Lists

My Top Five Video Games of 2022

/ Michael Beckwith / Leave a comment

Normally around this time of the year, I put together a list of the ten video games I’m most looking forward to in the following year. After some reflection, though, I’ve decided to stop doing that because, frankly, those lists aren’t exactly timeless. They get outdated so quickly, whether it’s because some of the games in question wound up not coming out or turned out to be bad. Plus, sometimes I struggle finding 10 whole games that I’m super excited for and we never know what the coming year’s full release schedule looks like.

I’d prefer to write something that holds up a lot better; something that can be read years down the line and not feel hilariously outdated. So, I’ve decided to follow the crowd and put together a top five list of my personal favourite games of 2022.

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My Ten Most Anticipated Games of 2022

/ Michael Beckwith / Leave a comment

I feel like it’d be an over exaggeration, if not outright inaccurate, to say 2021 was a bad year for video games. Quite frankly, there were plenty of awesome new games or updates to existing ones. On a personal level, Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart properly demonstrated the potential of the PlayStation 5, both Great Ace Attorney games finally made it to the West, and Super Smash Bros. Ultimate truly made the impossible possible by completing its roster with Sora from Kingdom Hearts.

But I will admit the industry itself has made it hard to be optimistic about 2022. Over the last twelve months, we’ve seen outright abysmal releases like the Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy remasters, the likes of Ubisoft and Square Enix committing to incorporating NFTs (the newest environmentally damaging grift) into their games, and then there’s just everything about Activision, which has once again highlighted how horrible the industry can be behind closed doors.

While it is important to acknowledge all the bad parts of this industry, even if it’s painful to do so, that doesn’t mean there’ll be no joy to be found in it either. As always, there are already a number of select games I’m looking forward to this year and I’m sure there are a number of amazing titles that haven’t been announced yet. Plus, this is a yearly tradition at this point so let’s get on with things and get to my ten most anticipated games of 2022.

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My Ten Most Anticipated Games of 2021

/ Michael Beckwith / 1 Comment

2020 sucked. I know that’s not an original thought, but it still feels like it needs to be said. And video games, or rather the industry itself, didn’t always help alleviate how truly awful it was.

Ubisoft was hit with numerous allegations of sexual assault and abuse, Activision continues to make all the money in the world yet lays off its employees, and where do I even start with Cyberpunk 2077?

But, for as crappy as it all was, there were occasional bright spots. 2019’s Among Us found belated success thanks to livestreaming and put its studio, InnerSloth, on the map, Animal Crossing: New Horizons managed to unite the world and foster connections while everyone was trapped indoors, and the release of Xenoblade Chronicles: Definitive Edition meant more people could play my favourite game of all time.

2021 isn’t going to automatically be better than last year but, as always with these lists, I’m going to focus on the potentially good things coming this year; specifically, the games I’m most excited for.

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Ten of My Favourite Games of the Decade

/ Michael Beckwith / Leave a comment

I know I’m late in saying this but, damn, this really is a new decade, huh? I never even considered it until it was pointed out to me. A lot has happened in the last ten years, and after looking at some good-looking games that are coming in the future, I’d like to reminisce about all the awesome games from the past. And, boy, there were a lot.

So, since everyone else has done it and I apparently have as much originality as a live-action Disney remake, here’s a list of some of my all-time favourite games to have been released throughout the 2010s – one from each year (I’m using the European release dates BTW). Continue reading →

My Ten Most Anticipated Games of 2020

/ Michael Beckwith / Leave a comment

2019 is officially behind us and it was certainly a strong year for videogames, with a number of critically acclaimed titles like Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice, Disco Elysium, and the Resident Evil 2 remake being released.

However, it was another year of the industry showing how ugly it could be. Lootboxes and in-game gambling mechanics have become so much worse, crunch culture continued to be responsible for some big-budget titles like Red Dead Redemption 2, and let’s not forget the Activision Blizzard/Hong Kong debacle.

With any luck, 2020 will offer better things; it’s certainly got a strong line-up of games to look forward to. So, how about we just get right to it – here are the ten games I’m most excited to play in the coming year. Continue reading →

Ten Characters I Want in Super Smash Bros. – Part 2

/ Michael Beckwith / Leave a comment

WARNING: The following article contains spoilers for the following games:

Tekken 7
The Wonderful 101
Xenoblade Chronicles 2

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It’s been four years since my first “Ten Characters I Want in Super Smash Bros.” list and, boy, how things have changed since then. Back then, those choices were the whimsical wishes of a young dreamer, unlikely to ever come true. But now, thanks to Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, it seems anything is possible. Hell, two of my picks have since been included, which is very vindicating, though one part of that list has aged horribly.

“… [Yu Narukami] does stand a better chance than Ridley.”

Oh, 21 year-old me, you were such a fool. But yes, between the likes of Ridley, King K. Rool, and Joker, I’ve found myself coming to accept that characters I would’ve initially scoffed at the mere suggestion of including could actually happen. Super Smash Bros. is no longer just a celebration of all things Nintendo, but of videogames as a whole.

So, with the current run of DLC nearing its conclusion and still more to come throughout 2020, how about I list off another ten characters I’d personally love to see get to join the roster, whether it be in Ultimate or in a possible sequel. Continue reading →

Five Ideas for MCU Team-Ups

/ Michael Beckwith / Leave a comment

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One of the best things about the Marvel Cinematic Universe is seeing all our favourite comic book heroes recreated on the big screen. But one thing that’s better than that is seeing them all interact with each other. After all, when you have a universe filled with such a colourful cast, not having them hang out is just a waste. Why have all these characters in a shared universe if they’re not gonna team up once in a while? And Disney and Marvel clearly know this. The Avengers movies were all huge successes primarily for this very reason. But while we’ve enjoyed these awesome cross-overs, we’ve never had any proper team-up movies.

Sure, Black Widow helped out Captain America in The Winter Soldier, but that was still Steve’s movie. And while Hulk showed up in Thor: Ragnarok, it wasn’t really a Thor/Hulk movie; just a Thor movie that the Hulk happened to be in. We’ve had “team-ups,” but no movies where two characters get to enjoy equal footing, and I feel this is something Marvel should do more of. The big crossovers are great but they run the risk of some characters having less to do than others. Focusing purely on two individuals can lead to stronger interactions and a tighter narrative. There was even a whole series of comics called Marvel Team-Up that explored this very concept. Imagine a series of movies like this.

So, purely for my own enjoyment, here are five ideas for team-up movies that I’d love to see be made for the MCU. Continue reading →

My Ten Favourite Steven Universe Songs

/ Michael Beckwith / 2 Comments

WARNING: The following article contains spoilers for Steven Universe

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Steven Universe is arguably one of the best cartoons ever made. Or, at the very least, one of the most popular modern ones. Whether it be because of its soft and cosy atmosphere, it’s large and lovable cast, or the stories and messages it presents, a lot of people love this show, myself included. Today, I want to highlight one of the show’s most notable aspects – its songs.

You can tell just by watching the show that the crew LOVE making music and song numbers. I can’t quite describe it but every song has the same level of heart and passion put into it, resulting in a unified yet varied soundtrack, with some of them sounding like they’d fit in a stage musical. So, with the Steven Universe movie almost upon us and it being a musical as well, I’m sharing my ten favourite songs from the show so far, in order of when they appeared in the show. And let me tell you, there were a lot to pick from. Continue reading →

Ten Characters I Want in Dragon Ball FighterZ

/ Michael Beckwith / Leave a comment

WARNING: This article contains spoilers for the following:

Dragon Ball FighterZ
Dragon Ball Super
Dragon Ball Xenoverse 2
Dragon Ball Z

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I’m not the biggest Dragon Ball Z fan (in fact, I’ve never watched a single episode of any of the various anime series) but even I couldn’t help but look at Dragon Ball FighterZ – a fighting game developed by Arc System Works – and think “Damn, this game looks cool. I want it.” And so I got it, and while I’ll probably never be “good” at it, it’s still a lot of fun to play casually.

So with the recent announcement that ‘Season 2′ will begin this year, which will no doubt see more of this series’ eclectic cast of fighters join the fray (apparently starting with Jiren from Dragon Ball Super), here are ten characters that I personally would love to see make an appearance and fight against the likes of Goku, Vegeta and co. Continue reading →

Ten Anticipated Games of 2019

/ Michael Beckwith / Leave a comment

2018 was a very mixed year in terms of videogames. It was a year of stellar highs and abysmal lows. On one hand, the PS4 exclusive Spider-Man game proved that not only were single-player titles still in demand but licensed games could also be incredible, Octopath Traveler was a perfect throwback to SNES-era RPGs and showed how beloved turn-based RPGs still are and only last month we got Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, which very much lived up to its name considering it’s a game where Princess Peach can beat up Cloud Strife in the middle of Dracula’s Castle.

On the other hand, however, gross mismanagement led to the closure of TellTale Games, resulting in several highly anticipated titles getting cancelled and its employees suddenly jobless, the lootbox craze became so bad that some countries have made them illegal, which sets a worrying precedent for the possibility of games becoming regulated, and do I even need to bring up the utter fuster-cluck that was Fallout 76?

As always, I prefer to not dwell on the past but focus on the future. We all have high expectations for 2019 and while I’m sure there’s a myriad of bullshit headed our way, there’re gonna be some amazing things too. So let me share with you the ten games I’m most looking forward to this year. Continue reading →