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The letters page on Tuesday provides guidanceXboxnot to launch Fable this year, as a reader believes people are viewing the ZX Spectrum through a nostalgic lens.

Games Inboxis a compilation of letters, feedback, and viewpoints from our readers. To participate in the conversations, send an emailgamecentral@.co.uk

Worst offender

Can’t claim to be surprised by thePlayStation 5 version of Starfield being full of bugs. Bethesdaare poor at this and especially when it comes to ports and remasters. However, it made me think about what must be the most buggy game ever and I suppose it’s something likeSuperman64 but I haven’t played it, and I wager most people haven’t either.

Cyberpunk 2077might count too, but I didn’t play it at the initial release. By the time I started playing it, most of the issues had been resolved and it functioned like a normal game. There was also one of the Assassin’s Creed titles that was quite poor, I believe it was the French one [Assassin’s Creed Unity– GC], but I didn’t play it myself.

Regarding the games I have played, I must admit that the worst one I ever experienced was a Bethesda game, although it wasn’t developed by them directly.FalloutNew Vegas was so full of bugs that I believed my copy was defective. It was constant issues from the very beginning, and I stopped playing after a few hours, never really getting into the series again.

I would genuinely appreciate a remastered version that addresses the issues, as I want to understand why people claim it’s so excellent, but I’m uncertain whether this will ever occur or if they might only make it worse.

Gaston

Christmas is cancelled

Personally, I think Microsoftwould be crazy to releaseFable this Christmas. Either they release it in September or sooner, or they will have to wait until next year. No one is going to stop playing GTA 6, just as GTA Online 2 is launched, to play a reboot of an obscure Xbox series with a questionable track record.

Every publisher must acknowledge that this Christmas is a dead zone, or they risk being overwhelmed. I believe someone will attempt alternative scheduling or similar strategies, and at least one publisher will take a gamble due to the absence of other games, but I don’t think it will be effective.

The issue is time as much as money. Everyone will be interested in GTA 6 even if they aren’t huge fans of the previous titles, and we all know it won’t be a brief game, so what’s the plan? Particularly around Christmas. Independent games may have more success, but not for a high-budget title.

Cuit

Like buses

Happy to hear a new gameHas been announced, it feels like an eternity since the last one, but I guess that’s true for anything before Covid. Exodus was actually my first, but I really enjoyed it in terms of the narrative and how it combined open-world elements with more structured segments. I’m not sure how well it performed, but I think it might be somewhat overlooked.

Regarding this strange collection of announcement showcases, I hope they all realize the wisdom in spacing them out a bit. Sony might be too proud to do so, but it will be very frustrating to have two, or more, on the same day and then nothing until June.

I must confess I’m far more excited to see the new Star Fox than I am about Assassin’s Creed: Black Flag Resynced. I’m already tired of hearing about that game, and it hasn’t even been officially announced yet. Black Flag was a solid game, but it’s not…thatfine, as long as they don’t significantly alter its functionality.

Fantum

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Review pending

Will you be reviewing Mouse: P.I. for Hire?

There are currently no reviews available, and there are still two days until the launch, which is always concerning.

I hope it’s a great game, but I hope it isn’t withholding review copies if it’s not.

Cassius2K

PS: The retro games being talked about, specifically the Spectrum titles, many have not aged well, coming from someone who grew up with them. Sorry, but we are now used to better visuals and gameplay. They were good when they were released, as that was all we had back then. The worst one is C5 Clive.

GC: They are not withholding review copies, but the release is scheduled for Thursday, and most review restrictions typically last only a day or two prior to the launch.

Modern alternatives

Enjoyed the nostalgic conversation that has recently filled the Inbox, but I believe it has gone too far when people argue that the ZX Spectrum is superior to modern gaming. I was around back then with my Spectrum, and let’s be honest, it was quite poor.

Often, the games failed to load from their cassettes. I recall looking over at my friends who had the initial Master Systems and Commodore 64s, and later Mega Drives and Amigas (the ‘posh kid’ eventually got a SNES), and it was clear who was receiving the better deal… and it wasn’t me.

Regardless, returning to play older games makes me think we’re at risk of letting nostalgia take over. Indie gaming serves as a good example here. You typically have a better experience playing modern indie versions of classic genres compared to the original games. This could be Blasphemous instead of Castlevania, Hyper Light Drifter instead of Zelda, Horizon Chase Turbo instead of OutRun, or Blazing Chrome instead of Contra 3.

In addition to the clear quality of life enhancements, contemporary hardware enables these games to exceed what was previously achievable on older systems. This results in an experience that aligns more closely with your nostalgic recollections rather than the actual conditions of the early 90s. It’s not surprising, really, as there are three decades of progress to draw upon when creating modern versions.

One era indie seems to be facing challenges with PlayStation 2/GameCube/Xbox. Contemporary small team indies in that style are still clearly less impressive than their influences, but if any reader (or GC) wants to recommend overlooked indie treasures that outshine Ōkami, Burnout 3, SSX Tricky, etc… I’m eager to listen.

Marc

GC: We’d say the non-indie Screameris the top latest arcade racing game. SSX imitations are uncommon butTricky Madnesshas been well-received during early access and there is a feature known asHYPERyuki: Snowboard Syndicate, from the renewed Acclaim, that’s expected at some point ‘soon’.

Inbox also-rans

Guess the part in The Super Mario Galaxy Movie where Koopa Troopas are on the rollercoaster is a conscious reference to The Curse Of Monkey Island? Maybe not very likely since it’s not a Nintendo franchise, but it’s very comparable.

Captain Walrus

GC:You can’t be sure, but it’s a quite evident joke to create on your own.

I’ve never understood why Bethesda struggles with technology. They’ve been known for their buggy games for ages, and no matter how large they become, they don’t seem to care about improving. I fully anticipate The Elder Scrolls 6 to be a disaster, even with all the money they must be making from the Fallout TV series.

Trent

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