Topic: The everything Xbox thread

@Gamer83:
Well, it seems like you've actually played the games (both Tomb Raider, new and old AND Uncharted), so I respect your comment. I, too, have played every Tomb Raider game EVER as well as the Uncharted games (thanks to the anniversary edition or whatever they call it!). But I do disagree with you on a couple things.

I'll give you that literal, actual "tombs" are sorely lacking in the new games, but if you take off the nostalgia glasses and be honest with yourself, the older games weren't 100% in tombs, either. Not by a long shot. And if you don't write the new games off in an instant, you ARE winding in and out of ruins/tombs for good chunks of the new games. Just because you aren't plastered inside a tomb with an invisible wall keeping you from leaving doesn't mean you aren't part of the same tomb/puzzle-solving spirit of the old titles.

The only reason why the internet loves to hop on this bandwagon is because the games LOOK similar. They LOOK similar. The protagonists are male/female opposites (to no slight against Lara - she came first, WAY first), yes, but that doesn't mean the gosh-darned games are the same! Just because we have explosions in one game and explosions in another doesn't mean they are the same. If you popped Battlefield and CoD into my Xbox, asked me to play both and distinguish them, I sure as heck could do it because the feel of the games is intrinsically different, just like Tomb Raider/Uncharted. People just judge off YouTube videos and internet pictures without ever playing the games. Oop! Look at that - Lara is holding a machine gun and we can see the SKY - she's not in a tomb! It musn't feel like a Tomb Raider game anymore!

Ugh. Sorry. I'm just so sick of these internet pedants who don't even own the games involved jumping to all of these baseless conclusions. I was never one to think nostalgia was such a big influence (when I was younger and naïve), but now I realize it really warps people's memories. I have every Tomb Raider game installed on my PC, and I replayed through the first couple this past summer after I got them on the Steam sale. People are so off. But there, I already wasted 10 minutes of my Saturday morning on a rant to no one lol

P.S. - Combat was ALWAYS a part of Tomb Raider. Always.

Just because two games aren't exactly alike doesn't mean they're not similar. It's more likely you'll dislike the two latest TR games if you love the TR series pre-2013, but don't like the Uncharted games. And if you love the Uncharted games, and don't care for the old TR games, you're more likely to enjoy the new TR games. Both games take from the action adventures of old, but go for a much stronger focus on third person shooting with a heavier concentration of QTE events to mitigate the platforming. And that certainly isn't a direction I like as a fan of the older TR games, even though it was clear the series needed to modernise/change after Underworld. There are just better places for the series to go.

Tomb Raider 2013 was good and I enjoyed it on its own terms, but the story annoyed me. Turning Lara into a mass-murderer was silly. It did take a huge number of cues from Uncharted - the platforming-lite, the set pieces, the "dramatic fall off the edge of something and face certain doom before grabbing it with one hand", and the huge amount of shooter bits. It wasn't really Tomb Raider at all.

I loved Underworld, particularly for its huge environmental puzzles and excellent platforming. Keeley Hawes was an incredible Lara, too.

The Mass Murder thing was funny she was running and crying while killing dudes by the dozens.

My favourite Tomb Raider game was The Last Revelation for PS1. Although pre-late 2009 I was mostly a Nintendo only type person, there were a few franchises on PS consoles that I played a decent amount of. Tomb Raider and SOCOM were among those few.

Just bought Rise of the Tomb Raider from Jet.com for $38.00 with no shipping or sales tax. Doubt it will go much lower than that over the holidays.

I got my 2nd Xbox One to play Fallout 4. The first one I sold because I got it too early and there wasn't much to play and nothing was announced. Now there are a few titles I'm interested in and backwards compatibility is back! I was thrilled to see all my XBLA games show up to be installed.

What I don't like is having half the game I paid for be locked unless I pay a monthly fee. I have had Gold before, but it feels like I'm paying to play something I already paid for. I don't have Gold at the moment, don't need it with Fallout 4, but the deal now is a month for $1 which is as good of a deal as you're going to see.

Just bought the xbox one tomb raider bundle... came with a free controller. Now I have all the systems plus a gaming grade pc!

@Ryu_Niiyama: Serious question:

Where on Earth will you find the time to play all three consoles, especially considering you have only just purchased a PlayStation 4 a shy over a month ago with about four or five games?!

I genuinely struggle balancing my playtime between the trio of 3DS, PS4 and Wii U.

Some of the Black Friday deals have been utterly RIDICULOUS for the Xbox One.

You could buy a 500GB Xbox One along with an extra controller, Forza Motorsport 6, Halo 5: Guardians, Rise of the Tomb Raider AND a $60 Microsoft store gift card for $349!

Sony, in comparison, only offers Star Wars Battlefront and a PlayStation 4 for $349; Microsoft really, really wants to 'win' in America, let alone Black Friday.

@Peek-a-boo: The setup regarding sales is that given the large lead, Sony doesn't have to do anything to stay there. Microsoft is far behind in a solid 2nd place but doing things like this will help their reputation in the next generation. Nintendo's in last but even they have done some things to get people excited for Wii U, namely the Smash 4 + Splatoon bundle which seems to have done very well though a 2016 release date for NX may make this cause more damage than good.

@Peek-a-boo: I own all 4 (Wii U, PS4, Xbox One and New 3DS don't care about PC gaming and whatever advantages it has) because I love gaming, am a nerd/geek whatever I don't care, and each one won me over that it was worth the investment, Xbox taking longer than the other 3 that I got a launch. Rare Replay, Bloodborne, Splatoon, The Witcher 3, Rise of the Tomb Raider this year-I don't miss out on the games I really want to play. Can't say owning all three home consoles is for everyone especially when some attach themselves to one brand so much but I've not been disappointed by any of them, on the whole. Screw 90% of 3rd parties though lol.

@Peek-a-boo: HAHAHA! Oh my sides! I think I laughed for about 5 minutes over that one!

Honest Answer: I don't have the time actually. I work 90 hours a week plus school and studying for IT certs, plus I play taiko and train in aikido. I pretty much take my 3dses (yes plural) and sometimes my vita with me everywhere and I will sometimes take my WiiU to work in the evenings (we are dead most of the time) other than that I snag a couple hours here and there on which ever system or PC strikes my fancy between my normal 3-4 hours of sleep and my job that is overnight on the weekend. I don't buy systems because I'm bored and am out of things to play. Otherwise I'd still be playing WiiU only (still haven't knocked out Zelda and Yoshi...and now Xenoblade is around the corner). I buy them because I want to be able to play whatever I want when I have a spare moment. That is part of the reason that I've never gotten into online gaming because I'm never home to coordinate with friends to play. I do try to take a day of once a month and use that time to read, game and detox my apartment. I personally think it is an extreme reaction to my childhood. I had systems but very few games, so now I just buy everything. Thank goodness for Best Buy's GCU. My Amiibo collection is insane as well... I still have to buy a JPN WiiU (Christmas present to myself!!!). Oh don't know if you peek in the PC gaming section but I just bought a new GPU as well: GTX 980Ti. I'm not rolling in cash or anything...just willing to work some extra shifts to buy something I want.

I'm going to have to marry a gamer because there is no way I'm tossing out all this stuff. I'll post a few pics of my setup at some point.

Also I'm pushing to get my systems out of the way because I'm putting money aside for a new Truck, a new telescope and a new Taiko. If you all hear about me in the hospital its from working too much OT lol!

The Remake/Remaster thirst was real this Black Friday between Gears of War and Uncharted Collection bundles.

"Given existing gaming consoles have been available on the shelf for over two years, it should be of no surprise that consoles took a back seat to game sales this Black Friday season. Once again, when consoles did sell retailers offered game+console bundle deals to lure consumers. The top console bundle pick this year was the Xbox One 500gb with Gears of War, which Target discounted to $299 (down from $350) and threw in a $60 gift card."

http://blog.infoscout.co/games-trump-console-sales-this-black...

@Ryu_Niiyama: Lol I know what you mean. I have the following systems myself

Wii U
PS4
SNES
Genesis
PS2 (which acts as my PS as well)
N64
Dreamcast
Neo Geo Consolized MVS
3DS
GBA SP
Colecovision Flashback
Xbox
Xbox 360

All with a decent library too and I am looking to get an NES and possibly a Sega Masters System.

Work 40 hours a week, and have a son. Luckily I am not married cause like you unless they were a gamer as well they would probably want me to get rid of all of those systems, so that's one nice thing about being single.

@Tasuki: I never understood people getting rid of their consoles because their husband/wife demanded it. I mean, making compromises is one thing, but demanding your partner ditch a beloved hobby is a whole 'nother level of controlling.

I doubt there could be a healthy relationship in those circumstances.

Shadow Jago be out by Friday!

Now like Mewtwo with Club Nintendo, whoever got the Sago skin will get him for free and will get him exclusive for a limited time, however people will be able to purchase him afterwards....for a limited time before you CAN'T purchase him and there is no word if he will be back or not...that's when it stopped being like Mewtwo...and it's dumb.

@Ryno: Venture Beat on the other hand seem to say quite the opposite though, strangely enough:

Call of Duty: Black Ops III and PlayStation won Black Friday - http://venturebeat.com/2015/11/30/black-ops-iii-and-playstati...

Both consoles did pretty well, all told.

As for the above debate, it's perfectly okay to play games with your partner around however, some women perceive it as being anti-social (which I somewhat agree with) and can be seen as a neglecting characteristic.

I tend to play the Wii U off-screen when my partner is watching a TV series, reading a book or listening to the radio, but I wouldn't dream of hogging the television just to play games and put my partner in the background, so to speak.

I only have a Wii U and a PlayStation 4 so, it isn't cluttering anything up!

@Undead_terror: How does one get Shadow Jago (other than buying him when he is available)?? Confusing...

@Peek-a-boo: I checked your link and the link confirms the same thing, "The top console bundle pick this year was the Xbox One 500GB bundle with Gears of War (and a $60 gift card), which Target discounted to $300 (from $350)." There is no doubt that more PS4's were sold overall but that was spread out between Uncharted, Black Ops III and Star Wars Bundles. The Gears XB1 bundle must of really outsold other XB1 bundles. All in all, sounds like good news for console gaming.

@Ryno: " if you already attained Shadow Jago through either the Community Fund Bundle or via Xbox Live Day One Gold, you have access to him starting on December 4th. Enjoy the 2 weeks of exclusivity"

And these options are no longer available.