January 11
Hello and happy Saturday (if you celebrate those things)! Did you have a good week? I hope so.
This is our regular section where we write a little about some of the games we've been playing. This time we get scared in a snowy town, we are really enjoying a beloved series and returning to an old classic at a slower pace.
Catch up on previous editions of this column in our What We've Been Playing archive.
Resident Evil Village, PS5 Pro
Watch on YouTube
I had played a couple of hours of Resident Evil 8 on Xbox, but then thought about playing it on the Steam Deck, before giving up because it was too scary. Fast forward to a few weeks ago and running as best as I can on current consoles thanks to the PS5 Pro, I'm back for a third try. I'm happy to report that I'm loving Village right now. The setting is gorgeous and having played RE4 Remake not too long ago, I find it much more disturbing.
I play a lot of horror games, but I can't say I've developed any sort of tolerance for them. The most trivial things scare me, like a hanging object that moves or a door that closes. Village's depiction of a small town that has been abandoned/devastated is a macabre delight to explore, but boy does it have a lot of doors (that close) and things (that hang).
At this point I'm already adequately invested and it's going to take a lot more than a few dangling pieces of meat to send me running into another game.
-Took.
Yakuza: Like a Dragon, PS5
I've had Like A Dragon in my backlog forever, ever since I played Yakuza Kiwami years ago and then skipped the rest of the series. I knew I'd love its quirky storytelling, turn-based combat, and role-playing elements. Although I didn't know I would love them so much.
For those who don't know, Like A Dragon is the seventh in the series and went from an action game to a role-playing pastiche, fueled by new protagonist Ichiban Kasuga's predilection for Dragon Quest. Its turn-based combat is dynamic, and I love how RPG stereotypes have parallels in real-world Japan: its job system ranges from homeless mage to healing pop idol, while skills, equipment, and Elements, enemy types with puns and more are all recognizable from modern Japanese culture. It's also hilarious, especially the side quests where I've helped various idiot men in compromising positions: from repeatedly urinating in a river to a diaper fetish to the inability to feel sadomasochistic pain. It's completely bizarre, but also a genuinely well-crafted parody of the genre.
I'm upset with myself for not playing it sooner, but I'm still glad I can play it now. I was lucky enough to visit Japan last year and spent a lot of time in the fictional metropolis from Like A Dragon exploring the streets of Shinjuku (I stayed just there!) and the Yokohama Cosmo Clock 21 – it's surprisingly accurate. And it's given me a deeper appreciation for modern Japan's nuanced view of the game.
My goal was to progress through this entry in the series to get to last year's Infinite Wealth, and if it were even half as good, it would definitely have been among my top games of 2024. But I'm having a great time liking it. A Dragon. I don't want to rush it. I am completely captivated.
-Ed
Rise of the Tomb Raider, Xbox Series
When the weather outside is cold and often dreary (let's face it, this is Britain), it may be advisable to play something set on a distant, sunny coast, to help offset the cold of the real world. However, for some reason I haven't been doing this and have instead chosen to spend the coldest time of the year playing Rise of the Tomb Raider.
Rise of the Tomb Raider is the second entry in the series' reboot trilogy, and it's certainly not set in the Cayman Islands. Rather, Lara is doing her best to find a mysterious artifact known as the Divine Source, said to hold the promise of immortality, in the frozen, ice-covered wilderness of Siberia. She's not alone in her quest, however, and of course there are plenty of them fighting the bad guys and jumping between bushes/trees/buildings/cliff edges, etc., while Lara deploys her trusty ice axes to save her from coming to a messy end. . You know, standard stuff.
I've completed Rise of the Tomb Raider before, so I know how the story ends, but I still enjoyed returning to Siberia for another spin. This time I'm being more thorough and looking for all the optional challenge tombs scattered throughout. I'm also doing more little side quests that ask Lara to do. And you know, it's actually been a very peaceful way to spend the evenings. While my first playthrough was so focused on uncovering the story, this time the story took a backseat. Now I just enjoy taking some exploratory walks in the snow with Lara, while staying warm and dry. Those sunny shores can wait a little longer.
-Victory