Arkry
All the Pokémon games are very similar in their structure but this was probably my favorite version of that formula so far.
Just a fun adventure with charming character, a cool region and it all looks beautiful in this artstyle. What pushed it over the edge was Delta Episode tho, that shit was raw
Just a fun adventure with charming character, a cool region and it all looks beautiful in this artstyle. What pushed it over the edge was Delta Episode tho, that shit was raw
2013
Drakengard 3 is an experience like no other and in so many ways it's a downright masterpiece.
The way that it tells its story and how it strangely makes you care for the characters through the different routes & endings is something special. How all those branches come together to give you small pieces of information on this world & this story. From the bigger picture stuff with Accord and the connection to the other DrakeNier titles, down to the smaller scale, self contained story of Zero, the intoners and their servants. It was an amazing experience and was also enhanced even further by the incredible soundtrack. Keep in mind, the story isn't perfect, as some characters are a bit underdeveloped (the DLC apparently fixes this but I didnt play that yet...), but it's still an extremely impactful narrative with a thematic throughline that hits all the emotional peaks that it needs to and it does so in a way that can only be done within this medium, while also trying things that I've never seen before in a game...
But talking about the medium, it is still a game, and sadly it's not great to play.
I still found myself having fun and it's a major step-up from the original drakengard but it's still lacking. The level design is extremely repetitive, the combat is clunky, there are awkward difficulty jumps, it feels unbalanced with some weapons being completely useless, the sidecontent is just repetitive missions inside reused areas, your companions feel useless in battle, and I could go on but in conclusion, it kinda just plays like shit. Especially because on top of all this the game has terrible performance with a ton of screentearing and you're lucky if it hits 30fps for more than a few seconds. (it somehow never crashed tho)
But despite the gameplay issues I'm glad that I played it myself, I doubt that this game wouldve impacted me in this way if I just watched it. So even with the flaws, and even if it's hard to recommend, this game is pretty fucking incredible... but it has a few too many flaws for it to get 5 stars
The way that it tells its story and how it strangely makes you care for the characters through the different routes & endings is something special. How all those branches come together to give you small pieces of information on this world & this story. From the bigger picture stuff with Accord and the connection to the other DrakeNier titles, down to the smaller scale, self contained story of Zero, the intoners and their servants. It was an amazing experience and was also enhanced even further by the incredible soundtrack. Keep in mind, the story isn't perfect, as some characters are a bit underdeveloped (the DLC apparently fixes this but I didnt play that yet...), but it's still an extremely impactful narrative with a thematic throughline that hits all the emotional peaks that it needs to and it does so in a way that can only be done within this medium, while also trying things that I've never seen before in a game...
But talking about the medium, it is still a game, and sadly it's not great to play.
I still found myself having fun and it's a major step-up from the original drakengard but it's still lacking. The level design is extremely repetitive, the combat is clunky, there are awkward difficulty jumps, it feels unbalanced with some weapons being completely useless, the sidecontent is just repetitive missions inside reused areas, your companions feel useless in battle, and I could go on but in conclusion, it kinda just plays like shit. Especially because on top of all this the game has terrible performance with a ton of screentearing and you're lucky if it hits 30fps for more than a few seconds. (it somehow never crashed tho)
But despite the gameplay issues I'm glad that I played it myself, I doubt that this game wouldve impacted me in this way if I just watched it. So even with the flaws, and even if it's hard to recommend, this game is pretty fucking incredible... but it has a few too many flaws for it to get 5 stars
![NieR Re[in]carnation: The People and the World](https://images.igdb.com/igdb/image/upload/t_cover_big/co7zfb.jpg)
This final arc of NieR Re[in]carnation is without a doubt the best part of the game. Every arc before this was just planting the seeds and after years of buildup I'm happy to say that they were able to bring it together and conclude this experience in a satisfying & surprising way.
This entire chapter was filled with plottwists & crazy moments at every turn and it was incredible to finally get answers to so many questions. Not just questions from NieR Re[in]carnation but from all of NieR and even Drakengard, as this game directly ties together everything that came before while also laying a foundation for what comes next and dropping some massive lore bombs along the way. But while it did a lot of heavy lifting for the greater story of this universe, it also manages to bring a satisfying conclusion on a more personal level to every character that we met throughout our journey through the Cage. All of them get their time to shine here.
The only thing holding this back is ofcourse the gameplay and the fact that it is a mobile gacha game which will soon be gone forever... I really hope that they preserve this experience in some way because it definitely deserves it and its importance to the world of NieR can't be understated.
Love it or hate it, this is NieR 3. And while I used to be on the hate side, I'm glad that I decided to check it out regardless because as a fan of the series this was a joy to experience
This entire chapter was filled with plottwists & crazy moments at every turn and it was incredible to finally get answers to so many questions. Not just questions from NieR Re[in]carnation but from all of NieR and even Drakengard, as this game directly ties together everything that came before while also laying a foundation for what comes next and dropping some massive lore bombs along the way. But while it did a lot of heavy lifting for the greater story of this universe, it also manages to bring a satisfying conclusion on a more personal level to every character that we met throughout our journey through the Cage. All of them get their time to shine here.
The only thing holding this back is ofcourse the gameplay and the fact that it is a mobile gacha game which will soon be gone forever... I really hope that they preserve this experience in some way because it definitely deserves it and its importance to the world of NieR can't be understated.
Love it or hate it, this is NieR 3. And while I used to be on the hate side, I'm glad that I decided to check it out regardless because as a fan of the series this was a joy to experience
This review contains spoilers
The tagline for this game is “the unknown journey continues”, but nothing about this journey is unknown. They didn't commit to what the ending of Remake promised and instead focussed on just retelling the story of OG... But with all the different timelines already being introduced it feels wrong for this to just try and be a remake, as these things often go completely against the point of FFVII.
Especially because, in its adaption of the original story, it keeps missing the point of pivotal moments, arcs & characters. It doesn't understand what made FFVII so special to me and because of that just creates a worse version of it. It's not necessarily bad but it is consistently worse. Very rarely it does try to be its own thing but it doesn’t go far enough for it to actually have an impact on the narrative. Even during the ending, they go insane, only for it to mostly end up like the OG anyway, taking away from the impact of both the new and original story elements, while setting up part 3 to be more of the same. It’s like they’re scared to deviate too much so it just sits awkwardly in the middle while they stretch out these 15 hours of story content into a massive & bloated 70 hour experience that feels at a loss of what it wants to be.
Still tho... the combat is extremely satisfying, some areas are fun to explore (even if it's just a basic checklist open world), the locations are recreated in a beautiful way, the OST is incredible and the voice performances are flawless. The story even has some moments where it does work for me, where it's genuinely just really good & where it manages to adapt & reimagine events in interesting ways. I can't understate how much I adore those moments. Some characters and relationships are also expanded upon in great ways but for everything that it does right there are a million things that it does wrong.
As someone who really loves OG this game felt pointless to me. It tries to be different but doesn't commit, but when it tries to be faithful it misses the point. And while doing so it goes against everything that FFVII stands for. While it does improve on some aspects of OG, it also misses so much of what made that game so special. So what's the point...?
I did enjoy some moments of this game but at other points, and especially looking back on it, I hate that it even exists
Especially because, in its adaption of the original story, it keeps missing the point of pivotal moments, arcs & characters. It doesn't understand what made FFVII so special to me and because of that just creates a worse version of it. It's not necessarily bad but it is consistently worse. Very rarely it does try to be its own thing but it doesn’t go far enough for it to actually have an impact on the narrative. Even during the ending, they go insane, only for it to mostly end up like the OG anyway, taking away from the impact of both the new and original story elements, while setting up part 3 to be more of the same. It’s like they’re scared to deviate too much so it just sits awkwardly in the middle while they stretch out these 15 hours of story content into a massive & bloated 70 hour experience that feels at a loss of what it wants to be.
Still tho... the combat is extremely satisfying, some areas are fun to explore (even if it's just a basic checklist open world), the locations are recreated in a beautiful way, the OST is incredible and the voice performances are flawless. The story even has some moments where it does work for me, where it's genuinely just really good & where it manages to adapt & reimagine events in interesting ways. I can't understate how much I adore those moments. Some characters and relationships are also expanded upon in great ways but for everything that it does right there are a million things that it does wrong.
As someone who really loves OG this game felt pointless to me. It tries to be different but doesn't commit, but when it tries to be faithful it misses the point. And while doing so it goes against everything that FFVII stands for. While it does improve on some aspects of OG, it also misses so much of what made that game so special. So what's the point...?
I did enjoy some moments of this game but at other points, and especially looking back on it, I hate that it even exists
A very "okay" expansion that's being hard carried by some fun characters, a good combat system and an incredible ending
2024
I dont think any piece of media has ever hit me as hard as this before
This game simply being real is already a dream come true and because of that I had very high expectations that even felt unfair at the time... but it somehow surpassed all of them.
My only issue with it would be that the difficulty isn't really challenging (I played on hard) but even then it was still fun.
This is just a fantastic remake that does everything it needs to do and also isn't afraid to make changes. The new voice acting and music, the reworked gameplay, the link episodes, the new scenes and 1:1 recreations of iconic moments... The final few months especially stand out to me, as it's filled with the best gaming has to offer imo.
Reload understands what made the original so beloved, making it ultimately feel like the best version of Persona 3 anyone could ask for.
This game simply being real is already a dream come true and because of that I had very high expectations that even felt unfair at the time... but it somehow surpassed all of them.
My only issue with it would be that the difficulty isn't really challenging (I played on hard) but even then it was still fun.
This is just a fantastic remake that does everything it needs to do and also isn't afraid to make changes. The new voice acting and music, the reworked gameplay, the link episodes, the new scenes and 1:1 recreations of iconic moments... The final few months especially stand out to me, as it's filled with the best gaming has to offer imo.
Reload understands what made the original so beloved, making it ultimately feel like the best version of Persona 3 anyone could ask for.
I tried the coop, it was terrible, might go back to it one day
![NieR Re[in]carnation: The Sun and the Moon](https://images.igdb.com/igdb/image/upload/t_cover_big/co6vhs.jpg)
The main story is starting to pick up speed and while I already enjoyed the story of the Girl & the Monster, this act really steps it up in every possible way.
I really love the story of our new main characters, Yuzuki & Hina, and even the smaller stories that you get to explore feel more in-depth. Not only did I enjoy them more in their own right but they also have a stronger connection to the both the main story of NieR Re[in]carnation and the story of The Sun and the Moon.
Gameplay still sucks tho
I really love the story of our new main characters, Yuzuki & Hina, and even the smaller stories that you get to explore feel more in-depth. Not only did I enjoy them more in their own right but they also have a stronger connection to the both the main story of NieR Re[in]carnation and the story of The Sun and the Moon.
Gameplay still sucks tho
2021
![NieR Re[in]carnation](https://images.igdb.com/igdb/image/upload/t_cover_big/co7bm4.jpg)
The overarching mystery and the setup done for NieR Re[in]carnation as a whole is very interesting. I also really enjoyed the plot for this arc with the Girl and the Monster, but a lot of the individual stories that you explore were kinda hit or miss. Some of them were incredible and got me attached to its characters, but others were just kinda boring.
Music and art is awesome btw but the gameplay sucks
(I do have to mention that I started this game during the second anniversary. Around the same time where they started to be very generous, making it super free to play friendly (for the story content) and this did greatly affect my enjoyment & rating)
Music and art is awesome btw but the gameplay sucks
(I do have to mention that I started this game during the second anniversary. Around the same time where they started to be very generous, making it super free to play friendly (for the story content) and this did greatly affect my enjoyment & rating)
2021
The story is genuinely phenomenal.
It builds the mystery in a very satisfying way and when everything starts falling into place it's done masterfully. The entire meta narrative and the more crazy elements are also included in a fantastic way. The focus here is mainly on the plot & Alan tho so while the side characters are charming they're nothing too special.
The DLC also adds a lot to this story as it dives deeper into the more crazy parts and it really fleshes out the ending, which I loved.
The gameplay is definitely the worst part though as it feels extremely PS3 in the worst ways. It has interesting ideas but the basic gunplay feels very aged & isnt satisfying. Most combat encounters feel like a chore and there are a lot of them. I really wish this game wasnt so action heavy, smaller encounters work fine and can be enjoyable, but doing the bossbattles or fighting waves of enemies is simply not fun.
It builds the mystery in a very satisfying way and when everything starts falling into place it's done masterfully. The entire meta narrative and the more crazy elements are also included in a fantastic way. The focus here is mainly on the plot & Alan tho so while the side characters are charming they're nothing too special.
The DLC also adds a lot to this story as it dives deeper into the more crazy parts and it really fleshes out the ending, which I loved.
The gameplay is definitely the worst part though as it feels extremely PS3 in the worst ways. It has interesting ideas but the basic gunplay feels very aged & isnt satisfying. Most combat encounters feel like a chore and there are a lot of them. I really wish this game wasnt so action heavy, smaller encounters work fine and can be enjoyable, but doing the bossbattles or fighting waves of enemies is simply not fun.
Good ideas but poorly executed, both in gameplay & story.
The message or point of the game was extremely on the nose and kinda lacked nuance or depth. Gameplay was also just a walking simulator outside of 1 puzzle and a few chase sequences. The game did have its moments but it really didnt amount to much.
Kinda just felt like a very generic "horror" walking sim.
The message or point of the game was extremely on the nose and kinda lacked nuance or depth. Gameplay was also just a walking simulator outside of 1 puzzle and a few chase sequences. The game did have its moments but it really didnt amount to much.
Kinda just felt like a very generic "horror" walking sim.
FF7 Remake is a fucking fantastic game but it's very hard to rate because this is just chapter 1 of a trilogy and I don't know where this is going to go.
However, the characters are incredible, the story is engaging, the world is fun to explore, the sidecontent is meaningful, the environments are perfectly recreated, the gameplay is extremely fun & in-depth without being confusing, and ofc the OST fucks.
But this game is also setting up a lot of things to become more than FFVII... from defying fate, to reviving characters that should be dead and introducing characters from the compilation that are simply not good... But a lot of those elements are only being introduced here. They haven't really been explored, we dont know to what extend it will be implemented so I can't really judge it yet.
But for now, I can't deny that really like it. The game is so good that it genuinely just makes it work. If it keeps this up, this trilogy could fix everything from the compilation and retel the OG story with some interesting twists. It might not be better or as good as OG but it might be able to confidently stand next to it.. But they could also easily mess this up, as this is an extremely ambitious and risky direction to go in.
For now I would give the game a solid 4.5 stars.
If this trilogy somehow pulls it of, I'll gladly up that to 5stars, but if it falls off, this score can definitely drop. It'll always be "a good game" but there are too many unknowns and if the answers to those questions suck... I dont think I'll like this game as much as I do now (I lowered it to 4stars after seeing that Rebirth doesnt really do anything interesting with this ending, this game still good tho)
However, the characters are incredible, the story is engaging, the world is fun to explore, the sidecontent is meaningful, the environments are perfectly recreated, the gameplay is extremely fun & in-depth without being confusing, and ofc the OST fucks.
But this game is also setting up a lot of things to become more than FFVII... from defying fate, to reviving characters that should be dead and introducing characters from the compilation that are simply not good... But a lot of those elements are only being introduced here. They haven't really been explored, we dont know to what extend it will be implemented so I can't really judge it yet.
But for now, I can't deny that really like it. The game is so good that it genuinely just makes it work. If it keeps this up, this trilogy could fix everything from the compilation and retel the OG story with some interesting twists. It might not be better or as good as OG but it might be able to confidently stand next to it.. But they could also easily mess this up, as this is an extremely ambitious and risky direction to go in.
For now I would give the game a solid 4.5 stars.
If this trilogy somehow pulls it of, I'll gladly up that to 5stars, but if it falls off, this score can definitely drop. It'll always be "a good game" but there are too many unknowns and if the answers to those questions suck... I dont think I'll like this game as much as I do now (I lowered it to 4stars after seeing that Rebirth doesnt really do anything interesting with this ending, this game still good tho)
This game is such an incredibly mixed bag for me, I really like some aspects of it but others are just straight-up bad.
To start with the positives I guess...
I like most of Zack's character, I dont love him but he's pretty cool. Besides for Zack I also like some of the Sephiroth stuff, they dont really change his arc but show more of his "human" side which was nice.
The other characters that I liked are Cloud and Aerith but I feel like they could have used more screentime to flesh out their relationship with Zack. Especially Cloud, I kinda thought that this was the whole point of the game but instead they focus on other shit. What they did get was nice tho, they had some nice moments.
But story wise that's basically all I like. The writing in this game is terrible so when it comes to introducing new characters it's pretty shit. Angael's whole thing was just dumb but it's especially when talking about Genesis, I just do not like him at all. Him being the main villain, and him getting so much screentime is one of my biggest problems with this game as, even with all this screentime, they fail to make him a compelling villain. His constant quoting of Loveless is also really annoying and doesn't help with this. He literally just shows up out of nowhere only to recite some random theater lines before fucking off and never elaborating further.
It's also really strange how this game tries to retcon og FF7 as much as possible, either to force in Genesis or to just change stuff for no reason. Sure you can tell a prequel story about Zack, Cloud and Sephiroth, but the focus here is just in the wrong place.
Oh yeah as a remaster the game is cool tho, it looks a lot nicer and the gameplay is a lot better. Which does make it fun to play. Plus the CGI cutscenes are very cool and epic.... and the writing being as bad as it is does make it kinda funny
To start with the positives I guess...
I like most of Zack's character, I dont love him but he's pretty cool. Besides for Zack I also like some of the Sephiroth stuff, they dont really change his arc but show more of his "human" side which was nice.
The other characters that I liked are Cloud and Aerith but I feel like they could have used more screentime to flesh out their relationship with Zack. Especially Cloud, I kinda thought that this was the whole point of the game but instead they focus on other shit. What they did get was nice tho, they had some nice moments.
But story wise that's basically all I like. The writing in this game is terrible so when it comes to introducing new characters it's pretty shit. Angael's whole thing was just dumb but it's especially when talking about Genesis, I just do not like him at all. Him being the main villain, and him getting so much screentime is one of my biggest problems with this game as, even with all this screentime, they fail to make him a compelling villain. His constant quoting of Loveless is also really annoying and doesn't help with this. He literally just shows up out of nowhere only to recite some random theater lines before fucking off and never elaborating further.
It's also really strange how this game tries to retcon og FF7 as much as possible, either to force in Genesis or to just change stuff for no reason. Sure you can tell a prequel story about Zack, Cloud and Sephiroth, but the focus here is just in the wrong place.
Oh yeah as a remaster the game is cool tho, it looks a lot nicer and the gameplay is a lot better. Which does make it fun to play. Plus the CGI cutscenes are very cool and epic.... and the writing being as bad as it is does make it kinda funny
2000
I loved that part where the Bouncer said "I'm a bouncer" and bounced all over the place
How is this free DLC???
I would give this 5stars but I'm personally not a fan of roguelites so while I love the combat, the entire loop wasn't that interesting to me. The story and character stuff is an easy 10/10 tho. As someone who has been playing these games since the original trilogy this was an extremely rewarding experience. And just in general this is a great epilogue that makes Kratos' journey even better
I would give this 5stars but I'm personally not a fan of roguelites so while I love the combat, the entire loop wasn't that interesting to me. The story and character stuff is an easy 10/10 tho. As someone who has been playing these games since the original trilogy this was an extremely rewarding experience. And just in general this is a great epilogue that makes Kratos' journey even better