285 reviews liked by FlowerSunandPain


I think it's pretty easy to take for granted how much official controller support can add to a game. I'll give you an example: Rollercoaster Tycoon 3 on the Steam Deck is an unmitigated nightmare that, at best, is barely playable unless you have a mouse and keyboard plugged in. But the version for the Nintendo Switch works surprisingly well. Further case and point: anyone who has ever tried rebinding the buttons on a controller so they could play any of the three S.T.A.L.K.E.R. games developed and released between 2007-2009 probably came to the same realization that the developers of System Shock 2's canceled Dreamcast port did: there just aren't enough buttons on any controller for this shit, man. Unless you want to sacrifice your ability to lean around corners, turn on your flashlight, change the firing mode of your weapon, or have quick access to healing items, trying to play the PC versions of S.T.A.L.K.E.R. with a controller is inadvisable until further notice.

Like Rollercoaster Tycoon 3's Switch port, what drew me to the Legends of the Zone Trilogy bundle currently on sale for the Xbox and (surprisingly) PlayStation isn't that I had never touched these games before, but I was genuinely curious to see how a franchise that has never had official controller support before would handle the task of running on console hardware. And surprisingly, it works. It works about as well as you would expect it to, anyway. It is still a little finicky in some regards: sensitivity between aiming regularly and aiming down sights differs to a distracting degree, the weapon wheel doesn't pause or slow the game while you're using it, and navigating the inventory without a cursor slows things down, which isn't aided by the fact that using the inventory, too, does not slow or pause the game for you. Some of that clunkiness aside, though, these control fine and are perfectly adequate ways to experience the vanilla versions of these games if you've either never played them before or simply want a reason to play them again. They've added achievements to all three games, as well, which is always a nice touch. Multiplayer modes aren't present, but it should be common knowledge by now that multiplayer doesn't tend to carry over when an older game gets re-released unless it was a notable part of the package (and here, it was not).

This is sort of reminiscent of that time they ported Half-Life 2, FEAR, Far Cry, and Doom 3 to seventh-gen systems to accommodate for the fact that neither the PS2 nor original Xbox could manage stable/struggled to manage stable ports of either, except they've done it two console generations later. I don't really mind that though; I find this sort of re-release nostalgic. On the subject of this being released on last-gen hardware rather than current-gen systems, perhaps they didn't have the resources for that? That distinction does make this feel a bit lazier than it should to prying eyes, but on a PlayStation 5, it emulates just fine, looks great in 4K, and feels fine enough with a DualSense. I am a bit bummed that they didn't consider porting this to the Switch, but I can see where technical barriers and monetary incentives would have prevented such a port from happening. Oh well, maybe next time.

There are a couple of interesting differences I've noticed so far:

- The Energy Drinks you'll find in-game now have the branding/product placement that they apparently did in the original European releases.
- They've done their due diligence, and the Chernobyl in Shadow of Chernobyl is now spelled in Ukrainian fashion, with an O instead of an E. They've also gone ahead and done this for S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2, so it's not too surprising, but what is is that they've gone ahead and edited the original menu images to accommodate for this change.
- As has been common with these re-releases since Whoopi Goldberg introduced the Looney Tunes (probably), there's a disclaimer in here about these games being historical artifacts (no pun intended). While you could point to something like the use of the R slur in these games for that disclaimer, the most likely explanation for what they're referring to is that these games have never had a particularly positive outlook on the Ukranian military. Preeeeetty bad timing for that, I'd say.

ETA: Easily the roughest bit of transition from PC to Consoles is that I don't think any of these ports allow you to quicksave. Given that S.T.A.L.K.E.R. has always been firmly in the camp of "quicksave every five minutes in case you die instantly", this means that your manual saves will fill up quickly. There's also the fact that these being straightforward ports means that there are no quickslots for any game that isn't Call of Pripyat. Prepare to be sorting through that inventory a lot just to use one energy drink! That being said, I stand by my assessment thus far: these are accessible ports that mostly work out of the box. If that's what you're looking for, it's forty bucks well spent.

ETA2: Lowering my score for this by a star. Everything I said is true, but the faithfulness of these ports also extends to their notable technical shortcomings, including crashes, bugs that have never officially been patched, and inconsistent spawning/despawning. These games are still playable and fine, evidenced by the fact that I just spent 22 hours in Shadow of Chernobyl with very few issues. But if you're coming in expecting these ports to have been polished for consoles beyond their controls and presentation, they're somewhat disappointing, although the likely explanation is that there might not have been much to work with.

Unforgiving, and unkind. The Chernobyl Exclusion Zone is the main character. You are not--and the game won't let you forget it. Trek through the survival-horror RPG "lore-friendly gameplay bug" anomaly infested world of Stalker as the Marked One in search of a man named Strelok. The gameplay progression features no XP, levels, or skill trees, solely relying on your ability to adapt against different enemies and the equipment you rip from their corpses. Gunfights are grueling, and require better planning going into them. No matter how strong your equipment is, headshot means headshot. You will die if you are unprepared. However, despite the cruel nature of the game the atmosphere of the Zone is the most immersed I have ever felt in any game, and you'll find that even the long downtimes are still worth your attention as the world and its inhabitants live through their lives without requiring player interaction. Subsequent games improve on the gunplay and quality of life, but don't let the 2007 graphics fool you, as none of them surpass the feel of this game. As mentioned before, there are quite a few bugs, very few of which can't be fixed with a few mods such as ZRP. So, if you're looking for a pseudo-realistic survival horror FPS, I cannot recommend this game enough.

This is actually Ukraine in real life

Great game, but I found it really odd how the game would wrestle the control away from you so it could focus on Sidorovich's big beefy bulge. I also found his occasional sexting with messages like "I've got a BIG package for you, Marked One" to be disconcerting, but otherwise I had a great time!

if you like wikipedia and video games and escape rooms then this is the game for you (it is very fun i enjoyed it a lot)

yakuza 4 is genuinely a delight. it is so so self aware of the series it's in, so camp and so understanding of the tropes of yakuza and executes all of it's perfect silliness so well.

the main 4 characters have a whole range of quality, but some treasures among them that i can't wait to see in the future games, i absolutely adore the additions with their personalities! in terms of antagonists, i think y3 and y4 has had some pretty weak ones, but the ideas presented in 4 are interesting :D

the ost for this game is incredible and the ending was so insanely hype, i enjoyed it immensly :3 great yakuzas


this game truly hit me in so many unexpected ways, i went in a coward, expecting horror and jumpscares and terrible things, and i came out a coward, having expereinced horror and jumpscares and terrible things, but now also feeling like my brain had been left on a bbq for like 5 days or smth

james is so fascinating and should be put through rigirous scientific testing to examine what the hell is up with that, what an amazing character who will leave me thinking for many days t o come.
maria is so incredibly written idk if any ananlyiss on her oculd even do her justice tbqh.

laura is the best.

this game is honestly just fascinating, well worth even if ur afraid like me, the story and unravelling is impeccable and awful and wow and yes and ahhhhhhhhhh

(i knock off .5 stars for apartment building)(edit nvm i changed it to 5 i can't stop thinking about this game)

The Hills Are Alive
Sitting down last night to play Silent Hill: The Short Message was a truly surreal experience. As the first Silent Hill game to be released in a decade, this game comes with enormous baggage - and seemingly insurmountable expectations. I think it's common knowledge to most gamers, whether they've actually played a Silent Hill game or not, that this is a series cursed with the distinction of having ”peaked” over 20 years ago. Everything since the earliest games in the series has been highly scrutinized by a hardcore fan base that hasn’t really been satisfied with any of the attempts that a wide variety of developers have made at providing an adequate follow-up to the classic original quadrilogy of games. This pattern of diminishing returns came to a head in 2014 with the very messy fallout between Konami and Hideo Kojima - and the cancellation of Silent Hills, the first game in the series in a while to show some serious potential to rekindle what made the series truly special in the first place: terrifying gameplay rooted in a uniquely nightmarish artistic vision. The playable teaser for that game remains one of the most truly unsettling pieces of digital media ever created. Silent Hills’ cancellation is still a sore spot for fans after all these years - and the nearly ten-year radio silence that followed was interminable.

Cut to 2024. Silent Hill: The Short Message is the first game in the docket of Konami’s current resurrection of Silent Hill. A free “shadow-drop” released on PSN in almost the exact same fashion as P.T. was ten years ago, The Short Message looks to pick up right where we left off. It’s a first-person horror game with a strong emphasis on story and atmosphere and notably reunites series veterans composer Akira Yamaoka and art director Masahiro Ito. Right from the jump, this thing looks, sounds and feels more like a Silent Hill game than anything has for quite some time. The execution of the series’ iconic dread-soaked industrial ambience is on point with both Yamaoka and Ito bringing their A-game. Ito in particular delivers his best creature design since Silent Hill 3 with one of the most visually striking monsters I’ve ever seen in a horror game. It’s really good to have these guys back.

The Short Message is indeed short, compared to other games in the series. It’s about the length of a movie and can be easily consumed in one evening. I would say that this actually works in the game’s favor - it doesn’t get a chance to get stale or become less frightening or engaging. Once I was in, I wanted to see the story to its conclusion - and despite a rather difficult final stretch, would not be deterred. Runtime is something that can really be a problem for horror games - as things become familiar, the feeling of disorientation and helplessness begin to fade. Once fear isn’t a factor any more, you’re left with the mechanics of the game and its storyline to pull you through. For a mechanics-light game like this, the runtime felt perfect and at the end I was left wanting more in the form of a second playthrough, which I enjoyed even more than the first as I was able to pick up on subtle pieces of the story that I missed the first time around. Without spoiling the story, I’ll simply say that it deals with subject material that is unique to the series and feels like a conscious attempt to modernize and talk about current real-world issues through the unique lens of a Silent Hill story. Suffice it to say that I found it rather affecting and emotional. Perhaps the biggest difference between P.T. and The Short Message is that this is a complete story - one with fully fleshed-out characters and a proper story arc that’s less ambiguous than some other entries in the series but still feels abstract and dreamlike in many ways. Unfortunately though, one department this game doesn’t hold a candle to P.T. is fear factor. Kojima’s short-form horror masterpiece still feels quite far ahead of this in terms of the sheer terror it can elicit. That has a lot to do with the fact that while P.T. featured a main enemy that would constantly haunt you throughout the game, The Short Message keeps its monster encounters contained to Shattered Memories-esque chase sequences. While they are great at showcasing the excellent monster design and providing some of the game’s most harrowing visuals, they are brief and don’t provide that nagging under-your-skin sensation that something awful is standing right behind you.

If I have any other complaint, it’s that while the environmental and creature visuals are outstanding, the main character could have used a bit more work. I like that in keeping with series tradition, she is a very average person trapped in a hellish mental prison of her own design. I found her performance to be compelling and the character development that occurs over the course of the game’s runtime cements her as a truly memorable Silent Hill protagonist. I just wish that in cutscenes, I wasn’t slightly distracted by the slightly dated-looking facial animation and the fact that her hair is often clipping through her glasses. I almost wonder if it would have been a better choice to have her be fully live-action as in the unnervingly disjointed FMV flash-backs that showcase another character throughout the game.

Some presentation nitpicks aside, I found Silent Hill: The Short Message to be a truly wonderful experience - a brief but intense romp in a world that I had been eager to return to for a very, very long time. The special sauce that the series had in the past is here, make no mistake. You can see plenty of little flourishes of Silent Hill’s former glory - nods to a heritage that is among video games’ most beloved for a reason. I feel truly grateful for the return of Silent Hill. The upcoming slate of games has me filled with a mixture of excitement and apprehension - and I’m sure I’m not alone there. Silent Hill fans have been through a lot and I think that being critical is part of the DNA of the fanbase. Sometimes though, it feels like people get hung up on negative online discourse (part of the game’s meta commentary) and miss the forest for the trees. The Silent Hill series is full of incredible art, music, gameplay, characters and stories. This entry is no different and it feels more authentic and assured than a game in the series has for quite some time. It’s a perfect way to kick things off the new era of Silent Hill. I just hope that fans will allow themselves to find some enjoyment and appreciation of these new games. I know I will.

This review contains spoilers

A full-fledged Silent Hill game!!! I don't really understand why it's been so hated these past few days it's been out, but I absolutely loved it.

I mean, of course is not everything I wanted from a new SH game, but it's more than I was expecting for sure, and it's got all the right tropes of the saga; like the alternate reality where everything is all metal and grotesque imagery, or the chasing monster that looks like it's tailored for the MC, and specially, the psychological horror that serves as a metaphor to talk about strong themes.

I honestly thought less of this game a bit before finishing it, but when I reached the end, it was all worth it for me. Specially when I saw that (at least a part of) the team silent is back for this project!

I'm not sure if I'm into the idea of Silent Hill being kind of a physical hallucination rather than a physical town where nightmares come to life like in the old games, but I feel like this is where Konami is going from now on... And to be honest, I'm excited for the future of the saga! Still, I'm skeptical... Konami is still Konami...

It was alright, Monster design was great. The last chase sequence was tedious tho.