It’s time to look back on the week we’ve just had! What did the weekdays look like for our writers? What was the biggest news from the week? And what are we looking forward to playing during the upcoming weekend? Our Eyes on the Week article will answer all three of these questions! We’re curious about your opinion and played games, so be sure to share your stuff on our social media channels!
Victoria
As the weather this week has been pretty horrible to cope with again, I’ve played very little and have been enjoying watching the World Cup matches. I’m actually shocked England are still in, but I’ll support them to the end, no matter what. Overwatch has once again been very hit or miss with the games, but I refuse to put the game down. I’ve decided that I really despise playing DPS, so it’s not something I’ll do unless we don’t have a single damage hero on our team, and even then, I’ll hate every second of it.
Lewis and I have finished both maps on RV There Yet? and will clear up the remaining achievements in time. It involves miscellaneous achievements along with collectable tapes and cosmetics, so I don’t think it will be too bad, but famous last words and all that.
Most interesting news of the week: As Palworld has fully released, the player count on Xbox has been boosted by 400%, which is pretty incredible, and I’m debating giving it a go!
Looking forward to playing: Quarantine Zone and Overwatch!
Robby
I’ve been playing a lot of Rhythm Paradise Groove (just learned the title is different in other regions), and it’s been the best in the series for me so far. Great music, great minigames and above all: more accessible since it now lets you play all games even if you really suck at a particular one. I’ll have a review up for it soon, but I’m waiting for my daughter to get home from her holidays so we can try the 4-player option as a family.
I’ve also started playing Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door again. I was at 60-70 into the game when I somehow forgot about it, and I really want to finish it. It’s fun, don’t get me wrong, but I keep moving on to other games while playing this for some reason.
I also played a ton of demos for work, most of them under NDA, so I can’t share anything about them yet, but STIP is OK to be talked about, and it was AMAZING. Really like how far this one has come and grown. Solid puzzle system with some metanarrative stuff mixed in. I played for 45 minutes and still have a feeling I missed a ton of secrets. You can watch my playthrough HERE.
Most interesting news of the week: Xbox is laying off 3200 people. It’s not looking good for our favourite console 😞
Looking forward to playing: Tackling some backlog. Might go for Assassin’s Creed Valhalla DLC, so I can finally move on and delete that giant file from my Series X. I’m also tempted to replay Final Fantasy XV and its DLC.
Aaron
Wow, it’s that time of the week again & I can’t believe it’s come around so quickly! As you are all aware by now, Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced has now launched, and LifeisXbox gave it an 85/100, which also means we highly recommend it. If you are curious how the game plays, feel free to read our review [HERE]. It’s pretty much all I’ve been playing this week!
Although I’m now really into Mazebound, which is the latest in the run of friend-slop games, but this one is actually pretty addictive. You and up to 3 friends must gather items to build a raft & escape the island you are stranded on. The problem is, terrible creatures roam the island and try to kill you. It’s the typical Lethal Company formula, except here the enemies are extremely unique. You can also use their parts to makeshift new weapons, outfits, or just cook them and eat them.
I’m about 80% complete in terms of the raft being built, but I’m confident I can be done by the end of next week. More places to explore are coming up, and I need to keep my wits about me.
Most interesting news of the week: Xbox layoffs are hitting most of ID Tech. The industry is in such shambles right now. I think we need a reset.
Looking forward to playing: More Mazebound.
Colombo
I’ve finished replaying Batman: Return to Arkham – Arkham Asylum. I considered getting all achievements, but I was reminded that I’d need to get the best grades at all challenges for that, so I ended up starting Batman: Return to Arkham – Arkham City instead, which has not disappointed me in the slightest so far. It’s as great as I remember it, even if I’ve encountered a few bugs I don’t recall seeing before, such as Mr Freeze’s suit being invisible at the museum, as well as Cobblepot being invisible when Batman first punches him.
I played a bit more of the usual Minecraft Dungeons, Marvel Rivals, and Meccha Chameleon with friends.
I also decided to try out Tamashika since it was added to Xbox Game Pass, and it seems like quite a cool game so far. Since Xbox Game Pass was mentioned, I also played more Abyssus, and I’ve been enjoying it, despite losing progress on a very good run I left open on quick resume thanks to an update being released.
Most interesting news of the week: ID software being hit with quite a few layoffs.
Looking forward to playing: More Batman Return to Arkham – Arkham City, Marvel Rivals’ new update, Tamashika, and Abyssus.
Benny
This week, I’ve been playing Revelations, the new DLC campaign expansion for DOOM: The Dark Ages. I’ve just reached Chapter 6, the final chapter, and after that I’ll be diving into the endgame content, which I’m really looking forward to. So far, it’s been an absolute blast, and it’s great to be back playing DOOM. It looks fantastic, runs incredibly smoothly, and the soundtrack absolutely rocks! The new Spear mechanic takes a little time to get used to, but it’s a great addition that adds a fresh twist to the combat. I’ll be sharing my full thoughts in a review soon.
I’ve continued playing Mario Kart World on the Switch 2 in handheld mode this week, and it’s such a great game for short sessions on the go. I mentioned last week that it could do with some new DLC to help keep things feeling fresh, but I hadn’t realised Nintendo had quietly added a few new Rally courses to both the single-player and online modes. I only discovered them during a race when I found myself thinking, “I’ve not seen this before!” The latest free update has also added stickers to Photo Mode in offline game modes, which is a nice little addition.
Finally, I played a little of a new game called Tamashika, which is also available on Game Pass Ultimate. It’s a first-person shooter with a very unique art style. Think rainbow colours, bizarre little figures, and plenty of visual chaos, and you’ll get the idea. As you play, you move along a linear path, shooting enemies and blocking incoming attacks. Make one mistake, and it’s back to the beginning of the level. Shooting is straightforward enough, but the timing of your blocks is quite challenging. Even so, it has that classic “just one more go” mechanic that can keep you playing far longer than you intended. I’ll probably keep dipping into this one now and then for my Game Pass Reward quests, slowly making progress, as it can be a little frustrating at times. Learning enemy placements and attack patterns is definitely the key to success.
Most interesting news of the week: Ubisoft Barcelona is laying off 51 employees, including developers who worked on Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced, with the job cuts coming shortly after the remake’s successful launch.
Looking forward to playing: Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced and Welcome to Kowloon.
Hello, I’m Victoria. I’m from the UK and have been playing video games for as long as I can remember; back on DreamCast. I’ve pretty much fallen for Xbox since I was around eight years old and remember BioShock being my first game on the Xbox360. Although I find it thoroughly enjoyable to not only experience gameplay, I also find comfort in getting lost and engrossed in the online worlds that sometimes differ greatly from what we know. Another side of my Xbox passion would be achievement hunting and gamerscore. I thrive when I hear the little sound of one popping up on the screen and I’m always finding ways to work on my backlog when possible. Horror is my favourite genre so if you have any recommendations, don’t be afraid to send them my way!
