VideoGamer.com Plays November 6, 2011

Tom Orry, Editor – Batman: Arkham City, Xbox 360

I really enjoyed Arkham Asylum, and Martin’s Arkham City review made me very keen to start the sequel as soon as I finished Portal 2. While I appreciate the world that Rocksteady has created, complete with tons of villains, I’m currently not loving the experience. Maybe I’ve just got to retune my brain to the way the Batman games play, but it all feels a bit clumsy at the moment. I’m no more than two hours in, so I’m hoping things will improve and I’ll come to agree with the generally glowing praise the game has elsewhere.

Neon Kelly, Deputy Editor – Geometry Wars 2: Retro Evolved, Xbox 360

I know, I know. We’re slap-bang in the middle of prime release season, barely five minutes can go past without the emergence of a fresh blockbuster, and here I am writing about a three-old-game – and for the second week in a row, too. Nothing else gets a look in: Nathan Drake twiddles his thumbs, Batman sparks up a cigarette. The guys from Battlefield 3 stare into space, wondering if they’ll ever be as popular as Soap MacTavish – bloody Soap MacTavish, who gets all the girls.

I have a problem, though. While I’ve only just returned to Geometry Wars 2 after a long leave of absence, the break doesn’t appear to have hurt my skills. If anything, I seem to be better now than during my last addictive episode. And so, here’s my dilemma: If I stick at the game, I might finally get a few scores that are worth bragging about – and yet every day spent on GW2 is another day away from Arkham City, Skyrim, and all the other games I want to sample. And I really, really do want to be Batman again…

Martin Gaston, Previews Editor – Battlefield 3, Xbox 360

There are some pretty bloody annoying bits when you’re playing solo. I’ve been reduced to this (tangent: please will somebody play with me?) because the group of people I tend to game with aren’t playing Battlefield 3 – even some of my journalist peers who handed out incredibly high review scores have already moved on to other games. I’m not sure if that’s an unfortunate circumstance or damning indictment?

Anyway, last night I had an absolutely splendid game of Rush on Tehran Highway. It was a real back-and-forth game; I was on the attacking team and our tickets were being obliterated over and over again, with us managing to make a habit of inching forward in our last five lives. When it was down to the final M-COM station we ran out of tickets as soon as the bomb was planted, and it became a frantic all-or-nothing battle against an entire enemy team on a mission to defuse the charge and win the game. They didn’t manage it. Beautiful.

Emily Gera, Staff Writer – Theme Hospital, PC

To the denizens of my Theme Hospital I am a cruel god. I haven’t played this game since my late-night retro gaming phase in university so my ability to find the right button to hire a caretaker to clean up the pools of vomit that carpet my building is rough at best. Still, there’s something about Theme Hospital that caters to the part of my brain that takes comfort in micromanagement and taking money from the ill while I role-play the American medial system. Hey, here’s a tip: Put benches next to radiators to make patients feel hot so they decide to buy pricey drinks from the vending machines.