Even though it’s only the beginning of December, this week sees the release of the last two major games of the year – Gran Tursimo 6 and Bravely Default.
It’s pleasing to see Sony still supporting the PlayStation 3 with the likes of Gran Turismo 6 and Racket & Clank: Into the Nexus, instead of ushering PS3 owners into buying a shiny new PlayStation 4.
It’s not particularly pleasing to hear, however, that Sony has decided to introduce micro-transactions into the Gran Turismo series.
Prices start at £3.99 and go to up £39.99 – the same cost of the game itself. If that wasn’t bad enough, those with early access have discovered that to unlock a Jaguar XJ13 using in-game credits would cost a frankly ridiculous £120 in real money. Nobody is forcing you to, of course, but it’s still disheartening to learn that the option is there.
Reviews are due to go live tomorrow. I’ll be interesting to see if these micro-transactions have tarnished the overall experience.
Update: Scores are starting to surface, and they’re a little mixed – 5/5 from The Telegraph, 8.0 from IGN, 6/10 from Videogamer who called it “solid but soulless”.
For the uninformed, Bravely Default on 3DS is a new handheld Final Fantasy all but in name.
Innovation lies in the battle system, which features the ability to stack and bank attacks. It’s an idea that’s easy to pick up but difficulty to master, full of depth and plenty of scope for tactics.
Review scores so far include 8/10s from EDGE, Eurogamer and The Metro.
Also hitting 3DS this week, in addition to Wii U, is Scribblenauts Unlimited. This was originally due out shortly after the Wii U itself – and even briefly appeared on the eShop back in February – but was officially delayed due to undisclosed changes that had to be made for Europe. Its release is so belated in fact that the semi-sequel Scribblenauts Unmasked is already available in some parts of the world.
Worth the wait? There’s no doubt that it’s a good game, but price is a slight issue – £34.99 for something that has an imminent sequel due out, and superhero filled one at that, strikes us as a being a little steep.
Still, it’s a safer purchase than movie tie-in Disney Frozen: Olaf’s Quest which hits 3DS and DS this Friday for around £20.
That’s it for retail releases this week. If none of the above can tempt money out of your wallet, then maybe some of the new titles hitting the download services will.
On PSN there’s Super Motherload (£10.99), Robot Rescue Revolution (£5.49), Rainbow Moon (£15.99 with Cross-Buy support), flOw (£3.99, also with Cross-Buy), Stick It To The Man (£9.99, ditto) and Indoor Sports World on PS Vita for £3.99.
RPG Rainbow Moon has been getting some good reviews, as has platformer Stick It To The Man which currently has a Metacritic of an impressive 82%.
If you have been left with zero funds after purchasing a PlayStation 4, then worry not as free-to-play shooter Blacklight Retribution is now available. Reviews haven’t been too positive, mind.
There’s just one game arriving on XBLA this week – 1960’s crime caper The Raven. The story has been spilt into three parts with each episode costing £7.99.
Lastly, 3D Altered Beast and 3D Sonic the Hedgehog make their way to 3DS eShop at £4.49 each while Double Dragon elbows its way onto 3DS VC, also at £4.49.
If you missed it, earlier this year we questioned if Altered Beast is a classic or not. We still aren’t entirely sure.
Next week: Adventure Time: Explore the Dungeon Because I Don’t Know (Wii U), Wii Fit U (Wii U) and Outdoors Unleashed: Africa 3D (3DS).