Downwell (Vita)

Date Purchased: October 15
Date Completed: N/A
Price: $1.99


I like Downwell, so much so that I've purchased it twice, once on my phone, and now on PSN.  The PSN version is much better simply due to the physical buttons and tactile controls.  The game play is simple in concept, but difficult to master.  The presentation is also very simple, but it has a good style and a lot of optional variants in terms of palettes etc. The game controls are very tight and you'll be finding yourself saying "one more game" many games later.  I've yet to reach the bottom of the well (very few have, ultra rare trophy of only 3.1% completion), but have unlocked just about everything and am confident I'll get there one day.  Recommend.

Transformers: Devastation (PS4)

Date Purchased: October 1, 2016
Date Completed: October 25, 2016
Price: Free (PS+)

I'd heard mixed things about this game, but as a freebie, it was fantastic.  I was a big Transformers fan as a kid, still can't believe my mom threw all my toys away, at least I'll always have them in my PlayStation account.  The game is ultimately a hack and slash game with some light gun-play, but the graphics and sound are so pleasant and no reminiscent of the cartoon, I had a smile on my face for just about the full 6 hours.  The game play does get a bit repetitive, but it tries to mix things up here and there.  This is ultimately a fighting game where you drive between objectives.  The upgrade system is overly complex and hardly seems worthwhile in some cases (I'm looking at you weapon upgrades) but those things didn't detract from the experience.  Recommend, especially if you're familiar with the 80's cartoon.

DNF: Assassins Creed: Black Flag (Xbox One)

Date Purchased: April 15, 2015
Date Deleted: October 20, 2016
Price: Free (Games with Gold)
Time Wasted:  6 hours

*DNF - "Did Not Finish"

I've always wanted to at least "try" an Assassins Creed game ... and now I have.  I hated this game. I've been persistent and finished a lot of shitty games over the years, but 6 hours in with potentially 20 or more to go, I just couldn't go on with this one.  From the unlikable protagonist, to the convoluted story, the janky controls, the billion meaningless tasks.  Nope.

I hate having an unfinished game on here, but I'm the only one who reads this, so I'll just have to get over my OCD.  This was a launch game, and in that case, probably filled that long drought between releases for many people, those people probably also like pirates and pirate movies.  Me?  I hate pirates (those Caribbean movies all suck) and I never have a drought.  I must admit I did like the sailing and the shanties, but by all means, pass

Gravity Rush (Vita)

Date Purchased: December 2013
Date Completed:  October 17, 2016
Price: Free (PS+)

What a weird game. I remember briefly trying this when I got my Vita and quickly dismissing it, but with the talk of the sequel lately and reading that it's on Kotaku's "best of Vita" list I decided to give it another try.   I remembered in no time why I put it down the first time, the game is really weird.   The gameplay and concepts are cool (at first) but the Japanese Anime story is really, really strange.  Nothing I'm accustomed to.  The open world and ability to shift gravity is nifty, but tires quickly and becomes disorienting.  The combat is just plain bad, and the enemy variety is very thin.  I finished it in a coulple weeks primarily playing at work, but this one will be immediately deleted from my memory stick, and hopefully my personal memory as well.  Pass.

Forza Horizon (Xbox 360)

Date Purchased:  September 1, 2016
Date Completed:  October 8, 2016
Price: Free (Games with Gold)

I really enjoyed my time with Forza Horizon 2, so I was a little suspicious about going "backwards" and playing the original.  I'd heard it was better than the second, so I knew it was worth a shot.  It's great.  It's amazing how well it holds up even by today's standards.  The Xbox 360 era still looks good to me, and is far from "unplayable".   I did find this game to a bit more "restrictive" than the Horizon 2 where you couldn't cut across fields to get to your destination, but the core of the game, the racing, is fantastic.  I achieved first place in every race with only a handful of them giving me any real trouble on the default setting.  The soundtrack was good, but I primarily played this while watching playoff baseball on a second screen.  If you like racing games, this one is worthwhile and has me looking forward to picking up Horizon 3 on the cheap when I can find it on sale.  Recommend.