VIDEO Game of the Month: October 2013

Welcome to the Game of the Month thread for October 2013. Pick a game above and if you wish discuss it below.

Last Month's Winner: Grand Theft Auto V

Happy voting and May the Force be with you.

P.S. We have quite a few games coming out this month so some notable titles could not make the list.

 

Sorry about incomplete game formats. Thread posted before I was done.

 

Have a feeling that Assassin's Creed's IV and Batman Arkham Origins could be game of the month

 

Arkham Origins for me. Got my preorder and everything, probably the only series I will preorder at this point.

 

Beyond: Two Souls for me. A Quantic Dream game staring Ellen Page and Willem Dafoe? Yes please!

 

Games like Beyond Two Souls and Last Of Us remind me why I bought a Playstation 3

 

I am scared for next month's thread. So many games...

 

Yeah with all the launch titles for the next-gen consoles it is going to be so hard to pick just one game.

 

Bad thing is that I only have ten slots...

 

Rune Factory 4.

No, wait, Etrian Odyssey: Untold.

No, wait, Ace Attorney: Dual Destinies.

No, wait, Arkham Origins.

No, wait, Pokémon.

No, wait...

Edit: But seriously RF4.

 

I don't think I would have included AC4 or BF4 for this month's releases. They'll sell well, but I think they'd be more appropriate for the next gen launch month.

 

I put them here since next month is flooded.

 

I get that, I just think that they'd fit better with November. They're being billed and pushed as launch titles, so it'd make more sense, but what's done is done, no harm no foul.

 

why would BF4 be "game of the month"? It's still not gonna be that different from BF3, 2 etc.

Arkham Origins looks promising but without Dini or Controy...

 

Oh, it is, it really is. I got early access to the beta and it's a lot better. The levolution thing is amazing and changes maps dramatically. It's still got the big maps and lots of vehicles, but there's been a lot of improvements too. It's very good.

 

I have pre-ordered Pokémon Y which looks like a big step forward for the franchise as the first of the titles designed for the 3DS. I didn't care much for the last set of games but Black & White 1 were very good.


Arkham Origins looks to be the other game I will hope to get this month. Unlike GTA it actually has a PC release on the same day as the console versions

 

*Conroy.

I won't actually miss Dini all that much. City had a few too many odd things in it, narrative-wise, for me. It's a great story and plot, just poorly-executed and with some oddly sexist things.

We'll see how Origins surprises me.

Also, "levolution" is just a marketing BS buzzword. Do not use it

 

I noticed Dini's mysoginistic streak ever since TAS, but it got considerably worse in the Arkham games The word "bitch" got thrown around far too many times in both games and well, Harley's and Selina's characterization speaks for itself. Sour notes on otherwise spectacular games.

I think GTAV will continue to dominate throughout October and the holiday season, possibly diminishing other releases such as Assassin's Creed 4 and even Arkham Origins. I think most folk in the console crowd are probably going to wait for the new consoles - and their reviews - before considering picking up the new releases. At least, I see myself in that position.

 

I know, right? I remember getting into the most mindless arguments on these very boards with people who thought that because I was critical of the treatment of women in Arkham City, I was somehow a prude and afraid of "teh boobies." I was not alone in holding that opinion.

And I totally agree with you about how most people will be waiting for the new console to pick up those games. It's what I would do if I had the money!

 

I'm not a prude but I recognize misogyny and exploitation when I see it. It is particularly troubling when that's displayed in a game featuring Batman which is inevitably going to be picked up by a younger crowd as well. Both games would've been fine with other versions of Harley, Ivy and Selina, regardless of it being a darker, alternate Batman universe.

Peng Edit: Disallowed word

 

But even that criticism falls into traps. It's not so much their appearance as it is their behaviour and how they're treated. If someone wants to dress or behave in ways deemed promiscuous, that's absolutely fine, but the behaviour of the characters felt very one-dimension and not in keeping with their comics characterization. The fact that "bitch" was thrown around as an expletive was gender-specific and directed to the three lone female characters.

 

Of the three, Harley was the odd one for me. In both Arkham games she wore outfits that looked as if the designers went "hey look how hot we can make Harley!" and didn't seem very fitting with her famous black and red jester suit.
Plus her getting knocked up by Joker was rather weird. I don't know enough about how they are in the comics, but in TAS it always seemed like Joker just used her devotion to manipulate her and always treated her very badly. He never really seemed to care for her in the way he made her think he did, so the idea he would be able to produce a child with her didn't really fit to me.


But it doesn't seem like she will be in Origins, so hopefully such an issue won't be a problem. Copperhead is now a woman though, it will be interesting to see what they do with her. She does seem pretty cool from the trailer they had for her.

 

Exactly, it was a really odd treatment of the character.

 

Thanks for correcting a clear typo.

 

No probz, dudebro