Motion Magazine

1 / ISSUE 09 / JAN
THE UNCHARTED
TEAM UNLEASHES
THE APOCALYPSE
REVIEWS:
THE LAST OF US
TOMB RAIDER
GTA
ARKHAM CITY:
HARLEY QUINN’S REVENGE
THE
LAST
OF
US

PUBLISHER Helene Kristiansen
helene@motion.com
EDITOR Helene Kristiansen
helene@motion.com
CONTRIBUTING EDITOR Camilla Engstrøm
camilla@motion.com
LAYOUT/DESIGN Helene Kristiansen
MARKET CONSULTANT Camilla Engstrøm
camilla@motion.com
ART DIRECTOR Helene Kristiansen
CORRECTION Jannicke Meiningen
WEB DESIGNER Anny Ideboen
EDITORIAL COORDINATOR Jannicke Meiningen
Copyright 2013 Motion. All rights reserved. No article or
picture in this magazine may be reproduced, copied or
transmitted in any form whatsoever without the express
written consent of the publisher. Opinions expressed in the
magazine are not necessarily those of the publisher or the
editors. All trademarks and registered trademarks are the
sole property of their respective owners.
Don’t Pirate Motion!
SOURCES
Gameinformer / Techradar / Computer And
Videogames / Playstation / Trustedreviews / Metacritic
/ Expertreviews / Pcgamer / Tarryn Van Der Byl
ADRESS Motion Norway
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RELEASE 8 times a year
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EDITION 35 000 editions
READERS 78 000 MMI 2013
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CONTACT US
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CONTENT
CONTRIBUTORS THE LAST OF US / 14
UPCOMING 2014 / 26
TOP 15 FROM 2013 / 20
HIMEO KOJIMA / 10
He’s the father of one of gaming’s biggest franchises,
but Himeo Kojima is more than Metal Gear.
One unforgettable character proves humanity is
worth saving in the bleak and brutal The Last of Us.
Here’s our round-up of must-have PS4, Xbox One,
PS3, Xbox 360 games due for release this year.
Looking for the best new games launching in 2014?
They have given us unforgettable experiences trog-
hout the years. We have gathered 15 highlights from
the old consolgeneration that stretched further than
we ever could have imagined.
12
6
15
REGULARS
05 EDITORS NOTE
33 GUIDE
REVIEWS
14 THE LAST OF US
26 UPCOMING 2014
18 REVIEWS
OPINION
10 HIMEO KOJIMA
20 TOP 15 FROM 2013
32 A GIRLS GUIDE TO GAMING
28 NO GIRLS ALLOWED
HARDWARE
06 XBOX ONE
08 PLAYSTATION 4

“It’s the most important page in the magazine,” The
Editors Note sets the tone for the whole magazine; it’s my
opportunity to tell you all what’s happening, where we’re at
in terms of stuff, and how things got that way. I’m Motion’s
new editor.
My first issue has been far more chaotic than I expected,
but this time of year is bad for everyone anyway, so I guess
my expectations were just a little unrealistic. We’ve got
a lot of fantastic content in this issue, with reviews of some
of the hottest games of the year, including the two big
articles: The Last of Us and an interview with the one and
only Metal Gear’s Hideo Kojami.
Since it’s time for a new year, with new consoles and
a whole new world of games. We decided to point out
the games we have appreciated in the last year. With the
new consoles, there will always be those games that you
never want to trade in. We will show you some of them.
In addition to the last years games, we also wanted to
make a tribute to this years games.
As always we provide you with the guide, and a little
something special from one of our guestwriters. This time
it’s Tarryn Van Der Byl.
Have a great one, folks!
- Helene
EDITORS NOTE

6 / ISSUE 09 / JAN JAN / ISSUE 09/ 7
ONE BOX TO RULE THEM ALL
It’s quiet, and it runs relatively cool. But if you’re looking for
subtlety, this is not the console for you.
“A WORK IN PROGRESS, THE NEW XBOX HAS
LOTS OF POTENTIAL.”
TEXT/ POLYGON PHOTO/ TECHRADAR
entertainment were restrained by hardware created
before our current age of streaming video, tablets
and smartphones.
So when examining the Xbox One, it may seem
familiar. This is what Microsoft has been working
toward all these years, effectively showing its next-
generation hand as early as 2008. While the Xbox
360 was upgraded, the Xbox One was developed in
parallel, but as a beginning, not an end. And despite
its familiar elements and concepts, the Xbox One
still manages a genuine sense of wonder, all without
losing sight of the strong gaming foundation the
Xbox was built on.
THE CONSOLE
The nicest description most Motion staff
could manage for the Xbox One’s silhouette is
“inoffensive”, there’s no sugarcoating the console’s
lack of visual flair. Microsoft has created a system
designed to blend into the other components of your
home entertainment center, and it does that ... for
better or worse.
The console lacks the profile and space-saving
considerations of the PlayStation 4 — or even the
original Xbox 360. Not only is the console larger
than the original Xbox 360, but the new Kinect
sensor is larger than the first one. Even the massive
THE XBOX 360 that exists in 2013 bears little
resemblance to the console that Microsoft
launched in 2005. It’s so different, in fact, that it
helps to think of the company’s new Xbox One as
an evolution, not of the original Xbox 360 but of the
one that exists today.
Over that eight-year span, the Xbox 360 underwent
radical transformations. In 2008, the “New Xbox
Experience” delivered an entirely new interface,
customizable player Avatars, eight-player party
chat and Netflix streaming, a first for video game
consoles. In 2010, the first iteration of Kinect and
the platform’s voice and gesture controls redefined
the 360 once again.
That focus on entertainment never diminished the
Xbox 360’s gaming bona fides, however. Between
first-party exclusives like Halo, third-party console
exclusives like Left 4 Dead and timed exclusives like
The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion, the Xbox 360 never
wanted for games. The Xbox Live Arcade program
made games like Castle Crashers, Braid and Limbo
into household names. Despite its investment in
entertainment, the Xbox 360 was always a video
game console.
But there was a sense that the Xbox 360’s
greater aspirations as a mainstream portal for
power brick from the last generation makes a not-
so-welcome return. However, given the Xbox 360’s
notorious reliability problems, it’s a little reassuring
that the Xbox One was given so much room to
breathe. It’s quiet, and it runs relatively cool. But if
you’re looking for subtlety, this is not the console for
you.
Lastly, unlike the Xbox 360, the Xbox One has a
Blu-ray drive, meaning those of you with a soft
spot for physical media won’t need to keep a
second device around. That drive is partnered with
a 500 GB internal hard drive, where all games are
installed. While that may sound like a lot of room,
a single game can occupy as much as 50 GB — and
that’s before any DLC, expansions or major title
updates. While unfortunately missing on day one,
Microsoft has promised support for external storage
after launch, a significant improvement from the
expensive proprietary storage options available on
Xbox 360.
CONTROLLER
Microsoft had the unenviable task of redesigning
something that nobody thought was broken. The
Xbox 360 controller was universally praised, so it
shouldn’t be surprising that the Xbox One controller
is familiar. Improvements have been made to the
triggers, which now feature rumble motors; the
D-pad, which is now a cross; and the thumbsticks,
which are now smaller and more accurate. It’s
a comfortable controller with a good amount of
weight, and a great texture not only makes it feel
more premium but ameliorates the gross, slippery
feel following a long session with the Xbox 360
controller.
Not all the changes are home runs, though. The new
bumpers split opinions at Motion, some editors feel
they’re more difficult to click than the 360’s shoulder
buttons. When compared to moving the “Black” and
“White” buttons on the original Xbox controller to
the shoulders on Xbox 360, this modification seems
superfluous at best and a detriment at worst.
CONCLUSION
Microsoft has insisted it has the software gamers
want. But it’s also maintained that this generation
is about more than that. It’s repeatedly outlined a
vision for a console based around entertainment,
apps and connected experiences, tied together by
Kinect, which has been met with apprehension by
the enthusiast audience.
To be clear, Kinect isn’t a fully realized product yet.
Gesture support is functionally non-existent, and
there’s a lack of good examples of how Kinect can
contribute to games. There are certain elements of
Microsoft’s strategy that are missing at launch, like
support for Twitch streaming and HBO Go. And the
console’s television functionality impresses … if you
watch television.
But in many ways, the Xbox One’s bold direction
for the future is well in place. The integration of
voice controls and its media strategy are a boon
to everyone, and the ability to run apps while
playing games is something we now want on every
gaming console we have. That it has a handful of
strong, exclusive games at launch only supports
its legitimacy as a gaming console and not just an
entertainment hub.
The Xbox One is an impressive marriage of software
and hardware that raises the bar in terms of what
we expect from a living-room machine. Looking
forward more than it looks back, the Xbox One feels
like it’s from the future.
HARDWARE HARDWARE

SHARING IS CARING
Developers had to work harder to harness its potential, and it was expensive to
manufacture, ultimately raising the barrier to entry on all fronts.
sell 3D TVs, or Blu-ray discs or any other corporate
mandate. It’s a gaming console, a clear message
that Sony has been quick to repeat.
That focus has resulted in a console that’s better
positioned than the PlayStation 3 was in 2006
to compete in an expanding turf war for the living
room. But that same focus has also kept Sony from
taking the kinds of chances that make generational
leaps so exciting.
THE CONSOLE
The PS4 is Sony’s most attractively designed piece
of hardware. It’s a beautiful system, with a sharp,
slightly angled profile accented by a light bar that
acts as a console status indicator.
On the back, PS4 has gone digital-only with HDMI/
optical ports, and no analog audio or video outputs.
Weappreciatetheinternalpowersupply—itsounds
like a small thing, but it’s one less object to sit on
the shelf next to or behind the PlayStation 4. Players
who want to game privately on their consoles might
be temporarily annoyed at the absence of Bluetooth
headphone audio support for the PS4 at launch.
Despitetheseproblems,Sonynailsthefundamentals
with the PS4 hardware. The half-gloss, half-matte
finish is a pleasant visual compromise. It’s a grown-
IN THE seven years since the introduction of the
PlayStation 3, we’ve seen our gaming consoles
transform into living-room hubs through constant
evolution and software updates. Those updates
weren’t always smooth – though on PS3, they were
always happening – but it’s easy to see just how far
the platform has come.
Meanwhile, the designers of the PlayStation 4 were
taking notes and designing a console that, feature
by feature, sought to address the failings of its
predecessor. The PS3 was notoriously difficult to
program for, thanks to its proprietary silicon. So the
PS4wasbuilttobedeveloper-friendly,withafamiliar,
PC-like architecture. The PS3 was announced with a
bizarre, boomerang-shaped controller, and launched
with the rumble-free Sixaxis controller before
settling into the never-great DualShock 3 controller.
So the PS4 comes with the DualShock 4, inarguably
the best controller Sony’s ever made. And the PS3
launched at an abnormally high price point, costing
$200 more than its competition. So the PS4 carries a
far more aggressive price, asking $100 less than the
competition this time around.
While Sony in 2006 was focused on driving adoption
of the Blu-ray standard, envisioning another home
media boom that never quite materialized, Sony in
2013 has no such distractions. The PS4 isn’t built to
up machine, designed more like a stylish DVD player
than a gaudy video game console. It’s a small,
attractive system, and one that also happens to pack
more powerful hardware in its diminutive frame
than any other console.
It’s an impressive technical achievement. It’s also
compact enough to fade into your entertainment
center without being distracting or ostentatious,
and we appreciate that it retains the PS2’s and PS3’s
ability to stand vertically. Those of you with frisky
pets or children may want to invest in the vertical
stand, sold separately, for some added stability
Oh, and it will charge controllers over USB while in
standby mode. Finally.
CONTROLLER
We can say this unequivocally: The DualShock 4 is
the best controller Sony has ever made. Now that
the PlayStation 4 and a new console generation
are upon us. The sticks were too close together, too
squishy; the triggers weren’t triggers; those of us
with bigger hands had difficulty using the controller
for very long. Sony has solved every one of these
problems with the DualShock 4. Its sticks are
farther apart, with semi-concave pits in the middle
designed to hold the tips of your thumbs in place.
The shoulders feature actual concave triggers with
pull similar to an Xbox 360 controller.
The controller is just a little heavier, just a little
bigger. It’s much more comfortable to hold over long
periods of time. Making even die-hard DualShock 3
haters on the Polygon staff converts, the DualShock
4 is the most immediately apparent improvement
offered by the PS4. While Sony has seemingly done
nothing to expose or surface it, the DualShock 4 also
introduces refined gyroscopic and accelerometer-
based motion control.
THE PS4 is Sony’s most attractively designed piece
of hardware. It’s a beautiful system, with a sharp,
slightly angled profile accented by a light bar that
acts as a console status indicator. On the back, PS4
has gone digital-only with HDMI/optical ports, and
no analog audio or video outputs. We appreciate the
internal power supply — it sounds like a small thing,
but it’s one less object to sit on the shelf next to or
behind the PlayStation 4.
Players who want to game privately on their
consoles might be temporarily annoyed at the
absence of Bluetooth headphone audio support
for the PS4 at launch. This is offset somewhat: the
PS4 can broadcast all game audio (and voice chat)
to the audio/mic jack on the DualShock 4, which
is compatible with all headphones and mobile
headsets using 1/8 inch audio adapters — though
enabling game audio output on the DualShock 4
disables all audio via HDMI and optical out. Despite
these problems, Sony nails the fundamentals with
the PS4 hardware. The half-gloss, half-matte finish
is a pleasant visual compromise.
CONCLUSION
The PS4 hints at plenty of other possibilities. Local
network play via the PS Vita has an enormous
amount of potential. The PlayStation App and
even the Playstation Camera may provide
opportunities for developers to broaden the appeal
of the PlayStation 4 beyond the hardcore audience it
currently seems so intent on courting.
But the PlayStation 4’s focus on gaming, and
only gaming, is undermined by a distinct lack of
compelling software. That failing is sure to improve
better games and more of them will appear on the
PlayStation 4, but right now, this is a game console
without a game to recommend it. Early adopters of
the PS4 this fall are buying potential energy. We’re
just waiting for a place to spend it.
“THE PS4 IS SONY’S MOST ATTRACTIVELY
DESIGNED PIECE OF HARDWARE.”
TEXT/ POLYGON PHOTO/ TECHRADAR
HARDWARE HARDWARE

STRONGER
THAN
METAL
He may be the father of one of gaming’s
biggest franchises, but Himeo Kojima is much
more than Metal Gear.

REGARDED as one of the top game designers in
the industry, Hideo Kojima has taken a decidedly
cinematic approach with his games, most notably
the Metal Gear Solid games that began on the PS
one.
After years of false starts, that most movie-ish
of video games is finally coming to the big screen.
An announcement at Konami’s Metal Gear 25th
Anniversary confirmed that Columbia Pictures are
committed – with the help of superhero movie
producerdejourAviArad-tobringingtheadventures
of Solid Snake and his cardboard box to life. But
with over 20 games, some truly bonkers plots, and
creator Hideo Kojima’s notoriously complex vision to
choose from, it’s going to be a tough job creating a
coherent action flick that lives up to the bad-assery
of its material.
STORY
Think back to a time before girlyboy emo
protagonists, homoerotic vampire sword fights, and
the clunkiest dialogue this side of Darth Vader’s “I
don’t like sand” chat-up line (see: Raiden’s Metal
Gear Solid 4 whineathon about how it rained on the
day he was born), and the Metal Gear series was
relatively straight-forward. If you’re attempting to
introduce a whole new audience to the franchise
(while still staying true to the original fans), you’re
going to have to strip all that back to focus on a solid,
coherent and simple story - which is why Hollywood
should use the original Metal Gear Solid as its key
inspiration.
Even to this day, it stands strong as one of the best
action games ever, and that’s down to Kojima’s then-
uncluttered storytelling and artistic vision. When a
genetically enhanced renegade special forces unit,
FOXHOUND, takes over a remote Alaskan island -
with the nuke-wielding mech robot Metal Gear Rex
hiding on it - it’s down to cigar-smokin’, box-lovin’,
grizzled secret soldier Solid Snake to save the day.
Not only is every hero and villain immediately iconic,
but the character and stunt design lends itself to a
series of set-pieces that would be just as ace on the
big screen as they were originally - snow-covered
sniper shootouts, tank fights, helicopter attacks,
super-fast sword-wielding ninjas, and a blockbuster
finale featuring giant mech attacks and a stunt-filled
jeep chase.
Throw in plot twists galore, a pseudo love interest,
and the whole brother vs brother/clone angle, and
you’ve got a plot that straddles the line between
Hollywood action blockbuster and loopy, sci-fi
riddled ridiculousness with surprising panache.
DIRECTOR
Much as we love him, even the most diehard of
Metal Gear fans would admit that while his vision
has made the video game series what it is today,
handing creator Hideo Kojima the directorial keys
would be a cinematic disaster. Sure, everyone likes
to joke about how each successive MGS is more an
ever-lengthening interactive movie than a proper
game, but just think about this; while he may be able
to brainstorm (crazy) genius plot twists and stylish
action sequences, it also takes him around 72 hours’
worth of cutscenes to tell a story.
So where does that leave us? Kojima’s expressed
interest in Christopher Nolan taking the reigns,
and considering that Christian Bale was once
being lined up to play Solid Snake, that seems
like an easy - if entirely improbable - win. A more
realistic, if potentially polarising choice, would be
The Wachowskis. Erratic quality aside, they’d nail
MGS’ array of incredible action set-pieces, and
they certainly enjoy tinkering in tales focusing on
morally-bleak, sci-fi skewed worlds.
And if you want to go really left-field, then how about
Clint Eastwood? This is a man who’s more than a
little familiar with grizzled, super-macho ‘me against
the world’ heroes, and his increasing descent into
grumpy old man OAP age could imbue Snake and his
bleak future with a worldly, reflective and very dry
sensibility. Crazy as it sounds, he even makes more
sense than your generic portents of directorial doom
Paul W. S. Anderson and Michael Bay, as whoever
steers the good ship MGS will have to appreciate
that it’s a genre more inherently focused on stealth
than kabloomy SFX.
While plot, character development and proper
actorly types are all well, good and important to a
MGS movie’s success, there’d be uproar if some
distinctly iconic, and fanboy pleasing odes to the
video games weren’t included.
If the finished product doesn’t have Snake sneaking
around in a cardboard box, giant mecha robots,
some sneaking through airvents, infra-red goggles,
the Alert Mode (!) sound, codec conversations
galore and - of course - someone melodramatically
screaming SNAAAAAAAAAKE whenever they can’t
get hold of him, then they’re going to have a hard job
winning the fans - and us - over.
BORN Hideo Kojami
August 24, 1963
Tokyo, Japan
NATIONALITY Japanese
OCCUPATION Director of Kujami Productions
Screenwriter
Vice president of Konami
Game director
Game producer
YEARS ACTIVE 1986 - Present
Hideo Kojima is a Japanese game director, writer, producer
and designer originally employed at Konami. He is the
director of Kojima Productions and was promoted to Vice
President of Konami Digital Entertainment in early 2011.
His previous positions include being vice president of
Konami Computer Entertainment Japan.
He is the creator, director and writer of a number of
successful video games, including the Metal Gear series
of stealth games and the adventure games Snatcher and
Policenauts, and he also produced series such as Zone of
the Enders, Boktai and Castlevania: Lords of Shadow. Kojima
is consistently named by fans and industry experts alike as
being one of the most influential and innovative video game
directors and writers in the industry.
Newsweek named Hideo Kojima as one of the top ten
people of 2002. In 2008, Next-Gen placed him seventh in
their list of “Hot 100 Developers 2008.” In 2009, IGN placed
him sixth in their list of top game creators of all time.
HIDEO KOJAMI
TEXT/ IGN PHOTO/ OUTCAST
“I DON’T LIKE BEING THOUGHT OF AS ‘THE
METAL GEAR GUY’”
HIDEO KOJIMA HIDEO KOJIMA

THE
LAST
OF
USOne unforgettable
character proves
humanity is worth
saving in the bleak and
brutal The Last of Us.

THE DOWNFALL of civilization redefines moral
boundaries. No longer do labels like thief and
murderer mark you as a criminal; everyone must
steal,mustkill,mustdowhateverittakestosurvive.
Paper-thin alliances link individuals together for
mere flashes, their connections severed once
their mutual needs are met. Life is bleak, brutal,
and exhausting. Tomorrow doesn’t exist when the
stench of death lingers like a fog and hope was
extinguished years ago. There is only today; there
is only right now. Morals? Morals won’t put food in
your mouth or a roof over your head. Morals are for
the weak. And you’re not weak.
One night the heart of society beat loud and strong;
the next it was silent. The outbreak happened so
quickly that there was no quarantine plan in effect.
Husbands and wives, brothers and sisters, dead, or
worse. Maybe they became one of the infected. The
virus spread through major cities and suburbs, and
the military, with all of its training and weapons,
was powerless to stop the epidemic. Joel is just one
man amid a sea of people whose lives have been
destroyed by the infection, but who still cling to
life. Though he never asked for such power, he now
holds the key to saving the world.
Ellie remembers them. In her remembrance of the
past, she exhibits a strength of will that most adults
have lost. Ellie is both strong and vulnerable, smart
and naive, and her humanity provides the impetus to
push you through to the bitter end.
Ellie’s maturity and resiliency make her an invaluable
companion, but her worth lies much deeper than
her endearing personality. She could be the savior
humanity has been waiting for, and Joel has the
privilege of escorting. You travel through infested
forests, dilapidated houses, and unnerving sewers,
with Joel providing the brawn and Ellie the heart to
brave the many dangers that stand before them.
Confrontation is a last resort. Infected swarm with
terrifying ferocity, clawing and snarling as they seek
their next meal. The uninfected are just as deadly.
With diplomacy not an option, they pursue and
flank, firing high-powered rifles or swinging deadly
axes, undeterred that they are trying to slaughter a
middle-aged man and a young girl. Death is fast and
bloody, so you slink through the shadows, staying
out of sight to live another day.
COMBAT
However, combat in such a violent land is inevitable.
TheLastofUsturnsthecrumblingruinsofaformerly
healthy world into the landmarks of unceasing war.
Filter the world through the lens of dystopia, and
ordinary objects take on a new meaning. Overturned
tables and file cabinets provide a modicum of
cover; broken windows allow for a quick escape.
The zombies’ movements are a confluence of
contrasting images. Their staggered gait lulls you
into believing they are slow, weak. But once they
JOEL
Joel is introduced the night society falls. He stays
out late and works questionable jobs, all while his
daughter waits patiently for his return home. He’s
distant, physically and emotionally, which makes it
difficult to empathize with him. His actions are often
repulsive, as inhuman as the zombies he must fight.
The door to his heart is sealed shut. The Last of Us
shines a light on the nastiness that only surfaces
in humans who have nothing to lose. Rather than
overcoming these limitations, Joel is crushed by
them. He’s unlikeable to his very core, a man who
spits out angry words and appears to harbor even
more sinister thoughts that remain unsaid. He kills
because everyone must kill. But he kills with such
fury that it disgusts even those who are used to this
violence.
Joel, already accustomed to a life of brutality and
focusing on his own needs, has partnered with
a woman of a similar disposition. Tess is a badger
let loose from a cage. To cross her path is to sign
your own death warrant. She, like so many of
the characters in The Last of Us, has a one-note
personality that allows little room for a more
nuanced interpretation. Her independence and
smell fresh meat, their movement is blindingly
fast and exact. Their heads snap to attention with
unsettling, insectile speed, and the unholy guttural
noises that issue from their throats sound like the
song of humanity’s death.
So you kill them, bashing them with a two-by-
four with all your strength and pummeling them
into a lifeless mess on the ground. When grabbed
from behind, you shove a shiv into your attacker’s
neck, the force of your blow causing the makeshift
weapon to snap in half. A close-range shotgun
blast tears zombies to shreds, but there’s no
time for celebration. They keep coming, eager to
quell the threat that stupidly revealed itself. Such
confrontations are nerve-rattling, and yet there’s a
hollowness to these encounters. No one wants to
die--even a virtual death is unwelcome--but The
Last of Us refuses to punish failure in a manner
befitting the harshness of its world. Become
overwhelmed and you quickly perish, but with
checkpoints only a few seconds apart, the danger
of expiring never dissuades you from recklessness.
The biggest problem with combat in The Last of
Us, however, is how often it breaks its own rules.
Mutated zombies called clickers have finely tuned
ears that hear your quietest movements. And yet,
your companions speak all too loudly near enemies
or stand blithely in the open, all while the grotesque
monsters obtusely ignore them. In certain sections,
locked doors cannot be interacted with until the
threat has been eliminated, forcing you to act
violently even though an evasive approach seems
possible. In other places, a gang of savage monsters
ruthlessness are thrust to the forefront; empathy
and humanity are nowhere to be found. Such flimsy
characterizations erect an emotional barrier for the
firstfewhoursofthisadventure.Thepostapocalyptic
world is not interesting enough on its own to draw
you in. Without any sympathetic characters to latch
on to, you are left with little attachment to this pack
of selfish animals.
ELLIE
That changes once Ellie joins your party. Unlike
Tess and Joel, Ellie is easy to relate to. In this world
of constant danger, she is scared. Scared to be
ambushed by a zombie without a guide to protect
her. Scared to meet a person who would rather kill
her than talk to her. And her fear is not just for her
own life. All of her loved ones have died or departed,
so she’s scared of losing someone else. Yet unlike so
manyothersinthisworld,Ellieisnotruledbyherfear.
She talks like a girl in search of normalcy, whistling
or humming during quiet moments, fantasizing
about swimming lessons, and laughing about
the problems that used to haunt girls before the
outbreak. Boys? School? Problems that seem pitiful
when your stomach has been growling for days and
you have watched a zombie kill your best friend, yet
waits patiently for you to open a door to freedom,
and watches ambivalently as you close it securely
behind you. The Last of Us sets rules and then
ignores them, removing you from the experience as
you question the underlying systems.
HUMANS
Healthy individuals are a bigger threat than the
prowling infected. Military units and paranoid gangs
hinder your escape to freedom. Humans are more
predictable than zombies, so you don’t have to be
scared that they’re going to unexpectedly change
direction. However, with guns at the ready, they
can kill you just as quickly, and from a long distance
away if you’re not careful. Problems do exist that
lessen the thrill of the fight. Your enemies are not
the sharpest people around. Hide behind a corner
and snap some poor sap’s neck, leaving his lifeless
body on the ground. When the next guard walks
up, you might expect him to sound the alarm upon
seeing his friend. But he often doesn’t care, and so
you kill again. Other times, you may be dramatically
strangling a man only a few meters away from a
living guard, and yet you remain unseen.
TOP LEFT Trees are as prevalent as
zombies after the apocalypse.
BOTTOM LEFT Fight for your life or
wind up dead.
TOP RIGHT Alcohol is more valuable as
a flaming weapon in this world.
BOTTOM RIGHT Property values have
plummeted.
FAR RIGHT Joel is well versed in various
ways to kill a man.
“THE VIOLENCE NEVER FEELS
GRATUITOUS. IN THIS HARSH,
BARBARIC WORLD, IT’S FIGHT
OR DIE.”
TEXT/ COMPUTER AND VIDEOGAMES PHOTO/ CONCEPTARTWORLD
REVIEW REVIEW

LAST YEAR’S Tomb Raider is arguably one of the best
games ever released during the last generation of
consoles. If you enjoy adventure games, sally forth
and obtain a copy. You’ll be sorted for pretty much an
entire weekend.
Excitement defines the actions of an adventurous
archeologist, no matter how reluctant you might
be to bear arms, and you see this chaotic lifestyle
through the eyes of perpetual survivor Lara Croft.
Her life is one of bloodshed and misery, strength
peppered with pain, and as she overcomes every
crushing setback, she learns what kind of person she
truly is. Such endeavors are so fantastical that her
story of emotional growth is often overshadowed by
the wildly unrealistic events, but the overwhelming
beauty of the island is so gripping, and the exploration
so expertly designed, that you become invested in
Lara Croft’s incredible journey.
ADVENTURER TO KILLER
Her shift from wide-eyed adventurer to full-fledged
killer makes sense, and that’s precisely why it’s so
A BATMAN’S work is never done. He may have
dealt with the Penguin, Hugo Strange, the
Joker, and the other supervillains who plotted
schemes within the open-air megaprison of
Arkham, but in the wake of those events, a
new threat has arisen.
For reasons that need no explanation if you’ve
played through the story of Batman: Arkham
City, Harley Quinn has it out for Batman in a
big way. Harley Quinn’s Revenge gives you
a decent excuse to return to the immensely
satisfying combat of Arkham City, and lets you
play as Robin in a narrative context (as opposed
to challenge rooms) for the first time. But
unfortunately, this downloadable content feels
restrictive in comparison to the original game,
and it ends with a weak final confrontation that
makes this a disappointing note on which to
bring the Arkham City story to a close.
Like the original game, Harley Quinn’s Revenge
jumps between characters, but it adds a new
narrative twist by jumping back and forth in
time. You begin as Robin, who has ventured into
a shipyard that has been taken over by Harley
Quinn and her thugs. Chatter between Robin
and Oracle establishes that in the two weeks
that have passed since the events of Arkham
City, Bruce Wayne has seemed depressed and
unwilling to talk about the lives that were lost.
The concept of Batman coming a bit unhinged
and struggling with his emotions is exciting,
but Harley Quinn’s Revenge never develops it.
It serves no purpose here other than to plant
a seed in your brain about what condition
Batman might be in when a sequel rolls around;
within the context of this DLC, it just resonates
with untapped potential.
As a former exclusive on the PlayStation Vita,
Assassin’s Creed III: Liberation arrived in time
for the 2012 holidays as a promising system
seller for Sony’s fledgling handheld.
While it fell short of its lofty goal, Liberation
was nonetheless an impressive showcase
of possibilities for open-world play on the
portable platform. Now that it has been
released on the Xbox 360 and PlayStation
3, Assassin’s Creed fans uninterested in the
Vita can now experience all of the franchise’s
18th-century storylines. Assassin’s Creed:
Liberation HD delivers what you would expect
in upgraded visuals. And if you’re hoping for
the exact same gameplay that Vita owners
experienced, you get that as well, even though
it includes Liberation’s original bugs.
The foundation upon which the Pokemon
series stands is firm and unyielding, meaning
that catching critters and taking them into
turn-based battles is its very essence.
Pokemon X/Y--the first of the main series to
make it onto the 3DS--is the same Pokemon
experience at its core, which means it’s a
compelling adventure driven by complex rock-
paper-scissors-like gameplay and a charming
cast of hundreds of creatures to capture.
Pokemon X/Y’s foundations are surrounded
by a scaffolding of new features that build
upon its gameplay fundamentals. You will love
the new ability to tinker with each individual
pokemon’s base stats, for example, and some
gameplay frustrations have been ironed out
to create a more enjoyable experience for old-
school players and newcomers alike.
uncomfortable. We’re forced to put ourselves in her
shoes, question how we would respond to attacks on
our lives, and wonder if we’d be able to fight when it
would be so much easier to surrender. Smart pacing
ensures that there is plenty of time to examine what
transpired in that last deadly fight. So you scavenge
for a while, explore the environments, and then face
five minutes of chaos and screaming before you’re
once again left by yourself. As smartly as Tomb Raider
handles its rare forays into combat, it does a poor job
of showing death. Lara is tortured in such sensational
ways that it’s downright gratuitous, as if the game
is reveling in her torment.
TEXT/ GAMESPOT PHOTO/ RADCREW
“A NEW BEGINNING FOR LARA
CROFT THAT DOES JUSTICE
TO ONE OF GAMING’S MOST
ICONIC CHARACTERS”
REBORN
REVENGE
PS3 XBOX 360 PC CRYSTAL DYNAMICS
TEXT/ GAMESPOT PHOTO/ COMICVINE
PS3 XBOX 360 WARNER BROS
8.0
GREAT
6.0
FAIR
GRAND
THEFT AUTOPS3 XBOX 360 ROCKSTAR
LIBERATION
PS3 XBOX 360 UBISOFT
POKEMON X/Y
3DS GAME FREAK
WHEREdoyoubegintalkingaboutGrandTheftAuto
V? Do you start with the vast, varied, beautiful open
world? Do you start with the innovative structure
that gives you three independent protagonists you
can switch between? Or perhaps you dive right into
the game’s story problems, or its serious issues
with women.
Grand Theft Auto V deserves accolades for its
innovative triumvirate of antiheroes, its many and
varied missions, and the sprawling depiction of Los
Santos and the hillbilly outbacks. There is something
missing in GTA V that makes the game less engaging
than the sociopathic sandboxes of GTA: Vice City
and GTA: San Andreas, the two GTA games that will
perpetually be my measuring sticks for the franchise.
What is missing most of all is a solid sense of place.
Both Vice City and San Andreas reveled in nostalgia.
San Andreas evoked the early 1990s in a similar
way. San Andreas’ theme was not as developed as
Vice City’s, but the game still depicted a recognizable
time and place in its grim cartoon look at Los
Angeles--with sidelong glances at LA County, San
Francisco, and Las Vegas--during the explosion of
rap and the racial tension that saw a good chunk of
SoCal go up in flames after the Rodney King verdict.
Both San Andreas and Vice City seemed like real
places. Rockstar’s biggest achievement in these
games was in creating places that you wanted to
visit. This devotion speaks to Vice City’s power
to invade my waking thoughts. Long after the
game’s release, I would go for long drives around
town, listening to the radio and indulging my inner
hooligan in a rampage or three.
The same is true of San Andreas, although the allure
of the ‘80s theme usually won out before I got the
San Andreas disc into the system. Rockstar hasn’t
forgotten how to do this sort of thing. I liked visiting
the faux West of Red Dead Redemption just as much
as I did Vice City, and still load up the game to ride
around the lonely prairie.
8.0
GREAT
6.0
FAIR
8.0GREAT
TEXT/ GAMESPOT PHOTO/ OPERATION RAINFALL
REVIEW REVIEW

Entertaining highs and frustrating lows punctuate a
Castlevania game that--in an effort to redefine the
series--loses its identity.
Castlevania: Lords of Shadow is a game of
contradictions. Its lead character, Gabriel Belmont,
finds himself equipped with great combat abilities
and more than enough special skills to combat the
forces of evil and avenge the death of his love. But
for the player, it’s almost overkill--a good portion
of Belmont’s unlocked special skills are only truly
necessary when solving environmental puzzles.
Similarly, Lords of Shadow is an astoundingly
beautiful game filled with expansive views of a broken
world dotted with solemn waterfalls; sinister forests;
and decaying, ancient cities.
But, you won’t be exploring much of these locales
because the game is very strict about where you
can go and how you can get there, delivering only
an illusion of freedom conjured by a combination of
invisible walls and platforms just out of reach. As
these and other facets of the game continually butt
Have you daydreamed of tossing poop at the
people you hate? Then you know where you
can shove The Stick of Truth: right into your
console’s disc drive.
Let’s get super cereal, shall we? South Park:
The Stick of Truth is the closest there is to
an interactive South Park film. It nails the
animated television show’s look, its humor, and
its obsession with the human anus. If you come
to The Stick of Truth for the South Park-ness
of it all--for Cartman’s aggressive profanity,
for Butters’ good intentions, for Randy Marsh’s
masturbation addiction--then you’ll enjoy
10 or so hours of hysterical, offensive, gross
buffoonery. Does the phrase “anal beads”
make you giggle?
That limited play time is a consideration,
however. Of course, even if you love South Park,
10 or 11 hours of listening to Cartman call you
a douchebag could prove tiring. Nevertheless,
given developer Obsidian Entertainment’s
pedigree, you would rightfully expect a certain
amount of systemic depth, or perhaps an epic-
length quest loaded with narrative choices.
As role-playing games go, however, The Stick
of Truth is notably light on, well, everything.
It’s light on challenge: on medium difficulty,
combat is a cakewalk, entertaining to watch
but rarely engaging your mental faculties. (If
you were hoping to turn your brain off and
laugh at abortion jokes, you might see this as
a mark in the game’s favor.)
It’s also light on depth: if it weren’t for the
profanity, cartoon genitalia, and the sight of
a grown man engaged in gentle coitus with a
farm animal, you might have retitled The Stick
of Truth as Baby’s First RPG. As for choice, the
game asks you to make very few narrative
decisions, and the one that most obviously
masquerades as a game-changing opportunity
is quickly thrown away and rendered moot.
No mystery remains unsolved when Yoshi’s
nearby. Mario’s dinosaur companion leaps
into the heart of labyrinthine locales, ferreting
out the many secrets that pepper these
colorful lands. Skillful challenges are kept to a
minimum in Yoshi’s New Island.
Rather than performing dexterous feats of
skill, you instead take a methodical tour of each
delightful land. It’s an approach that separates
Yoshi’s New Island from many platformers
out there, but sadly there are missteps in
the execution that lessen any excitement.
Straightforward level design demands neither
clever puzzle solving nor quick reflexes, and a
dearth of new ideas makes the many obstacles
and enemies feel predictable. Yoshi’s New
Island is at once pleasant and forgettable,
proving that charming aesthetics can only
gloss over middling design for so long.
Before he became a plumber and brought
momentary peace to the Mushroom Kingdom,
Mario was nothing more than a baby in distress
on the back of a dinosaur. Yoshi proves here
that he’s every bit the hero that the diapered
companion he carries with him is; just don’t
expect him to move like Mario does. Dinosaurs
are heavy creatures, so Yoshi isn’t quick on
his feet, but he does have other talents. Chief
among them is his ability to momentarily hover
to reach distant platforms. Extend jumps to
carry your prodigious weight to out-of-the-way
areas or to land right on the head of a roaming
koopa troopa. Hovering is a necessary way to
traverse this colorful world, but it’s sadly just
utilitarian. Without the smooth grace of his
more acrobatic counterparts, Yoshi’s hovering
dulls the excitement of mid-air exploits.
heads, it becomes clear that Castlevania is largely a
mishmash of mostly incongruous ideas taken from
some of gaming’s finest moments. And it’s those very
same moments--previously seen and played in other
games but well executed here--that ultimately define
the game but sadly strip it of an identity to call its own.
That isn’t to say the game fails in giving these
moments context within the Castlevania universe as
constructed by Lords of Shadow. In fact, the story does
a reasonable job in setting things up and explaining
why Gabriel Belmont fights massive titans, as well as
hordes of werewolves, zombies, vampires, and other
mainstays from the vintage horror assembly line.
TEXT/ GAMESPOT PHOTO/ PLAYSTATION
“IT’S JUST UNFORTUNATE SO
MUCH OF IT COMES FROM
OTHER GAMES AND NOT AN
ORIGINAL SOURCE.”
“YOSHI’S NEW ISLAND
IS AT ONCE PLEASANT
AND FORGETTABLE,
PROVING THAT CHARMING
AESTHETICS CAN ONLY
GLOSS OVER MIDDLING
DESIGN FOR SO LONG.”
CASTLEVANIA
SOUTH PARK
PS3 XBOX 360 PC MERCURY STEAM
TEXT/ GAMESPOT PHOTO/ P3
XBOX 360 PC OBSIDIAN ENT.
7.5
GOOD
DARK SOULS 2PS3 XBOX 360 FROM SOFTWARE
YOSHI’S NEW
ISLAND
3DS GAME FREAK
How much of your humanity are you willing to give
up for even the slightest chance of victory?
Dark Souls II asks this question of you at every
turn, encouraging you to press onward in spite of
imminent death. And with each death, you lose a
little of your humanity and become more hollow.
Your maximum health slightly diminishes each time
as well, eventually sinking to 50 percent of its full
value, and yet as each sliver of humanity is sliced
away, you heed the call to move onward. Eventually,
you overcome the obstacle that stood between you
and victory--that quartet of gargoyles swarming
you on a rooftop, that arachnoid demon plunging
poisonous pincers into your flesh, that disgusting
mound of meat that defies description.
You have triumphed! But your gain does not come
without sacrifice. You have sworn, you have gasped,
and you have sweated. You have forfeited your
own humanity so you might collect the souls of the
damned. Like Dark Souls and Demon’s Souls before
it, Dark Souls II is not just a fantasy role-playing
adventure, but a cloud that hangs heavy over your
head whenever you so much as think about it. These
modern classics developed by From Software have
rightfully earned a reputation for being brutally
difficult, but their beauty is derived not solely from
difficulty, but also from dread.
Dark Souls II is not a survival horror game in
the normal sense, but few games can make
you this afraid to peer around the corner, while
simultaneously curious as to what awaits you there.
Death is so very beautiful in this game, for it comes
at the hands of amazing beasts and warmongers:
hulking armored knights, shimmering otherworldly
invaders, and tendrils that rise out of black pools of
poison. Sure, each death punctures your heart, but
one of Dark Souls II’s many gruesome pleasures is
discovering new ways to die.
TEXT/ GAMESPOT PHOTO/ OPERATION RAINFALL
9.0
GREAT
5.0OKAY
TEXT/ GAMESPOT PHOTO/ VOOKS
REVIEW REVIEW
8.0
GREAT

15. CoD 4: Modern Warfare
The single-player campaign is over in a flash, but the high quality of that
campaign and its terrific multiplayer options make Call of Duty 4 a fantastic
package. It took awhile, but Infinity Ward finally got the message that World
War II is played out. With modern times and international affairs becoming more
and more, shall we say, interesting in recent years, the 1940s just don’t carry
as much weight as they used to. Perhaps that’s why Call of Duty 4 has a new
subtitle, Modern Warfare. By bringing things into a fictionalized story that still
seems fairly plausible, the developer has made a much heavier game.
15WE’LL
NEVER
FORGET
The games you should have played before Playstation 4
and Xbox One is launched. They have given us unforgettable
experiences troughout the years. We have gathered 10
highlights from the old consolegeneration that stretched
further than we ever could have imagined.
PLAYSTATION 3 / XBOX 360
14. METAL GEAR SOLID 4
Metal Gear Solid 4 is an awe-inspiring synthesis of dramatic storytelling and
entertaining gameplay. Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots is the most
technically stunning video game ever made. It’s also a fine example of storytelling
prowess within its medium, combining gameplay and narrative so slickly and
beautifully that it’s impossible to extricate one from the other. It’s likely you will
emerge awestruck from your first play-through, wishing the experience would
continue yet nonetheless satisfied with its conclusion. It’s difficult not to sound
hyperbolic when discussing MGS4 because every part of its design seemingly
fulfills its vision, without compromise. There is no halfway.
12. JOURNEY
Mysterious desert adventure Journey is an uncommonly enthralling experience.
In simplest terms, Journey is a third-person, sporadically two-player adventure
in which you travel through a desert towards a mountain. By the alchemy of
developer thatgamecompany’s skill and vision, it is also unique, exciting,
mysterious, and utterly lovely, with mesmerising landscapes and stirring music.
It deploys more ‘gamey’ elements than any of the developer’s works before it,
and does so successfully, while maintaining the feel of an evocative, interactive
art piece. Three hours long at most, it’s concise but not overly short, its cycle of
emotional highs and lows best experienced in a single sitting.
13. FIFA 12
Distilling the world’s most popular sport into a video game isn’t an easy task.
Aside from capturing the atmosphere of the game--the satisfying thump of
boot on football, the on-pitch dramas created between player and referee, and
the ferocious roar of the crowd as the ball sails into the back of the net--there
are other considerations too. Some players want to manage their teams. Others
want to live out their dreams of football stardom. Still others want to put their
skills to the test against the best in the world, all the while clamouring for as
realistic an experience as possible. FIFA 12 lets you do all of these things and
more.
A new tactical defending syst If you’re a longtime FIFA player, then the changes
to defending in this year’s game might come as a bit of a shock. A new tactical
defending system has been implemented that drastically changes the way you
play. em, player impact engine, and head-to-head seasons are just some of
the excellent new features it offers. But it’s the new EA Sports Football Club
that’s the real draw, bringing with it an addictive levelling system that pits you
against the world’s players, keeping track of your own progress and that of your
favourite team too. Not only is FIFA 12 the best game in the series, it’s also one
of the most exciting, accurate, and complete sports games around.
10. FAR CRY 3
Far Cry 3 is a delightful and harsh tropical wonderland, crawling with wildlife and
threatened by the pirates and drug runners that disrupt its peace. The troubled
paradise you explore is colorful and wild, enticing you to investigate its ravines
and discover new ways to enjoy the open-world playground sprawling in front of
you. This is a game that ignites the desire to complete every last challenge and
check out every last icon on your map. You gradually journey across the entirety
of two sunny and sinful islands, hunting for rare game, speeding medicine to
needy communities, and skinning sharks so that you might craft new wallets
with their hides. Far Cry 3 is an excellent game, marred mainly by some irritating
design elements and an inconsistent story that often defaults to generic “tribal”
cliches to make an impact.
When the story leaves those cliches behind for deeper territory, however, it does
manage to communicate ideas of substance. It takes many hours for its themes
to come together in a coherent way--yet in certain aspects, the incoherence
makes sense. As protagonist Jason Brody, your initial quest to rescue your
friends from a chaotic and truly frightful pirate named Vaas turns into a personal
journey blurred by drugs, and fueled by the desire to follow a new and exciting
spiritual path.
PLAYSTATION 3 / XBOX 360 PLAYSTATION 3 / XBOX 360
11. ASSASSINS CREED II
“Nothing is true; everything is permitted.” We learned this adage in the original
Assassin’s Creed, and Assassin’s Creed II carries on the tradition beautifully,
inspiring you to rethink the conspiracy at the heart of the series and to
reconsider what you should expect from a sequel. Developer Ubisoft Montreal
has addressed almost all of Assassin’s Creed’s flaws by filling its follow-up with
fresh and enjoyable mission types and layering on new and mostly excellent
features, while still retaining the joy of movement and atmospheric wonder that
characterized the original.
15
GAMESPOT/HDWALLPAPERCORNER
GAMESPOT/COLLIDER
GAMESPOT/EA
GAMESPOT/P3GAMESPOT/NOWGAMER
GAMESPOT/FAR-CRY.UBI
14
13
12
11
10
TOP 15 TOP 15

8. BATMAN: ARKHAM CITY
We have never felt more comfortable with a cape and a mask, then when we
played Batman in Arkham City. Not just have the story and script quality from the
upper shelves, we also got a big open world to wonder about filled to the edges
with riddles The Riddler had left us. We still remember the good feeling we got
when we received the last Riddler-trophy, months after the launch. The next few
weeks we roamed the city hunting for green questionsmarks.
9. GRAND THEFT AUTO IV
Stepping off a boat in the shoes of illegal immigrant Niko Bellic as he arrives in
Liberty City at the start of Grand Theft Auto IV, you can tell immediately that
Rockstar North’s latest offering is something quite special. Yes, this is another
GTA game in which you’ll likely spend the bulk of your time stealing cars and
gunning down cops and criminals, but it’s also much more than that. GTAIV is a
game with a compelling and nonlinear storyline, a game with a great protagonist
who you can’t help but like, and a game that boasts a plethora of online
multiplayer features in addition to its lengthy story mode. It’s not without some
flaws, but GTA IV is undoubtedly the best Grand Theft Auto yet.
6. DISHONORED
Dishonored’s engrossing world and intoxicating interplay of supernatural
powers make it a game you’ll want to play more than once. Dishonored is
a game about many things. It’s about revenge; armed with deadly weapons and
supernatural powers, you seek vengeance upon all of those who orchestrated
your downfall. It’s about a city; the plague-ridden industrial port of Dunwall is
lovely to behold, exciting to explore, and seething with secrets. It’s about people;
an array of vibrant characters await you, and as you get to know them, you
are drawn further into their intrigues, hopes, and heartbreaks. But above all,
it’s about choice. The incredible variety of ways you can engage or evade your
enemies makes Dishonored impressively flexible and utterly captivating.
You play as Corvo Attano, former bodyguard to the empress and current death
row inmate. The prologue chronicling Corvo’s crime not only inflames your desire
for revenge, but also sparks your affection for a vulnerable character. These
dual fires foreshadow the choice you have to make each time you encounter an
enemy: do you walk the bloody path of brutal vengeance, or take the nonlethal
high road and rise above the violence that suffuses the city? Your actions have
small, yet tangible consequences throughout your quest, and it’s up to you to
decide what kind of retribution you want.
7. BIOSHOCK INFINITE
BioShock Infinite is a stupendous game, portraying a beautiful and broken city
that will absorb your every waking thought. What drives a man of God to wash
away the sins of his past, only to blacken his heart with a multitude more?
How far can a freedom fighter be pushed before virtue and righteousness are
replaced by a lust for vengeance? What does a privileged society do when the
foundation of its prosperity is shaken? BioShock Infinite dares to explore these
heady themes and many more, giving you glimpses at just how the seemingly
smallest of decisions can forever alter our realities, and our hearts. As an agent
provocateur in the fantastical floating city of Columbia, your actions bring turmoil
and strife to an ostensibly idyllic landscape. It’s immensely fun to stir up trouble,
and even more engaging to see how boldly BioShock Infinite portrays a society
torn asunder. You’ll be haunted by this thematically devastating adventure, and
indeed, its phenomenal final minutes, which are bound to be discussed and
dissected for some time to come.
It starts with a lighthouse. As former private investigator Booker DeWitt, you
enter this lighthouse knowing that you have been hired to retrieve “the girl”--but
who this girl is, and who hired Booker, remain a mystery, if not to Booker, than
at least to you.
5. THE ELDER SCROLLS: OBLIVION
The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion is simply one of the best role-playing games
ever made. This is a rare and remarkable achievement--a huge, open-ended,
complex, detailed role-playing game that’s fun to play and a pleasure to behold.
Oblivion not only delivers everything that earned the Elder Scrolls series the
devoted loyalty of a huge following of fans, but also significantly improves on the
weaknesses of its 2002 predecessor, Morrowind. Morrowind earned recognition
for being one of the best role-playing games in years, but the immersive and
long-lasting experience it provided wasn’t for everyone. Oblivion is hands-down
better, so much so that even those who’d normally have no interest in a role-
playing game should find it hard to resist getting swept up in this big, beautiful,
meticulously crafted world.
The Elder Scrolls series is known for its sheer size and depth. These are games
that you could lose yourself in, spending hours exploring a fantasy world,
traveling for miles, or just looking for minutiae, such as rare plants or hidden
treasure. Oblivion lives up to this pedigree, putting you into a massive, cohesive,
highly immersive world.
GAMESPOT/HDWALLPAPERIMAGES
GAMESPOT/TEENGAMERSNETWORK
GAMSPOT/WALL.APLHACODERSGAMSPOT/XMEDIA
GAMESPOT / WALL.ALPHACOVERS
9 8
7
6
5
TOP 15 TOP 15

4. ALAN WAKE
Killer storytelling and creative demon slaying make the haunting Alan Wake
one for the books. Darkness is a powerful force. Not knowing what lies beyond
the safety of the light can be absolutely terrifying to those with an overactive
imagination. But fearful fantasy turns deadly in the bucolic town of Bright Falls,
Washington, where the whispering shadows hold untold horrors that reach out
from the darkness. Alan Wake spins into an intensely atmospheric psychological
thriller that bends the barrier between reality and fiction until it snaps, delivering
a chilling story-driven experience without leaning too heavily on schlocky gore.
With a beautifully updated graphics engine and free pack-in downloadable
content that fills in some of the gaps left by the original’s cliff-hanger ending,
the PC version is worth the long wait.
For successful big-city writer Alan Wake, a much-needed vacation to the remote
countryside turns nightmarish as he is beset by demonic beasts and haunted by
a malevolent paranormal presence that seeks to destroy him. When Wake’s wife
goes missing from their lakeside cabin retreat, he sets out into the dark woods
to find her and winds up a protagonist in his own horror novel--one he doesn’t
remember ever writing.
PC / XBOX 360
3. BEYOND: TWO SOULS
A tale of ghostly intrigue. There are spirits all around us. Are they ghosts or
demons? Malevolent or nice? What matters is not their nature, but rather how
we react to their presence. In Beyond: Two Souls, Jodie’s life is colored by an
invisible force who never strays from her side, and we follow her down a volatile
path in which her identity is constantly in flux. Those around her grapple with
the existence of these entities, trying to use them to fulfill their own selfish
needs with little regard for the ramifications of their actions. Jodie is the one
link between the human race and the mysterious apparitions. And through the
struggles that she undergoes, you examine the fragility of human nature and
develop a strong bond with the beleaguered protagonists.
Aiden has been a part of Jodie’s life as long as she can remember. An invisible
entity, he hovers nearby, connected to Jodie although with aspirations all his
own. You view the world through the eyes of both characters, switching between
them with the push of a button. As Jodie, you move like a human does, inspecting
items, walking through rooms, and talking to people. Your actions are restricted,
giving you only a modicum of different objects and people to interact with as
you’re continually ushered down the story’s path.
PLAYSTATION 3
3. SKYRIM
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim is the big, bold, and beautiful sequel you hoped for
and is sure to bewitch you for countless hours. The province of Skyrim might be
frigid, but the role-playing game that takes place within it burns with a fire few
games possess. In The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, you take up arms against dragons,
and your encounters with them are invariably exciting--yet depending on where
your adventure takes you, such battles may not even represent the pinnacle of
your experience. A side quest that starts as a momentary distraction may turn
into a full-fledged tale that could form the entirety of a less ambitious game.
Yes, Skyrim is another enormous fantasy RPG from a developer that specializes
in them, and it could suck up hundreds of hours of your time as you inspect each
nook and crevasse for the secrets to be found within. If you know Bethesda
Softworks’ previous games, you might be unsurprised that Skyrim is not
a land without blemish, but rather harbors any number of technical glitches
and frustrating idiosyncrasies that tear open the icy veil that blankets the land.
Many of them are ones Elder Scrolls fans will probably see coming, but they’re
ultimately a low price to pay for the wonders of a game this sprawling and
enthralling. Prepare for many sleepless nights to come.
PLAYSTATION 3 / XBOX 360 / PC 1. THE LAST OF US
Adolescents have it particularly tough in the zombie apocalypse.
Everyonearoundthemisobsessedwithsurvival--whichiscertainly
understandable--but every ounce of a teenager’s instincts is
pushing him or her toward goofing off. The psychological toll of
burying your most basic desires must be exhausting. Left Behind
presents this unique point of view through Ellie, the extraordinary
heroine from The Last of Us, and it’s hard to resist laughing along
with her when her childlike nature is on full display. Don’t expect
this prequel to ignore the dark cloud that hovers ominously
overhead, though. By examining Ellie’s plight through the lens of
such a bleak existence, we grow ever closer to her, and realize how
devastating one’s life in such a world would be.
Riley sneaks into Ellie’s room before the sun rises, pouncing upon
her sleeping body while mimicking a hissing neck bite. Obviously
terrified that an infected is eating her alive, Ellie tosses Riley to the
ground before pulling a knife from beneath her pillow. Jokes aren’t
PLAYSTATION 3
quite as funny when there are monsters lurking. We soon learn
that these two best friends had a falling out a month back, and
while Ellie is going through training in a military school, Riley has
joined the rebel Fireflies. Grievances quickly forgotten, the two risk
punishment from their superiors by sneaking into the dangerous
city they call home.
Watching these two characters interact is heartwarming. As they
try on masks in a Halloween shop, their joy is infectious, and I was
nodding along with Ellie when she remarked how much junk people
used to buy. Such bric-a-brac must be difficult to understand if you
live among people who cherish only the bare necessities.
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THIEF / FEB 25
Sometimes, Thief makes you feel...well, like a thief.
The stars align, you’ve gathered some courage,
and you swoop in to snatch a patrolling guard’s coin
purse unseen, and then swipe a goblet from under his
nose. You sneak away, grin, and silently congratulate
yourself for your unquestionable skill. Emphasis on the
“silently” part, of course; any good thief knows it’s best
not to trumpet your accomplishments. Other times,
the illusion is shattered. You hide in the shadows while
watching an alerted guard walk continuously in place
against a pillar, or staring as he pirouettes with several
of his comrades.
DARK SOULS 2 / MARCH
Dark Souls is one of the toughest, most brutal adventure
games we’ve played. It punishes every mistake, mocks
you with every death screen and laughs at the notion of
difficulty levels. Fans of the first game were adamant
that the sequel would somehow be easier, diluted down
or more friendly for newcomers, but having recently
tried the game’s opening hour at a preview event,
we can put those complaints to rest. Dark Souls is back,
and it’s tougher than ever.
In the first Dark Souls, you could only be invaded by
other players if you were in human form. You typically
spend most of your time as an undead, only becoming
human when you acquire specific items or complete
certain tasks. For Dark Souls 2, there’s always a chance
of being invaded, no matter what your state.
THE WITCHER 3: WILD HUNT / TBA 2014
There’s a creature in the woods slaughtering villagers.
The elders want to appease the gods in the hope that it
will move on. The leader of the village’s young upstarts
disagrees, and wants you – a professional monster
slayer – to bring him the beast’s head for a bag of gold.
What do you do?
The best fantasy RPGs serve up the juiciest dilemmas,
and the Witcher series has form for throwing up quality
let’smake- a-cuppa-and-think conundrums. Slaying the
monster seems like the obvious option here, but if The
Witcher 3 is anything like its predecessors things are
going to get complicated fast.
ELDER SCROLLS ONLINE / APR 4
Set a millennium before Skyrim and around 800 years
before Oblivion, The Elder Scrolls Online takes in nearly
all of Tamriel, not just one continent as with previous
games in the series. The Elder Scrolls games have
historically been epic adventures, filled with quests,
locations to explore and characters to meet, but they
have also been strictly solitary experiences. Bethesda is
looking to change that with The Elder Scrolls Online, the
first in the series to add other players to the mix.
You don’t start off on the green plains of Cyrodiil or
the cold mountains of Skyrim, however; you begin the
game in Hell, or one of the realms of Oblivion to be
exact. Daedric Prince Molag Bal has taken your soul
as a sacrifice as he attempts to pull all of Tamriel into
his realm. Luckily for you (and the rest of the world),
your fellow captives have a plan to escape, and prevent
Moalg Bal from achieving his goal. It’s once you make
your way out of Oblivion that the game begins proper,
letting you loose on Tamriel to either complete the main
story, or more likely explore and meet up with friends to
take on quests as a group.
WATCH DOGS / APR - JUN
In the modern uber-connected world, Chicago has
the nation’s most advanced and integrated computer
system – one which controls almost every facet of
city technology and maintains critical information on
all of the city’s residents. You assume the role of Aiden
Pearce, a notorious hacker and former thug, whose
criminal past lead to a violent family tragedy. Now on
the hunt for those people who have hurt your family,
you will be able to monitor and hack all who surround
you while manipulating the city’s systems. Use the
entire city of Chicago as your personal weapon and
exact your signature brand of revenge.
HERE’S OUR round-up of must have consolegames
due for release this year. Looking for the best new
games launching in 2014?
With the Xbox One and PS4 having arrived late last
year, many of the most hotly anticipated games
for both next gen consoles are set to land in 2014,
providing more compelling reasons to make the
upgrade. It’s time to live in the now, and to think
about all the games in front of us.
It’s not all about next gen, either, as there are plenty
KEEPS GETTING BETTER
DESTINY / SEPT 9
Set in the remote future, Destiny thrusts players
into the roles of Guardians of the last city on Earth,
who traverse the ancient ruins of our solar system from
the red dunes of Mars to the exotic jungles of Venus.
Able to wield immense power, players battle humanity’s
enemies and must reclaim that which was lost during
the collapse of mankind’s Golden Age.
In a story-driven universe, Destiny’s saga unfolds
through grand tales and sweeping adventures by
immersing gamers in a bold new world filled with
cooperative, competitive, public, and social activities,
all seamlessly connected. Destiny incorporates
Bungie’s trademark grand scope, sci-fi storytelling
and adventures with visceral first-person action
gaming that takes place in a burgeoning, cinematic
universe. Additionally, Destiny delivers a unique social
gaming experience to consoles by offering players
a connected, living world that they can explore,
combined with vibrant social spaces where they can
congregate and celebrate achievements, and share
remarkable adventures grouped with friends or solo.
TITANFALL / MAR 11
Is there any game out there as hotly anticipated
as Titanfall? Probably not. Sure, you’ll find a lot of
people excited about Dark Souls II or Bungie’s Destiny,
but there’s a buzz about Respawn Entertainment’s
debut that we haven’t seen for a while. In a way,
it’s being seen as the game that might do for the Xbox
One and this console generation what Call of Duty:
Modern Warfare did last time around: redefining the
multiplayer shooter for new hardware and new times.
The fact that Respawn’s Vince Zampella helped design
the pivotal CoD is a factor, and in fact you can check out
the team page and find numerous artists, developers
and designers who worked on Modern Warfare and its
sequel.
Titanfall is also a key game for Xbox One and Microsoft’s
vision of next-gen gaming. While not quite an Xbox One
exclusive – it’s coming to PC and (eventually) Xbox 360
– Titanfall is a potential system seller. If it can just bring
a portion of CoD’s fanbase over to Xbox One, then it
might help Microsoft catch up with Sony’s lead in the
next-gen console race.
THE ORDER: 1886 / TBA 2014
You haven’t seen graphics like this before. At least, not
running in real-time. Ready At Dawn has gone stark-
screaming-crazy with the levels of fidelity in just about
everything you see in The Order 1886. From armour
glints and hair swish to cloud… cloudiness. Our first,
enthralling look at The Order’s fictionalised version
of Victorian London – infused with a Tesla-fueled
industrial revolution – has been established beautifully
because every element feels that bit different to other
games. It’s exactly the tingle of excitement a new IP
should deliver – the promise of a world worth exploring.
of big games still slated to release on the Xbox 360
and PS3, and more indie games are making their way
to PSN and Xbox Live. Sony and Nintendo continues
to show great support for the 3DS and PS Vita with
Yoshi’s New Island and new Oddworld games for the
Sony handheld among the titles to look out for.
PC gamers will not be forgotten about as Valve’s
army of Steam Machines battle for living room
space and we cross our fingers that a consumer-
ready Oculus Rift VR headset will be available before
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the end of the year. If you are wondering which
standout titles will eat up most of your spare free
time, we’ve hand picked the 10 games we are most
excited about playing in 2014. Finally , that beauty
is relative, as is this editorial, so just sit back, relax
and enjoy the ride.
UPCOMING 2014 UPCOMING 2014

NO
GIRLS
ALLOWEDUnraveling the story
behind the stereotype
of video games being
for boys.

“Would it be fair for all the girls to buy princesses and
the boys to buy superheroes?” she says, smacking her
right hand to her head in exasperation. “Girls want
superheroes AND the boys want superheroes!”
POWER OF MARKETING
Not every 4-year-old is as critical as Riley Maida.
Most adults don’t give a second thought to the way
their local department stores are laid out or how
things are sold to them. But there are few marketing
accidents in retail. The aisle Maida stood in was not
accidentally saturated in pink. It’s no accident that
most video game retailers plaster their walls with
promotional posters for action games, shooters and
war games.
Long before a video game hits retailers, the marketing
machine is already well in motion. Before games like
Call of Duty, Madden or Grand Theft Auto are even
made, marketers are working with game developers
to determine the game’s content, how they’ll
represent it, who they’re making it for and how they’ll
reach that audience. Most of the time, they know
exactly which market they want to capture before
they even start considering game ideas. Many of the
decisions about what gets green-lit and what doesn’t
are based on hard data and analytics. Marketers know
who plays which games, how big the audience is and
what they’re hungry for. Like the pink aisle, there is
little to no prodding in the dark.
Most marketers will explain that trying to target
a general audience in one campaign is a bad idea.
It dilutes the marketing message. People want things
that have been designed just for them. A product is
more than just a product; it carries meaning and often
a promise — a promise that we’ll look better, feel
better, have more fun and improve our lives in some
way.
WE MADE THE GAMES WE WANTED
In these early days of game development, video
games were made by small teams, oftentimes
only two or three people. At Atari, one developer
often handled the game’s writing, coding, design
and art. Video game studios were predominantly
male, largely a by-product of men far outnumbering
women in the field of computer sciences. Carol
Shaw was the first female developer Atari hired.
She is best known for designing and programming
River Raid for the Atari 2600 at Activision. She says
never got the sense that the games she made were
for one gender or another, and there was never
a mandate from higher-ups to target a certain
audience. When she interviewed for the job, she didn’t
believe she was at any disadvantage because she was
a woman, nor did she feel that video games were the
realm of men.
Lori Cole, who co-wrote and designed Sierra’s Quest
for Glory series, recalls that some of the earliest video
games she played were so simplistic that there was
nothing gendered about them. “Those games weren’t
exactly female-targeted, but it was guys who were
making them, and they were trying to make what they
could with this technology, so I don’t think it was a
case of the games being designed for guys. They were
just designed by guys.”
Many of Sierra’s audience were women in their 30s.
They were by no means the majority. “We received
the silliest letter ever from this guy who was calling
Roberta a feminist for wanting to have a female
as a main character.” We passed it around the
company and everybody at Sierra was laughing at
this guy for being upset because we had a female
main character. “We didn’t see this as a problem. In
fact, we had several games that had female leads.
Nobody thought it was an issue.”
THE 90’S SHIFT
In a magazine advertisement for the Atari game
Millipede (1982), a young girl stands in front of the
arcade machine with her hands on the buttons,
her face visibly excited by the action on the screen.
An older woman, presumably her mother, stands
beside her, hand on her shoulder, equally excited,
a little bit awkward.
By the late 1990s and early 2000s, video games
appeared to be growing up alongside the young
players who had latched onto the medium at the time
of the Game Boy. Games and consoles were getting
more sophisticated. Titles like Wipeout, Tomb Raider
and Gran Turismo showed the world what video
games could offer. It showed what video games could
offer men. When it conducted market research during
the ‘80s and ‘90s, it found that more boys than girls
played video games.
When it conducted market research during the ‘80s
and ‘90s, it found that more boys than girls played
video games. The ads made no distinction between
different genres of games being for different people.
Girls have always played video games, but they
weren’t the majority. In wake of the video game
crash, the game industry’s pursuit of a safe and
reliable market led to it homing in on the young male.
And so the advertising campaigns began. Video games
were heavily marketed as products for men, and the
message was clear: No girls allowed.
THE EXCEPTIONS, THE PROBLEMS
First-person shooters, action games and sports
games have been popular among boys ever since the
early ‘90s. In 2012, the three categories combined
were responsible for 58.8 percent of video game sales
in North America. But not everyone buys the idea that
games have become the realm of males. Bogost
believes the reason why so many people outside of
video game culture think games are for young boys is
because of moral panics — one of the most effective
forms of marketing available. In recent decades, when
video games have appeared in the news, it’s often
been bad news.
A FUTURE FOR EVERYONE
When Romero’s daughter Maezza was 8, she returned
home from school with a story. Maezza had told her
classmates that when she grows up, she wants to
be a game designer. A kid in her class turned around.
“Girls don’t play games,” he said. “Fortunately, my
daughter had a great response, she said to the boy,
‘My mommy makes games.’ That the concept of
“girls don’t play games” exists even among children
in schoolyards today has less to do with the actual
numbers of players as much as it has to do with an
idea that was heavily circulated from the ‘90s through
television commercials, magazine ads, video game
box art and the media.
Back in Newburgh, N.Y., wide-eyed and frustrated,
Riley Maida paces back and forth in the aisle. “Why do
all the girls have to buy princesses?” she asks. “Some
girls like superheroes; some girls like princesses. Some
boys like superheroes; some boys like princesses. So
why do all the girls have to buy princesses and all the
boys have to buy different-colored stuff?” We hear
her father’s voice behind the camera: “That’s a good
question, Riley.”
“MAYBE OUR PERCEPTION
OF THE PROBLEM IS THE
PROBLEM, RATHER THAN
THERE ACTUALLY BEING A
PROBLEM,”
“SHE KNEW NOT MANY WOMEN HELD BACHELOR’S AND MASTER’S
DEGREES IN COMPUTER SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING, BUT SHE HELD
BOTH. SHE WAS QUALIFIED TO DO THE JOB, AND THAT WAS THAT. “
TEXT/ POLYGON PHOTO/ POLYGON
OPINION OPINION
A few aisles over, in the video
game section, unlike in the
toy aisles, you won’t find an
expansive selection of video
games for boys and an equal
selection for girls.
Most “girls’ sections,” are lined
with fitness titles and Ubisoft’s
simplified career simulation
series. As for the boys section,
there isn’t one. Everything else
is for boys.

Sony’s console stand with a whole eight processors, a blu-ray player
and a strong graphic card from Nvidia. It can also promote the free
internetaccess through Playstation Network.
Microsoft’s console was first out with the last generation, and add
on the good, exclusive games it can also promote with a superior
networkservice.
PLAYSTATION 3 XBOX 360
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LAST OF US
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Unlike the Uncharted series, The Last of Us has its roots in survival-horror, so engaging hostiles head-on
is something you’ll probably not want to do very often. Both characters are extremely vulnerable, and their
strengths lie not in their ability to fire a gun, but in stealth.
GTA 5 is expected to be the last game from Rockstar. Instead of playing one character, you’ll experience
the stories of three main characters for the first time ever in a GTA game, and experience San Andreas
like never before.
GOD OF WAR: ASCENSION
BEYOND: TWO SOULS
BIOSHOCK INFINITE
WATCH DOGS
DUST 514
SLY COOPER: THIEVES IN TIME
METAL GEAR RISING: REVENGEANCE
PUPPETEER
This time around, the developers say that they’ll be giving Kratos a personality beyond “murderous psy-
chopath” to allow players to empathize with a much more human character. That doesn’t mean Kratos
can’t still brutalize everything he encounters, though.
The game is set to tell the story of Ellen Page’s character, whom we’ll follow throughout her entire life and
grow to empathize with instead of being told that she’s someone we have to care about. To be sure, the
game will offer a brave, new approach to storytelling.
You play the role of Booker DeWitt, a former Pinkerton agent who takes on a contract to retrieve a mysteri-
ous young woman named Elizabeth. Like the first Bioshock, the game is a social commentary on modern
day America and the ideologies that stir within it.
Set in the modern day, the game is expected to play much like the Assassin’s Creed series, but sees the
protagonist endowed with the ability to hack and twist technology to his whim as he strikes fear into the
hearts of evil men who’ve escaped—or operate within—the long reach of the law.
As a massively multiplayer first person shooter, you’ll be tasked as one of the countless soldiers dis-
patched by your spacebound counterparts to take over planets and military installations with the support
of spacecraft from EVE Online.
Sly Cooper: Thieves in Time is the fourth entry in the beloved Sly Cooper franchise, which sees players
taking on the role of a sly fox who also happens to be a thief.
Rather than being yet another stealth-heavy title, Revengeance is an attempt to infuse 3rd person action
into the franchise by having players chop shit up, which also happens to be the game’s main draw—using
a sword to chop shit up with precision.
In the game, players assume the role of a boy named Kutaro who’s been turned into a puppet. Puppeteer
offers a unique control scheme in which the left analog stick is used to control Kutaro, while the right stick
controls a ghostly cat named Yin Yang.
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GRAND THEFT AUTO V
GEARS OF WAR: JUDGMENT
GTA 5 is expected to be the last game from Rockstar. Instead of playing one character, you’ll experience
the stories of three main characters for the first time ever in a GTA game, and experience San Andreas
like never before.
Judgment is set before the first of the first trilogy. Together with Kilo Squad, Cole and Baird must survive
through the events of Emergence Day and deal with the Locust as they threaten the extinction of human-
ity on the planet Sera.
BIOSHOCK INFINITE
BATTLEFIELD 4
DEAD SPACE 3
TOM CLANCY’S SPLINTERCELL: BLACKLIST
WATCH DOGS
TOMB RAIDER
INJUSTICE: GODS AMONG US
METAL GEAR RISING: REVENGEANCE
You play the role of Booker DeWitt, a former Pinkerton agent who takes on a contract to retrieve a mysteri-
ous young woman named Elizabeth. Like the first Bioshock, the game is a social commentary on modern
day America and the ideologies that stir within it.
More than just a yearly upgrade, the game will come with a host of improvements to the way its maps
are set. This, and a dedicated single-player campaign will be part and parcel of the next-gen Battlefield
4 experience.
Dead Space 3 is set to offer the return of Isaac Clarke as he braves an alien planet in search of the source
of the Marker, which threatens to doom humanity. He’s not alone this time around, and is supported by
the likes of John Carver, an officer who’s as invested in ending the Necromorph outbreak as Clarke is.
The high-tech counterterrorist outfit must deal with something called “The Blacklist”, a plan of escalating
terror attacks throughout the world. It’s up to Sam Fisher and his team to stop the terrorists before the
countdown launched by “The Blacklist” reaches zero.
Set in the modern day, the game is expected to play much like the Assassin’s Creed series, but sees the
protagonist endowed with the ability to hack and twist technology to his whim as he strikes fear into the
hearts of evil men who’ve escaped—or operate within—the long reach of the law.
Far from being the jewel thief/dinosaur hunter/world adventurer of the previous games, Lara Croft is in-
stead cast as a young woman who survives a plane wreck on a remote and uncharted island somewhere
in the Pacific.
Rather than being yet another stealth-heavy title, Revengeance is an attempt to infuse 3rd person action
into the franchise by having players chop shit up, which also happens to be the game’s main draw—using
a sword to chop shit up with precision.
Each of the characters within Injustice will be defined by their superpowers and the gadgets they use
defeat to one another in mortal combat. The stages of the game are based on iconic locations within the
DC Comics universe.
From the makers of Heavy Rain and Fahrenheit comes a new adventure game starring
the talents of Juno actress, Ellen Page. Beyond is set to be one of the most emotional
experiences ever delivered in a videogame, according to its creator, David Cage, who sees
videogames as a new medium for storytelling and not just for relieving boredom for those
with an attention deficit.
Injustice: Gods Among Us is an attempt to do for DC’s superheroes what the Arkham
series of games did for Batman. Coming from the makers of Mortal Kombat, Injustice
will pit hero against hero, and villain against villain in an over-the-top and new take on
the DC Comics universe. Each of the characters within Injustice will be defined by their
superpowers and the gadgets they use defeat to one another in mortal combat.
BEYOND: TWO SOULS INJUSTICE: GODS AMONG US
ANBEFALT ANBEFALT
If you’re a girl reading this, it’s probably because
you’ve heard about video games from your
boyfriend or the nice guy you’re totally friendzoning
right now, or maybe you’ve decided you want to
become one of those hot new “fake geek girls”
that are all the rage right now – and as everybody
knows, girls are all into fashion, right? Exactly.
Anyway, whatever your reasons for putting your
next shoe shopping trip on hold, I’ve put together
this helpful guide based on my very own extensive
experience as a girl gamer to get you started. Gaming
is hard, and being a girl playing games is even harder
because of periods and compulsive texting and not
being able to conceptually visualise 3D objects and
other gross girl things, so pay attention.
This one is really, really important. It’s completely
natural for guys to be gamers because they’re
biologically hardwired to be competitive and pretend
to shoot each other for points, but it’s obviously
very suspicious for girls to be gamers because we
always have ulterior motives for everything. I mean,
you and I both know that the real reason we’re
playing games is for attention, but it’s a good idea to
keep this to yourself.
Remember, there are no girls on the internet
without compelling evidence to the contrary. Make
sure to keep a selection of recent photos of your
boobs to show as proof when the demands start.
The demands will start. If you win a game, it’s
because you’re “good for a girl” Congratulations,
you’re the exception to the rule that girls are bad
at games. It might also be because you’re fat, ugly,
and/or a slut, just because.
If you lose a game, it’s because you’re a girl.
Congratulations, you’re the rule. It might also be
because you’re fat, ugly, and/or a slut. Don’t take it
personally, though, because it’s just a joke, and if you
don’t laugh it’s because girls don’t have a sense of
humour. Oh, and speaking of which…
Get back in the kitchen and make some guy
a sandwich. LOL. I’ve heard this joke several times
a day, every day, for the last five years or more and it
just gets more hilarious every time. Isn’t it hilarious?
It’s so hilarious.
If you think you’ve got it bad, it’s because that’s just
how it is and guys have it just as bad or even worse
anyway.
So what if you have to put up with insults jokes,
speculative commentary about your appearance
and sleeping arrangements, and unsolicited photos
of other players’ dicks — guys get called names that
call their sexual orientation into question. That’s so
much worse, and besides, it’s nobody else’s fault
you can’t take a compliment. Jeez.
TEXT/ TARRYN VAN DER BYL
THE GIRLS GUIDE TO
GAMING
GENRE ACTION / DEVELOPER PCFE GAMES / PUBLISHER MICROSOFT / SCORE 10
GENRE ACTION / DEVELOPER SANTA MONICA STUDIO / PUBLISHER SONY / SCORE 10 GENRE ACTION / DEVELOPER IRRATIONAL GAMES / PUBLISHER 2K GAMES / SCORE 10
GENRE ACTION-DRAMA / DEVELOPER QUANTIC DREAM / PUBLISHER SONY / SCORE 10 GENRE ACTION / DEVELOPER EA DIGITAL ILLUSION CE / PUBLISHER EA / SCORE 10
GENRE ACTION / DEVELOPER IRRATIONAL GAMES / PUBLISHER 2K GAMES / SCORE 10 GENRE ACTION / DEVELOPER VISCERAL GAMES / PUBLISHER ELECTRONIC ARTS / SCORE 10
GENRE ADVENTURE / DEVELOPER UBISOFT / PUBLISHER UBISOFT / SCORE 10 GENRE ACTION-ADVENTURE / DEVELOPER UBISOFT / PUBLISHER UBISOFT / SCORE 10
GENRE ACTION / DEVELOPER CCP SHANGHAI / PUBLISHER SONY / SCORE 10 GENRE ACTION-ADVENTURE / DEVELOPER CRYSTAL DYNAMICS / PUBLISHER SQUARE ENIX / SCORE 10
GENRE PLATFORM / DEVELOPER SANZARU GAMES / PUBLISHER SONY / SCORE 10 GENRE FIGHTING / DEVELOPER NETHERREALM STUDIOS / PUBLISHER WARNER BROS / SCORE 10
GENRE ACTION / DEVELOPER PLATINUM GAMES / PUBLISHER KONAMI / SCORE 10 GENRE ACTION / DEVELOPER PLATINUM GAMES / PUBLISHER KONAMI / SCORE 10
GENRE PLATFORM / DEVELOPER SCE JAPAN STUDIO / PUBLISHER SONY / SCORE 10 GENRE ACTION / DEVELOPER UBISOFT / PUBLISHER UBISOFT / SCORE 10
With each edition we grant you a personal letter from the
outspoken and totally honest, Tarryn van der Byl.
TARRYN VAN DER BYL GUIDE
FORUM
Following several years of latency was Grand
Theft Auto V finally launched on 17 September.
The day before had GR review jubilation in the
comments...
Dayum! This must then be too good to be true
to judge.
/SOMMERSTAD97
Good review but think you should get back
to the game when you have clear and poor
your head out of the cloud hype .
Well, I‘ve already bought it , said review
affected me so much. But one thing is for
sure, when looking forward even more. At
0:00 it happens!
/DARK SAMUS NEMESIS
Got the game today and must say I totally
agree with the reviewer. Long live the rockstar!
Thanks for this review. It was a joy of reading.
/BERNT_A

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