Boggles the mind how people can play FromSoftware games and be like "Oh these games are amazing, they don't hold your hand or tell you where to go and they're incredibly hard to master but so rewarding when you do" then they play OG Tomb Raider and just instantly assume it's shit because the controls are hard to get used to.
Maybe it's because platforming in AAA games has been dumbed down to an insulting degree or maybe it's because modern Tomb Raider is more action focused, but these games have always been primarily exploration, puzzle and platforming games with a specific control set designed for that, not action games with shit controls.
If you're new to this trilogy then please, take your time to get to grips with it and you'll experience some absolute masterclasses in level design and atmosphere.
What an absolutely beautiful remaster so clearly made by people full of love for the source material. Tomb Raider fans spent well over a decade begging for this to happen and it's far better than I could have ever imagined. Fingers crossed for The Last Revelation, Chronicles and Angel of Darkness next, then even Legend, Anniversary and Underworld.
Lara Croft is back, baby!
Maybe it's because platforming in AAA games has been dumbed down to an insulting degree or maybe it's because modern Tomb Raider is more action focused, but these games have always been primarily exploration, puzzle and platforming games with a specific control set designed for that, not action games with shit controls.
If you're new to this trilogy then please, take your time to get to grips with it and you'll experience some absolute masterclasses in level design and atmosphere.
What an absolutely beautiful remaster so clearly made by people full of love for the source material. Tomb Raider fans spent well over a decade begging for this to happen and it's far better than I could have ever imagined. Fingers crossed for The Last Revelation, Chronicles and Angel of Darkness next, then even Legend, Anniversary and Underworld.
Lara Croft is back, baby!
Really weird going back to this.
Absolutely adored the trilogy back in the day. 2 was absolutely my favourite, followed by 3 then I always hated going back to 1 a little.
Going back, the original was far and away my favourite, though I still loved 2. Weird to go from seeing Garrus as an absolute badass to a bit of a dickhead cop. Couldn't even be arsed to finish 3. Got about ten hours in and was bored relentless.
Absolutely adored the trilogy back in the day. 2 was absolutely my favourite, followed by 3 then I always hated going back to 1 a little.
Going back, the original was far and away my favourite, though I still loved 2. Weird to go from seeing Garrus as an absolute badass to a bit of a dickhead cop. Couldn't even be arsed to finish 3. Got about ten hours in and was bored relentless.
2022
Got a good 60 hours into this and it had a lot I loved but I honestly just can't be arsed smacking my head against a brick wall until it eventually breaks. Sue me.
Been playing Cyberpunk non-stop since the Xbox Series X version came out in February 2022. Loved it then and love it even more now. Yes it's still glitchy, but most games this size are. The characters, stories and Night City are just some of the best I've experienced in a game and Phantom Liberty adds to that wonderfully.
At a point in my life where I'm having to give up obsessive gaming, so if this is where I bookend the chapter of being a hardcore gamer and become a casual, I am happy.
At a point in my life where I'm having to give up obsessive gaming, so if this is where I bookend the chapter of being a hardcore gamer and become a casual, I am happy.
2022
I think I'm just so disillusioned with gaming these days. When I see a game getting universal acclaim I thought it must be something worth experiencing, when instead it seems to be a reflection on how big a budget the game had.
The basic combat is fine but wears thin quickly and when it tries to add more variety it becomes more of an annoyance than a fun challenge. The rest of the game is just running or forced walking from place to place whilst characters speak to you, with the occasional branching path (barely even a path) where you can get some dohicky which makes your very specific type of arrow do 0.2% more damage. The platforming is basic, which for a modern AAA game is saying something.
The worst aspect is the puzzles. Not only easy as piss, but every single time the game shoves the solution in your face with dialogue mere seconds after entering a puzzle area. I have never played a game so intent on insulting the players as God of War Ragnarok and there is no way to switch this off. It was four years before this Shadow of the Tomb Raider at least gave people options to change the difficulty when it comes to this condescending game design, but so many games are terrified of you having to use your brain for so much as a second because you might get frustrated and miss the next super emotional cutscene. Has the success of the Souls series not shown that gamers enjoy frustration as it can lead to an incredible payoff? One this series denies you.
The story is fine, the characters all talk like you'd expect in mainstream American entertainment but besides that I was interested until the actual game part of the game became too boring and insulting to carry on.
Ah well, I'm glad lots of other people enjoy the game even if I can't stand it. I think if I've learned anything from this it's to not get sucked into hype and learn to accept when I'm not enjoying a game and give up rather than force myself through it.
The basic combat is fine but wears thin quickly and when it tries to add more variety it becomes more of an annoyance than a fun challenge. The rest of the game is just running or forced walking from place to place whilst characters speak to you, with the occasional branching path (barely even a path) where you can get some dohicky which makes your very specific type of arrow do 0.2% more damage. The platforming is basic, which for a modern AAA game is saying something.
The worst aspect is the puzzles. Not only easy as piss, but every single time the game shoves the solution in your face with dialogue mere seconds after entering a puzzle area. I have never played a game so intent on insulting the players as God of War Ragnarok and there is no way to switch this off. It was four years before this Shadow of the Tomb Raider at least gave people options to change the difficulty when it comes to this condescending game design, but so many games are terrified of you having to use your brain for so much as a second because you might get frustrated and miss the next super emotional cutscene. Has the success of the Souls series not shown that gamers enjoy frustration as it can lead to an incredible payoff? One this series denies you.
The story is fine, the characters all talk like you'd expect in mainstream American entertainment but besides that I was interested until the actual game part of the game became too boring and insulting to carry on.
Ah well, I'm glad lots of other people enjoy the game even if I can't stand it. I think if I've learned anything from this it's to not get sucked into hype and learn to accept when I'm not enjoying a game and give up rather than force myself through it.
It's more of the same but I liked that it explored Chinese mythology as we rarely see that in video games. Played in Mandarin for added immersion.
2022
Played again on Series X. Didn't bother with the Spider's Thread stuff but the new school DLC is decent and properly goes for some horror stuff. There is an amazing mechanic which was horrifying but unfortunately I'd seen in RE8: Shadows of Rose right before it.
Definitely worth a play on Game Pass but could have had a lot of the side nonsense cut. Who the hell thought 240,000 of anything was a good idea?
Definitely worth a play on Game Pass but could have had a lot of the side nonsense cut. Who the hell thought 240,000 of anything was a good idea?
2022
I spent most of this making a bad arse, late 30s British lady and then she started talking about her student loans.
I wanted to like this, I really did. I love this series and have had some of the most fun I've had in video games with Saints Row but the first couple of hours of this are boring as sin and the writing is a catastrophe. It's "How do you do fellow kids?" The Game. And this coming from someone who loves Life is Strange.
It's mad that after nine years they're still using the same old combat and bland mission design. The only thing they "rebooted" is taking away everything that made the series unique. Now it's just a dull, shell of its former self.
I thought I could have fun with this but in 2022 it just doesn't fly. Worse in every way than Saints Row: The Third, which came out in 2011.
Pathetic.
I wanted to like this, I really did. I love this series and have had some of the most fun I've had in video games with Saints Row but the first couple of hours of this are boring as sin and the writing is a catastrophe. It's "How do you do fellow kids?" The Game. And this coming from someone who loves Life is Strange.
It's mad that after nine years they're still using the same old combat and bland mission design. The only thing they "rebooted" is taking away everything that made the series unique. Now it's just a dull, shell of its former self.
I thought I could have fun with this but in 2022 it just doesn't fly. Worse in every way than Saints Row: The Third, which came out in 2011.
Pathetic.
2022
This review contains spoilers
Really not sure how to feel about this one. I absolutely adore the first two, especially the second even though I know it's less popular among hardcore fans, but this felt like too much of a shift in tone for me and the story somehow manages to be predictable and a bit of a mess.
Outside of the overarching plot most of the game is
1. Go to a new universe
2. Kill big bad
3. Watch another Bayonetta (and Jeanne) die
4. Get chaos gear
And this happens four times.
Also killing off Cereza and handing the torch to Viola could have been done well, like Nero in DMC5, but this felt unearned. I like Viola, but not enough to completely replace the incredible protagonist we've spent 12 years with. Jeanne was also done dirty and her friendship with Bayonetta didn't feel handled very well, and the Luka romance and his whole arc felt completely off.
As for the gameplay it's still a load of fun, but now there are loads more minigame-like sections and Uncharted-esque setpieces thrown in that have put me off going back to aim for higher scores as I did with the last two. I enjoy the games most when it's Bayonetta vs. a horde of enemies, but B3 felt like it had much less of that instead opting for gimmick fights and a reliance on the new Demon Slave mechanic, which I will admit I still had some fun with.
So yeah, mixed feelings on this one. A shame as I'd been waiting a long time and watched every trailer over and over.
I will say though, that moment the Bayonettas from 1 and 2 show up HOLY SHIT was incredible, and there were still a lot of high moments.
Hoping I'll like it more after going back to it later.
Outside of the overarching plot most of the game is
1. Go to a new universe
2. Kill big bad
3. Watch another Bayonetta (and Jeanne) die
4. Get chaos gear
And this happens four times.
Also killing off Cereza and handing the torch to Viola could have been done well, like Nero in DMC5, but this felt unearned. I like Viola, but not enough to completely replace the incredible protagonist we've spent 12 years with. Jeanne was also done dirty and her friendship with Bayonetta didn't feel handled very well, and the Luka romance and his whole arc felt completely off.
As for the gameplay it's still a load of fun, but now there are loads more minigame-like sections and Uncharted-esque setpieces thrown in that have put me off going back to aim for higher scores as I did with the last two. I enjoy the games most when it's Bayonetta vs. a horde of enemies, but B3 felt like it had much less of that instead opting for gimmick fights and a reliance on the new Demon Slave mechanic, which I will admit I still had some fun with.
So yeah, mixed feelings on this one. A shame as I'd been waiting a long time and watched every trailer over and over.
I will say though, that moment the Bayonettas from 1 and 2 show up HOLY SHIT was incredible, and there were still a lot of high moments.
Hoping I'll like it more after going back to it later.
2022
Elden Ring was getting on my tits so I wanted something fun and thoughtless and this fit the bill. Yes the open world bullshit is annoying but Tokyo is amazing and atmospheric, the combat is fun and the story isn't bad at all. Loved the relationship between Akito and KK. Played in Japanese which I never do for games but English just felt weird af here. Good time! Definitely worth a bit of your time.
2020
Got this as a gift for Christmas back in 2020 but waited for the official Xbox Series X version and just... wow. Some annoying design (bloody inventory management) but in the vast majority of other ways this exceeded my expectations. Honestly blew me away and it's such a damn shame this was released in the state it was tarnishing its reputation.
When that paid DLC comes out I will cancel all my plans and get lost in Night City all over again.
When that paid DLC comes out I will cancel all my plans and get lost in Night City all over again.
2021
One of the best horror games I've played in recent years.
Being in the AA space it won't have the production values of something like RE Village but the puzzles and exploration are just as good, if not better, and there's a surprisingly emotional story with an amazing soundtrack to boot.
Combat isn't great but isn't the main focus nor is it actually bad.
It's a shame it's been overlooked likely due to all the first person horror wank on the market but this game is unmissable for horror fans.
Being in the AA space it won't have the production values of something like RE Village but the puzzles and exploration are just as good, if not better, and there's a surprisingly emotional story with an amazing soundtrack to boot.
Combat isn't great but isn't the main focus nor is it actually bad.
It's a shame it's been overlooked likely due to all the first person horror wank on the market but this game is unmissable for horror fans.
Can be a good amount of fun at times and looks gorgeous, but the more emotional moments failed to connect with me even though I can admit they're done well. Surprisingly glitchy on Series X as well but nothing games breaking.
I think I'd have eaten this up a few years back but I'm at a point where I'm so tired of overly cinematic games with all of their forced walking sections and constant dialogue. The game also rarely lets you figure things out for yourself.
In short, a decent ride but nothing memorable.
I think I'd have eaten this up a few years back but I'm at a point where I'm so tired of overly cinematic games with all of their forced walking sections and constant dialogue. The game also rarely lets you figure things out for yourself.
In short, a decent ride but nothing memorable.
2021
Had completely written this off until it was on Game Pass and damn am I glad I downloaded it on a whim. Great characters, fun combat which is simple at first but gradually evolves over the game and an intriguing story which is different from the usual "we have to kill god" story you see in a lot of JRPGs. Hopefully people stop sleeping on it like I did.
2021
You'll never get me to be objective about this game because I spent so much of my childhood on it. The ReVamped version of the second game on Xbox is sadly pretty glitchy and this didn't arrive completely unscathed but they aren't gameplay ruining. Just some music tracks skipping at the start and voices have a weird reverb effect sometimes. Bar that it's totally faithful to the original and I can't recommend it enough if a cool af vampire lady slicing up Nazis and monsters sounds like fun to you!