Giantsazando
This is another game on a list of games where ultimately I have to ask, "why did I wait so long to play this game?" And to add insult to injury, one of my personal favorite games was inspired by this one, so it should've been more obvious I'd love it. And love it I did.
I took me a little bit to get used to the combat. I wouldn't say I'm the best at timing my actions, but when I was able to get things done successfully, it felt really fun. Ultimately it just took a lot of practice. But figuring it out was so fun. Early on, the game tells you that each enemy has a 'tell'. This tell lets you know how to react to each attack, and when I figured out what each tell was, it was exhilarating. It was definitely hard to react to some enemies, but it's hard to tell whether that's on me or the game, and I'm leaning towards it being on me.
I would say the game is far from challenging. I suppose the challenge comes from how well your reaction time is, but even then most enemies don't really deal that much damage. But in turn, that's what make the bosses so fun, they are actively challenging, and you have to be really focused. The final boss especially was one of the best moments for me in particular, it encapsulates every aspect of the game, in such an amazing way.
The story isn't anything too crazy, but then again, I wasn't expecting anything like that. It's silly and comedic and I really like that. The characters all have their unique charm, and it allows even the characters with little screen time to be at least somewhat memorable. It's just really nice.
Ultimately I really loved this game, and I still have to wonder why it took me this long to play it. I have to play more of this series, it was such a fun time.
I took me a little bit to get used to the combat. I wouldn't say I'm the best at timing my actions, but when I was able to get things done successfully, it felt really fun. Ultimately it just took a lot of practice. But figuring it out was so fun. Early on, the game tells you that each enemy has a 'tell'. This tell lets you know how to react to each attack, and when I figured out what each tell was, it was exhilarating. It was definitely hard to react to some enemies, but it's hard to tell whether that's on me or the game, and I'm leaning towards it being on me.
I would say the game is far from challenging. I suppose the challenge comes from how well your reaction time is, but even then most enemies don't really deal that much damage. But in turn, that's what make the bosses so fun, they are actively challenging, and you have to be really focused. The final boss especially was one of the best moments for me in particular, it encapsulates every aspect of the game, in such an amazing way.
The story isn't anything too crazy, but then again, I wasn't expecting anything like that. It's silly and comedic and I really like that. The characters all have their unique charm, and it allows even the characters with little screen time to be at least somewhat memorable. It's just really nice.
Ultimately I really loved this game, and I still have to wonder why it took me this long to play it. I have to play more of this series, it was such a fun time.
2006
I've had this game ever since I was a child, and I have beaten it on multiple occasions, but since I recently played a Mystery Dungeon game, I wanted to revisit Pokemon Ranger. And how the hell did i beat it.
Pokemon Ranger is definitely the groundwork of the ideas that its sequels would build upon. How the loops work while at times fine, eventually gets frustrating when you'll need to consecutively loop a pokemon 20 or so times, without error. Though I was emulating it this time around, so having to use a mouse for the bottom screen was a noticeable disadvantage. For the most part Pokemon seem to typically have around 5-8 loops needed which is managable, unless there are multiple pokemon on the screen, and at times it's hard to multitask. There are some fun environmental puzzles, and interesting abilities that Pokemon can do while in battle, but they feel generally underbaked. And in the case of the combat abilities, you so rarely need them, that when you do, you never think about it.
Ultimately what spoiled my experience with this game were the bosses. A majority of them were really fun, however a select few made a potential 4 star into a 3 star. Those bosses being Charizard, Steelix, and the Final Boss. All three of them have these weird gimmicks to them that no other fight does. And with how iffy the regular gameplay is, these 3 bosses turn from challenging, to just plain out frustrating.
I still can't say I hate this game, however. I hold a lot of love for it even now, and even though I have my frustrations with certain moments, they're still only one part of the whole game. I definitely at least want to try to play the other ranger games sometime soon, as I know they mechanically improve.
Pokemon Ranger is definitely the groundwork of the ideas that its sequels would build upon. How the loops work while at times fine, eventually gets frustrating when you'll need to consecutively loop a pokemon 20 or so times, without error. Though I was emulating it this time around, so having to use a mouse for the bottom screen was a noticeable disadvantage. For the most part Pokemon seem to typically have around 5-8 loops needed which is managable, unless there are multiple pokemon on the screen, and at times it's hard to multitask. There are some fun environmental puzzles, and interesting abilities that Pokemon can do while in battle, but they feel generally underbaked. And in the case of the combat abilities, you so rarely need them, that when you do, you never think about it.
Ultimately what spoiled my experience with this game were the bosses. A majority of them were really fun, however a select few made a potential 4 star into a 3 star. Those bosses being Charizard, Steelix, and the Final Boss. All three of them have these weird gimmicks to them that no other fight does. And with how iffy the regular gameplay is, these 3 bosses turn from challenging, to just plain out frustrating.
I still can't say I hate this game, however. I hold a lot of love for it even now, and even though I have my frustrations with certain moments, they're still only one part of the whole game. I definitely at least want to try to play the other ranger games sometime soon, as I know they mechanically improve.
1993
For years now I've just been so curious about what Breath of Fire actually was. When I was a kid browsing the 3DS Eshop I constantly saw this one on the virtual console, and I was like, "what is that?" and I for some reason just never looked much into it. And now I've finally come around to pick this game up, and figure out what exactly Breath of Fire is. And I can definitely say it's an alright, but very interesting time.
When people here say that Breath of Fire is a generic RPG, I feel like that's half true. The story is nothing to really write home about, and for most of the combat, it's your standard turn based RPG. However, I do think there are some things that make Breath of Fire unique as well.
For one, the cast. Breath of Fire's cast is so interesting because it includes many fantasy races that are so rarely playable, such as Nagas or Angels. And each playable character had a unique ability that can be used in either dungeons or in the overworld which is really cool. And while the typical combat encounter is generic, there are unique mechanics in combat that do make things at least a little bit more interesting. The fact you can fuse party members together to create stronger characters is awesome. And I just really like how combat encounters look.
Though, I feel certain I would be unable to play this game without a guide of some kind. At times it's really hard to tell where to go, or what exactly you need. And as well, I feel like the difficulty is inverted in some way. I feel like the early game was much more difficult than the later sections. Gaining the fusion abilities, and one in particular, made everything a cakewalk. Which is funny, cause the guide I was using was saying that this was a difficult game, but it ended up being really easy at the end.
Breath of Fire is an interesting game. I'd still say it's an about average RPG. However, its elevated by its playable cast, their dynamics, and the interesting ideas that can be seen in the game. I hear that the later titles do get a lot better, and I can't wait to play them, as I did enjoy the time I had with this game.
When people here say that Breath of Fire is a generic RPG, I feel like that's half true. The story is nothing to really write home about, and for most of the combat, it's your standard turn based RPG. However, I do think there are some things that make Breath of Fire unique as well.
For one, the cast. Breath of Fire's cast is so interesting because it includes many fantasy races that are so rarely playable, such as Nagas or Angels. And each playable character had a unique ability that can be used in either dungeons or in the overworld which is really cool. And while the typical combat encounter is generic, there are unique mechanics in combat that do make things at least a little bit more interesting. The fact you can fuse party members together to create stronger characters is awesome. And I just really like how combat encounters look.
Though, I feel certain I would be unable to play this game without a guide of some kind. At times it's really hard to tell where to go, or what exactly you need. And as well, I feel like the difficulty is inverted in some way. I feel like the early game was much more difficult than the later sections. Gaining the fusion abilities, and one in particular, made everything a cakewalk. Which is funny, cause the guide I was using was saying that this was a difficult game, but it ended up being really easy at the end.
Breath of Fire is an interesting game. I'd still say it's an about average RPG. However, its elevated by its playable cast, their dynamics, and the interesting ideas that can be seen in the game. I hear that the later titles do get a lot better, and I can't wait to play them, as I did enjoy the time I had with this game.
2002
I feel a bit mixed on this game overall. It's not a bad game by any means, however I just think there were a handful of issues I had that kept me from really enjoying it. And I think overall most of my issues came from some just, general clunk that this game had.
To start with the positives though, I love the general vibe of the game. I love weird space stuff, and this is definitely that. The characters have a silly charm, and I love the general dynamic the titular characters have. The story is quite simple, but the humor does elevate it a bit. And the general movement that Ratchet has is really nice, especially as you gain new abilities along the way.
However, there's quite a bit of clunk with both the game's platforming and combat. And honestly? The platforming isn't too clunky aside from the magnetic sections. I've had multiple times where I get forced off the magnet because it thinks I walked off of it. The combat is well, another thing. In the case of the basic melee weapon, that's perfectly fine, I don't really have too much of an issue with it. The guns though, were a pain to use, especially with how necessary they are.
One minor gripe as well is I feel the game has a noticeable lack of checkpoints? I'm not against having a small amount of checkpoints in things, but in the case of this game, there felt like there were too many long stretches of levels with no checkpoints. It got to a point where it wasn't challenging, just annoying.
I know I've mentioned a lot of issues with this game, but I don't think I hate this game. I'd say overall I did like it, but I far from love it. I do hope the sequels improve upon this game.
To start with the positives though, I love the general vibe of the game. I love weird space stuff, and this is definitely that. The characters have a silly charm, and I love the general dynamic the titular characters have. The story is quite simple, but the humor does elevate it a bit. And the general movement that Ratchet has is really nice, especially as you gain new abilities along the way.
However, there's quite a bit of clunk with both the game's platforming and combat. And honestly? The platforming isn't too clunky aside from the magnetic sections. I've had multiple times where I get forced off the magnet because it thinks I walked off of it. The combat is well, another thing. In the case of the basic melee weapon, that's perfectly fine, I don't really have too much of an issue with it. The guns though, were a pain to use, especially with how necessary they are.
One minor gripe as well is I feel the game has a noticeable lack of checkpoints? I'm not against having a small amount of checkpoints in things, but in the case of this game, there felt like there were too many long stretches of levels with no checkpoints. It got to a point where it wasn't challenging, just annoying.
I know I've mentioned a lot of issues with this game, but I don't think I hate this game. I'd say overall I did like it, but I far from love it. I do hope the sequels improve upon this game.
I really loved playing through this game. It's been a while since I played a Mystery Dungeon, probably like 7-8 years at this point. And god, I forgot just how cozy these games are. Going through dungeons, interacting with pokemon, and the music especially just made me feel nice and safe, in a way. Not many games really give that cozy feeling, y'know?
I think for the case of this game in particular, I want to get my 1 (1) negative out of the way, because it's really just a personal thing. And that's that I think that this game just felt too short. And that's mainly because of how when I got to the end of the game I just thought, "damn. I wanted to play more! I don't want it to be over". But that's just a personal thing.
I can definitely see people not enjoying these games though, in a way, Pokemon Mystery Dungeon is baby's first roguelike. Sometimes you can just have the worst of luck in a dungeon, and I definitely had moments where I was unlucky. Suddenly stumbling upon a Monster House is one of the most stressful moments, and you'll never know until you've already activated it.
But there's so much that I love about how every dungeon is completely randomized. I don't think I'd call it infinite replayability, but it keeps every dungeon fresh, and you'll never just be autopilot-ing through every dungeon. And especially with the requests, there's much further motivation to go back to prior dungeons, which in a way, is how you also just grind for later parts of the game.
My experience is definitely a part of why I loved the game too. With the personality test, I ended up playing as a Bulbasaur, so the entire game was an uphill battle. Aside from one boss, I was weak to every single boss, so I had to figure out strategies to survive. I actively used the IQ and Tactics systems, which is something I never really do. It became really thrilling to surpass a challenge where I was at a clear disadvantage. I absolutely loved it.
I really loved my time finally playing the first game of this series after having played the rest. It's a surprisingly short, but absolutely cozy time.
I think for the case of this game in particular, I want to get my 1 (1) negative out of the way, because it's really just a personal thing. And that's that I think that this game just felt too short. And that's mainly because of how when I got to the end of the game I just thought, "damn. I wanted to play more! I don't want it to be over". But that's just a personal thing.
I can definitely see people not enjoying these games though, in a way, Pokemon Mystery Dungeon is baby's first roguelike. Sometimes you can just have the worst of luck in a dungeon, and I definitely had moments where I was unlucky. Suddenly stumbling upon a Monster House is one of the most stressful moments, and you'll never know until you've already activated it.
But there's so much that I love about how every dungeon is completely randomized. I don't think I'd call it infinite replayability, but it keeps every dungeon fresh, and you'll never just be autopilot-ing through every dungeon. And especially with the requests, there's much further motivation to go back to prior dungeons, which in a way, is how you also just grind for later parts of the game.
My experience is definitely a part of why I loved the game too. With the personality test, I ended up playing as a Bulbasaur, so the entire game was an uphill battle. Aside from one boss, I was weak to every single boss, so I had to figure out strategies to survive. I actively used the IQ and Tactics systems, which is something I never really do. It became really thrilling to surpass a challenge where I was at a clear disadvantage. I absolutely loved it.
I really loved my time finally playing the first game of this series after having played the rest. It's a surprisingly short, but absolutely cozy time.
2005
The more I sit on this game, and think about what I just played, I grow only more sad and frustrated. Frustrated because of all of the issues this game had, and sad because I see the potential for this to have been an amazing game.
I suppose to start with the positive, the general combat of this game is really fucking good. I've yet to play a hack and slash with bad combat, and that rule still applies here. The Blades of Chaos are really fun weapons to maneuver around, and the range is absurd. As well, even though there are a slim amount of them, the bosses as well are really damn good. There's an amazing sense of spectacle, and figuring out how to deal with each boss was really fun. And well, that's really where the positives end.
For me, this game has a lot of issues that just kept me from properly enjoying it. And the most obvious, and glaring issue was those damn Quick Time Events. I'm not against the occasional QTE, I'm a Resident Evil fan. But there's a ridiculous amount of QTEs in this game, with often time little room to react. And god, the QTEs where you have to mash a button are the absolute worst, might just be me but no matter how quickly I mashed, it never seemed to be enough.
As well, there's numerous sections where you're either be climbing a wall or crossing a rope bridge, and while those are fine, the fact there's just infinitely spawning enemies I find to be an issue. I find it to just be annoying more than anything else, and the only actual difficulty to them is the fact they just infinitely spawn, which is more annoying then anything else.
And lastly, I just don't know how to feel on the story. The story itself is so just... contradictory? The game definitely tries to express this idea that like, violence and bloodshed will only ruin oneself, and how Kratos has already gone through that. But then later on you have to kill a guy who's begging for his life in order to proceed with the actual game? At the end of the day I just, I'm confused.
This game could've been so much better, I see the elements of an actually good game in here. Too bad it's just mixed in with a lot of bad.
I suppose to start with the positive, the general combat of this game is really fucking good. I've yet to play a hack and slash with bad combat, and that rule still applies here. The Blades of Chaos are really fun weapons to maneuver around, and the range is absurd. As well, even though there are a slim amount of them, the bosses as well are really damn good. There's an amazing sense of spectacle, and figuring out how to deal with each boss was really fun. And well, that's really where the positives end.
For me, this game has a lot of issues that just kept me from properly enjoying it. And the most obvious, and glaring issue was those damn Quick Time Events. I'm not against the occasional QTE, I'm a Resident Evil fan. But there's a ridiculous amount of QTEs in this game, with often time little room to react. And god, the QTEs where you have to mash a button are the absolute worst, might just be me but no matter how quickly I mashed, it never seemed to be enough.
As well, there's numerous sections where you're either be climbing a wall or crossing a rope bridge, and while those are fine, the fact there's just infinitely spawning enemies I find to be an issue. I find it to just be annoying more than anything else, and the only actual difficulty to them is the fact they just infinitely spawn, which is more annoying then anything else.
And lastly, I just don't know how to feel on the story. The story itself is so just... contradictory? The game definitely tries to express this idea that like, violence and bloodshed will only ruin oneself, and how Kratos has already gone through that. But then later on you have to kill a guy who's begging for his life in order to proceed with the actual game? At the end of the day I just, I'm confused.
This game could've been so much better, I see the elements of an actually good game in here. Too bad it's just mixed in with a lot of bad.
It's weird to imagine that this game is real. For the longest time, this game was being developed, and we barely knew anything about it. And not even a week ago, a physical copy appeared at my doorstep, and the game finally released.
At the day I'm typing this, I first played and beat Breath of the Wild a little bit over a month ago. This is to reiterate how fresh Hyrule felt in this game. Not only has Hyrule changed in obvious ways, but how you have to maneuver Hyrule has changed too. While I do miss the abilities of the original, the new abilities in this game are really fun and allows for so many unique ways to deal with problems. Though I do have to remember that I have certain abilities, but that's on me, not on the game. I really love the Fuse ability in particular, able to create an entire array of personalized weapons, with seemingly limitless customization.
I feel like ultimately, a lot of what Breath of the Wild did was just ultimately improved upon within Tears of the Kingdom. I mean, that's a bit obvious cause it's a sequel, but I think it's important to note. In the case of Shrines, I always hated the Test of Strength shrines from Breath of the Wild, but they're entirely gone in Tears of the Kingdom. I love the Proving Grounds Shrines, making me have to play in ways I don't typically.
One big notable improvement in the game is the bosses. I won't go into detail, but in comparison to Breath of the Wild's bosses, there's a clear winner. While I wasnt bothered by the Breath of the Wild bosses, they were all a bit same-y, but in Tears of the Kingdom, they all felt super unique and I love it. And in the same vein, the dungeons as well are just so much better.
To reiterate, Tears of the Kingdom is a game I can't believe is real. I absolutely loved my time with it, and I'm dead certain I barely scratched the surface of it. It's weird how that, a couple months ago, I was only slightly interested in this game, but once I played Breath of the Wild, I knew I needed this game. And it was a need well met.
At the day I'm typing this, I first played and beat Breath of the Wild a little bit over a month ago. This is to reiterate how fresh Hyrule felt in this game. Not only has Hyrule changed in obvious ways, but how you have to maneuver Hyrule has changed too. While I do miss the abilities of the original, the new abilities in this game are really fun and allows for so many unique ways to deal with problems. Though I do have to remember that I have certain abilities, but that's on me, not on the game. I really love the Fuse ability in particular, able to create an entire array of personalized weapons, with seemingly limitless customization.
I feel like ultimately, a lot of what Breath of the Wild did was just ultimately improved upon within Tears of the Kingdom. I mean, that's a bit obvious cause it's a sequel, but I think it's important to note. In the case of Shrines, I always hated the Test of Strength shrines from Breath of the Wild, but they're entirely gone in Tears of the Kingdom. I love the Proving Grounds Shrines, making me have to play in ways I don't typically.
One big notable improvement in the game is the bosses. I won't go into detail, but in comparison to Breath of the Wild's bosses, there's a clear winner. While I wasnt bothered by the Breath of the Wild bosses, they were all a bit same-y, but in Tears of the Kingdom, they all felt super unique and I love it. And in the same vein, the dungeons as well are just so much better.
To reiterate, Tears of the Kingdom is a game I can't believe is real. I absolutely loved my time with it, and I'm dead certain I barely scratched the surface of it. It's weird how that, a couple months ago, I was only slightly interested in this game, but once I played Breath of the Wild, I knew I needed this game. And it was a need well met.
Generation 5 of Pokemon is probably best compared to that of the works of Vincent Van Gogh. Upon release, they were hated, unrecognized, and shunned. But now over a decade since the game's original release, it's praised as one of the best of the entire series. Unfortunately, I was one of the people who jumped on the hate bandwagon when these games came out, but then again I was 9, and I didn't really have the ability to really formulate my own opinions. Now I do. And let me be clear by saying that Pokemon Black and White are some of the best Pokemon games, and I doubt any later title can really top them.
Obviously to start it off, I love how these games are basically a soft reboot of Pokemon. The fact that for the entire main campaign you can ONLY use gen 5 pokemon is amazing! It allows you to properly experiment and try out all these new Pokemon. And keep in mind gen 5 introduced 156 total pokemon, the largest amount any generation has introduced by far. It allows for practically limitless amounts of customization, figuring stuff out, trying brand new combinations. I absolutely love it.
As well, the game is so smartly designed, it allows you to figure out ways to deal with specific bosses without outright telling you that that's what you need. Sure, the Elemental Monkey pokemon is a bit obvious, but the rival fight with Cheren in Nacrene City gives you a hint to the second gym because he gives you Chesto Berries! And this is a thing I've noticed throughout the entire game. And also, thank god for Audino existing, making grinding such a nonissue. Thanks to that, I was able to basically beat the game in 3 days.
The story is of course one of the highlighting parts of the entire game. Without a day. When these games came out, no Pokemon game had a story as strong as these games, characters as well written as Cheren, Ghetsis, and N. And I have to give undeniable praise to its story, it's well deserved.
Gen 5 may be when Pokemon ultimately peaked, and no game afterwards has really matched its quality. You might be asking why this is a 9/10 even with all of the praise that I give it, and you'll find out at a later time. However, I absolutely loved my time with this game, and I'm glad I finally got around to replaying it.
Obviously to start it off, I love how these games are basically a soft reboot of Pokemon. The fact that for the entire main campaign you can ONLY use gen 5 pokemon is amazing! It allows you to properly experiment and try out all these new Pokemon. And keep in mind gen 5 introduced 156 total pokemon, the largest amount any generation has introduced by far. It allows for practically limitless amounts of customization, figuring stuff out, trying brand new combinations. I absolutely love it.
As well, the game is so smartly designed, it allows you to figure out ways to deal with specific bosses without outright telling you that that's what you need. Sure, the Elemental Monkey pokemon is a bit obvious, but the rival fight with Cheren in Nacrene City gives you a hint to the second gym because he gives you Chesto Berries! And this is a thing I've noticed throughout the entire game. And also, thank god for Audino existing, making grinding such a nonissue. Thanks to that, I was able to basically beat the game in 3 days.
The story is of course one of the highlighting parts of the entire game. Without a day. When these games came out, no Pokemon game had a story as strong as these games, characters as well written as Cheren, Ghetsis, and N. And I have to give undeniable praise to its story, it's well deserved.
Gen 5 may be when Pokemon ultimately peaked, and no game afterwards has really matched its quality. You might be asking why this is a 9/10 even with all of the praise that I give it, and you'll find out at a later time. However, I absolutely loved my time with this game, and I'm glad I finally got around to replaying it.
2022
I think that no RPG Maker Horror game will best Ib for me, I think no matter what, Ib will always be my favorite of this genre of game.
I love the general vibes and atmosphere of the game. Being trapped, alone, in a weird art museum where things distort, and the paintings are more than just simple paintings. Everything being connected to the artwork. I love the type of world where it isn't specifically terrifying, but it's just downright weird. That doesn't mean the game is never scary, I can say with certainty I did get scared a couple times. And I really love the pixel art here, it's the icing on the cake.
I absolutely love the puzzles in this game. Some of them are a bit simple, and on replays most puzzles can be done rather quickly, but it's so damn fun trying to figure them out. I love how you often have to interact with paintings to figure things out with puzzles. As I chose to try and 100% the game, I replayed through a lot of the puzzles a lot, and it was really fun trying to figure out how fast I can get through them. It went from a mind challenge to a speed challenge, and I really love that.
On the topic of replaying through the game, I had never done the New Game Plus content until now, and god was it so worth it. It easily has my favorite puzzles in the entire game, full stop. I'm glad I finally got around to doing it. I had to replay the game about 4 times to 100% everything, and I got 4 unique endings, and that's mainly cause there's ending specific paintings. It only took me about 5 hours to do it though, so I think it was ultimately worthwhile.
Ib still is my favorite RPG Maker Horror game, even though I've only played a small handful. I think this is a great remaster of it too. It's a short and sweet experience that's very worth your time.
I love the general vibes and atmosphere of the game. Being trapped, alone, in a weird art museum where things distort, and the paintings are more than just simple paintings. Everything being connected to the artwork. I love the type of world where it isn't specifically terrifying, but it's just downright weird. That doesn't mean the game is never scary, I can say with certainty I did get scared a couple times. And I really love the pixel art here, it's the icing on the cake.
I absolutely love the puzzles in this game. Some of them are a bit simple, and on replays most puzzles can be done rather quickly, but it's so damn fun trying to figure them out. I love how you often have to interact with paintings to figure things out with puzzles. As I chose to try and 100% the game, I replayed through a lot of the puzzles a lot, and it was really fun trying to figure out how fast I can get through them. It went from a mind challenge to a speed challenge, and I really love that.
On the topic of replaying through the game, I had never done the New Game Plus content until now, and god was it so worth it. It easily has my favorite puzzles in the entire game, full stop. I'm glad I finally got around to doing it. I had to replay the game about 4 times to 100% everything, and I got 4 unique endings, and that's mainly cause there's ending specific paintings. It only took me about 5 hours to do it though, so I think it was ultimately worthwhile.
Ib still is my favorite RPG Maker Horror game, even though I've only played a small handful. I think this is a great remaster of it too. It's a short and sweet experience that's very worth your time.
2010
Years ago, I learned of Xenoblade Chronicles through one of my favorite YouTubers at the time, Chuggaaconroy. Then when i got a New 3DS, that was my first time ever getting a chance to play this game. But that was 5 years ago, and I'm entirely a different person now. And since I recently played through the entirety of Xenosaga, I wanted to go back to Xenoblade, with a new perspective. And god, this game is really peak. I would say it's not as good as Xenosaga Episode III, but Xenoblade Chronicles is still undeniably peak.
Yet again with games like these, I don't want to say anything about the story. But much like the Xenosaga games, there's a lot of themes in the story that are explored really well. But I think these themes are so integral to it, I think it'd be a spoiler exactly mentioning them. Anyway, I also really love the character writing of the games, the main cast has such a great dynamic with eachother, and knowing that I've only really scratched the surface of total character interactions is really interesting. There's such a good found-family dynamic in this game, and I love those types of dynamics.
The combat of the game is really interesting. The earlier Xenosaga games were turn-based, so it's crazy how much of a drastic change there is here. It's hard to describe really, but it's such an interesting system. I love how you have to pay attention to so many things, no battle makes you feel like you're just going through the actions. If you aren't thinking about what your best move is, you could just easily fall in battle. And the customization with arts, skills, equipment and gems, I absolutely love it. Do I know the proper ins-and-outs of how they work? No, but I love trying to figure it out.
I have to really commend the voice acting here. So many of the voice actors have pure, unfiltered emotions in there lines, especially Adam Howden as Shulk. He puts his all into his lines, and you can just feel it.
I did have a couple hiccups while replaying the game. One boss was absolutely terrible, and late game grinding was a slog, but I absolutely loved my time going back through Xenoblade Chronicles. And I know I've still only scratched the surface of the game, and what you can actually do in it. Maybe one day I'll go back and try to see more of what the game offers, but even still, this is a genuine masterpiece.
Yet again with games like these, I don't want to say anything about the story. But much like the Xenosaga games, there's a lot of themes in the story that are explored really well. But I think these themes are so integral to it, I think it'd be a spoiler exactly mentioning them. Anyway, I also really love the character writing of the games, the main cast has such a great dynamic with eachother, and knowing that I've only really scratched the surface of total character interactions is really interesting. There's such a good found-family dynamic in this game, and I love those types of dynamics.
The combat of the game is really interesting. The earlier Xenosaga games were turn-based, so it's crazy how much of a drastic change there is here. It's hard to describe really, but it's such an interesting system. I love how you have to pay attention to so many things, no battle makes you feel like you're just going through the actions. If you aren't thinking about what your best move is, you could just easily fall in battle. And the customization with arts, skills, equipment and gems, I absolutely love it. Do I know the proper ins-and-outs of how they work? No, but I love trying to figure it out.
I have to really commend the voice acting here. So many of the voice actors have pure, unfiltered emotions in there lines, especially Adam Howden as Shulk. He puts his all into his lines, and you can just feel it.
I did have a couple hiccups while replaying the game. One boss was absolutely terrible, and late game grinding was a slog, but I absolutely loved my time going back through Xenoblade Chronicles. And I know I've still only scratched the surface of the game, and what you can actually do in it. Maybe one day I'll go back and try to see more of what the game offers, but even still, this is a genuine masterpiece.
It's goddamn peak. But of course I'm not leaving a review as just a single sentence.
I'm gonna be honest, I don't know what to say here. Not because I just can't think of anything, in fact, there's so much I WANT to talk about. But with what sort of game this is, I have to be careful cause practically anything can be a spoiler. And with just, how good this game is, I don't want to risk spoiling anything at all. But I'll try my best to speak on what I think I can.
Once again Suda51's works just continue to amaze. Every story of his has left me blown away, and continuously guessing, and I love it. There's so much to digest and theorize and even though I think I have a general grasp on things, there's other things that I think purposefully are left vague. The fact that this a game that makes me have to take PHYSICAL NOTES just to think and theorize is outstanding in and of itself. And god, I had multiple moments I had to pause for a minute or two because of a realization I made, I just. This game is fucking peak.
I love the characters too. I feel like I prefer the characters of The Silver Case more, but that doesn't change the fact that the characters in The 25th Ward are still absolutely great. I really liked the cast from MatchMaker especially, it's a damn good dynamic. Also genuinely I want to make a note about the music. The music is really fucking good.
Also I really like the puzzles. They definitely more take the general concepts from Flower, Sun, and Rain, and how those puzzles worked, but I really liked it. I also liked how you had to sort of spin around this weird ball to find the letters or numbers you're searching for. Even if they're just simple number or letter combination puzzles, from both an aesthetic and execution level, I think they're really nice. I only really think one puzzle in the entire game stumped me, and that's just cause I didn't really know the information the game was expecting of me.
So yeah, after finally finishing up The 25th Ward, I can assuredly say, it's peak. Play The Silver Case, then play Flower, Sun, and Rain, and then play this.
I'm gonna be honest, I don't know what to say here. Not because I just can't think of anything, in fact, there's so much I WANT to talk about. But with what sort of game this is, I have to be careful cause practically anything can be a spoiler. And with just, how good this game is, I don't want to risk spoiling anything at all. But I'll try my best to speak on what I think I can.
Once again Suda51's works just continue to amaze. Every story of his has left me blown away, and continuously guessing, and I love it. There's so much to digest and theorize and even though I think I have a general grasp on things, there's other things that I think purposefully are left vague. The fact that this a game that makes me have to take PHYSICAL NOTES just to think and theorize is outstanding in and of itself. And god, I had multiple moments I had to pause for a minute or two because of a realization I made, I just. This game is fucking peak.
I love the characters too. I feel like I prefer the characters of The Silver Case more, but that doesn't change the fact that the characters in The 25th Ward are still absolutely great. I really liked the cast from MatchMaker especially, it's a damn good dynamic. Also genuinely I want to make a note about the music. The music is really fucking good.
Also I really like the puzzles. They definitely more take the general concepts from Flower, Sun, and Rain, and how those puzzles worked, but I really liked it. I also liked how you had to sort of spin around this weird ball to find the letters or numbers you're searching for. Even if they're just simple number or letter combination puzzles, from both an aesthetic and execution level, I think they're really nice. I only really think one puzzle in the entire game stumped me, and that's just cause I didn't really know the information the game was expecting of me.
So yeah, after finally finishing up The 25th Ward, I can assuredly say, it's peak. Play The Silver Case, then play Flower, Sun, and Rain, and then play this.
This is undoubtedly the best way to play the Kanto games.
I've been meaning to get to FRLG for a while, in fact of the main series of games, this is the last one I needed to play. So I've seen how the series has evolved from beginning to now.
I feel like a major factor of a Pokemon game experience is tied to what team is used. So, to say what my team was first, I used: Charizard, Parasect, Arbok, Marowak, Cloyster, and Aerodactyl. All Pokemon I never used before, and saw this as a perfect opportunity to try them all out. And of course, it was... to mixed results. But those mixed results brought some of the most exciting battles, where it felt so down to the wire. While Parasect struggled a lot, I loved the niche of using Spore to guarantee pokemon falling asleep. And the struggle of making shellder have to get to level 50 before evolving so that it could get Ice Beam made that evolution all the sweeter. Sure, I had a ridiculously bad time against water types, but that did provide an interesting challenge that I had to deal with.
Fire Red, as a remake of the original games, does fix a lot of the issues that they had. All of the bugs are entirely wiped clean, and weird mechanics such as how stuff like Freeze, Sleep, and Wrap worked were changed to be fairer. Though a change in prior games, the split between Special Attack and Special Defense created better balance for the Kanto games as well. But there are still some slight issues that keep things not perfectly balanced. The weaknesses of Psychic pokemon aren't really able to properly fight them, as every ghost type is weak to psychic, all dark type moves are special, and there's very few powerful bug type moves.
And man, I love the Sevii Islands, it's such a nice little expansion that provides for new content and seeing new pokemon. I didn't do absolutely everything, but I really appreciate it, and what I did experience of it was really fun.
As I said prior, I definitely think this is the best version of Kanto out there, and I'm glad I finally got around to it.
I've been meaning to get to FRLG for a while, in fact of the main series of games, this is the last one I needed to play. So I've seen how the series has evolved from beginning to now.
I feel like a major factor of a Pokemon game experience is tied to what team is used. So, to say what my team was first, I used: Charizard, Parasect, Arbok, Marowak, Cloyster, and Aerodactyl. All Pokemon I never used before, and saw this as a perfect opportunity to try them all out. And of course, it was... to mixed results. But those mixed results brought some of the most exciting battles, where it felt so down to the wire. While Parasect struggled a lot, I loved the niche of using Spore to guarantee pokemon falling asleep. And the struggle of making shellder have to get to level 50 before evolving so that it could get Ice Beam made that evolution all the sweeter. Sure, I had a ridiculously bad time against water types, but that did provide an interesting challenge that I had to deal with.
Fire Red, as a remake of the original games, does fix a lot of the issues that they had. All of the bugs are entirely wiped clean, and weird mechanics such as how stuff like Freeze, Sleep, and Wrap worked were changed to be fairer. Though a change in prior games, the split between Special Attack and Special Defense created better balance for the Kanto games as well. But there are still some slight issues that keep things not perfectly balanced. The weaknesses of Psychic pokemon aren't really able to properly fight them, as every ghost type is weak to psychic, all dark type moves are special, and there's very few powerful bug type moves.
And man, I love the Sevii Islands, it's such a nice little expansion that provides for new content and seeing new pokemon. I didn't do absolutely everything, but I really appreciate it, and what I did experience of it was really fun.
As I said prior, I definitely think this is the best version of Kanto out there, and I'm glad I finally got around to it.
2018
There's not really another game like CrossCode. CrossCode is such a lovingly crafted world, from how the world is actually laid out, to the characters, combat, puzzles, story, and most of all, all of the dialogue you'll encounter throughout the game. All of these aspects come together to create an experience that is just so unlike anything else.
The combat, while simple, is absolutely addictive. Each boss is really damn fun trying to figure out how to dodge their attacks, exploit their weak spots, and just constantly dashing around the arena. Each enemy is a puzzle waiting for you to solve it so that their weak spot is exposed and it's just amazing.
And man, all of those puzzles are really fun. Some are definitely complicated, and require a lot of steps. But man, when you actually complete the puzzle, it's one of the most satisfying things. And there's just so many of these puzzles, it makes the dungeons some of the most fun parts of the game.
I don't want to discuss much of the story, but I absolutely love it. The characters too are just so fun. Each interaction is really fun, and it provides for a damn good cast of characters. I really love Lea especially. And I think the reason why the characters are so good is because the dialogue the game has is just that good. I played through NG+ this time around, and so much dialogue like, adapted to the modifiers I put in? And so much dialogue appeared based on actions I was doing in the game, and which characters I had in my party. And I really just have to commend the attention to detail, while that attention to detail also gave really fun dialogue for each character.
Though this was a replay, this was the first time I actually played through the DLC, and I'll avoid saying anything, but it makes me really sad that the game is now over. The DLC is the perfect conclusion for the game as a whole.
Not many games make me want to 100% them, and even though some of the achievements were tedious, I endured, and got every single achievement this game has to offer. I'm really happy I finally got around to completing the game.
As I said at the start of this review, I really think there's not any game like CrossCode. This game is beautiful crafted, with so much love put into every single detail. What an amazing game.
The combat, while simple, is absolutely addictive. Each boss is really damn fun trying to figure out how to dodge their attacks, exploit their weak spots, and just constantly dashing around the arena. Each enemy is a puzzle waiting for you to solve it so that their weak spot is exposed and it's just amazing.
And man, all of those puzzles are really fun. Some are definitely complicated, and require a lot of steps. But man, when you actually complete the puzzle, it's one of the most satisfying things. And there's just so many of these puzzles, it makes the dungeons some of the most fun parts of the game.
I don't want to discuss much of the story, but I absolutely love it. The characters too are just so fun. Each interaction is really fun, and it provides for a damn good cast of characters. I really love Lea especially. And I think the reason why the characters are so good is because the dialogue the game has is just that good. I played through NG+ this time around, and so much dialogue like, adapted to the modifiers I put in? And so much dialogue appeared based on actions I was doing in the game, and which characters I had in my party. And I really just have to commend the attention to detail, while that attention to detail also gave really fun dialogue for each character.
Though this was a replay, this was the first time I actually played through the DLC, and I'll avoid saying anything, but it makes me really sad that the game is now over. The DLC is the perfect conclusion for the game as a whole.
Not many games make me want to 100% them, and even though some of the achievements were tedious, I endured, and got every single achievement this game has to offer. I'm really happy I finally got around to completing the game.
As I said at the start of this review, I really think there's not any game like CrossCode. This game is beautiful crafted, with so much love put into every single detail. What an amazing game.
1994
While frustrating at times, this game was a whole lot of fun, and most of the frustration came from my own fault.
I really enjoyed my time with this game! It's whole style, and the music combine for this really tranquil experience. I love the pseudo-3D as well, it's really damn good.
The platforming itself was really fun, but, I had to figure it out along the way. A lot of the difficulty that I had while playing was because, low and behold, I never realized that holding down one button would let me run. Seriously, some of the levels I had so much difficulty on would be a cake-walk if it wasn't for me just not finding out how to run until world 4. It's honestly kinda funny, and with how I play games, it's very in character for me. While my frustration exists, I can't fault the game for it, and honestly, I just find humor in it.
There was one level that just, fuck, I can't imagine ever going back to it. Whenever you turned, there's a sudden frame of blinding white, and with it constantly occurring, my eyes were in pain. That level as well was the worst part of the game for me.
But god!!! The final boss is so fun, it was definitely challenging, but it was so good figuring out how to get it correct. It was easily my favorite part of the game.
While I did find issues while playing, I had a damn good time with this game, especially since I've been meaning to get to it for a while now.
I really enjoyed my time with this game! It's whole style, and the music combine for this really tranquil experience. I love the pseudo-3D as well, it's really damn good.
The platforming itself was really fun, but, I had to figure it out along the way. A lot of the difficulty that I had while playing was because, low and behold, I never realized that holding down one button would let me run. Seriously, some of the levels I had so much difficulty on would be a cake-walk if it wasn't for me just not finding out how to run until world 4. It's honestly kinda funny, and with how I play games, it's very in character for me. While my frustration exists, I can't fault the game for it, and honestly, I just find humor in it.
There was one level that just, fuck, I can't imagine ever going back to it. Whenever you turned, there's a sudden frame of blinding white, and with it constantly occurring, my eyes were in pain. That level as well was the worst part of the game for me.
But god!!! The final boss is so fun, it was definitely challenging, but it was so good figuring out how to get it correct. It was easily my favorite part of the game.
While I did find issues while playing, I had a damn good time with this game, especially since I've been meaning to get to it for a while now.
1998
I should've gotten to this game so much sooner.
I'm gonna admit it, I'm one of those people who first entered the series through the boom in popularity Metal Gear Rising, and that was also the first game I played. I've been meaning to play the actual MGS games, and only now have I actually gotten to it.
And what can I say? This game is absolutely amazing. Like I said prior, I should've played it a lot sooner. I really do enjoy the stealth of this game, I do think it strikes a good balance of not having to constantly be sneaking around, but you still have to be aware of what's around you. I havent played many stealth games, so at least for me it was a good entry point. I really think that there were only 2, maybe 3 segments of the game that felt poorly designed, but in the 9 hours it took to beat the game, those segments are such a small fragment of it.
Nearly every boss fight were amazing, I say nearly cause there was one I didn't care for. But that's mainly because I think the sniper rifle's controls don't really mesh well with joystick aiming. But aside from that one boss, they were all amazing! They're unique challenges that are really fun to figure out, and there's this great sense of spectacle that comes with them.
And obviously, the story is easily the best parts. Not only is the base story engaging with its numerous webs of mystery, interesting characters, and amazing villains, but its thematic story is so high up there too. I don't like spoiling things about games in my reviews, and I think the themes of MGS1 would spoil it for someone who never played, so I'll leave them out, but believe me, this game's themes are so damn good.
It's a surprise it took me this long to get to Metal Gear Solid. I had a back-and-forth with myself on whether or not to play this or Twin Snakes, but I think this was the better call. Though this wasn't the first game of the series, or my first entry into it, this game left a strong first impression, and I can't wait to play MGS2.
I'm gonna admit it, I'm one of those people who first entered the series through the boom in popularity Metal Gear Rising, and that was also the first game I played. I've been meaning to play the actual MGS games, and only now have I actually gotten to it.
And what can I say? This game is absolutely amazing. Like I said prior, I should've played it a lot sooner. I really do enjoy the stealth of this game, I do think it strikes a good balance of not having to constantly be sneaking around, but you still have to be aware of what's around you. I havent played many stealth games, so at least for me it was a good entry point. I really think that there were only 2, maybe 3 segments of the game that felt poorly designed, but in the 9 hours it took to beat the game, those segments are such a small fragment of it.
Nearly every boss fight were amazing, I say nearly cause there was one I didn't care for. But that's mainly because I think the sniper rifle's controls don't really mesh well with joystick aiming. But aside from that one boss, they were all amazing! They're unique challenges that are really fun to figure out, and there's this great sense of spectacle that comes with them.
And obviously, the story is easily the best parts. Not only is the base story engaging with its numerous webs of mystery, interesting characters, and amazing villains, but its thematic story is so high up there too. I don't like spoiling things about games in my reviews, and I think the themes of MGS1 would spoil it for someone who never played, so I'll leave them out, but believe me, this game's themes are so damn good.
It's a surprise it took me this long to get to Metal Gear Solid. I had a back-and-forth with myself on whether or not to play this or Twin Snakes, but I think this was the better call. Though this wasn't the first game of the series, or my first entry into it, this game left a strong first impression, and I can't wait to play MGS2.