I played a whole load of different games this month, but did complete much.

Shadows of the Damned

Completed: 18th July 2011 (01:10)

Involved: Completed story on normal difficulty.

Summary: I was lucky enough to not see much of this game past the first few levels (and the ending!) so I wasn't quite sure what to expect in terms of quality and how much fun I'd get out of this one. I was surprised to find myself really enjoying the whole game despite not getting on greatly with Resi 5's controls. There are a few sections that feel repeated for the sense of length, but I liked the shadow element of the game and the crazy characters and moments. Would recommend a play through, please go get this game as it sold well under what it deserved.

Next: Unlikely to replay but I'll try the puppeteer achievement some more times!

Rating: 4

Duke Nukem Forever

Completed: 25th July 2011 (02:00)

Involved: Completed story on normal difficulty.

Summary: What a struggle it was to power through to the end of this game. The setpieces have no life, the humour is poor, the combat is boring and it tried to use every gameplay element of all the most successful titles over the last 10 years, contributing nothing of its own but a miserable play experience. I had to get it done due to the history involved here, but it was rarely enjoyable.

Next: This won't be entering my console again.

Rating: 2

Reefer Madness (DLC - L.A. Noire)

Completed: 31st July 2011 (17:00)

Involved: Completed to end of story

Summary: This is a poor piece of content. It was unexciting, it stopped working a number of times - at one point, due to the order in which I spoke to people and the outcome of my interrogations, the scripting stopped working and I was left to wander around the one available location with the same person spouting the same line of dialogue over and over. Upon a reload of the last save, I was able to succeed the interrogation which led to a cutscene which didn't happen before so I could get it done. It relied too heavily on gunplay (an issue I had with the base game: why are these people shooting the police before we've even given them reason to?) and it treats you like a simpleton with the coins puzzle; I knew exactly what the connection was as soon as I got the first one, but they had to stop your investigations and explain it to you real fucking slow just in case you fell asleep during the whole of the mission, apparently.

Next: I will get the other ones done, and hopefully they'll serve as better entertainment.

Base Game Rating: 4

DLC Rating: 2

Also Played:

Got all the pokemans on the 3DS Pokedex. Played a bit of Madden NFL 11 with Lorena, wasn't too bad playing multiplayer with someone else who hasn't a clue! Played a bit more Ocarina of Time, Mortal Kombat and Pokemon White. Got Child of Eden but have only played the first level with below optimal Kinect setup, played some Rock Band 3. Played a bit of Brink but only against bots. Played some Kinect Adventures and Dance Central after the Kinect went down to 80 on Amazon. Played some Red Faction Armageddon and FEAR 3. Played a lot of Solatorobo on my 3DS, really enjoying it. I picked it up after it got Game of the Week on Eurogamer and looked interesting. Played yet more DiRT 3 in the quest for 100%. Played PixelJunk Shooter 2 some more, and started Dungeon Siege III in co-op. Played some Bastion and From Dust, both have been great so far. Started Homefront, isn't too bad. More than anything, however, I've been playing Bad Company 2 online after officially joining my old online friends, Brotherhood of X. Been on most nights after work getting back into online multiplayer gaming and loving it, to be honest.

Scores Summary

FULL GAMES:

Shadows of the Damned [2011] (4)

Duke Nukem Forever [2011] (2)

DLC:

Reefer Madness [L.A. Noire] (2)

Game of the Month:

2011 Release: Shadows of the Damned

Most Played: DiRT 3/Battlefield: Bad Company 2

Overall: Battlefield: Bad Company 2