Outriders release date, Division 2 expansion, Anthem reboot, e3 news + Disney Movies
Headlines for February 10, 2020 to February 15, 2020.
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I’m playing My Friend Pedro and… (review)
I mentioned this game earlier this month in my blog about games that should pique your interest from E3. My Friend Pedro looked so fun during the Devolver Digital showcase. In my brief overview, I mentioned that the game reminded me of Super Hot because of the slow-motion mechanic. And since I really enjoyed Super Hot, I figured I’d enjoy My Friend Pedro as well.
It released on PC and Nintendo Switch on June 20, 2019. I finally had a chance to experience it this weekend and I was not disappointed.
Game Play
It’s a side scroll format and it has a few cool mechanics. We knew about the slow-motion mechanic, but you can also split your bullet directions while you’re full hardcore parkour! You end up hanging upside down from zip lines, balancing on barrels, and shooting while skateboarding. Plus, you run up your damage output the faster you put down enemies.
On normal difficulty, the game is forgiving to an extent. If you get sloppy, the game will call you out for it at the end of the level. At the end of the level you are shown your best moment, so that will make you feel good.
The most difficult level is called Bananas. I may not be able to survive on the hardest level, but I’m sure eventually someone will be able to. I can’t wait for speed runs of the highest level to pop-up on YouTube. I really hope they do.
The talking banana does throw me off sometimes. There’s one point where the banana is talking about how he used to go to parties and how wild it was. In my mind I’m thinking, this character has to be hallucinating. How else would a talking banana make sense?
But seriously, My Friend Pedro is a chill game to play through. It’s like you are in the world of the Matrix or John Wick, but you’re a random street runner. It’s fun to play, it has manageable controls and it has a great soundtrack.
Usually, I’ll mute the game soundtrack and play my own music. But, the soundtrack in My Friend Pedro has a great mood that adds to the enjoyment of the game too.
You could lose track of time while playing this game.
The only thing that would make it better is a competition mode. Maybe players could go head to head to see who can clear the level the fastest and get the best score.
Overall, I’m really glad this game is as entertaining as it seemed to be at E3 and I’m going to keep playing!
Borderlands 2: Commander Lilith & the Fight for Sanctuary (review)
In case you were not aware, Borderlands 2: The Handsome Collection is free if you have a PlayStation Plus subscription or the Xbox Game Pass. It’s also free on Steam. During E3 last week, Gearbox announced a free DLC to get players pumped for the next installment in the Borderlands franchise.
It’s called Borderlands 2: Commander Lilith & the Fight for Sanctuary. Seeing how all of this content is free right now, I decided to jump in and check it out.
First, I do have one confession. I needed to use the newcomer boost to get to level 30. I wanted to play the new content, and even though grinding power levels is a wonderful pass time, I chose the most effective route to get to the new stuff. So thank you Gearbox for the option.
Don’t judge me.
Once I got into the game, I was very impressed. The gun-play feels so good and your character feels very powerful. Plus, some of the commentaries by the NPC’s made me absolutely belly laugh at times. Whoever wrote the script much be hilarious in real life.
Story:
In the campaign, Lilith and the rest of the Crimson Raiders are discussing what their next steps are going to be. They currently have no commander and their ship, Sanctuary, is falling apart.
In the midst of their confusion, Colonel Hector attacks Sanctuary with his Pandora soldiers. He commandeers the ship and steals the vault key.
During the attack, Colonel Hector floods Sanctuary with gas causing people to turn into “Vine Freaks”. Lilith can’t even teleport into the area because it’s so overcome with gas. This prompts her to lean on you, a Vault Hunter, to help get back control of Sanctuary.
You go through your mission complete a set of tasks to help Lilith get back onboard the Sanctuary.
Here’s a broad overview of what you are tasked to do:
- Find a new temporary base of operations
- Gather samples for Tannis from specimens infected by the gas
- Reach Cassius to retrieve a cure
- Distribute that cure to Mordecai
- Re-infiltrate Sanctuary
- Defeat Hector in his infected plant state
Thoughts (some spoilers):
Overall I had a good experience. With this being my first real experience in the Borderlands world, I liked it. I’m familiar with the post-apocalyptic vibes so getting into the gameplay wasn’t too jarring.
Again, the writing was great to me. I thought most of the lines from Vaughn, Cassius, and some from Hector were hilarious. Tannis made me laugh the most during my play session.
While explaining how the gas is causing humans to mutate, Tannis compares the human mutation to plant mutation. Basically calling us dumb, she says, “Gas makes plant go Big Big and do the ouch”.
Did you laugh? Maybe I’m simply pleased. Maybe you had to be there.
At the end of the story, your player character does face off with Hector. It’s an interesting encounter. He infects himself and grows vines. You have to shoot some pus bulbs off those vines to make him vulnerable.
My only hesitation to be fully satisfied with the end of the story is the very end.
Instead of your player character being the one to give the final blow to Colonel Hector, a cut-scene starts and Lilith takes over.
I get it because the story is about her becoming commander so it makes sense. However, I’m used to getting rid of the big bad so a cut-scene didn’t do it for me.
That being said, it was a good cut-scene.
Cut-scene spoilers:
Lilith destroys the Sanctuary to kill Infected Hector because his vines grew deep down into the ship. Everything explodes. Tannis reveals that the ship was probably going to blow up anyway. And no one is really bothered by the demise of the ship. The Crimson Raiders are just glad Lilith is cool.
Lilith sends the remaining Crimson Raiders out into the world to find vaults, while she stays because to rebuild, recruit new members, and look for the vault map that she believes is still intact in the area despite the explosion.
And that’s how we enter Borderlands 3. I’m actually excited for a fresh start going into the next saga of Borderlands. It comes out on September 13, 2019.
Borderlands 3 Official E3 Trailer and Demo
Opinion: These games should pique your interest from E3
A lot of anticipated games were shown at E3. And it’s expected for people to be excited about them. But, beyond the critically acclaimed franchises, there were some gems announced as well. I’ve listed a few games that have piqued my interest beyond the main titles that have been showcased.
Twelve Minutes:
Twelve Minutes was shown off at the Microsoft Xbox E3 conference. It has such an intriguing concept. You have 12 minutes to figure out how to not die while you’re stuck in a time loop. The trailer gives off this psycho-thriller vibe. While trying to figure out how to change the events predetermined in the game, I expect to have an intense experience filled with absolute concentration and frustration.
Another exciting thought about Twelve Minutes surrounds the distractions and roadblocks in the game. How will the game respond when the player almost figures out a way out of the loop?
Developer: Luis Antonio /Publisher: Annapurna Interactive / Platforms: Xbox One, PC
GhostWire: Tokyo
The GhostWire: Tokyo trailer debuted at the Bethesda E3 Conference. It was actually one of the most interesting upcoming games mentioned during the conference. It had a brand new feel without any preconceived hype. Planting its feet firmly in the horror genre, GhostWire: Tokyo looks like it will rival The Evil Within which was created by the same developer.
Players will roam a ghostly version of Tokyo after mysterious happenings force you to uncover the reason and purge the city of evil. This sounds like a great opportunity for those of us who faithful play Resident Evil, Silent Hill, and even Parasite Eve.
Developer: Tango Gameworks /Publisher: Bethesda
Wolfenstein: Youngblood
Wolfenstein: Youngblood has the potential to be the best Wolfenstein of the franchise. Why? Because you are able to play in online co-op with a partner. It’s the first Wolfenstein with co-op. If this set up works well, I can’t see co-op not being an option in future Wolfenstein titles.
Another reason why this game is on the list is due to the release date. It comes out on July 26, so it’s an option for some summertime entertainment.
Developer: Arkane Studios, MachineGames /Publisher: Bethesda / Platform: Nintendo Switch, Microsoft Windows, Xbox One, PlayStation
Death Loop
Death Loop seems cool. It’s two assassins going head to head to see who can get the kill first. The premise of the game is that you are at a constant loop to kill the other assassins while evading other enemies as well. I may have missed this in the presentation, but the trailer does not mention if this is a co-op experience. If it had a co-op mode, that would most likely be the highlight of the game.
Develper: Arkane Lyon, Studios / Publisher: Bethesda / Platform:
My Friend Pedro
My Friend Pedro is the most unorthodox game that I’ve seen so far in E3. Not only did Devolver Digital have the most memorable showcase, but this game developed by DeadToast Entertainment also stood out among everything else. It reminded me of Super Hot. If you recall Super Hot, you’ll remember its a game where you can slow down time to shoot your enemies. Well, this game reminded me of that, but on a train with parkour.
Developer: DeadToast Entertainment / Publisher: Devolver Digital / Platforms: Nintendo Switch, Microsoft Windows
Which games stuck out to you?
Watch Dogs: Legion at E3 2019 | Ubisoft (trailer)
The most exciting information about Watch Dogs: Legion is the option to play as anyone you want while playing the game. In the past, we’ve had one player character. Being able to play any character and customize that character while you play adds to the open world feel of the game.
Doom Eternal release date & Battlemode announced at E3, Game play trailer
Fallout 76 Wastelanders update & Nuclear Winter Battle Royale | Bethesda at E3 (trailer)
Halo Infinite announced as launch title with Project Scarlett at E3 2019 (trailer)
The developers at Microsoft spoke about the next generation in console at their E3 Conference. Some exciting points to take away includes shortened loading time, being able to play where you want regarding the cloud saving, and better frames per second.
They topped off the conference by announcing Halo Infinite as the launch title for the next generation console coming next year in holiday of 2020.
Source for video: Gamespot
Apex Legends reveal at E3 | new season, new weapon & new legend (trailer)
At EA Play the new season of Apex Legends was announced. It is called Battle Charge. EA also revealed a new weapon titled L-Star and a new legend named Wattson.
Video Sources: IGN, Apex Legends, and Game Clips & Tips