VideoGamer.com Plays, 8th October, 2016 – FIFA 17, Gears of War 4, PlayStation VR and more

Tom Orry, Editorial Director – Gears of War 4, Xbox One

I am genuinely surprised at how great Gears of War 4 looks. I’d set my expectations to low following the multiplayer beta and some trailers that didn’t wow me, but having played through the campaign I can say it’s quite the stunner.The environments are varied and incredibly detailed, making a mockery of the Xbox One’s status as an underpowered console. It’s definitely a game you’ll want to take your time with, or play through again just to take some nice pics. By nice I mean in the sense that you appreciate the work that’s gone into it, not that it’s always picturesque. For a lot of Gears 4 the locations can be pretty grotesque, so don’t go in expecting scenes from a holiday brochure.

Dave Scammell, Deputy Editor – PlayStation VR

PlayStation VR is a wonderful piece of tech – I’ve already said as much elsewhere – but I’m still not entirely convinced it’ll get the kind of support you’d hope for from a peripheral that costs quite as much as it does. Yes, there’s a decent amount of launch games and yes, there are plenty of little VR bonuses coming along, but will there ever be a steady flow of full-length PlayStation VR titles, either from Sony or third-party publishers? And if not, do we potentially have another Vita on our hands?

Okay, maybe it’s a little unfair to suggest something like that quite so soon. I genuinely love PlayStation VR. I think it’s an excellent entry point to the tech and, of all the headsets available, I think its comfort and accessibility means it has every chance of becoming the market leader. And if you’re picking one up next week, I don’t think you’ll be at all disappointed the first time you put it on. After playing with the office unit all week, I’m still super excited about getting mine home. But it needs regular new software to keep the momentum going. And it needs the software at the right price. Is Battlezone worthy of £50, for example? I haven’t yet played enough to give you a definitive answer, but I do have my concerns.

I don’t feel that VR is a fad like, say, 3D or Kinect was, and I thoroughly believe that it can add something meaningful to gaming. But managing prices, expectations and maintaining the flow of proper games will be key to sustaining momentum going forward. I just hope Sony manages to get it right early on.

Alice Bell, Content Editor – Thumper, PlayStaion VR

Thumper is a great VR game for me because it moves very fast but also doesn’t make me feel sick (unlike other rails-shooter-meets-clown-jumpscares games which are available). This is possibly because it’s not quite in first person, and is instead framed from a third person beetle point of view. I think this should be more widely used in video games. I would love it if the next Call of Duty was a lot of beetles, but sadly I think it is confirmed: no beetles at this point.

Thumper is a rhythm action game where you have to defeat tentacled geometric shapes in space, or sort of not space, by hitting the right action cues when they turn up on the rails you, the much mentioned beetle, are speeding along. This is very difficult because they turn up very very quickly, and sometimes your idiot thumbs get a bit out of sync, and when you get one wrong you bollocks up the next three at least. It’s actually really good. There’s also a giant angry head who is the end level boss. I find the head’s role in proceedings very strange, if I’m honest. I read previews where people said the whole game inspired a sense of dread and/or anxiety, whereas I was mostly confused.

Confusion aside, it’s a very good game, and you don’t even have to have a VR headset or any of that bollocks if you do want to play it, so think about getting it when it comes out if you like rhythm action. It’s probably not for you if you’d describe yourself as having two left feet or being all thumbs or other motherisms like that. Also good for coleopterists.

Sam Riley, Junior Content Editor – FIFA 17, PS4

It’s been a while since I’ve sat down with FIFA. Not unlike Sepp Blatter, I suppose. Wait, make that Sepp Blatter suffering from a chronic case of hemorrhoids. There, now everyone’s a winner. That being said, I do feel as though I’ve barely missed a beat. Oh sure, everything’s all a bit smoother now, and the gameplay’s just a touch sharper, but the same old rules still apply.

Sides so low they might easily be mistaken for mole folk are still forced to field teams of botched plastic surgery recipients — as opposed to the rather more striking likenesses afforded the game’s biggest names. Not only that, but the familiar bugbears of glitchy A.I. and strange set-pieces have also returned, proving to be every bit as tenacious and blandly predictable as a James Milner speech about paper.

Still, those are minor niggles for a franchise that finally has a bit of fire underneath it. Sales figures aside, the continued improvement of main competitor PES can only be good for the state of football gaming.

Colm Ahern, Content Editor – Virginia, PS4, Xbox One, PC

I’m a big fan of Walking Simulators. The concept of a nice stroll around a lovely, sleepy town takes me back to the beautiful countryside of Cork, when we’d be dreaming about beating the English at sport. Any sport.

Virginia captures the spirit of its location and time very well with people like the local clergymen and politicians being those that hold the power. And it does that without uttering a single word. I loved that it was able to convey story without having reams of dialogue that goes in one ear and out the other. I paid attention to my surroundings more than I probably do otherwise, because that’s all Virginia has to offer. Tack the beautiful score on top of that and you have the makings of something that can really grab you.

However, while Thirty Flights of Loving did so well to capture that movie-style with its jump cuts, Virginia employs the same technique when it suits. Other times, it’s waiting for you to find an item to move things along and get to the next scene. My main issue is in the fact that it never explicitly states when the game wants you to enjoy the ride, or when it is urging you to pick up an item of interest so that you can progress.

Also, that ending.

I thought I was alright, though.