CMike
BACKER
2019
Mature on a level that most games only dream of. A few clunky mechanics, but otherwise this is a fantastic VR title.
2021
Technical issues and a few sections that really dragged put a damper on an otherwise thrilling and stylish online co-op experience.
The weakest season to date both in minigames and aesthetics.
Some great new minigames were added, but the winter theme started to grate as the season extended well into March.
A little light on new minigames, but the ones that were added were solid (Wall Guys is a personal favorite of mine) and this season included some desperately needed quality of life improvements and customization that were vital to the game's longevity.
The rare game where its most frustrating design decisions are also its most compelling and meaningful.
I have a lot of positive feelings about Sword & Sworcery, but many of them are undercut by the very elements I'm praising.
The game is beautiful with its pixel waterfalls and flickering lights, but also kind of ugly when the sprites and other 2000s Flash-like effects appear.
I love the story's weight in its simplicity, but it's grating to come across the many lines of dialogue that have that early 2010s online quirkiness to them. I could live with a little more gravitas and a little less totally random dancing boars.
It does a lot of really cool things and there are some inspired ideas. (The animation when you've taken damage! Becoming weaker as the game progresses!) But then does a little bit too much in some other areas, and feels like it's trying to be too many things at once.
All in all I can't say I didn't enjoy the melancholy walks through the woods and simple yet effective puzzles, and the game is oozing with style. I just wish they had leaned more into the things that really worked here.
The game is beautiful with its pixel waterfalls and flickering lights, but also kind of ugly when the sprites and other 2000s Flash-like effects appear.
I love the story's weight in its simplicity, but it's grating to come across the many lines of dialogue that have that early 2010s online quirkiness to them. I could live with a little more gravitas and a little less totally random dancing boars.
It does a lot of really cool things and there are some inspired ideas. (The animation when you've taken damage! Becoming weaker as the game progresses!) But then does a little bit too much in some other areas, and feels like it's trying to be too many things at once.
All in all I can't say I didn't enjoy the melancholy walks through the woods and simple yet effective puzzles, and the game is oozing with style. I just wish they had leaned more into the things that really worked here.
I'd probably recommend this to fans of the genre over fans of the Zelda franchise, although I wouldn't say it's particularly great for either.
2013
A cool experience exploring the island for the first time, but subsequent trips to the newly generated islands are disappointing in their lack of variety. Sure they are in different places, but there is always one cabin, always a few statues at the top of a mountain, always a circle of headstones marking the entrance to the next season. Dreamlike, but not stimulating to the imagination.
2020
It's pretty much the same game we've been getting, but I'll say this for 2K21, the G League career path is genuinely hilarious and a nice break from the previous melodramatic entries. RIP Red Claws
Feels a bit clunky and rough around the edges at times, especially on PlayStation VR, but the big moments are genuinely thrilling.
Great soundtrack and art design, doesn't run super well and the actual gameplay is so-so.
The end of the campaign has an extended sequence solely to feature the theme song that Chuck Ragan wrote for the game, and then exactly a minute later the credits start and it plays THE EXACT SAME SONG. Hilarious.
The end of the campaign has an extended sequence solely to feature the theme song that Chuck Ragan wrote for the game, and then exactly a minute later the credits start and it plays THE EXACT SAME SONG. Hilarious.
2021
Housemarque really got tired of waiting on Nintendo to make another Metroid Prime game and took matters into their own hands.
2002
Initially amusing and interesting as an early 2000s gaming thought experiment, but wears thin pretty quickly.
2018
Starts off strong and has some inspired ideas, but murky character motivations and a rushed final act hold Quarantine Circular back.
As an aside, I really like that this series exists and hope we get more someday.
As an aside, I really like that this series exists and hope we get more someday.