What I Think Of... Halo 5: Guardians

If you know me AT ALL, you know that Halo is one of my all-time favorite franchises. The original Halo: Combat Evolved left such a lasting impression on me and my time with the original Xbox. It introduced me to LAN parties with my high school friends and laid the groundwork for what would become the biggest franchise Microsoft has going (yes, even bigger than Fusion Frenzy).

We now are at Halo 5: Guardians, the first proper Halo game on this generation of hardware and the 2nd proper entry in the series since 343 Industries took over from Bungie. Does it live up to the immense hype? Here is what I think of Halo 5: Guardians.

I will do my best to not spoil the story, and save it for the podcast.

Before even digging into the story, I will say, the frond-end menu, and really all the menus in the game, are slick and classy looking. It's easy to pay no attention to them, but people design menus and these are quite nice, even the error screens are well designed.

SPOILER ahead for Halo 4

When we last saw Master Chief, he was broken. Cortana was presumed missing or dead, and you could tell that Master Chief was in a really bad place. Fast forward to Halo 5, and Chief still appears to be suffering from Separation Anxiety, but doing his best to look stoic in front of his squad, Blue Team. When he gets a vision of Cortana and her presumed whereabouts, Chief and his team go AWOL to track her down. While all this is happening, Spartan Jameson Locke (from the Halo: Nighfall series, which I feel I should watch) and his squad, Osiris, is charged by the UNSC to track down Chief and bring him "home".

The lead-up to the game and all the marketing has been focused on this idea of Chief vs. Locke, but this point is really not capitalized on. It comes to a head at one point very early on with a face to face confrontation but that's pretty much it (Again, trying not to spoil anything).

Because I don't want to spoil anything story-wise here, here are a couple thoughts I have on the campaign:

- I wish I played as Master Chief and his team more. It felt like THAT was where the story was, whereas Locke and his team seemed to be chasing the story.

- I thought the pacing was a little weird, since there are full missions where all you do is walk up and talk to about three different people, those could very easily just have been cutscenes.

- I wish there was MORE. I wanted to get in Chief's head more, I wanted to learn more about these characters.

Don't get me wrong, I actually enjoyed the campaign a fair amount. I feel I need to mention the outstanding cutscenes, which look fantastic and voiced really well. The opening cutscene for sure is one that gets you amped to play some damn Halo. Also, while many questions remain at the end of the campaign, we are again left at a really interesting place with these characters. I just can't help but get a Halo 2 dèjá vu with me thinking "That was good, but it could have been better". Also note, I was able to beat the campaign solo on Normal difficulty in just over 6 hours, which should give you an idea on how long it is. The time will vary depending on difficulty and how many human players are playing.

The whole premise of the game is that there are two squads made up of four Spartans each, allowing for four player online co-op (no splitscreen, which is a point of contention to say the least). When playing alone, the A.I. takes over as the other three members. There are times where this is advantageous, especially when you get knocked down and need revived (which will happen often), and there are times where this becomes a huge hindrance. For example: Early on, you will face a couple Hunters, which Halo fans know can be a challenge, as I went into the room to fight them, I jumped on the high ground and started attacking, I then noticed I was the only one, as my A.I. teammates decided they would rather stay behind in the "safe room". Since I am paying more attention to getting them the fuck in here, I get hit with a green blast, I'm down, and still, nobody gave a shit, and I died. Let's just say the teammate A.I. is hit or miss, and it's best enjoyed with friends.

It was easier for me to look past the campaign's shortcomings thanks to the fact that this is quite possibly the best that Halo has ever felt gameplay-wise. As I have always said, "Frames makes games", and it goes a long way here. The fast action helps the experience feel frantic and intense. Meanwhile, the arsenal you have at your disposal is top-notch. The typical Halo weapons are back but did get improved, as in the Assault Rifle matters again! All the weapons feel great and sound terrific. Outside of the shooting, you are given a few new abilities, when jumping and aiming, you go into a brief hover mode which definitely has its uses, a ground pound which can be used at any height, unleashed massive damage, but the star of the show for me is the Spartan Charge. A few seconds after clicking the sprint button, you will see a couple brackets on screen, meaning you are able to unleash a devastating shoulder charge which will break through certain walls and send Grunts flying off the screen. I also use this all the time in multiplayer to great effect. It is beyond satisfying to throw one of these shoulder checks, accompanied by a resounding thud. I involuntarily give a verbal "UHH! YEAH!" every time I do it, it's THAT good.

Now, about that multiplayer. The last Halo game 343 Industries gave us delivered one of the worst multiplayer experiences in recent memory with Halo: The Master Chief Collection. Those servers were broke for months after the game launched. Thankfully, after about 4 to 5 hours across the different modes, I have experienced no problems.

The multiplayer modes boil down to Arena and Warzone. Arena is your more-typical Halo experience, with Team Slayer (Team Deathmatch), Breakout (Elimination/CTF hybrid), Free-For-All, and the much-loved SWAT modes. You'll notice, no Oddball, and no King of the Hill modes. Here's hoping they will add those in later on. Also, can we get Grifball back?

Each mode is given its own, dedicated playlist. After playing ten matches of a certain type, you will be assigned a competitive ranking tier. The list goes: Bronze, Silver, Gold, Platinum, Diamond, Onyx and Champion. There are levels within those tiers, so if you win enough games after getting a Silver ranking, you will go up to Silver II, Silver III and so on. While your ranking can flux within the tier, you will never go from Silver I to Bronze VI and so on. HERE is a great breakdown on how this system works. Not to brag, but I am currently Gold II in Team Slayer and Onyx in Free-For-All. So...bring it!

There are currently only a handful of maps across the modes, but a real positive here is that 343 has said that future map packs will be FREE! While we don't know how often these will happen, this is a great thing. No Season Passes, no map bundles, just free maps.

Warzone is the big, new addition and you'll have to stay with me on this, because it takes some explaining.

- 12 vs 12 vs A.I.
- The objective is to capture buildings, allowing you to take down the enemy core to win the game.
- Can also win by getting 1000 points first.
- You earn points by killing enemies, be they human players or the A.I. "creeps", and by capturing and holding the objectives.
- Throughout the course of the match, your team levels up, allowing you to use more expensive cards that will grant you access to weapons, vehicles, and power-ups.

You can definitely see the MOBA inspirations here, but I really wouldn't call it a Halo MOBA. I played a match of this and it was definitely fun. Just know that these matches do take a while. My only real problem comes in with this mostly unnecessary card system. You get cards from REQ packs that you earn over the course of the game (more on that later), and, as stated, these cards can give you weapons, vehicles, power-ups and so on, and they have a rarity to them as well. These are one-off plays though, so when you die, that card is spent and gone. Well, if my team is getting our asses kicked, I'm not going to want to play some high end cards in a futile attempt at a last-second victory. On the flipside, if my team is kicking ass, will I want to waste cards and rub their faces in it? Also, let's say I play a pretty good Scorpion Tank card, if I get jacked out of it, welp...there goes a card. I guess I can see the strategy involved with it, but I don't know of too many instances where I will be searching for just the right card for the situation.

That being said, I do really enjoy Warzone mode, I just know I will be spending the majority of my multiplayer time with the Arena modes.

Right, those REQ packs. You earn REQ points with every match you play, and each time you level up in multiplayer. There are three tiers, Bronze, Silver, and Gold, each tier up will give you more and better gear. This gear will mostly be cards to use in Warzone, but every once in a while you will get an armor drop, a helmet drop, a name plate, a weapon skin, or even an assassination animation. You can spend a couple real dollars to buy these packs (Age of Microtransactions!), but you get enough REQ points per match to where you shouldn't have to do that.

Bottom line: Halo 5: Guardians is a worthy addition to one of the most premier franchises in video games. While there are some misfires when it comes to the campaign, the fantastic gameplay, incredible looks, top-notch sound design, and addictive multiplayer will keep fans of the series, and fans of first person shooters, extremely happy.

Now I must get back online and Spartan Charge some fools!

What I Think Of...Guitar Hero Live

It's hard to imagine that the Guitar Hero franchise is 10 years old. The game that began the "Plastic-Instrument-Rhythm-Game" craze has always held a special place for me. I have spent countless hours with this franchise, especially GH2 and GHIII, and while I may have fallen off around World Tour, I am still a fan.

So, when I heard there was a new game coming out, I was genuinely intrigued, especially when I heard there would be a new guitar and restructuring of the game mechanics. I will admit, though, after the debacle that was Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 5, I was a bit nervous about Guitar Hero. Here are two Activision franchises that were once beaten into the ground, and now getting a 2015 rebirth. Would we get another mess of a game, or would this actually rock?

Let's get to it, here is what I think of Guitar Hero Live.

To begin with, let's compare the original guitar with the new guitar:

Original:

New:

Pretty substantial redesign. Sure, that is the original from the first Guitar Hero game, but even subsequent guitars had the basic design of that one. The biggest change is the button placement. Before, you had five colored buttons going down the neck, meaning if you wanted to get that orange note, you moved your hand down and got it with your pinky finger. Now, there are six buttons (three white and three black), that are stacked along the first three frets. No longer do you have to move your hand down the neck, now you just move your three fingers up or down on those three frets. I'll get to the actual gameplay in a second, but let's keep going on the actual instrument.

The strum bar is longer and still has that comforting "click" that I really like. There is a dedicated "Hero Power" button you can hit to deploy your special power, though you can still tilt the controller like we all do anyway (The original guitar used the select button to deploy Rock Power as well). There are two black buttons next to the Hero Power button that acts as the Start button (or whatever they are calling it now on consoles). Under the whammy bar is a knob/button and another button. The knob/button doubles as an analog stick when navigating your console menus (not in-game menus) and the button on that knob is your guide button to get back to your console's main menu. The 2nd button is the GHTV button that will take you to the GHTV main menu. (more on that later).

The controller is wireless, takes two AA batteries (included) and is as simple as plugging in the included USB stick into your console, pairing the guitar to your console (few button presses) and off you go. At least that was how it is on the Xbox One version.

I really like this redesign. Whether I was sitting or standing, it felt comfortable. Sure, my fingers started to cramp up after a while, but that's more because I hadn't played a Guitar Hero/Rock Band game in quite a while and my fingers were getting used to all this. I've always preferred GH guitars over RB guitars because of the better feedback I got from the actual instrument. I like the "click" I hear and feel from the strum bar, telling me that I am definitely strumming. I like the buttons because I can feel the button being pressed, it all feels really good and helps me feel like I am really nailing these notes.

NOTE: Because of this redesign, any older guitars WILL NOT work with this new game. There are TWO buying options for Guitar Hero Live: $100 gets you the game and one guitar and $150 gets you the game and two guitars.

Now how does that guitar translate to new gameplay? As you can see, the only colors you have to worry about are black and white, what's SUPER helpful is the fact that the pick shape is actually pointing up or down, helping you get your finger placement on the frets (white being the bottom three and black being the top three). On the harder difficulties this does get tricky as certain chords utilize both white and black buttons in them. There is also the bar chord note, so you'll have to deal with holding the respective black and white buttons together. The result is actually A LOT of fun. I have played Guitar Hero games on Expert mode and rocked hard, but with Live, I felt like I had to relearn Guitar Hero and that was/is an absolute blast. It's not more of the same and the button layout really makes the feel of a real chord possible. It will take some time to get used to the new mechanics, but when you start to rock and get on a good groove, it is very rewarding.

The only thing I will say is when dealing with hammer-ons or pull-offs (specified notes where you don't need to strum but only have to press the button) it's tough to tell sometimes if it's a black note or white note, since they are specified with a blue glow. This could be because the notes are flying at me fast, since I am playing at a harder difficulty, and that my brain can't figure out which way the note is pointing fast enough, but sometimes it trips me up because I don't know which way to go. Nothing a little practice can't hash out, and not a huge deal, just something I noticed.

Alright, now to the game modes. Here is seems like there are two separate games in here: Guitar Hero Live, and Guitar Hero TV.

Live is the single player mode where you are part of several different bands, playing 3-song sets across two venues. Gone are the cartoony characters and video game crowds, and in with actual people, actual crowds, and a lot of cheesy dialogue. The crowd reacts to how you are doing, but it basically boils down do either they like you, or they hate you. The dialogue amounts to stagehands and bandmates giving you thumbs up and saying things like "Good job", or "Keep going", or "You okay?". I totally get what they were going for and it's actually a pretty cool thing...the first couple times. Each time you play the song, it's the same video, so it loses a lot of that punch. Besides, any and all Guitar Hero players really never look in the background, since the focus should be on the notes coming at you. Cool idea, just really nothing to write home about.

While you are choosing which set to play, you get a fake radio show where a couple hosts say generic things about what's going on at these venues along with fake Twitter accounts saying how awesome everything is. These things really feel unnecessary and it could be just me, but I am starting to get tired of games that shoehorn social media stuff in it. Basically you'll want to speed your way through the campaign mode so you can unlock all the songs for Quickplay. It's pretty lackluster, but basically serves for the real meat of the game...

Guitar Hero TV.

This thing is rad.

Remember when MTV used to play music videos? That's what GHTV is. This is the online mode. There are (as of now) two channels that will stream videos 24/7, and allow you to play along, trying to get the best score possible and ranking you on leaderboards. For instance, you jump into channel 1 because you see you can play "Epic" by Faith No More, so you jump in and start shredding. Song ends, you get some XP depending on how you rank, you get some in-game currency, next song loads, and now you are playing "More Than A Feeling" by Boston, lather, rinse, repeat.

The channels lump songs together be genre. For example: Channel 1 may be running Rock from 1 - 1:30 and channel 2 could be running an Indie hour from 1 - 2, and so on. When selecting a channel, you can see what's coming up over the next hour or so, so you can plan ahead. Though, if you don't like what's playing on either channel, you can always go to the On Demand section and play any available song from the relatively huge library. Though there is a catch that I will get to in a second.

When you play a song, you are given XP and coins depending on how well you did, which you get to see in real time on the side of the screen. Leveling up will unlock new player cards, new highway skins, new Hero Powers and so on, and the coins you get can be used to purchase unique items as well as "Plays". These Plays are how you use the On Demand service. So if you want to play a specific song you have to use a Play, and you have the option of (dun dun dun) buying Plays with REAL MONEY! I haven't found this to be too egregious since I usually have more than enough Plays, as leveling up will also yield them, and there is usually something on the Channels that I will play anyway.

This does pose some things worth considering. You do not actually buy any of these songs, so you can't just play them whenever you want since you have a finite amount of Plays. Also, because of this, if you played a particularly difficult song and want another crack at a difficult part of it, you have to be cognizant of how many Plays you have. Also, they are selling a pass that will get you access to the entire library (Play free) for 24 hours for around $6.

Microtransactions tend to scare people off, but it's really not that big of a deal here. You can totally enjoy GHTV for FREE. Sure, you can throw money at Plays, at Coins, or even at Premium (time-based challenges that unlock around level 6) but this mode is at its best when you just pick a channel and play, and you can do that for free. Guitar Hero TV is one of the most unique modes I have ever seen in a rhythm game, and it's super addictive. I can't tell you how many times I tried turning the game off, just to see a certain song was being played on one of the channels, and then jumping in again.

The question will be longevity. There is a great shell here with Guitar Hero TV and it's an absolute blast and something that I see myself going back to often. My hope is that this will get updated with more content on a regular basis. More songs, accessories, channels, more, more, more. My current biggest gripe is that there are only two channels. Many times you will be sitting there waiting for something to come on either channel because both just happen to be showing a quick preview of a song that's On Demand. Hopefully the addition of more songs will create the need for a 3rd and 4th channel.

As far as the music itself goes, the single player soundtrack is fine overall, nothing that really blew me away. Music is all about taste though, right? So I am sure you will find something to love and things to not like. The songs featured on GHTV go across a pretty wide spectrum, so there really is something for everyone there.

Guitar Hero Live changes the fundamental aspects enough to feel fresh, yet still be simple enough to pick up and enjoy, and while the single-player campaign may be lacking, Guitar Hero TV is going to be where you spend most of your time and will eat up hours and hours of enjoyable shredding as you climb the leaderboards. I don't know if "Return to Form" is the right term, but Guitar Hero Live certainly is worth a look and is still as enjoyable now as it was 10 years ago.

Also, as of this morning when I left for my day job, I was number 13 in the world at Fountains of Wayne's "Stacy's Mom", bring it!

My video promo for Extra Life 2015!

So, I'm no professional video editor, but I did take a little time to record a quick promo for my Extra Life charity live stream. Take a look:

The deal is as such:

When: Saturday, November 7th @ 8AM CST - Sunday, November 8th @ 8AM CST (24 hours, y'all)

Where to watch: www.twitch.tv/jeff_mcfly

Where to donate: www.extra-life.org/participant/jeffofallgames

Who it benefits: The University of Iowa Children's Hospital

Games I Am Playing:

- Team Fortress 2
- The Witcher 3
- Halo 5
- Splatoon
- Super Mario Maker
- Genesis games
- SNES games
- Dreamcast games
- Heroes of the Storm
- Rocket League
- Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes
- and MORE!

Please consider donating and helping save lives. This would definitely qualify as a random act of kindness.

Thank you!

What I Thought Of... Star Wars Battlefront Beta

Yes, I said Star Wars Battlefront, now I will pause briefly while every Star Wars fan wakes up since they all fainted from excitement...
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We good? Ok. So the Battlefront Beta ran from October 8th to October 13th, hoping to stress test the servers before the game launches on November 17th for Xbox One, PS4, and PC. It was FREE for EVERYONE, regardless of pre-orders or system, which was a HUGE plus for this and really well done.

So, after 5 or 6 hours playing the beta across all systems, here is what I thought of the Star Wars Battlefront beta.

(For the purposes of this post, let it be known that I primarily played the beta on PC, though I did dabble briefly with the PS4 and Xbox One versions)

I won't get too in-depth since I will write a full review when the game is released, so here are just some thoughts I had:

+ The Game Looks Amazing!

Should be obvious from all the coverage going around the interwebs, but even in motion, this is a jaw-dropper, especially on my Alienware PC with my GTX 960 graphics card. The game's graphics had an "auto" feature that put me at "High" settings across the board, though even after I bumped it up to "Ultra", the game ran super smooth and is a graphical masterpiece. I will say I had zero graphics issues during my playtime.

More than just how it looks though, it's the little things that add to the overall experience. When you shoot, the sparks that come off whatever you hit looks astounding, the snow on Hoth makes me feel cold, when you shoot a jetpacking Stormtrooper out of the sky, they explode like a damn firework and I never not laugh at it, and when you spawn into a match, the transitional "Screen Wipe" just screams Star Wars and makes me nerd out for a split second. This is an absolutely incredible looking game.

+ The Game Sounds Amazing!

Say what you will about the previous Battlefield games, one thing DICE has always been stellar at is sound design, and they have stepped their game up even more with Battlefront. The sound of you firing your blaster, the muffled sounds when you're protected by your personal shield, the sound of the thermal detonator blowing up, the bass behind an AT-AT shot, the scream of a TIE Fighter overhead, the terrifying sound of Darth Vader breathing right before he slices you with a lightsaber, it's all terrific and really helps you feel like you completely in this battle. That AT-AT shot especially, I could feel that shot in my chest, and it wasn't because of the Red Bull I was drinking. This is definitely a game worth upgrading my sound system for.

+ The Menus and UI Are Very Slick!

Even outside of the blasting, the game looks nice, the menus are clean, right to the point, and easy to navigate. Inside the game, the UI elements are never in your way. I personally like how you don't see your health bar until you take damage. Since the game has regenerating health, if you don't see your health bar on screen, then you have full health. 

+ I Was Pleasantly Surprised At the Amount of Content Here!

Honestly, I figured we would just have one map, one mode, and that would be that, but we ended up seeing 3 modes, 3 maps, a ranking system, things to unlock, I mean a good chunk of game to have in a beta. 

+ Getting In a Game/Staying In a Game Was No Hassle!

Short load times, stable servers, relatively little lag for me, overall impressed with how this all went.

There's a few positives (gotta start on the right foot, right?) so here are a few negatives:


- I Really Hate That Sniper Rifle!

When you rank up, you can unlock the "Cycler Rifle" and it is what we like to call "OP" (Overpowered....AF). It's basically a one-shot kill no matter where it hits you, and the cooldown on it is pretty fast, which leads to many players camping and generally giving you a bad time. Yes, this isn't new for a first-person shooter to have a sniper camping, but a little nerf here would be nice.

- It is REALLY Hard to Win As the Rebels on Hoth!

This may sounds like I am being a crybaby, but MANY people are talking about this, so much so that changes are already reportedly happening. As the Rebels, you are faced not only with fighting Snowtroopers and Darth Vader, but having to activate uplinks while dealing with two AT-ATs coming at you. Oh, there are also AT-STs that players can commandeer. Yes, it is supposed to be hard, the Rebels lose Hoth in the movie anyway, so this is totally canonical, but that doesn't mean it's fun in a video game. All the Empire has to do to win is protect the AT-ATs.

I didn't hate it totally, but it did bug me knowing that I probably wasn't going to get a win, just because the game put me on the Rebel side. Again, changes are supposedly happening as we speak.

- I Wish the Wave-Based "Horde-Style" Mode Supported More Players!

This is more of a personal gripe, I'm sure, but I just wish that mode supported up to 4 players instead of up to 2 players.

- The Spawn Points Are Less Than Ideal!

This point really comes through in the Capture Point-style mode, since my team was trying to capture a Pod, only to get wiped by the other team, then they were able to claim and capture the Pod before anyone from my team could get close to them, since we ALL spawned on the other side of the map. Granted, yes we had a full team wipe so we sucked, but we should still be able to at least put up a fight.

  
Final Thoughts on the Beta:

Again, these are just a few thoughts I had while playing. To answer a few questions:

Was it fun to play? Absolutely! I enjoyed the hell out of this Beta.

Am I still excited for the game to come out? You bet! With all I saw, and all that's left to be seen, I can't wait to get the full game.

Will this take people away from games like Call of Duty or Counter-Strike? I think it's too soon to tell, but I also don't think this is looking to do that. Battlefront is aiming to be a reboot of a beloved game franchise and be something that Star Wars fans and shooter fans can have a great time playing, and it did that for me through this Beta.

What version will I play it on? I'm thinking PC. It ran great and mouse-and-keyboard controls are ideal for this, but I might get a console version with that sweet Han Solo mini-fridge.

Look for more on Star Wars Battlefront when the game is released on November 17th on Xbox One, Playstation 4, and PC. 

What's Coming Up in October, 2015?

Wow, I am really late with this month's entry, huh? Apologies, multiple jobs and being a part of my cousin's wedding (congrats, Brad and Megan) has taken up my time, but onward we go!

The fourth quarter of 2015 is upon us, which means a few things: (A) Pack up your bikinis and bro tanks and bust out the long sleeves and jackets, (B) Hockey and Basketball seasons will start very soon, (C) Department stores will remind you every day how it's almost Christmas, and (D) Blockbuster video game releases.

Here is what will be coming out while you frantically search for a last-second Halloween costume:

October 6th:

Rock Band 4 - (PS4, Xbox One)

Get the band back together with the next entry in the plastic-intruments series. There are a few different purchasing options available: The "Band in a Box" which includes the game, guitar, and drums, a version that comes with the game and a guitar only, or just the game. The instruments from the last generation will work here, though if you're an Xbox player, you have to shell out $20 more with your version since it comes with a device that will allow compatibility with the older generation.

Transformers: Devastation - (PS4, Xbox One, PC)

Every 80's kid's dream come true. From the studio that brought you Bayonetta and Anarchy Reigns, this game is just busting at the seems with nostalgic love. I've played this for a few hours already and I find this game to be rad as hell. You can watch the archive of my live stream HERE ON YOUTUBE .

October 9th:

Uncharted: The Nathan Drake Collection - (PS4)

All 3 Uncharted games (minus multiplayer) redone for 60 frames per second, plus access to the Uncharted 4 multiplayer when it is available. These are some of the most impressive games of the last generation and well worth going back to.

October 16th:

Yoshi's Woolly World - (Wii U)

What is this feeling in my heart? Why am I filled with sunshine and happiness? Why do I feel the need to use the word adorable? WHAT AM I? ERR-OR! ERR-OR! ERR-OR!

 October 20th:

Guitar Hero Live - (PS4, PS3, Xbox 360, Xbox One, Wii U)

Become a rock star again with the next entry in the plastic-instrument series...wait... hmm. Odd how a new Guitar Hero game comes out around the same time as a new Rock Band game. Big difference here: you NEED to buy the new guitar controller with this game. There will be no backwards compatibility with content or controllers. The big feature here is Guitar Hero TV, which will act like Spotify or Pandora and give "around-the-clock" content, as opposed to scheduled DLC. This can also allow for asynchronous multiplayer. Seems interesting.

October 23rd:

Assassin's Creed Syndicate - (PS4, Xbox One)

Quote me on this: "Assassin's Creed Syndicate is going to be a great game". There is a lot to love about this franchise, and a lot to not love about it. Unity left a bad impression on many gamers and Syndicate is a very important game that will help decide if this franchise can continue on. I think it will succeed greatly. This, coupled with the movie due out in 2016 starring Michael Fassbender, will show that the franchise still has legs. I'm excited for both.

The Legend of Zelda: Tri Force Heroes - (3DS)

A multiplayer-focused Zelda game, sort of like Four Swords...only it's three. Also, you can play it single-player with two A.I., or play with two other players, but there will be no "two-player-one-A.I." mode.

October 27th: 

Halo 5: Guardians - (Xbox One)

Quote me on this: "Halo 5: Guardians will be in the Game of the Year discussions for some major video game publication". Everything I have seen out of this game looks absolutely incredible. I enjoyed the little time I spent with the multiplayer beta and as an avid Halo fan, I CAN NOT WAIT for this game to come out.

WWE 2K16 - (PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, Xbox One)

I'm kind of on a roll here, so here's another quote: "WWE 2K16 will be better than 2K15". Feeling pretty confident about that one.

Other Notes: 

- Elite: Dangerous is fully out now on Xbox One and no longer under "Game Preview".

- Chibi-Robo!: Zip Lash is now available for 3DS and looks like a cute, inoffensive platformer. Also comes with a nice looking Chibi-Robo amiibo.

- Minecraft: Story Mode, the Telltale Games episodic take on Minecraft, kicks off with Episode 1 - The Order of the Stone starting October 13th for PC, Xbox 360, Xbox One, PS3 and PS4, with the iOS and Android version out October 15th.

- Speaking of Telltale Games, Episode 5 of Tales from the Borderlands, entitled The Vault of the Traveler is released on October 20th for PC, PS3 and PS4, 21st for Xbox 360 and Xbox One, and 22nd for iOS and Android.

- Darksiders II: Deathinitive Edition will release for PS4 and Xbox One on October 27th. Sure, I like Darksiders II, but I just wanted to mention it here because I think the name "Deathinitive" is TERRIBLE. UGH! It's barely wordplay, it's lazy. I'll buy the game though.

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We are loading up on big releases and it only gets heavier from here as we inch closer and closer to the holidays. As always, these dates can change at any time and more titles may find their way into your collection, these are just my highlights. Also, we are less than a month from Fallout 4...you have been warned.