I'm now almost two weeks into my Backlogtober initiative, and I can't believe how much progress I've made in that time. Since my last update three days ago I've managed to beat two games, and decided to cut a third from my Pile of Shame altogether. This is also the first of these updates that I've ended up writing a little later than I'd expected to, for reasons that will become apparent in a couple of paragraphs' time. Both of this update's games have a distinctly Tomb Raider-ish flavour to them, despite neither of them being bona fide Tomb Raider games in their own right. So grab your grappling hook, holster your twin pistols, and join me as I dive into the underground passages of my latest gaming conquests...
My primary focus since the last Backlogtober update has been Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light, which I've been playing through on Xbox 360 since the late hours of Friday night. It's an interesting take on the established Tomb Raider formula, presenting its mix of exploration, puzzle-solving and combat from an isometric perspective. The other noticeable difference is that it moves much faster than any of the 'real' Tomb Raider games, probably due to its more linear environments and dual-joystick combat controls. The developers seem to have been aware of this, since the game features target times for each level that challenge the player to beat them in a handful of minutes rather than the twenty-to-forty they typically took me. The game is packed with these kinds of optional objectives and they aren't all time-based, ranging from attaining high-scores to picking up collectibles and completing level-specific challenges. It gives each level multiple focuses beyond simply reaching the end goal, providing a huge amount of replay value.
By all accounts, I probably should have finished Guardian of Light late on Sunday and written about it yesterday. However, my time with the game came to an uncomfortable and abrupt halt on Saturday night when an unwelcome visitor trespassed upon what I'd come to consider hallowed ground. There I was, minding my own business and playing video games when an enormous house spider, quite possibly the largest I've ever seen, marched boldly across my bedroom floor and under my television unit. I freaked out. I stood up on my bed, almost cracking my head on the ceiling, bellowed like a dying moose and bolted straight out of the room, shutting the door behind me. I didn't even stop to turn off the 360, I just downed tools and fled. I spent Saturday and Sunday night sleeping downstairs on the sofa in the living room because I couldn't bring myself to step back into the room for fear of seeing it again.
In case you haven't gathered from the paragraph above, I have an intense phobia of spiders. I'm without a doubt the worst arachnophobe I know. Just the simple act of writing the sentences above was enough to make my skin crawl. I'll bet most of you are readying comments calling me out for behaving in a pathetic and irrational way. And to you I say, you're absolutely right. But here's the thing - it's a phobia, an irrational fear by definition. I know I have nothing to fear from them, I know they pose no threat to me, but I still can't be in the presence of a spider without feeling nauseous. To that end, I go to incredible lengths to keep my room spider-free at all times - I move things around regularly, and dust behind and under things to make sure nothing has a chance to set up home in my company. To have that security compromised in such an open way made things even harder to stomach than your average encounter.
In exile from the comfort of my habitual gaming environment, I managed to get my fix of isometric tomb-raiding action from an alternative source. Remembering the site's recent Quick Look, I opened the Store app on my phone and downloaded Lara Croft Go on Saturday night for a modest £3.89 (I realise buying new games kind of goes against everything the Backlogtober initiative stands for, but with my entire game collection held hostage by a vile eight-legged monster my options were somewhat limited). I played through the game on-and-off in short twenty-minute instalments over the following couple of days, and reached the end of it while riding the bus back from a shopping trip yesterday morning.
The game does a great job of easing the player into its distinct brand of grid-based puzzle solving, presenting each new obstacle in isolation to illustrate how it behaves before combining it with other established elements to deepen the level of strategy required. As a long-time fan of the series who's been following Lara since her very first outing, I was surprised and thrilled to see so many little references to the old CORE-developed games. Things like the characteristic 'secret chime' that plays every time you locate one of the game's hidden collectibles, the little handstand animation that plays out when Lara reaches the top of a climbing wall, and even the rotating menu of icons that appears on start-up, all come together to evoke feelings of nostalgia for those old games, giving Lara Croft Go an identity that's rooted in both those classic experiences and the series' new-found second wind of relevance off the back of 2013's excellent reboot. It's a little short (I'd be surprised if I put more than three hours into it overall), but hopefully the fine folks at Square Enix Montréal are already hard at work on new levels, either as an expansion for the existing game or for a bona fide sequel.
Last night, finally content that the arachnid menace had vacated my game-space, I returned to both my room and my unfinished business with Xolotl in the Temple of Light. I wrapped up the game's remaining six levels in a couple of hours and felt satisfied as I watched the credits roll. There's a part of me that feels like I may have missed out on the full experience by playing it solo rather than co-operatively with a friend, but given the nature of the Backlogtober initiative it probably would've been difficult to schedule a co-op playthrough at breakneck pace on short notice. As things stand I enjoyed the game for what it was, and may even return to it at a later date to attempt more of the level-specific challenges and earn myself some more of the game's myriad unlockables.
So that covers the two games I've played and beaten, but what about the one that I've decided to drop? Well, that honour goes to Gish, a puzzle-platformer of sorts (can you really call it a 'platformer' if the protagonist can't jump?) featuring artwork from Edmund McMillen of Super Meat Boy and The Binding of Isaac fame. I dabbled with it early last year and wasn't particularly impressed with it. While the concept of controlling a ball of tar by manipulating its state rather than moving it directly seemed cool in theory, I found it imprecise and frustrating in practice. Following on from my lacklustre experience with And Yet It Moves, I decided that it was unlikely I'd get anything overwhelmingly positive from the experience of playing Gish, so I've cut it from my Pile of Shame completely. It feels good to be able to make this kind of cut, given my usual reluctance to do so. Maybe we're witnessing the start of an era where I can detach myself from some of these games more readily, without feeling too guilty.
The mid-point of Backlogtober is now almost upon us, and thus far I've managed to beat five out of my list of ten titles, as well as an unscheduled sixth game. What's more, the next game on the agenda is Telltale's The Walking Dead: Season Two, which feels like it's landed at the perfect time of the month. The plan is to devote a couple of hours each evening to it, clearing an episode a night for the next five nights, eventually wrapping it up on Saturday night, and squeezing in time with Metal Gear Solid V and Pokémon Alpha Sapphire during the day. This plan means that the next Backlogtober update will likely arrive on Sunday, with some detailed thoughts on the continuation of Clementine's story. Until then, thanks very much for reading. Take care duders, and I'll see you around.
Dan
---
Currently playing - Pokémon Alpha Sapphire (3DS)
Log in to comment