This is where Devil May Cry truly hit it's stride. From cartoony setpieces such as riding a motorcycle down a tower to pointing a gun at a jesters shnoz this game embraces the silly nature that gives it character. Dante is a goofy protagonist that sits in direct opposition to his twin brother virgil who takes himself too seriously.
The level design is built around the tower and it's many floors and rooms filled with demons you can surf around on.
The game implements a style feature as well as 4 different stances dante can adopt which can be swapped to on the fly on the Nintendo Switch version making it The definitive version available.

Difficulty wise it's easier than dmc1 but in the fun department it's miles better. This game holds the top spot for character action games before the likes of mgr existed

Devil may cry comes out the door blastin and oozing with a goth rock aesthetic that ultimately steers capcom into the action genre but unfortunately doesn't embrace it's yet to be campy nature.

The action is decent but everything about it is limited in scope and execution that it's akin to watching rice boil.
The bosses have somewhat unique designs intune with the aesthetic they're going for but you can tell it's held behind by the imitations of it being an early 00s ps2 game.

Dante himself is a monotone clone of Leon Kennedy from re4 minus the sense of humour. It's common knowledge that this game came to be by pure accident due to the development shifts that went into creating resident evil 4.
Not a revolutionary title but a starting point for the franchise

Originally started control back in 2019 and while the gameplay was good and the graphics were stunning I wasn't pulled in with the story. The main bulk of the game takes a bit to get to. You'll be obtaining powers until 3/4's way before everything clicks and it truly starts rolling.

The Foundation: The mars look is a good departure from the office building environment that you inhabit for the main experience. A couple of minor tweeks to puzzles and funnily enough it's miles easier to find where to go than the main game. I was getting lost quite frequently before but this dlc I had no issues figuring out where to go next.
Worth playing as well as AWE.

AWE: The Redacted enemy in the dark is truly a terrifying entity. Nothing in the past few years has made me uneasy while playing a game such as this. If you're wondering how important control is to know what's going on for alan wake II there's only really small contextual details that lead into it. Still worth your time

"Visibly embattled, from its lifeless vestigial third-person combat to its then-unprecedented use of product placement; one can sense the Microsoft execs bristling at the idea of ponying up the big bucks for a video game with a writer protagonist. The lack of confidence on display is only exacerbated by the overexplained cosmology and intertextual references, Remedy tossing fish to clapping seals who may or may not be media-literate enough to recognize a reference to The Shining. Using obscure collectibles as narrative scaffolding and the cryptic ending at least suggest some measure of interest in letting the player piece the world together themselves, as befitting a game about narrative and mythmaking. The stormy PNW atmosphere is also a major positive tilt for me, and you do have to give it some credit for attempting an unconventional starting point for genre entertainment. " - A disgruntled man

The hubris in the above review reflects an individual who has succumed to the elder gods. Alan wake is a departure for Remedy but also entangled with the guilt of creating one of the most prolific action video games of all time. In creating alan wake they attempt to murder that which made them legendary in the first place.

Under ridiculous expectations both from executives and fans it's no wonder that this game is as polarising as it is.
The pure gameplay junkies will foster great resentment at Remedy for this but those with understanding will see that they did not want to feel beholden to it's audience for all eternity.

The ending of Alan wake being open ended and writing an escape in a sense narratively fits what has now become remedys cherry pie. Not stuck in the pasts glory days but at the same time hallmarks of max payne can be found all over their work.

They understand more than the begrudgeny audience that shower max payne in the light while leaving the studio that made it in the dark.
The meta nature of the game will make the avid gamer scream so for those like myself who don't mind the pacing or structure then it's a non issue.
Alan wake getting prop killed by a fridge is as hillarious as it sounds.
Don't waste your time with reviews that sneer and whine over this title.
They're worth the same as leech's on a penny wound.

This game has sat in the backlog for a long time and due to unfortunate circumstances where I lost my 3DS save from the great bay portion I had lost motivation to pursue replaying it, however years later I picked it up on a whim on the Nintendo Switch Online NTSC version and it truly has stood the test of time.

The game is structured like the typical 3d zelda however each main mask and item are used so well that you won't be confused on what to use at any time.
My favourite section would be snowhead as the goron mask is quite fun to use as well as the pacing in the dungeon was done in a way that didn't suck the enjoyment out.

The much hated water temple trope I felt didn't apply here at all but the boss was a bit underwhelming.
The one section I felt was tedious if you didn't look up what you needed would have to be ikana well where you must trade with the gibdo mask specific items in order to access a crucial area but other than that there wasn't any headaches throughout the game.

The time mechanic really only applies to sidequests as that is where you will struggle to do them unless they are on a specific day.
The enemy designs are quite varied and nothing like ocarina's and the areas are also quite distinct it becomes shocking how much was put into this game in the timeframe the devs had.

23 years later I feel it still is worth your time playing as it isn't too difficult and offers enough variety it doesn't become stale.

However if you want to go for 100% I would recommend you play any other version, even the 3ds version with the restoration fan patch as owning this game will always surpass a literal time limit to playing it that online sevices such as NSO impose on you.

A competent entry in the long running Ratchet&Clank series that spans 20 years.
From somewhat stiff but innovative beginnings to visually stunning system showcase, rift a part excels at being a fast paced thril ride that doesn't overstay it's welcome.

There are small sections that play out similar to insomniacs spiderman where you are watching a spectacle of environment details warp around you but it never dwells so much that it becomes fatiguing.

Rivet and kt are new characters introduced that play similarly to the original duo but this time instead of relying on clanks signature propeller or truster pack you are given boots that are somewhat of a massive boost compared to the hover boots from previous games.

Worth it on sale and a much better entry than the past few entries

A PS2 era-esque game in 2023.
A divisive entry in FF as it does away with nearly every aspect that makes it a Final Fantasy game while still being above par.

Solo protagonist, no elemental weaknesses, no vehicles bar ambrosia and a very FF12 world (A positive imo).
My initial playthrough took around 60 hours due to the lengthy side content that wasn't too involved. A majority of these result in speaking to npcs or killing a monster.

The combat system doesn't compare to devil may cry V's and seems as though it's held back due to the lingering elements that still make it a rpg.

The stagger system for tough enemies is much more simplified than that of FF7 remake as any attack will wittle it down.
Eikons are limited to three which means you'll tire of the same two before swapping in others to give them a go and then swapping back. I never removed phoenix as the abilities are far too useful such as the homing dash and ultimate to warrant removing it.

I'll be looking forward to replaying this on Fantasy mode as the normal difficulty did not prove challenging. I did all the hunting board but it begins to wain on you after hearing the main battle theme for the 10th time.

As many have stated before it has it's low points but many high points that make it feel close to a metal gear rising or Asuras wrath but sadly the length of the game feels bloated.
Had this gone for a shorter and more concise experience it would rank higher but sadly it's held back by elements of the rpg it's trying to desperately hold onto that it falls short of being an excellent action game.

The story could of done without the final stretch in waloed as that is the point I began feeling the game becoming more of a slog.

DLC hopefully will include a short sandbox of different gameplay elements now that the core experience is finished.
Until future playthroughs this remains my opinion of the game.

While traversal can be acomplished through the use of Ultra handed made vehicles of varying complexities, Tears of the Kingdom ends up feeling like a toybox demo than a fully fledged sequel.

The rejigged open world is welcome otherwise this would drag the game signficantly lower in anyones estimations.
In an odd way this game shares similarties with Banjo Tooie, a sequel with plenty of ideas but not fleshed out into a cohesive experience.

There's plenty to do and yet there's an air of uncertainty present that is apparent from the constructs left behind by it's predecesor breath of the wild.
I enjoyed my time playing however it gives off the impression that allowing anything to be a solution is not always the most rewarding experience.
Many shrines are solved in a matter of seconds due to the arsenal of abilities that serve to get you from point a to point b.

There's also sticking objects together like garrys mod which may confuse and irratate those who just want to progress without fiddling around with the finicky building mechanics.
A criticism that has been dug into the ground and levied at botw about the weapons is also not fixed here.

While you will never be in short supply of materials to craft weapons, it becomes tedious scrolling and sorting through a long list just to remake an effective weapon that you crafted before.

What's more confusing is that there is a favourite feature but it is only present for the contraptions menu and not the fuse weapons menu.
The tedium can be somewhat reduced by using an unlockable ability that auto-builds schematics of previously made creations but it ends up costing zonaite, and this is where there is a clash in design.

The sky is under utilised and less sprawling as imagined before it's debut in those trailers years ago. Skyward sword had character in it's approach to the sky section with unique buildings populated by npcs.
The sky being the main draw becomes the least developed compared to the depths which make up a majority of the terrain.

The depths are more challenging than the land or sky due to the blight condition which prevents you from replenishing hearts once you touch or are attacked by blight afflicted enemies.

Your reward for exploring the depths comes in way of easier ways to acquire zonaite to power batteries and collect what were previously amiibo locked outfits from botw in chests.
The cycle becomes this, Build 2 fan and 1 seat flying machine with a brightbloom seed to light the way; find lightroots, mine zonaite repeat.

There are a few bosses sprinkled around the depths as well as above but they suffer from copy and paste that you will get so sick of encountering the 6th hinox that you'll opt to skip it.

As for the regions they have seen a makeover in layout whick makes revisting interesting, there's a lot more thought put into what sidequests there are this time around.
At the same time there is a lot of repetition when it comes to some of these.
The travelling band requires you to find a band member, complete their task before hauling them all up a hill in a towed wagon to a great fairy that does the same thing as all the other great fairies which is upgrade your armour rating but only with the required number of materials for each piece.
Another involves seeking out caves and wells that are seperate to the depths to kill bubuulfrogs that drop buubul gems which can be traded in for items also present in botw.

The four dungeons in the game are a huge step up in comparision to botw and the bosses encountered also are improved but not as clever to solve like in previous zelda's prior to botw.
The champions also make a return with their abilities allowing you to do different types of attacks.

The least helpful one comes with sidons water barrier that will absorb one hit and if you attack it shoots a jetstream slice that clears muck which really only affects the zora domain and some parts of the depths.
Riju will use lighting if you shoot an arrow after it charges up, tulin shoots arrows and propels you forward with a gust of wind and yunobo barrells towards anything in the path designated. Yunobo's ability can be annoying as he will automatically cling to any vehicle you pilot, including tiny ones which blocks a lot of view.
Luckily you can disable any of these at any time, but a majority of the time these abilities are quick lackluster.
I would mention the additional ability but it is considerd a spoiler but even it is a let down when initially you think you can do a lot more with it than you actually can.

Overall Tears of the kingdom is a sequel to breath of the wild, if you enjoyed that then this is more of the same but with a different look. Does it break new ground and redefine the genre? Absolutely not.
It feels held back by what groundwork was laid before it that now it falls victim to the same formulaic curse that it tried to escape from.
Will I return to this years later who knows but it certainly isn't the best Zelda game