Non and vegan food has never been easier to find. With the rise of health consciousness, people are increasingly exploring nonfood options like alcohol, coffee and even cannabis. But what kinds of products have stayed true to their roots? Join us as we discuss these popular ‘non’ favourites in our Friday podcast!
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Who requested for Kingdoms of Amalur: Re-Reckoning? (Photo courtesy of Microsoft)
From Rage 2 to Tomb Raider: Angel Of Darkness, readers describe their favorite average yet fun video games.
Reader Gannet submitted the topic for this week’s Hot Topic, asking, “What game do you like even though you know not many other people think highly of it?” Is it due to the game itself or to some other element that you like it?
Most of the recommendations included money as a component, with people willing to play a defective game provided it was inexpensive enough not to seem like a rip-off or didn’t claim to be a classic in the first place.
This isn’t a classic. Kingdoms Of Amalur: Reckoning is the one that sprang to mind first for me. Even the creator, I believe, acknowledged it… They probably didn’t use the phrase “mediocre,” but I don’t believe there was any pretense that it was aiming to be innovative. In a sense, I appreciate that, but more importantly, it was a lot of fun, as unoriginal as it was.
I’m sure I’m not the only one that thinks thus, considering it was just remastered with fresh content. That surprised me, and I’m very sure I’m the only one who purchased it, but I absolutely liked it again and am certain that it’s… extremely nice.
I mean, I wouldn’t say it wasn’t a classic, but a game doesn’t always have to be. That’s basically all you need if it’s enjoyable and you enjoy your time with it. Not everything can be that way; something has to be driving things ahead, but a common notion executed well may occasionally be superior than an inventive one executed badly. Korey
I wouldn’t call Final Fight 2 one of my favorite games after ten years, but I like it a lot and still like playing it every now and again. I recall reading a negative review in Mean Machines or Nintendo Magazine System, and there was no way I would have paid £40 for it when I was in my mid-teens based on that.
I suppose I would have been disappointed if I had spent that much money on it at the time, but I had more spare cash and it was much cheaper when I finally played it at least a decade later, and I enjoyed it.
WWE 2K18 on Switch gets an honorable mention; it’s a dreadful mess of a game, but it’s the first wrestling game I’ve been able to play on Nintendo in a long time. It’s extremely bad, although some modes work OK, and the roster was fantastic. It makes me feel disgusting to say that I don’t mind it. Atkinson, John
Turtle-style radicalism I like the Game Boy Advance tie-in to Konami’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles animation series from 2003.
The home console version didn’t appeal to me since it was too repetitious, but the Game Boy Advance version was a quick and pleasant side-scrolling beat ’em-up.
There were interesting vehicle levels to change things up, and each turtle had its own little journey. Then you had to choose a turtle to combat Shredder in the ultimate battle through his lair.
Given the Game Boy’s limited buttons, it featured a rather extensive move set and added a risk/reward aspect by requiring you to press a button down for a charged attack, which rendered your turtle vulnerable while charging.
I believe it has not received the attention it deserves due to the lackluster home console version, but I believe it is a fantastic game that I continue to play now. LastYearsModel
Inducing apathy This is where I believe Rage 2 might fit in. It’s a sequel to a game no one cares about, the setting is generic post-apocalyptic, the script appears to be trying to be funny but never really is, and the open world aspect is completely unnecessary. I picked it up for £10 an embarrassingly short time after it was released and you could immediately see why it wasn’t a hit: it’s a sequel to a game no one cares about, the setting is generic post-apocalyptic, the script seems
There is one excellent aspect of the game, and that is the shooting, which is among the greatest this side of Destiny, but it isn’t enough if the game itself isn’t engaging. It would have been great if it was a pure Ubisoft formula game, but it’s not even that; it’s basically a free-roaming first-person shooter with no idea what to do with itself.
I frequently wonder what the lower level devs may have thought about these kind of games, which you can play more of these days thanks to Game Pass. They must’ve knew it wasn’t good, but they had no choice but to go through with whoever’s supervisor believed diluting the great shooter action in this way was a good idea. Even so, it was a tenner well spent. Focus
Kart that isn’t definitive This is Mario Kart: Double Dash for me!! It’s not the ultimate Mario Kart game, and it’s been surpassed in every aspect by Mario Kart 8, but it’s the one I spent the most time with.
For some perspective, we were all gamers at university one year, with our own consoles or PCs, but we also had a ‘house’ GameCube in the living room (along with my PlayStation 2, which doubled as the DVD player). Zelda: The Wind Waker, Resident Evil 4, and Mario Kart were the only games we had for it. I sometimes saw one of my friends play Zelda and enjoyed Resi 4, but Mario Kart received the most attention and was the only game we would all play.
It just so happened to be the current Mario Kart at a period when I had a lot of spare time, along with having friends in the same circumstance and in the same building. Mario Kart, more than any other multiplayer game, requires that everyone be in the same room to play.
And it may be played in virtually any manner imaginable, from lighthearted fun to fierce competition, sober or inebriated, or everywhere in between. And you could play it for as long as you wanted – from a few fast races while waiting for dinner to two of us doing the All Cup Tour against the computer when we got home at 3 a.m. (and won!).
Fighting over characters was also a lot of fun, especially because they all had various unique abilities. Diddy Kong (triple bananas for defense while winning) and one of the Koopas were always my favorites (triple shells when behind). Because of the response speeds required to get your preferred pairing in first, the character choose screen was often a twitch shooter!
Things have gone on since then, but they were wonderful moments that will be remembered fondly.
Thank you to Gannet for recommending this as a Hot Topic. I’m excited to see what others come up with! Julian
Purchase at a discount All of the Tomb Raider games have a warm place in my heart, but I’ll always defend Angel of Darkness because, well… it’s not a great game, but I still loved it. Maybe it’s because I purchased it with my first paycheck from a legitimate job and was eager to get my money’s worth.
That occurs a lot when you’re younger and don’t have a lot of gaming options, so you play even bad games to death because you don’t have much else to do.
I suppose that doesn’t happen very often these days, and I’m not sure whether that’s a good thing or not. I’d speculate that this would imply that more sophisticated games wouldn’t have a chance, yet here we are, with Elden Ring being a huge success. Alion
More about gaming
a little secret Back in the day, I was a big fan of the SNES game Secret Of Mana, and I wanted to play something similar, as long as it was in the same style as Mana and didn’t take away any of the essential winning components.
Then, among the second-hand games in a Gamestation shop, I came upon a game box for the Super Nintendo named Secret Of Evermore. A comparable sort of action role-player was inspired by the box and some quick investigation.
Although it was not nearly as amazing as Secret Of Mana, I discovered that I could really get into it, thanks to a strong plot and characters. All of this is to get you to the climactic conclusion, which compliments the somewhat far-fetched tale situations that you assist in solving.
I suggest it, but not with too much fanfare, and to think of it as a game from its era that still works well now, much as most SNES games do. Secret Of Evermore is a little-known treasure that should have gone on to become a minor or cult classic in the gaming industry. Retro nostalgia is highly recommended. Alucard
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The fine print Every weekday morning, new Inbox updates surface, including weekend Hot Topic Inboxes. Letters from readers are utilized on a case-by-case basis and may be edited for length and substance.
You may also submit your own 500-600-word Reader’s Feature at any time, which will be featured in the next available weekend slot if it is used.
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