I got this from the Epic Games Store because it was free but like, this is probably one of the most mid games I've ever experienced to the point that it makes me want a refund for a free game.

The gameplay isn't really complex but because of the roguelike design there can just be points where the level design sucks and really in order to actually progress you need to hope you get lucky with drops so you can buy stats for your next run through.

I don't see the appeal in this game other than the physical/mental disorders that your characters can have which mostly doesn't do anything to actually make the experience inherently interesting in any shape or form.

I would argue it's harmless but it's not something I would honestly recommend, it's basically a halfassed Metroidvania with none of the depth of the best ones in the genre.

I don't really know how to define how important this game was to my development as a person in the late 2000s-early 2010s. A lot of my sense of humor at the time was built around what was shown in this game.

It also might be the reason why I have constant suicidal ideation thinking of it because that's all you do in this game. You kill yourself as part of the joke and get a large impact font punchline usually of the edgy shockjock variety.

Not to say I didn't have fun with it at the time, I did, and every so often it would have twists to its setup to provide a different take on its macabre humor, but it's definitely quite juvenile nonetheless.

As some teens edgy flash project that they made for fun, I can appreciate how different it was from the norm, but the humor has definitely aged if not for the edgy jokes than for the sheer amount of references to the Bush Administration.

I put a minecart ON ANOTHER MINECART to get across a rail gap and it WORKED!

Anyways it has better rail grinding than any Sonic game ever made let's fucking gooooooooooooo.

P.S. No video game is worth 70 dollars no matter how good, the money doesn't actually go to the people who work on the game. Piracy is the answer smile.

(Unfinished review will go more indepth whenever I finish.)

Well, this is the first Castlevania I've ever beaten and I'll fully admit I played on Easy Difficulty for this one because I've never played a Castlevania before and the game is hard as is even on this setting.

I will say I like how this game has a variety of settings going throughout all of Europe during the tail end of World War 1, from the Leaning Tower of Pisa to a Munitions Factory, the stages are all filled with a sense of variety and level themes that make sure they don't get old.

I do wish they kind of did more with it though given well, this game takes place during World War One and yet we only see soldier like enemies in that Munitions Factory I mentioned earlier. You would think we'd find more Soldier Zombies and Ghouls roaming the various locales but there aren't really any and it's a tad disappointing.

As for the gameplay it's a solid platformer, though some levels tend to drag way longer than they need to. Stage 4 in particular felt like it was going on for an eternity as the Stage count rose higher and higher to like fucking, Stage 4-13 or some shit.

I personally played as Eric Lecarde in my run because I just thought the Alucard Spear was a cool weapon and I was correct. His moveset being far more versatile than John Morris was also part of the reason. Eric has a high jump that can damage enemies, his spear can be aimed diagonally and twirled around for some extra style and defense, and he has a longer range.

Not to say I didn't try Morris, I did but I enjoyed playing Eric a lot more, and I like his design a lot as well.

Boss Fights in this game though are very hit or miss I find. You either get something really simplistic or an encounter that absolutely sucks balls.

I think the kicker really goes to the Gargoyle boss fight in Stage 3, as it being so high in the air makes hitting it a pain in the ass with your regular weapon, and the relatively small platform you fight it on doesn't give you much in the way to avoid its attacks.

And that's not bringing up the various stage gimmicks, the worst of which is in the final level. I fully expect the Final Level to be challenging, but I definitely think a reverse gravity section was a bit much just for how disorienting it was and the fact that a sizeable chunk of it is placed over a bottomless pit.

Despite that though the game is definitely a visual treat. The Genesis graphics and colors really make the game pop and the usage of red throughout gives the game an ominous creeping feeling as you make your way to challenge the Prince of Darkness.

All in all, Castlevania Bloodlines was alright. It didn't feel like a stellar experience but I could see myself going back to try the other difficulties given time.

I have no witty starting sentence for this review, so let's just jump straight into this.

Hameln no Violin Hiki, or as it's known in English, The Violinist of Hameln is the twelfth game I'm covering on my obscure games list. Recommended to me by JamesBuc, thanks again for the recommendation.

This game is actually an adaptation of a manga series by the same name, running from 1991 to 2001. It also had an anime adaptation, however from what I have read the anime adaptation removed much of the humor that made up a good chunk of the manga.

Written by Michiaki Watanabe, Hameln no Violin Hiki is a Dark Fantasy with comedic elements, often featuring characters going from dark and moody to pathetically comical within seconds.

Both the manga and the game were published by Enix, the same Enix of Dragon Quest fame that would later join fellow developer Square and become Square Enix.

As an aside, fuck Square Enix. This has nothing to do with the review but I'm so pissed about their NFT bullshit at this point, and I haven't played a Square game in recent days so I figured this would be the time to bring this up.

Anyways, the game very much captures the comedic nature of the manga rather well I would say. There's plenty of wacky and zany humor to be found both in the presentation of its narrative as well as the gameplay.

So, what kind of game is Hameln no Violin Hiki you may be wondering? Well, it's a 2D Platformer. Honestly I was a bit shocked at first, given that the track record of James' recommendations have been very zany, and far from standard type of games, but I did come to realize that while it's a 2D Platformer, it still has a lot of wacky and strange elements that make it stand out from your Mario's and your Sonic's.

For one, you play as Hamel, the famed Legendary Hero. Your primary weapon is the violin which you play, which shoots out musical tunes that destroy your foes. You run and jump as you do, sometimes finding keys to open doors so you can reach your goal.

However, you are not alone. Traveling with you is Flute, a teenage girl from a village that has been attacked by Monsters. She brings with her not only the comfort of having a traveling companion, but a very cool mechanic as well. By pressing the pause button, you can select a costume for Flute to wear, from an Ostrich to a UFO.

Wearing these costumes allows for you to use Flute to help overcome obstacles, like flying over a bottomless pit with the Bird, or breaking down walls with the Robot.

And they're not situational either, all of the suits at least have one capacity that makes it so that they can all be used out of their primary scenario based merely on your preference. Think of it as the Balan Wonderworld costumes, but actually done efficiently.

Not only does Flute bring that with her, but also your secondary means of attack.

So funny story, when I started the game, I got stuck on the first level after I threw a rock at a wall so that it would break. The rock disappeared but there was a second wall behind it. I had thought I softlocked myself, and I died twice trying to find what was wrong. That's when I suddenly grabbed Flute and threw her into the wall, breaking it.

That's right, Flute herself is your secondary means of attack, which also goes to some of her costumes. The curling iron can be used to smash through lines of enemies, and the Bomb is self explanatory.

Now at the end of each stage you can get stars based on Flute's physical condition. Usually by the end of the stage it's drained to zero, but it's ok. There is no negative penalty for it, the only thing you miss out on are the bonus stages.

These are only used to acquire money, which you use for temporary upgrades or costumes. I didn't really spend much money because I didn't think the temporary upgrades were that helpful, and because the game is pretty merciful with its lives and continues system.

For a platformer in 1995 this game is revolutionary in that it has infinite continues, and losing lives or a continue only starts you at the beginning of the screen that you were in when you died.

While I know that to some that may come out as the game being without challenge, honestly the game kicks your ass so hard by the end that a system like this doesn't really make the difficulty lesser, just more manageable.

While I very much enjoyed this game, I won't say there weren't any sour points. Boss Fights, particularly the fight with Bassoon, are not fun most of the time.

The Bassoon fight mostly being a waiting game while you deal with randomly spawning snakes that come from the ceiling and can hit you while you move. You have to use Flute to cover yourself from Bassoon's projectiles, and throw her to knock him off his guard and get some hits in. It's just an unpleasant balancing act, and the fact that the snakes seem to respawn at random parts of the screen, makes you run into them with no real fault of your own.

The Final Boss while challenging had one part that felt like BS which is when the boss charges down at you from the air, and you can't dodge it. Trying to throw Flute at them takes too long and isn't effective. Eventually I just resorted to Flute's UFO costume which deals damage to enemies upon contact, and that won me the day.

The other two bosses were just pathetically easy, though the third boss is notable for one, big thing. His name.

Full disclaimer, I don't know if this was a translation issue (I played this on zSNES with a translated rom pack), but the third boss of the game is named, and I quote, "Faggot".

Now a "Faggot" is actually a term referring to an instrument, as all of the bosses in this game are instrument name themed. That instrument is actually surprisingly enough the Bassoon, despite that being the boss before this one. The term comes from "Faggotti" which literally just means Bassoon.

I was pretty shocked at first when I saw characters in the game talking about this boss, and until I looked it up, I thought either the translation was wrong or that the work actually had such an offensive term used in it.

It is just a instrument reference though, but I'm putting this as a forewarning to those interested in playing just so that they do not get blindsided like I did.

Narrative wise, I don't know how much of the Manga is being adapted here, whether it's the first story arc or multiple, though I do think the ending of it just... ends. Like, it implies that the adventure will continue, but there's no game after this so you'd have to read the manga to see the rest and I don't know if the manga ever got localized, at least in the United States.

I don't really want to spoil it though, so it's up to you if you want to go further into the source material. I'm honestly considering it because this game gave me big Dragon Ball vibes.

All in all, Hameln no Violin Hiki is a great game, as a platformer it brings a lot of charm and uniqueness to the genre and I think this game would become rather Backloggd-core if more people played it.

Plus you can throw a girl into a brick wall and she breaks the wall, like, come on, that's fucking amazing.

I wonder how much calcium her bones have?

So... nobody else has reviewed this game? In all honesty it kind of makes sense, an obscure title for the Game Gear released only in Japan, Europe, and Brazil would probably go unnoticed by a lot of people.

As the sixth game off of the list, recommended by JamesBuc. Thanks once again for the recommendation.

This is probably the weakest entry in the list I've played so far, which isn't to say it's terrible but more in that out of all of the games on my list it's the least interesting in regards to gameplay or story.

You're a kid, and you break into a factory to give people what they want, be it raw meat, Game Gears, unopened presents, or medication. You are actively chased by various forms of Security Guards, some who will beat you with nightsticks, some who will shoot at you, and also that one enemy that just eats the raw meat for whatever reason.

So, how exactly do you get the items to the people? Well, this game has two different mechanics split into rounds for how you'll do just that.

The first and third round mechanics require you to stand on buttons which when switched on will change the direction of key points on the conveyer belt to get the item to the customer. You want to make sure that they get the right item or else your time goes down, and that's a big no no.

This setup is all about timing, though sometimes it can just result in a level playing itself for the most part while you just wait to step on the button. This is especially apparent because enemies that are way off screen will not follow you, at all, which while I appreciate the game not pulling BS like having the enemy be able to attack me off screen, also just makes some levels feel stupid easy and boring.

You can also just spam attacks on the guards and they won't be able to move. I have no idea what the character's attack is though, is it a burp? Are they yelling? It gets boosted by this trumpet pickup item so I have absolutely no idea, but hey at least you can stunlock every enemy in the game.

The second type of gameplay in Rounds two and four is adding new conveyer belts to redirect the items. This is an even worse mechanic because it just drags levels out in my opinion. Everything becomes about timing, which in a Game Gear game where everything is sluggish in feel, is kind of weird to work with. It doesn't help that there are eight stages per round, leaving us with a resounding 32 Stages. It kind of feels like the game should have ended after the second round given just how long the game feels to play.



But once you beat the game, you're treated to a cheering crowd and our little boy having grown up into a multi-millionaire who probably owns the factories now and would never allow what he did to happen to him.

I will give the game some props though, for a Game Gear game, the artstyle is actually pretty expressive and has a sort of cartoonish 80's anime charm to it. The kid makes a big goofy smile after each level and it's sort of funny and nice. The music on the other hand... is just 8 bit renditions of songs in the Public Domain like the 1812 Overture for some reason.

Not an Edit but this came after I wrote the rest of the review: This game in Japan is actually called Ganbare Gorubī, literally translating to Hang in there Gorby!. Gorby is the protagonist, and is also based on U.S.S.R President at the time, Mikhail Gorbachev. The game literally has you seizing the means of production as the primary goal. There is even a sequel that has only been released in Japan named Gorby no Pipeline Daisakusen, and this is the boxart. Truly, this is when video games peaked.

Of course, the irony is that the Soviet Union collapsed only a few short months after this (I'm talking Factory Panic here) game was released in Japan, so it kind of feels super ironic... if it wasn't ironic enough already to be profiting off of capitalizing on a game about communism.

Either way, JamesBuc, you sure do recommend some strange games, but I respect it. Honestly I feel like I learned a bit of gaming history from playing this one, and I definitely recommend people try it out if for nothing else than to see a game about the purest form of Communism.

I was not expecting this today.

This game had to walk before Bayonetta could dance.

Entry number seven of the list of obscurity is Gungrave, recommended by Retyl. Thank you very much for the recommendation, this game is truly a sight to behold.

Before even getting into the game, I was greeted by this intro. Not to toot my own horn, but I uploaded it to my account simply because I could not find an HD version of this... magnificent and mesmerizing opening. It was actually kind of irritating because this is an intro that should be seen by everyone for just how stylish it is and how it gets you right into the mood to play this game.

Gungrave is quite possibly one of the most aesthetically pleasing games I have ever played, which makes complete sense as the character designs are all done by Yasuhiro Nightow, the author and artist of the critically acclaimed Trigun. All of the characters, from our protagonist Grave, to the various bosses and enemies, ooze with this kickass late 90's-early 2000's anime feel. The music as well composed by Tsuneo Imahori reminds me a lot of Cowboy Bebop... which makes it unsurprising that he contributed several tracks to the show.

The game itself is extremely simplistic. Press Square to shoot things. Rinse, Lather and Repeat. Of course, it isn't that simple, but that is what you will be spending a majority of the game doing. I would find this to be much worse if the game wasn't just under 2 hours, and if it wasn't as fucking fun as it is.

The way Grave begins dancing with his guns when you start shooting in place, allowing you to just turn and slaughter at ease, the way that like a John Woo film, you can jump in various directions while firing rapidly to avoid attacks yet deal massive damage, the way using Demolition Shots can just erradicate enemies and bosses, it's just pure kino to me.

Of course, there's also shit I had a serious problem with, that being the camera. This game does not have a manual camera, and while there are games that can do that well, Gungrave ain't one of them. The camera only turns when Grave turns, which in certain moments while in tight narrow hallways, makes it borderline impossible to fucking see.

During boss fights it is especially noticeable, as bosses will often just fly off screen where you can't see them and angling back towards them can be awkward if you don't know about the lock-on feature, which I didn't until the Bunji boss, which is the second to last boss in the entire game.

Onto the story, it starts as a very vague mafioso revenge story. You play as Beyond the Grave, or just Grave for short, as you mow down hordes of goons of various types. You attack various places, a nightclub, then a drug lab, and eventually a fucking blimp. There's a feeling of slow escalation as you get further up the city.

You notice it in the second level, where the drug lab for some reason has bodies in test tubes, and in the third level where you fight Bob Poundmax, a big chungus who then turns into a robotic chungus. There's this feeling of science fiction and the super-natural seeping into the woodworks. Of course, the super-natural and science fiction were always there, Grave is a perfect example.

So it's no surprise that the final level has you entering what appears as an artificial heaven, filled with various experimented beings that look very inhuman. The final boss itself looking like a cosmic deity from the beyond.

While the story isn't overly deep, I do recommend you play the game yourself to truly experience it. There are a lot of moments that will have you questioning the true nature of the game, thematically and all.

Do I recommend Gungrave? Yes, but I will fully admit that this is a guilty pleasure game. It doesn't really ask anything of the player for the most part and is almost completely mindless, but ultimately it is satisfying fun from beginning to end.

Spoiler Warning
This game is only 3 months old at the time of this review and is very much something you should experience blind. I would use the Spoiler function, but honestly I hate that it covers the entire review up and that's just not something I'm a fan of so instead I'm putting this spoiler warning here.

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It's time to get into the fourth game I chose to play from my Obscure Games Recommendation List, recommended to me by MrPixelton, who was one of the many playtesters for it. Thank you very much for the recommendation.

Flesh, Blood & Concrete is, in my honest opinion, more of an experience than a typical game. If I had to compare it to something, I'd probably say it was akin to a game like Journey. It's very much about how the world around you builds up to the crescendo of themes and atmosphere, leaving you possibly a bit confused and puzzled, but ultimately leaves a lasting impression.

You take on the role of Lera, an (and this is just from my perspective, I believe this game is meant to be interpreted in many ways) androgynous individual who suffers from a severe case of depression and anxiety.

When Lera's car breaks down, they find themselves entering what appears to be an abandoned apartment complex, with only a little girl named Nika for company.

As soon as Lera enters however, they realize that nothing is as it seems. Hair is strewn throughout the building, rotting corpses and flesh fill up various rooms, and ominous VHS Tapes show haunting images of bodies morphing and merging in inhuman ways.

Along the way, various places that Lera had been to in their past appear within the building, leading them down a slight nostalgia trip, as if the building itself was attempting to distract them from the horror.

This game is loaded not only with cosmic horror, but existential horror and dread as well. Throughout the game, Lera, or rather you, are asked why you still struggle. Why you want to live. As someone who suffers from Persistent Depressive Disorder, the themes of suicidal ideation and lacking a reason for living hit very hard for me. It's something I've been dealing with since before I was even an adult, and has only grown more painful with time.

The "Bad" Ending, or rather the Happy Ending is basically your character giving up their sense of self, their individuality, the freedom of their flesh, over to the cosmic beings who control the abandoned apartment. This was the initial ending I got, and at first I was more confused as to what it meant, but it represents in my mind one of my biggest fears: The Death of Personality.

This trope refers to when one's personality is permanently killed, either psychologically or supernaturally. They become an entirely different person. One of my biggest fears in life, as unrealistic as it may be, is suffering this due to this disease. Losing my sense of self and just becoming a pure, depressive being with no interests or soul. The "Happy" Ending is essentially Personality Suicide as you become one of many in a system compared to in game to an ant colony.

It's not all doom and gloom though, the ultimate message of the game is that your life and individuality are worth living for. The True Ending ultimately having you at least attempt to escape the cosmic concrete jungle and continuing to live for the sake of living, which if nothing else, is an inspiring end to go out on.

It is implied however that neither end matters, and that Lera is dead before the game even begins, which means the entire game could be interpreted as their death trance. Seeing their life flash before their eyes while being guided by a hallucination.

Either way, I think the story is meant to be interpreted in many ways and I hope that more people take the time to find their own answers to the questions the game puts out.

In regards to the gameplay, it is rather simplistic, you just walk around, grab items, etc. But this is a game where the experience outweighs the need for complex game mechanics.

Try Flesh, Blood, & Concrete. It's relatively short, and I think it's an excellent portrayal of existential nihilism as well as an argument against it. Definitely something worth experiencing at least once.

I don't want to write a long review so I'll sum up what I like and don't like.

Disclaimer: Despite being marked as a replay, this is actually my first completed playthrough.

I adore the aesthetic and world of Yharnam. It absolutely oozes with that Gothic Horror (and eventually Cosmic Horror) feel that makes it stand out against the other Souls games. The combat was something that eventually grew on me. I was initially not a fan of the speed, but the game gives you various ways to make up for your mistakes be it the long ranged parry or the ability to regain health after a hit by being super aggressive. It definitely increases the uniqueness of the game.

The Blood Vial system though, sucks ass. Having to grind, not even for blood echoes, but health items is extremely infuriating. Eventually by end game I was using almost all of my remaining souls after level up to just buy as many Vials as possible so my storage would be filled up. Just a genuinely dumb mechanic when Dark Souls had gotten it so perfectly before.

The Blood Echo retrieval system is also something I despise. I hate the extra padding that is having to kill an enemy (sometimes one you can't even find because they're not remotely as close to where you died as you would think) just to get my echoes back. It was already hard enough to go back to where you died in the other Souls games without this additional caveat, and its a feature I can see as nothing else but padding at its base form.

I also hate having to warp back to the Hunter's Dream just to go to a different location, makes the Blood Vial grinding that much more egregious and punishes the player for misclicking an area in the menu with two lengthy loading sequences. Again, something Dark Souls did right and I have no idea why they changed it here.

Level design isn't very interesting to me outside of the rooftop section in Cainhurst that reminded me a good bit of Anor Londo. Don't get me wrong, I love how these levels look, but their progression isn't that great. It's mostly just a straight line to the end while you find multiple short cuts to speed up your route to the boss. Also, fuck the particular section in the Upper Cathedral Ward where they put Brainsuckers in narrow hallways where they can use their fucking binding magic and spam grab you to death. That was just dickish design, no if ands or buts about it.

Also what is with this game and Flunky Bosses. There's the Witches of Hemwick, Rom the Vacuous Spider, The One Reborn, The Celestial Emissary, and Micolash. Almost all of these fights either suck because they're dull or suck because they're annoying, there's no inbetween. At least there's the poison knife exploit with Micolash, was funny watching him dodge in place for 3 minutes as his health bar slowly declined.

The best fight in this game easily belongs to Gehrman. Just such a phenomenal moment honestly, and I somehow beat him in three tries. Just goes to show that the combat is, at the end of the day, very learnable. Father Gascoigne is a very close second though.

I enjoy this game about as much as Dark Souls 2, which is to say I love the general vibe the game puts out, and I think overall its a spectacle, but at the end of the day it doesn't remotely hit the same level of quality as the first Dark Souls. I think people give Miyazaki a little too much praise in regards to both this game and Dark Souls 3. Sure, this game isn't god awful, but compared to the first Dark Souls this game never comes close to gripping me like that one did. Dark Souls is (until Elden Ring saves gaming) what I will always consider Miyazaki's magnum opus, and that after its release it has mostly been a decline for him. He has never been able to fully recapture the magic of the first Dark Souls, and I don't know if he ever will.

If nothing else, Bloodborne is its own beast, but if you asked me if I thought it was as good as the first Dark Souls, I would say no. Not even close.

I cannot fathom what Dimps was thinking when they developed this game, especially since they created the, at least somewhat, well regarded Sonic Advance trilogy as well as the Sonic Rush duology.

They already know how 2D Sonic works, and while they've never been perfect at it, at least those earlier games felt good to play as far as I've heard.

Sonic the Hedgehog 4, Episode I is a physical attack on my senses. The visuals are ugly, the controls are inconsolably awful, and the soundtrack... the soundtrack.

I am genuinely disappointed with Jun Sunoue's work in this game, because all of the music is ear gratingly painful and makes me want to drill my brain out.

And on top of it all, this game can't decide whether it wants me to play it, or if it wants to play itself.

So many rings, so many lives, none of them feeling remotely earned in any capacity. Gimmicks and Level Design that just don't work because Sonic's physics just flat out do not function. Miserable Special Stages.

And they neutered the fucking roll. How the fuck do you do that for what is supposed to be a return to form for Classic Sonic design?!

The worst offender in this game by far is the inclusion of the Homing Attack, as it makes the game piss fucking easy and is always used for the same repetitive Bubble chains in every single stage.

I'll probably finish the game tomorrow morning, but I don't think my thoughts are going to change much. This game fucking blows.

Edit: Fuck this game, fuck the Special Stages, none of this is worth playing.

Since my last review was written during an extended panic attack which I have now recuperated from (and this will be the last time I mention said panic attack since I don't want that to become a recurring theme for myself) and I didn't really go in depth on my experience, this review will be covering both my first and second runs through the story mode.

On that first run, I played as my friend Simon who would be portraying FireCop, a fictional character he made in High School. FireCop was a heel, though on a lighter shade of that spectrum. He didn't care for authority despite being a cop, and would often cheat and beat on the empire of Vince McMahon.

At the start, FireCop had it really rough. He was alone in a cold and scary world, jobbing regularly to high end talent like John Cena. That was until he was given the offer to get a manager of his own, and that manager wound up being Sable.

FireCop and Sable had a healthy partnership, and under her guidance, the man began to win. He would keep winning, and their success as a talent/manager duo was about to pay off.

However, things couldn't end as hoped. There was another man, a slimy awful man by the name of Chavo Guerrero. Chavo had made it his mission to take Sable from FireCop, not through a fair contest but by attacking her directly. Ultimately, Sable couldn't win the match, and FireCop had lost his only ally in the harsh world of SmackDown.

This turn of events ignited something furious in FireCop, who began thrashing Chavo and his brother, Eddie, with the desire to strip the tag team championship from them by any means necessary...

Enter Brock Lesnar.

Lesnar would become FireCop's tag team partner and his beastial powers would ultimately annihilate the competition. The Guerreros would leave every fight with FireCop and Lesnar bloodied and battered, there was simply no mercy to be had. This feud ultimately ended with a cage match, with the Guerreros becoming forgotten and cast aside, a fitting end for those who dared to take what was most precious to FireCop.

He was content with his victory, and simply wanted to return to a life of wrestling, but the powers that be had other plans.

Vince McMahon sought to ruin FireCop, who in his mind, had grown too big for his britches.

What followed was a near half year battle, with FireCop forming the FCPD to face off against the Corporation. FireCop, Lesnar, A-Train, Shawn Michaels and Torrie Wilson vs. Vince McMahon, Rey Mysterio, The Big Show, John Cena and Lita.

A battle for the ages, ending with FireCop being the reigning United States Champion, as well as having defeated the Undertaker.

There was only one thing left to attain... The World Heavyweight Championship.

As the months grew closer to Wrestlemania, FireCop could feel victory in his bones. He knew he had to do whatever it took, be it throwing McMahon crotch first on a sidebar, or spraying other wrestlers with Milk and Soda. He even got suspended for a time, but not even that could quell the flames.

Then his final feud emerged after the hellacious Royal Rumble. A feud with none other than STONE COLD STEVE AUSTIN. Austin claimed that he had won the Royal Rumble, stating that FC had fallen first. This fight would go on for a month until FireCop ultimately kicked Austin's ass, proving once and for all that he was destined for greatness.

Then Wrestlemania arrived, and the final opponent for FireCop had arrived.

Throughout the crowd, the words "YOU SUCK! YOU SUCK!" could be heard echoing throughout, almost as if it were being spoken from the heavens to declare that the final opponent to FireCop would be none other than Kurt Angle.

The two had a history, with Angle actually being the first guy to offer to tag with FireCop, but his tendency to well... be Kurt Angle rubbed FireCop the wrong way.

The match would be a Hell in a Cell Match. Brutal falls, blood, sweat, and tears would fill the arena as FireCop ultimately got the 1, 2, 3 finish and became declared the World Heavyweight Champion.

A man who had come from nothing and became the best in the business. If this were any other story, you'd be told this was a happy ending. Even if FireCop was a heel, he was a heel with a purpose, fighting against the brutish authority that dared to control him.

However, this isn't where the story ends, and the ending is not a happy one.

Now, tell me. How many of you have heard of Viacom?

The poorest company of the richest companies, but still with a boatload of cash. Well, they sent their representative to be the newest superstar for Monday Night Raw.

Mr. Viacom is a character played by my buddy Collin, who is also a part of FireCop lore, and his story is far different from what came before.

Mr. Viacom was a smarmy, evil wrestler who would beat women and get away with it by being rich. He was Vince McMahon in everything but name, which shouldn't make it surprising that they teamed up down the road.

Mr. Viacom had his manager arc with Victoria but instead of losing her, he beat the hell out of D-Von Dudley and got together with her.

He then teamed with Goldberg for the Tag Team Championships, before focusing on being a Solo Wrestler where he allied with McMahon.

He ultimately defeated FireCop only halfway through the season, becoming World Heavyweight Champion incredibly early in the storyline. Mr. Viacom would then defend the title all the way to Wrestlemania, getting into feuds with Ultimo Dragon, Steve Austin and most notably The Rock (that feud wasn't official but the game really liked pitting me against him).

Mr. Viacom would arrive at Wrestlemania and squash his old ally Goldberg to remain Champion.

It was a saddening end to a lengthy tale.

I originally wanted it to end with FireCop vs Mr. Viacom but I think how it turned out was pretty good.

Who knows, maybe the redemption arc will come next time.

Honestly what is really impressive to me about this game is how neither of these two runs felt the same. The visual novel-esque style of storytelling dependent on your wins and losses and minor choices resulting in big twists later down the line resulted in me having radically unique experiences with each playthrough. I didn't even mention some of the cooler shit like Ric Flair showing up to fight Goldberg and Mr. Viacom having to play the ref, which resulted in me beating the shit out of Ric Flair and Goldberg just for my satisfaction, or FireCop using the Stunner on Steve Austin during their final match to secure the win. The game just creates all these cool little moments and I had a great time with it.

The gameplay is both simple to play but difficult to master, utilizing directional inputs for a variety of moves and combos. By my second run I was able to do so many things that I didn't do in my first that it made Mr. Viacom a viable threat.

It's why I'm very much looking forward to playing AEW Fight Forever when it comes out next year as it will hopefully be similar in style (helps that it's sharing the same developer). All in all I love how hard hitting and brutal this game can be and it was some of the most fun I've had for the past two months. I highly recommend it, it's the reason I've started to genuinely watch professional wrestling. It's an artform that is honestly underappreciated and great moments within these games are captured in real life.

I mean shit I just watched Action Andretti beat Chris Jericho, a jobber becoming a legend, like, that's phenomenal.

Anyways yeah, that's all I have to say.