke in the face of Sid Meier's epic humanity building tool.

Irish muslims hehehe

I picked a random leader and random attributes again, this time playing as the Irish. I built a strong, peaceful civilization around the west coast of a very large continent. Edinburgh grew into a large metropolis that fed the growth of 5 more cities. So far, China has been my main threat since they are large, powerful and sitting on my borders. They haven't moved on me though.

I made a very religious and cultural civilization and have a few wonders including the pyramids and The Great Lighthouse. I decided to make my Irish found Islam.... Lol. I've now reached the renaissance and can't wait to finish this game.

Grid 2

Date played: June 11th
Platform: PC
Session fun rating: 10/10

I finally did a bit better in Grid's online mode. I really think there's a tiny player pool in the racing playlist because I'm starting to know a couple of dudes. I'm beginning to recognize their individual play styles and cars. I also remember when they try to fuck me over by bumping me.

I lead a race for more than 2 laps but made a small mistake halfway through the last lap and ended in 4th. I managed a few more 4th and 5th place races and made it to level 4. I upgraded my Golf and had great success with the Nissan GT-R. I like this game a lot, I just wish I was better at it. The skill level online is pretty damn high compared to other games...

Modnation Racers

Accurate

Date played: June 11th
Platform: PS3
Session fun rating: 9/10

I played half a dozen races in split screen against my roommate and her friend. We only used the stock tracks and one downloaded track. The stock tracks are well balanced but honestly, they get boring pretty quickly. I made myself a little white dude with freaky eyes and a gigantic horn in the middle of his forehead. I also made him a spartan car that looks a lot like a Super Mario Kart vehicle.

I won all but one of the races we had... I've always been a good racer in video games and MNR rewards that. My roommate defeated me once with a nice clean race and some smart shooting. We had a few close races and had tons of fun. Her friend didn't fare as well and was 6th in almost every race. Better luck next time!

Bioshock Infinite

Date played: June 10th
Platform: PS3
Session fun rating: 7/10

Skyhookin'

I played through a short portion of the game, though honestly, nothing of note really happened. This was a basic explore and shoot section. I did pick up a new vigor, a murder of crows that stuns enemies. It was useful in some of the larger battles I had while exploring this section. I also learned how to fight while on the sky hook rail system. Basically, instead of just jumping from one spot to the next, I was able to travel through the city by riding the rails, similar to what was done in Metroid Prime 3. The difference is that in Bioshock, I am able to control the speed of my character and shoot enemies on the fly. It works well and feels fucking amazing. I hope there's a bit of story soon...

Fire Emblem Awakening

Close call on Paralogue 20...

Date played: June 10th
Platform: 3DS
Session fun rating: 8/10

I saved Emmeryn! I played through Paralogues 20 and 21, peppered with some random battles. Paralogue 20 was very long as I didn't want to lose any characters along the way. I took my time, built a solid fortress of units around Emmeryn and stood my fucking ground until all I had left was the boss. I had a few close calls, including having Cordelia at 3 HP and Maribelle at 4 HP but eventually, we made it and recruited the powerful sage.

Paralogue 21 was about a swordsman, I think he is one of my characters father. However, I didn't bring the right character with me and wasn't able to recruit him. The mission itself was a refreshingly easy map. After all the craziness of Paralogue 20, it was really nice to crush the opposition once more.

Call of Duty Black Ops 2

Date played: June 10th
Platform: PS3
Session fun rating: 5/10

Bah, I just killed some time with some online multiplayer. I did very well on Carrier, the cruise ship and Studio. I also finally took down another player controlled vehicle with my anti-air rockets, leaving only five more to get it's gold camo... I'm up to level 29 on my first prestige.

Kirby's Adventure

High Jump!

Date played: June 8th and 9th
Platform: Wii U
Session fun rating: 8/10

I played through worlds 3 and 4 of Kirby's Adventure. This game has it's flaws, but it's still the first time in a while I've played a NES game for more than 10 minutes... World 3 is called Butter Building and honestly, I don't remember anything special about it except that it was pleasant and calm. World 4 was a bit of a bitch though. I started dying in this world, mainly due to bottomless pits and more enemies in each screen.

The boss is the one that really got to me though. One of the abilities Kirby can gain is High Jump. The boss is a huge lightning cloud with an eye that floats around and tries to zap the little pink dude. I didn't realize that High Jump could actually damage enemies so I went through 6 lives before I understood the fight... I feel like an idiot but I finally made it through once I understood how to use High Jump!

Fire Emblem Awakening

Min Max time!

Date played: June 7th
Platform: 3DS
Session fun rating: 8/10

I played through a shit ton of random battles just to get a few level ups, to improve my supports and to increase my secondary weapon skills on some of my units. A few of my characters are starting to reach the cap on certain stats so I think I should just finish the damn game but I love it too much....

I also tried Paralogue 20 which amazingly, featured the return of Chrom's royal sister, Emmeryn. She is disoriented, talks like a child and doesn't recognize her family. Of course, a battle follows and I have to rescue her. Unfortunately, I didn't expect every single unit on the map to rush her and kill her in two hits
. I will have to use a tactic similar to Tiki's chapter where I had to surround her with units to protect her. 

Grid 2

Date played: June 4th
Platform: PC
Session fun rating: 7/10

I played exclusively online this time and managed some better finishes, usually around 4th or 5th. I'm starting to get a feel for the tracks and how other players play. I bought my first new car with the little amount of money I've been awarded from races. I went with the Volkswagen Golf GTI hatchback. It handles well, has a good amount of power. I'm still just level 2 though, I'm having a hard time getting a podium finish...

Call of Duty Black Ops 2

Date played: June 5th
Platform: PS3
Session fun rating: 10/10

Barbarian Conquest 101 *Black Ops 2 edition*
Serves 2 players

-Start with a 19-1 kill streak
-Add cheers from your roommate and teammate
-Finish your first game 25-4
-Keep being fucking badass all night
-Enjoy badass effect propagation through roommate's performance
-Dance a little bit between rounds
-Stay focused
-Stay hydrated (I choose Gatorade)
-Keep your chin up when you get killed
-Don't sprint
-Get out while you're on top

GG

Grid 2

Date played: June 3rd
Platform: PC
Session fun rating: 8/10

I played almost exclusively online as the AI, as usual, sucks in this game. It just doesn't look anything like what real players are playing like. Sure, it looks a lot like a real car would normally drive, but playing online reveals that real players know this is a video game, and that makes it a lot more fun.

Screen capture provided by roommate :-)

Online, people are a bit dangerous. Everyone seems to try their best with a few exceptions who cause crashes for no reason. However, most crashes seem pretty damn natural to me. In fact, I've crashed so many times that I can start to believe everyone plays like a gentleman. Either way, I ended up in the back half of most races. I managed a couple of fourth and fifth finishes but most of the time, I was in the seventh to tenth range. The faster cars are extremely difficult to handle at times but also provide some fucking awesome sequences! I am only a level 2 player which severely limits my options but I'm sure I'll get better in time.

Fire Emblem Awakening

Date played: June 2nd and 3rd
Platform: 3DS
Session fun rating: 10/10

Walhart is a fucking asshole...

I played through chapter 25, the last before the end boss. I also completed Paralogues 18 and 19, along with some scattered random challenge battles.

Chapter 25 was quite dramatic but not very difficult at all. I just trampled through the trashy enemies on the way to the boss, Aversa, Validar's....partner? Paralogue 18 wasn't really difficult either as it had pretty weak enemies. Gangrel, one of the early bosses, is among the enemies and he seems like a defeated man. I spoke to him with Chrom, but unusually, he didn't quite join my team right away. I had to speak to him three times before he finally agreed and I could kill the boss.

Walhart is the motherfucking king of red lobsters

Paralogue 19 was a whole other ordeal though. It was easily one of the hardest levels in the game so far. The enemies are very numerous and pretty damn strong. While one of them is far from being a threat to any on my team, two are very dangerous to some of my weaker units. It took three failed attempts before I could survive until the end with all characters alive. In my first attempt, the reinforcements surprised me. In the two following tries, Lissa, my main healer, died. I finally paired her up with Sully who has high defense to bolster her survivability. I also abandoned the idea of splitting my team up into small groups. I just moved like a little, 12 headed turtle. When Walhart finally got close without killing anyone, I took him down easily with Gerome, my now overpowered flying axeman.

Super Street Fighter IV Arcade Edition

Dhalsim vs Cammy

Date played: May 31st
Platform: PS3
Session fun rating: 8/10

I played some SSFIV with my room mate and one of her friends. Both of them are very novice but they both picked up the basics very quickly. Soon enough, I had to make an effort to win. I won a lot at first, using any character really, but as the girls got a bit better, I had to start fighting for real. Then it happened. One of them beat me while I was using Dhalsim... This was a huge blow to my ego so I made sure that it wouldn't happen again by being very very careful in my next fights.