First up a bunch of games I've already played on PC. I wanted to see the Xbox version:
Minecraft's Xbox One edition is the same game as on PC. I didn't expect it to be different, and it's really not. There's been a drive to amalgamate the look/UI of all versions of MC in the last year. But still the PC version feels more controllable. More usable in a responsive way. As with most game's with console editions there's a softer feel to the game graphics. PC verses console I suppose just boils down to control input methods and gameplay location. As I stream my Xbox to my PC there is no real benefit to playing the game on XBox when I have the "better" PC version(bias?) in front of me in the same location.
I can say the exact same for Terraria. The game may look and sound like the PC version but it felt 'off' or 'wrong' during play. For me it suffers much more than Minecraft by using a controller. It's a game that really needs a mouse for me to play and be precise with. Hook/grapple with a controller is not nearly fast enough. Speed in combat is key but is hampered here. Saying all this may be because I've only played the PC version before now but there was nothing in the Xbox One version that would make me favour it over the PC edition.
I wonder how long it will be before there's a wider coverage on games using keyboard and mouse on Xbox One. It's a bit of a convoluted system at the moment. In reverse I'm often surprised when I have an Xbox controller on PC and games automatically detect and change their UI correspondingly (keyboard key hints change to Xbox button indicators etc).
I also took a look at Oblivion. A game I'd played hundreds of hours on PC. I didn't recall playing it on Xbox 360 until the Xbox One version started downloading old saves. Loading them up it seems I didn't get too far in the game. I think it was one of the games 'back in the day' that I picked up cheap and then traded in. It's not a bad version of the game. It looks the part but trading in a mouse for a controller means you turn/look slower. Again it's an input preference thing. Glad to see the old saves but with hundreds of hours etc on the PC version, it's the PC version I'll return to with any further gameplay. In saying that I've not had any niggle of nostalgia for it yet.....
Ninja Gaiden Black is a great game. While I have sung it's praises and previously spent time and money on the game and old hardware; NGB on Xbox One is just as good. The game is well worth the experience. The further you go in the game the harder it becomes IMO, and having sunk a lot of hours into it already on an original Xbox....... I'm conflicted on weather to redo gameplay on the Xbox One version. I've a feeling retro nostalgia will win out over Xbox One convenience but there's still a 'but'. That argument will only grow when the old hardware is in storage and the Xbox One version is 'right there'.
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As you can guess I've honed in on the PC having a better, wider and more accurate range regarding control input/accessibility. So I'll be even more brief with the other games I tried. Out of curiosity 7 more games that I'd previously played on PC:
Alien Isolation & Farm Simulator 17 both felt like they needed the keyboard and mouse to play "properly". A controller with them was too slow and/or awkward. Very annoying on Farm Sim 17.
Braid and Everspace on the other hand worked just as well as on PC. Braid is still a game I can't get into. I always seem to hit a point where I'm rewinding 20 times and frustration sets in. Story of my platformer life - See Ori Below....
Fallout 3 like Oblivion, I'd a few old saves(in the clooooouuuuuuuud) from the first few levels at the start of the game. I can see now that I abandoned the 360 version probably due to being used to PC FPS's with keyboard and mouse. Going to a controller felt like it wasn't worth it. Still doesn't explain why I never got it on PC..... I think I made up for it with Fallout 4. Maybe I really didn't like the look of Fallout 3. Anyway it was playable but so slow with turning and combat outside of VATS that I'd beg for a keyboard and mouse.
Surviving Mars proved to be glitchy. Unplayably glitchy. I've never seen a game glitch on Xbox before. I would try and enter the tutorial or main game campaign and after a loading screen and a split second of the game screen UI as if it had loaded, it would force quit back to the main game menu. Unplayable every time.
Cities Skylines is the same as the PC version. But with imho an overly complex control/menu system that is proving a steady theme for PC to Xbox editions. So it goes back to personal preference on control methods. PC is better IMO, again back to the keyboard and mouse. Again, again, again.
Like eating icecream with a fork; How to gamers prefer to use controllers/joypads 100% of the time on PC...... Is it doable with UI/turnspeed sliders..... I'm really wafflin now.....
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Now for games that I've never played but thought looked interesting:
Clustertruck on the face of it is a first person randomised platformer of a sort. Jump from truck to truck in a convoy to get to the end while avoiding trucks, obstacles and more that 'impede' your path. There's no longevity in this game for me. Some tracks don't challenge you, sit on a truck, don't move and you still win. I dont' feel any need to do any prestige maneuvers. There's no motivation for gaining style points. Other tracks are in need of a lot of quick action. Tracks like that have a lot of random elements, trucks don't take the random path's so it's not a game to learning jump patterns/timings. Luck/randomness is a thing that ends up with frustration more than anything else. Fun to try, not a game I stayed with.
Hexic 2 was a game I didn't know existed. I got the original with my first Xbox 360. I was never really into puzzle games but I liked this one, especially marathon mode in an almost relaxing way. Going into the second game I was a little disappointed. The second game lacks the shiny polished look of the original. The music and general sounds are a lot duller. Like a more hardcore but rough version. That's my initial view of it. It's still a good game but something is missing on the fun side.
I played a bit and it didn't hook me(I've already been back to the original).
I've also heard a fair bit about how good My Time at Portia is. No specific details but that it was "good". On loading it up it immediately reminded me of Stardew Valley, only in a pastel 3D way.
It's a game that didn't grab me. I took a wander and checked out a few things but it's not for me. MT@P is a bit too happy for me in it's attitude/style. Gather resources, upgrade buildings/town, attempt to make people happier towards you. I'd rather go back to Stardew.
The game I spent the most time in was Ori and the Blind Forest. It's a gorgeous looking game and it's style of adventure platforming had me interested. But it's a game that does frustrate. It may have set platform tasks that you can time and jump through(in some cases try, try and try again for me #timing), but the respawn rate is almost instantaneous for enemies. Then again if not for that reason it would be uninteresting to go back through a dead world multiple times without any challenge. It also helps to build up your powers/abilities. For me it just felt a bit too drawn out story wise. I do appreciate the way you can get extra powers and then discover/open up area's of the game you have previously been in. Like getting to an area by the new vertical wall climbing/multi-jumping ability you just unlocked etc. A game I got joy out of but not so much that I felt compelled to go back time and again. A few sessions was enough for me. Maybe that will change in the future.
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In my view of all the games I've mentioned here the PC versions win out via keyboard and mouse, better UI and overall preference options. This is all a very quick general look at these games on Xbox but first impressions do count. The only game I want to go back to is Ninja Gaiden Black and even then I've more progress on the original hardware.... I could fool around with that save to a USB drive and see about transferring files over to Xbox One...... However I've enjoyed the novelty of the Xbox companion on PC more than the majority of games.... Convenience for what does interest me....
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