Welcome to, a new weekly feature where we share what video games we’ve been playing. This week we’ve been catching up with our backlog, paying off loans in the fictional town of Burpybum, and defending ourselves from zombie attacks. See below, and be sure to share what you’ve been playing, too!
Jonathan Leack
My accidental re-subscription of PlayStation Plus has turned out to be not so bad, after all. I’ve been catching up on a few games I’ve missed during the generation, which is par for the course during the Summer gaming drought.
For one, I’ve been running through the adrenaline-producing world of Vanquish. It’s so fast paced at times that I end up going on a spree of laughable maneuvers. Sometimes I end up running into the middle of the fray only to die a quick death. But that’s okay because I never make the same mistake twice. Slowing down time and winding up a vicious headshot is the only respite from the game’s pandemonium. Zipping around taking out enemies one by one in flashy ways is always a blast, though.
I’ve also gotten around to Saints Row: The Third. I’ve constructed an unstoppable gang full of women that look like they’re ready to go clubbing—which isn’t far from the truth. We zip around the city in our purple luxury cars destroying anything that gets in our way. Sometimes that means using The Penetrator to mark our territory, while other times it means making the enemy explode into dance with the Mollusk Launcher.
As much as I’m enjoying these games, I can’t wait for Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn and Grand Theft Auto V. I have their release dates marked in my mental calendar.
Paul Tamburro
At the moment, there is no game for me other than Animal Crossing: New Leaf.
My The Last of Us disc currently sits inside my PS3, patiently waiting for me to pick up and play it again, but I am nowhere to be found. Instead, I am traipsing through the town of Burpybum, catching beetles and playing hide ‘n’ seek with anthropomorphic ducks and hamsters.
Since New Leaf released, my 3DS has gone from gathering dust on my shelf to rarely leaving my side. Such is my unashamed love for New Leaf that I bought myself a 3DS XL in order to experience Burpybum on a wider, crisper screen, giving my original 3DS to my girlfriend. Now she is hooked on the game, too, and we visit each other’s towns, trading fruit and stealing fossils.
Some day I will get around to helping Joel and Ellie fend off the hordes of undead, but as long as Tom Nook has my balls in a vice with his outrageous loans, they’ll just have to wait.
Joey Davidson
Currently, I’m infected flesh deep in a round of Organ Trail. This zombified spin on a game that gave all of our virtual friends dysentery back in elementary school went up at a discounted price during this year’s Steam Summer Sale. I scooped it up for just over a dollar, and I don’t regret it one bit.
The game mixes the now ancient elements of text-based foraging, trading and traveling with arcade-esque spins on shooting, exploration and bandit crashing. The mechanics and controls all feel dated, but the music and graphics make the whole thing more fresh than it should be. It’s incredibly charming.
For less than $5 without a discount, Organ Trail is sweet. Make it cheaper? Yeah, this one is a no-brainer.
