Limbo

Last year's Arcade of Summer, Summer of Arcade or whatever it was called gifted us the wonderful Trials HD and Shadow Complex to name but two. This year's premier offering is something a little more, shall we say, pretentious. Limbo is the visually striking tale of a boy's lone journey in to "Limbo" (in speech marks thanks to now being abolished) and basically, that's it. Of course, it being an XBLA title such pointless attachments as plot, voice-acting, tacked on multiplayer are all left aside, leaving you with a touching, un-nerving trip which will induce delight, puzzlement and anger all in equal measure. These are the signs of what make it great though, the satisfaction of solving another devilish complexity massively outweighs the crippling sadness of repeating the same failing attempt at progression. Prepare a slot on your end of year lists.

In other gaming news: RDR. Got a donkey. Did lots of missions. Bonded. Named it Juliet. Watched in vain as it got shot by Mexicans. Too devastated to play again. Wonderful game.

Red Dead Redemption

It's funny how you can instantly fall in love with a game for the the poorest reasons. Like being able to name your rival "Tosser" in the Pokemon games and then laugh hysterically every time you run in to him on the SS Anne. Or that in the latest FIFA game you scan a photo of your face in with a ridiculous glitter Hitler moustache and watch yourself do cartwheels with a silvery upper lip every time you score. As they say, it's the little things. In Red Dead Redemption you can shoot animals, skin them, and then sell said skin for a small profit. On paper it's dull. In practice it's probably also quite dull. However I've spent 3 of my first four hours playtime doing it. Painfully addictive. I haven't even found a bear yet. I'll never do anything else if I find one. For me it proves the level of immersion this game offers. GTA IV suffered from a slightly stilted and familiar setting. We've been stealing yellow cabs for ten years now in various guises. RDR opens up the world of the Western to a new generation and feels very fresh in comparison. The greatest test will of course be whether I can now buy and wear a pair of cowboy boots without being socially outcast. The proof will be in the freshly skinned carcass no doubt.