Previously, in my living room

Despite several posts in the last month being more about frugality, that doesn't mean I haven't been bleepin and bloopin during these cold months. We actually got snow on Christmas Eve here in Seattle, and I can count on one hand how many times that's happened in my lifetime. Snow is my favorite encouragement not to go outside, login to the PSN and get to work.

You know you're humming the Duck Tales music

The Disney Afternoon Collection went on sale for an agreeable $8: 5 great Capcom-made Disney games and one real stinker, TaleSpin. Aside from TaleSpin, the games aren't super difficult, and offer some slick platforming in adventures that last about as long as an episode of their respective shows. The trophy list means beating each game twice, as well as doing its Boss Rush mode, all of which is very forgiving. New games to me were Duck Tales 2, Chip and Dale's Rescue Rangers 2, TaleSpin and Darkwing Duck. While the other games have the expected tight NES-era controls, TaleSpin doesn't really fit in, and is relatively a chore to play.

Take some time to look through Nate's journal as you progress

While we're on the subject of cheap collections, the Uncharted trilogy went on sale! These games are like playable action movies in the best sense of the concept. These aren't just games with cinematics simply connected with walking down corridors and shallow gunplay. Nathan Drake is the wisecracking over-the-top explorer turned spy turned ninja. Victor Sullivan is his charming older best friend who is still a ladies man, but always comes through at rough times. Elena Fisher starts off as a journalist in the wrong place at the wrong time, who owns up to the situation and ends up being pretty deadly. The voice acting is amazing, with plenty of sporadic character-defining banter and although events are scripted, there is a liquidity to the physics that makes each restart slightly different. The games don't really address their own violence, and keeps the story lighthearted as long as you stay ignorant of the fact that all the pirates and mercs are cannon fodder. This collection was released 2 years ago at $40 and was still worth it at that pricepoint, since the trilogy also got both graphical and technical overhauls. The first game is still a bit clunky, and is the hardest. However, between quick loading times, frequent checkpoints and a manageable 60 collectibles, the experience is really enjoyable.

Graphics.

Then you get to Uncharted 2, which ups the ante in every way. The game blows the lid off Nathan Drake's adventures with extra guns, extra explosions, extra jokes, and it's extra badass. There's a train level in it that will make you crap your pants. At one point, you end up in the most graphically-gorgeous location I've ever seen, and with this version's 1080p update, it's even more solidified. This area, Kathmandu, in Uncharted 2 ties with the train level for my favorite sequence in the series. The ohh-so minor gripe is that the original game opened with a metal horn and chime when it showed the NaughtyDog logo, and it's been replaced with the trilogy's own intro screen. Luckily this Southwestern Asian horn shows up in the music at points in the story, so all is not lost.

Greedy modern business practices spotted, Sir!

Flying in this game vs Battlefront 1,
some wins, some losses

Next on the list is Star Wars Battlefront 2. EA controversy aside, during the summer I promised myself I wouldn't buy it until the price dropped to $40. Whether the backlash of pissed off gamers cancelling half a million preorders, the release of The Last Jedi, or the holiday season caused the PSN sale, Battlefront 2 went on sale for $35. So, like cleaning up after a gold-pooping pig, I happily scooped that shit up.

There's no way around it: Star Wars Battlefront 2 is dope as DICE. With a very forgiving trophy list, I got to play through the campaign on a low difficulty, meaning I didn't get hung up and could experience the story.

Okay, now we're Luke on this bright planet...

One really confusing point is that when you first start the game, you choose between the Rebel and Imperial factions, which will bring customized challenges to earn extra currency. You're warned that you can't change factions, and this choice locks out of the other faction's tasks. I thought this meant they were dividing the single player campaign at least until you beat it, and then giving you a chance to go through the other perspective. I may have actually preferred this approach instead of what I got. I ended up playing a bunch of different characters from both factions with what felt like a few Forced (see what I did, there?) transitions at points, but ultimately was a really cool experience.

I can only complain about the loading time in Battlefront, which makes me more likely to play extra rounds without opening chests or switching modes, as even going to the main menu is easily 60 full seconds of loading time.

Time to get Ororo Munr-owned!

Last but not least is something I didn't know existed until seeing it at the sale: Marvel Puzzle Quest. Flashy gem-matching animations, flashier special abilities, awesome but limited selection of music: triple check.