Video Game Review – Red Dead Redemption 2

Property of Rockstar Studios and Rockstar Games

With Grand Theft Auto V being the most profitable piece of entertainment media in all time, it makes sense that Rockstar’s follow up would be the most extravagant product ever to hit store shelves. And believe me, this game is looking to be the MOST of everything. The most beautiful open world, the most freedom in a video game space, the most compelling story and characters, the most awkward protagonist to control, the most tedious methods for something as simple as cooking meat, and the most obnoxious online mode.

Red Dead Redemption 2 is a monument to everything about AAA video games, mostly for better but sometimes for worse. It’s proudly showcases the creative ambitions of gaming’s most talented developers, while occasionally making us wade in their flawed interpretation of what people find fun. The game’s highs stand far above the accomplishments of many others, but it’s lows are enough to warrant consideration before playing this otherwise strong title.

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The Culture HUD’s Best Games of 2018

Property of Nomada Studios & Devolver Digital

It’s that time of year again, when everyone with a video game opinion centralizes their most extreme ones into a convenient list format: some good and some bad. Don’t mistake that for cynicism, by the way; I love end-of-year lists. I don’t care who says their reductive, rage-inducing, pointless, and easily digestible; they’re a fun way to cap off a year, and they help other people discover the good games they missed. In 2018, I had such a hard time narrowing the list down. Almost every title I played had something worth lauding at the end of the year, and pushing great ideas to the side felt like a missed opportunity to appreciate great things, even if they came attached to “okay” games.

After some tough considerations, I chose my final ten for 2018. Some of these games will feel like obvious choices, while others will reflect the more personal impact they had on me. In other words, metrics like gameplay quantity, aesthetic performance, and general popularity sometimes took a backseat to fresh experiences, clever mechanics/narrative integration, and subjective individual resonance. I either have reviewed or plan to review every game on this list, so full explanations are included or will arrive soon, but in the mean time, enjoy The Culture HUD’s Best Games of 2018, and leave a comment about when you agreed, when you disagreed, who I snubbed, and what I should play in 2019!

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Video Game Discussion – Relax about Freya

I guess the subtitle for this article would be something like, “White Knighting for fictional goddesses,” but I really couldn’t understand the hate that Freya was getting in comment sections. Or rather, I do understood it, but arguing against the hate is easier than telling people how they’re perpetuating misogyny and double standards placed on the emotional development of women compared to men, who are given more freedom to be stunted urchins till deserving of a redemption arc. Either way, I found Freya to be the most consistently sympathetic of the adult characters, and I won’t hate her for using her failures as the incentive to help Kratos make better decisions for his own son. That’s not being a hypocrite; that’s the wisdom of experience.

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Video Game Review – Spider-Man (2018)

In what might be my favorite game of the year, Spider-Man (2018) excelled in almost every way that a game can excel. It provided a satisfying combat system, impressed me with stellar writing quality, and introduced a traversal system so fun that it made their fast travel option redundant. Insomniac Games’s release stands at the zenith of video games, superhero stories, and the Spider-Man canon, and anyone who can play it definitely should.

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Video Game Review – Donut County

Donut County is a good-humored game about a selfish raccoon who destroys an entire county to make his bosses happy. The writing is strikingly funny, and the mechanics are possessed of incredible ludonarrative harmony, giving players insight into the mind of a seemingly hateful creature. Such evocative and memorable gameplay makes up for the short length and lack of challenge in my opinion, but that may be a sticking point for people otherwise inclined to give this game a try.

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Video Game Review – Hollow Knight

Hollow Knight excelled in numerous ways. I really appreciated the aesthetics, crafting an insectoid world unlike anything I’ve seen before. It really helped drive home how alien the creatures in the game were. Yet with subtle squeaks and simple expressions, the team was able to endow them with incredible character and likability. Additionally the combat is strong, providing ample depth from the superficially simple mechanics. However, the map design dragged down my enjoyment. The directionlessness of the experience led to frequent backtracking and repetitiveness, instead of the expected freedom. While this may be a boon to some, it severally hampered my experience.

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Video Game Review – Overwatch

So it finally happened… Overwatch finally clicked for me. I never grew to resent the game with the kind of passion that some individuals displayed, but I was fully willing to accept that another explosive gaming trend just wasn’t for me. Then two years later, on a free weekend in August of 2018, I just got it. Consequently, I thought now would be a good time to (briefly) explain what exactly won me over, because nothing drives engagement like being really, really late.

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Video Game Quick Thoughts – Doom Eternal Reveal Gameplay

Image taken from xboxenthusiast.com

Instead of dumping an entire philosophical ramble, I wanted to provide smaller opinions on events going on in the game industry. These are going to be (hopefully) far less controversial than some of my review or discussion opinions; little ideas I have about certain developments in gaming news.

In this case, it’s the stuff I like and dislike about the gameplay for Doom Eternal revealed at QuakeCon 2018. Let me know if my considerably briefer opinions are more interesting. I realize not everything I write has to flex what I feel is my intellectual muscle.

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Video Game Discussion – The Working Class in Video Games, Part 1

Image taken from stardewvalley.net

This is the first piece of a two-part Discussion how the “working class” have been included in video games. The topic of “working class” representation in popular media is shaky, because there is no single definition of the phrase that anyone can agree on. In the spirit of directing the topic away from opportunists and bad actors, I want the discussion in video games to begin by examining different conceptualizations of the working class. This will draw from our diffuse understanding of the term to identify which games have already tried to hold this discussion.

Part one is largely focused on the political angle of the working class, identifying the thinkers and speakers who wish to unify working people around certain ideological orientations. Because groups of people are so often defined by the media attempting to speak on their behalf, these interpretations of the working class identity are important. The second part examines media tropes, and how familiar storytelling beats resonate with the values of people who enjoy them. With these lenses in mind, I hope to provide a solid starting point for an increasingly unavoidable discussion: what appeals to the “working class?”

View Part 1 HERE:

Part 2 pending: