"Until the day we meet again"

Gonna pump out some Shinra propaganda for listening while you read this.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ftFF70_9cog

Bai Gawd it has been a wonderful year for so many great new releases and this one has yet again topped my list so far this year. I am definitely a major fanboy for this one since I grew up around this Final Fantasy as my introduction to this life changing series for me. From playing the games, watching my brother play it, to watching the Advent Children movie when we were younger and reaching this point now and playing the next installment of this remake. Revisiting the locations and witnessing some of these scenes and nearly improving in so many areas and the party feels so alive and the interactions made my heart so damn happy. This game is a rollercoaster of emotions in a great way! From laughing out loud to the unexpected jokes to the tearful emotional moments.

Overall gameplay has been definitely improved on and I love how the quicker you think ahead pays off with the synergy moves and making nearly every party member so damn fun to play and experiment with. RED XIII was definitely one of my absolute favorites to play with! I love how the other party members are in the background in some of the fights as well and you can see them fighting other enemies as well. Could not believe how much mini games they threw in here as well and all are pretty nice to breakup the repetition and have you always doing unique things and Queens Blood is definitely the brightest most addictive diamond of the bunch.

I knew the soundtrack was gonna hit me with some damn fine tunes like the first installment did, but of course I still underestimated them. I will also say some of the side quests are pretty good to do and the banter between party members is so good and makes for some additional lore and fanservice for our favorite characters except Chadley who can go suck a Chocobo egg! I loved how much Barrett was fleshed out in this one they did his story with Dyne damn well and goddamn that man is such a badass party member to have once you get into late game territory.

By no means is it the perfect game, but for longtime fans of the original it is one hell of a treat and I am curious to see where they continue to go with telling the story in its new ways. I was on the fence about this one with its new twists and turns to the story changes, but I feel like it worked out really well. I am definitely cool with waiting a bit for the next part considering all the RPGS I still need to get to, the new and old ones! I could certainly go on and talk about every little detail, but I don't wanna be like these game trailers nowadays that tell you every little thing about games and want you to experience it for yourself!

How did I never know about this, I definitely got to look more into this Sega Ages 2500 era of games! As the last game my brother and I managed to put away before I get on my flight back home. A remake of the original Golden Axe game which introduces a few cutscenes and more detail to the characters and a 2.5D experience that is pretty faithful to the original even with new arrangements of the classic soundtrack. The best part is how when you pick up and throw the enemies they are stiff as a board!

Pretty fun with another person playing with you, but of course the gameplay loop gets alittle bit repetitive by the end. There is no english translation at this moment however mostly everything is in english text besides the very few cutscenes thrown around in there. Any fan of classic Golden Axe will enjoy this one for sure.

Another retro classic my brother and I were able to beat while I am over here for the week. Compared to the original this one does not have as much charm, love that they changed up the characters outfits a bit more. If you are able to clear the first few levels with only losing a life or two you are in good shape to make it all the way to the end and clear the game as it is also pretty short. A little bit of an update to the combo system as well as a crowd control move when you press jump and attack at the same time which is very handy and can do a bit more damage. Tyris Flare’s magic is still unmatched and play it smart you can dominate the boss fights and tougher enemies. Definitely the weakest of the trilogy, but also the easiest.