Well now, it’s the end of the year. Time for one last set of games, and here we have… well, it’s games. I’ll spare the intro and get right to the video and my thoughts on this end of the year set of free games.
Let’s begin!
On the Xbox One, we have Q.U.B.E. 2 and Never Alone.
For some odd reason, puzzle games are somewhat common with the Games With Gold offerings, and Q.U.B.E 2 is no exception. It doesn’t look bad – more reminiscent of Portal than most any other modern first-person puzzle game I’ve seen in the past while, so, eh, it may be fun. Probably will never get around to playing it, but that’s the fun thing about these games – they are options.
Next up is Never Alone, an interesting looking title for the fact that it’s actually developed with and based on a native tale of the Iñupiaq people, giving the game a touch of cultural reality that few games can match. This is something I think will be lost to most people (in fact, I know it is… more on that in the near future, maybe) but I for one can certainly appreciate those elements — a real culture being depicted in a game is quite enjoyable to be, so, yeah. This is, incidentally, another puzzle game, so the Xbox One offerings this month are certainly puzzle heavy, but that’s okay. Given we got Battlefield 1 last month, this balances out nicely.
On the Xbox 360 side of things, we have Dragon Age II and Mercenaries: Playground of Destruction.
Another Dragon Age game? Okay, cool. I find it funny people say this month’s offerings are disappointing considering Dragon Age is a popular enough series, but whatever. Yet another game I’ll probably never get around to playing but will enjoy having in my collection.
Lastly is Mercenaries: Playground of Destruction. This is an Xbox game. I mean, the original Xbox console. The one from 2001, the one most of the people downvoting this months Games With Gold video probably weren’t even alive for when it was released. Anyway, this is interesting in this means Microsoft is now giving us original Xbox titles in the Games With Gold program, which means these games are getting new lives on the Xbox 360 (albeit without multiplayer support, since Xbox Live is long dead for original Xbox games) and by virtue of being in Games with Gold, the Xbox One. I can’t quite comment on the game itself, it’s probably about what you would expect from an early 2000’s shooter, but it doesn’t look bad. Hell, from what I’ve heard from a few people it’s actually a pretty decent title, so, take that for what you will. As I always say, no reason not to try it out.
…and that’s that for December, and for 2018. I wonder what 2019 will bring us – hopefully something more awesome. This month’s games aren’t bad, but they also aren’t as good as many would hope. I, for one, am not complaining, but others, well… as I said above, there’s more to come on that subject.