On Monday's Letters page, we discuss the best British video game magazines, and one reader posts a review of Final Fantasy 7: Rebirth.
To join the discussion, email gamecentral@metro.co.uk.
funny name
The other day, someone was trying to guess the name of Nintendo's next game console. I think all three major console manufacturers are bad at naming their consoles. Switch, Wii, GameCube?
Part of the reason for the Wii U's failure is believed to be that its name confused potential customers as to what it was, and the name Xbox Series I think this may be partly the cause. PlayStation 5? What will Sony call its next game console? So which console has the best name? I vote for his 1978 US release The Bally Astrocade.
Tim Keeling
GC: Wii U is probably the worst console name of all time, so what's wrong with the Switch? Obviously WonderSwan is the best.
forced to consent
Just a quick note: I read a reader feature about the end of video games and I really wanted to disagree.
If that means involving late-stage capitalism, I'm open to it. Because, honestly, that's really the blame here.
I'm old enough to remember the last crash, and it was exactly the same hubris that caused it. Maybe Nintendo can save the industry again. I think we're almost done funding Xbox, so we'll be looking carefully at the Switch successor.
The reader feature was very well written, so I have nothing else to add.
Everyone stay calm!
Adam
GC: We hope we disagree with you. (Well, except that it's a nice feature.)
Schrödinger's executive
Yes, that Sarah Bond interview was shockingly bad, and she was asked real softball questions. Anyway, what's really interesting is that in terms of cross-platform her publishing, she was still pulling titles line by title line. This is in direct conflict with most mountain commenters who say everything will be fine when discussing games from Xbox to her PlayStation.
So what is happening? Is there a civil war going on between the guys at Xbox who still want exclusivity and Microsoft who wants to end it all? I hope we find out soon. I'm looking forward to Fable on PlayStation 5.
rob
GC: We suspect this is a case of internal conflict and decisions are constantly changing. We'd be surprised if anyone at Xbox knew exactly what they were doing now, especially after the success of Sea Of Thieves.
Email your comments to: gamecentral@metro.co.uk
hard copy
An interesting article published in The Guardian about the 15 best British video game magazines. It's basically just a list of the writer's own personal favorites, but it's also a nice little nostalgic article about the magic of physical gaming magazines. As adults, GCs and viewers may be able to share their personal favorite magazines.
Mine would probably be N64/NGC and gamesTM, especially the latter for its mix of well-written features and a slightly more subdued tone than Edge, which I haven't bought since this great magazine closed its doors a few years ago. I don't think so.
Bringing the latest issue home from the newsstand and spending hours reading its pages with exciting new games and console features on the horizon, uninterrupted by millions of other apps and games. But I remember how excited I was. Nowadays, websites are available for reading online. I really want to go buy Retro Gamer or Edge now, it's the only one left…
manchester
PS: Despite all this, I still love GC. I've been reading it since 93 and I've been reading Digi (over 30 years, amazing). Even now, he can't start his day without reading you at breakfast.
GC: thank you. Our favorite is Amiga Power, but that seems too low on the list. It also seems strange that Sinclair and Commodore users share a spot considering how dissimilar they are.
Most likely candidate
If there was ever a game that would drive subscriptions, it would be Call Of Duty, right?
It's a great game for the service because it's not just a one-time playthrough, but has ongoing support throughout the year. So are people more likely to continue their subscription?
Also, aren't cosmetics being wasted in Call Of Duty? Skins, BlackCell, season passes, etc.?
Once it's on Game Pass, even more people will download it and pay attention to the store.
Or is the one-time purchase worth it?
mat
GC: That's the logic, but we'll have to wait and see. It seems that many people, especially casual gamers, do not want to pay for game subscriptions, especially if in a year he only buys one or two games. This is true for many Call Of Duty players. And even if subscriber numbers increase, there's the question of how much profit Microsoft will miss out on from full-price sales.
highly rated
Great review of Animal Well, and the very reason I love the spirit of indie developers and their unique insight into art on a playable level. Old style graphics excites me in a way that wasn't possible years ago when these game types were first created. I'm talking about experiencing the games before Castlevania: Symphony of the Night and Metroid Prime. Because they are timeless and can be played at any time. But there aren't that many old retro games.
Here you get fluid movement and tightly controlled gameplay that was impossible in early retro games, perhaps not possible until the Amiga, but definitely not possible on the NES or Master System. . That makes playing retro games a lot less cumbersome than on the Spectrum, Atari, or Commodore 64 (although it's still difficult to bloom).
I love synthwave, and this style of music is deeply associated with indie games. I tried out a YouTube example provided by GameCentral, and the complementary gameplay video sounded great. It matched the game perfectly, with the music matching the on-screen action and dreamy neon-bit graphics, making it so magical and atmospheric. Was the music the same quality as the game GC? I know it's not discussed in depth.
The sounds and animations were great to look at and I expected the game to be longer than it actually was. But I think finding all the secrets hidden between levels will make the game longer. I would never use YouTube to find secrets. In particular, if you do it by yourself through trial and error, the degree of achievement will be much higher. .
So, GC, thank you once again for your wonderful review of an indie game that brings a little light during this sensitive time for gaming industry employees who are affected by work concerns. I can't wait to play this game. We deeply appreciate the talent and artistic vision of our developers and the indie community at large.
alucard
instant game console
Thursday I was spending time with my twin granddaughters. Their current favorite is Peppa Pig…so I loaded it onto Game Pass on my iPad and my phone. I found the story of the Xbox handheld to be the most pointless device ever.
There's no point, since you can already play games on any device, from PCs and laptops to mobile phones and tablets. As always, take care of yourself and keep up the good work. all the best.
two macs
too many good things
I've been playing Final Fantasy 7: Rebirth almost every day since its release, and after playing for a little over two months, I was finally able to roll the credits. My thoughts are, if you don't mind.
The combat system retains the best of video games, with a consistently appealing mix of damage dealing, healing, ATB bars, limit breaks, synergy management, and flick control management between character commands. It remains fun until the end.
I liked the story and was impressed with how they deftly turned it into a full-fledged sequel to the PS1 original, even if there were parts that stretched my understanding of the various storylines quite a bit. .
Being in the middle of a trilogy means that the majority of the game focuses on the characters and their relationships, which I also enjoyed. The game had a lot of fun moments, the Golden Saucer being the highlight for me, but perhaps I felt a lack of purpose or urgency in the main story, but not in the main quest where you try all the rides in the amusement facility. It was symbolized. When the Earth is actually dying and madmen are on the loose. Priorities, Cloud!
However, my main issue with this game was the sheer length of the game, which rather ruined my enjoyment towards the end. Do we really need a game this long? At least for the last 20 hours of playtime, I was rushing through the story. I play for just over an hour per day on average, and the game lasted about 75 hours (and I skipped a lot of side content!). This equates to almost 20% of your annual playing time.
I understand this isn't an issue for everyone, and some may appreciate the length (sorry). But actually, if this was long, did anyone notice? only About 40 or 50 hours? Final Fantasy 7 Remake was that long, so that's good.
Overall I had a great time, but it's a lot of work with very limited gaming time (if 400 hours a year is really limited). I know I'm not the only one in this position, so I hope companies will consider shorter games in general as a given. While Sony and Xbox are looking at ways to cut budgets or save money (firing everyone seems to be their answer!), cutting around 20 hours of content will go some way. I'm sure it will.
Anyway, it's been a few short matches for me right now. I had my eye on the Pepper Grinder during a long bus trip to Manchester, and after reading the review for Animal Well, I'm planning on purchasing one as well. By “review” I don't mean a good score, I mean what the reviewer says is very short. In that case, my answer is “yes”.
Transformation agogo
Inbox also ran
Are you going to review Madison? It's only been a few hours, but it's very atmospheric and looks great for VR, but it's not scary. I thought I'd need to change my underwear since I'll be using Outlook or Resident Evil 7, but I haven't figured it out yet. I hope so.
simon
GC: I don't know if I'll ever be able to make another modern horror game that isn't scary. It's almost becoming depressing.
If I were Microsoft, I wouldn't have Phil Spencer or anyone else in the gaming showcase. I think people are just tired of hearing from them. But they will not be able to stop their own emergence.
Couscous
Email your comments to: gamecentral@metro.co.uk
small letters
New inbox updates will appear weekday mornings, and a special Hot Topics inbox will appear on weekends. Letters from readers will be used on their merits and may be edited for length and content.
You can also submit your own 500-600 word reader feature at any time by email or on our submission page. If you use this, you will be shown in the next available weekend slot.
You can also leave a comment below, so don't forget Follow me on Twitter.
MORE: Games Inbox: Will Metroid Prime 4 be released this year? Xbox shutdown outrage and EA Play issues
More: Games Inbox: What Xbox can learn from Nintendo, Battlefield Age, and GTA 6 trailer 2
More info: Games Inbox: Tango Gameworks shutting down, Nintendo Switch 2 hype, and giving up on Xbox after Helldivers 2
Follow Metro Gaming twitter Email us at gamecentral@metro.co.uk
For an easier way to send letters and readers in your inbox without sending an email, use the Send page here.
For more articles like this, check out our games page.
Sign up for all the exclusive game content and latest releases before they appear on the site.
privacy policy »
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and is subject to the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service.
