JohnnyBGamer

Not in My House – PlayStation Classic

Woke up this morning to read that Sony has decided to cash-in on the retro console movement with their own PlayStation Classic. This $100 PS1 features 20 games, including Final Fantasy VII. With my foot firmly in place, the PlayStation Classic will never enter my home.

How else am I supposed to teach Wyatt about games curation and corporate greed? Take Final Fantasy VII for instance, the game is available on just about every format. As with Skyrim, I’m sure you’ll soon be able to play Final Fantasy VII on your refrigerator door. Greed lives on your refrigerator door. Don’t feed greed nor the need to play games on appliances.

The PlayStation Classic is worthless beyond nostalgia. Sony has had most of the PlayStation 1 library available for years on the PlayStation Store. The games are playable on modern consoles and televisions, right now. No special $100 box and original uncomfortable controller required.

I understood why Nintendo released the NES Classic and SNES Classic. Both featured games that were hard to find, expensive, and did not play well with modern TVs. Providing many popular games, in one box, with a save state feature, was a total win-win for gamers everywhere. Not so much with Sony’s PlayStation Classic.

I will not be spending $100 for what amounts to a repackaging of games already available on my PlayStation 4. I’d like to say that I’d be interested in a PlayStation 2 Classic but all of the games I’d want are already available in HD remastered glory, today!

You dug too deep into the gaming mine, Sony. You have plundered the riches of your history through constant availability. As for me and my house, we will not be buying a PlayStation Classic. Wyatt’s not getting one of these for Christmas.

Happy Friday – The Rainbow

Woke up this morning and didn’t want to get out of bed. Had mowed the backyard for about an hour the night before. My body hurt. Tab and I eventually decided to go for a walk to start our day.

Thankful we got to see the rainbow pictured above. Was one of those rainbows where you could clearly see the individual colors. The sky on the flip side of this photo was a beautiful pink.

Despite the rain we’ve had lately, Tab and I have been getting up and walking in the morning. There is something nice about starting the day with your best friend, enjoying the cool weather together.

Sonic Rip-off

Wyatt and I went to GameStop and traded in a bunch of his 3DS games for credit. He claims he is finally done with Pokémon until the Switch version comes out in November. Wyatt then picked up Sonic Forces with his newly acquired funds. Being the good dad, I had read several reviews on the game. I knew that Sonic Forces wasn’t supposed to be all that great. However, my knowledge and preferences paled in the light of a little boy who had credits burning in his pocket. We exited the store with Sonic Forces for the Switch.

He played for a chunk of Saturday afternoon.

He then had a friend over later on in the week. Wyatt’s friend told him that he was close to the end of the game. Surely not, I thought. He just got the game. There is no way he is almost finished.

A quick Google search proved Wyatt’s friend correct. Sonic Forces is a 4-5 hour game at best. $40 for 4-5 hours worth of gameplay. I know we could get into a debate on a game’s value versus time, but I don’t want to go there. But I do want to note that in addition to checking a game’s content, one might also want to check a game’s length.

Sonic Forces = $40 new (no used copies)

GameStop Trade-In Value = $22

Maybe, in the end, the game being short is a good thing. Less time for Wyatt to hog the Switch. More time for him to get outside and enjoy the fresh air. Now if only the weather would cooperate and stop raining. Do you hear me, Texas? I’m tired of the 90 degree weather mixed with low 70’s and rain. Bring on the Fall!

Destiny 2 – Send the Light

Finished up the original Destiny 2 campaign over the weekend. Bungie managed to tell a somewhat decent story. I loved the bookends, the beginning and the end of the game. But I’m still not sure what happened in the middle… Cayde-6 and I are now friends? Tight gunplay mechanics continue to rule the series. No matter what, Bungie knows how to make a shooting game feel good. Real good. In the end, I wish had some friends to play through Destiny 2 with.

Destiny 2 isn’t perfect, but I enjoyed what I played. The game makes me miss the Master Chief of Bungie’s Halo. The Guardians, the Destiny player characters, lack character. The calm and determined physical presence of the Master Chief would certainly be most welcome.

From Across the Net – Humans of Gaming Podcast #118

Enjoyed listening to Drew, of Love Thy Nerd, interview Ben Esposito, developer of Donut County. Drew has created such an awesome environment on his Humans of Gaming Podcast. I love how relaxed his guests are and how open/honest the faith discussions become. Give Episode 118 a listen for me here.