The Games We Play is a weekly feature about what has been going on in our gaming lives. Tell us what you've been playing in the comments.
Terry: There are two settings in video games that I'm always a sucker for - snow and the old west (this probably explains why I loved Lost Planet and Gun a little more than most). So when Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood came out recently I knew, especially after playing the first one, that I'd be picking it up.
It was a little slow at the start, I even remarked on Twitter that I wasn't impressed, but now I'm at the halfway point and I'm thoroughly enjoying it. Because the two characters you play as are different, it takes a little while to get used to their varying abilities. But once you do, the setting and the gun play become fun. I highly recommend it.
Ian: I got a lot of gaming in this week with Prince of Persia, Wolverine and Punch Out. I beat the final boss in Punch Out but now have to start the "defend your title mode." Is every boxer now more difficult? To be clear, Punch Out is a HARD game to begin with.
I had some quality time with Prince of Persia and didn't find it as easy as so many have said. It takes awhile to get a hang of the controls but overall they work well. I wish the environments were colorful on the first playthrough because the unique art style shows a lot better that way. The openworldness of the game feels like a gimic and I would have rather seen level based gameplay.
Finally, I had a chance to play Wolverine for the 360. I have not seen the movie and pretty much ignored the cutscenes but the gameplay is really fun. There is a great level of brutality as the camera slows down as you decapitate your opponents. The environments have been somewhat varied so far, but I hoping for some more outdoor scenery instead of dark interiors as I progress through the game.
Sean: In an eight-person party chat a few nights go on the 360, my friends and I threw out ideas of what downloadable games we wish we could play. Some of the more prominent answers that I remember are: Clue, Family Feud and other board games where your avatar could be used and everyone in your party could play or observe the game. The 1 vs. 100 Beta is an innovative way to bring this all together but it only runs certain times a day. As opposed to playing multiple games this week, this heated debate of what XBLA needs to do was the front runner.
But that's what XBL does for people, it gives them the opportunity to speak on, essentially, an eight-person phone call. It brings individuals together and allows you to meet new friends from across the globe. In a matter of seconds, you can switch from playing Uno -- which I did a lot this week -- with three other friends to Call of Duty 4, where we're all soldiers out to kill the opposition. The possibilities seem endless, yet, suggestions are still out there. Please Microsoft, feature more game show and board game type downloads. That's what this is more about: the community.
Andrew: Another week, less games. I found myself wrapped up in the old west with Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood pretty much the entire week. I love how they took everything that was wrong with the first one and scrapped it. Stunning landscapes, wonderful visuals and some very intuitive gameplay mechanics certainly make this something to check out. Other than that I have been trying to catch up on my sleep since work is killing me with these late night shifts now. Lastly, DLC digest has been a huge part of my week with tons of hilarious post it something that everyone needs to check out.
