A pretty fun game, but doesn't really have any modes for staying power. It has "classic" mode which let's you play against 1-3 opponents, or "challenge" mode which...let's you play against 1 opponent? I don't really know what the difference is. The lack of any online mode sucks.
I also had no idea this was even a real card game beforehand. There is some benefit over playing this via the game rather than real life, like the computer doing the work with counting points, but I feel like if you're playing with a friend then it's just more fun to play it normally. This works as a training ground I guess. It's pretty cheap, and I got it as part of a bundle, so not much loss, I just wish it had anything to do beside face CPU opponents with no progress (except achievements if you wanna count them, and tbf they do have a little achievement room where unlocking them fills in pictures in the room).
I also had no idea this was even a real card game beforehand. There is some benefit over playing this via the game rather than real life, like the computer doing the work with counting points, but I feel like if you're playing with a friend then it's just more fun to play it normally. This works as a training ground I guess. It's pretty cheap, and I got it as part of a bundle, so not much loss, I just wish it had anything to do beside face CPU opponents with no progress (except achievements if you wanna count them, and tbf they do have a little achievement room where unlocking them fills in pictures in the room).
Free to play model :(
This is actually pretty cool. Zombie Frank is surprisingly fun to control (though I was spoiled by playing Capcom Heroes mode first). I do like that the dodge button also works as an attack so you can more easily move through crowds.
I also liked that all the collectibles worked directly to power you up.
It just kind of sucks that this exists as the true ending of the game and is DLC. Like this is basically what overtime mode was in the original game. Luckily I didn't have to pay extra for it as I have the PS4 version with it included, but it still sucks as a concept.
Also the time mechanic is back which apparently people missed, so there you go.
I also liked that all the collectibles worked directly to power you up.
It just kind of sucks that this exists as the true ending of the game and is DLC. Like this is basically what overtime mode was in the original game. Luckily I didn't have to pay extra for it as I have the PS4 version with it included, but it still sucks as a concept.
Also the time mechanic is back which apparently people missed, so there you go.
2005
This review contains spoilers
Psychonauts makes full use of its concept, allowing it to make every level thematically different while keeping to a more structured story. This even extends to collectibles, as you have things like "emotional baggage" or "mental cobwebs". The basic collectable equivalent to Mario's coins are "figments", neon coloured flat images representing static memories. The whole premise also means each level delves a little bit into a characters personality.
Not only are the levels themes different, but even their general genres, as you have platformers, action or puzzle based stages among others.
All this does lead to a bit of inconsistency in game quality, but I don't think there were any truly bad levels, just some that were better than others. And even the less enjoyable ones to play were kept entertaining thanks to the games comedic qualities.
The hub of this world is pretty well designed too. At least for the first half, as you have all the camp kids spread across the areas of the camp, each with little their own little stories going on. As I said though, this only extends about half way, as the kids all become literally braindead after that, so the hub world exists merely to get from point A to point B.
The game is an overall really fun playthrough, with a very 2000's Nickelodeon charm to everything, with a pinch of Tim Burton character design. It shows its age a little with the mechanical aspects, most notably the camera, but never becoming a hinderance, more just realising how far we've come since 2005.
Not only are the levels themes different, but even their general genres, as you have platformers, action or puzzle based stages among others.
All this does lead to a bit of inconsistency in game quality, but I don't think there were any truly bad levels, just some that were better than others. And even the less enjoyable ones to play were kept entertaining thanks to the games comedic qualities.
The hub of this world is pretty well designed too. At least for the first half, as you have all the camp kids spread across the areas of the camp, each with little their own little stories going on. As I said though, this only extends about half way, as the kids all become literally braindead after that, so the hub world exists merely to get from point A to point B.
The game is an overall really fun playthrough, with a very 2000's Nickelodeon charm to everything, with a pinch of Tim Burton character design. It shows its age a little with the mechanical aspects, most notably the camera, but never becoming a hinderance, more just realising how far we've come since 2005.
Pretty fun with, as the title suggests, friends. Some extremely interesting course designs that often feel more like puzzles or rollercoasters than golf courses. Visuals can get glitchy though, especially when playing user created levels.
The course design improves so so much on the first game. Not only are there more imaginative themes (Micro Machines did a pinball and music track before Mario Kart), but the use of elements from the themes are so much better implemented, like riding a sponge.
It feels a lot faster, which is complimented by an actual braking feature. Unfortunately the screen size still makes it near impossible to play without knowing the tracks beforehand. Not helped by the insanely buffed Ai in single player modes.
I think this game would feel amazing to master, but for someone just trying to get a rush of nostalgia, it can be a bit of a frustration trying to compete with perfect Ai on courses that move way too fast for you to react.
It feels a lot faster, which is complimented by an actual braking feature. Unfortunately the screen size still makes it near impossible to play without knowing the tracks beforehand. Not helped by the insanely buffed Ai in single player modes.
I think this game would feel amazing to master, but for someone just trying to get a rush of nostalgia, it can be a bit of a frustration trying to compete with perfect Ai on courses that move way too fast for you to react.
This review contains spoilers
There's a ton of activities to do, some of which are story heavy, some are puzzles, some will test your skills in particular areas of combat and some are nice quick easy stuff you can do if you don't have much time. And I'm glad for the downtime because this game is heavy on dialogue. There's so much of it, and the fact a lot of it comes from dialogue trees makes conversations feel really unnatural most of the time. It doesn't help that the main characters voice has exactly 1 emotion and all her lines are delivered with the exact same bored voice regardless of context.
The story is decent, and it sets up a sequel perfectly. But I just really think the game is too exposition heavy which bloats the amount of time spent listening to long-winded conversations. Then there's hundreds of datapoints to be found and read which is something I never like in games, much less in one that already has you sit through this much talking just to get through a side quest. They obviously like world-building and it's nice to see how they differentiated all the tribes and whatnot, but...damn sometimes I just wanna play the game without worrying I need to read this small villages entire history before I can go save random NPC from a machine y'know?
Battle system is really fun with dozens of ways to approach it. Especially when fighting the truly huge machines. It really feels like an event to take them down, more so if you're trying to shoot off certain materials.
While it's been a long time since I played the original game, I know there's at least a few QoL additions, especially being able to gather more material than you can carry as the extras go into your stash. You can also fly on machines now in the end-game. It is at the core the same game though, just bigger.
I know the "checkbox" open world games get a lot of flack, but I find them quite fun to go through. Plus going through skill trees as you get rewards for the checklist items is satisfying.
The story is decent, and it sets up a sequel perfectly. But I just really think the game is too exposition heavy which bloats the amount of time spent listening to long-winded conversations. Then there's hundreds of datapoints to be found and read which is something I never like in games, much less in one that already has you sit through this much talking just to get through a side quest. They obviously like world-building and it's nice to see how they differentiated all the tribes and whatnot, but...damn sometimes I just wanna play the game without worrying I need to read this small villages entire history before I can go save random NPC from a machine y'know?
Battle system is really fun with dozens of ways to approach it. Especially when fighting the truly huge machines. It really feels like an event to take them down, more so if you're trying to shoot off certain materials.
While it's been a long time since I played the original game, I know there's at least a few QoL additions, especially being able to gather more material than you can carry as the extras go into your stash. You can also fly on machines now in the end-game. It is at the core the same game though, just bigger.
I know the "checkbox" open world games get a lot of flack, but I find them quite fun to go through. Plus going through skill trees as you get rewards for the checklist items is satisfying.
1986
Pros:
+The music is pretty good
Cons:
-Absolutely zero direction, with no map and everywhere looks exactly the same. There isn't even any indication of where you've already been, which would have been simple by just leaving the doors you've already opened, well, open.
-There appeared to be a lot of random dead ends, although I never finished so maybe they do have a purpose...
-Game has terrible frame rate issues.
-Annoying enemy placements and infinitely re-spawning enemies, and relative stiff movement means you're often just forced to take damage. Although I don't think the game ever had any straight up unfair enemies like in Kid Icarus (although I didn't get that far here).
Notes:
•Gave up after about 2 hours of what felt like little progress. If the game was more linear or the bare minimum had a map you could see that would let you know where you've been, it'd be a decent NES game. I may try again one day with a walkthrough, but for now it's going in the abandoned pile.
+The music is pretty good
Cons:
-Absolutely zero direction, with no map and everywhere looks exactly the same. There isn't even any indication of where you've already been, which would have been simple by just leaving the doors you've already opened, well, open.
-There appeared to be a lot of random dead ends, although I never finished so maybe they do have a purpose...
-Game has terrible frame rate issues.
-Annoying enemy placements and infinitely re-spawning enemies, and relative stiff movement means you're often just forced to take damage. Although I don't think the game ever had any straight up unfair enemies like in Kid Icarus (although I didn't get that far here).
Notes:
•Gave up after about 2 hours of what felt like little progress. If the game was more linear or the bare minimum had a map you could see that would let you know where you've been, it'd be a decent NES game. I may try again one day with a walkthrough, but for now it's going in the abandoned pile.
Basically just the first DLC again, but with new characters.
It's got some new collectibles/activities like poster burning, which is a pretty neat one because it means you specifically need fire weapons. Having to get particular weapons to complete something isn't something DR really does often.
It's short, and unbalanced for a maxed out level, which would also make all the new activities pointless.
It's fine for what it is.
It's got some new collectibles/activities like poster burning, which is a pretty neat one because it means you specifically need fire weapons. Having to get particular weapons to complete something isn't something DR really does often.
It's short, and unbalanced for a maxed out level, which would also make all the new activities pointless.
It's fine for what it is.
2013
This review contains spoilers
I remember when this came out and everyone hated it. It wasn't until Dead Rising 4 came out that opinion seemed to shift to "it's okay". Personally I loved it. It's still pure zombie killing mayhem, now with much bigger swarms and way more weapons.
The game seems way more balanced around combo weapons now, rather than in 2 where a few combo weapons basically just broke the game. The funny thing is though, early on you'll be relying far less on them than you were in the early game of DR2 thanks to some changes. Most notably is the fact that you NEED blue prints to make combo weapons now, rather than before where blue prints just allowed you to gain more pp. And with the removal of maintenance rooms you no longer have easy to find and memorize spots to create your favourite weapons. The items needed for the blue print are always scattered around it, but unless you remember the location of each blue print, you're not gonna be able to easily grab that weapon every time you run past. But as the game goes on it gets easier and easier to create combo weapons due to having more blue prints, and being able to spend attribute points in order to create weapons out of any generic material in a certain category (although super combos can't be created like this).
Speaking of which, attribute points that allow you to customise your playstyle are a nice improvement over random stat boosts every level up of old.
Some things remain the same great DR as always, such as memorable psychopath boss fights.
The story is the same dumb stuff Dead Rising is known for, just this time with a more boring main character. But I gotta admit there were 2 twists near the end that directly tied into past games that genuinely surprised me and I loved it.
The way they do the story is kind of different. It's no longer based on a time schedule. Instead story missions are basically always available, and you just get to choose when to activate it. I'm kind of mixed on this. On one hand it's nice to have the option to go at whatever pace you want and never be waiting around to continue the story, but on the other hand the old system made it so easy to know exactly how much time you had to do the side missions and goof off. While this game gives more than enough time to do all the side missions, the lack of knowledge of how much time you truly need to do all the story means everytime you want to goof off there's this fear that you might be wasting too much time.
It also shares the flaw of the older game where after you hit the max level cap getting pp is pointless, but now it's even more obvious due to the fact this game was MADE for pp farming, which feels great before you hit the cap, but afterwards 90% of the stuff you can do no longer serves a purpose.
Technically this is untrue since you need more attribute points to max everything than you'll have at level 50, but I was able to do it once I reached the hypothetical level 55 or so, so it's hardly a big improvement. In fact in past games I wouldn't even hit the level cap in one playthrough, but here it was very easy.
Other issues I had were the way too close camera that can't be changed, especially bad when paired with the not quite perfectly fluid movement, and the survivor system. I don't mind the removal of escorting every survivor everywhere, and I think they generally did ok with making the side missions fun, but I'm talking about the survivors who you can get to join you and "help" you. Remember how useful survivors were while following you in old games? Yeah that was the point because you were supposed to be protecting them, but this game decides to have them be just as ineffective but now you can have them follow you to...help you? I pretty much just ignored the whole thing. I guess they might be useful distractions in boss fights, but not only are they easy enough without them, it was hardly worth finding a safe house every time you were about to go to a boss fight just for some weak meat fodder.
Basically I think this game focuses less on the survival aspect and more on giving the player a power trip and using a multitude of ways to mow down hordes of zombies. They do put some limitations in place that stop it feeling TOO easy, like you may be able to grab any weapon you've already found/made in a safe house locker, but there's a limit to how many items you can get from a locker at once, and the limit is much lower the stronger the weapons you want.
Of course I played standard mode, nightmare mode is supposed to be a more traditional Dead Rising experience, so maybe with that all fans can be catered to.
The game seems way more balanced around combo weapons now, rather than in 2 where a few combo weapons basically just broke the game. The funny thing is though, early on you'll be relying far less on them than you were in the early game of DR2 thanks to some changes. Most notably is the fact that you NEED blue prints to make combo weapons now, rather than before where blue prints just allowed you to gain more pp. And with the removal of maintenance rooms you no longer have easy to find and memorize spots to create your favourite weapons. The items needed for the blue print are always scattered around it, but unless you remember the location of each blue print, you're not gonna be able to easily grab that weapon every time you run past. But as the game goes on it gets easier and easier to create combo weapons due to having more blue prints, and being able to spend attribute points in order to create weapons out of any generic material in a certain category (although super combos can't be created like this).
Speaking of which, attribute points that allow you to customise your playstyle are a nice improvement over random stat boosts every level up of old.
Some things remain the same great DR as always, such as memorable psychopath boss fights.
The story is the same dumb stuff Dead Rising is known for, just this time with a more boring main character. But I gotta admit there were 2 twists near the end that directly tied into past games that genuinely surprised me and I loved it.
The way they do the story is kind of different. It's no longer based on a time schedule. Instead story missions are basically always available, and you just get to choose when to activate it. I'm kind of mixed on this. On one hand it's nice to have the option to go at whatever pace you want and never be waiting around to continue the story, but on the other hand the old system made it so easy to know exactly how much time you had to do the side missions and goof off. While this game gives more than enough time to do all the side missions, the lack of knowledge of how much time you truly need to do all the story means everytime you want to goof off there's this fear that you might be wasting too much time.
It also shares the flaw of the older game where after you hit the max level cap getting pp is pointless, but now it's even more obvious due to the fact this game was MADE for pp farming, which feels great before you hit the cap, but afterwards 90% of the stuff you can do no longer serves a purpose.
Technically this is untrue since you need more attribute points to max everything than you'll have at level 50, but I was able to do it once I reached the hypothetical level 55 or so, so it's hardly a big improvement. In fact in past games I wouldn't even hit the level cap in one playthrough, but here it was very easy.
Other issues I had were the way too close camera that can't be changed, especially bad when paired with the not quite perfectly fluid movement, and the survivor system. I don't mind the removal of escorting every survivor everywhere, and I think they generally did ok with making the side missions fun, but I'm talking about the survivors who you can get to join you and "help" you. Remember how useful survivors were while following you in old games? Yeah that was the point because you were supposed to be protecting them, but this game decides to have them be just as ineffective but now you can have them follow you to...help you? I pretty much just ignored the whole thing. I guess they might be useful distractions in boss fights, but not only are they easy enough without them, it was hardly worth finding a safe house every time you were about to go to a boss fight just for some weak meat fodder.
Basically I think this game focuses less on the survival aspect and more on giving the player a power trip and using a multitude of ways to mow down hordes of zombies. They do put some limitations in place that stop it feeling TOO easy, like you may be able to grab any weapon you've already found/made in a safe house locker, but there's a limit to how many items you can get from a locker at once, and the limit is much lower the stronger the weapons you want.
Of course I played standard mode, nightmare mode is supposed to be a more traditional Dead Rising experience, so maybe with that all fans can be catered to.
Almost the exact same as the original game, so a review for one works as a review for the other. Of course, the questions are more updated, but otherwise the only new stuff is some (pretty nice) character customisation options. No new round types are added, which is a shame. Also they kept the massive flaw of points basically not mattering at all, and all games come down entirely to the last round.
Dead Rising 2: Yellow Version
Everyone's already talked about how this is a demo/prologue hybrid. It does pretty well for being "just" that though. The location is unique to at least the first 2 games (haven't played 3 or 4 yet), taking place in a small town rather than a mall of any kind. It's pretty cool, and it has some locations not seen in the main game, like a bowling alley.
I like the aspect of having to find the bike parts without waypoints. It really just throws you into the map and says "explore". It still gives you some survivors to find, and a psychopath to defeat. It even does the money system a little better than the main game, since this one has it be a requirement for one of the bike parts, and you can even buy hints if you're struggling.
It's a perfect little standalone story that got you hyped for Dead Rising 2, and even now it's worth a playthrough just to play a location not found anywhere else in the series. Unfortunately it never released outside Xbox with the other Dead Rising ports.
I like the aspect of having to find the bike parts without waypoints. It really just throws you into the map and says "explore". It still gives you some survivors to find, and a psychopath to defeat. It even does the money system a little better than the main game, since this one has it be a requirement for one of the bike parts, and you can even buy hints if you're struggling.
It's a perfect little standalone story that got you hyped for Dead Rising 2, and even now it's worth a playthrough just to play a location not found anywhere else in the series. Unfortunately it never released outside Xbox with the other Dead Rising ports.
2010
Improves on the original is almost every way. Though the original did have an atmosphere that just seems unmatched, but it could be my nostalgia due to the early 360 days.
The survivor Ai has improved tenfold. I managed to drag all of them everywhere without any problems, never losing them miles away, never having them cower in a crowd of zombies. They're so much better. Arguably TOO good to the point you don't need to really "escort" them, but generally it's infinitely preferable to the braindead ones in the original.
There's also a ton of QoL stuff like an indicator that says whether a survivor is close enough to move to the next area before you go through a door, a way to skip text so you're not standing around waiting for lines after lines of survivor dialogue before they join you, no need to answer radio calls, can move while aiming etc.
Combo weapons are fun, albeit pretty unbalanced. Especially since every maintenance room straight up gives you some items to make a combo weapon at one. The scavenger aspect plays far less in this game, unless of course you just choose to play like that.
The area is a lot bigger, but it does take a lot of cues from DR1. Many areas feel like copies of that game, including the unfinished South Plaza. Most of the new locations are just very identical-feeling casinos.
Psychopaths also feel like they're taking a lot of inspiration from the original game, but there is a lot more experimentation with them now, including the famous tiger boss (which you can even tame). Survivors also have more variety to them, like some which make use of the new money mechanic, some that help you gain zombrex (another new mechanic), and some that will even play poker with you.
There's just so much more to do in general, like you can bring gifts to your daughter in the safe room for some extra PP.
To me this just took a great game formula that was the originals, but removed so many of the heavy flaws while expanding the positives. One of my favourite games.
As an aside, I got quite a few crashes on the PS4 version, which sucks. Not a fault with the game itself, but still.
The survivor Ai has improved tenfold. I managed to drag all of them everywhere without any problems, never losing them miles away, never having them cower in a crowd of zombies. They're so much better. Arguably TOO good to the point you don't need to really "escort" them, but generally it's infinitely preferable to the braindead ones in the original.
There's also a ton of QoL stuff like an indicator that says whether a survivor is close enough to move to the next area before you go through a door, a way to skip text so you're not standing around waiting for lines after lines of survivor dialogue before they join you, no need to answer radio calls, can move while aiming etc.
Combo weapons are fun, albeit pretty unbalanced. Especially since every maintenance room straight up gives you some items to make a combo weapon at one. The scavenger aspect plays far less in this game, unless of course you just choose to play like that.
The area is a lot bigger, but it does take a lot of cues from DR1. Many areas feel like copies of that game, including the unfinished South Plaza. Most of the new locations are just very identical-feeling casinos.
Psychopaths also feel like they're taking a lot of inspiration from the original game, but there is a lot more experimentation with them now, including the famous tiger boss (which you can even tame). Survivors also have more variety to them, like some which make use of the new money mechanic, some that help you gain zombrex (another new mechanic), and some that will even play poker with you.
There's just so much more to do in general, like you can bring gifts to your daughter in the safe room for some extra PP.
To me this just took a great game formula that was the originals, but removed so many of the heavy flaws while expanding the positives. One of my favourite games.
As an aside, I got quite a few crashes on the PS4 version, which sucks. Not a fault with the game itself, but still.
2011
This is basically everything I wanted after completing Portal 2.
A lot more clever puzzles with new mechanics were a pretty safe bet, but this game goes much harder on the story and cinematic set pieces. Introducing a new character was also a great way for GLaDOS to be able to bounce some quips off someone, since the protagonist once again remains silent. In fact the dialogue in general in this one is fantastic.
It's honestly a fairly flawless game, the only reason I'm not rating it a 10 is because I rate on a personal level, and the gameplay of puzzle after puzzle leaves me pretty drained a lot of the time, rather than feeling rewarded.
A lot more clever puzzles with new mechanics were a pretty safe bet, but this game goes much harder on the story and cinematic set pieces. Introducing a new character was also a great way for GLaDOS to be able to bounce some quips off someone, since the protagonist once again remains silent. In fact the dialogue in general in this one is fantastic.
It's honestly a fairly flawless game, the only reason I'm not rating it a 10 is because I rate on a personal level, and the gameplay of puzzle after puzzle leaves me pretty drained a lot of the time, rather than feeling rewarded.