CaptPoBerr
2024
Democracy hell yeah. What a blast to play. Something I will likely return to for some good fun for years. Every update is exciting, every helldive is a delight. Even the monetization is well done in a gaming scene overwhelmed by greedy companies trying to get every last dollar for a milquetoast looking skin for your FPS character. Helldivers 2 rises above its peers and promises to stay there
2005
This review contains spoilers
Assassin's Creed. God of War. Uncharted. What do these have in common? They all have sequels, that no matter how beloved or nostalgic the original, are such a substantial improvement on their predecessor that they allowed the franchises to continue unfettered. Kingdom Hearts 2. I had quite a good impression of KH1. It was obviously dated for its time and held back by the technical limitations of the hardware, but it still captured the magic of both the Disney and FF universes that it was drawing from. Kingdom Hearts 2, is just better, in every single way. It has more narrative depth, which can often be confusing but allows for enough intrigue that the player will want to figure it out. The introduction of Drive Forms, and the redesign of other mechanics make it an actual blast to play. The worlds that we explore, both the new and the returning, are excellently designed, and the boss fights are so incredible and bombastic that its truly a cinematic treat every time you enter a fight. At no point did this game feel like a chore, maybe a challenge, but never a chore. Just a stellar gaming experience from beginning to end. And while the first game put me on to the franchise, this is the one that has made me a fan.
This is what happens when an incredibly talented development team is piloted by a corporate entity who is simply seeking to sell an IP rather than a proper experience. This game has good bones. Its really fun to play, each character is unique and even the loot system allows you to collect a lot of unique ways to play as well. The concept of the game is solid, its graphically impressive, if a little bland on the artstyle, and the writing is pretty solid for the most part. Unfortunately its held back by repetitive loop of gameplay without many additions to spice up the experience, Side missions that require you to play the game in a way that isn't fun, consistently clunky online, really lackluster boss fights against characters that you'd rather play as, only to unlock the ability to do the same thing over and over again, for mediocre rewards and a story that you'll have to continue playing for potentially years to get to a conclusion. Its a shame. Because its a game that you want to want to play. But it doesn't have enough content, nor enough engaging content, to justify its service model, and barely enough to justify its existence.
The card-based combat gimmick is a fun way to branch off from the first game, and create a new experience while utilizing all of the familiar elements from KH1. However, many of the fights, especially the bosses, culminated in bouts of either running away to reload cards only to get a few hits off before repeating the process a dozen times, or spamming Sonic Blade until I won. Neither ended up being particularly enjoyable. Which is unfortunate because that is where the originality ends, and the vast majority of the experience is a loose rehash of KH1's plot, with its own complicated plot contrivances added into the mix, which I'm led to believe is essential for understanding future titles. If I ever do a series replay, I may opt for a 8 hour cutscene on Youtube than be forced to deal with the frustrating feeling of a card break when trying to call upon the muscle memory learned in any other game
This game is so dated and such a relic of its time. Not just its level design, its graphics, or its gameplay design, all of which induce a level of nostalgia for even those who have no experience with the franchise. But even its very existence, a faithful recreation of Disney's most classic and popular worlds and characters as the backdrop for a final fantasy action game, is truly a relic of its time. The combat can be repetitive and the control scheme can be frustrating, but exploring and interacting with these environments is continually a delight, and I finally understand the reverance that this series has garnered among an entire generation of gamers.
2016
This game is obviously something that the writing team put quite a bit of work into, which is unfortunate because I think thats its a game that really tasks you to keep up with it. I'd hesistate to call it boring, its a good way to engage your brain without having to exercise the same muscles as you would in games where the decisions are all made in real time. I find it to be relaxing, which is perhaps its best quality, good for anyone looking for a calmer and less difficult in execution game.
The thing that makes God of War Ragnarok great is not just the amazingly designed combat, not just the sense of exploration and discovery around every corner, not just the beautifully designed environments, but the deep and personal story told throughout the narrative delivered to us by wonderful writers, directors, and actors. These are the things that make this game among my favorite games of all time, and the Valhalla DLC delivers all of these things at full force. Its so enriching to see how far Kratos has developed as a character, and with the addition of new levels, enemies, and abilities by way of a roguelike expansion: all in a free package. Its hard to find many things to complain about.
A substantial improvement over the first title, and another fun entry in to the gaming side of Star Wars. However, the things that I love about this game don't do enough to distract from the things I dislike. I think the level design is technically much better than Fallen Order. When you're zipping and dashing around the environments for the first time is a really gratifying experience, which when paired with the snappy combat and enemy variety, is where all the fun is to be had with this game. Other than that, the story is pretty basic until the last quarter of the game. The few planets that you are able to visit are kind of bland visually, and confusing to navigate on repeat visits, and many of the customization options are either boring, inconsequential, or just straight-up bad looking. I do really hope they make a third game, I just hope that the things that can stifle the excellent action and platforming are made a bit better before then.
2023
This game is so much fun to play. As a Mortal Kombat game, the mechanics are all fun to use, especially the addition of the Kameo system, and as a Mortal Kombat fan, I couldn't be happier with how the game plays, despite some of the characters being obviously broken. However, as the game is played more and updates are made, these characters will be evened out and modified with the rest of the cast. The big complaints I have are with the lack of content. Online is fun to play, but there are really only a couple ways to play it. The story is a good few hours that spotlights the new universe and its changes, while having an incredible final chapter. The Invasions mode is fun, but only for a little while, and begins to feel really grindy long before you can complete it. Which is a shame, because I really love playing this game. I mostly just wish there were more ways to play it.
2021
I loved it. I loved the narrative, I was a big fan of most of the level design, and I'm in the minority of people who actually love the gameplay. Its an action game wrapped in the packaging of a horror game, which is an idea I really respond to. Especially the Grant Morrisonian aspect of the power of ideas and story. An absolute blast, but I understand that its a very subjective game. Can't wait to play the sequel.
Kena is a gorgeous and heartfelt adventure from start to finish, especially for it still being considered an indie game. It has such an incredible asthetic, built for modern consoles to show off, fun and engaging gameplay in both exploration and combat, and a beautiful soundtrack. I think all of its problems are relatively minor. I think the narrative structure could have been better laid out instead of being all flashbacks, and I think we don't get to know very much about Kena despite how much time we spend with her. It does have a combat system very reminiscent of titles like God of War or Horizon, but does enough with other mechanice that the comparison doesn't feel like a rip off. Overrall if you enjoy action-adventure games, this is a great new entry in the PS5 library.
2020
Such an ambitious concept that really could've been interesting if they hadn't gutted all of the interesting character moments of watch dogs 2, for the most boring and by the numbers plot and asthetic. Even the gameplay reduces you to having only 2-4 fun abilities at a time before you realize the only way you have fun is to play the Professional Hitman or Construction Worker, and turn the game into a 3rd person shooter instead of the clever hacktivism simulator that they thought they were making. As a really big fan of the last game, huge dissapointment, held up by a few small moments where it reminded you that some small bit of effort did go into this. Which makes it all the more unfortunate.
2007
This game can be the dopest thing ever and also make me want to toss my controller through my TV
2005
This feels like the type of game where it has a good foundation and the second one is waaaaay better
Everything is a step down from Thieves End, but I audibly gasped when I saw elephants