Our Week in Games is back right here at Reticule Towers after our little December break for the Our Year in Games pieces. It is a new year, but some things stay the same, and Our Week in Games is certainly one of them. First up I honour the NFL Wildcard Weekend by getting stuck into Madden 13 while Jordan talks about a zombie apocalypse and Nick explores space with an indie game that pays homage to the Homeworld series. Hit the jump to read more.

Chris

After losing my PS3 disc for Madden 12 sometime last year, I decided to pick up the new version for my 360 in a bit of post-Christmas shopping. Over the past year my interest in, and understanding of American Football has increased massively, so I now appreciate the game a hell of a lot more. In my usual manner with EA’s sports titles, I created my own player in the Career mode which replicates the Be a Pro aspect of the FIFA games. I started off as a plucky undrafted rookie quarterback with the New England Patriots. As an unknown in a team with a player like Tom Brady around, I knew I had made the wrong choice in careers and started again.

This time with the Atlanta Falcons as an undrafted rookie wide receiver. Despite the Falcons enduring a very poor season, I haven’t got to the field as a receiver yet, only as a kick and punt returner. At least this gets me into the action unlike when I was with the Patriots. With only a few games of the regular season remaining, I am hoping the coach will put me into the mix so I can actually have some impact on the plays and prove my worth. Otherwise I will be stuck returning the ball, though I am the leading kick returner for yards in the whole of the NFL so far. That’s something right?

Jordan

Let me prefix this entry by saying I like neither zombies nor the Walking Dead TV series – both of them bore me. In fact if it wasn’t for the developers, Telltale Games being one of my favourites, there would be roughly zero chance I’d have been playing this game this week. But given my fondness for Telltale I decided to pick up their latest game, The Walking Dead and so far, having only just completed the second episode, I am impressed. It’s rare to see a game so focused around interpersonal relationships.

Much like the TV series and the comics, the game isn’t about zombies, it’s about the situations that arise from a zombie apocalypse. It’s about co-operating with other survivors, many of whom sometimes act just as brainless as the dead lumps of meat shambling outside. It’s also a game about choices. In the few hours I’ve played I’ve already had to make decisions that decided who would live or die. If the game can ramp up the importance of such decisions in later episodes, then The Walking Dead may seriously make me have to change my choice for Game of the Year 2012

Nick

This has not been a good week for gaming, all things considered. With the post-Christmas blues setting in, and that all-intrusive thing known as work rearing its ugly head, I’ve hardly had five minutes to sit down at my PC. Furthermore, with my gaming PC firmly in the hands of my wife this week due to her renewed interest in The Sims 3, I’ve been strictly laptop bound.

One title that is currently in development that has caught my eye this week is Void Destroyer, an independent project inspired by the Homeworld series. It’s been far too long since I’ve had the chance to play anything even resembling my favourite strategy series, and whilst it’s a pity Homeworld itself has apparently been left out to pasture, at least some people haven’t forgotten about it.

With a strategic-level command system allowing you to control a vast fleet, and the ability to take the controls of individual fighters for some gritty dogfights, Void Destroyer looks extremely interesting. Unfortunately, like the majority of indie games that seem to grab my interest, it’s still not finished. Even so, the current build is still interesting enough, and freely available to download now from the project’s website.