Gaming Returns

For the 25 days or so that Playstation Network was down, I played a few games. Some on Xbox 360, some on Wii, some on Playstation 3. Online multiplayer isn't really my thing, and therefore the loss of the online service didn't really affect me all that much. However, it's good to have it back and is nice to see my friends list being populated every time I turn my system on. But during that time, here's what I played.

Mass Effect 2, Insanity
I'm not one for difficult games or playing through games on the hardest setting, but Mass Effect 2 compelled me to do so for some reason. I wanted to play through the game with a Female Shepard, and while I didn't play through Mass Effect to get some bonuses, Bioware was nice enough to release the PS3 exclusive comic mere days after completing my run. But alas, it started out extremely hard, but ended quite easily if I do say so myself. I managed to beat it, save everyone, and get my last achievement in the game to finally complete it. It was nice to do, but I don't think I'll do it for Mass Effect 3 unless they dumb it down quite a bit.

Gears of War 3 Beta
I'm not a big multiplayer guy, but I'm surprisingly good at Gears. I managed to get a 1.0 K/D ratio and 1.0 W/L ratio before I felt drained from playing it. I didn't get the Gold Retro Lancer for the retail version, but I got everything else. I could've gotten it, but I just didn't think it was worth my time to do so. Overall, the multiplayer seems very solid, and it makes me excited to play it come September.

Portal 2
I didn't play this quite as heavily as I did everything else, but when PSN finally came back up, I played through the co-op campaign, which was immensely better than the single player one. I also managed to get my 19th Platinum Trophy in the game, which meant a lot considering I haven't gotten one since last August. Portal 2 is a great game, just not as good as Portal. Hopefully the DLC will rekindle my interest in the game.

Red Dead Redemption
This was a new pickup for me, but I'm still playing through it. Right now I'm in Mexico, but the story is really dragging at this point with missions starting on one side of the country and actually taking place at the other side, which really makes it feel unnecessarily padded. Still, I'm enjoying it, but not as much as I was before I hit Mexico. The voice acting and story are similar to GTA4 in the sense that the hero is there for a purpose, but that requires him getting his hands dirty. While the characters fit the times I'm sure, the vast range of characters seems unnecessary. Game of the Year worthy? No, because Mass Effect 2 is better. Plain and simple.