☆ The Joys of Local Co-op (and drinking Bourbon) ☆

As well as reviewing video gaming gold for the mighty Games Freezer, I’m also in a couple of bands

(www.OldSamuel.com / www.recluseuk.co.uk) and the bassist (Chris) usually comes over once a week to rehearse* and also to play video games.

Whilst I do enjoy competitive video games such as Dynasty Feud, Nidhogg 2, Speedrunners etc. one of my absolute favourite things to do is to tuck into a tasty game with a  second player and work together… whilst having a few drinks.

☆ My Christmas Video Games Memories ☆ #Retrogaming #GamersUnite

As Christmas draws nearer my mind always wanders back to when I was at school and constantly talking football and video games as the Christmas holiday came closer and closer.

My talk would always be of the video games or video game consoles or computers that I wanted from Santa that year.

It would vary from year to year and there always seemed to be something to get excited about in the world  of video games before Christmas.

☆ Headset Review: Venom Marauder 7.1 Gaming Headset "Nice Price & Great Sound!" ☆

Marauder Universal 7.1 Virtual Surround Gaming Headset - £49.99

Watch as I give these black and red beauties a once over and enjoy some Deep Bass, 7.1 Virtual Surround and cool Vibration Technology.

Are they worth the money?

Let's find out, shall we?

☆ My Most Memorable Video Game Level Types - Water, Ice, Desert & Sky ☆ #Retrogaming

In all of video gaming history, there has been an unwritten rule that every video game known to man must contain a Water Level, An Ice/Snow/Winter Level, A Desert Level and A Sky Level.

I've played many games over the years and for each of these level types I have experienced a fair few variants of these levels.

Today I'd like to present to you my most memorable versions of each of these level types.

☆ My Fave Platformer Video Games (Minus Super Mario) ☆ #retrogaming

Over the course of the last few days, I’ve been delving into Shu for the first time prior to its Vita release.

Last week I was getting stuck into Wonder Boy: The Dragon’s Trap as it got its PS4 release.

This feels like a good time, therefore, to get misty eyed again for all the awesome platform video games that I have played over the years.

This time though I’m removing all Super Mario games as of course, the Mario franchise is the perfect example of platforming perfection.

So this list maybe should be entitled “If Super Mario Didn’t Exist”

☆ Which Video Games Gave Me That Sense Of Wonder & Awe? ☆

Having watched from afar as the gaming world enthuses over The Legend Of Zelda: Breath Of The Wild I have noticed a common theme with the reviews and opinions of the game.

Gamers are enthusing about the game taking them back to the days when video games induced wonder and awe much like the original Legend Of Zelda on the NES did.

You know the games I mean don't you?

☆ "Gamer Geek Girl Is The Undisputed Chun Li Queen Of Street Fighter 2" ☆ #retrogaming #PS4 #GamersUnite

"Chun Li Looks Good For 48 Years Old!!"

When you come across the amount of awesome people I do within the video games community you tend to want to know their background and how they originally got into video gaming.

My favourite stories from people are the ones where they reminisce about early video games memories as I just love to wallow in the nostalgia of being blown away by a NES, SNES or SEGA Mega Drive.

To me and a whole generation of awesome dudes and dudettes these were the formative years of our love affair with video games.

Today I would like to introduce you all the Bethany who is the latest member of the Games Freezer family.

Bethany has agreed to share with us all her video games life story so far and I know a lot of this will bring smiles to all those people who were 80's & 90's kids....

☆ Can You Remember EVERY Video Game You Have Ever Owned? ☆ #Retrogaming #GamersUnite

Now here's a memory test for you........

Can you name every single Video Game that you have ever owned?

☆ My Playstation Disc Collection Gets A New Lease Of Life! ☆ #Retrogaming #GamersUnite

I've recently started listening to the cool Retrogaming Podcast called the Retro Asylum....

You may have heard of it as the dudes who present the podcast really know their stuff.

Whilst listening on my way home on Friday I was given a really awesome tip that i'd never heard before and i'm really surprised that I didn't already know this.

☆ The Game Is Now Over....... ☆ #TLOU #GamersUnite

Having played possibly the finest video games ever made in it's entirety what is my final thoughts on this triumph of a creation?

Well let me take a seat and let you know what my closing thoughts are.....

☆ My First Encounter With A "BLOATER" ☆ #TLOU #GamersUnite

What's the most memorable thing about Bioshock?

 

The jaw dropping twist in the tale?

The amazing gameworld?

OR

That first encounter with a BIG DADDY!!??!!

 

For me it was most definitely the moment when you experience the awesome power and devastating scariness of the BIG DADDY!

 

It was a defining moment in the last generation of video games.

 

One where you are genuinely scared........

 

Yesterday I had a repeat of one of those moments........

☆"Fallout New Vegas" - Game Diary 1☆ #GamersUnite

2 years after finishing Fallout 3 I decided it was time to be consumed by the post apocalyptic wasteland again.

 

Fallout New Vegas was my experience of choice this time and this time I've decided to trial the documenting of my Mojave Wasteland journey.

 

This could make for good video games journalism or it might just end up being tedious.......but I'll give it a go because I'm sure that buried within the Wasteland is a Story to tell.........

★Who Will Put The Last Generation Of Consoles Out To Pasture?★ #GamersUnite

There was a time when a generation of consoles could be put out to pasture gracefully with a fond farewell as the new generation of consoles were ushered in.

 

As the baton was handed over to the next generation of consoles the gamers would consign their beloved video games consoles to the past and move onto the next gen.

 

The generation of consoles that have just passed the baton onto the Wii U, PS4's and XBONE's of this world are still very much ingrained into this generation of gamers due to the fact that the length of time that has passed since the Wii, X360 and PS3 were introduced.

This transition is also made harder as players of the last generation were the first to truly embrace online play.
 
With this online play each game was given longevity that could potentially outlast a games usual life span.
 
So as we enter into this new world of consoles, when should the X360, PS4 and Wii stop supporting it's players?
 
When do Nintendo, Sony and Microsoft say enough is enough and turn the lights out on the online Servers?
 
This will be the first generation of console "deaths" that are really impacted by a switching off of those servers and Nintendo have been the first to reveal their plans....

They have announced that Wii and DS online servers will close as of 20th May 2014....

This closure will remove online multiplayer functionality from a whole host of Wii & DS games.....

The services being closed down for Wii & DS will include online play,matchmaking and leaderboards....

Does this spell the beginning of the end for the other online servers from the other big players?

 

Tell Us What You Think About This Move From Nintendo

 

When Do You Think SONY and MICROSOFT will announce their Plans For Shut Downs?

Games Freezer - "What A Disappointment!" - #Retrogaming

Being a person who always does a lot of research before parting with hard earned cash for a game I can't say that I have ever been too dissappointed when opening the box of a new game and powering the game up for the first time.......

BUT 

There have been a few games that I anticipated with great expectation only to find out from a review that it was an absolute stinker of a game and a few that I maybe thought I would enjoy but no matter how good I knew the game was just couldn't enjoy it.

So my greatest disappointments of my gaming world over the last 20 years or so for me are as follows:

1."Super Kick Off" on the Super Nintendo

The Amstrad Box Art (lovely stuff!)

 

For years the SNES was crying out for a great footy game. 

It had to wait years for ISS to come out and blow everyone away, but before that came the news that KICK OFF was coming to SNES in all its 16bit glory. 

I read the pages of Super Play Magazine and Nintendo Magazine System with deep joy as I thought how great Kick Off would be on the SNES.......Months went by as the magazines previewed the game constantly teasing me with a few more screenshots. 

Then came the review......it turned out the game was a turkey!! My dreams of controlling Tottenham Hotspur on my shiny new SNES were blown apart....it was back to Nintendo's very own Super Soccer for me to get my footy thrills. No matter how tempted I was to buy Kick Off it never happened and will be forever disappointed.

2."Starwing / Starfox" on the Super Nintendo

 

This is probably a controversial inclusion for a game that included so much cutting edge technology such as the Super FX Chip. 

All the reviews were glowing with 90% scores and yet when I played it I was particularly underwhelmed. 

I just didn't get why everyone was raving about this game. The only thing I did like was how your team mates would radio into your cockpit with updates of what was going on. 

But unfortunately Starwing bit the dust early on for me and it was traded in pretty quickly.

3."Stunt Race FX" on the Super Nintendo

 

Looks like a recurring theme for me here with all the SNES games that didn't live up to their promise. 

Again with this one it had glowing reports, all the latest technology (the fabled Super FX Chip) and yet again, I just didn't get it. 

It reminded me of a badly made set of Lego vehicles with poor handling and a really annoying surround on the screen where the action took place, again this was consigned to the trade pile pretty quickly!

4."Premier Manager" on the Amiga

 

When I was younger with no responsibilities I played a lot of Championship Manager, days were eaten up by taking my Nottingham Forest team through 12 seasons of glory until all the "regen" players took over from the real world players and I was left with a load of unknowns.

I felt that after such over exposure to Championship Manager it was time to get my management kicks elsewhere, hence why I went for Premier Manager. 

It had received good reviews and was seen as an alternative to Champ Manager. The game looked impressive and I have to admit, initially it was good to play a management sim other than Champ. 

But the problem was ..... it wasn't Champ Manager and I always compared it to Champ Manager (which wasn't really fair). Eventually I had to concede that it was a disappointing game compared to Champ (oh yeah, and the fact you always had to start in the Conference didn't help!!)

5. Gran Turismo 5 on the PS3

So there I was with a shiny new PS3 for christmas! 

Inside was one game......it was GT5. My last encounter of GT was on PS1 , the original GT and I loved it at the time, it was so novel to have a driving game that you could invest hours of time just tweaking and collecting and building.

Fast forward 5 reiterations later and you have the all singing all dancing version of GT!

The problem with it though, is that it's lost it's soul, it's almost too realistic and maybe there's too much on offer, too many things to do.

For that reason ..... I’m OUT! (GT5 was quickly traded for a lovely copy of Heavy Rain!)

Have you got any disappointments that you would like to tell The Freezer about?

Consign them to the Freezer's deep freeze forever by letting us know and we will dispose of them carefully! 

*Richard From The Disappointment Department Of Freezer Town*

☆ If Only I Had The Room ...... ☆ #Retrogaming #GamersUnite

I often think, if only we had the room........

If only we had the room to buy all the consoles and computers we have owned over the years and maybe some of the ones we didn't own!

So that got me thinking, would I be able to remember the machines I had bought?

If only I had the room and the plug sockets to buy them all again!

Games Freezer - The Not Very Current TOP 5 List of the Video Games Of 2013 So Far....

The Most Amazing Box Of Games Since Metal Gear Solid Got Stuck In Our ICE BOX!

The Games Freezer Top 5 Video Games List of 2013....So Far

 

As we near the middle of 2013 we have started to compile a list of the games we have been playing so far in 2013.

It's a list that we have compiled ONLY using games that we have actually played this year and they wont necessarily will have been released this year either.

So here goes.....

 

1. The Orange Box (X360)

   http://www.metacritic.com/game/xbox-360/the-orange-box - 
   This collection of games is a masterpiece of gaming. 
   It includes the Daddy of First Person Shooters (3 episodes) , the Daddy of Multiplayer along with the most innovative puzzler in years! 
   We managed to pick this up second hand for £10. 
   Five amazing games for £10....if you havn't already done so BUY IT NOW!
    

2. Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion (X360)

    
   http://www.metacritic.com/game/xbox-360/the-elder-scrolls-iv-oblivion
   
   
   Being a massive fan of open world RPG's we had been meaning to invest in this game for an absolute age! 
   
   
   Then one day whilst sifting through the bargain bucket in Blockbuster, there it was for £12, so we began to invest a few hours, days and weeks (and counting) into this mammoth game. 
   
   
   It's a top quality game that still looks fresh after 5 years. 
   The levelling up of enemies in line with your level is rather annoying however, the game in general is a triumph....Try it you will love it 
    

3. Super Stickman Golf (Android/iOS)

    

   http://www.metacritic.com/game/ios/super-stickman-golf 
   
   
   We were finding that there was a distinct lack of good golf games on the Android platform and then along came the iPhone smash hit Super Stickman Golf which as much a puzzle game as it is a golf game. 
   
   
   With Par 10 holes on some courses its a game that doesn't take itself seriously, but shouldn't be overlooked in any way as it grips you with its mix of tactics and good fun. 
   
   
   The power ups are brilliant and are unlocked as you progress. We paid 69p for it and it brightens up the commute into work every morning....A Great Mobile Game 
   
   
   (also watch out for Super Stickman Golf 2)

    

4. FIFA 12 (PS3)

    

   http://www.metacritic.com/game/playstation-3/fifa-soccer-12
   
   
   We hadn't invested our hard earned cash into a footy title since PES became rubbish about 5 years ago, then we played an old copy of FIFA 11 around a friends house this year and thought hang on, THIS IS FUN!!  
   
   
   So as soon as FIFA 12 hit the bargain buckets we bought it and loved it immediately. 
   
   
   Lots has been written about this game and the EA way of minor updates to the game each year rather than genuinely improving the game. 
   
   
   In this version, the developers put their neck on the line slightly by changing the defending to a much tougher system and even though it takes a while to get used to, its made the game more of a challenge, so much so that you genuinely celebrate each goal you score out loud!! (or is that just me?!)
   
   
   You never know, we like the game so much, we might actually buy the latest version! (second hand of course)

   5. Heavy Rain (PS3) 

   http://www.metacritic.com/game/playstation-3/heavy-rain 
   Wow! What a game, like nothing you have ever played before. 
   From the start you are put into a situation that is quite alien to most gamers, you are asked to brush your characters teeth and then get them into the shower, from here on in your character's life spirals out of control and thrusts you into a world where nothing seems as it is. 
   You get to play as various characters through the plot and it genuinely throws up a massive twist in the story late on.While not without its niggly parts, it is truly a genuine advancement in computer games and what we perceive them to be
   
   
   So, there it is, not a very current but a very enjoyable Top 5!
   Have a think about your top games of 2013 so far....
   Let us know your current or not so current faves of 2013
   
   

   UNTIL NEXT TIME......TRY NOT TO GET LOCKED IN THE GAMES FREEZER*!