This was the most unexpected I have ever felt after a game.

I first played The Last of Us back when in launched in 2013, when I was 13 years old. I saw the marketing for it, a bunch of YouTubers hyping it up, great review scores and I became interested. I was trying to expand my gaming pallet at the time and ended up getting it. To say I was disappointed at the time would be an understatement. I don't really remember exactly why I didn't like it initially, it has been 10+ years after all, it just didn't click. I didn't even finish the game.

Of course this game would go on to not only be one of the most acclaimed games of not only the generation, but of all time, and I didn't get why. For years I refered to this game as "mid" and was uninterested when it came back up in discussions, and laughed at the drama regarding its sequel as I assumed I'd never play it so why would I care? Well I'll worry about Part 2 when I get to it later.

So now all these years later, coming into a copy of the remaster on PS4 when I got a bulk game lot, and deciding to try it again on a whim as I wait for Final Fantasy VII Rebirth - I had one of the best gaming experiences in recent memory. Memories I forgot I had came back into my mind when playing the early bits, and then even knowing some of the end game story beats as of course with a game this popular you end up getting spoiled one way or another... I loved every second of it. The pacing is perfect as I never once felt bored and my play sessions went for hours longer than I intended as I was that sucked in. The gameplay gave me the tense and harsh moments to match the scenes, the story I was engrossed in, and the characters I fell in love with. And before I knew it, it was over, and I was crying. Confused tears, sad tears, happy tears - I just played a masterpiece.

I think at the end of the day I was just too young to get into this game, when I thought of shooting games I thought Call of Duty, Halo, guns blazing high action. So maybe the slower, methodical, and survival horror like gameplay put me off. Maybe the story I couldn't connect with because I wasn't paying enough attention, was zombied out coming off being obessed with the walking dead around that time. These are all just my reflections as to the possibilities of why I didn't like this game back in the day, as I previously said I don't remember exactly why. A representation of how much I've matured and grown as a person, I'm no longer that little kid me, and that's okay. But what's important is now, because now I love this game.

Wasn't expecting to write an essay but felt inspired, if you read all this you a real one, and thank you.

Trace Memory is a game that I have very fond memories of, very creative puzzles using the DS, a nice story and characters, and great pacing. After finding out it had a sequel on the Wii I was interested of course, but with it never coming out in NA, and frankly not being bothered enough to set it up on emulator I hadn't played it, until now.

This remake satisfied me, while yes the puzzle creativity does suffer (as expected) the updated visuals, voice acting, and features were very nice. Seeing the story of Trace Memory again in this more modernized presentation was a treat, even if the original still has its own charm that can't be matched in a certain way.

Then I got to the sequel, Two Memories, all new content for me. And while the pacing was not as great as the previous entry as some parts of this game can really drag, the setting of Lake Juliet was really nice, and the new cast of characters are as well written as you would expect from a Cing title. The way the story connects back to the 1st game was really cool and made getting through those slower bits so worth it. I heard that the story was changed in this version compared to the Wii version so I'll have to look into how so someday.

At the end of the day I'm glad this game exists. A remake of some pretty niche games and from a developer that sadly doesn't exist anymore is something I never thought I would get but am so glad Nintendo took this chance to try and elevate some dormant titles. I hope this sold well as I would love to see Hotel Dusk be brought back as well. Cing had a knack for writing very human and believable characters and stories, with unique vibes to them that I still haven't seen matched to this day, and I hope this keeps their memory alive, if only for a little longer.