I Didn’t Get as Owned by Preteens as I Thought I Would: A Fortnite Tale

For the past year or so, one game has ruled both the casual and competitive gaming worlds far above all others - Fortnite, the battle royale extravaganza from Epic Games. Despite being almost everywhere, I had managed to hold out as long as I could since I did not want to get utterly destroyed by a bunch of young kids who had spent every waking hour obsessed with it. However, with the Tuesday release of the education system's greatest nightmare on Nintendo Switch and my recent online success with Rocket League, I decided to finally give it a go. Here are the chronicles from my first night consisting of 10 matches.

Finally Finishing A Link to the Past 27 Years Late and Then Immediately Breaking It

Despite the absurd amount of my life I have spent playing video games, one of the all-time greats, The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past, has continually eluded me. I didn't really get into the Zelda series until the N64 days of Ocarina of Time and Majora's Mask, and I probably thought the giant world of A Link to the Past in the pre-internet guide days was too much for my 6 year old self to tackle (full-disclosure my 33 year old self did indeed use an internet guide to beat this game). Now, at long last, thanks to the SNES Classic and my three weeks of unemployment until I start my new job, I decided it was finally time to check this one off my gaming backlog.

Yoku’s Island Express: The Metroidvania You Never Knew You Needed

The other day, I received a message out of the blue from a friend whose taste in games I trust. He was extolling the virtues of an unconventional new 2D adventure that's a "fusion of pinball and Metroidvania games". Instantly, that mind-blowing and heretofore unprecedented combo had my attention, and I knew I had to at least see how that even works. Plus, when else would I get a chance to play as a dung beetle postal worker in a video game?

Braving the World of Online Gaming with Rocket League

Traditionally, I have always been heavy into single player games. Sure I had many weekends blissfully spent absorbed in Goldeneye as a kid, but for the most part, I'm a loner in the gaming world. Perhaps it's an underlying fear of being found out to be a n00b or uncertainty about my ping, but I haven't really taken to the shift in the gaming industry toward the online games as a service model. After a wonderful evening at work a few weeks back sending off a coworker with a night of Rocket League, I decided it was time to overcome my trepidation about online domination and put myself out into the fierce world of Rocket League multiplayer. To help ease the transition, I chose 3 vs 3 Soccar style which I had recently mastered against AI using my shiny new Switch Pro Controller.

God of War Part 1: God of Damn That’s a Great Game

Five months in to 2018, I was shocked to discover that my front-runner for game of the year is the new Norse-mythology based reboot of God of War. I have to admit that I was not a fan of the original God of War games. While the originals were fun to play, I found the rampant misogyny to be so extremely off-putting that I could never truly get into them (note: I feel the same about Grand Theft Auto). Thankfully, this game is vastly different. In fact the entire premise is based on you respecting your beloved deceased wife's final wishes, and finding a way to protect and raise your son in his harsh new world.

The Definitive Ranking of Colossi

For almost two months, my Nintendo Switch ruled my gaming life with a string of charming Indies and some nice ports. While these games made for some fun late night adventures, I found myself searching for a gaming experience that felt much more grand and truly epic. As a result, I decided it was finally time to try out the recently released remake of one of the most adored games of all time, Shadow of the Colossus. From the second I lifted my ancient sword to guide me toward the first mammoth beast I was to slay, I knew my wish for something truly remarkable was going to be granted. Each creature was magnificent and the challenges seemed daunting but never insurmountable. Over the course of a week, I felled each increasingly elaborate behemoth while bonding further with my faithful steed, Agro, and growing ever closing to resurrecting the poor maiden no matter the cost.

Night in the Woods: The Game That Was 8 Years Too Late

2010 me would have thought Night in the Woods was among the greatest games ever. He would have found a perfect place to slide this in to his pop cultures favorites alongside  the quirk-fests 500 Days of Summer, Scott Pilgrim, and Donnie Darko. Similar to the 2015 breakout hit, Life is Strange, Night in the Woods fully embraces its Indie movie roots to tug at your inner sense of whimsy to turn a fairly simple game into something much more. 

A Year in the Life of My Nintendo Switch

Today marks the one year anniversary of finally achieving my life's dream of being able to play some of the greatest games around from the comfort of my bed. I truly have come a long way from being forced to sit 3 feet away from a giant cathode ray tube TV to enjoy video games. There are a lot of people to thank for helping me get here. First, I'd like to thank my mom for taking me to Toys"R"Us endless times as a kid to blow my allowance. I'd like to take my dad for realizing at a young age that I would never achieve success in the sports world. Perhaps it was my blindness or my complete lack of coordination, but, whatever it was, you saw it in me. Lastly, I'd also like to thank my beautiful wife for never giving up on me no matter how many hours I spent playing video games and how many times the blue light from my Switch has disrupted her REM cycle.

Celeste

I have died 2333 2569 times so far in Celeste. While, I don't know how many times my virtual self has perished in any other game, I'm fairly certain this would lie on the high end of the spectrum. Despite causing me to frequently meet my doom, Celeste is an unbelievably welcoming game and an unexpected gem that is on the fast track to my Best of 2018.

Doki Doki Literature Club and How Games Can Mess with Your Head

Toward the end of last year, I kept seeing Doki Doki Literature Club pop up on best of lists. Somehow, this free game that appeared to be an anime dating sim was leaving its mark on one of the best years ever in gaming. After finally realizing that I could download Steam on my Mac, I decided to give it a try and see what everyone was raving about.  I had heard nothing was as it seems in this game and that it would mess with your head, so I did not go in completely blind. But nothing could have prepared me (or my poor friend Trey who I later convinced to play and whose reaction is captured at the end) for what was to come.