With all honesty, this game was not worth buying a PS5 for.

It's by no means a bad game nor a bad Final Fantasy, but it definitely is one of my least favorite Final Fantasy games. Throughout my entire playthrough I struggled to see what people saw in it, and believe me I really wanted to see the hype considering it's the reason why I bought a PS5.

My biggest gripe with the game was the writing. I felt like the initial premise fell apart a lot. The story feels like two different plot points trying to meet only they missed the margin. It definitely didn't help that this game was marketed as a Game of Thrones styled Final Fantasy which is just absolutely a horrible marketing idea.

I did enjoy the boss fights a LOT however. One of the very few games I've played where I get excited to fight a boss. If there's one thing this game is a masterclass of its the boss fights.

One definitive trait about Final Fantasy is that it has never been shy to allow men to feel and display emotions and be sensitive, even from their tougher looking and criminally behaved characters; so its no surprise FFXVI takes it up a notch. The healthy and endearing display of vulnerability in masculinity was something I adored a lot in this game that quite honestly could've gone for more! I absolutely loved seeing the boys in this game express genuine love for each other. Just sucks that the game kind has some bad writing on women. It's not the worst I've seen in a game, but in this day and age it just doesn't age well at all.

Anyways, there's an elephant in the room that I have to point out. It's lack of fan service. Square created another generation of lovable and memorable characters with a fleshed out world filled with lore, yet they really did not give them much opportunity to do fan service like other FF games have (i.e. FFVII Golden Saucer date, FFIX cast members marrying each other like Vivi and Quina, or like literally any thing and event from FFX-2). It may not seem like a necessary addition to the game, but if they spent all this time creating a fleshed out world filled with an emphasis of lore it'd also be nice to see the cast just doing things on their down time for fun or shits and giggles. I feel like my experience with the game would be improved, but I acknowledge its not a necessity so do with this criticism as you will.

There is no denying it, Final Fantasy XVI is a Final Fantasy game through and through. To the naysayers who say it isn't a true Final Fantasy they really haven't been paying attention to what Final Fantasy is about: romantic epic tales about overcoming oppressive entities and deities and discovering what it means to be and other existential concepts. I just wish the writing in this game felt more coherent or at least engaging as I have tuned out way more than I would've liked to with the pacing feeling like a slog, and also again more fan service.

I went in expecting a better experience than the first Final Fantasy, but the overall experience was underwhelming. I love the huge emphasis in story telling and how evolved the magic system is, but I’m not too big a fan of how the stats work with the equipment. It’s not bad but I don’t see much of a difference in magic defense and physical defense. It felt kind of unnecessary but the attempt is appreciated nonetheless.

The story did feel like a copy cat of Star Wars, but it became it’s own thing about 1/3 of the way through the game. The plot twists were predictable, yet they were executed well despite it all.

You start seeing more final fantasy staples in this game like the introduction of the dragoon class, chocobos <3, and the influence of Star Wars.

Unless you’re a final fantasy fan or enjoy old school RPGs I’d skip this one. Its impact doesn’t feel as strong as the first game but at a bare minimum it’s still very enjoyable!

Ghostwire: Tokyo is like if Megami Tensei and Like A Dragon had a love child who happened to love climbing buildings and collecting everything.

While nowhere near a perfect game, Ghostwire: Tokyo's exploration of death through the medium of video games really had me taken by surprised once I gave it some retrospective. Without spoiling so much, the game has a healthy and beautiful perspective on death that honestly made me shed a tear at the end. The game treats it very much like a next stage in life rather than an end all be all concept. Hell, the end all be all concept of death is basically the antagonist's motive. He cannot accept death and would rather cheat it whereas the protagonist accepts this fate and honors it through his action.

While it's premise about saving the souls of Tokyo from being used by a madman's ambition to bring immortality to a corporeal world as you try to stop him with powers imbued to you via possession of a dead man is peculiar and unique, I can't in good conscious say this game is any good. It's not one of the worst games I've ever played, but I can say that it is Tango Gameworks' worst game they've made by far.

The story starts off weak, and doesn't really get any better till maybe 3/4 of the way through and even then not a lot really happens in between. The ending thankfully was strong, but I believe that's because it was probably the most engaging the game's story has ever gotten. Quite honestly, up till the end, I was just skipping dialogue cuz I could not be bothered to care for what was going on in Ghostwire: Tokyo. the characters I could care less for either.

The combat is a step above from the story, but seeing how lackluster the story was written you can tell it's not by that much. The combat feels like it wants you to play fast and fluid, but you move and hit so slow. Sometimes your attacks feel like they're doing very little damage even when you're at max level and are near beating the game which is never a good sign. I think this game would have been better off designed with a 3rd person perspective in mind instead of 1st person perspective and more power balancing. I feel like the combat would be far more fluid and rewarding that way.

The game is a bit of a collectathon as others previously stated as well, but to be fair it's one of the more easier collectathons you could play. The only thing stopping me from 100% this run was the desire to get this game over with. Not to mention how over bloated the world is.

The world while impressively designed and gives off that trademark Like A Dragon virtual tourism gameplay, it is very over bloated and could've been scaled back a bit. They should've followed the world design of The Evil Within 2 where the space served a purpose instead of creating a grandiose concrete jungle with a few things to collect in between city blocks. I can understand if Tango Gameworks wanted to show off their ambition and skills, but a small dense and purposeful space is far more engaging than a literal city ward with nothing to do but jump buildings and kill Visitors.

I will say though the yokais and side quests give this game a lot of charm. I love the design of the Yokai and side quests. They're both very fun and engaging to interact with. This game has probably some of the best side quests I've seen in a game in a long time. Without revealing too much, there is a school dungeon that has a human anatomy doll that will make the Weeping Angels from Doctor Who look like weeping babies. Shit terrified me.

Lastly, one of my favorite aspects about this game however is the full usage of the DualShock controller. From the haptic feedback to using the built in speakers to the touchpad, this game definitely took advantage of these neat features that come with the PS5 DualShock controllers.

Overall, I'd say this game is at worst a waste of time if none this appeals to you and at best a disappointment by how unbalanced and bloated this game can be. If there were ever a sequel to this IP or should they revisit open world game design again, I hope they scale it back or approach it differently. Mediocrity be damned though, for it being Tango Gameworks' worst game I can't be too upset. At least they consistently keep producing new and innovative ways in game design. Here's hoping their newer projects this decade continue to pave the way for AA/AAA game design.


PS: I think Tango Gameworks should've been the ones to develop a Silent Hill 2 Remake.

I really wanted to like this game but I think it falls flat too much for me to really enjoy it. The game really does stand the test of time for its unique game design that you still don't really see much of currently and has some replay value, but I don't know if I ever want to replay this game again, or at the very least any time soon. To me it feels like a game you play once for the experience and then move onto something else. If it isn't apparent enough, even writing this review I struggle to come to a conclusion of how I feel about this game. Overall, Mirror's Edge is nowhere near a bad game, but definitely has room for improvement.

Don't go in expecting a good time from this game or thinking it'd have exciting combat. It gets very old very quickly.

I went in knowing very well the type of game I'd be playing, but even then I was still slightly let down by how lackluster it is. While dress up game mode is neat it's not even worth trying to beat the game just to unlock the costumes and make up options they have available for you.

Unless you're looking for something mindless to pass the time or you're the down bad kind of horny, I'd skip this game.

One of the most rewarding games you can ever play when you take the time to study its design and mechanics and don't let the enemies and bosses intimidate you.

This is my second playthrough of the game after my first attempt was a bit of a failure as I had a bad build and poor understanding of how to play this game.

This time I went in realizing how easy the game can be if I just took the time to learn and experiment with the tools and resources this game offers.

This may be a bit weird borderline controversial to say, but I love that this game punishes you for not learning and respecting its world and design. Dark Souls is merely a reflection of your ability to understand and play the game. It's nowhere near above criticism, but any personal negativity is definitely a reflection of someone who just does not understand how to go about the game. The playing field is very even, sometimes set against you, and to overcome those battles feel so genuine you can't help but see yourself personally grow as a gamer. There really are few games out there that can test your skills and adaptability like this game, nay this sub-genre. It's like the gamer's litmus test to see how well they can understand game design.

I believe Dark Souls should played by everyone, but should they beat it? It'd be nice if they could, but understandable if they can't or don't want to; however, I think gamers of all kinds should give this game a chance at least once or twice to see how far they can get with it and see what they can take away from it. It's truly a masterclass in game design.

I have a very conflicting opinion of this game that may require me to go back for another playthrough.

This game is by no means a bad game, but to me it just is my least favorite of FromSoftware. Every new area I discover I often hoped it would be the area that would spark joy and motivation for me like I've had with DS1 and DS2, but each time I explored Bloodborne I often found myself annoyed at the enemies and combat, underwhelmed by the world, and impatient to get it over with and beat the game. The art style of the game is definitely the biggest reason why I struggle to fall in love with the game. It's neat and I get why and how people love it, but lovecraftian/victorian aesthetics never did much for me unfortunately. I find it to be a very boring and dull style. That being said I kept wanting to see if my mind would be changed as I played the game, but each session left me more and more disappointed.

Oddly enough, a lot of the complaints DS2 had felt more applicable to Bloodborne than DS2. For example, the annoying enemy placements, nonsensical hitboxes, and just an overall frustrating gaming experience people had is exactly the experience I felt with Bloodborne. I suppose Bloodborne is my DS2.

The hype this game had when I first heard about it did not help at all either. I went in expecting a transcendental experience that everyone else seemed to have experienced, but instead I was just glad that I had finally finished the game and can move on from it.

Criticism aside though; I still enjoyed the end game boss fight. It was probably the most hype boss fight I've played in all of FromSoftware so far. The weapon transformation mechanics is a really cool introduction that I hope is further explored if a sequel were to ever happen. I also like hearing silly British accents as well.

If there had to be a silver lining to my feelings about this game it's that for it being my least favorite FromSoftware game it could've been a lot worse. I'm glad I got to experience it and I do hope I can find more joy in it in my next playthrough.

Until then, onwards and upwards to Dark Souls 3!

Honestly, this game is not as ridiculous or tedious as others make it out to be. I'll admit the first few hours or so felt kind of aimless to me , but just like any Soulsborne game once i figured out how the game is intended to be played it was smooth sailing from there on out.

I used to think FromSoftware games weren't for me, but now I'm starting to think they are because if I can finish Dark Souls 2 I'm sure I can finish Anor Londo in Dark Souls 1 (shelved the game at that point) and hopefully the rest of the trilogy.

Definitely a GOTY contender and genre definer, if not genre breaking. Just like many others stated it's a wonderful homage to what feels like a bygone era of video game design and passion, committed to the creativity and passion it presents itself. Of course no game is without its faults and I think this game has some faults that desperately needed more time polishing despite it being a near perfect game.

The combat is both the game's strongest and frustrating design. It's for sure an easy to learn and challenging to master kind of design, but I feel like it could've gone a few more months for polishing. The fact that there's no lock on option is kind of ridiculous. I get that it can be seen as a handicap/"skill issue" to certain people but I call bs on that. The game may be an homage to how video games in the 2000s play, look, and feel; however, it could've benefited more from a lock on option in battle. Especially since they already had one for using Peppermint, Macaron, and Korsica to help unblock obstacles in your way. The fact that they require lock on features but the combat doesn't just feels like a massive and unnecessary oversight that I just can't get over.

The parry system itself feels like a very two steps forward one step back kind of design. When it works it's great, rewarding even, but when it doesn't it's such a hassle to get down. Not to mention they introduce the parry system so late into the game when I feel like it's something it should've introduced before the first boss??? Speaking of bosses, when using the parry system against tougher enemies sometimes I feel like the rhythm of the parries clash with the background music which can be distracting and very frustrating. This I'll admit is probably more skill issue than design issue but it's still a constant issue I've had with the game so far that takes me out of the game more than keeps me engaged.

All of these valid criticisms being said, I still am grateful that 1) this game was made in this day and age 2) someone got to make their dream game in an industry that has become so cold and harsh to creative games like Hi-Fi Rush. These criticisms of mine are out of love for how unique and fun this game and that I desperately want more from. I love how this game also acknowledge its studio's history by having my beloved Sebastian and Joseph of The Evil Within fame in this world. If and when there's an Evil Within 3 sequel, I expect to see Chai and the gang in The Evil Within whether it be a simple comic book cameo or Chai's guitar randomly placed in a level. I want more studio lore acknowledgement in video games. it's cute and fun. I want more cute and fun games that doesn't take itself seriously but acknowledge serious moments like it does.