The "Complete" List

Left 4 Dead 2 - (All Campaigns)
Mass Effect
Lego Rock Band - Story Mode
Darksiders - Easy
BAYONETTA - Easy Automatic
Lego Batman
Call of Duty: Classic - Normal
Fracture - Casual
Dragon Quest: The Hand of the Heavenly Bride
Heavy Rain - Medium
Battlefield: Bad Company 2 - Normal
Yakuza 3 - Easy



Perhaps the least complete of anything on the list.. My final tally lands at just over 26 hours play time and 13% complete. There'll be no story spoilers in this blog post at all. The story, whilst bonkers, is half the joy of playing. Lavish cut scenes are augmented with in game engine chat. The brilliant japanese dialogue adds lots to the authentic feel of the game. Of course this also means you have to read a lot (and when I say a lot, I mean a lot) of dialogue but mostly it's well written and fun to follow.

I think for me, being more used to western games recently, is that your left to your own devices most of the time to find all the sub quests and and activities on offer by exploring the world. However the map isn't entirely useful. Even in game the mini map goes against normal convention of the map revolving around you. You really have to explore and learn the layout of the areas to get the most out of it.

For instance i found I could pick up girlfriends at the local burger joint, take them on dates and that owuld eventually lead to side missions and experience. However the game itself gives you little in the way of pointers to where these sorts of activities are. Even when you've found them they don't show up on the mini map.

Overall though I thoroughly enjoyed every minute of the experience.. I'll be hanging on to it for another play through with all my cash and experience intact (At least that's what I think it meant at the end).

Currently Playing: Yakuza 3

My first Yakuza experience doesn't seem to have been held back by not knowing what went on in the previous two. The starting menu does have the option for an over view of the earlier installments but following Eurogamers advice I got stuck straight in. After all 'Reformed Gangster tries to go straight but gets dragged back into the shady underworld' (I'm assuming the later part as I'm still happily running my orphanage in hawian shirt and fetching cream slacks but more on this later.) is as old a story as boy meets girl.

I really shouldn't like it. It's chock full of old school text conversations, Starts off a bit slow and unlike most video game enthusiasts I have no interest in Japan..

However the story really does drag you in.. It goes to show that you don't have to divorce game play from the experience or feature nude shower scenes to have the player bond with the characters or generate emotion. What you need is well written characters and involving situations. David Cage could learn a thing or two here.

Of course orphans are always going to tug the heart strings but there's something strangely compelling about investigating the every day problems of a bunch of small kids mixed in with a large dose of kicking ass and taking names.

As interesting as the main story is though the real depth and enjoyment comes from actually exploring and living the life. I've drunk the best whisky the town has to offer and then spent the afternoon getting in fights because of it. I've taken girls out on dates doing everything from darts to eating out. I've played some golf and soft ball with the kids and enjoyed wandering around just seeing what's to see. It's a very interesting change of pace from western games and I'm appreciating that sometimes the more you put in the more you get out.

Purchase Power

I bought Yakuza 3 from Game for the princely sum of £39.99. I've not played a Yakuza game before but I enjoyed the demo.. However most of what spurred me on to a full price release day purchase was all the rabid fanboys bemoaning SEGA for cutting some features from the original Japanese release.

As far as I can see it's a simple case of economics. The franchise isn't a big seller over here and there's obviously a limit to what can be spent on localisation.. Those boycotting it are surely shooting themselves in the foot when it comes to the fourth part of the saga coming to these shores?

I traded Darksiders as I noticed there where already a large number of second hand copies on the shelves of my local GAME meaning it's value is probably going to plummet. I got £20 for it which I was quite pleased with seeing as they where retailing it for £29.99 a couple of weeks ago.