We hope you’ve enjoyed battling giants in ninth-century Iceland with October’s TA Playlist feature, Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II, but now that the month is drawing to a close, it’s time to announce the winner of the November Playlist poll.For November, we decided to go with a military theme in honor of Veterans Day (US), Remembrance Day (UK), Armistice Day (France), or whatever name the holiday goes by in your country. The holiday began as a commemoration of the Armistice of 11 November 1918, which brought an official end to hostilities between Germany and the Entente to end World War 1, but eventually expanded after WWII in many countries to honor all military veterans and to take some time to reflect on the horrors of war. To that end, the TA Playlist team selected four military-themed games that deliver impactful stories about war and its lasting effects on both the soldiers and the civilians caught up in these conflicts. The nominees included Battlefield 1, Valiant Hearts: The Great War, and This War of Mine: Final Cut, but none of those games could put up a fight against our winner, and November 2024 TA Playlist Game of the Month, Spec Ops: The Line.Spec Ops: The Line was developed by Yager Development and published by 2K Games in 2012. Ostensibly a reboot of the “Spec Ops” series of games released for PlayStation between 1998 and 2002, Spec Ops: The Line added a much deeper storyline and grittier narrative compared to its predecessors, which were designed as more tactical simulations.It’s been 6 months since Dubai was wiped off the map by a cataclysmic sandstorm. Thousands of lives were lost, including those of American soldiers sent to evacuate the city. Today, the city lies buried under sand, the world’s most opulent ruin. Cross “The Line” in a mature story that explores the dark side of war, where there are no bright outcomes, only bad or worse choices.Spec Ops: The Line has a strong TA User Rating of 4.13/5.00, with over 82,000 tracked users earning at least one achievement and more than 7,000 (around 9%) earning all 50 of the game’s achievements. Site estimates put the completion time at around 15-20 hours, and there is a Spec Ops: The Line Walkthrough by Dat Boi Treezy to help guide you through the two playthroughs required for full completion. Note that Spec Ops: The Line is no longer available for digital purchase, due to expired licenses. It is still fully playable and Backwards Compatible, however, so if you can get your hands on a copy, you can enjoy the game on all modern consoles. Time to get out to your local second-hand game shops and see what’s available!Honestly, when we were choosing this month’s nominees, we almost didn’t put Spec Ops: The Line in the poll, due to the lack of digital availability. That didn’t seem to matter to our voters, however, as Spec Ops jumped out to an early commanding lead, and hovered around 40% for the entire polling period. That’s a pretty strong mandate, so even though this game might be harder to come by for those who don’t yet own it, it should generate some strong discussion in the forums. Here’s the full breakdown of the votes:As always, you can earn your TA Playlist badge by unlocking any achievement in Spec Ops: The Line during the month of November or by posting a substantive comment in the Spoiler and Spoiler-Free threads that will be posted on November 1. Even if you’re not planning to play the game, you can join in the discussion on the TA Playlist Hub to discuss your experiences in the deserts of Dubai.
Source link
