Trackmania Turbo VR (PSVR)

Date Purchased:  April 4, 2018
Date Completed:  April 16, 2019
Price: Free (PS+)

I'm really itching for a VR racing game after spending a few hours of this completing the campaign and getting gold on all 40 tracks.  This is the single greatest sense of immersion I've ever experienced in a game.  It's truly amazing.  The only downfall is how short it is, I wish the whole game could be played in VR.  Recommend @ free (duh) but probably not worth buying unless it's less than $5.

Until Dawn: Rush of Blood (PSVR)

Date Purchased:  November 18, 2017
Date Completed: April 16, 2019
Price: Free (PS+)

Wow, 2 years on the old pile and I finally finished it.  I recently picked up a used Playstation VR, and I downloaded this freebie.  I didn't particularly love it, the aesthetic is horrifying and I didn't want my young children to be tempted to play it.  Essentially it's an on rails shooter set in the Until Dawn universe.  The original game is much better but I had a pretty good time with this game.  It's a shooting gallery, has some neat concepts, but the experience ultimately feels pretty flat and repetitive.  It's hard to get into the setting with colorful targets all around you as ride around in a cart.  The final boss was neat but ultimately frustrating.  After the first level the game doesn't throw much "new" at you.  If you happened to get it for free it's worth a shot, but if you need to put money down on it, pass.

Apex Legends (PS4)

Date Purchased:  February 4, 2019
Date Completed: April 17, 2019
Price: Free to Play

I fell in and out of Apex Legends pretty quick.  It seems like the rest of the internet did as well.  No doubt the game is still popular, but the aspirations to overtake Fortnite are over by this point.  This is another "battle royale" where 100 players drop into a map, this time however, you're put into squads of 3.  It's fun with peers, but I never found the game enjoyable solo.  It has a great cast of characters, cool weapons and abilities, but after 100 games or so, I really tired of looting for 10 minutes only to die in 10 seconds.  Maybe I'll come back one day, and at "free" it's definitely worth the price of admission.  I even bought the first battle pass as a "tip" to the developers.  Recommend.

New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe (Switch)

Date Purchased: January 11, 2018
Date Completed: February 24, 2019
Price: $79.99

I've reviewed both Super Mario U, and Super Luigi U on their own in the past, and while my thoughts haven't drastically changed on either, this is a good little package with enough minor changes to make the game appealing again, especially with young children.  The addition of playable character Nabbit (who takes no damage but still must platform) to both games is welcome.  The Peachette addition seems insignificant overall, she's basically Mario or Luigi with an acorn powerup.

I have played a significant amount of the game with my twin 5 year olds.  I said to my wife last night that they are going to hold nostalgia for this game like I do for Super Mario 3.  They love it and play it constantly, and for that alone, it was worth the price of admission for me.  Recommend.

Troll level 100. My 5 year old twins are/were Mario and Luigi. #SuperMario #NSMBUD #NintendoSwitch pic.twitter.com/dwOFLtySc9

— Jeff Plays Games (@classicgamedude) February 25, 2019

Super Smash Bros. Ultimate (Switch)

Date Purchased: December 25, 2018
Date Completed: February 12, 2019
Price: $79.99 (eShop)

You never really finish these games, but I've put enough time in to know it's a classic.  It has caused many many wars in our house, lots of tears shed, makes for a great game no?  My oldest boy won't even play with me anymore out of anxiety of losing, the middle child can't do it either, so I play with the 5 year old twins a lot.  They're not very good, but the multiplayer is where it's at and I have to play with someone.  I get wrecked online, so I don't really go there, but it's great couch chaos.  A huge roster, incredible charm, just a celebration of gaming really.  Recommend obvi.

Bloodstained: Curse of the Moon (Xbox One)

Date Purchased: February 7, 2019
Date Completed: February 11, 2019
Price: Free (Games with Gold)

Full disclosure, I played this on "casual" difficulty.  I am not a fan of "Metroidvania's" so when I heard this was a Castlevania clone I was apprehensive to even try it, but the difference is, this one was "free".  I gave the game a try and was pretty much hooked knocking it out over 3 sittings.  I didn't find it difficult in the least until the last stage which had me fairly frustrated.

#BloodstainedCurseoftheMoon #XboxShare pic.twitter.com/o43fpQp7t5

— Jeff Plays Games (@classicgamedude) February 5, 2019

I eventually prevailed.  This game is cool, the different abilities keep the game fresh, the graphics are a good mix between 8 and 16 bit with a cool soundtrack.  I liked it, just the right length at a little over 2 hours.  The controls were a little clunky in spots but didn't cause too much aggravation. Recommend.

Spider-Man (PS4)

Date Purchased: December 25, 2018
Date Completed: February 11, 2019
Price: (Free, Pack in)

My son Cole received this game free with his Christmas present, his own PS4, it’s been on my radar for some time so I was happy to finally get to play it.  I took some time to start it, but once I did, I was hooked.  This game has the best mobility of any open world game I’ve ever played.  It’s better than Just Cause, better than the Arkham series, better than Breath of the Wild.  While the environments all appear very similar, just zipping through the city is fun, and it holds up for a long time.  The game looks great, the voice acting is amazing, and the story holds up too.  My only gripe would be the “stealth” sections where you don’t play as Spider-Man.  I understand pace changing, but I think it can be done better, in fact it is done better, AS SPIDER-MAN.  Playing stealthily as Spider-Man?  Fun!  Playing stealthily as Mary Jane?  Web me now.  I enjoyed the puzzle solving mini games and many of the side missions, but when I was approaching the end, I was ready to be done, I felt like the game could have been about 20 percent shorter.  Minor gripes aside it’s a great game, I’m curious to what they’ll do in a sequel to prevent players from feeling like they’ve done all this before.   Highly recommend. 

And a couple screens I took:

#PS4share pic.twitter.com/Ff11IjQrOQ

— Jeff Plays Games (@classicgamedude) January 10, 2019

#PS4share pic.twitter.com/Q0oEqmZLMA

— Jeff Plays Games (@classicgamedude) January 30, 2019