Back(log) to the Front: Weeks 39 Through 43

Hi. Remember me? I know its been a while, so it’s possible you don’t. My name is Josh Miller and I set out to attack my backlog this year and write about them every week. Then that turned to bi-weekly. Then recently I missed a month.

Here I am returning with very little considering the time I missed out on. Between going on vacation for a week and narrowing my focus to review The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel III among other obstacles; things ultimately took priority of playing some older games.

But, I have a few more in my barrel, so here we go!

Tekken 7

The fighting genre is one of my biggest weaknesses when it comes to video games. I don’t have the time or devotion to get good, and if anything, just jump into a few that are easy enough button mashers of sorts to do anything.

The last Tekken game I played was Tekken 3 back on the original PlayStation and I loved it. A majority of that came from the absurdity of it all whether it fighting lumber or a small little dinosaur. Tekken 7 shows me that all these years later and not much has changed. Characters are still wacky but now the story mode is over the top as well. Perhaps it was with Tekken 3 too, but I don’t recall the actual plot.

The actual fighting is easy to jump into thankfully. While they feel like piloting around tanks, the actions are fluid and quick with flair thrown in. Pulling off some low level combos of many sorts is easy enough while scoping out the move list shows a whole world of potential I will never reach. Even the rage arts are cool allowing for a quick chance to level the playing field or go for a win when close to death with an automatic big move (assuming it connects). I love the feel of Tekken 7, and while not loving fighting games, I really want to keep playing this one.

No chance I jump in online and see myself get devastated, but the treasure battles is where I spend my time. Not only do you get in-game currency for wins that can be used to unlock gear or video, but winning treasure chests also opens up the option for more clothing or aura colors. They mix in special battles or slight modifiers such as double speed or double damage, so it never really grows stale either.

After bringing it up, can I mention how awesome it is to have the cinematics from previous games in there? The story mode in Tekken 7 carries over a bunch from the previous games, namely the relationship between Heihachi and his son Kazuya. I have zero investment in those two, but by the end, I did. Being able to go and see actions from the previous titles, some of which are shown as flashbacks, is a great way to get more people invested in the characters.

Tekken 7 is a fun fighting game. Casuals like myself can jump in with little effort and enjoy ourselves while posing a depth that hardcore fans of the genre can immerse themselves in. I don’t know if I’ll find myself playing it again, but just in case, I think I’ll leave it on the PlayStation.

One Night Stand

I remember seeing One Night Stand at one of the conferences at E3 and thinking it looked great. The type of game is right up my wheelhouse and I was oblivious that it had already been released on Steam. So this game is a bit of a cheat because it wasn’t in my backlog, but purchased when it came out on consoles a few weeks ago.

One Night Stand won’t take long to experience the first time through, but it does have multiple endings based on the actions performed and conversations. Most of the time you will see the same dialogue and animations over and over again with any differences reliant on the decisions made. This makes multiple playthroughs a little rough since it is a short game and having it play out pretty similarly time and time again doesn’t work in its favor.

Also, as someone who has never had a one night stand (much less a drunken forgotten one), I can’t comment on the accuracy of the awkwardness of waking up next to someone you don’t know. The game does a good job though of putting things in place to either split the room or try and hang in there for something more lasting; however the problem comes into knowing how one wants to proceed in the conversation but the game going slightly off-base with where you think it would take you.

The animation though is what helps it stand out from other games. It’s not super detailed but the way it moves reminds me of the “Take On Me” music video by A-ha though it isn’t a one-for-one comparison. However, much like the dialogue, it will be a lot of the same animation as the game is replayed although it never became as grating as the dialogue would after 14 different attempts at the good ending.

One Night Stand won’t blow the socks off anyone but fortunately the low asking price may offset any irks about the replayability and repetitive nature of the game. But if you’re looking for a quick point-and-click visual novel of sorts, this is one worth giving a shot.

Golf Blitz

Way back in February, fellow writer Graydon wrote about Golf Blitz. I’m not one to play many games on my phone, but seeing the traffic come in steady over the following months not to mention the general praise from Graydon, I decided to give it a try. Thankful that I did.

Golf Blitz is goofy fun. While it suffers from the typical transaction trappings of mobile with gems and cash to buy, none of that detracts from the enjoyment. Card packs providing said currency and new golfers/hats/powerups are easy to earn. Because of this, poking around for five or ten minutes at a time is enough to satisfy players.

The customizable options are plenty and as lighthearted as the gameplay. Golfer skins and hats range from recognizable video game characters to scarecrows or Frankenstein’s monster. It doesn’t stop there though since unlockable ball types provide assistance or troublemaking in the game. A grenade can cause your ball to explode and launch an opponents ball into the ether for instance. If you need a better angle, a sticky ball will have your ball stop where it lands whether it by the hole or on the wall or ceiling.

Both the level design and ball options makes each moment of playing Golf Blitz thrilling, aggravating, and hilarious. The number of times I found myself at the hole first mere inches away only to come in last due to some shenanigans is all too common. The way it happens though usually leaves me with a smile on my face though because I know that at the same time, I’ll make things as difficult as possible for others too if the scenario was reversed.

The levels are also varied enough to keep things fresh. Some levels have moving parts requiring timing for the best result, some are very small islands where misjudging the angle results in falling into space, or levels with portals that have you keep an eye on where it will come out. I know more will be rolling out the further I get, and I look forward to see what’s to come.

Golf Blitz will not be leaving my phone anytime soon. I get a kick out of playing it every single and there is always a thousand or two at any time available at any given moment. Being able to play a quick round or two is all it takes to satisfy that itch. If you haven’t tried it yet, might give it a shot.

Not sure how the next month or two are going to work with my backlog. I’ve tried real hard to stand by not playing new games this year and have mostly succeeded. However, with Pokemon and Death Stranding due out soon, I can’t imagine my backlog will get much love. Not to mention Black Friday and potential deals there for me to grab something I wanted but missed. I’m lookin at you Control.

Also, interesting things are comin down the pike for the Los Harrow Games crew. Too early to say yet, but keep an eye out and we’ll make sure to spread the news through Facebook and Twitter when the time comes.