Aecease
BACKER
2005
I think for a lot of older games, people's memory is often obscured by nostalgia. A lot of games I hear praise about I've went and tried and not enjoyed. Ultimate Spider-Man is not one of these, surprisingly. I remember playing it a lot when I was 9 or 10 and just enjoying the swinging alone.
Of course now we've all been spoiled by Insomniac's Spider-Man games but I think this is still worth revisiting. Especially as it's quite bite sized when in comparison to modern games.
The art style and the way that story is presented in cutscenes is fantastic. This is a game that is more inspired by comics than any other. Even now the look of the game holds up quite well.
Gameplay is fine, it can be quite janky at times to do anything really but once you fully understand what to do it's mostly fun, especially web swinging. Combat is also just fine, you can only punch or kick and there's a webbing mechanic that can only be used on grunts to keep them down but it's pretty satisfying anyway.
Sadly though, there isn't much to actually do in the world. There are lots of collectibles but the only activity types are races and "combat tours" which just task you fighting one group of enemies after another.
My main criticism is with bossfights. Bosses are too tanky and seem to deal way too much damage. Venom's fights balance this somewhat by providing grunts to feed on. But with Peter you have to be extra extra careful. The late game bosses in particular are pretty frustrating and become monotonous.
Overall though, I still think this is as good as people remember it.
Of course now we've all been spoiled by Insomniac's Spider-Man games but I think this is still worth revisiting. Especially as it's quite bite sized when in comparison to modern games.
The art style and the way that story is presented in cutscenes is fantastic. This is a game that is more inspired by comics than any other. Even now the look of the game holds up quite well.
Gameplay is fine, it can be quite janky at times to do anything really but once you fully understand what to do it's mostly fun, especially web swinging. Combat is also just fine, you can only punch or kick and there's a webbing mechanic that can only be used on grunts to keep them down but it's pretty satisfying anyway.
Sadly though, there isn't much to actually do in the world. There are lots of collectibles but the only activity types are races and "combat tours" which just task you fighting one group of enemies after another.
My main criticism is with bossfights. Bosses are too tanky and seem to deal way too much damage. Venom's fights balance this somewhat by providing grunts to feed on. But with Peter you have to be extra extra careful. The late game bosses in particular are pretty frustrating and become monotonous.
Overall though, I still think this is as good as people remember it.
2001
When you think Nintendo, you think Mario. He’s their guy, their mascot. Sure other series like Pokémon make more money or rate overall better (definitely not Pokémon in that case). But Mario is their icon, pretty much the face of the company. And while Sony has struggled for a long time to find a solid “mascot”, Microsoft hit theirs early on with Master Chief and Halo. I grew up with Playstations but whenever I thought about Xbox I saw Chief in my head.
But I never really understood why it was such a huge thing, it was just a shooter set in space. I would play Borderlands or Mass Effect and sure they’re great games but again I couldn’t see Claptrap or Shepherd carrying the branding of an entire console.
(I do want to clarify that I had played ODST co-op years ago but had no real idea of the story and I wasn’t playing Chief, what I’d consider to be the “main” Halo experience.)
That was until I played this game.
To start with the gameplay. Admittedly, the selection and overall feel of weapons is a little limiting. There are still quite a few options to choose from but it always felt like I’d be best off with the same rotation of 3 weapons (pistol, shotgun, and rocket launcher) and that any others were kinda useless. The lack of a sprint button is also something I think is frustrating, although the environments are relatively smaller to account for that there is quite a lot of backtracking that would have benefitted from some extra speed. Other than those criticisms, the gameplay is still very satisfying. Wiping out huge groups of enemies with a sticky grenade and seeing the medals pile up is great. The vehicles found throughout are also really fun to mess around in with a co-op partner.
The story, while mainly relatively simple, is still enjoyable and it’s lifted up tremendously by the lore surrounding everything. It’s cool seeing the origin of so many tropes and story beats that have persisted through to other games.
Despite this being an old title, I still found the level and sound design to be really good. I regularly switched back and forth between classic and modern graphics and while I admit modern is better, I can still see the charm of the original look of the game and appreciate it.
And leading from the sound design, the music is so so good. I had heard the main theme a bunch from random YouTube videos and always found it good but hearing it in-game was something else. The whole soundtrack is just so good and suits the world perfectly, having it play while in intense moments only made things more fun.
I understand as well that this was only the first in a series that has only evolved more. The gameplay is going to only get better, the story is only going to get bigger and better (until it doesn’t), and everything is going to look and sound better. And I couldn’t be more excited to continue my journey through one of the most revered series in gaming history.
But I never really understood why it was such a huge thing, it was just a shooter set in space. I would play Borderlands or Mass Effect and sure they’re great games but again I couldn’t see Claptrap or Shepherd carrying the branding of an entire console.
(I do want to clarify that I had played ODST co-op years ago but had no real idea of the story and I wasn’t playing Chief, what I’d consider to be the “main” Halo experience.)
That was until I played this game.
To start with the gameplay. Admittedly, the selection and overall feel of weapons is a little limiting. There are still quite a few options to choose from but it always felt like I’d be best off with the same rotation of 3 weapons (pistol, shotgun, and rocket launcher) and that any others were kinda useless. The lack of a sprint button is also something I think is frustrating, although the environments are relatively smaller to account for that there is quite a lot of backtracking that would have benefitted from some extra speed. Other than those criticisms, the gameplay is still very satisfying. Wiping out huge groups of enemies with a sticky grenade and seeing the medals pile up is great. The vehicles found throughout are also really fun to mess around in with a co-op partner.
The story, while mainly relatively simple, is still enjoyable and it’s lifted up tremendously by the lore surrounding everything. It’s cool seeing the origin of so many tropes and story beats that have persisted through to other games.
Despite this being an old title, I still found the level and sound design to be really good. I regularly switched back and forth between classic and modern graphics and while I admit modern is better, I can still see the charm of the original look of the game and appreciate it.
And leading from the sound design, the music is so so good. I had heard the main theme a bunch from random YouTube videos and always found it good but hearing it in-game was something else. The whole soundtrack is just so good and suits the world perfectly, having it play while in intense moments only made things more fun.
I understand as well that this was only the first in a series that has only evolved more. The gameplay is going to only get better, the story is only going to get bigger and better (until it doesn’t), and everything is going to look and sound better. And I couldn’t be more excited to continue my journey through one of the most revered series in gaming history.
2021
A simple yet effective story incorporating some interesting mechanics.
While many of the plot points and setting aren't completely relatable for me, the main theme of feeling like you have to be more than just "good enough" does strike home. And the game does a great job at not just showing that, but showing why people might contribute to such an unhealthy obsession. Characters throughout the story are flawed, they feed into the obsession but their motives are realistic and their flaws don't make them villains. It just makes them like everyone else.
My only negative mark for this game is that, while the blink feature is interesting, I find that for people who may have some form of eyelid droop (or they're even just tired) they might find themselves accidentally skipping forward. Calibration does exist to try and fix these issues but after 3 or so calibrations in a row with the game still thinking that me looking at the bottom of the screen was me blinking, I decided that I'd rather just accidentally skip stuff and deal with it. You can play with a mouse instead, and that will work to prevent any accidents. But with the blink feature being a prominent method of gameplay I feel it's still a valid criticism.
While many of the plot points and setting aren't completely relatable for me, the main theme of feeling like you have to be more than just "good enough" does strike home. And the game does a great job at not just showing that, but showing why people might contribute to such an unhealthy obsession. Characters throughout the story are flawed, they feed into the obsession but their motives are realistic and their flaws don't make them villains. It just makes them like everyone else.
My only negative mark for this game is that, while the blink feature is interesting, I find that for people who may have some form of eyelid droop (or they're even just tired) they might find themselves accidentally skipping forward. Calibration does exist to try and fix these issues but after 3 or so calibrations in a row with the game still thinking that me looking at the bottom of the screen was me blinking, I decided that I'd rather just accidentally skip stuff and deal with it. You can play with a mouse instead, and that will work to prevent any accidents. But with the blink feature being a prominent method of gameplay I feel it's still a valid criticism.
Pretty much as fun to play as the previous remastered entry. Once again the plot is fine, it just oozes Michael Bay’s Transformers.
A pretty decent plot and world fully let down by boring gameplay.
Enemy variety boils down to either heavy or light. With the heavy enemies including large robots that take too long to kill resulting in frustrating and boring encounters. Although guns themselves can feel pretty satisfying, and being able to dual wield them all is great.
The plot isn’t particularly incredible, I’ve read a bit about the sequel which sounds much better but the world building is good throughout, complimented by great level design.
Enemy variety boils down to either heavy or light. With the heavy enemies including large robots that take too long to kill resulting in frustrating and boring encounters. Although guns themselves can feel pretty satisfying, and being able to dual wield them all is great.
The plot isn’t particularly incredible, I’ve read a bit about the sequel which sounds much better but the world building is good throughout, complimented by great level design.
I think in another life, if I hadn't already spent 1000+ hours on other MMOs, I would've enjoyed this a lot more.
Especially as a fan of Elder Scrolls lore there's a lot to enjoy here. But the combat feels so limited (despite having more variety than Skyrim) and dull and the quests felt so repetitively boring. I never really felt invested in the main story and while some of the DLC seemed pretty interesting, the rest of the game never pulled me in enough to want to pay for them or the subscription.
If you've never played an MMO before, you might enjoy this a lot more and it might be a smoother transition into enjoying the genre.
Especially as a fan of Elder Scrolls lore there's a lot to enjoy here. But the combat feels so limited (despite having more variety than Skyrim) and dull and the quests felt so repetitively boring. I never really felt invested in the main story and while some of the DLC seemed pretty interesting, the rest of the game never pulled me in enough to want to pay for them or the subscription.
If you've never played an MMO before, you might enjoy this a lot more and it might be a smoother transition into enjoying the genre.
Never wanted to stay away from reviewing something so much in my life. Discourse around this game has been so draining on both sides.
Yes the live service aspects hurt the game’s overall plot (due to needing to wait for new seasons to progress it) and the endgame loop is barebones. I, personally, find the gameplay itself so engaging that I don’t find the loop as boring as others but it’s totally valid to criticise the game for that.
I’m not going to try to talk too much about the story that is there. I’ve been reading comics consistently for a decade and I really enjoyed it. I don’t think my experience makes my opinion more valid or anything. But I’ve read/watched/played enough content of these characters that this felt a bit more fresh.
Again, I totally understand if people don’t like the direction the story went. I can understand their feelings especially as it’s a follow-up to the Arkham series. But some people are acting like the story killed their dog or something and they need to chill out.
Yes the live service aspects hurt the game’s overall plot (due to needing to wait for new seasons to progress it) and the endgame loop is barebones. I, personally, find the gameplay itself so engaging that I don’t find the loop as boring as others but it’s totally valid to criticise the game for that.
I’m not going to try to talk too much about the story that is there. I’ve been reading comics consistently for a decade and I really enjoyed it. I don’t think my experience makes my opinion more valid or anything. But I’ve read/watched/played enough content of these characters that this felt a bit more fresh.
Again, I totally understand if people don’t like the direction the story went. I can understand their feelings especially as it’s a follow-up to the Arkham series. But some people are acting like the story killed their dog or something and they need to chill out.
2020
It's everything you've heard. And more.
When looking at the RPG genre, most people will agree that the best aspects are, well, the roleplaying. Being able to create your own character and be immersed into a fully realised world is the truest form of the escapism that video games can provide us.
And while Baldur's Gate 3 doesn't invent some magic new system that will "change RPGs forever", it instead decides to focus on making sure the delivery of that immersion is as polished yet still vast as a Dungeons and Dragons game can be within the limits of video games.
I get that it isn't for everyone. D&D isn't for everyone and that's okay, if you are reading this and you didn't enjoy it then that is okay. But the quality of content here is indisputable and it is absolutely worth trying out at least once. Larian has poured so much love into this and you can see it in the voice acting, the music, the combat, and every little small detail that you'll miss initially which reignites your desire for another playthrough.
When looking at the RPG genre, most people will agree that the best aspects are, well, the roleplaying. Being able to create your own character and be immersed into a fully realised world is the truest form of the escapism that video games can provide us.
And while Baldur's Gate 3 doesn't invent some magic new system that will "change RPGs forever", it instead decides to focus on making sure the delivery of that immersion is as polished yet still vast as a Dungeons and Dragons game can be within the limits of video games.
I get that it isn't for everyone. D&D isn't for everyone and that's okay, if you are reading this and you didn't enjoy it then that is okay. But the quality of content here is indisputable and it is absolutely worth trying out at least once. Larian has poured so much love into this and you can see it in the voice acting, the music, the combat, and every little small detail that you'll miss initially which reignites your desire for another playthrough.
2021
Having moved home quite frequently these last few years, I can appreciate the gameplay loop Unpacking provides. The relative freedom the game gives you to place items is a nice change to most puzzle games that require you to put things on very specific spots before it considers it “solved”. Unpacking allows the player to be creative while making sure items are still in suitable locations.
I will admit playing on console is a bit of a pain mostly due to a lack of ways to comfortably do drag and dropping without a mouse. But that’s not really a fault to the game, I can just imagine it would feel better on PC.
The art style and music is nice, in the same vain of other pixelated indie games like Stardew Valley. It’s colourful yet simple and cosy.
All this on top of a sweet story makes this a game that is definitely worth experiencing.
I will admit playing on console is a bit of a pain mostly due to a lack of ways to comfortably do drag and dropping without a mouse. But that’s not really a fault to the game, I can just imagine it would feel better on PC.
The art style and music is nice, in the same vain of other pixelated indie games like Stardew Valley. It’s colourful yet simple and cosy.
All this on top of a sweet story makes this a game that is definitely worth experiencing.
Disco Elysium is one of those rare games that encapsulates video games as an art form. It masterfully tells a story that's so captivating I was completely fine with any way it went, good or bad.
It's one of those few games that truly change your experience depending on what character you build Harry to be. More akin to Fallout New Vegas where some story beats happen differently but the main changes are with the characters within the world and the way Harry can interact with them.
The dialogue writing is maybe the best I've ever seen in a game. It's genuinely hilarious and perfectly reflects the world around. The detective aspects of the story are incredibly interesting, the feeling of bits slowly fitting into place is extremely cathartic. Having the different skills be able to talk to the player to describe the world around is such a clever choice, it adds so many layers to the character you build the detective to be.
My only real issue is that there are some pretty annoying bugs on PS5, some were affecting progress but I managed to sort it out in the end. I don't really think it affects my feelings overall about the game, however.
It can be daunting at first, but once you get into Disco Elysium it's hard to get out.
It's one of those few games that truly change your experience depending on what character you build Harry to be. More akin to Fallout New Vegas where some story beats happen differently but the main changes are with the characters within the world and the way Harry can interact with them.
The dialogue writing is maybe the best I've ever seen in a game. It's genuinely hilarious and perfectly reflects the world around. The detective aspects of the story are incredibly interesting, the feeling of bits slowly fitting into place is extremely cathartic. Having the different skills be able to talk to the player to describe the world around is such a clever choice, it adds so many layers to the character you build the detective to be.
My only real issue is that there are some pretty annoying bugs on PS5, some were affecting progress but I managed to sort it out in the end. I don't really think it affects my feelings overall about the game, however.
It can be daunting at first, but once you get into Disco Elysium it's hard to get out.
2022
I’ve really struggled to formulate my thoughts for this as I’ve played it. I really love Saints Row and I expected to hate this, and while I don’t I can’t honestly say I like it either.
It just feels like a weird merging of 2 and the Third but it doesn’t take the time to actually refine what made those games fun or engaging.
There are some good ideas here, the wing suit is a cool edition that provides fun co-op opportunities, the map is beautiful and detailed it might even be my favourite, and the ventures are a nice way to customise the city.
But for every one of those positives, there’s something negative about each. The wing suit isn’t really useful much outside of boring side hustles and goofing around, the NPCs who fill the city are still bland and have no character, and the ventures begin to feel like a chore with how many objectives they provide you.
This was my experience throughout this game, I was satisfied then unsatisfied repeatedly. It fails to have any real character work and plot and it fails to create a fun enough sandbox to goof around in. I played this through PS+ and honestly can only recommend others do the same, it’s not really worth a purchase when you could just play previous installations instead.
It just feels like a weird merging of 2 and the Third but it doesn’t take the time to actually refine what made those games fun or engaging.
There are some good ideas here, the wing suit is a cool edition that provides fun co-op opportunities, the map is beautiful and detailed it might even be my favourite, and the ventures are a nice way to customise the city.
But for every one of those positives, there’s something negative about each. The wing suit isn’t really useful much outside of boring side hustles and goofing around, the NPCs who fill the city are still bland and have no character, and the ventures begin to feel like a chore with how many objectives they provide you.
This was my experience throughout this game, I was satisfied then unsatisfied repeatedly. It fails to have any real character work and plot and it fails to create a fun enough sandbox to goof around in. I played this through PS+ and honestly can only recommend others do the same, it’s not really worth a purchase when you could just play previous installations instead.
2019
A lot of puzzle games run the risk of overstaying their welcome. I usually praise games in this genre if they know to end right before things get tedious.
Superliminal is weird in that it does go on a little too long, but honestly the first 2/3 is so engaging and interesting that I almost forgive it.
I do understand the later levels still fit within the theme of “perspective” but I think allowing the player to directly interact with the world is much more effective than just walking until something happens.
Overall this game is still pretty good, I definitely recommend it for a single playthrough.
Superliminal is weird in that it does go on a little too long, but honestly the first 2/3 is so engaging and interesting that I almost forgive it.
I do understand the later levels still fit within the theme of “perspective” but I think allowing the player to directly interact with the world is much more effective than just walking until something happens.
Overall this game is still pretty good, I definitely recommend it for a single playthrough.
Movie tie-in games have a reputation of being at best okay and at worst just straight up lazy. Going into this (especially as a Green Lantern fanatic) I had extremely low expectations due to this tying into the 2011 Green Lantern movie.
But honestly this surprised me with how “okay” it was. Its gameplay is pretty decent, as a stripped down God of War (the originals) clone can get really.
Combat is mostly satisfying, abilities are fun and pretty varied. Although it can be sluggish at times and the fact you can’t fly seems pretty weird. It could’ve even just worked like the Lego superhero games do.
The story is probably the biggest shocker in terms of surpassing expectations. It’s no Last of Us or even Uncharted 1, but it’s cohesive and has a pretty decent villain. It’s the expanded universe that I really appreciated. It takes concepts such as the other colours in the emotional spectrum and I’m just surprised they’d even be mentioned. Although they don’t really develop those ideas past the surface level of just showing they exist. Again, the story isn’t really “good” it’s just surprisingly better than “okay”.
I can’t recommend this for anyone other than die-hard comic fans or someone who just wants a mind-less hack’n-slash. But overall I give this a “Brightest Day” rather than a “Blackest Night”.
But honestly this surprised me with how “okay” it was. Its gameplay is pretty decent, as a stripped down God of War (the originals) clone can get really.
Combat is mostly satisfying, abilities are fun and pretty varied. Although it can be sluggish at times and the fact you can’t fly seems pretty weird. It could’ve even just worked like the Lego superhero games do.
The story is probably the biggest shocker in terms of surpassing expectations. It’s no Last of Us or even Uncharted 1, but it’s cohesive and has a pretty decent villain. It’s the expanded universe that I really appreciated. It takes concepts such as the other colours in the emotional spectrum and I’m just surprised they’d even be mentioned. Although they don’t really develop those ideas past the surface level of just showing they exist. Again, the story isn’t really “good” it’s just surprisingly better than “okay”.
I can’t recommend this for anyone other than die-hard comic fans or someone who just wants a mind-less hack’n-slash. But overall I give this a “Brightest Day” rather than a “Blackest Night”.
2022
I think a little man who works at Second Dinner has hidden himself within my phone. And as soon as I approach the mid-70s ranks he begins to rig games against me. That’s it, it’s the only possible explanation.
It’s hard to review this version of this game as it’s pretty much the definitive version (sans multiplayer) of what’s considered an already amazing game.
But realistically this didn’t need to exist.
Sure this looks absolutely amazing, I’m not going to contest that there are improvements, it’s still an incredible game that everyone should try and play. But attempting to charge current-gen full price again is insane behaviour.
I made sure to only get this game if I could pay as little as possible for it, and thankfully I managed to get it for 75% off. I think for first time players who can get it cheap, sure buy this. But for the price it’s at, I’d still just recommend the remaster that’s sitting pretty cheap in the PS Store.
But realistically this didn’t need to exist.
Sure this looks absolutely amazing, I’m not going to contest that there are improvements, it’s still an incredible game that everyone should try and play. But attempting to charge current-gen full price again is insane behaviour.
I made sure to only get this game if I could pay as little as possible for it, and thankfully I managed to get it for 75% off. I think for first time players who can get it cheap, sure buy this. But for the price it’s at, I’d still just recommend the remaster that’s sitting pretty cheap in the PS Store.