Right now my gaming is being torn between my PS4 and my Steam account. The Steam sale happens again and it’s dangerous. Because of it, I’m still trucking through Watch Dogs even though I bought it day 1. I’m probably a handful of missions away from the end, I’ve completed a few side missions and I’m still having fun causing random car crashes by hacking traffic lights. I’m a douchebag in that game.

Watch Dogs

A lot of people have felt the game did not live up to the hype. I’ll say this; no, the graphics are not quite as beautiful as they seemed when shown at E3 last year. That’s a disappointment to most, even those who don’t focus too highly on aesthetics. Second, yes, it’s sort of like GTA with hacking but there’s nothing inherently wrong with that because look at how great the GTA games are. It doesn’t take away from the fun, nor the really great way hacking is implemented. I thought I’d get tired of hacking fuses to explode at the perfect time to take out a couple of gang members at once, but nope. Still great, even 20+ hours in.

Aiden Pearce as a protagonist leaves a little to be desired. He’s not as boring as say, Connor from AC3 (sorry, but he might be the most boring Assassin we’ve ever encountered) but he’s a bit low key and sometimes a little drab, making it hard to find him as likeable as some of the supporting characters (I’m a big fan of Jodi and “T-Bone”, or so his cover name is so I don’t give anything away). I do like that he’s avenging the death of his niece and cares for his sister and nephew, not his wife or own child which is the usual connection in games like this. In fact, Aiden is completely single and devoid of family and that makes his connection with his sister and her kids greater and I enjoy that.

It certainly is not a perfect game and sure, maybe falters a bit compared to the expectations we had after its reveal, but I’m still having fun and I’m still getting my full $60 worth and really, that’s all I can ask. I’m also looking to see where the story goes so I’m eager to finish it.

Gone Home

Everyone’s been talking about Gone Home. I didn’t know much, just that you come home to your house from a trip to see your family, but no one is there. You have to search the house for clues as to what happened. That’s the very basic premise. I was excited to see it on sale for 75% off on Steam so I grabbed it.

I’m about an hour and a half into the game and things are starting to unravel. I wouldn’t dare give anything away because that defeats the purpose of playing, but it’s fair to say that even without any antagonists, enemies, or much of anything but exploring items in a home, the game definitely has a great atmosphere. It’s eerie that this house is empty but it’s sort of sad as well, when you start reading notes and rifling through items. The game is supposedly only 2-3 hours long, and I already see where the story is going (or so I believe). So far it’s been a good experience and I’d recommend it for something a little different.

So that’s what I’m playing currently and will be wrapping up both these games in the next few days. What have YOU been playing lately? Would love to know and hear any recommendations/thoughts!