Whispering Willows

I finally got around to playing Whispering Willows yesterday and I managed to beat the game in a mere 3 hours, which made me sad as I totally wish there was more of this game!

Here is what the developers website says about the game:

Whispering Willows is an adventure, horror themed game where the player takes on the role of Elena, a determined young girl with the extraordinary ability to project her spirit outside of her body. In this spectral form, she can interact with the benevolent spirits and wicked wraiths that used to dwell within the walls of the sinister Willows Mansion. Help Elena use her astral projection to solve puzzles, help lost spirits, and uncover the mysteries behind her missing father.

In the game Elena discovers she is descended from a Shaman and as such has spiritual abilities which help her to save her father. This game is a horror side scroller with added puzzles which at times can be super chilling. Elena uses her spiritual powers to squeeze through small gaps, and possess objects which can help her (human form) progress further into the creepy environment.

I had been dying to play another horror game for some while now and this one was exactly what I had been looking for. A game where the element of horror isn't too in your face, but at times is plenty creepy enough. I mean who isn't going to be creeped out by little creatures that you cannot see with your human eye, only your spiritual one! The puzzles are easy enough to solve, although I'll admit there was a moment when I found an item that I had no idea what to do with, and wandered around for a good while before realising what I needed to do with it. One of my favourite things about this game is the use of the spiritual powers. You could be walking through an empty room and your controller would start vibrating alerting you that there is a spirit in the room which you can communicate with. There's something about that which is really spooky, but at the same time, pretty cool.  The only problem I had with this game is that it ended far too soon, I'd have been happier if it was twice if not three times as long, but I guess that just shows how much I enjoyed it right?

If you are looking to play a horror game which isn't too frightening, then this is definitely one for you! You can pick this up on Xbox Live for a mere £7.99, which in my opinion is pretty cheap for a game as cool as this...

What games are you playing at the moment? Are there any that you would recommend to me?

Gaming Diaries #6: Xbox Live Games

How to Survive: Storm Warning Edition is a game that I had never really thought about playing or purchasing to be honest. Then last month it was the free game with Xbox Live Gold membership, and as with most free games I said a giant, 'Why not?' and hit the download button. I decided to give it a go one evening, and as the menu screen loaded I was super excited to see that you can play local co-op! I handed Tim a controller and we got cracking, and honestly this game has already taken up hours of our lives. Even causing a few arguments over some silly mistakes... thankfully with this game, when you die you can go back to the last checkpoint saved, although sometimes this is super far back and therefore annoying...

Here is what the Xbox Store says about the game:

'How to Survive now is more fun and tougher than ever. Survive on a zombie infested archipelago, fulfill your basic needs of food, water and shelter while facing natural and unnatural threats. - An eccentric survival guide will teach you to craft dozens of weapons and tools: from fishing rods or bows, to chainsaws or explosives. - 7 islands filled with exuberant flora and fauna.'

Basically you are stranded on a collection of islands which are overrun by zombies and other terrible creatures that all want to kill you. You have to survive by finding food, water and shelter, whilst also undertaking missions from other survivors that you find on the island. If you have an Xbox and have a Gold Membership you should definitely get this game, especially if you are looking for something good to co-op play with your other half, or even a good friend. Be warned that it will cause arguments!

You may recognise this game as it was an exclusive game for the WiiU when it was originallly released! In fact this was one of the games that almost made me buy a WiiU... almost! Thankfully a few years on the game has been released on Xbox Live, and I've finally got my hands on it...

Here is what the Xbox Store says about Zombi:

'London is falling. Are you prepared? The Last Blight is upon us. It was foretold. For the second time in history, a great plague has shrouded London in a fog of death. Big Ben tolls as thousands of unprepared die, or worse, are infected by a sickness more gruesome than death. You’re still breathing, for now, but how long will you survive the labyrinth of London’s streets and underground canals, abandoned by the outside world and surrounded by infected? The horrifying remains of humanity, ravaged by the terrifying disease, are shuffling through the streets, waiting at every turn to prey on your living flesh..'

I've only played a little of this, but so far I am loving what I am playing, even it at times it's pretty scary!

Never Alone is an Indie game that got massive hype when it was released, so when I saw that there was a deal on Xbox Gold Membership to get it (and it's DLC) a little cheaper, I jumped at the chance...

Here is what the Xbox Store says about it:

'Experience the epic journey of Nuna and Fox as they search for the source of an eternal blizzard that threatens the survival of everything they have ever known. Never Alone is an atmospheric puzzle platformer developed in collaboration with the Iñupiat, an Alaska Native people, drawn from a traditional story that has been shared across the generations. Guide both characters in single-player mode or play cooperatively with a friend or family member as you trek through frozen tundra, leap across treacherous ice floes, swim through underwater ice caverns, and face numerous enemies both strange and familiar in the journey to save the girl’s village. Foxtales features three all new levels full of environments to explore, puzzles to solve and enemies to face. Travel across open seas, swim through the ruins of a sunken village and paddle up the Noatak River on a mission to rescue a new friend.'

I haven't actually had a chance to play this game yet, but I can't wait to get stuck in!

I think I first saw this on CinnamonToastKen's channel a little while ago, and for some reason I completely forgot about it. Then when I was busy purchasing all the above games I saw that this was also on offer for Gold members for just over £5!!! I was immediately sold.

Here is what the store says about the game:

'In Whispering Willows, you take on the role of Elena, a determined young girl with the extraordinary ability to project her spirit outside of her body. In her spectral form, Elena can interact with the benevolent spirits and wicked wraiths that used to dwell within the walls of the sinister Willows Mansion - lost souls, stuck in time and space, who hold the secrets that Elena will need to traverse the terrifying old manor. Players need to make use of Elena’s corporeal and ethereal forms to overcome obstacles, solve the riddles of the mansion’s enigmatic specters, and find Elena’s lost father.'

Again I haven't had a chance to play this yet, but I seriously cannot wait... I have been dying to play another horror game (that doesn't have zombies in) for a good while!

What are you playing this week? Have you got any of the above games?

Max: The Curse of the Brotherhood

Max: The Curse of the Brotherhood is a super cute little platformer game that Tim and I bought absolutely ages ago, but I have literally only just got around to playing. I even managed to complete it in a few days, that's how much I enjoyed it!

This is what the Steam Page says about the game:

'Max: The Curse of Brotherhood is a cinematic adventure filled with action-packed platforming and creative puzzle-solving. Armed with only a Magic Marker, Max must confront evil at every turn in a hostile and fantastical world in order to save his kid brother, Felix. Join Max on his great adventure!'

In the game Max accidentally gets his brother zapped into an alternate world where the evil Mustacho wants to transport himself into the child's body so that he can continue to live. Max has to traverse this new world (in true platforming style) to save his baby brother! Max gets given a magic marker, which he can use to interact with the environment, growing branches, making pillars appear from the ground and even growing vines. Using this you have to work your way around the environment collecting Mustacho's evil eyes so that he cannot spy on you!

This game is exactly the kind of short and fun game that I love to spend a couple of days on... If the game was any longer than that I know I would lose interest, so I think one thing they did well was to keep the game short and sweet. Each environment is different enough to peak your interest with new challenges thrown at you. There are even some 'quick time' events in which time slows down slightly and you have to quickly use your magic marker to stop yourself falling to your death! These moments were amazing, but also made me panic, I'm not a great gamer under pressure truth be told... The game also implements certain enemies and creatures that you cannot battle, but have to use the powers of the magic marker to work out how to defeat them. Some of these puzzles were honestly the hardest parts of the game, particularly if you had to try and use the magic marker quickly as controlling a drawing implement with a thumbstick is not the easiest thing in the world to do!

This is definitely a game I would recommend if you are looking for a new platformer to play that has an interesting and new twist, and you can actually pick this up for £11.99 on Xbox Live at the moment!

What games are you playing at the moment? Would you recommend any to me?

Wishlist Wednesday: Video Game Edition

This week i've been thinking about Gaming a lot, so I thought I would share with you, what is on my gaming wishlist.

• Mario Kart 7 3DS: I know this has been out ages, but I haven't played with my DS in a long time, and I finally picked it back up this week!
• Just Dance 2015: A game that I LOVE to play with my sister and humiliate my boyfriend with, why wouldn't I want this?
• The Lego Movie Game: I loved the movie, so I'm fairly sure I would love the game.
• Professor Layton and the Miracle Mask: I like Mystery Games, and Professor Layton games always have an awesome storyline.
• Assassin's Creed Unity: *Cue line I have said 1 million times already* The Assassin's Creed Series is my absolute favourite, and the only series I have completed in full (except Black Flag which I am currently playing), so this is a must have for me!
• Sunset Overdrive: As soon as I saw the trailer for this game I knew I had to have it. It really reminds me of Mirror's Edge, and even a little of Jet Set Radio Future, which was won of my favourite games when I was a little younger.

Let me know in the comments which video games you are currently loving, or which are on your wishlist!

23 Before 23: Update #3

To be honest I have been lacking some serious creativity recently. So with that in mind I thought it was about time that I had another look over my '23 Before 23' list, and see how I am getting on!

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Lose Weight:

This has been on my goals list for as long as I can remember. Even in secondary school I was carrying a little extra weight, I was pretty happy with how I was back then, just wanting to lose a few pounds. Now however my weight has gotten out of control. At university I put on 2 1/2 stone over three years! YIKES! I'm pleased to say that the number on the scales is finally moving in the right direction. I've been on a diet for a month and a half, and I'm pleased to say that despite a few shaky weeks, I have managed to lose 9.4 Ibs so far. Currently I'm wanting to lose 48.8, including what I've already lost, so I only have 39.4 Ibs to go! I'm hoping that by my birthday I will be at least half way there, if not almost done. If you're wondering how I'm losing weight, I'm planing to start posting a little more about it soon...

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Complete all the Xbox Games I own!:

This one is severely important, as I am terrible at splashing out money on video games that I never complete. I'm pleased to say that I am definitely working on it. I recently completed Alice Madness Returns, which I actually bought on the day it was released! Also I've had a big clear out and traded in a lot of my games, but Tim and I have also recently bought more for the Xbox One... I'm trying OK? I am currently enjoying playing Plants Vs Zombies: Garden Warfare on the Xbox One... It's basically Call of Duty, but with cute characters that make cute noises, that you can dress up!

My current list of games to complete goes as follows:

1. Dead Island: Need to pick this one back up to be honest!
2. Skyrim: This one is going to be a long term game, considering how long it take me to complete one quest, but I am still working on it.
3. Tomb Raider (remake): Haven't even started it... and I bought the special edition of this second hand on Amazon not long after the release, this one is definitely my next venture!
4. Dishonored: Again I haven't started this and I am ashamed because I pre-ordered this, and also forked out for the special edition!
5. Assassin's Creed: Black Flag: 31% complete, I took a break from this when our Xbox one had a meltdown and we were waiting from our brand new one from Microsoft, that is actually what spurred me on to complete Alice. I'm loving this game, I'm very loyal to this series!
6. Thief: Haven't even started this. Tim and I both wanted this game when we got the Xbox one and neither of us have even touched it yet, I'm playing AC, and he is playing Metal Gear Solid.
7. Murdered: Soul Suspect: I traded in my HDPVR 2 at CEX and we had £60 of store credit to burn, and we both thought this game looked interested. Neither of us have started it, due to the same reason above.

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Find Out What I want to do with my life and stick to it!:

I have finally decided what I want to do with my life, and now I am just waiting to have the funds available to implement my plan. I don't want to give too much away, but more will be coming on this soon!

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Start Saving Money:

I am pleased to say that since having my full time job I have managed to save money every month! My first lot of savings has already gone towards a holiday with my friends, back in our uni town of Aberystwyth, this is happening in August! The rest of the money I am currently saving is going towards my other ventures in August (it's going to be a busy, BUSY month), including Summer in the City and my boyfriends birthday! I'm pleased to say that I only have one payment left on my car also, so that money will also be saved after next month. The only thing left to pay off is my laptop, and that is happening end of August, then I'll be free to save for the next big thing... Myself and Tim's one year anniversary!!

Do Something For Charity:

I finally did something for Charity!!! Last Sunday I completed the Race For Life, and in doing so, managed to raise £149, a whole £49 over my original target! I managed to complete the race in 45 minutes, which considering I was doing a mixture of running and walking, I was really happy with. Once I crossed the line I got a little bit emotional to be honest. I know it's silly, but I was just so proud that I finally managed to accomplish something like that...

So there you have it! I have completed another goal, and made a good start on some others! That makes 4 out of 23 completed, and 11 others have been started, this is a serious improvement on last year. Let me know in the comments how you are getting on with your yearly goals!

#BEDM 10: #100HappyDays 55-60

I have been seriously slacking on my #100happydays photos, but I simply don't find anything interesting enough happening in my life for me to post every single day, but I post when I can, and I promise I will be better!

Day 55: Tim and I went a little bit crazy in the Hotel Chocolat sale... I even wrote about it here.

Day 56: My favourite sweets ever are these from Lidl... We actually ran out a few weeks ago and everytime I look at our empty sweet bowl it makes me sad...

Day 57: This cute little Easter bunny mum got me had a lovely bow on it, and it was blue! It was almost a shame to eat it...

Day 58: My favourite yogurts were on offer meaning they made their way back into my lunch box. They are always a nice little 'pick me up' at work.

Day 59: Tim allowed me to use some of our GAME credit to buy a couple of Xbox arcade games! Haven't had a chance to sit down and play them yet... but I will!

Day 60: We bought these beautiful flowers in Morrisons to cheer me up when I was feeling a bit run down, and they certainly look lovely in our kitchen!

So there you have it, I can't believe I'm over half way through this challenge! 60 down, 40 to go, it's totally unreal.. I hope you've been enjoying it as much as I have though!

#BEDM 7: Gadgets...

I am a BIG lover of technology and gadgets... Ever since I was a teenager, I HAD to have a new mobile ever year or so, and I always followed Gadget trends, and begged parents to let me have them...

Since getting my first job, I always let myself have whatever gadgets that I wanted as long as I could afford them. From the latest games consoles, to the smartest laptops... I have to have it!

My newest gadget is my brand new laptop, which I bought after I got my first wages from my full time job, well I technically still have money to pay on it, but the point is, it's shiny and new, and mine.

This beautiful baby is the HP Pavillion 15-n267sa, it's got 8GB RAM and a 1TB Hard drive, perfect for editing my Youtube videos! It's even nicer because I have it in this lovely purple colour, oh and it runs Windows 8! I'll admit that for the first week or so that I had it in my possession I was terrified to use it, because I didn't want to get dirty fingerprints all over it. Obviously I've gotten over that since then, and I'm seriously enjoying my lovely baby!

Other than my laptop I have plenty of other gadgets in my possession, such as my Samsung Galaxy Tab 3, which I got just after Christmas! I mainly use it for browsing the internet when I'm in bed in the morning, and reading Kindle books on. I would use it for blogging, but the Blogger app for Android really needs work!

When I was at uni, I was dying for a decent camera to film my video projects! So when I got my student loan in, I was very naughty and purchased my first DSLR. Since then it has helped me kickstart my Youtube channel, and get lots of pretty pictures! Once I've paid off my laptop, my next venture will be trading this in and upgrading. Since starting my Youtube channel, I've realised how ill equipped this camera is for filming Youtube videos. Mainly because I can't see whether I am in focus or not, and Tim isn't always going to be around to focus the camera for me. So I want to upgrade to a camera that has a flip out screen, possibly the 600D, but I haven't made a decision yet.

The one gadget that I could not live without would be my phone... When I was working at Vodafone, the iPhone 5s came out, and I simply couldn't resist it... At the time I was using an iPhone 3GS that I bought second hand off of Ebay. As soon as I had my hands on it I fell in love, I would be totally lost without this beauty. Being able to read my emails on the go, and watch Youtube videos, read blogs, and watch funny vines, all within reach on my mobile phone! It's bloody brilliant... Saying that though, I don't think I will be getting an iPhone the next time I upgrade, which won't be until October 2015!!!!

Finally, my most favourite gadgets of all are my games consoles. I currently own an Xbox 360, and a Nintendo 3DS, oh and not to mention that my boyfriend just bought us an Xbox One for our flat! The graphics on the Xbox One are insane... LITERALLY insane... I've been playing Assassin's Creed Black Flag and I simply cannot get over how amazing the landscapes look, and how well the game mechanics work...

So there we have it, there is a little insight into my favourite gadgets, and trust me it won't stop there! I'll always be craving the next best gadget, console, laptop, or camera. Simply because I can't help myself...