Lich hits Evunda for 600 points of damage.
Evunda has been defeated.
<Evunda> FML
LEVEL DOWN!

Final Fantasy XI sort of confuses me. It has all the things I should absolutely despise in a game: pointless and tedious grinding, a confusing set of missions, poorly explained tutorials, an overwhelming reliance on fan wikis to do quite literally anything, a story that at first doesn’t seem all that special, a relatively boring combat system that isn’t very special in any particular way, clunky and old UIs... But I believe that Final Fantasy XI's imperfections make it perfect, make it loveable, and make it filled with an overwhelming feeling of “soul” that is very hard to come by nowadays with most MMOs, or hell, most games in general. It is such a bundle of love and joy that I find myself at a loss for words when prompted to describe it in length. But I will do so anyway, because I love this game; it helped me heal, it helped me develop my sense of self, and it brought me comfort at a time when nothing in this world did. These are my experiences and my honest feelings about a little video game called Final Fantasy XI. I hope you enjoy the read, and I'm sorry if it gets too heavy. Grab yourself something cozy to drink—some San d’Orian tea, perhaps?

I had known of Final Fantasy XI for a really long time and I always thought it looked cute, something about it struck a particular fancy I had in my little heart. The old, charming, and PS2-era graphics coupled with the wonderful musical score I had grown accustomed to listening to made me quite interested. I knew that I had to try it for myself. I gathered enough of my hard-earned R$ to purchase the ultimate edition and began my descent into a game that would change my life and my soul forever. And what a time it was—that December in which I started Final Fantasy XI. I had just graduated from high school (class of 23!) and was at a point in my life where I was deeply uncertain about a lot of things. Mental illness and being unsure about your past can really take a toll on you and mold you in various ways that are toxic and unwelcoming to other people. You begin to sort of hate yourself, hate the person you’re becoming, and hate thinking about where you’re going to end up in life, and it leaves you drained, pathetic, and sad. It’s never easy. In Final Fantasy XI, my aching mind wanted to find some form of salvation, some form of healing, just to find anything that I could hold onto, even if just for a little bit of time. I ended up finding something much more. We all have games that changed us, or that found us in a time where life was knocking at the door, telling us to come out of our little room we burrowed ourselves in. This was mine.

I’ve never made it a secret to anyone who knows me that I struggle with borderline personality disorder. It’s a nasty thing. I will not be divulging details on how it works or how it makes me feel here; this isn’t the DSM-5, and this isn’t a piece about myself. Now you, the reader, might think this information isn’t very relevant, but it is. When I spoke of healing, when I spoke of wanting to grab onto something when it felt like everything sucked and no one cared about me, it all stemmed from the fact that I was suffering from the ills of, well, mental illness. In this world, we have to find blankets, right? Someone or something to coddle us and make us feel safe, to sort of guide us in the dark to a world where we feel like we can finally be happy. As stupid and silly as it sounds, this was Final Fantasy XI to me. When the entire world is so dark, a little bit of light is all we need to keep going. Vana’diel, at that time, was my light.

Dashing into that world of light, I made my character. A little blonde Mithra named Evunda. A sort of stupid and silly name with absolutely no thought of meaning behind it. I picked Warrior because I am very basic, and I didn’t feel like delving too deep into the magic or thieving systems just yet. Starting off in Bastok, a little stone fortress located right in the middle of Gustaberg, so polished and pretty and yet so daunting at the same time. I walked outside those Bastok gates into Gustaberg, and for a while I just... wandered around, listening to the music and killing whatever I came across. It was at that moment that, for some reason, I had a feeling of nostalgia. It somehow felt like home. Despite me never touching this game before, it felt like I had. It felt like somehow, despite a lot of turmoil, I found myself back somewhere I’d forgotten, but somewhere I desperately longed to be in. Leveling up and finding my way around the UI and the systems was a form of therapy. It was beautiful, really. I felt alive, and I felt in control of myself for the first time in a while. It felt like somehow time had stopped, and that was all there was to the world in that moment, killing bugs and leveling up.

And Evunda kept on going. Doing quests for the nations, adventuring, exploring, leveling up, leveling down, coming back to the mog house, dying, being revived by a kind passerby, earning conquest points, coming across new gear... Perhaps it is strange to feel such an overwhelming feeling of healing and kindness from doing tasks I assume other people would find tedious or boring, especially considering Final Fantasy XI’s clunkiness. But wow, it felt great! I was making so much progress that I even started one of the expansions, Chains of Promathia, and did a few quests regarding that. How cool is that? I felt so happy that I tried to share my happiness with everyone around me. I think it was around this time that I felt myself change in slight ways. I wasn’t really all that mean anymore; I wasn’t doing anything stupid or wrong. I was just a normal person. Perhaps it comes with being 18 and maturing, but even so, Final Fantasy XI sped up that maturity. I was met with kindness by strangers in the game, helping me with systems, explaining mechanics, and overall just hanging out with me. They didn’t know, but I needed that so badly that it kind of made me tear up some times.

I settled on being a Dark Knight, which is funny considering what my character looks like; it’s kind of jarring! A little tiny blonde Mithra wielding a scythe, wearing all dark, chaotic-looking armor, is quite the funny image. I did it because of the scythes. I am not immune to looking like a cool reaper. A DRK/WAR… A cool combo, I think... But mostly because I was too lazy to level up a second job alongside DRK, I just settled with my WAR, which already had 30 levels sunk into it. It was fun. It really was. I felt like I belonged somewhere in this little world, and it was Vana’diel! Being a part of it all, even if I am, by all standards, a very late newcomer to this game that's existed for so long, 22 years is a hell of a long time; I haven't even been on this earth for that long! To think it all happened in a single month…

December, huh… The jolliest of all months—Christmas and New Year's—all happen in December. I had navigated so much of the time before December completely alone and aimless on what to do with my life. I loved, lost, got hurt, felt like I was doomed, and at the end of it all, I think I became rather apathetic. I’ve been dropping tidbits of it here and there when attempting to explain what Final Fantasy XI did to me, but this is the part where it all comes into play. I have to be honest with myself; I was kind of a bad person. I said a lot of things to people that I now deeply regret. I broke friendships, broke myself, and broke so much. At the end of it all, I felt like the biggest loser in the world and someone who didn’t really deserve to live. Final Fantasy XI grabbed me by the collar, put itself around me, and warmed me up. Those nights where I drank tea while wandering around felt like a mother hugging her child. It’s embarrassing. Perhaps it’s even cringeworthy, but it’s how I felt, and it’s how I still feel. I still play, and I still enjoy myself. Sometimes I joke around about how much the game makes me want to die, but it is quite the opposite. I want to keep on going. I want to fix things. I want to continue healing and helping those around me. Final Fantasy XI woke me up to a lot of things; it’s inexplicable. All you need in life, as I said previously, is that guiding light. I found mine, not in a person or a figure, but in a silly little video game. How dumb.

Apologies if it got heavy; this is my heart. It’s what I’m putting out here for all you passersby to see. A little piece of my mind, a little piece of my life, and a little piece of my feelings are on this little website. I love you, whoever’s reading this. Please find yourself that blanket. Find your light. It can be anything; it can be a stupid video game; it can be a movie; it can be a book; it can be music. We all need it at the end of the day, I think. We’re all eternally lonely creatures on this little, messed-up planet. If we can’t have each other, we might as well have ourselves and our blanket. We can face the world when we’re ready, can’t we? I’m unsure of the answer, as much is bound to happen, both in my life outside of here and in Final Fantasy XI, Evunda’s little adventure and tale. But I believe the ending will be good; that’s what keeps me going.

And to close all of this, thank you, Vana’diel; you saved my life. I owe all I have right now to you. Have my eternal love and gratitude. The world cultivated there has a soul like no other. I pray for others to read this and try to understand it. Much love, forever and ever.

100.000 gil for some grass is criminal though I CAN’T FORGIVE THAT. I SPENT 4 HOURS GRINDING FOR THAT I DIDN’T HAVE MONEY I HATE ALL YOU FINAL FANTASY XI HYPER CAPITALISTS!!!!!!! (COME SAY HI IM EVUNDA LEVEL 56 DRK/WAR IN BAHAMUT I WELCOME THEE)

It's not Kiryover yet. Look, he brought back two of his friends as leads, they really gonna believe they Like A Dragon at this rate. Yay I made the jokes at the start and subverted expectations let's get right into the meat no balls out. The year... is... I can't keep up, but that fella Shinada reminded me right at the end with his baseball sob story: we're in year 17 after A. N (I make it sound like Nishiki is Jesus), Kiryu is having his mid-life crisis (again) and Haruka is having her rebellious teen phase. Not rly she's a doll, maybe too much so (not my Haruka 😤), point is she packed her things and left a bunch of kids in the care of... huh, in my head they're taken care of by Mikio but my main issue with Yakuza is how important and likeable characters just vanish after one entry. Yakuza 0 Will Change Everything.

It took me almost as long to finish the game than the time Saejima spent in jail! Unlike him, I won't do my time twice. It's cute that they make you believe Majima died off-screen for so long. I kind of wish they kept that lie up to then follow the game with Majima as the protagonist of 0. Would it change anything for me, late Yakuza bloomer? No, I just crave chaos. If I wanted peace, I'd play Haruka dancing and singing for a good chunk of the game. Mayhaps I'd rope Akiyama into dancing some more.

There are a few awesome boss fights, but I feel confident in saying the combat has only been in a downward slope since 3. The final boss of the game is the worst fight in the series so far, and I do not say those words lightly. Shame, because it's a good character that ended up butchered by every aspect of the game it seems, right at the end. They sure like their twists, and add a few loose ends to the mix. All for what? Another ending where Kiryu seemingly dies? That shit lowkey hilarious I hope it happens again next time.

So many new locations, though. Yakuza is taking us for a grand tour of Japan. From beating up bears with garbage, to a giant Hatsune Miku snowoman... 💯

Definitivamente um jogo da Ubisoft. Divertido e problemático ao mesmo tempo. Vendo o sucesso de Forza Horizon, a Ubisoft decidiu se inspirar (pra não dizer outra coisa) no jogo da Playground e introduzir um festival a The Crew.

Eu não gosto dos jogos anteriores dessa franquia, então qualquer mudança seria positiva pra mim e é meio isso que aconteceu. A grande novidade são as playlists, que são series de eventos de uma certa temática e funcionam como mini carreiras, são bem divertidas e o destaque do jogo, cada uma com um tom e apresentação diferente, entregando muita variedade. Não tem muito mais o que fazer fora isso pra um jogador solo, o resto do jogo é todo focado no online. O mapa é bem feito, bem bonito, mais detalhado e caprichado, até por ser menor, mas continua meio morto. A lista de veículos é bem completa e a gameplay é similar à do segundo jogo, mas com algumas atualizações, nada que mude muito sua experiencia, o problema do jogo anterior não era a gameplay. A sensação de velocidade e o sound design tão bem melhores que antes, deu pra perceber que foi um ponto onde se dedicaram mais. A má otimização do jogo e o Launcher PODRE da Ubisoft atrapalham, especialmente em eventos online.

Uma alternativa interessante a Forza Horizon, que consegue divertir. Recomendo numa promoção.

After the release of Castlevania Rondo of Blood it would be logical to think that Symphony of the Night came next, however, two other games with the classic formula were made before, being these Castlevania Bloodlines for the Sega Genesis/Mega Drive and Dracula X for SNES, being the first of these 2 the one I will talk about in this occasion.

This game is a bit strange compared to the past 10 titles, as both the visual aspect and the setting are quite different. This time the story is set in the 20th century, a more contemporary era. We take the role of Jhon Morris and Eric Lecarde, two vampire hunters who, in the absence of the Belmont family, have the role of stopping Dracula and his servants. Dracula as such has not yet been resurrected, however his niece, Elizabeth Bartley, plans to bring him back to plunge the world into darkness.

So yes, this game gives us the possibility to play it with two different characters. John Morris has the Vampire Killer whip, so his gameplay is based on the classic gameplay of all the previous Castlevanias, albeit with some nice additions like being able to swing with the whip by hanging from any surface. Another day we'll talk about what happens when someone other than a Belmont uses the whip. And we also have Eric Lecarde, someone who fights using a spear made by Alucard, who can attack in several directions similar to Simon Belmont in Castlevania IV, but with a more limited speed and range, and we can also do a super jump if we crouch for a moment and then jump (reference to SMB2?).

This game was clearly developed by a different team than previous Castlevania games (the Contra team, I suspect) and may have been devised for Western audiences primarily. The game has virtually no religious references, for example, the crosses were changed to a common boomerang. The hearts were replaced by symbols with the letter “C” and blue orbs. The whip upgrades are now represented with an eagle (like the weapon upgrades in the Contra games) and the enemy design is a bit strange. It looks as if the monster designs are straight out of an 80s western cartoon... and it certainly doesn't look very “Castlevania”, it clashes quite a bit with the designs seen in both past and future installments of the series. However, where this game totally hits the nail on the head is in the environments, as they totally capture that gothic and grim setting of the series, but what makes it more impressive to me is that many of the locations in this game are based on real life locations, which also makes the set of levels feel more varied from the typical Castlevania game. Although truth be told, the game graphically doesn't look as good as the previous 3 installments either, it still remains one of the best looking games of the 16-bit era, even displaying a lot of graphical effects that I never imagined the Sega Genesis/Mega Drive would be capable of. There is also a continues system, so if you lose all of them you will have to start from the beginning of the game... well, this is actually a lie, as the continues become totally trivial if we take into account that this game also features a password system, so you will actually only have to start the level from the beginning and not the whole game as such.

Moving on to talk about the gameplay, Bloodlines decides to take an even more classic scheme that Rondo of Blood had already taken, and to be honest, I'm a bit disappointed, because it doesn't feel nearly as polished or satisfying to play. Controlling John feels very clunky due to how limited his mobility is and also how weird his jumping and walking animations are, you can only attack forwards, downwards and diagonally upwards (which I imagine was only implemented because of the swinging mechanics), and in this game you can't instantly jump down stairs either, I dare say it feels like a complete downgrade from Super Castlevania IV and Rondo of Blood, I'd go as far as to say that Simon in the remake for Sharp X68000 computers feels even better to control. It's not too bad, as it plays similar to the NES Castlevania and those still have fun gameplay, but it does feel like a step backwards coming from games that had presented more fun propositions.

Even so, it's not all bad, because this Castlevania does have some good new mechanics that are pretty cool. For starters, the swinging mechanic that I mentioned before is really fun to use, because while swinging you inflict damage to the enemies you touch and you are invincible, plus swinging can also reach more places. Another addition that I also like is the new maximum level of the whip, which is like a super powerful blue whip of energy that destroys all enemies very easily, the disadvantage, you can lose this upgrade just by receiving a hit, so it is something that ironically will only be useful when you have enough experience in the game, as a way to reward the player's skill. And finally, we can power up all the sub-weapons using ↑+C, which is pretty cool.

Ironically, one aspect where this game does feel very Castlevania is in its music. This was the first Castlevania game to feature the compositions of Michiru Yamane (the composer of Symphony of the Night and subsequent games), and for her first soundtrack in the franchise it was a very good one indeed. Her style completely nails the Castlevania setting; they have that touch of classical style music combined with that moving and catchy touch.

Conclusion
Although in some ways it feels like a step backwards for the franchise, making it the weakest of the good Castlevania games for me, it's still a very solid game, and still an interesting take on the classic Castlevania formula.

At some point, I'm going to have to realize where my tenacity or perseverance ends. This should hopefully be that point.

I can't even rate it, it is fun at times, planning for fights and watching them come to fruition can be euphoric as all hell. But that's my problem especially, is seeing them fucking work. After giving it another feeble run in the hopes of at least making it past Brawly, I realized that nothing in my box could handle the very first boss's Croagunk, my best bet being the Salandit in my party that could wall out its fighting and poison type damage, while also avoiding being poisoned by its ability. What I did not account for, was getting my defense lowered three times in a row by Rock Smash, promptly followed by a switch-in to Chimchar, who I assumed would be able to last a few turns to finish the rest of it off. He didn't. He died to a Belch crit.

I don't have the mentality to continue running this game. Not when my luck is abhorrent as it always is. I can see where the fun is, but I can never make it to that point. I am never finishing this game, and on the off chance I ever do, it won't be in a way that feels satisfactory, and by then, it just isn't fun.

Play it if you're confident, by no means am I not recommending Run & Bun since it's definitely a challenge at least worth giving a try, hundreds if you're that confident. I'm not, though. Which is why I'm dropping it without a rating.

THE MISSILE IS NOT EQUIPPED YET!

I cannot believe that Konami went from making a direct absolute masterpiece to an absolute dumpster fire of a Gradius Game. And it hurts for me to say this considering that most Gradius entries are absolutely goated. Just like the one before this game: Gradius Gaiden. I don’t need to explain any further why Gaiden was a masterpiece: The presentation alone upon looking at it for the first time is extortionary. The gameplay is a step up, the soundtrack is kicking. Fans wouldn’t imagine how well the next game could’ve been with all of the perfections that Gaiden have. This leads us to 1999’s Gradius IV: And boy, for a game that’s Gradius, there are a lot of bad things to cover. Strap in as you’re going to see me have things to say about this one.

Story
We revisit to the ending of Gradius II where Gofer was defeated by the almighty Vic viper. But, a fragment of Gofer’s merged into a planet, causing it to turn into a whole ship! Reminds me of the one from Gradius I somewhat. That's all there is though, other than you having to use the Vic Viper again to stop Gofer’s resurrection from happening, to save the world of Gradius all over again. Why can’t we have a Gradius game where the actual planet of Gradius is one that we can enter, and have a direct cause to it? Why are we going back into space again? I know that it would be out of place for Gradius, but at least you can cook something with that design of that, make it serious and such! The only game that I know that gets close to this concept is Parodius, which is a spinoff of Gradius, so that doesn’t realty count. Why are we revisiting Gofer again? How and why did an element of his get merged with a giant planet for it to be turned into a whole spaceship? none of this makes any sense to me, and I wished that I can ask the developers why they slacked off two year after the masterpiece of Gaiden. But at least the gameplay should be alright, right?

Gameplay
Where can I customize the slot bars? I want to have my shield first and options second... Where’s also the other shields that I can have like guard and limit? Why can’t I edit my weapons like Gradius III? Why are we going back to Gradius II in terms of the options you’re able to use? And don’t say that this is an arcade game, Gradius III WAS an arcade game and had the option to edit your ship parts! And they could’ve spared 30 seconds to switch the slot parts. Other arcade games at the time took longer of the game to acutally start! At least the graphics are okay, right...?

Liquid Metal
WHAT. AM. I. LOOKING AT. Seriously, the first time I looked at this game, I thought it was piss. It also kind of hurts my eyes for some reason. I guess it’s because of the rapidly switching colors within the “Liquid Metal.” And I still don’t know what it could possibly be. While this is technically unique to Gradius for the first time, the layout of the stage with dragons coming out was already featured in well.. Gradius II. (you’re going to see a bunch of similarities with this game and Gradius III.) And what’s worse about this one, is that it ends quicker than you think it does. I don’t know if it’s me, the fact that it ends very quickly beofre the boss says something imo. But the boss?

It’s a giant three headed dragon monster looking thing. Once again, this is a [boss] idea that was featured in another Gradius game (Arcade Gradius III). Apparently, its name was Yorogaton Chimera. I don’t know what that means, but it does change into 3 other forms: A weird crab infused turtle.. Looking,... monster? I don’t know what they were cooking. The other one is.. I can’t explain it. It has a shell, it has a giant looking teeth thing that are it’s eyes? And the final one, a fidget spinner spinning shooting projectiles. None of this makes sense to me.


Plant
Next stage might look like a unique stage, but all and all it’s just another traditional plant stage. It kinda looks like underwater plant life to me? I don’t know if that’s true and whatnot. The stage is also pretty easy just llik4e the others. Just get rid of the weird lines and head to a plant boss that also looks weird. The name for this one is Dendrodium, and while this is a pretty standard boss, it’s just the graphics that makes this boss look disgusting or just something else. It also dies faster than Yorogaton.

Bubble/Crytsal
They really thought that they can be unique with this stage making bubbles and crystal together, but the bubbles come from Gradius III, and the crystal comes form Gradius II. The reason I’m complaining about the reuse of the stages is because when they are presented within this game, it makes no effort to make things different and whatnot. Gaiden also reuses a bunch of things, but here’s the difference: It puts a twist in almost everything, making them feel familiar but unique. This stage just has floating bubbles, and floating crystals. The boss is the Bubble Core. The first core in this game. I’ll say that this is a pretty solid boss, shooting bubbles and lasers. Not too hard not too easy.

Life/Magma
This stage is a mixed bag for me. I was going to complain about the layout of the first part being like the life stage featured in Gradius II, but then the completely original lava part comes in just right after this! While completely volcanic stages aren’t oroiginal (the infamous stage in Gradius III), this is the only stage that actually makes things unique. I guess not everything in this game is not worth complaining about. However, this stage is also similar to III in how difficult it is! In this stage, you’ll be tasked with maneuvering through the fast-moving lava terrarian, with big rocks coming form both left and right. While this seems easy, this stage marks the intro to where I say that a large point of this game is rigged. The rocks are big and so as the moving lava, and i had a hard time passing this stage cause I kept on dying a lot especially when the volcano moves hard up and down. I forgot the type of animal Gillador, the boss is, but I do know that it’s related to sea animals and whatnot with having a giant strong shell, and a tail. That's this boss, which is also a first for Gradius.

Moai
As of writing this, I forgot that there was a whole Moai stage that came before the cell stage. This one isn’t unique, but it is a series staple of having multiple moai heads and whatnot. And just like all of them, there’s a harder part where they shoot more projectiles at you. Due to how typical this stage is, there's not much to say about it. The boss, Alpha/Omega (very original) is similar to the SNES Gradius III with how you have to fight two giant Moai heads attached to rocks, but what makes this one differ is that there’s small Moai heads that come out and shoot the circles, lasers and whatnot, making it harder to hit the giant moai heads. I like the extra challenge with this one, but I died a whole bunch because of the tiny Moai heads. The movements with the bosses are incoherent, and I end up dying because they don’t have a recognizable attack pattern for me to remember.

Cell
I don’t like what this stage looks like. The graphics make this stage look like it’s real. While also typical for Gradius, they make this this one disturbing be within with the stage moving as if the stage is real and whatnot. This stage also managed to be difficult with the organism vines (Dunno what to call them) and the multiple projectiles that come out after breaking them. Then there’s the little weird sticks that look at you which is also a staple enemy in organism like stages but there’s a bunch of them in a section of the stage. The boss is another core-looknig boss named Berial that also looks weird due to the 3D graphics of the game. It reminds me of a reborn version of Golem, the Slaamnader boss with the brain and the two hands that come out of it.

High Speed
And now it’s time for one of the worst stages in the entire game. After going through the hellhole that is the entire game, the High-Speed section of this game is the worst out of all of them. Not only that the stage is fast, but the background blends also well with the stage making it hard for me to see where to go, and there’s a bunch of big obstacles that get in the way of your path. The stage also starts off fast unlike the others in that it gradually gets fast. The paths are also more confusing than the other entries that I believe had a more coherent path to it. The core for this boss is another annoying one, but what am I supposed to say about how unique it is, it’s just like the other bosses in this game where they shoot a bunch of things at the player. If you die at all in this stage, just say goodbye to your progress which happened to me. Thank goodness for save states though, because I wouldn’t know how I would be able to finish not only this game, but Arcade Gradius III, too. This boss is also hard because it does like to turn it’s head a lot making the core hard to reach.

This boss also reminds me of another thing that I have to say about the game’s bosses: They. Drag ON. I took a while to beat this boss to the point that I believe that with my successful attempt, the boss self-destructed cause being an Arcade game, You can’t take too long with the boss. Almost all of the bossses take too long to beat not counting if you die mid-fight.

Boss Parade


Vanishing Core
The Gradius I ship comes in the background to send the boss cores to you. This first one gives me massive Gradius Gaiden vibes, what’s awesome about this one is the rainbow lights that it has. Although the circles along with the missiles and the listers are also projectiles to kill you.

Big Core MK III Kai
Gradius III’s Big Core Mk.III but with a vengeance. This one work like the original with the only addition being the fact that the parts that shoot the big lasers go up and down with the lasers in the missile shooing straighter beams. I don’t know how else to say it. Pretty solid remaster of the original Big Core Mk.III.

Covered Tetran
They made the Tetran from Salamander 2 a bit more annoying to fight with it’s arms going moving left and right faster than normal, with the ends also shooting lasers to keep you always moving.

Berserk Core
Two smaller ships that shoot big beams the bigger one shooting tiny ones only shooting big ones when the tiny ships are destroyed. I dunno what else to say.
Planet Core
Now the final one! This one is like a remaked version of the final core in the boss rush of Gradius II, but this one is harder with shooting i guess bombs? When the core turns, they turn along with it. The good thing about this boss is that it’s more coherent with it’s boss pattern but still difficult as it really is the final core from the boss ruhs.


Final Fortress
Now the mechanical base! We enter similar to Gradius II by shooting the opening, and this one is like Gradius III with the color choices of the base overall. Other than that, this one does take an interesting turn with how the base turns clockwise, but don’t get your hopes high it does go back to normal before. At least it doesn’t flash like the Arcade Gradius III one, and it’s not too long like that one either. The gate featured in this one is a bit harder to avoid than the others with moving parts coming down and up but other than that if you’re careful and destroy the turrets you’ll be done with this fight.

Now the walker. It’s the walker from Gradius II. I mean, you could say that because this game is related to Gofer and such, it can have a bunch of references to II and such, but why mark this game as a 4th entry if it’s more like a reimagining of the 2nd gradius game? This stuff is just confusing man. The onyl unique thing it does is move around harder but that’s about it.

And now we finally reached Gofer. WHAT. AM. I. LOOKING. AT?????? They have massacred Gofer’s design so badly that he now looks like a low budget golf ball literally sitting on the edge of a ship that looks like it has eyes. I am the center of the Universe, my ass. Thank goodness that they made you so pathetically weaker in this reincarnation. After defeating him, the ship turns back to normal, and credits play thereafter. Where is the awesome scene where you’re going back to normal? And while we talk about this, why has there been a bunch of people signing up for the cutscene that happens in the beginning of the game? It literally lasts less tha 30 seconds.

Soundtrack
Another thing that I have yet to discuss is the soundtrack for this game where most of them are name after Greek and Roman Gods. For example, the Life/Magma stage is called Cronos/Hades, and the Final Fortress has Prometheus/Athena respectively. I don’t know why they have done this considering that there are no roman/greek references within the stages themselves, but I already questioned too much of this game’s existence. As much as I like listening to the soundtrack within this game, this game’s music is off the trail with how it’s supposed to be serious and such. There’s no capturing of seriousness and such featuring lighter instruments, and the soundtrack is jazzier and more upbeat than the other Gradius games. The High Speed stage is an example of what I mean. It’s exciting, happy! And upbeat! You ready for a fast-paced stage? Here you go. Or how about the Bubble/Crystal one? It’s calm, and once again, has that Jazz riz. I don’t understand why most of the songs in this game are light considering that earlier entries had musicthat was too light in the scope of the developers.

Conclusion

So that was Gradius IV. A game that referenced stuff from past Gradius games and didn’t really seek to improve what has already been established. Honestly, for Gaiden which learning now literally translates to side story in English, I’d rather call that game the true Gradius IV as they put in a ton of more effort to it that makes it more of a love letter than a continued series down the line. Not to mention that, like the first 2004 SpongeBob Movie, the developers wanted to have Arcade Gradius III to be the final entry to the Gradius series overall, but none of the games after it made a great continuation as much as from 1 to salamander, to 2, and to 3. The graphics also don’t hold up much especially when comparing it to other games released in 1999. They should’ve stayed with the 2D designs even if games at the time were supposed to be all that 3D. But that’s it for another review off my list. I would’ve gotten more ruthless with this entry, but I’ve done the best that I could to explain things in greater detail than before.

Animal Well really is a thing you need to experience with a controller in your hands and full focus because it is a living, breathing art piece that sucked me in. I bought this game 5 hours ago and I haven't put it down since. The way everything animated is like drinking cool water on a hot night. Refreshing.

Seeing the previews of this game, I thought "ok big youtuber videogamedunkey is firmly in his 30's and wants to expand beyond making shitposts and make money by becoming an indie publisher". I wasn't moved at all by any of the promotion for Animal Well. I am bored to DEATH of 2D platformers and this game only teased a pleasant art style which is not enough to make me care. Most 2D games all mostly play the same. I'm sleep.

Thing is I got 24.68 on my Steam Wallet, so why not give it a try.

It is a Metroidvania logic puzzler. There are no tutorials in Animal Well. You are left as to guess how you progress forward. It's not Baba is You go FUCK yourself hard. It is quite simple and natural gameplay that leads to bigger and bigger "ah-HA!" moments. The kind where you feel dumb and smart. Smumb. Darmbt. I felt like I was one of those things.

The gameplay mixed with the environments and ambient music just clicked with me hard. I was 45 minutes into the game after being cynical about the whole thing and my brain just snapped after a certain puzzle solution and I realized this game has a hidden power level of cleverness. It is so meticulously well thought out. It's not trying to reinvent the wheel. It just was catered for you to have a good time.

I recommend this game for everyone. I've been in a gaming slump where no new game releases has really excited me, but Animal Well is the game that pulled my brain out of that fog. Not saying it will do the same for you, but if you give it a shot, it just might.

It ain't as good as Hollow Knight, but this is right under that (so far) as a jaw dropping 2D game with content that keeps upping the ante in amazement.

Jamal Dunkey picked a banger to kick off his publishing venture.

Dunkey really wasn't exaggerating!

Animal Well is an absolute spectacle of an indie game, with unique gameplay elements and incredibly clever puzzles that push the limits of what a Metroidvania can expect from a player. I'm quite surprised that I was able to finish this game without a guide, but that just goes to show how effortlessly the mechanics are communicated!

And of course, the biggest stand-out is the GORGEOUS animation that I couldn't stop admiring from start to finish. If this game should be remembered for any one thing, it HAS to be the phenomenal art design.

"Completionist" Update:

THIS GAME IS SO DEEP AND COMPLEX THAT I CAN'T 100% IT! ONE OF THE PUZZLES REQUIRED 64 CORRECT INPUTS IN A FUCKING ROW!!! MY BRAIN HAS MELTED TO SLUDGE AND THERE IS NO END IN SIGHT!