The Critical Corner

I can't imagine the pressure of having to follow up what's widely considered a "Masterpiece". Specially following up something as widely celebrated as 2018's reimagining of "God of War". For me it was even extra pressure. "God of War" is the reason I'm still gaming to this day. During a period of time where I had hit a massive malaise in my life, and no game was hitting the spot where I thought I would just quit gaming outright, "God of War (2018)" absolutely hit me like a wrecking ball. The way Sony Santa Monica reimagined what used to be a character action game into an "over the shoulder" third person action/adventure extravaganza with a story so simple in premise but so rich in character, reminded me of the power of the medium, and stood tall as my absolute favorite game not only of the PlayStation 4, but the entire generation. So, obviously, no small shoes for the sequel, "God of War: Ragnarok", to fill. I

One thing that usually defines PlayStation versus its competitors is how, more often than not, they are willing to leave behind some of their most successful IP from years past in order to try something new. Obviously it's not 100% their approach, as there are still some franchises that date back to the original PlayStation that are still alive today. Franchises like Gran Turismo, Ratchet & Clank and more importantly, God of War.  The lifespan for the God of War franchise has been fascinating to follow. Originally released during spring 2005 at the tail end of the PlayStation 2 generation, the original God of War initially raised the bar for what was possible in combo based action games. Showing a level of scale previously unseen in gaming, an incredibly easy to use/incredibly addicting combat system paired with unflinching brutality, God of War absolutely left a mark in PlayStation history, cementing protagonist Kratos as one of the brand's most recognizable mascots, and b

More than a week ago, the gaming industry was shaken by the massive news of Microsoft entering an agreement to acquire beleaguered publisher Activision/Blizzard ( who for those who've been in the know, has been embroiled in a massive lawsuit over sexual harrassment and other horrid things happening within the company and at a top level ) in an all cash transaction of $68.7 billion dollars. Considering Activision Blizzard owns some of gaming IP's most lucrative franchises (mainly above all else, the "Call of Duty" franchise whose two most recent entries "Black Ops Cold War" and "Vanguard" where the top 2 best selling games of 2021), Microsoft buying this kind of publisher is the kind of thing that absolutely, definitively changes the gaming landscape forever. It absolutely removes a big third party vertical from the equation (in an even bigger way than when Microsoft acquired Zenimax and took with them Bethesda and all the studios they owned). When

  Now that I have moved on celebrating what were the finest gaming experiences I had in 2021 , it's time to look forward to the future and talk about what are the games I'm most anticipating coming into 2022.  Due to the nature of many of the "would be" high profile 2021 releases slipping into 2022, there is a highly likely chance that 2022 is going to be one of those high caliber, early console generation defining years akin to what we got back in 2007 and to a lesser extent 2015. This should be the year where the new consoles start to more fully justify their existence. However, we also have to keep in mind that we're still in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic, and as much as many would love to pretend we're close to getting out of these turbulent times, the reality says otherwise. Most developers still are not working back in their office, and while many have now adapted to "work from home" environments, the truth is development will still remai