Will these December games get your Penyx Rising? Nah Ubisoft is run by jerks and their games can do one

1st
Chronos: Before the Ashes PS4, ONE, NS, PC
Devil May Cry 5 Special Edition PS5, XSX
Empire Of Sin PS4, ONE, NS
Monster Truck Championship NS

3rd
Immortals Fenyx Rising PS5, PS4, Xbox, NS
My Universe: Pet Clinic PS4, NS

4th
Commandos 2 HD Remaster NS
Dragon Quest XI S: Echoes Of An Elusive Age - Definitive Edition PS4
Final Fantasy VII and Final Fantasy VIII Remastered - Twin Pack NS
Final Fantasy VIII Remastered PS4
Fitness Boxing 2: Rhythm & Exercise NS
John Wick Hex PS4, ONE, NS
Morbid: The Seven Acolytes PS4, NS
Peaky Blinders: Mastermind PS4, ONE, NS
Slide Stars PS4, NS
Speed 3: Grand Prix PS4, NS
Spirit of The North Enhanced Edition PS5
Tracks - The Toybox Edition NS

8th
Ori and The Blind Forest NS
Ori and The Will of The Wisps NS
Overcooked! All You Can Eat XSX
The Pathless PS5
Puyo Puyo Tetris 2 PS5, PS4, Xbox, NS
Root Double - Before CrimeAfter Days-XtendEdition NS
Turrican Flashback PS4, NS

10th
Cyberpunk 2077 PS4, ONE, PC

11th
Fahrenheit 15th Anniversary Edition PS4
Space Invaders Forever PS4, NS

15th
Five Nights at Freddy's - Help Wanted PS4, NS

18th
Bus Driver Simulator PS4, PC
Mad Tower Tycoon PS4, NS, PC
Theme Park Simulator NS

22nd
Override 2: ULTRAMAN Deluxe Edition PS5, PS4, Xbox, NS

My Thoughts: Well this has changed for me a bit as I had Devil May Cry 5 SE & Spirit of the North on my Christmas list for PS5 but now as I don't know what's happening with my PS5 those  are currently of the agenda and I've cancelled The Pathless which I had preordered as I was very keen on it after seeing the reviews (Could play on PC, I guess).

That I'm now looking at the list of what can I play on Xbox One or Switch, meaning I'm now going to get Immortals Fenix Rising for Xbox One instead of PS5 and because of this I might go digitally for it as then when I do get a Series X it’s just there with Smart Delivery.

The Final Fantasy and Ori physical versions are cool for collectors but not for me. Puyo Puyo Tetris 2 is a bit of a budget release at around £35 and I liked the first but I'm a tad Tetris'ed out after playing Effect meaning it's a maybe and I'm more likely to go back to a November game I missed such as Yakuza 7.

The only other game is Cyberpunk which I was planning to wait for the next gen version especially how next gen upgrades work from PS4 to PS5 but now as Xbox might be where I play it along with knowing how Smart Delivery works much better, then yeah I might get at launch.




1st
Football Manager 2021: Xbox Edition XBL
Twin Mirror PSN, XBL
Worms Rumble PSN

2nd
Sam & Max Save the World eShop
Shiren the Wanderer: The Tower of Fortune and the Dice of Fate eShop

3rd
Death Tales eShop
GUNPIG: Firepower For Hire eShop
Haven PSN, XBL (Game Pass)
Phogs PSN, XBL
Quiplash 2 InterLASHional: The Say Anything Party Game! eShop
Taiko no Tatsujin: Rhythmic Adventure Pack eShop

4th
Dragon Quest XI S: Echoes Of An Elusive Age - Definitive Edition XBL (Game Pass)
Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon & the Blade of Light eShop
FIFA 21 Next Gen Upgrade
Futoshiki Math eShop
Madden NFL 21 Next Gen Upgrade
Nine Witches: Family Disruption eShop
Shoot 1UP DX XBL
Steampunk Tower 2 eShop

7th
Drawn To Life: Two Realms eShop

8th
Call of the Sea XBL (Game Pass)
Destiny 2 Next Gen Upgrade
Lofi Ping Pong eShop
Monster Sanctuary PSN, eShop
Shakes On A Plane eShop
Temtem PSN (Early Access)

9th
Woodsalt eShop

10th
Accidental Queens Collection eShop
Alt-Frequencies eShop
Evolution Board Game eShop

14th
Tenet 4K, Blu, DVD

15th
COLLECTION of SaGa FINAL FANTASY LEGEND eShop

My Thoughts: I have missed of some Cinema releases such as Wonder Woman 84 which is planned to come out Dec 16th, just in case stuff changes in terms of lockdowns.

I might be only getting maybe two physical games but decent month for digital as on the 1st I'm keen for Football Manager Xbox which is a Play Anywhere game as well that I'll mainly play on PC but also sometimes at work via XCloud, all depending on price of course, it might even be in Game Pass as the last two years have gone straight into Game Pass when coming to Windows Store.

Twin Mirror is from Dontnod and looks like it play in the same way as Life is Strange etc but is a single game instead of episodic, was one I was planing to play on PS5 via Backwards Compatibility but be on Xbox now which might actually be a better version due to One X over PS4 Pro.  

Really keen on Haven which I was torn if I should buy on PS5 as it uses the Dual Sense etc or just play on Xbox as it's in Game Pass now my mind is made up on that front and on the subject of Game Pass, Call of the Sea is going to be in it and that looks right my street.

The eShop also looks a tad interesting on a retro front with Taiko no Tatsujin: Rhythmic Adventure Pack, Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon & the Blade of Light, COLLECTION of SaGa FINAL FANTASY LEGEND now will I play any of them unlikely maybe Fire Emblem as it's only £6 and limited to only March even though it's digital.

Ohh we're meant to get Gear 5 story DLC in December, just no date on that yet, but I am keen depending on price.

After Balla pointing out the link between this title and Ubi I wanna put forward that the title of this change, put "Ubisoft is run by jerks and their games can do one" or something like that.

Can't see myself buying many of the new releases to be honest, I'll be aiming to pick up a PS5 sometime in the month so will likely buy some of the launch games, will probably get Tem Tem if I do manage to get one. Other than that I'll be picking up Sam and Max, I never finished it back on the Wii but enjoyed what I played of it and I fully expect this to run much better than that version.

Wow . . . there's nothing I'm interested in. Even on the other machines.

I might play Cyberpunk eventually but only if I borrow someone else's copy.

It's a odd month being December and we don't normally see much, where we do have a few things that look interesting but it's mainly digitally where I'm looking or stuff from November that I didn't pick up as I thought I'd be to busy playing the PS5 to have time for Yakuza 7.

I may see if I can find a Series X especially now I have access to Call of Duty Cold War (I have finished the campaign, not sure how much more I'll actually play), Assassin's Creed Valhalla, Bright Memory 1.0 (A Series only game) all of those thanks to my gameshare buddy. Then I now have Dirt 5 on Xbox and looking at Immortals and Cyberpunk for Xbox on top of Game Pass stuff such as Call of the Sea.

Sure all 3rd party or playable on Xbox One (part from Bright Memory) but if that's where I'm gaming for awhile may as well get a Series X to do it on.

December will be all about waiting and seeing what's reduced in the Christmas sales. There's nothing on the high street that I'm after in particular, but I've got an eShop wishlist of about fifteen games that I'll download once they're discounted.

Is there anyone that's really up for Cyberpunk? I've heard so much about it for so long about how it's gonna be incredible but I've always felt incredibly meh about it.

I'm looking forward to it, but not so much that I can't wait for the new gen version. Until the reviews come out at least...

Yeah I do think it's been over hyped and like Andy, I was going to wait for either next gen version. I just don't when I'll have a working next gen system and I feel bad my Game Share (the point of game sharing) Buddy having bought Assassin's Creed Valhalla, Call of Duty Cold War and Bright Memory 1.0 (okay I cant play this).

I asked him if he wanted to play The Falconeer, Yakuza 7, Immortals Fenyx Rising or Cyberpunk which is the only one he wants to play that going to get digital which after using reward points & a voucher from CDkeys, I think it be around £38 and eventually be the eaiser version to upgrade.

Treesmurf wrote:

After Balla pointing out the link between this title and Ubi I wanna put forward that the title of this change, put "Ubisoft is run by jerks and their games can do one" or something like that.

Treesmurf. You sir are A Real One.

(squints at unchanged title) Mas is not currently A Real One.

Mas is always Mr High-and-Mighty vote-with-my-wallet until there's a game he wants.

How many Xbox Ones and Switches are you on now, Mas?

I think its 4 or 5 Xbox Ones but that included getting the upgrade X from the S which think a lot of us did similar 3DS to New 3DS.

Switch just the two which was the launch one then the Lite, which at the moment has suited me as all I've played basically is Animal Crossing. Would I get a 3rd Switch, yeah maybe as 2021 looks great but I would something like a Pro which be worth a upgrade in the same way got a New 3DS or PS4 Pro or One X, though with the 3DS family I bought special editions and something I've done often with Nintendo systems that again maybe tempted by a Monster Hunter Rise for instance special edition Switch.

Think that's very different to the Ubisoft situation as those consoles I didn't use or wanted a different version of them, where Ubisoft at the top seem to be jerks. That you're right I shouldn't buy new Immortals (I didn't buy Valhalla) and as someone that watches Sterling still things like this been brought up before and used one of the only ways, then he brings up the guy/gal who did the grass in Immortals shouldn't be punished.

It's entirely different, I just saw a chance to give you some grief, which I'll never turn down.

Also on Xbox One, as someone that's owned 40+ different systems most at the time current. I don't think I've seen a system change so much in its 7 years, if you bought a Xbox One at launch then now it be much different. A few mainly Xbox gaming mates I know have gone old VCR to S, which when stuff did start to turn around under Spencer.

Which bleeds into the Series X|S, still questions to be asked like what are/when are those 20 Xbox Game Studios doing something. Was one of the reasons why I was waiting on a XSX for myself but circumstances have changed due to where I'm getting 3rd party games.

Yeah, Xbox turned everything around apart from their sales! It seems like the new machines are offering a lot of great functionality and services, but they've also launched without the "new console feel" that sony have achieved by peppering in an exclusive or two.

I've only just bought a PS4 though so it'll be a long time before I'm interested in either new machine.

Now that Mas has established himself as A Real One, I'll note that I'll be getting Sam & Max Save the World. After Machinarium and Ghost Trick I could do with another point-and-click on Switch, a genre the machine's not got much in given that the touch screen is going to be the nearest thing to a mouse on consoles. Plus The Lady wants to play it again.

Re. the new machines, it feels like Sony have edged it again (oohmatron.jpg) to me - not on the machine, the machine's a lot worse as far as I understand it, but in terms of exclusives at launch. I literally haven't seen anything about a single XBox (and PC presumably) Xclusive. I couldn't even tell you what they are. I think Buska's got the right idea if you're not buying into the 'new machine hype' (which is fun!), but if you are and you want something that justifies the purchase, it feels like you'd go Sony again.

I'm looking forward to Cyberpunk. I can't say I've followed any coverage of it, but I'm dead keen on playing the follow up to the Witcher 3.

But it's Empire of Sin I'll be digging into. I really like the concept of mafia strategy games, I think it's a chronically underutilised genre, so I'm hoping it's good.

@Buskalilly - if by some miracle it runs on your laptop, you can access it through my steam share so you don't have to buy it.

The Xbox literally just launched with Gears Tactics getting a console release on the exclusives front, but I don't see that as a problem really. Microsoft aren't treating it like some crazy new, start from scratch, all change machine. It's the same UI you already have on the One, it's a slightly enhanced version of the same controller and a continuation of your whole game library.

The exciting thing with it is that it is just much more powerful, I can load it up and be in a game in a few seconds, or even better I will be dropped in exactly where I was when I was last playing without having gone through any menus, then I can load up a new level in a few seconds to the point where I can't even check my phone, then I can switch over to something else I was playing yesterday and once again it'll be exactly where I left it.

The Xbox may not have dropped the big guns of Miles Morales and Demon's Souls, but what it has done is given me access to the best versions of over 100 games in Gamepass and it has really increased my time playing vs waiting to load and it's incredible.

Obviously PS5 is meant to be pretty fast too, but quick resume combined with Gamepass is an incredible offering.

Crumpy Andy wrote:

The exciting thing with it is that it is just much more powerful, I can load it up and be in a game in a few seconds, or even better I will be dropped in exactly where I was when I was last playing without having gone through any menus, then I can load up a new level in a few seconds to the point where I can't even check my phone, then I can switch over to something else I was playing yesterday and once again it'll be exactly where I left it.

That actually sounds like a big deal. For the last 20 years, games have had loading times or menus/company logos to sift through, artificially extending games by hours (probably). I wonder if we find games getting shorter? Like a 50 hour Assassin's Creed game becomes a 40 hour Assassin's Creed game. Probably not, although if I only have an hour to play a game, I end up just having a few games of PES rather than trying to get into an action-adventure title. This almost negates that as you're thrown straight back in. It's the main reason I gave up on Bloodborne immediately because it had 40 second load times after I died - I think they reduced that later, but still if they drop Bloodborne on PS5 I'm actually interested in checking that Soulsy type of game out.

Load times are the big thing as what PS5, I could play Miles loaded up in like 8secs and the cards taking me straight to a mission was great.

Going back to my One X and playing some Gears 5 with EofGiz & Craig with their XSS & XSX, the loading on my end was painful that they'd be loaded in and dying before I even had. That might be bad matchmaking as Forza Horizon 4 the race wouldn't start till all in, still be urghh the wait.

Along with what Andy saying about best versions of games I own, sure if my PS5 was working this be slightly different and playing Immortals Fenyx Rising etc. there

Crumpy Andy wrote:

The exciting thing with it is that it is just much more powerful...

Is that really exciting?  We've had power increases for the last umpteen generations.  What's so special about this one?  Shorter loading times are nice, but 'exciting'?  Really?  Maybe it's the Nintendo fanboy in me, but I just don't get it myself.

The quick loading and all that sounds nice to have, but not exciting to me.

I would have had a different opinion three years ago, I reckon, when I spent considerably more of my time in my apartment playing videogames. Now, though, I rarely play more than one game in a session, and if I do its on the Switch which is plenty fast enough for me. I only picked up a PS4 for a few specific, meaty singleplayer experiences (and Monster Hunter), and by the time I'm done with them the PS5 and/ or XSX may be worth buying. To me, right now, they have zero appeal.

Oh yeah, I get that more power isn't for everyone, but games running better, smoother, prettier is great. I'm not someone who is obsessed to the point of not being able to enjoy Hyrule Warriors or whatever, but honestly the user experience has made my game time slicker and more enjoyable.

If you need exclusives that can't be played anywhere else, sure you'll be disappointed, but Xbox hasn't been about that for a long time.

Crumpy Andy wrote:

If you need exclusives that can't be played anywhere else, sure you'll be disappointed, but Xbox hasn't been about that for a long time.

And hopefully that's fixed with the 23 studios, still iffy on Bethesda games as Spencer say one thing then Todd Howard then someone else but even if on PS5 still be straight on Game Pass on Xbox.

Snappier loading times is something everyone can appreciate, although I fear developers will still tend towards the big big brown that's been a staple of both platforms since the 360/3. Specifically the muddy "realism" and massive spaces that have dominated the premium "AAA space" neither of which I particularly care for beyond special games like the Witcher 3.

But perhaps there'll be some more subtle effects on game design. The punishing aspect of games like Demon Souls was, I am told, was the loading times between deaths. Remove those and I guess you have a game that feels less difficult, or at the very least you have a game which makes you less likely to get frustrated. So maybe we'll see more Soulsy games? (probably not).

That's actually the most convincing argument I've heard for the SSD being valuable. It could make Dark Souks and Bloodborne as fun and arcadey as Super Meat Boy or Celeste.