We’re a few weeks into the new year and I have dipped a toe in some games that have been a part of my exceedingly long backlog list. As I mentioned in my last post, I have flitted from game to game, starting some but not really hunkering down on a specific one. After using the time off I had during the holidays, there were a couple I finished just before New Year’s Eve and one that has stood out as my game to play for the next few months.
Video Games Finished
Far Cry 6
Far Cry is one of those series I’ll only play on co-op rather than solo. It wasn’t really a series on my radar until a friend, who has played just about every single game, got me Far Cry 5 as a starting point. After finishing Borderlands 3 with my regular online gaming buddy sometime last year, Far Cry 6 became our next co-op game over the next several months.
Playing as Dani Rojas, a reluctant guerilla in the making, who takes on the dangerous dictator Antón Castillo (voiced by actor Giancarlo Esposito with his likeness also put into the game) of the fictional Caribbean island of Yara, it’s what you would largely expect from a Far Cry game. Fight your way out and survive in a situation you didn’t ask to be a part of.
The story starts off pretty strong, especially with the addition of Esposito as the terrifying Antón Castillo, but it falls a little flat towards the end. Unlike Far Cry 5, Far Cry 6 didn’t leave as strong of an impression as I’d hoped.
A Memoir Blue
A Memoir Blue is a simple interactive story that takes you through the memories of a young woman’s relationship to her mother as a small girl.
The indie game, developed by Cloisters Interactive and published by Annapurna Interactive with a release date of March 24, 2022, was one I read about and had been favorably reviewed. It’s a sort of light puzzle game where you have to figure out what objects to interact with in order to move the story forward.
The visuals, using a combination of computer and illustrated animation, and music makes A Memoir Blue an emotionally charged game experience that reminded me very much of GRIS.
It took me about an hour to finish, but it was a short and sweet one I was glad to have spent the last day of 2022 playing.
Video Game Currently Playing
Rise of the Tomb Raider
During my holiday break I played a sampling of video games, not really knowing what I wanted to fully commit to, like Nier Automata, the new Saints Row I got as a Christmas present, and Rise of the Tomb Raider. Initially, I did start Fire Emblem Fates: Conquest on the Nintendo 3DS after finishing Fire Emblem Fates: Birthright, but for some reason I wasn’t as interested in continuing with it for now. Maybe I’m feeling a little bit of JRPG fatigue. When I decided to play a little of Rise of the Tomb Raider out of slight boredom and not having anything I was dying to play at the moment, I was immediately sucked right in and haven’t been able to stop playing it ever since.
The sequel to Crystal Dynamics’s Tomb Raider, Rise of the Tomb Raider takes Lara Croft on an adventure to seek out the legendary city of Kitezh while also outrunning and fighting against a fanatic cult known as Trinity.
With settings in places like Syria to Siberia, tagging along for another ride with Lara Croft and discovering ancient artifacts along the way has stirred my adventure seeking heart in a way not a lot of games have. From the opening scenes of Rise, I was already hooked and wanted to continue further to see what happens next for Lara. It shouldn’t come as a surprise considering Tomb Raider, when I properly gave my full attention to it, made it easy to finally finish that game after a few months. Rise of the Tomb Raider will no doubt be a game I’ll easily finish sometime this year.
What games are you or will be playing for much of 2023?
simpleek 
While I, too, have Rise of the Tomb Rader sitting in my backlog, my biggest personal gaming goal for the year is to finish Cyberpunk 2077. For the moment, however, I’ve gotten sucked back into Fallout 4 (after trying to start another Mass Effect trilogy run, haha!), so we’ll see how long I stick with that. If I could see one game taking over my year, it’d probably be Starfield…*if* it actually comes out.
I really did like playing Cyberpunk 2077, even before all the improvements and add-ons that have been included with the game since then. But the heart wants what the heart wants, right? Whatever your game focus will be this year, Fallout, Starfield, or Cyberpunk 2077, I hope you have plenty of fun doing it. 🙂
Yes, whatever the year in gaming brings, hope it’s a good one for you, too!
So glad to see you’re playing RotTR! I adore that game and have replayed it quite a few times, I think it gets the balance of of exploration and action so right, and it looks stunning too!
I’m planning to finally get around to Horizon Forbidden West next!
I do feel like Rise outdoes Tomb Raider a bit, and that’s saying a lot considering the first game was already pretty outstanding. I’ve been taking as much time as I can exploring the new areas that open up, doing some side quests, before continuing with the main story. It has been my hard to put down game!
And happy gaming with Horizon Forbidden West!
Dittos on RotTR! Loved that one when I played it a few years back! As for now, I’m way into Inscryption and Returnal. Returnal in particular I just can’t get enough of. It’s hard but the controls feel amazing and the world is super intriguing!
Haha, I doubt Returnal would be a game I would pick up. Any game that’s too hard is a hard pass for me, which means I won’t be playing games like Dishonored or Cuphead. After hearing people say it can be difficult to move through is one I can’t get behind if I’ll end up getting stuck. I am glad to hear you’re enjoying it though! 🙂