2013
The less said about this game, the better. What a fantastic and weird experience. Play the Ultra Deluxe edition that's more readily available at this point. And go into it as blind as possible.
2012
With the announcement and release of the disastrous Hawken Reborn, it made me reminisce about the original Hawken a bit. It was everything I wanted in a shooter at the given time; it looked gorgeous for the era it was released in with a dense, captivating art style. The mech design was meaty and cool while allowing a level of customization that made every mech feel distinct to its player. And most importantly, the combat gameplay itself was both fast and had that weight to it that a lot of shooters at the time just couldn't replicate barring Titanfall: you felt like you were piloting a big, beefy mech.
The only real drawback to the game at the time was the rising plague of microtransactions in shops that felt like all the best mechs or weaponry or cosmetics were heavily gated behind grinding. I played a lot of the beta, but by the time the main game came out, I felt I couldn't keep up with the grind.
All in all I have a lot of fond memories of the game, being a showhorse in graphical power for its time with big fat mechs blowing shit up. The game to this day still has one of the most satisfying railguns/snipers I've used in a videogame. I might hunt down some private servers and reminisce some more.
The only real drawback to the game at the time was the rising plague of microtransactions in shops that felt like all the best mechs or weaponry or cosmetics were heavily gated behind grinding. I played a lot of the beta, but by the time the main game came out, I felt I couldn't keep up with the grind.
All in all I have a lot of fond memories of the game, being a showhorse in graphical power for its time with big fat mechs blowing shit up. The game to this day still has one of the most satisfying railguns/snipers I've used in a videogame. I might hunt down some private servers and reminisce some more.
Frankly the only reason this game is so low on the list is because of recency bias. This game fucking rules. As my introduction to the series, I'm so impressed. Finding ways to customize your mech and make it your own personal weapon of war is engaging as hell. The story is compelling and a lot more coherent than From's recent implicit storytelling in their games, and I haven't even talked about the gameplay yet.
It's blistering, nail-biting action that feels visceral and frantic, and there are a load of builds to optimize your war-criming from blowing shit up with missiles, lasering things, using the pile bunker to impale at close range, or just some good ol' fashioned shotguns to blow enemy ACs into ribbons. The only real critique I have of the game is its difficulty can be daunting with a lot of uneven spikes that can be frustrating, and further S-ranking all the missions gets exceedingly challenging.
Fantastic fucking game. I haven't even gotten all endings or dipped my toes into the PVP, but I'm eager to continue my playthrough.
It's blistering, nail-biting action that feels visceral and frantic, and there are a load of builds to optimize your war-criming from blowing shit up with missiles, lasering things, using the pile bunker to impale at close range, or just some good ol' fashioned shotguns to blow enemy ACs into ribbons. The only real critique I have of the game is its difficulty can be daunting with a lot of uneven spikes that can be frustrating, and further S-ranking all the missions gets exceedingly challenging.
Fantastic fucking game. I haven't even gotten all endings or dipped my toes into the PVP, but I'm eager to continue my playthrough.
2008
One of the first indie puzzle games on the Nintendo eShop that I played, I frankly had a blast with it. Wholly unique, cute, and at times somewhat disturbing. Using your goo balls to construct elaborate bullshit devices but having enough to make it to the ending is both compelling and a chill experience. The presentation, music, and aesthetics sell it even harder. It's just a really good puzzle game.
In my first attempt to review every single game on my 100-something top games list, I'm generally going to keep the early reviews short because I simply don't remember them extremely well.
Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet was one of my first forays into indie Metroidvanias, and it's definitely a "style over substance" example of the genre. The art style is gorgeous, the ambiance is incredible, and instead of platforming it's a flying elegantly through bleak caverns and mazes. The boss battles are beautifully animated. My big grievance with the game is that the actual combat feels weak, like you're firing a pea shooter at these large monstrosities; the feedback is lacking. And also generally said, the actual game does a lot and doesn't do much of it exceedingly well. It's sufficient, merely competent at what it does without excelling and any real exciting way outside of the art direction and uniqueness of the exploration and gameplay.
That being said, it's still good fun and a nice bite-sized adventure in the genre without overstaying its welcome. It's not fantastic by any means, but it holds a special place in my heart for being one of the first real indie games I latched onto.
Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet was one of my first forays into indie Metroidvanias, and it's definitely a "style over substance" example of the genre. The art style is gorgeous, the ambiance is incredible, and instead of platforming it's a flying elegantly through bleak caverns and mazes. The boss battles are beautifully animated. My big grievance with the game is that the actual combat feels weak, like you're firing a pea shooter at these large monstrosities; the feedback is lacking. And also generally said, the actual game does a lot and doesn't do much of it exceedingly well. It's sufficient, merely competent at what it does without excelling and any real exciting way outside of the art direction and uniqueness of the exploration and gameplay.
That being said, it's still good fun and a nice bite-sized adventure in the genre without overstaying its welcome. It's not fantastic by any means, but it holds a special place in my heart for being one of the first real indie games I latched onto.