VideoGamer.com Plays February 5, 2012

Tom Orry, Editor – Hungry Giraffe, PS Mini

I started a three-month PlayStation Plus membership this week to see what it offered and one of the freebies was Hungry Giraffe, a PS Mini that also works on PS3 complete with higher quality artwork. Essentially it’s one of those endless running games, except you’re moving upwards instead of across the screen, you’re not running but are instead a giraffe’s head on the end of what I assume is an elasticised neck, and you must eat items in order to continue to propel yourself upwards. As is the way with these score-based titles, one go quickly turns into numerous attempts and before too long you’ve been playing for 30 minutes without even blinking.

Neon Kelly, Deputy and Features Editor – Catherine, PS3, Xbox 360

When Catherine is being annoying, it’s almost unbearable. The block-shifting sequences are already blessed with Rottweiler-like levels of meanness, and then one of the early bosses uses an attack that reverses your controls. This pissed me off to the point that I punched the sofa; the last game to rile me this much was Dark Souls, and even then it took about 40 hours of play before it sparked that level of anger (stupid Crystal Cave with its stupid invisible walkways).

I like a challenge – even an unfair one, if the rest of the game motivates me – but every so often Catherine oversteps my invisible line in the sand. Despite that, there’s no way I’m not going back for more. It’s a brilliantly unusual game, packed with vivid and remarkable imagery, and it’s approach to character-driven storytelling is laudably mature. I’ve heard a few people – Martin included – complaining about the latter stages of the plot, but there’s no way I won’t play this through to experience the ending for myself. Hell, as hard as it is, I’ll be damned if I’ll drop the difficulty down a notch. Control quirks aside, the core puzzling is pretty smart too… when it’s not making me Hulk out, that is.

Martin Gaston, Reviews Editor – The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, Xbox 360

So the Dark Brotherhood are essentially a bunch of jerks who roam about killing people and then laughing about it, but it’s all quite comedic because their base of operations isn’t really that sinister and you get the impression they’re all a bit of a murderous joke. They keep saying I’ve got loads of potential and that I’m basically the New Hotness, but I’m not sure what they see in me because I spend most of my time exploring caves and looking at things instead of actually completing assassinations.

Anyway, my latest Dark Brotherhood contract has sent me to a little cave called Volunruud to find out something about something I’ve already forgotten about. Volunruud has a secret door – a secret door! I couldn’t help but investigate. What’s behind it? Some bastard hard boss who is a complete and utter pain in the balls, and who keeps smashing my brains out of my ears every time I go in his stupid throne room. I’m going to have to swallow my pride and make a tactical retreat – I’ll come back when I’m level 30 and we’ll see who is murdering who then, WON’T WE KVENEL.

Emily Gera, MMO Editor – Star Wars: The Old Republic, PC

Yeah still levelling, don’t get too excited. Glucas’ companion Vette is now filled with nothing but disdain for him after I went too dark side to be able to continuously chat her up. So there goes that romance plotline. So far I’ve been bumbling about a jungle in Dromund Kaas for a few levels, while infiltrating the Revan cult that’s been meandering around town. Apparently bald-face lies are Glucas’ forte and he’s already rocketed through the ranks and met the cult’s secret leader. Beats having to repeatedly kill 10 kobolds.