If you were to line-up the amount of hours I’ve sunk into this current generation of gaming I would say I am 80% Xbox and 20% Playstation. Essentially, I play all my third-party games on my Xbox, (because that’s where my friends and family play) but I own a Playstation because of the exclusives they put out year after year.
For some reason, don’t ask me why, I’ve missed the mark on some of Playstation’s biggest releases over the last few years… Since we’ve all been quarantined for the last several weeks, I decided to take advantage of a B2G1 sale at Target to catch up on everything I’ve missed. What games did I pick up during the sale? I grabbed Spider-Man, God of War & Days Gone for $42 shipped.
Once I received my games in the mail I headed right to the forums to see which order I should play these games in. The biggest response I got was, “play them worst to best.” Lining these games up next to each other that meant playing Days Gone, Spider-Man, then God of War. In the end, I didn’t listen to anyone and I went with the word of mouth on how long it took to beat each game, started with the ‘shortest’ and ended with the longer deep-dive. All three of these games were better than I anticipated and I’m shocked it took me this long to play them. I guess something good that came from sitting at home during quarantine is that I got the chance to stop missing out on great games.
Let’s get into my thoughts…
Spider-Man
There have only been a few games that I have actually achieved the Platinum trophy for and this is one of them. I started this game on a Friday afternoon and exactly a week later, I not only beat the game and all three DLC storylines, but locked in the Platinum trophy as well. Looking back at this today, this goes on the short list of PS4 games that immediately immerse you in not only the world, but the gameplay.
Spider-Man exceeded my expectations in every single way! It was amazing to me how addicting the gameplay mechanisms in place were right from the start, let alone deeper in the game when you unlocked all the skills and knew how to attack every encounter. On top of that, the story was great and the graphics were on par, but it was the sheer fun of zipping around the city that forced me to explore every inch of the world; collecting backpacks, chasing pigeons, completing challenges, defeating bases and fighting crime in every district. There were 358 collectibles spread across 15 categories and I completed EVERY SINGLE ONE. If that wasn’t enough, I unlocked and purchased every single suit available in the game too. If I’m being honest, the next few days, after I beat the game, I just logged in roamed around the city, took photos and climbed buildings for a few hours… There was nothing I didn’t do and nothing left to do, I wanted there to be more.
I’m the type of player that will always try to complete side-quests and missions in the games I play. I don’t like barrel through the main story because I feel that, by doing so, you’ll some lose immersion the studio intends you to feel. I know, I know… sometimes the side missions are forgettable and boring in certain games, but not this one. Some of these missions were repetitive, yes, but like I said, just zipping around the city is fun with nothing to do. That was a great distraction for anything that could’ve been negative.
When it comes to what I wanted to see more of? Changes? Things I didn’t like?
I’m surprised to say that there’s nothing that comes to mind at the moment. Were some of the tasks to get the Platinum trophy very repetitive? Yes, but I went the extra mile for that which isn’t mandatory. You could argue that the story is repetitive in general, but like I said before, the gameplay was so fun it masked whatever problems there could have been.
This game knew what it was and it stuck to its core. All in all, Spider-Man wasn’t challenging in comparison to other games I’ve played, but this was one of the most fun games I’ve played in years. I really hope we get a sequel! I’m all in!
God of War
It’s going to be hard to describe how much I enjoyed this game. I think it’s safe to say that this is now the bar for the gaming industry. This game is a masterpiece, it’s no wonder it won Game of the Year, and as far as I’m concerned, it’s one of the best games I’ve ever played in my entire life. Coming off the fun light-hearted Spider-Man, God of War turned everything up a notch. I had never played a game in this franchise before, so it took a bit for me to get used to the controls, figuring out which attacks I liked the most, what worked best in certain circumstances, etc, etc.
As soon as I was comfortable, it was a straight shot to finish line, but this time around it was at a different tone and pace. I enjoyed this game more, took in the scenery, listened intently to the dialogue, turning every corner with a sense of exploration. That’s rare for that to happen so quickly, I cared so much. This is something that continued to unfold and mature as the game progressed. I felt like I was always getting stronger, learning something new, advancing myself and maturing just like the characters were — I was on this journey with them. This is the normal set-up in literally every game ever made, but this time, it felt different.
As soon as I beat the game, I sat there and watched the credits roll in silence. “Did that really just happen?” “Wow! That was beautiful.” “Man, this is what a video game can be in this generation.” “Was that one of the best games ever made?” Once the moment passed, I began exploring the world again tackling everything else that was available to me. I started with the Muspelheim Trials until I climbed to the top of the mountain — then I met and defeated my first Valkyrie (which at the time, was a really hard fight.) From there I lit all the towers, free’d every dragon, opened tears, did every favor available and slowly, but surly, maxed out all of my gear by stacking Mist Echoes in Niflheim.
In-between tackling these tasks, I tracked down more and more Valkyrie until I defeated all eight. The Valkyrie encounters are a very underrated part of this game, every situation is different and challenging in their own unique way. There was a strange sense of accomplishment setting their helmets on their thrones…. until the Queen Valkyrie herself came out — that was the most stressful boss fight I’ve ever encountered. You had to learn every encounter before her, because she possessed them all!
That’s the thing about this game, there is so much to learn, so much to explore and so much to accomplish, even when the game had concluded. When I think about it, I did so much more after ‘beating’ the game, it’s crazy. Like I suggested earlier, every time I tackled something or learned something new, it felt worth it, it felt like I really accomplished something. It’s a strange thing to say, but fighting dragons with epic cutscenes was equally as satisfying as hearing a story from Mirmir while you quietly paddle down a river in a canoe. Who does that!? What game can do that!
When it comes to what I wanted to see more of? Changes? Things I didn’t like?
The only thing about this game that stopped me from pursuing the Platinum trophy was the way you get around not only the map, but the realms. If you’ve played the game, you know that you have to really work your way around to a Gateway to jump to another part of the map. This might not sound like a negative, but the various maps on each realm were so elaborate that it took a chunk of time to get from one place to another; both by foot or canoe. If you wanted to change realms, you not only had to find a Gateway to jump to the Realm Travel Room, but you had to get in, put in the Bifröst, move slot by slot to the new realm you want, select it and wait as it loads into the new realm. This game stuck to its roots, realistically, I don’t want it to be any easier — but it would’ve be nice if you could jump around quicker after you have everything unlocked. (The only reason I don’t go back in to get the Platinum trophy is I don’t want any tediousness to ruin the amazing experience.)
Update: May 25th, 2020 – I went back in and finished out the rest of the achievements and got my Platinum Trophy. Taking a few weeks off from the game and then randomly diving back in one weekend was awesome. Tedious, yes, but never-the-less I got my Platinum!
Beyond that little (non important note), God of War was utterly amazing! It’s more than just a great game, it sets the bar at what new games need to aspire to be! Words really can’t describe how awesome the experience was for me, I can see myself going back and playing the story again… I’d love to relive so many of those scenes.
Forget a sequel to this game, I want four more games building on this relationship and world they’ve created!
Days Gone
This was the only game of the three that had any kind of backlash. Just in my questions prior to playing it, there seemed quite a bit of hate surrounding this game from some. My only conclusion is maybe I got lucky waiting to play it a year later without all the bugs and problems people were dealing with on release?
All I can say is… don’t believe the bad reviews! This game is awesome, I don’t understand almost anything the bad reviews are saying because I didn’t experience almost any of it. At first, the motorcycle and gun gameplay is a little clunky, but as you start to upgrade your bike and achieve better guns everything starts to become seamless. The bike gets faster, more durable and easier to control — plus, finding Nero Research sites increased your health, stamina and focus. The more you play the better you get. Maybe the beginning stages are slow, but it’s not for too long where it could’ve become annoying.
Days Gone is a breath of fresh air for the zombie genre. I’m a big fan of The Walking Dead and I’ve always wanted a game that resembled that world — this did that for me. The story is perfectly paced and side missions are actually worth your time.
Beyond that, the biggest highlight is all the different ways your able to slay zombies; especially the challenge of taking on hordes, which might be the coolest thing I’ve seen in a zombie video game. I know it’s a lot to ask, but this is the type of world I’d love to play online with weekly. (Imagine the likes of Red Dead Redemption & Grand Theft Auto.) I can imagine building out my own camp, attacking waves of zombies and playing with friends online. Can we make that happen? I want to play in this world more.
When it comes to what I wanted to see more of? Changes? Things I didn’t like?
There’s just one thing — crafting materials. I think it’s very strange that you can visit any outpost and arm yourself to the teeth with full ammo for every gun, back-up ammo on your bike, grenades and flash-bangs — but you can’t buy any crafting material. I’m not saying EVERYTHING should be available, but in order to beat horde after horde, you need a lot of Kerosene and Polystyrene… I don’t think this should always be something that’s easily available at the start, but it would be nice after you beat the entire game to have the option to buy some crafting materials. What can it hurt?
As we speak, I’ve achieved 100% in every single story line except for one, Horde Killer (32%). You need a lot of, I mean a lot of Kerosene and Polystyrene if you even want a chance at beating hordes at a moderate pace. I’m really close to getting Platinum on this, I will probably go back in and tackle the rest of the achievements needed.
Update: literally hours after posting this I went back in and cleared the rest of the achievements and officially got my Platinum Trophy! Once I hit 50% on Horde Killer I received the IDF PUP and once I hit 60%, the MG55. A few well placed grenades, a trap or two and killing Hordes are easy peasy.
Beyond that nit-picking, Days Gone completely surpassed my expectations through and through, I loved the story, I cared about the characters, and can we talk about world-building again? The landscapes are gorgeous… just riding around doing nothing is relaxing when you have all the views this game provides!
The story wasn’t as top notch as God of War, but it was still way beyond my initial assumptions about where everything was going to end up. The cherry on top was after I beat the game, I came across the secret ending without any knowledge of it even existing and… WOW! It isn’t the kind of ending that has a stereotypical cliffhanger, it’s a new mind-opening ideal that creates a fresh take on where this world is going into the future. After it happened, I’ve been thinking about where they can go with it ever since… there are so many possibilities!
I really hope there is a sequel to this game. I played this on a standard PS4, I can only imagine what a sequel will look and run like graphically on a PS5. Bend Studio lets make this happen!
In conclusion —
It’s amazing that these three ‘Playstation Only’ games are just part of the list that continues to grow for this current generation. If that wasn’t enough, June will bring The Last of Us 2 and July will bring Ghosts of Tsushima. Those are setting up to be top notch games, and if they aren’t… I’ll be shocked.
I’m lucky enough to be able to own both the Xbox One X and the Playstation 4. Reiterating what I said at the start of the post, “I play all my third-party games on my Xbox, but I own a Playstation because of the exclusives they put out year after year.” Since I already own an Xbox One X, which lets me play my games in 4K with HDR, I’m less interested in the Xbox Series X and more interested in the PS5. I already have a beast-mode of a system from Xbox, now I need those graphics, frames and processing power from Playstation.
The last note; I have never dove into playing games like I did with these three. Being locked down under quarantine has allowed me to do nothing but be inside the worlds of Spider-Man, God of War & Days Gone. If it were just anytime of the year and I bought these games, I would have played them at a more normal, slow pace. Being able to have tunnel vision has allowed me to fully enjoy some magnificent games with no distractions and no days off.
If you’re like me and haven’t played any of these games yet… please do so. I can’t believe I waited so long and fell so far behind. Now I need to figure out what to do for the next few weeks before, hopefully, things start to get back to normal in our world.
Cheers! Stay safe,
Matt.
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