Super paper mario is such a weirdo.

In a war between the N64 and Gamecube duo, and the Sticker-Splash-Origam trinity, Super is just there in the middle doing its own thing.

It's technically and RPG since the characters "Level up" but it's also a regular 2d platformer.... except is not just that because the ability to switch between the 2D and 3D world makes for 3D exploration / puzzle solving that makes for a bizzarre mix.
THe aesthetic is also weird: a weird combinatio of the older PC interface, classic MS paint, classic computer and technology assets, and PAPER.... it's absolutely dated but also feel timeless... somehow.... it's neat.

All of these bizzarre decisions don't even stop here: you know how this game was sold as a clasic mario journey with nothing important in terms of the story?
Well, the commercials were kinda right..... except for the part where you witness Peach's and Bowser's wedding, a brainwashed evil luigi, bizzarre species and character designs, a manor FULL OF SLAVES, THE END OF THE WORLD, aliens pooping in space, HELL, THE OTHER HELL, some of the most tragic and complex mario characters ever created and legit some of the best Nintendo villains.

SUper Paper Mario is the third unsong hero of the Paper Mario series, an absolutely phenomenal experiemnt that feels as both a acid trip, and an incredible experience.

Imagine someone handling you a broken glass, shiny and to some pretty but completely shattered into pieces, and they ask you to fix it while handling you only some spit and a bit tiny duct tape.

It can be hard to imagine how plausible it can be to fix this glass.... and yet mr. Giratina himself did it.
Pokemon Platinum takes the janky skeleton of Diamond and Pearl and fixes almost all of its issue, creating one of the best experiences in the Pokemon franchise.

The roster of mons is now more varied than ever, bringing a pokedex that is full of customization alongside some really cool new evolution fr some of the older monsters. The flew of the story, while not perfect, is much better and less confusing than the ones presented by Diamond and Pearl (Fantina is actually reachable without 10000 walks and loops now). The battles feels faster and more balanced, and the now evolved pokemon formula is fun as always, but also feels more balsnced because of the different changes included by the fourth gen (special and physical split alone is enough to ramp up the formula).

To this we had an incredible extra compared to what Dialga and Palkia showed us: the Distortion World is to this day one of the most stunning and impressive pokemon locations, and traverse it feels alienating, but thrilling and engaging. Even the villains got a more respectable showcase of their plan and motivations. The rest of the cast, including gym leaders, NPC and especially Cynthia have a lot more time to shine.

While not what I feel is the objectively best pokemon game, Pokemon platinum will forever be my favorite, and a must play if you are a fan of the franchise.

I still remember making my Torterra reach level 100 without the use of candies.... good times, man....

If you don't like first person shooters, you will love Team Fortress 2.
If you don't like online multiplayer games, you will love Team Fortress 2.
If you don't like men, you will love Team Fortress 2.
Heck, even if you don't like videogames, you will LOVE TEAM FORTRESS 2

A title that is not only able to stand out the test of time, with a community (mostly not toxic) active for over 15 years, and a charm so persuasive that literally lead to the invention of SFM.

Even without considering the impact TF2 had on the internet or the videogame landscape as a whole, in a vacuum the game is also really enjoyable: each of the different characters not only have a timeless iconicity and personalities, but gameplay-wise they all have unique gimmicks that can be exploited differenty depending on your team or the overall strategies. I have been a Scout main when I played the game as a kid (mostly because I sucks at aiming and a baseball bat was a call for me), but trying out characters that I never personally tried, like Heavy Pyro or Spy, lead to always fun matches even though Im kinda suck personally eheh.

It is also respectable how one of the most important aspects of modern multyplayer games (DLC AND MICROTRANSACTIONS, my not beloved!) are limited to cosmetics and don't remove anything crucial to the whole experience. Each extra mode even today are released, and show how much the devs care about this title.

One of the best free-to-play experience you can have. Valve invented comedy back in 2007 and nobody topped that yet.
If you don't wanna try it, at least watch the trailers and promotional shorts: Expiration Date is cinema at its finest.

I never played portal 1 but I remember trying Portal 2 years ago, completing it and thinking it was a good time. Just the other day, I decided to give it back a shot and..... OMG I have no idea what I was missing.
When it comes to videogames that are considered "perfect" by the masses, most of the time that definition can feel kind of overused: most title that a lotta people consider perfect are not my perspnal cup of tea.

Not in this case: Portal 2 deserves all of the praises it gets.
It starts without wasting your time, presenting an experience that perfectly mixes creative puzzle solving with physics that feel revolutionary to this day.
Glados, Wjeatley and any other minor NPC have such and amazing writing that you will warm up to them in no time, and a stpry that is able to narrative of a dystopic dark reality while also being extremely goody and enjoyable. You want to stay tp see what these frealy machines will say to you, or how the facility that kept Chell slowly unwraps its own secrets.

It's an amazong game that doesn't stop there: other than the campaign you got a fantastic coop mode (the little I played of it was enough to male it feel fantastic) that links to the main story, and one of the best level creation ever made.
The game is not that long, mostly slowed dpwn by some pf the tougher pizzles, but every second of this experience is enjoyable and absplitely worth it.

Portal 2 is a masterpiece. Everyone should give a shot to this one.

COnsidering how much Jojo inspired Street Figther and a lot of other capcom properties, it makes sense for the company to repay the favor by making a game based on the manga.

I tried this on one of the last arcade left near my place, more specifically an arcade machine in a bowling palace full of various roms.

I rememeber a friend of mine being a bit disappointed of the lack of part 1 or part 2 characters, but it kinda makes sens ecosnidering that the Part 3 cast is the one that will make more sense for the gameplay formula capcom planned for this.

Infact, considering the roster, you could say that almost each character in a puppet fighter, able to sent their stands in front of them or in other different ways. The stand is also ablwe to take damage though, meaning that sending your muscular soul manifestation to do damage can be detrimental, an a steady approach is always recommended... this is a cool mechanic that makes this game stand out compared to a lot of fighting games at the time.

THe presentations and spriteworks are also incredibly immaculate, and gives so much life to the locations seen in the manga / anime. And the roster is also really creative, giving a playable role to some of the fan favorites enemies too, like Mariah or Hol Horse.

Considering the way most of their powers works, the roster may result incredibly unbalanced... one specific s''t eating bird is especially to consider if you wanna feel pain while playing this game.
But regardless, it is a really solid title from the arcade era and it is worth revisiting even today.

Only on paper, Dead Cells main formula feel like a certain slam dunk: a combination of the maze like levels of metroidvanias with the rouge-likes mechanics of titles like Spelunky or Hades.
It cn be hard to combine these two aspects in a balanced and fun experience... good thing that the devs knew what they were doing.

Dead Cells is an extremely well put together title: hard at times like a lot of rogue likes, but extremely good in terms of gameplay, variety and replayability. The really creative level variety and simple but solid platforming merges perfectly with and incredible presentation and soundtrack.

To this you add an incredible set of crossovers that adds gameplay formulas reminiscent to Hollowknight, Castlevania, Shovel Knight and many other beloved games.

I will admit that I feel like the game is not an automatic 10/10. Some of the biomes like the Rampants create levels maybe too linear, and the fact that most of the opened routes like the Dilapidated Arboretum being locked behind DLC can feel like the base game is much smaller than it actually is.

But aside from these weird design decision, Ded cells is incredible: one of the best Indie rogue-likes on the market.

Pokemon HGSS are beloved titles for a reason: they take the already beloved Gold and Silver and bring them back with the modern take on the pokemon formula. The implementations made by the fourth gen (new evolutions and split between special/physical moves) lead to a more balanced and varied experience, and things like the incredible spritework and the ability to interact with pokemon as never before (with events like poke-walker, ability for mon to follow you, and minigames like the pokeathlon) leads to a more charming way to bond with your fictional animals. The music and sound design is also incredibly good.
The lenght of the game is also absolutely impressive: two whole regions are able to be re-explored in new ways, and this without some incredible secrets like the Sinjoh ruins, legit one of the most amazing pokemon event to this day.

Thought I feel like these remakes doesn't fix a lot of the major flaws of gold and silver: for once, most of the Johto pokedex is still locked for the really last part of the game... like I don't understand why the game that introduced cool monds like Houdoom, Sneasel and Misdreavus will not allow me to use them up until I reach Mount Silver (aka the real end of the game).
Another big problem is the weird difficulty curve: the flow of the adventure can feel really unbalanced: some of the gym leaders can feels brutal compared to the time you fight them, while the others later on can just be too weak compared to what you met before... especially at the later half of the game the experience can feel a bit too unbalanced.
ALso another nitpick I have is.... I don't get why GF didn't went hard on the new evolutions past pokemon got: the addition of evos like Yanmega, Honchkrow, Ambipom, Porygon z, Electivire, Tangrowth and similar designs would have led to a more interesting take on those classics: like imagine meeting Morty and he got a Mismagius, or fighting Pryce equipped with a Mamoswine. Instead the desire to keep the remake closer to the classic leads to some design decisions that can feel underwhelming, especially after many players probably tried DIamnd / Pearl / Platinum at the time.

Still a grea title that I wish would have had some different take on some of its design choices.

An sbsolutely overlooked DS classic
I never played the original CUstom RObo, but this was my jam when I was stuck on car rides for hours and hours.

It's a sequel that takes an approach and setting similar to Megaman Battle Network: showcasing a sem-futuristic urban world where kids enter the cyberspace to fight while impersonating funky robot humanoids. It's a fun setting that is accompanied by a cast of characters that are simple, but really endearing, creating a anrrative that just like Battle Network doesn't shy aways from darker moments.

The progression is nothing to scoff at: it's similar to a classic RPG, where you go around interacting with various people, but the battles is where the game truly shines: being completely in 3D is already impressive for a DS title, but the incredibly frenetic battles are variety of maps you can fight in never chase to amaze and leads to battles that require a more strategic planning in the weapon selection and the positioning. The enemy variety also lead to some specific boss fights that will keep you on your toes without feeling unfair (even if they kinda re unfair in the context of the story)

Add the incredible ability of weapon customization and the ability to play as different characters leads to an addictive battle system that I went back in over and over again.

Absolute overlooked nintendo DS title. There is a reason why this series is often considered one of the hidden gems in Nintendo's catalogue. I really recommend it.

I remember loving this game as a kid, and I was shocked to see over the years how many people despised it and called it one of the worst experiences on the DS.

As an experience this is pretty much a continuation of the Yoshi Island formula: a full sequel with familiar mechanics and levels, but with new features to spice things up.
More specifically the implementation of the various babies makes for an interesting concept, leading to different takes on the level design that results mostly fun (exception is baby wario that has some slower and more tedious puzzles with the magnet): while switching between babies can be kinda tedious because of the Stork stop signs, I never found it that much annoying. The levels, while nothing creative as kinda too reminiscent to SMW2, they are still fun to traverse and Yoshi is fun to control as always.

The worst thing about Yosho DS is the use of the dual screen tho showcase two different parts of the map, more specifically the part yoshi is in and the sky above him: on paper it is a cool idea: you see an enemy on the top screen and you know it will come closer/ be able to be hit with the eggs.... the issue is that the level design doesn't take in consideration the literal gap that distances the two screens, leading to levels that feels cramped, and where any interaction with the upper screen never feels accurate.
The more zoomed camera compared to other platformers also means that you will see less of the levels, meaning that faster obstacles, bottomless pits, and any type of obstacle can beinfurating to traverse (I remember the ski level specificall that always pissed me off)

But aside from that, I don't see why this game is so hated: it's doesn't do something that impressive, but it is still a decent sequel to Yoshi's baby-sitting shenanigans

If I need to talk about a game that "was a big part of your collection but nobody even kmows about it", Mini Ninjas is that title for me. I replayed this little gem over and over again and really enjoyed everything that this title got to offer.
It a mostly standard linear platformer with some actions put into it, but its also the combination of many fun things: the ability to get multiple characters, all with different playstyles; the wide collectibles and spells that enlarges your techniques in really creative way, the artstyle that creates both incredibly charming scenery but it's also able to create more stunning and sometimes creepy moments (the cemetery levels took me by surprise at the time). Not to mention that you can approach some sections as you want, either by going full on attack or trying to sneak through the enemy lines.... "it's like in metal gear or smt I dunno"

I remember spending ours on the cooler levels at midnight, trying to sneak on enemies either by taking control of the animals and turning into a rabbit, or just following the troops before backstabbing them.

Honestly it doesn't do anything stunning: it's just a simple idea with a simple but charming and solid execution. But honestly I respected that simplicity at the time, and still made me enjoy it.
It's not like the most revolutionary adventure around and it won't change your life, but it still a fun, overlooked little gem from the time it came out.

After playing Mario Golf on the NSO, I tried to give a shot to the Tennis counterpart, expecting a similar, kinda just okay/ mediocre experience.
And what I played was not amazing, but still incredibly solid.

For what it is supposed to be, a quirky tennis simulator with Mario flavor, it does A LOT of things to make it stand out.
It has an incredibly charming opening cutscenes that gives life to a lot of the mario cast; and it adds such bizzarre pics to the roster for the time, like the princess from that Land game, that miniboss dinosaur from SMB2, a random Boo and Shuguy (that weren't really that big of an enemy at the time), both DK and DK jr, and some weird camelot OCs, including what would become one of the most memorable nintendo characters. Not to mention that compared to othe sports titles, Mario Tennis builds different modes out of the mario universe: we got classic tennis matches and tournaments, but also the ability to play items on Bowser castle, and even have minigames themesd around piranha plants......

Even at the time Camelot was able to take the Mario world, shape them as they wanted and add so much more charm and personality to it. I highly respect that, even though the formula of Tennis here is... just rather simple and repetitive.

While the skeleotn of the game is "just tennis", the flavor of Camelot led to a charming experience, that is able to set the standards that will make the future Mario sports games so memorable.

Plum Golf is fine. It follows the adventures of Plum and Charlie, two new Nintendo characters that play golf with some other friends of them like Harry, Maple, Sonny and Princess Peach..... it's kinda weird how Mario is on the cover though....

As the first big Mario Sports game in 3D, it does for some weird directions in terms of the characters. I do find weird and funny that Plum is part of the opening intro: she is like that OC that the writer put into the canon in a fanfic and nobody questions that.... she is so much of a central character that Mario is unlockable from the beginning.

That is honestly the things I found more interesting about this game: I am not really into golf like at all, but for the first big N64 mario sport, it does it's job well enough I think: it has a fun roster, quirky and cool aesthetic vaguely themed around Mario worlds, and some okay side modes of minigolfs and other side stuff.... it can be clunky sometimes but for a golf game I am pretty sure this is just okay....

It's not a bad game, it's just kind of there: still give it a shot on the NSO, it can be more fun for you that it was for me probably

Pokemon X&Y is often considered one of the worst pokemon titles, and I honeslty can't see myself hating on it as much as other.

Yes, they are not perfect games and a potential pokemon Z would have fixed a LOT of issues.
But honestly I can justify a lot of the choices they went for: this game came out as a response to the fifth generations, that even if today is considered on of the best in the series, at the time wasn't financially successful, since most of the past fans where turned off by most of the bolder choices Black&White presented.

In a way, the decisions behind X&Y are not different to what other series did when they crumbled financially: Street fighter 4 was designed as a way to appeal to the "golden age" of SF after third strike went on its own hardcore direction; Fire emblem tried to capitalize on the nostalgia for the first game with the Shadow dragons remakes on DS and even with Awakening after the series was selling almost zero copies....

And similarly, the sixth generation focused more on the nostalgia for past titles: the new pokedex of Kalos is shorter, in favor 0f bringing back every past mons with new stunning 3D models instead of the spriteworks of past titles; you get your starters only to receive the Kanto trio after the first gym, alongside their NEW COOL MEGA FORMS; you even get plent of references to Kanto to say to older fans that "pokemon is back to its routes": the sleeping snorlax blocking the route, a cave literally called after Zubats, popular past mons like Lucario or Lapras given for free, and even a cave where Mewtwo resides.... today the appeal to Kant can feel saturated, but at the time it was apparaised adn accepted as a response to past games.

X&Y didn't just stopped to "just fanservice": the game was full of new gimmicks that while not incredibly developed, felt experiemntal and new: Horde encounters, Sky battles, the introduction of a literal new type after decades, character customization, and new ways to interact with the overworld... and this without even metioning mega evolutions, an incredible way to resurrect more underrated pokemon in the roster like Mawile, Medicham, Houndoom, Pinsir or Manectric. And the ability to find new encounters in every route was honestly pretty cool.

THe issue is that all of this new mechanics... weren't really mashed together well: Megas are cool but you can only obtain most of them in the almost non-existing post game (meaning that I made a team with Absol only to be able to try its new form after I beat Diantha), the game gives you a mega lucario and a mega charizard for free after the third gym, meaning that the game becaomes incredibly easy even if you nuzlock it, and most of the more creative mechanics are not implemented well and result more like a novelty that a fun experience.

Not to mention that the game is filled with mkre nauseating and slow pacing, due to the less interesting story that is shoved into your mouth, the least interesting rivals and villains, and the overall just inenteresting set pieces... only exception being AZ and the story of the giant Kalos war.

Overall it is still a decent time, I can respect a lot of the things X&Y does.... but really we needed a Pokemon Z. I can't get why the holy deer, the bird of death and the funny green snake are either just there to be used as battery or just chilling in a cave (seriously, Mewtwo gets a cool cutscene but not Zygarde?)

For the first time, I was able to play one of the first Mario Party titles in a room with friends, with the port on NSO.
We went for Mario Party 3 because it was the one which introduced Waluigi and Daisy (so it's already based).
More specifically we got a run of 20 turns on Spiny Desert. It was a loooong session for sure (mostly because playing on the switchs with sideways joycons means that we got locked on some minigames because the press of the start button was not recognized by the system and we wera forced to reset them over and over again).

But honestly it was a fun time. Having grown up with only mario party DS and 8.... I kinda forgot how unfair these games can be. You got items like the Reverse Mushroom that can force anyone to go in reverse on the board, the Bowowser iPhone 10 that lets you call the big guy and point him to anyone, or the Boo Bell that can steal a star to a player for like 50 coins, and considering how easy is to rank up coins, this feels really cheap.

It's not the fault of the game itself, but I remember I got to choose to steal a star to either the player that stole my star on the previous turn, or the guy that was winning because he got 2 tars.... and I choose the third player who did nothing wrong because I confused Luigi and Yoshi's models because they are both green or something....... yeah I still feel bad about that.
But this also didn't matter, because none of us were able to predict the winner, that got above everyone else becasuse her received 2 bonus stars at the end of the game because he spent more money of something......

But that is the charm of Mario Party: it's chaotic, brutal and sometimes will shake friendships as people say, but it is always cheesy and fun. If you don't take it seriously you will have a blast even with those older titles.

And even if it's best enjoyed if played with others, if you play it alone you can have some fun times: the minigames are still fun and the characters have cutscenes that gives them a lot of charm: I think the reason people loved Daisy and Waluigi from their earlier days is beacues they saw the princess bitchslap Bowser into the stratosphere and the purple guy having its own plan and villanous board.

Overall it's a good time still toady... I am glad Koopa Kid ask me if I brush my teeth....

I remember there was a Bowling centre near my hometown: it was pretty crowded and it also a bunch of arcade machines near the entrance: that was amazing, at it kinda sucks that now most of them are gone.

But also one of those cabinets literally scared me to death and always made me avoid eye contact with the left side of that hall for the rest of the time I went through

I remember vividly being haunted by this specific level, set at midnight, with unsettling zombies lurking around, alongside people crying or desperately trying to run away. Eventually your character became a zombie and starting vomiting blood all over the stage, all accompanied by a creepy music and all leading to an encounter with aliens??? Really tall and creepy aliens with worm heads?

I wondered for years what this title was about: what horror series was even allowed to be so publicly showcased? ... oh wait it was metal slug.

And that is the magic of metal slug, especially MS3: is a shooter that throws to you so many crazy things that while weirded me out as a kid, are so crazy and creative that now let me just.... go for the ride.

You got a cartoonishly sense of humor that doesn't shy away from more crude aesthetices, and lets you go from militry bases, horror themed settings, arctic ruins where you shoot yetis with an elephant loaded with machinge guns, aztec temples and deserts where you fight the military on top of a came (also loaded with machine guns), giant robots... and then you playable character is kidnapped by aliens and you gotta go to their base in space, defeat clones of them and fight a giant brain while falling back on earth.

It's ana amazing and memorable experience that outshines not only a lot of other arcade shooters, but also a lot of other SNK titles, famous for oozing with personality and charm from all their pores.

Of course it's tough as nails: it's a game that can result unfair at times because of the philosophy of arcade titles... but the charming graphics and incredibly addicting gameplay and options for combat are the reason why tons of people spend money on this in the first place.

MGS3 is a classic, absolutely something to try.