For those of you that don't know I have been replaying through all the WWE games I can get my hands on to rank them. Todays blog will do the double. I have played a little bit of WWE 2K17 and man is that game trash so then moved on to WWE All Stars and that little gem is short. So I just merged the blog.

Let's start with 2K17 and whats good with it. The character creator is quicker... i guess. In the previous game you would have to wait a good 10 seconds with every choice. Each hairstyle, top, beard, eyebrows....you get it. It was legitimately tedious to create a character.

The games... looks ...better. I think, they keep getting better each year, I always start with a Triple H vs The Rock match (where these characters are unlocked) to test visuals and this is probably the best so far.

The gameplay seems slightly snappier too, i'm not sure if I am imagining this but it seemed quicker and more responsive.

Career mode seems more refined from last year, you no longer have the pointless goals to get that seem endless, and pointless. However it's still the same premise as previous years. Pick a title, work up from 10th seed to number one contender then fight for that title. Problem is, it just takes forever. I played for 12 hours in the tag team bracket and didn't get a title shot, not once. Won every match, started rivalries with members of tag teams higher than me, still never got a shot at THE NEW DAY!!! for the title.

I like a storyline in these career modes something to keep me interested and intrigued even something small. This and the previous iteration have nothing, so yet again I gave up.

WWE ALLSTARS

The game is very stripped back compared to any other wrestling game, there is no career to speak of and the creator modes are limited to just a character. This is even very stripped back you pick a head and a body. You pick clothes, a move set, some other wrestlers entrance and a finisher and your'e done.

Match types are very limited single, tag, hardcore and cage. That's it, ring out doesn't result in a count out and you can pin your opponent anywhere. The game plays a lot more like a fighting game than a wrestling game. You have a light attack and strong attack and then light and heavy grapple on the other two buttons. The gameplay though is fun, really fun. Probably some of the most fun I have had playing these WWE games. It doesn't quite have the depth of the other games which hurts it a little.

Reversals though, it seems so much harder to get the timing down and the AI controlled player can smash them out like nobody's business. So much so that close to the end of the series of matches that make up this games main mode, I was getting so frustrated because my opponents would reverse everything i do and I only seemed to win through luck.

On to the main game mode, it is basically a small story. A series of 10 matches resulting in a title shot. The first of these series is for the heavyweight championship against The Undertaker, the second series is for the WWE title against Randy and the final is a Tag Title series against DX. The matches are broken up by promo's every 3 or 4 matches which are well acted and look amazing. It's basic but fun.

Talking about the look of the game. The animated style still holds up and although may look jaggy at times, still looks amazing. I like it.

There is one more game mode in this game which pits two superstars, who have something in common against each other. You pick which one you control and see who ultimately is the best. The match ups boil down to stuff like the best Warrior, Ultimate vs Celtic. Or the best Big Man, Show vs Andre You know stuff like that. These matches start with a video package in classic WWE style introducing each superstar and talking about the rivalry. It's kinda cool.

Okay the ranking:

1. WWE Smackdown Vs Raw 2006

2. WWE Allstars

3. WWE 2K15

4. WWE 2K17

5. WWE 2K16

For those of you that don't know (probably every single one of you), I have been playing through every single WWE game (for some reason in a random order) and I'm ranking them.

The latest of these games was WWE Smackdown vs Raw 2006 on the PlayStation 2. I generally create a character and play my way through the career mode (or as far as I can stand in the case of WW2K16). In this game I went a step further. I did the usual career run. I also decided to do just over a year in the games GM mode.

The first thing that stood out to me with this game is the loading times, man are they long. I felt like I was waiting forever. Is this what life used to be like? Another thing I quickly realised that I really dislike is the reversal system. I'm used to a single button. Not one for strike and another for grapples. How am I supposed to anticipate what an AI controlled player will do next. With humans they have tells, patterns. A.I no. It is much better as a single button and it being solely based on your timing.

As for the career there are 4 branching paths, two for Smackdown and 2 for Raw. The whole career is voice acted by all the superstars. I wish there was a story like this in modern WWE games. The story I got started a little sexist but ultimately it was entertaining throughout and visited a cast of characters and left me fighting in many stipulations. It was just fun.

As for customisation modes. You can create a character with all the bells and whistles that comes with that, I think it's the first time you can create a belt and an entrance. This game is the first step in the great customisation tools you see today.

Finally GM mode. The highlight of this game. Drafting a roster, creating shows, managing their popularity, fitness levels and what rivalries they are part of. It's enthralling. Many a time I would start playing this mode when I got home from work, would look up and its 2a.m. I was addicted. Until I ultimately won GM of the year, went into another draft and lost Mankind. One of my star guys and got shit in trade. It's the way it goes and I guess I could have tried to mould a 64 rated Kane to becoming a fan draw but I...just didn't want to.

I really wish WWE games today were more like this. It is some of the most fun i have had with a WWE property in a long time. The game is snappy and plays well. GM mode in deep and addicting. It's just the best.

The Ranking

1. WWE Smackdown Vs Raw 2006

2. WWE 2K15

3. WWE 2K16

Utter toss. This one will be short, much like my time with WWE 2K16. Initial impressions are great. The game is smoother, runs better and load times are faster. The game looks slightly better also. Oh and no buggy animations. My super kick actually worked this time.

Yeah...If you didn't know I'm working my way through (what was) modern WWE games and ranking them when I'm done.

I started with a 6 man tag, elimination match. Evolution vs The Uso's (old school haka Uso) and Roman. It looked great and was really fun to play. I then moved on to the career, my main focal point with these games. Let me tell you this was complete and utter dog shite.

So dull, seemed never ending. I actually quit when I won the WWE title in less than 5 hours (I played the previous game for 25 hours). The main targets of the career seem unattainable with the game getting ridiculously tedious. Hold the belt for 365 days, have 15 reigns and lose every match for a year were just 3 of the main aims of the career. This just doesn't seem fun. Also it makes you (no way to skip or simulate it) watch your rivals matches. A lot of the time not even giving you an option to jump in and interact with the match. Why????

In the creation suite there were a few more options, championships, shows and the rest a pretty standard affair when playing these games. I made a title....not as pretty as the white Intercontinental belt (oh how I love that strap).

So overall this plays and looks better, but not by enough to make up for the shitty, oh so shitty career mode. My next game...well let me tell you. I'm getting a bit bored of these games, I know they get better but I want something fresh. So my next game will be. (Drum Roll please) WWE Smackdown Vs Raw 2006 on the PlayStation 2. I'll play the career, unlock as many legends as I can and then take them along with the regular stars and play a season or two of GM mode. I can't wait. Something different. Something I remember being amazing I picked it up online for 29p. i have dusted off my PS2 and the gear. Lets gooooo!!!!!!!!!

Oh the ranking so far....If you didn't already know

1. WWE 2K15
2. WWE 2K16

So recently I decided to pick up every single WWE game on the current generation of console. Not sure what urged me to. But it happened. Now, what does one do with these games? Well play them and rank them of-course. That's a ranking everyone wants right?...Right?

Let us start with 2k15, the first WWE release on the current generation of consoles and if i'm correct the second published by 2k. I picked this up for £2.33 on eBAy. My ranking of these games will be based on creating a character, playing through the career and just noting my general thoughts as I play.

My character Charles Tunkoku (I'm sure a lot of you can see where my inspiration came from on the name). My first character is a heavyweight who's main attributes lie in pace, and ariel offensive. I aimed to make a character who would eventually wrestle much like AJ Styles. This is my favourite style to play in these games and will probably make up the crux of most of my created wrestlers. Anyway the career took me 25 hours (just a bit more) and took me from NXT, on to Superstars, then Smackdown and Raw. Eventually ending up in the Rumble (winning) and then beating Daniel Bryan at Mania. After all that was done Triple H requested my guy wrestle one last match (15 years later) against an up and comer. (some created nobody).

The story...although the outline seems rather interesting in execution its actually quite tedious and dull. You more often than not just get a message from Vicky Guerroro telling you she has nothing for you this week and letting you choose between 2 random matches...which have no bearing on the storyline at all. One gets you more credit which you can use to buy create a wrestler parts and managers. The other more stat points to make your wrestler stronger. Once every so often (probably every 8 or 9 hours) you'll get given a push which comes with a storyline. Most of these were rather dull and resulted in pretty much the same sort of matches but instead of Vicky giving you a choice you just read a message from a wrestler about said storyline. In one I had somehow pissed off The Shield (dunno how). This resulted in me having 3 matches against them (with two random partners) ending in another match against The Shield at a PPV (with two more random partners). Rinse and repeat for most of the stories with slight variations.

As for how the game plays, it seems rather sluggish and slow, the frame rate is poor, quite often even in 1v1 matches. The AI can reverse everything, especially early on when your character's stats are low. So many moves seemed to just bug out. I had the Spear set as my finish. I shit you not but every third or fourth time it would just bug out. No move would happen and I would lose my finisher. Bull shit. Similar happened with a Superkick I was using early on. The chain wrestling mini game is terrible. Starting a match with rock paper scissors for an advantage in stamina. It's just unnecessary. The pin mini game is also impossible at the start. When you upgrade that stat it becomes easier but still rather dull to play. I miss mashing buttons to kick out. You know like Smackdowns of old.

What I did enjoy though was the mini game when you are eliminating a wrestler from the Royal Rumble. DDResque and pretty entertaining. None of the customisation in this game is hidden behind loot boxes either. I think 19 and 20 both had that issue and I hated it. Shockingly the game looks fairly good too. Not quite as good as 19 or maybe 20 but still fairly realistic.

So the game is okay. Not great but for a first crack on new hardware its not, that bad. I had fun for the 25 hours I played it and if the career is cleaned up a little. Made more compelling and the frame rate issues are fixed, the game could be really fun. Maybe speed up the pace of the game a little too. I know it's a Sim but there is no need for the game to be so sluggish to play.

SO WWE2K15 right now is my number 1 WWE game on the current generation of hardware.

I have always been a fan of the WWE series of games. I owned Warzone on the PlayStation One before I had even seen a single match. In fact that game got me into wresting itself. I was also obsessed with the Smackdown games as a child.

Now don't get me wrong I know the games are bad. In fact I know they have been for quite a while. I just enjoy creating a wrestler and playing through the career mode each year.

Given that and because of the news that there will be no regular 2K game this October, I have decided to play my way through every single WWE2K game that has been released on the current generation of consoles. If it has a career mode (and if I recall correctly, some don't) I'll play a few matches and sample as many game modes as I can. With each game I plan to post a blog and ultimately Rank all of the games by the end of the series of Blogs.

Now I already Owned 2k17,18,19 and 20 so i have purchased 15 and 16 from eBay (for some reason they don't even show on the xbox marketplace or the PlayStation Network. As soon as I have sampled as much of 15 as I feel it deserves I'll let you all know what I think (I bet you can't wait).

I have now been a father for 14 days. Something that originally seemed daunting to me is now..I guess. Second nature. She is just a part of my life now. Aoife Rose, my daughter. The girl that eventually changed my life. I have transformed from the most laid back person ever to someone who worries almost constantly.

"She's quiet, I better give her a little wiggle to check if she's still breathing", "Do you think she is eating enough?", "Does every baby poo this much", "Am I holding her right" and my favourite one "I have done everything I can, why are you still crying". All the above is probably said or thought by me multiple time a day.

Saying all that I think I have taken to it pretty naturally. I had never held a baby before holding my daughter, something I feel is really pure and wonderful. Everything I do with Aoife. I will be doing it for the very first time.

The plan in the future is to use Giantbomb's blog feature as a kind of stream of consciousness. Something to look back on in the future. I aim to steer the subjects towards gaming where I can.

I also wonder, fellow parents on these here forums. How did your gaming habits change post child? Hopefully your answers will be a small widow into my future.

2016 was a terrible year. Just horrible. I’m not here to recap the year though I’m here to talk games. The games were good, really good.

2016 though…. Alan Rickman? Fuck.

There were a couple of games from last year that I can’t make a list of 2016 without at least mentioning. These two games, I haven’t had much time to get deep into. But from what I have played they are surprisingly good.

Final Fantasy XV

My history with Final Fantasy is patchy, I played and loved 7-10. Never actually finished one of them though. Hated 12 and 13. Didn’t play any of the MMO’s. 15…is… different. That isn’t a bad thing though. The combat is hectic as all hell but it’s fun, the story seems bland but who cares the open world is magical and beautiful, damn is it beautiful.

The Last Guardian

I think I have only played an hour of this so far, Trico seems cool and he passes my girlfriends test… “aww isn’t he cute”. The stuff I have heard about the way the game plays the logic behind Trico and how he reacts seems interesting. I just hope I don’t get frustrated.

Anyway the actual list. Here goes.

10. Super Hot

This game frustrated me for the whole 2 hours I spent playing it. I couldn’t see when bullets were coming at me. It took me a while to get the logic behind the movement. But when it all clicked into place and you watch your run back in real time the game looks beautiful. Maybe it would have placed higher if I had a bit more fun.

9.Ratchet and Clank

I haven’t seen the film and I have only played one of the Ratchet games on PlayStation 3. But for some reason I have always been a Ratchet fan. I don’t know why. This game though, looks amazing on the Pro, is a hell of a lot of fun and it’s funny too. I am so glad they rebooted this franchise and I can’t wait for a sequel.

8. Firewatch

Firewatch is all story and it kept me interested from the start right till the last second. The twists in the story. The misdirection, its all part of the fun. It’s not often that I can sit down for extended periods of time with a game but Firewatch was a one sitting game for me.

7. Battlefield 1

A shooter set during World War 1 was a risky move for Dice to make. It worked. The single player although short, is a great 4 hours. Especially the last campaign. The openness of the level in front of you giving you multiple ways to take it on. I hope dice play more with that in future games. The multiplayer is the same as always top class.

6. Uncharted 4

Uncharted is my favourite gaming series of all time. Its popcorn gaming at its best. So its telling of the quality of this year’s games that it places 6th on my list. Its an amazing probably the best in the series but the next 5 games are just so much better.

5. Hitman

I don’t like Hitman games. They just don’t play well, its too slow and I never have fun. Until now. Maybe it’s the episodic format stopping me from getting bored. Maybe its all the dumb fun you can have. I don’t know what it is. I just know I love playing this game. If I ever find myself with an hour or so free. I’ll occasionally pop this on and do an escalation or something to get that mastery to level 20.

4. Doom

I passed on this game when it came out. Played level 1 and got caught up with either Uncharted or Overwatch I can’t remember. I wish I hadn’t this game is fast paced fun; the way shooters never are anymore. It feels so good, looks beautiful and the metal soundtrack fits the game perfectly. The only gripe I have is, this game fucks up my PS4…no seriously the system locks up after playing this game, this and Stardew.

3. Overwatch

I’m not a multiplayer shooter guy. I am an Overwatch guy however. Maybe it’s the way they don’t focus on KDR or the wacky characters and art style. This game is just charming and hooked me totally for 2 months straight.

2. Titanfall 2

Titanfall 1’s multiplayer was fun, take that add an amazing single player campaign. Yes, the best campaign a shooter has had for a while and you have a near perfect game. The small one off puzzles you have to do are incredible. This game also has two of the greatest gaming moments in 2016.

1. Stardew Valley

This game totally took me by surprise. I bought it to play about with on my hour lunch break and on public transport to my meeting once or twice a month. I now spend probably 5 or 6 hours a week on this game, just farming and mining and talking to folks. I’m addicted. P.S Hayley is a bitch. Talk about my shoes like that again and I will poison that egg I give you every morning

It’s safe to say as a kid I was a little geeky. Fuck. I was and still am a huge geek. I liked Pokémon, I played hundreds of hour’s of Pokémon Blue and Yellow. I watched the anime every Saturday morning and was first in line for the film (well i went to the cinema to see it anyway). Then I grew up. I stopped watching Pokémon shortly after that film (I ain’t into there being more than 151 Pokémon, screw that), got my RPG kicks from Final Fantasy and started watching shows for grown up people, you know like Power Rangers.

I tried playing later games in the series. Black was my first attempt and more recently Y but they never really worked for me. They were filled with Pokémon I didn’t know and I just didn’t find it any fun. Then along came Pokémon GO, there was no way a 28 year old man would be interested in a game where you walk around parks pointing your phone at thin air all in the aid of catching fake monsters. Right?

Pokémon go is at its base an Augmented Reality game where you walk around and every now and again your phone will beep. The beep notifies you that there is a Pokémon near you. You then quickly get your phone out of your pocket, point it at nothing (hopefully its nothing, don’t go pointing your camera phone at random kids please…that shit will get you in trouble). On your screen you’ll see one of the original 151 Pokémon (minus 5 which are currently being held back for unknown special magical… bull shit reasons), you then throw Pokéball’s at said ‘mons until you catch them. Then that’s it. Yep the base of the game is walk, encounter imaginary ‘mon (I hate that i’m calling them “‘mon’s" too, its just quicker to type OKAY), swipe the screen and now you own imaginary ‘mon. That’s your game. Fun right…….right?

Surprisingly yes. Well. Sort of. It’s extremely addicting, Niantic (the company behind this new craze) have peppered in a few more things for an aspiring Pokémon trainer to do don’t worry, it’s not that basic. You can visit certain landmarks and collect item’s. Those landmarks are called Pokéstop’s in game. At the Pokéstop’s you can collect more ball’s, potion’s, revive’s and also egg’s.

The egg’s are used to hatch more Pokémon. You have to walk 2, 5 or 10km (depending on the egg) and after that distance is travelled the egg will crack open and you will get yourself one more Pokémon. You can also evolve, level up Pokémon and fight them in Gyms (also found at certain landmarks). That’s about everything the “game” has to offer.

Your character (which you create at the start) has a level. That level governs what power Pokémon you catch, which also have their own level that can increase (CP). So basically the higher level you are the better your ‘mons will be. So grind your arse off. Okay so that really is it.

The main question is, is this game fun, erm to be totally honest. I’m not that sure. It’s addicting, oh man is it addicting. But fun…..eh not really. Its a nice time waster and something to do when you have to walk somewhere, but I don’t think I would call the game in itself fun. Where the fun lies with me is going out with my girlfriend just sat around chilling, talking shit and catching Pokémon. It’s meant we have done different things than the usual, we have had a picnic in the park and gone out on random late night walks. That’s what I like about this game, its been something that we can do together. Some common thing we both enjoy.

It's the new year and tonnes of games are coming out. I wish that statement was true but it's not. It's just not. There is absolutely fuck all till March when we get Titanfall and Infamous. So it's backlog time. 2 full months to clear up what ever games I want to before any titles of note release.

So what do I plan on playing is my question?

The Last of Us

I went to New Zealand a week after this game released and never got around to finishing it. I think I am about 2/3 of the way in so it shouldn't be that time consuming.

Beyond: Two Souls

The Xbox One came out just as I was getting into this which made me push it to the side. Time to get back into it. Again I think I am about 2/3 of the way through so this game shouldn't take too long either.

Metal Gear Rising : Revengeance

It was on PS+ seems pretty cool, gonna give it a shot.

Max and the Curse if Brotherhood

A small XBLA game that came out just before Xmas. I guess it's worth a shit there's nothing else to play on the One at the minute.

Need for Speed Rivals

I am honestly not too impressed with how this game I slated out but the gameplay is still fucking awesome.

I will also be putting time into FIFA 14, Battlefield 4, Football Manager 2014 and I may as we'll play Call of Duty: Ghosts I do own it after all.

So what will everyone be playing to keep you occupied till decent games start rolling again.

This year was exceptionally hard to pick out 10 games for my list. Not because there were so many games I couldn’t choose. Actually quite the opposite this year seemed to have very few games that I actually wanted to play. I don’t know if that is because its a new console release year and developers are still trying to get to grips with the hardware or because a few big games such as Watchdogs have been delayed. Anyway ‘eres the list.

Honorable Mentions: NBA 2k14

I used to be a basketball fan way back when. When I was a kid actually. You know Michael Jordan. Space Jam. So yeah Channel 4 over here used to run highlights of games and I made an effort to check out as many Bulls games as I could. Now eeeh….I couldn’t care less, but i am told 2K’s NBA is the graphical poster child for the new generation of consoles and fuuuuck does this game look amazing. I am slowly picking up how you actually play basketball (damn there are a hell of alot of ways to foul) and I have to say I am having a tonne of fun with the career mode. Oh and the game has classic bulls so I can smash some Jordan. Saying that I feel I can’t really place this in my top 10 because I don’t fully understand the game yet and I am still learning the ropes but its good real good.

And Persona 4: Golden

I know you guys are probably bitching at me right now. Dude this came out years ago and even if you run on a technicality it came out on Vita Last year. You know what my reply is “Shut the fuck up”.....sorry if thats a little harsh but yeah. Persona 4 actually released in April over here and when it did I had to buy a vita. So I did and I have to say this is THE game to own on the Vita. It is hell of fun. I haven’t liked a JRPG since….erm...damn it has to be Final Fantasy X. Persona just hooked me from the off. Really interesting story and battle techniques make this a game to own.

Anyway on to the list:

10. Saints Row IV

You like Saints Row The Third right. Well take that throw in some Matrix rip offs and a shit tonne of superpowers that kind of break the game (but in a fun way) and you have one dumb assed fun game. I had so much fun playing this game, just flying around the city picking up shards. It scratched the same itch Crackdown did way back when.

9. Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons

Even though this game only clocks in at just over 2 hours and its rather simple. It is 2 hours well spent. The story told in this game is so interesting and eventually really upsetting. If you like story heavy games this is definitely one to play. The game looks amazing too, I mean they actually place benches around the environment so you can sit and look at the views.

8. FIFA 14

I buy FIFA every year and every year I love the game. This year though. This year I have found myself playing the game a hell of a lot more than usual. You wanna know why? The game looks fucking gorgeous. The next gen versions at least. My father actually mistook me playing it for an actual football match over the holiday break.

7.DmC: Devil May Cry

I generally don't like character action games, but even with DmC coming out early in the year it made a damn good impression on me. The art style was amazing. The combo action is also loads of fun. If this game was to get a next gen upgrade it would be a definite day one buy for me.

6.Tomb Raider

Another early in the year game release. Another bloody good game. Tomb Raider seemed to do everything uncharted did and look beautiful doing it.

5. Dead Rising 3

I have made no secret of hating all previous Dead Rising games. They felt clunky and a little old fashioned in many ways. Dead rising 3 though. Dead Rising 3 seems to fix many problems and throws a shit tonne of Zombies at you in the process.

4.Grand Theft Auto 5

This is the first GTA game I have played through to completion. The mixture of personalities with the 3 character dynamic was great to witness and the heist missions in the game really excelled it among its predecessors.

3. Assassins Creed 4

I burnt out on this series a few years ago. Until this year. Black Flag was amazing. I'm not quite sure what won me over. Was it Kenway, the pirate genre in General or the amazing ship based combat. You know what it doesn't matter this is a fun game that has won me back round on the series. I can't wait to see where Ubisoft go next with this one.

2. Battlefield 4

The games broken. The single player campaign falls short of its amazing start but the multiplayer is still top of its class. I own the game on both PC and Xbox One and for the first time I find myself playing the console version. It now has all the benefits of the PC counterpart and it's so much easier to pick up and play.

1. Bioshock Infinite

I know there has been a lot of hate thrown around since the games release. But I am sorry I disagree. I take the game for what it was when I played it and the enjoyment I got from it was second to none this year. I even liked the combat. But where Infinite excelled was it's story. The plot and setting drew me in from start to finish.

One final honourable mention: The Wolf Among Us

Last year The Walking Dead was my Game of The Year. So I had to try The Wolf Among Us. Not knowing the comic on which the game was based I was a little hesitant on whether or not I would enjoy this game as much, but after playing the first chapter today I have to say I fucking love it. I really do. The only reason it doesn't appear in the top spot of this list is the fact that only 1/5 of the game has been released so far. I can't really get a full picture of the whole product also I just played it today, it needs some time to sink in. Oh well the rest of the game will release next year. Maybe it will appear next year.

So there it is, There are some pretty decent games in there. But this years games seem a little limp in comparison to previous years. Yeah the top 5 games on my list are awesome fucking games but the others I mean...hell I have wrote about 2 yearly sports franchises here. Oh well roll on next year. Can't friggin wait. Destiny, Watchdogs and Titanfall just to name a few amazing games. I think it is safe to say 2014 will be a good year (if not an expensive year) for gamers. Especially me. I am thinking new PC and PS4 at some point.