if hatsune miku has a million fans then I am one of them
if hatsune miku has ten fans then I am one of them
if hatsune miku has only one fan then that is me
if hatsune miku has no fans then that means I am no longer on earth
if the world is against hatsune miku then I am against the world

I didn't feel like editing all my notes so this one's coming in hot

the menus, ui/ux, and maps are nothing short of awful and the emphasis on fast travel, witcher vision, and waypoint markers make starfield one of the least convincing game worlds in recent memory. an endless sequence of vacuum sealed content boxes strung together by constant menus, loading screens, and teleporting, and bolstered on all sides by hundreds of procgen wastelands full of crafting junk

it's frustrating that there's something here I think I could like, but it's completely obstructed by design decisions that only make sense if your first and last priority is scale. aside from some dungeons and sidequests it feels like your only options are to be led by the nose like a dog or left to wander nothing areas for the rest of your life. a critical bug had me chasing my tail for over an hour on one of the essential planets and I was bored out of my brain so I can't imagine how sterile the non-essential ones must be

can't weigh in much on the RPG side of things cos I barely saw it in 10+ hours. it's like a cryptid where people keep swearing it exists but I'm still not convinced. can say that the dialogue options I've seen aren't too far off from the YES / YES (SARCASTIC) / NO (YES) we know and love from FO4 tho. writing doesn't go full head trauma this time around as quickly but everyone's a Quip Bastard or a block of wood so it's kinda six of one half a dozen of the other. the most memorable moment was when heller went chris dorner on the new atlantis police department unprovoked, but somehow I don't think that was what bethesda intended

perks/skills are as lifeless as expected. 10% more damage with shotguns or 10% damage with pistols or 10% damage with energy weapons or 10% damage with rifles or carry 10 more pounds or have 10% more health or..... zzzz

less I say about space and ship combat the better. everyone knows it wouldn't be better handled through a menu, but what this review presupposes is... maybe it would?

all in all it's a mess. bethesda's signature open world fractured and dashed across the stars; a marriage of some of the worst aspects of both pre and post morrowind eras with a slew of new unforced errors added to the mix. modders will fix what's fixable, I'll keep drinking that garbage, and the world will keep on turning

can't wait for skyrim 2

I feel like the best way to describe God of War is that its basically one of those E3 showcase demos, only it keeps on going. Honestly, if western AAA games were always done this well, id feel confident saying blockbuster films are a way of the past, because this type of experience is something a film could never achieve. Unfortunately, there not, and God of War is in the minority in that aspect. Everything about this game feels like there was no expense spared, the art direction, the voice acting, the music, the graphics, the list goes on. There are some small blemishes that can take you out of the experience and will not age well come 5 years from now, like the very frequent loading zone “tight spots”. But obviously with the PS4 that was unavoidable. I went into this game, probably like a lot of people, having not played a God of War game before, and I REALLY like coming from that angle. I was vaguely familiar with the concept of the series going in, and the way this game strikes a balance between setting up a new trilogy and keeping the past games intact, while also feeling like a reboot of sorts, is pretty masterful. Really makes me want to go and play the original trilogy sooner rather than later.

Arkane is washed. Deathloop was a bad, watered-down "Dishonored's Greatest Hits" with an irritating structure, but this is even worse. There is no Arkane DNA anywhere to be found here, only an awful looter-shooter that occasionally lets you enter buildings through the back door OR the front.

You know what's good about Arkane games? Fuckin' NOT THE SHOOTING! And that's all there is here. Harvey Smith's first stinker. An historic occasion, much like the Hindenburg disaster. I'm so angry.

Normally I would give this 1 or 1 1/2 stars, but coming from Arkane, I have to go Scorched Earth. I'm sowing salt in their fields so this can never happen again.