Gosunkugi
467 Reviews liked by Gosunkugi
Sonic Labyrinth
1995
Over-hyping something has proven, time and time again, to be an incredibly risky practice. Taking a product that is either coming out very soon, or having already come out, and praising it all the way to the high heavens along with everyone else would set up false expectations for those who have never experienced said product before, and when they eventually get to this product, they will find that it really was not as good as everyone else had claimed it to be. What many don’t consider though is that this exact same mentality can also be applied to the opposite side of this attitude. You could have something that people will say is GARBAGE, literal bottom of the barrel scum, something that nobody on the face of the Earth should ever even consider giving a proper chance, which has the exact same effect as does over-hyping something, to where whenever people take a shot in the dark for this over-hated product, they may end up liking it at the end of the day. This pretty much summarizes what happened with me and Sonic Labyrinth.
Before playing this game, I had heard horror stories about it, with many considering it to be one of the worst Sonic games of all time, even if it isn’t as discussed as frequently as some of the others, and even though I never played it until this point, I had always wondered about it. I mean, could it REALLY be THAT bad, as bad as Sonic ‘06, Sonic Boom: Rise of Lyric, or Sonic and the Secret Rings? Well, I was never really gonna figure that out for myself until I sat down and gave it a shot, so I did just that, and based on what I have played…….. it’s fine? It definitely does not reach the same quality as many of the best titles in the series, or even as some of the other Master System/Game Gear Sonic titles, but on its own, it was a perfectly fine game that managed to be reasonable and short enough to where I couldn’t possibly get that angry at it.
The story is… pretty fucking stupid, where in one of Dr. Robotnik’s most “cunning” and “brilliant” plans to take out Sonic yet, he tricks him into wearing a special pair of shoes that completely eliminates his speed, while also trapping him inside of a Super Labyrinth, so it is up to Sonic to traverse through this labyrinth, get the Chaos Emeralds, and stop Dr. Robotnik once again, which is about as dumb as you could expect from this kind of game, but I will give Robotnik props for actually being smart for once with his plans……… and then never again. The graphics are ok, pretty much looking like every other Game Gear Sonic title, which doesn’t look all that bad, but it is definitely doesn’t compare to other games from around that era, the music is also ok, once again also sounding like every other Sonic Game Gear title ever made, not having any real noteworthy songs to listen to at all, and the gameplay/control is, for lack of a better term, pretty mid, giving you a style of gameplay that you wouldn’t want to play over any other Sonic game, but at the same time, it isn’t that annoying or bad to where you would wanna keel over and die by the end of it.
The game is an isometric maze game, where you take control of Sonic the Slowpoke, go through a set of four different zones, each with their own set of levels to take on, defeat many enemies while zooming around to get the upper hand and to increase your time limit, gather plenty of rings and keys to protect yourself and help you proceed through the level, and take on several bosses that can either be extremely easy to take down, or be a huge pain in the ass due to not the bosses themselves, but the arena that you are placed in. When you really get into it, you will realize quickly how simple this game is in its execution, and while I wouldn’t necessarily say that it is necessarily all that fun, it definitely was not as bad as I was thinking it was gonna be, as I never had any point throughout the game where I was actively angry.
From what I have heard, one of the biggest factors as to why many people don’t like this game would be with the control, or more specifically, Sonic’s speed. For the entire game, Sonic only has two default speeds, those being really fucking slow and really fucking fast, with you of course starting out really slow, but whenever you rev up into a ball, you will go flying across the screen, bouncing off of any wall you come across, and you won’t come to a stop unless you do so yourself, or you hit a specific obstacle. As a whole, this is a pretty terrible way to handle Sonic’s speed, giving you very little consistent and satisfying control over yourself, and making it so that you will have the most sluggish, while simultaneously uncontrollable experience with this game……. or at least, that’s what you’d think.
For me, as a whole, Sonic’s speed and control didn’t really bother me all that much. Yeah, it definitely is NOT how Sonic should control in any game ever, and it can be frustrating here or there, but really, the game was built with your set speed in mind, meaning that there aren’t too many instances where you will get fucked over by your lack of or too much speed, aside from one or two pits you could fall into here or there. I would say that the only real trouble I had when it came to controlling Sonic was when I was either entering a door or grabbing an item, where you definitely can’t approach it while blazing at Sonic speeds (normally, anyway), otherwise you will just bounce all over the place, and instead, you have to just slowly walk up and get the things. It can be a little frustrating to do this, especially when there is a really specific door you need to enter, but I never got too angry by this to the point of me wanting to rage.
As for the main gameplay itself though, it is also pretty basic, and when I say that, I mean it is VERY basic. You just run around these many labyrinths, grab these keys, and find the exits. That’s it. You don’t gotta worry about grabbing too many rings, beating any enemies, or that many real platforming challenges, it is just all about collecting these keys. The only other real thing you need to worry about is making sure you don’t run out of time, but really, if you are playing through the game normally, you will easily manage to get enough time to where you will easily be able to get all of the keys and find your way out of there, if you know what you’re doing (more on that later). This gameplay style isn’t changed up or further expanded upon the further you go in the game, meaning that it remains fairly simple to tackle throughout the whole game, making for a relatively easy experience. Hell, you don’t even need to get the Chaos Emeralds through special stages, with the exception of just one, and even then, you don’t even need to do anything in the special stage itself, as you automatically get the Chaos Emerald in there just by going into it.
In a lot of ways, this game kinda feels like an early prototype for what we would eventually get in Sonic 3D Blast, being a game where you have to maneuver around these isometric areas, gather these specific objects, and make it to the end without losing all of them. However, in my opinion, I think this game manages to execute this concept BETTER than Sonic 3D Blast ever could. I will go more into it whenever I eventually review the game, but 3D Blast manages to butcher this concept by having many instances of very precise platforming and bullshit hazards sprinkled all throughout, making for a very frustrating game to run through, whereas with Labyrinth, the hazards are kept to a minimum, with the game more focused on building these mazes for you to navigate rather then having you get through obstacles, which was definitely the right call, making the game much less frustrating than I thought it was going to be.
With all that being said though, just because I am giving this game a free pass does not mean I didn’t think it was flawless, because it certainly has its flaws, ones that managed to irk me more than anything else. First and foremost, since the game is called Sonic LABYRINTH, you will need to navigate through plenty of labyrinths in order to find the keys you need in order to get to the next stage, and that in itself is much easier said then done. While I wouldn’t say these labyrinths are impossible to traverse, you can definitely spend a lot of time trying to figure your way around or finding out where everything is, whether it be the keys or the exit to the level itself. It also doesn’t help that you are on a time limit the entire time, meaning that you could potentially encounter some unwarranted deaths primarily just because you ran out of time trying to figure out where you need to go.
To me though, that is more mildly annoying when compared to the actual REAL problem that I have with this game, with that being the bosses. Half of the bosses in this game are easy as hell, with you just being able to easily spin-dash through them and call it a day, but then you have the other two bosses, who have very annoying patterns and really precise openings that you need to take advantage of in order to beat them, and this is much easier said then done. Not to mention, the level design of the boss arenas that you are put in are definitely meant to inconvenience you, making it so that you aren’t able to get a proper shot at these guys without putting yourself directly into harm’s way, which will more often or not lead to your death, and the very little amount of rings you are given for the boss fights themselves don’t help that much either. So yeah, half the bosses are completely fine, while the other half are complete shit.
Overall, despite the rough controls, dickish bosses, and some mildly annoying levels here or there, Sonic Labyrinth managed to surprise me in how competent it really was, not being great or all that good in any sense of the word, but managing to hold up just well enough to where I wouldn’t even say for a second that this is as bad as many people paint it out to be. I would recommend it for those who are huge Sonic fans, as well as those who don’t mind a little change in their typical gameplay style for one of these games, but for everyone else, there isn’t much here that you would get out of trying it for yourself, despite how I managed to somewhat tolerate it by the end of the day. But hey, at least I can say now that I have beaten the game, and I can move on and never have to touch it ever again…………. which is more then I can say for some of the other titles in this series that I am not looking forward to. Looking at you, Tails Adventure.
Game #601
Before playing this game, I had heard horror stories about it, with many considering it to be one of the worst Sonic games of all time, even if it isn’t as discussed as frequently as some of the others, and even though I never played it until this point, I had always wondered about it. I mean, could it REALLY be THAT bad, as bad as Sonic ‘06, Sonic Boom: Rise of Lyric, or Sonic and the Secret Rings? Well, I was never really gonna figure that out for myself until I sat down and gave it a shot, so I did just that, and based on what I have played…….. it’s fine? It definitely does not reach the same quality as many of the best titles in the series, or even as some of the other Master System/Game Gear Sonic titles, but on its own, it was a perfectly fine game that managed to be reasonable and short enough to where I couldn’t possibly get that angry at it.
The story is… pretty fucking stupid, where in one of Dr. Robotnik’s most “cunning” and “brilliant” plans to take out Sonic yet, he tricks him into wearing a special pair of shoes that completely eliminates his speed, while also trapping him inside of a Super Labyrinth, so it is up to Sonic to traverse through this labyrinth, get the Chaos Emeralds, and stop Dr. Robotnik once again, which is about as dumb as you could expect from this kind of game, but I will give Robotnik props for actually being smart for once with his plans……… and then never again. The graphics are ok, pretty much looking like every other Game Gear Sonic title, which doesn’t look all that bad, but it is definitely doesn’t compare to other games from around that era, the music is also ok, once again also sounding like every other Sonic Game Gear title ever made, not having any real noteworthy songs to listen to at all, and the gameplay/control is, for lack of a better term, pretty mid, giving you a style of gameplay that you wouldn’t want to play over any other Sonic game, but at the same time, it isn’t that annoying or bad to where you would wanna keel over and die by the end of it.
The game is an isometric maze game, where you take control of Sonic the Slowpoke, go through a set of four different zones, each with their own set of levels to take on, defeat many enemies while zooming around to get the upper hand and to increase your time limit, gather plenty of rings and keys to protect yourself and help you proceed through the level, and take on several bosses that can either be extremely easy to take down, or be a huge pain in the ass due to not the bosses themselves, but the arena that you are placed in. When you really get into it, you will realize quickly how simple this game is in its execution, and while I wouldn’t necessarily say that it is necessarily all that fun, it definitely was not as bad as I was thinking it was gonna be, as I never had any point throughout the game where I was actively angry.
From what I have heard, one of the biggest factors as to why many people don’t like this game would be with the control, or more specifically, Sonic’s speed. For the entire game, Sonic only has two default speeds, those being really fucking slow and really fucking fast, with you of course starting out really slow, but whenever you rev up into a ball, you will go flying across the screen, bouncing off of any wall you come across, and you won’t come to a stop unless you do so yourself, or you hit a specific obstacle. As a whole, this is a pretty terrible way to handle Sonic’s speed, giving you very little consistent and satisfying control over yourself, and making it so that you will have the most sluggish, while simultaneously uncontrollable experience with this game……. or at least, that’s what you’d think.
For me, as a whole, Sonic’s speed and control didn’t really bother me all that much. Yeah, it definitely is NOT how Sonic should control in any game ever, and it can be frustrating here or there, but really, the game was built with your set speed in mind, meaning that there aren’t too many instances where you will get fucked over by your lack of or too much speed, aside from one or two pits you could fall into here or there. I would say that the only real trouble I had when it came to controlling Sonic was when I was either entering a door or grabbing an item, where you definitely can’t approach it while blazing at Sonic speeds (normally, anyway), otherwise you will just bounce all over the place, and instead, you have to just slowly walk up and get the things. It can be a little frustrating to do this, especially when there is a really specific door you need to enter, but I never got too angry by this to the point of me wanting to rage.
As for the main gameplay itself though, it is also pretty basic, and when I say that, I mean it is VERY basic. You just run around these many labyrinths, grab these keys, and find the exits. That’s it. You don’t gotta worry about grabbing too many rings, beating any enemies, or that many real platforming challenges, it is just all about collecting these keys. The only other real thing you need to worry about is making sure you don’t run out of time, but really, if you are playing through the game normally, you will easily manage to get enough time to where you will easily be able to get all of the keys and find your way out of there, if you know what you’re doing (more on that later). This gameplay style isn’t changed up or further expanded upon the further you go in the game, meaning that it remains fairly simple to tackle throughout the whole game, making for a relatively easy experience. Hell, you don’t even need to get the Chaos Emeralds through special stages, with the exception of just one, and even then, you don’t even need to do anything in the special stage itself, as you automatically get the Chaos Emerald in there just by going into it.
In a lot of ways, this game kinda feels like an early prototype for what we would eventually get in Sonic 3D Blast, being a game where you have to maneuver around these isometric areas, gather these specific objects, and make it to the end without losing all of them. However, in my opinion, I think this game manages to execute this concept BETTER than Sonic 3D Blast ever could. I will go more into it whenever I eventually review the game, but 3D Blast manages to butcher this concept by having many instances of very precise platforming and bullshit hazards sprinkled all throughout, making for a very frustrating game to run through, whereas with Labyrinth, the hazards are kept to a minimum, with the game more focused on building these mazes for you to navigate rather then having you get through obstacles, which was definitely the right call, making the game much less frustrating than I thought it was going to be.
With all that being said though, just because I am giving this game a free pass does not mean I didn’t think it was flawless, because it certainly has its flaws, ones that managed to irk me more than anything else. First and foremost, since the game is called Sonic LABYRINTH, you will need to navigate through plenty of labyrinths in order to find the keys you need in order to get to the next stage, and that in itself is much easier said then done. While I wouldn’t say these labyrinths are impossible to traverse, you can definitely spend a lot of time trying to figure your way around or finding out where everything is, whether it be the keys or the exit to the level itself. It also doesn’t help that you are on a time limit the entire time, meaning that you could potentially encounter some unwarranted deaths primarily just because you ran out of time trying to figure out where you need to go.
To me though, that is more mildly annoying when compared to the actual REAL problem that I have with this game, with that being the bosses. Half of the bosses in this game are easy as hell, with you just being able to easily spin-dash through them and call it a day, but then you have the other two bosses, who have very annoying patterns and really precise openings that you need to take advantage of in order to beat them, and this is much easier said then done. Not to mention, the level design of the boss arenas that you are put in are definitely meant to inconvenience you, making it so that you aren’t able to get a proper shot at these guys without putting yourself directly into harm’s way, which will more often or not lead to your death, and the very little amount of rings you are given for the boss fights themselves don’t help that much either. So yeah, half the bosses are completely fine, while the other half are complete shit.
Overall, despite the rough controls, dickish bosses, and some mildly annoying levels here or there, Sonic Labyrinth managed to surprise me in how competent it really was, not being great or all that good in any sense of the word, but managing to hold up just well enough to where I wouldn’t even say for a second that this is as bad as many people paint it out to be. I would recommend it for those who are huge Sonic fans, as well as those who don’t mind a little change in their typical gameplay style for one of these games, but for everyone else, there isn’t much here that you would get out of trying it for yourself, despite how I managed to somewhat tolerate it by the end of the day. But hey, at least I can say now that I have beaten the game, and I can move on and never have to touch it ever again…………. which is more then I can say for some of the other titles in this series that I am not looking forward to. Looking at you, Tails Adventure.
Game #601
Dejig: Tin Toy
TBD
It's jigsaw puzzles. The UI is good but otherwise you cane here to do jigsaw puzzles and it does that job with charm.
We have now come to the third and final game in the DKC trilogy and funnily enough, this was the first of the three I ever played. I remember feeling ecstatic when I found this at my local flea market randomly for $10 I think. I'd just gotten into collecting retro Nintendo games and a title like this was perfect for my collection I thought. I played this and enjoyed it back then, but seeing as it was my first SNES DKC game, I didn't know how it compared to the other two. Well after beating those two, I realized how much weaker this game is in comparison. After replaying all three games back-to-back, yeah this still holds true today.
Let's (again) start with the gameplay changes. K Rool has once again kidnapped Donkey Kong. Not only that, he kidnapped Diddy Kong this time around! So it's up to Dixie to team up with her baby cousin, Kiddy Kong, to save them both. The first thing you'll notice is the fact I said baby. Yes, you play as Dixie and a literal baby this time around. Yes, he is lame conceptually. But I also think he's kinda lame gameplay-wise too. Dixie plays the same as she did in 2, however Kiddy is basically like Donkey Kong from DKC1. He's heavy and can bounce on enemies Dixie normally couldn't. Not only that, he has the ability to bounce on water if you time it right..and also the ability to destroy weakened floor with a team up. Both of these new mechanics are barely used in the game, so it's easy to forget about them. Otherwise, he's just Donkey again only less cool which is disappointing considering I preferred the two lighter weight characters from 2. The team up is also not as responsive in this game for some reason? You can do it anytime you want in 2 but here, sometimes it won't work, and you have to move a bit for it to go. Idk if it's because Kiddy is big character or what, but it can be slightly annoying. Not the worst thing in the world but just annoying since this wasn't an issue in 2. Other than all that, the gameplay is the exact same as the first two, which means it's still a fun time for the most part.
The actual levels I find to be a big downgrade from 2 and even a bit of a downgrade from 1. The level settings in 1 weren't amazing but they were interesting enough. The ones in 2 were amazing and were full of a variety of settings I really enjoyed. 3 I just find super boring when it comes to it's level themes. It has forest levels, factory levels, snow levels, levels that are supposed to be Canada?, sawmill levels (okay those aren't terrible), lakeside levels, cave levels etc. Besides the sawmill levels, which are kinda neat, I find the level settings in this game to be uninspired and boring compared to the first two games. I also think because of this, this game visually looks worse than 2. Due to its environments, 2 could be really vibrant and eye-catching. 3 does not have a pleasing color pallet to me and I generally think it looks ugly a lot of the time because of that. The levels themselves are mostly standard fare I'd say. Some of the gimmicks near the end, and yeah this game loves its gimmick levels, can be really annoying tho. Infamous ones like Lightning Look-Out and Poisonous Pond are annoying yeah. There are also some other annoying ones like Koindozer Klamber and Rocket Rush that I don't hear talked about as much and they were even more annoying than the two I mentioned prior. Still, these levels are all in the endgame. Otherwise, most of the game's levels are pretty alright.
The collectables in this game are pretty similar to 2's. Bonus games back again, and this time there's a new one where you must collect 15 green bananas that dissapear after 2 seconds. This is a fine addition to the minigame lineup, tho I must say some of these were super annoying. I don't remember having many issues with the ones in 2, but here they can be brutal. This game changed it so every level (besides the Lost World) has exactly two bonuses and honestly I like that change. Once you've gotten two in a level, you know you don't have to look for more. Again, besides the Lost World which throws in a couple levels that have 3 bonuses. The DK coin was also changed. Instead of just being in a level randomly, and collecting it just like that, you must defeat an enemy called Koin. He uses the coin as a shield and you must ricochet a metal barrel off a wall or whatever to hit him as he always faces whatever direction you're in. I honestly liked this change as well since they kinda turned the DK coin into a little puzzle where you must figure out how to kill this enemy and it's pretty cool.
The animal buddies are again back. They got rid of Rambi, which is weird since he's in the first two games and is a staple buddy after this. Enguarde is still here though, and so is my boy Squitter. They got rid of Rattly but kept the several Squawks. Besides all these returning ones, there are also two new ones. Parry the Parallel Bird floats above you and can collect items in the air. If they get hit, they die but if you bring them to their animal buddy sign, you'll usually get something nice from it. The other new animal buddy is Ellie the Elephant. She gets used a ton in this game and has several different abilities. She can suck up water and shoot it out of her trunk. She can suck barrels from far away. She's afraid of mice and that mechanic gets used a couple of times. She's not bad honestly but she's also not one of my favorites.
I didn't really mention the overworld in my review for 2, because it was similar to 1's, however I must commend this game for switching things up and improving the overworld this time around. You can actually move around the world of DKC3, which makes it feel more alive. You use a variety of vehicles from Funky and you get more as you progress. Throughout the world, you can also find secret caves which house Banana Birds. You must do a Simon Says type game to get them, but these birds are used to get 103% and the true ending. While I personally don't care about the birds themselves, having secrets to find in the overworld was a nice addition. Besides this, you also have these bear characters you can interact with. One bear gives you a couple items in exchange for bear coins (this game's new Kremkoin) that you can then give to other bears in exchange for some banana birds. Other bears require you to do certain tasks in levels or the overworld to unlock banana birds as well. These are fine imo, but they're less fun than just exploring the overworld and finding the caves. Plus the bears designs I don't really care for, they never felt like "Donkey Kong" to me idk.
The bosses this time around, while better than 1's, aren't as good as 2's. For some reason, they made like every boss in this game uncanny and creepy and I don't dig their designs as much as 2's bosses. Besides that, I felt like they were simpler compared to 2's. With the exception of Barbos which I ended up kinda liking, the others I wasn't much of a fan. That includes the K Rool fight too. This is my least favorite version of his fight. I don't really dig how you fight him (I think it's less fun than the cannonballs in 2) and I don't really like the whole Frankenstein thing they went for. Kaptain K Rool was just way cooler.
I may have complained throughout this review, however nothing compares to the OST. This is a massive step-down from the 2nd game and a big downgrade from the 1st game as well. I did like Water World, that song stood out from the rest and proves that the water themes in these games are always the best, however the rest of the OST was incredibly forgettable. Compare the beginning level theme from 2 and then 3. It's night and day. Only reason I'm bringing this up is because this series is known for its amazing soundtracks. I know David Wise didn't work on this game and it definitely shows.
While I was definitely really negative throughout this review, I don't think this game is bad. It has the same old gameplay everyone loves, and even does some things right like the overworld and the collectable changes. However, with the OST being a massive downgrade from the first two games, and the levels themselves being worse overall, I can confidently put this at the bottom of my SNES DKC ranking. I'd never play this over the first two games but I've definitely played worst platformers before lol.
And with that, the DKC trilogy is done. I'm gonna take a break with Kirby as well, as I've been burnt out on platformers a bit. I actually do plan on starting a Zelda marathon next (I might alternate the Kirby marathon with this as well eventually) with some buddies of mine joining me too so stay tuned for a Zelda 1 review in the near future!
Let's (again) start with the gameplay changes. K Rool has once again kidnapped Donkey Kong. Not only that, he kidnapped Diddy Kong this time around! So it's up to Dixie to team up with her baby cousin, Kiddy Kong, to save them both. The first thing you'll notice is the fact I said baby. Yes, you play as Dixie and a literal baby this time around. Yes, he is lame conceptually. But I also think he's kinda lame gameplay-wise too. Dixie plays the same as she did in 2, however Kiddy is basically like Donkey Kong from DKC1. He's heavy and can bounce on enemies Dixie normally couldn't. Not only that, he has the ability to bounce on water if you time it right..and also the ability to destroy weakened floor with a team up. Both of these new mechanics are barely used in the game, so it's easy to forget about them. Otherwise, he's just Donkey again only less cool which is disappointing considering I preferred the two lighter weight characters from 2. The team up is also not as responsive in this game for some reason? You can do it anytime you want in 2 but here, sometimes it won't work, and you have to move a bit for it to go. Idk if it's because Kiddy is big character or what, but it can be slightly annoying. Not the worst thing in the world but just annoying since this wasn't an issue in 2. Other than all that, the gameplay is the exact same as the first two, which means it's still a fun time for the most part.
The actual levels I find to be a big downgrade from 2 and even a bit of a downgrade from 1. The level settings in 1 weren't amazing but they were interesting enough. The ones in 2 were amazing and were full of a variety of settings I really enjoyed. 3 I just find super boring when it comes to it's level themes. It has forest levels, factory levels, snow levels, levels that are supposed to be Canada?, sawmill levels (okay those aren't terrible), lakeside levels, cave levels etc. Besides the sawmill levels, which are kinda neat, I find the level settings in this game to be uninspired and boring compared to the first two games. I also think because of this, this game visually looks worse than 2. Due to its environments, 2 could be really vibrant and eye-catching. 3 does not have a pleasing color pallet to me and I generally think it looks ugly a lot of the time because of that. The levels themselves are mostly standard fare I'd say. Some of the gimmicks near the end, and yeah this game loves its gimmick levels, can be really annoying tho. Infamous ones like Lightning Look-Out and Poisonous Pond are annoying yeah. There are also some other annoying ones like Koindozer Klamber and Rocket Rush that I don't hear talked about as much and they were even more annoying than the two I mentioned prior. Still, these levels are all in the endgame. Otherwise, most of the game's levels are pretty alright.
The collectables in this game are pretty similar to 2's. Bonus games back again, and this time there's a new one where you must collect 15 green bananas that dissapear after 2 seconds. This is a fine addition to the minigame lineup, tho I must say some of these were super annoying. I don't remember having many issues with the ones in 2, but here they can be brutal. This game changed it so every level (besides the Lost World) has exactly two bonuses and honestly I like that change. Once you've gotten two in a level, you know you don't have to look for more. Again, besides the Lost World which throws in a couple levels that have 3 bonuses. The DK coin was also changed. Instead of just being in a level randomly, and collecting it just like that, you must defeat an enemy called Koin. He uses the coin as a shield and you must ricochet a metal barrel off a wall or whatever to hit him as he always faces whatever direction you're in. I honestly liked this change as well since they kinda turned the DK coin into a little puzzle where you must figure out how to kill this enemy and it's pretty cool.
The animal buddies are again back. They got rid of Rambi, which is weird since he's in the first two games and is a staple buddy after this. Enguarde is still here though, and so is my boy Squitter. They got rid of Rattly but kept the several Squawks. Besides all these returning ones, there are also two new ones. Parry the Parallel Bird floats above you and can collect items in the air. If they get hit, they die but if you bring them to their animal buddy sign, you'll usually get something nice from it. The other new animal buddy is Ellie the Elephant. She gets used a ton in this game and has several different abilities. She can suck up water and shoot it out of her trunk. She can suck barrels from far away. She's afraid of mice and that mechanic gets used a couple of times. She's not bad honestly but she's also not one of my favorites.
I didn't really mention the overworld in my review for 2, because it was similar to 1's, however I must commend this game for switching things up and improving the overworld this time around. You can actually move around the world of DKC3, which makes it feel more alive. You use a variety of vehicles from Funky and you get more as you progress. Throughout the world, you can also find secret caves which house Banana Birds. You must do a Simon Says type game to get them, but these birds are used to get 103% and the true ending. While I personally don't care about the birds themselves, having secrets to find in the overworld was a nice addition. Besides this, you also have these bear characters you can interact with. One bear gives you a couple items in exchange for bear coins (this game's new Kremkoin) that you can then give to other bears in exchange for some banana birds. Other bears require you to do certain tasks in levels or the overworld to unlock banana birds as well. These are fine imo, but they're less fun than just exploring the overworld and finding the caves. Plus the bears designs I don't really care for, they never felt like "Donkey Kong" to me idk.
The bosses this time around, while better than 1's, aren't as good as 2's. For some reason, they made like every boss in this game uncanny and creepy and I don't dig their designs as much as 2's bosses. Besides that, I felt like they were simpler compared to 2's. With the exception of Barbos which I ended up kinda liking, the others I wasn't much of a fan. That includes the K Rool fight too. This is my least favorite version of his fight. I don't really dig how you fight him (I think it's less fun than the cannonballs in 2) and I don't really like the whole Frankenstein thing they went for. Kaptain K Rool was just way cooler.
I may have complained throughout this review, however nothing compares to the OST. This is a massive step-down from the 2nd game and a big downgrade from the 1st game as well. I did like Water World, that song stood out from the rest and proves that the water themes in these games are always the best, however the rest of the OST was incredibly forgettable. Compare the beginning level theme from 2 and then 3. It's night and day. Only reason I'm bringing this up is because this series is known for its amazing soundtracks. I know David Wise didn't work on this game and it definitely shows.
While I was definitely really negative throughout this review, I don't think this game is bad. It has the same old gameplay everyone loves, and even does some things right like the overworld and the collectable changes. However, with the OST being a massive downgrade from the first two games, and the levels themselves being worse overall, I can confidently put this at the bottom of my SNES DKC ranking. I'd never play this over the first two games but I've definitely played worst platformers before lol.
And with that, the DKC trilogy is done. I'm gonna take a break with Kirby as well, as I've been burnt out on platformers a bit. I actually do plan on starting a Zelda marathon next (I might alternate the Kirby marathon with this as well eventually) with some buddies of mine joining me too so stay tuned for a Zelda 1 review in the near future!
Bonk's Revenge
1991
You haven’t become a true man without having at least one good bonking session, and my first go-round with Bonk’s Adventure certainly did make me a man, but I can’t say the experience was all too wonderful as I had hoped it would be. For the most part, it was a decent adventure, with decent visuals, good music, simple yet fun enough gameplay, and an amount of personality when it came to Bonk himself that most video game protagonists of that era wish they could have, but not only was there that boss rush that makes my blood boil something fierce, but it also managed to bring things down when it came to how Bonk controlled, which just felt very stiff and unreliable a lot of the time, which did definitely bring the game down quite a bit. But of course though, that was just the first attempt by the devs at making a bonking phenomenon, so of course, mistakes are bound to happen. Surely, they could correct themselves when it comes to the second game, right?.......... well, no, but they tried anyways with Bonk’s Revenge.
For those of you who don’t know, while this series is developed by the Red Company, a company I had never heard of before until doing that first Bonk review, the series is published by Hudson Soft, which should paint you a clear picture as to what kind of series this will turn out to be. Not to generalize, but Hudson REALLY like keeping things simple and same-y for a lot of their titles, and while I don’t think this will be the case for all Bonk games to come out, it certainly was the case with this game, because as a whole, I would say this game is on the same level of quality that the original Bonk was on. It’s a good game, with there being improvements made overall to make it look and feel like a better time, but it doesn’t put in any effort to make itself seem like a huge step forward in comparison to the original.
The story is a little more ridiculous and silly then that of the previous game, where the evil King Drool III, I guess as revenge for what happened in the previous game (that’s ironic), decides to steal half of the entire moon, tearing apart the kingdom of Moonland and leaving Princess Za in shambles, so it is up to Bonk to take him down and get the other half of the moon back, which is actually a lot more of an entertaining set-up compared to the original, just because of how ridiculous it all is. The graphics are pretty good, being a MAJOR step-up from the original, with all of the sprites looking much more detailed and expressive, so I will definitely give it props for that, the music is good, with there being plenty of decent tracks to listen to, although I do remember one or two of them being like nails-on-a-chalkboard to the ears, and the gameplay/control is…. basically the same as the original, which is great for all of those who ate up the previous game, but not so much for me.
The game is a 2D platformer, where you take control of the Bonkster once again, go through a set of seven different rounds, each taking you through various typical and unordinary prehistoric locations, use your giant fucking noggin to bonk everyone you see into submission, gather plenty of different food items to not only heal yourself, but also to gain temporary power-ups, as well as extra lives, and take on plenty of bosses that can range from being pretty easy to being pretty tedious and frustrating. The bonking experience remains practically unchanged, meaning that those who have proper experience with the first game will have no problem jumping into this game, and for the most part, it functions and plays as well as that previous game, if not even more so.
It did feel good coming back to this series after so long, so I didn’t feel that sense of repetition when playing this game (for the most part), and I had plenty of fun with it. It still does feel just as satisfying as before to knock around enemies with your big-ass head, and managing to bonk your foes at just the right spot to not only take them out, but also to help out with platforming challenges, was just as sweet to pull off, as it should be with any platformers. Rewards can be found around every corner, making going around these levels somewhat tedious, yet very helpful for those that end up in quite the bind, and these goodies can even assist you in gaining MORE goodies! After you beat each boss, depending on how many smiley faces you get throughout the stages, you can reach a certain level of bonus area that can grant you extra lives, health, and power-ups, with the amount you do get increasing for each level, encouraging the player to explore the areas as much as they can to get all of these sweets………. even though I didn’t do that, but hey, it’s still there for those that got the time.
However, if I were to judge this and the last game side-by-side in terms of gameplay, there is practically zero difference or improvement to be seen here. If you have played Bonk’s Adventure, then you have also played Bonk’s Revenge without even realizing it, cause the game makes no effort to try to enhance or develop the formula even further, making this mostly feel like a retread of what we have seen previously. Not to mention, the game doesn’t fix ANY of my problems that I had with the previous one, where Bonk himself still has some pretty rigid controls that can make several sections quite frustrating to go through, and there is still an unnecessary boss rush here that is now somehow WORSE. Rather then just simply fighting the bosses again, this game takes the Kirby’s Dream Land route and makes it so that you have to play through a mini level before you fight the boss, and as soon as I figured this out, I literally said out loud “Oh, FUCK off”. Seriously, after playing all of these games, I have discovered how much I truly despise boss rushes that don’t do what Mega Man does, because they are EVERYWHERE. I can never escape….
Overall, despite how much nicer it looks and sounds (at times), Bonk’s Revenge is either on the same level or slightly over the level of quality that Bonk’s Adventure was at, still being a good game that fans of the first will definitely enjoy, but it does feel more like this time’s equivalent of a standalone expansion rather than a true sequel. I would recommend it for those who loved the first game, as well as those who are huge Bonk fans in general, but for everyone else, you aren’t missing out on much by not checking out this one. Now, if you excuse me, I’m gonna go now, and think about more ways that I could possibly integrate the word “bonk” in these reviews, while also being just inappropriate enough to where it won’t get taken down off this website. See ya then!
Game #600
For those of you who don’t know, while this series is developed by the Red Company, a company I had never heard of before until doing that first Bonk review, the series is published by Hudson Soft, which should paint you a clear picture as to what kind of series this will turn out to be. Not to generalize, but Hudson REALLY like keeping things simple and same-y for a lot of their titles, and while I don’t think this will be the case for all Bonk games to come out, it certainly was the case with this game, because as a whole, I would say this game is on the same level of quality that the original Bonk was on. It’s a good game, with there being improvements made overall to make it look and feel like a better time, but it doesn’t put in any effort to make itself seem like a huge step forward in comparison to the original.
The story is a little more ridiculous and silly then that of the previous game, where the evil King Drool III, I guess as revenge for what happened in the previous game (that’s ironic), decides to steal half of the entire moon, tearing apart the kingdom of Moonland and leaving Princess Za in shambles, so it is up to Bonk to take him down and get the other half of the moon back, which is actually a lot more of an entertaining set-up compared to the original, just because of how ridiculous it all is. The graphics are pretty good, being a MAJOR step-up from the original, with all of the sprites looking much more detailed and expressive, so I will definitely give it props for that, the music is good, with there being plenty of decent tracks to listen to, although I do remember one or two of them being like nails-on-a-chalkboard to the ears, and the gameplay/control is…. basically the same as the original, which is great for all of those who ate up the previous game, but not so much for me.
The game is a 2D platformer, where you take control of the Bonkster once again, go through a set of seven different rounds, each taking you through various typical and unordinary prehistoric locations, use your giant fucking noggin to bonk everyone you see into submission, gather plenty of different food items to not only heal yourself, but also to gain temporary power-ups, as well as extra lives, and take on plenty of bosses that can range from being pretty easy to being pretty tedious and frustrating. The bonking experience remains practically unchanged, meaning that those who have proper experience with the first game will have no problem jumping into this game, and for the most part, it functions and plays as well as that previous game, if not even more so.
It did feel good coming back to this series after so long, so I didn’t feel that sense of repetition when playing this game (for the most part), and I had plenty of fun with it. It still does feel just as satisfying as before to knock around enemies with your big-ass head, and managing to bonk your foes at just the right spot to not only take them out, but also to help out with platforming challenges, was just as sweet to pull off, as it should be with any platformers. Rewards can be found around every corner, making going around these levels somewhat tedious, yet very helpful for those that end up in quite the bind, and these goodies can even assist you in gaining MORE goodies! After you beat each boss, depending on how many smiley faces you get throughout the stages, you can reach a certain level of bonus area that can grant you extra lives, health, and power-ups, with the amount you do get increasing for each level, encouraging the player to explore the areas as much as they can to get all of these sweets………. even though I didn’t do that, but hey, it’s still there for those that got the time.
However, if I were to judge this and the last game side-by-side in terms of gameplay, there is practically zero difference or improvement to be seen here. If you have played Bonk’s Adventure, then you have also played Bonk’s Revenge without even realizing it, cause the game makes no effort to try to enhance or develop the formula even further, making this mostly feel like a retread of what we have seen previously. Not to mention, the game doesn’t fix ANY of my problems that I had with the previous one, where Bonk himself still has some pretty rigid controls that can make several sections quite frustrating to go through, and there is still an unnecessary boss rush here that is now somehow WORSE. Rather then just simply fighting the bosses again, this game takes the Kirby’s Dream Land route and makes it so that you have to play through a mini level before you fight the boss, and as soon as I figured this out, I literally said out loud “Oh, FUCK off”. Seriously, after playing all of these games, I have discovered how much I truly despise boss rushes that don’t do what Mega Man does, because they are EVERYWHERE. I can never escape….
Overall, despite how much nicer it looks and sounds (at times), Bonk’s Revenge is either on the same level or slightly over the level of quality that Bonk’s Adventure was at, still being a good game that fans of the first will definitely enjoy, but it does feel more like this time’s equivalent of a standalone expansion rather than a true sequel. I would recommend it for those who loved the first game, as well as those who are huge Bonk fans in general, but for everyone else, you aren’t missing out on much by not checking out this one. Now, if you excuse me, I’m gonna go now, and think about more ways that I could possibly integrate the word “bonk” in these reviews, while also being just inappropriate enough to where it won’t get taken down off this website. See ya then!
Game #600
Fate/unlimited codes
2008
The level of depth on display here was genuinely frightening, but it's fast and rewarding to a tee. The systems are really easy to understand, the characters feel varied...Unlimited Codes is well rounded and hard to really criticize too much aside from the usual fighter gripes of Arcade Mode boss difficulty being stacked pretty high and unlockables coming at a pretty slow pace. If you're a Fate fan or looking for a new fighter as a genre vet then this is a good one to try out, but otherwise there's not a whole lot to draw in those outside of the fanbase.
Swipes from the best of both boomer-shooters and modern FPS hits to great success. The movement tech alone make me so excited to get started, and it's just short enough that I got through it in two sessions (meaning it didn't have the time to really bore me with the nonstop piss jokes and ancient meme humor).
However the dev deserves big props for turning some of the cringe humor into good mechanics. The player has a designated "piss-button" which sounds atrocious but essentially works like an extra weapon, similar to Mario Sunshine's FLUDD, that can be used to raise gates, destroy electronics, and even alters enemies in several ways, ranging from freezing them to turning them on one another, by using different drinks.
Games like Slayers X hit the gross-out cringe humor better, but mechanically, to my disbelief, this is one of the best titles to come out of the new fixation of the genre.
However the dev deserves big props for turning some of the cringe humor into good mechanics. The player has a designated "piss-button" which sounds atrocious but essentially works like an extra weapon, similar to Mario Sunshine's FLUDD, that can be used to raise gates, destroy electronics, and even alters enemies in several ways, ranging from freezing them to turning them on one another, by using different drinks.
Games like Slayers X hit the gross-out cringe humor better, but mechanically, to my disbelief, this is one of the best titles to come out of the new fixation of the genre.
Street Fighter
1987
It's nothing short of amazing that Capcom was allowed to keep making games after this one but oh thank god it was. Swallows inputs, hides a crushingly difficult final boss behind a handful of simple fights, and feels overall stiff and irritating to play. Little else to say.
This game didnt sit with me, I love the art style and the premise. Lots of pop culture references and some tricky bosses.
But I found myself being underwhelmed in the sense of environments, bosses, and enemy design.
I found myself having a problem with knowing where I needed to go and then continually found myself getting lost because the map is horrendous, places look the same and the movement was clunky.
I like the skill system and the first area, everything else was ehh mediocre.
sorry lads. I really tried
But I found myself being underwhelmed in the sense of environments, bosses, and enemy design.
I found myself having a problem with knowing where I needed to go and then continually found myself getting lost because the map is horrendous, places look the same and the movement was clunky.
I like the skill system and the first area, everything else was ehh mediocre.
sorry lads. I really tried
Fantastic Journey
1994
If I’m allowed to get real for a second, for most of the day that I am typing this review in, I have been feeling pretty shitty. I could barely sleep last night, I have a massive headache, my nose is all stuffed up, my eyes keep watering, I'm constantly sneezing, my voice is gone, and even after going back to sleep for a good couple of hours, I only managed to get slightly better. So y'all are getting Sick and Delirious Mega for today, and I figured there was only one thing to do in order to take care of this apparent sickness that I have gotten…….. going to play another Parodius game! Because after all, what could possibly heal the body and the soul more than a game meant to make you angry and defeated by any means necessary? Nah, but in all seriousness, it has been a while since I had tackled any of these games, and I usually have a great time with each of them, so I ain’t gonna let some goddamn sickness get in the way of me doing what I love. So, with that out of the way, it’s about time we get to the next title in the series known simply as Fantastic Journey.
At this point, I have played, what, 10 or 12 of these games, so now I know exactly what to expect when going into any of them. It is clear that these games were never concerned with expanding upon the shmup genre, or expanding upon the gameplay style that they established back in the first entry, and each new entry is just meant to give you another round of insanity to go through. Naturally, this is exactly what I ended up getting with Fantastic Journey, and also naturally, the game managed to be pretty good, providing a solid enough shmup experience while keeping the core gameplay as fun and frantic as ever, even though I am reeeeeeeally starting to get burnt out on these games at this point…….. that could just be the sickness talking, but I’m pretty sure it isn’t.
The story is basically non-existant, with it being just about you wanting to reclaim your former glory by getting an ancient treasure, which I would complain about as being not enough, but considering what kind of game this is, I feel like that’s all the story we would ever need. The graphics are pretty good, bringing that classic Gradius look while also being mixed up with the insanity of your typical Parodius game, even if it doesn’t look that much different then the previous game, the music is still good, having the same mix of remixes of classical tunes, original songs, and staple tracks from Gradius, but there was nothing that really jumped out at me as being anything too memorable, and the gameplay/control is…….. well, if you somehow don’t know how it is at this point, then you clearly haven’t been paying attention for the past dozen reviews of this series.
The game is your typical horizontal shmup, where you take control of one of many different whacky characters, such as the classic Vic Viper, a pig with wings, an anime girl riding on a missile, or some Microsoft-desktop-icon-looking guy, go through plenty of different levels through a handful of natural or weird environments, shoot down everything in sight, whether it be a typical enemy from a shmup or a cute penguin floating by, because everything, and I mean EVERYTHING, is out to kill you, gather plenty of power-ups to assist you along your way in the form of your regular Gradius selectable upgrades and the TwinBee bells that you can change the color of, and take on plenty of bosses that will not only provide you with quite a challenge, but will also make you question what the fuck you are playing every time. It is the Parodius experience in its truest form, and while this overall style of gameplay without any kind of change may be overdone at this point, it still manages to be fun for someone like me who has been engrossed in these games for the past…… what, year or so? Good lord, it’s been so long…
As is tradition with these Parodius games, the only real thing worth noting about this game is the amount of weird, zany, fucked up things you will see along your journey, and trust me, this game has that covered in spades. Not gonna lie, I believe I have grown numb to the weirdness at this point, as I have accepted it as a normal part of life (or it could just be the sickness getting in the way), but it is still a massive reason as to why you would want to check out this game in the first place, so let’s just go ahead and run down a quick list of what kind of weirdness this game has to offer. ahem..... the characters you play as get weirder and weirder, now with the inclusion of the previously mentioned anime girl and the Microsoft-icon, the enemies include chickens, claw machine claws, lips, Uncle Sam eagles, and penguins, the stages can bring you from a snowy area to places like inside a claw machine, in the cat-pirate sea, and inside some kind of egyptian temple full of building blocks, and the bosses range from a panda bear ballerina dancer, a giant Moai ship, a cardboard cut-out of a woman that is being controlled by two random penguins, and a mermaid that moans seductively whenever you shoot her weak spot. This is all the typical stuff that one would see when they take drugs, but for the outsider, this could just be some of the wackiest shit they have ever seen, hence why I still enjoy this brand of chaos, and why I continue to play these games even now.
Of course though, the game does suffer from your typical Parodius/Gradius problems, with the most obvious one being that this game does nothing to further change up the Gradius formula, and gives you another round of insanity for the sake of it, which could be fine for huge fans of the franchise, but for everyone else, they would have definitely moved on at this point. Also, is it just me, or does this game sometimes feel like… a copy? Like, it sounds weird, but hear me out: in many ways, this game feels like a direct copy, almost like a mod, of From Myth to Laughter, having a lot of the same types of enemies in the same areas, the same types of levels, the same boss gimmicks, and several other things that seem too similar to be just a coincidence. Could the developers have used the last games as a basis for this new one by modifying that one? I dunno, someone with more knowledge on that kind of shit would probably be able to tell me, but for now, I am incredibly suspicious of you, Fantastic Journey…….. oh yeah, and the game is still hard as fuck.
Overall, despite a major lack of change and how the game can certainly kick your ass at points, Fantastic Journey still manages to be another bundle of weirdness wrapped up in that sweet satisfaction and gameplay that this series is known for, still being just as bombastic and entertaining as the previous titles. I would recommend it for those who were big fans of the other Gradius/Parodius games, as well as those who are huge fans of weird shit, because these games have plenty of weirdness to go around, and this entry is no exception. But anyways, now that I have finally taken care of all of that, I should probably go try to get better now. I do feel a little better then when I started, but let’s face it, taking care of my health is probably a lot more important then some silly video games.
Game #598
At this point, I have played, what, 10 or 12 of these games, so now I know exactly what to expect when going into any of them. It is clear that these games were never concerned with expanding upon the shmup genre, or expanding upon the gameplay style that they established back in the first entry, and each new entry is just meant to give you another round of insanity to go through. Naturally, this is exactly what I ended up getting with Fantastic Journey, and also naturally, the game managed to be pretty good, providing a solid enough shmup experience while keeping the core gameplay as fun and frantic as ever, even though I am reeeeeeeally starting to get burnt out on these games at this point…….. that could just be the sickness talking, but I’m pretty sure it isn’t.
The story is basically non-existant, with it being just about you wanting to reclaim your former glory by getting an ancient treasure, which I would complain about as being not enough, but considering what kind of game this is, I feel like that’s all the story we would ever need. The graphics are pretty good, bringing that classic Gradius look while also being mixed up with the insanity of your typical Parodius game, even if it doesn’t look that much different then the previous game, the music is still good, having the same mix of remixes of classical tunes, original songs, and staple tracks from Gradius, but there was nothing that really jumped out at me as being anything too memorable, and the gameplay/control is…….. well, if you somehow don’t know how it is at this point, then you clearly haven’t been paying attention for the past dozen reviews of this series.
The game is your typical horizontal shmup, where you take control of one of many different whacky characters, such as the classic Vic Viper, a pig with wings, an anime girl riding on a missile, or some Microsoft-desktop-icon-looking guy, go through plenty of different levels through a handful of natural or weird environments, shoot down everything in sight, whether it be a typical enemy from a shmup or a cute penguin floating by, because everything, and I mean EVERYTHING, is out to kill you, gather plenty of power-ups to assist you along your way in the form of your regular Gradius selectable upgrades and the TwinBee bells that you can change the color of, and take on plenty of bosses that will not only provide you with quite a challenge, but will also make you question what the fuck you are playing every time. It is the Parodius experience in its truest form, and while this overall style of gameplay without any kind of change may be overdone at this point, it still manages to be fun for someone like me who has been engrossed in these games for the past…… what, year or so? Good lord, it’s been so long…
As is tradition with these Parodius games, the only real thing worth noting about this game is the amount of weird, zany, fucked up things you will see along your journey, and trust me, this game has that covered in spades. Not gonna lie, I believe I have grown numb to the weirdness at this point, as I have accepted it as a normal part of life (or it could just be the sickness getting in the way), but it is still a massive reason as to why you would want to check out this game in the first place, so let’s just go ahead and run down a quick list of what kind of weirdness this game has to offer. ahem..... the characters you play as get weirder and weirder, now with the inclusion of the previously mentioned anime girl and the Microsoft-icon, the enemies include chickens, claw machine claws, lips, Uncle Sam eagles, and penguins, the stages can bring you from a snowy area to places like inside a claw machine, in the cat-pirate sea, and inside some kind of egyptian temple full of building blocks, and the bosses range from a panda bear ballerina dancer, a giant Moai ship, a cardboard cut-out of a woman that is being controlled by two random penguins, and a mermaid that moans seductively whenever you shoot her weak spot. This is all the typical stuff that one would see when they take drugs, but for the outsider, this could just be some of the wackiest shit they have ever seen, hence why I still enjoy this brand of chaos, and why I continue to play these games even now.
Of course though, the game does suffer from your typical Parodius/Gradius problems, with the most obvious one being that this game does nothing to further change up the Gradius formula, and gives you another round of insanity for the sake of it, which could be fine for huge fans of the franchise, but for everyone else, they would have definitely moved on at this point. Also, is it just me, or does this game sometimes feel like… a copy? Like, it sounds weird, but hear me out: in many ways, this game feels like a direct copy, almost like a mod, of From Myth to Laughter, having a lot of the same types of enemies in the same areas, the same types of levels, the same boss gimmicks, and several other things that seem too similar to be just a coincidence. Could the developers have used the last games as a basis for this new one by modifying that one? I dunno, someone with more knowledge on that kind of shit would probably be able to tell me, but for now, I am incredibly suspicious of you, Fantastic Journey…….. oh yeah, and the game is still hard as fuck.
Overall, despite a major lack of change and how the game can certainly kick your ass at points, Fantastic Journey still manages to be another bundle of weirdness wrapped up in that sweet satisfaction and gameplay that this series is known for, still being just as bombastic and entertaining as the previous titles. I would recommend it for those who were big fans of the other Gradius/Parodius games, as well as those who are huge fans of weird shit, because these games have plenty of weirdness to go around, and this entry is no exception. But anyways, now that I have finally taken care of all of that, I should probably go try to get better now. I do feel a little better then when I started, but let’s face it, taking care of my health is probably a lot more important then some silly video games.
Game #598
Final Fight 3
1995
I am a big fan of the phrase “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it”, and having this mentality when it comes to making anything is usually the best to have, but at the same time, sometimes the product in question, like a sequel to a popular video game, needs to have a little kick in the ass, or one or two changes here or there, to really make it feel justified in its existence. This can directly be applied to Final Fight 2, which in all aspects was still a good game, and a decent follow-up to the original game, but it introduced pretty much nothing to change up the gameplay from the original game, which could be good for those that loved the original game to death, but for those that didn’t, it wouldn’t give them much of a reason to seek that, or any of the other FF games, out. But hey, the game still sold pretty well, so it was naturally gonna get a follow-up regardless, and we would get that follow-up just two years later with Final Fight 3.
I was actually pretty excited to come to this game, cause it has been quite a bit now since I last played one of these games, and I was curious to see how this one would turn out. I didn’t think it was necessarily gonna be too special, but I have been in a big beat-’em-up mood lately, and I was curious to see if they were actually gonna do more with this rather than just being “another Final Fight again”. So, I played through the thing, and as it turns out, it is just another Final Fight again!......... but only kinda. It does feel like somewhat of a proper follow-up to the previous games, since this one does actually offer some new additions compared to the previous game, but most of it is still your typical Final Fight beat-’em-up action, which is all good for me, yet it could be tiring for others.
The story is fairly straightforward, where after the defeat of the Mad Gear Gang in the previous game, the streets of Metro City have grown rampant with crime groups terrorizing the place, with the new Skull Cross Gang taking over as the dominant gang of the city, leading to a large riot being started in the prospect of taking over said city, so it is up to Mike Haggar and Guy, along with newcomers Lucia and Dean, to set out to defeat this new gang once and for all, and to save Metro City once again. Once again, it is a pretty straightforward story, one that we have seen plenty of times in beat-’em-up games, and like with most beat-’em-ups, you don’t need that complex of a plot to go out and start kicking ass all over again, so it is fine by me.
The graphics are good, looking almost identical to that from the previous two games, yet having just enough differences when it comes to the character sprites that you can at least tell something has changed….. barely, the music is also good, having plenty of decent tracks throughout, but nothing that is gonna get me raving and bobbing my head like the tracks you would hear from Streets of Rage 3 (random example, but it works, cause beat-’em-up), and the gameplay/control is pretty much what you think it is if you have played any of the previous Final Fight games, with there being some new additions sprinkled in to spice up your Final Fighting, but it is pretty much another Tuesday for fanatics of the genre.
The game is your typical beat-’em-up romp, where you take control of one of four characters, but if you know me at this point, you already know that I am gonna play as Mike Haggar, while refusing to play as anybody else for even a fraction of a second, go through six different levels through many different locations throughout Metro City, beat down a seemingly endless horde of thugs from the Skull Cross Gang using a plethora of moves at your disposal, gather plenty of weapons to help lay the smackdown on your foes while also gathering plenty of food and point items to assist you along the way, and take on plenty of big, beefy bosses that are relatively easy to defeat, just as long as you don’t mind the giant health bars that a lot of them have. You know the drill, ya punch people, they die, and you can have even more fun punching said people with a buddy, which is all well and good in my book, even if I wouldn’t be so quick to try to get anyone to play this with me, especially if they have already played any of the other Final Fights.
New to the series in this game is that now, instead of having the basic movesets that we have had, we now have additional moves that you can pull off while facing opponents, such as a dash manuver, a charging attack for that dash, throwing attacks, and unique techniques that can be performed for specific characters. This doesn’t change up the gameplay too much from what you are used to, but it is enough to make this game feel like the series is progressing forward, giving the player more to work with and making for a much more fun and versatile experience, so I can definitely appreciate that. Also new in this game is the addition of Super Moves, which pretty much work exactly how they would in a Street Fighter game: you go around, beat dudes up, and when it is charged, you enter a button combination and use it to absolutely ANNIHILATE an opponent. I didn’t really use these all too often, cause the difficulty wasn’t extreme enough to the point where I felt it was a necessity, but it did come in handy against plenty of boss fights, so it is definitely a much welcomed edition.
Now, for this next new feature, I have to ask those Final Fight 3 experts a question real quick….. am I a fucking idiot? Cause I didn’t notice this shit at all when I was playing the game. Apparently, according to what I have read online, there are multiple pathways that you can take in the game, to reach new areas and potentially hidden goodies, but I for the life of me didn’t see that at all in the main game. Yeah, I know there are hidden bonus stages that you can find in order to get more points, but most of the game seems like a clear straight shot from beginning to end, just like with the first two games, so either these branching paths are really well hidden, or I am just incredibly stupid. I will let you all in the comment section decide for yourself why it is the latter option rather than the former.
With all that out of the way though, most of the game is still your basic beat-’em-up through and through at the end of the day, meaning there isn’t really that much here for you to be excited about or want to try out if you weren’t too big into the previous two games. Yeah, the new moves and branching paths do make the game more fun and replayable, but in an era were there were already so many different beat-’em-ups out there, this one doesn’t do anything to make itself stand out from the crowd other than being “another Final Fight”, which is fine for me, but it probably wouldn’t be for others. Also, in terms of actual problems with the game, the dialogue that shows up in the cutscenes in this game is TERRIBLE, holy shit! Like, I am well aware that plenty of games back in the day had mistranslations up the whazoo, which is fine, but I don’t remember this ever being an issue for Final Fight before, yet it is plain as day here. Seriously, it even goes as far as being Mega Man and SNK levels of bad, it is hilarious. Look up the cutscenes at some point later, and you’ll see exactly what I mean.
Overall, despite its lack of major change and some horrible translations for the dialogue, Final Fight 3 is still a decent beat-’em-up and entry in this series all around, with plenty of stages to go through with a buddy, while also not feeling like they last forever (cough, Final Fight 2, cough), plenty of new moves to try out, and just that overall energy and sense of fun that these games haven’t failed to deliver on just yet. I would recommend it for those who were big fans of the previous two games, as well as those who are big beat-’em-up fans in general, because while it isn’t too revolutionary or unique, it can still provide a decent hour of entertainment, especially with a buddy along for the ride. After all that though, I’m just wondering what the next game in the series is gonna- AAAAAAAND it’s a fighting game, GODDAMMIT, CAPCOM! Look, I get it, the games take place in the Street Fighter universe, so it makes sense, but not everything needs to be a fighting game! There’s only so much punching and kicking and killing one can do before they grow completely numb to it, I swear….
Game #597
I was actually pretty excited to come to this game, cause it has been quite a bit now since I last played one of these games, and I was curious to see how this one would turn out. I didn’t think it was necessarily gonna be too special, but I have been in a big beat-’em-up mood lately, and I was curious to see if they were actually gonna do more with this rather than just being “another Final Fight again”. So, I played through the thing, and as it turns out, it is just another Final Fight again!......... but only kinda. It does feel like somewhat of a proper follow-up to the previous games, since this one does actually offer some new additions compared to the previous game, but most of it is still your typical Final Fight beat-’em-up action, which is all good for me, yet it could be tiring for others.
The story is fairly straightforward, where after the defeat of the Mad Gear Gang in the previous game, the streets of Metro City have grown rampant with crime groups terrorizing the place, with the new Skull Cross Gang taking over as the dominant gang of the city, leading to a large riot being started in the prospect of taking over said city, so it is up to Mike Haggar and Guy, along with newcomers Lucia and Dean, to set out to defeat this new gang once and for all, and to save Metro City once again. Once again, it is a pretty straightforward story, one that we have seen plenty of times in beat-’em-up games, and like with most beat-’em-ups, you don’t need that complex of a plot to go out and start kicking ass all over again, so it is fine by me.
The graphics are good, looking almost identical to that from the previous two games, yet having just enough differences when it comes to the character sprites that you can at least tell something has changed….. barely, the music is also good, having plenty of decent tracks throughout, but nothing that is gonna get me raving and bobbing my head like the tracks you would hear from Streets of Rage 3 (random example, but it works, cause beat-’em-up), and the gameplay/control is pretty much what you think it is if you have played any of the previous Final Fight games, with there being some new additions sprinkled in to spice up your Final Fighting, but it is pretty much another Tuesday for fanatics of the genre.
The game is your typical beat-’em-up romp, where you take control of one of four characters, but if you know me at this point, you already know that I am gonna play as Mike Haggar, while refusing to play as anybody else for even a fraction of a second, go through six different levels through many different locations throughout Metro City, beat down a seemingly endless horde of thugs from the Skull Cross Gang using a plethora of moves at your disposal, gather plenty of weapons to help lay the smackdown on your foes while also gathering plenty of food and point items to assist you along the way, and take on plenty of big, beefy bosses that are relatively easy to defeat, just as long as you don’t mind the giant health bars that a lot of them have. You know the drill, ya punch people, they die, and you can have even more fun punching said people with a buddy, which is all well and good in my book, even if I wouldn’t be so quick to try to get anyone to play this with me, especially if they have already played any of the other Final Fights.
New to the series in this game is that now, instead of having the basic movesets that we have had, we now have additional moves that you can pull off while facing opponents, such as a dash manuver, a charging attack for that dash, throwing attacks, and unique techniques that can be performed for specific characters. This doesn’t change up the gameplay too much from what you are used to, but it is enough to make this game feel like the series is progressing forward, giving the player more to work with and making for a much more fun and versatile experience, so I can definitely appreciate that. Also new in this game is the addition of Super Moves, which pretty much work exactly how they would in a Street Fighter game: you go around, beat dudes up, and when it is charged, you enter a button combination and use it to absolutely ANNIHILATE an opponent. I didn’t really use these all too often, cause the difficulty wasn’t extreme enough to the point where I felt it was a necessity, but it did come in handy against plenty of boss fights, so it is definitely a much welcomed edition.
Now, for this next new feature, I have to ask those Final Fight 3 experts a question real quick….. am I a fucking idiot? Cause I didn’t notice this shit at all when I was playing the game. Apparently, according to what I have read online, there are multiple pathways that you can take in the game, to reach new areas and potentially hidden goodies, but I for the life of me didn’t see that at all in the main game. Yeah, I know there are hidden bonus stages that you can find in order to get more points, but most of the game seems like a clear straight shot from beginning to end, just like with the first two games, so either these branching paths are really well hidden, or I am just incredibly stupid. I will let you all in the comment section decide for yourself why it is the latter option rather than the former.
With all that out of the way though, most of the game is still your basic beat-’em-up through and through at the end of the day, meaning there isn’t really that much here for you to be excited about or want to try out if you weren’t too big into the previous two games. Yeah, the new moves and branching paths do make the game more fun and replayable, but in an era were there were already so many different beat-’em-ups out there, this one doesn’t do anything to make itself stand out from the crowd other than being “another Final Fight”, which is fine for me, but it probably wouldn’t be for others. Also, in terms of actual problems with the game, the dialogue that shows up in the cutscenes in this game is TERRIBLE, holy shit! Like, I am well aware that plenty of games back in the day had mistranslations up the whazoo, which is fine, but I don’t remember this ever being an issue for Final Fight before, yet it is plain as day here. Seriously, it even goes as far as being Mega Man and SNK levels of bad, it is hilarious. Look up the cutscenes at some point later, and you’ll see exactly what I mean.
Overall, despite its lack of major change and some horrible translations for the dialogue, Final Fight 3 is still a decent beat-’em-up and entry in this series all around, with plenty of stages to go through with a buddy, while also not feeling like they last forever (cough, Final Fight 2, cough), plenty of new moves to try out, and just that overall energy and sense of fun that these games haven’t failed to deliver on just yet. I would recommend it for those who were big fans of the previous two games, as well as those who are big beat-’em-up fans in general, because while it isn’t too revolutionary or unique, it can still provide a decent hour of entertainment, especially with a buddy along for the ride. After all that though, I’m just wondering what the next game in the series is gonna- AAAAAAAND it’s a fighting game, GODDAMMIT, CAPCOM! Look, I get it, the games take place in the Street Fighter universe, so it makes sense, but not everything needs to be a fighting game! There’s only so much punching and kicking and killing one can do before they grow completely numb to it, I swear….
Game #597
Katamari
2013
Overall exactly what you'd expect from this demake, but the inclusion of the lightning stage was an incredibly smart was to diversify the gameplay. It's a fun little diversion that the dev should be immensely proud of for capturing the spirit of the series with such harsh limitations.
Kirby's Dream Land 3
1997
Oh, how the mighty have fallen.
For the longest time, this was in my top 5 Kirby games. I got this on the Wii U virtual console back in the day, and remember enjoying it a lot. I also remember that I used save states on certain parts and was annoyed at other parts of the game but I generally loved the game's aesthetic and vibe, I guess those aspects overshadowed the bad parts in my mind. What do I think of the game now though? It's not bad at all, but it does have some really annoying issues that nowadays do hamper my experience.
Let's talk about the gameplay first and foremost. Compared to Superstar, it's a big downgrade. Kirby's running speed is very fast, but his walking speed is incredibly slow. This wouldn't usually be an issue however, a lot of them the camera won't pan at the start of a new area until you've gotten until the edge of the screen. Unless you're as careful as can be, if an enemy is there it will hit you. This never happened at all in Superstar. When Kirby floats and gets out of a float, he loses all momentum he's gained and will basically stop in place. Maybe this is so you don't spam the float but it ruins the flow of the gameplay a bit and is an annoyance since Superstar also never did this. It's also incredibly easy to get hit in this game, not only because or the whole screen having to catch up with Kirby, but because the invincibility frames last like a second or less so it's so easy to just get comboed if you're unlucky. This is something I noticed even back in the day, you get hit A LOT in this game and it's quite annoying. One last thing this game downgraded from Superstar, and this one isn't as bad as the other things I mentioned (at least for me) is Kirby's moveset. Kirby goes back to only having one basic move per copy ability. While this is naturally a downgrade compared to Superstar, the animal friends return from Dreamland 2 and do make up for this a bit I think.
Not only are Rick, Kine and Coo back from Dreamland 2, this game adds three new animal friends as well. Nago the cat, Pitch the bird and ChuChu the octopus are the new additions and they're all very solid. Nago is actually my favorite of the six, cuz he feels the best to control but also because he has a very helpful triple jump. Pitch doesn't really have any abilities but he is a cute little guy. ChuChu can only float a couple of times at once but she has the ability to hang from ceilings (it only really gets used once tho lol). Anyways, like Dreamland 2, Dreamland 3 gives each animal friend their own specific take on the copy abilities. With six animal friends now, and 8 copy abilities, that's 48 unique animal friend abilities. There are way less copy abilities in this game compared to Superstar, however with this many animal friend abilities, I feel like it never gets boring since you're more than likely always discovering new ones throughout the game which is fun.
Going into the level's themselves, they aren't great tbh. A good chunk of them are very simple with enemies littered throughout. The level design is way too basic and can get boring some of the time (mostly some of world 3 and 4). They try to combat this with the game's main collectable, the heart-stars, but this can also be a mixed bag. Early on they aren't bad. Each world has six stages, and each of the six stages use the same heart-star conventions. The first always deals with flowers. The second always has you bringing a specific copy ability or animal friend to some part of the stage and interacting with whatever. The third has you playing a minigame a way into the stage. The fourth has you collecting a single object in the stage and bringing it to the end. The fifth has you bringing a specific animal friend to the end of the stage so they can be with their girlfriend/boyfriend. And the 6th has you collecting several objects in the level and bringing them to the end character. Yeah, you get a heart-star from a character at the end of the stage..and they can be pretty fun to see. Mostly because this game cross overed with other Nintendo properties like ROB the Robot and Metroid. Anyways, heart-stars aren't usually too bad to get but the endgame has some really annoying ones. The last couple minigames are like annoying as balls to do without save stating, otherwise you have to redo the stage each time you lose, so I decided to just save state again like I did all the way back in the day. That plus others can just be plain cryptic, and yeah..the collectables aren't super fun to get some of the time.
I know I've spent most of this review complaining so far, and yeah, the gameplay probably is the weakest part of this game, but some of the other aspects are fantastic and make up for the gameplay a bit. The visuals for example are amazing in this game. I still think Yoshi's Island is the best-looking Super Nintendo game, however this is right next to that. This game is a coloring book come to life and it's so nice to look at. It fits Kirby perfectly too and I really wish the modern games tried to do something like this again. Besides the amazing art style, this game is just really charming in general. Whether it's all the animal friend's reactions to Kirby picking other friends instead of them, or the bosses of each world standing idle not fighting you after you purified them by getting every heart-star in the world. Gameplay be damned, it's clear the Kirby3 team were passionate about the actual world and characters. I also always loved the atmosphere in this game. Idk if it's because of the cutesy art style combined with Dark Matter as an antagonist, but this game always felt a bit off in a way I really liked. I don't know how to describe it, but Dreamland 3 fans will probably understand what I mean.
The bosses in general are solid. You have the usual Wispy Woods and some other cool ones. Besides the introduction of Ado (who is basically just Adeline before Adeline), Dark Matter and Zero are great final bosses to the Dreamland trilogy. Dark Matter is cool ofc but Zero is very creepy especially for a Kirby game. The fact it's a giant white sphere that bleeds as you attack it, and the fact its last final form is its eyeball ripped out of the sphere, all bloody and everything, it's so unlike Kirby and just gives the game this eerie feeling I love.
The music in this game is also super good and drives the atmosphere home even more. My favorite songs were probably Grass Land 1, Grass Land 4 and Ripple Field 1. The entire soundtrack is really solid though and like I said, really helps with game feeling atmospheric.
I'm sad this isn't in my top 5 Kirby's anymore. This game has a lot of charm and heart to it but on the gameplay side, it just has too many issues for me to rate it super high. My judgement was clouded back then by the art style and atmosphere, and while those are still great now, I can't deny this game isn't as good as I once thought. I still like it overall, but I will kneel to all the Superstar fans despite not loving that game's structure...that is the superior Kirby game. If they took the gameplay from Superstar and the art style, atmosphere and single campaign structure from this game...I may have gotten my perfect Kirby game. Ah well, a man can dream. I will say tho, I do like this more than Dreamland 2. There isn't a level as bullshit as that trial and error in 2 and this game visually just looks so much better of course. That and I have more nostalgia for it haha. Anyways, next is Donkey Kong Country 3 so look forward to that!
6.5/10
For the longest time, this was in my top 5 Kirby games. I got this on the Wii U virtual console back in the day, and remember enjoying it a lot. I also remember that I used save states on certain parts and was annoyed at other parts of the game but I generally loved the game's aesthetic and vibe, I guess those aspects overshadowed the bad parts in my mind. What do I think of the game now though? It's not bad at all, but it does have some really annoying issues that nowadays do hamper my experience.
Let's talk about the gameplay first and foremost. Compared to Superstar, it's a big downgrade. Kirby's running speed is very fast, but his walking speed is incredibly slow. This wouldn't usually be an issue however, a lot of them the camera won't pan at the start of a new area until you've gotten until the edge of the screen. Unless you're as careful as can be, if an enemy is there it will hit you. This never happened at all in Superstar. When Kirby floats and gets out of a float, he loses all momentum he's gained and will basically stop in place. Maybe this is so you don't spam the float but it ruins the flow of the gameplay a bit and is an annoyance since Superstar also never did this. It's also incredibly easy to get hit in this game, not only because or the whole screen having to catch up with Kirby, but because the invincibility frames last like a second or less so it's so easy to just get comboed if you're unlucky. This is something I noticed even back in the day, you get hit A LOT in this game and it's quite annoying. One last thing this game downgraded from Superstar, and this one isn't as bad as the other things I mentioned (at least for me) is Kirby's moveset. Kirby goes back to only having one basic move per copy ability. While this is naturally a downgrade compared to Superstar, the animal friends return from Dreamland 2 and do make up for this a bit I think.
Not only are Rick, Kine and Coo back from Dreamland 2, this game adds three new animal friends as well. Nago the cat, Pitch the bird and ChuChu the octopus are the new additions and they're all very solid. Nago is actually my favorite of the six, cuz he feels the best to control but also because he has a very helpful triple jump. Pitch doesn't really have any abilities but he is a cute little guy. ChuChu can only float a couple of times at once but she has the ability to hang from ceilings (it only really gets used once tho lol). Anyways, like Dreamland 2, Dreamland 3 gives each animal friend their own specific take on the copy abilities. With six animal friends now, and 8 copy abilities, that's 48 unique animal friend abilities. There are way less copy abilities in this game compared to Superstar, however with this many animal friend abilities, I feel like it never gets boring since you're more than likely always discovering new ones throughout the game which is fun.
Going into the level's themselves, they aren't great tbh. A good chunk of them are very simple with enemies littered throughout. The level design is way too basic and can get boring some of the time (mostly some of world 3 and 4). They try to combat this with the game's main collectable, the heart-stars, but this can also be a mixed bag. Early on they aren't bad. Each world has six stages, and each of the six stages use the same heart-star conventions. The first always deals with flowers. The second always has you bringing a specific copy ability or animal friend to some part of the stage and interacting with whatever. The third has you playing a minigame a way into the stage. The fourth has you collecting a single object in the stage and bringing it to the end. The fifth has you bringing a specific animal friend to the end of the stage so they can be with their girlfriend/boyfriend. And the 6th has you collecting several objects in the level and bringing them to the end character. Yeah, you get a heart-star from a character at the end of the stage..and they can be pretty fun to see. Mostly because this game cross overed with other Nintendo properties like ROB the Robot and Metroid. Anyways, heart-stars aren't usually too bad to get but the endgame has some really annoying ones. The last couple minigames are like annoying as balls to do without save stating, otherwise you have to redo the stage each time you lose, so I decided to just save state again like I did all the way back in the day. That plus others can just be plain cryptic, and yeah..the collectables aren't super fun to get some of the time.
I know I've spent most of this review complaining so far, and yeah, the gameplay probably is the weakest part of this game, but some of the other aspects are fantastic and make up for the gameplay a bit. The visuals for example are amazing in this game. I still think Yoshi's Island is the best-looking Super Nintendo game, however this is right next to that. This game is a coloring book come to life and it's so nice to look at. It fits Kirby perfectly too and I really wish the modern games tried to do something like this again. Besides the amazing art style, this game is just really charming in general. Whether it's all the animal friend's reactions to Kirby picking other friends instead of them, or the bosses of each world standing idle not fighting you after you purified them by getting every heart-star in the world. Gameplay be damned, it's clear the Kirby3 team were passionate about the actual world and characters. I also always loved the atmosphere in this game. Idk if it's because of the cutesy art style combined with Dark Matter as an antagonist, but this game always felt a bit off in a way I really liked. I don't know how to describe it, but Dreamland 3 fans will probably understand what I mean.
The bosses in general are solid. You have the usual Wispy Woods and some other cool ones. Besides the introduction of Ado (who is basically just Adeline before Adeline), Dark Matter and Zero are great final bosses to the Dreamland trilogy. Dark Matter is cool ofc but Zero is very creepy especially for a Kirby game. The fact it's a giant white sphere that bleeds as you attack it, and the fact its last final form is its eyeball ripped out of the sphere, all bloody and everything, it's so unlike Kirby and just gives the game this eerie feeling I love.
The music in this game is also super good and drives the atmosphere home even more. My favorite songs were probably Grass Land 1, Grass Land 4 and Ripple Field 1. The entire soundtrack is really solid though and like I said, really helps with game feeling atmospheric.
I'm sad this isn't in my top 5 Kirby's anymore. This game has a lot of charm and heart to it but on the gameplay side, it just has too many issues for me to rate it super high. My judgement was clouded back then by the art style and atmosphere, and while those are still great now, I can't deny this game isn't as good as I once thought. I still like it overall, but I will kneel to all the Superstar fans despite not loving that game's structure...that is the superior Kirby game. If they took the gameplay from Superstar and the art style, atmosphere and single campaign structure from this game...I may have gotten my perfect Kirby game. Ah well, a man can dream. I will say tho, I do like this more than Dreamland 2. There isn't a level as bullshit as that trial and error in 2 and this game visually just looks so much better of course. That and I have more nostalgia for it haha. Anyways, next is Donkey Kong Country 3 so look forward to that!
6.5/10
It's an amazing art exhibit and I'll never stop being thankful that folks just make things that feel different. It's a toy, it's a museum, it is a game not in the sense we've grown accustomed to, but in the traditional sense: it centers PLAY. Nour is a synesthetic burst of color and sound, trying the senses together in fun ways, and taking excellent advantage of platform specific features (like the dualshock speakers) to draw the player's sensory experience into the screen.
It's not to be played through all at once, it's not to be mastered or perfected. It's a painting you can count on being there if you need to mess around without having to eat the result or tidy up the dishes.
Is it good? Hell if I know. It's not really the point. It's a really soulful tech demo that can exist in the background of your home to make you think about that noodle place you like.
It was exactly what I expected when I wishlisted it ages ago and I was very thankful to have an experience for a few hours that didn't require anything but my attention.
It's not to be played through all at once, it's not to be mastered or perfected. It's a painting you can count on being there if you need to mess around without having to eat the result or tidy up the dishes.
Is it good? Hell if I know. It's not really the point. It's a really soulful tech demo that can exist in the background of your home to make you think about that noodle place you like.
It was exactly what I expected when I wishlisted it ages ago and I was very thankful to have an experience for a few hours that didn't require anything but my attention.
Gato Roboto
2019
Short and sweet metroidvania. Any game with a cat as the player character is an easy win. I really like the color palettes as hidden pickups its nice playing in a different vibe every few minutes. The puzzles do a pretty good job of testing your skill/understanding of the mechanics as well. Beat it in just about 2 hours though with 78% items so it is REAL short.
Gonna try not to be biased as this one of the games I played for hours on end through the years until now as well!
I speedrun this, so I'm always happy for a buggy glitchy game, But the glitches in this are beyond me.
Achievements did not appear for the game on release week, one is currently unobtainable, and its mostly just grinding. How fun, lots of missed opportunities for some creative ones.
The loading sound was removed and changed for the 1st game, everything else worked fine on that, Now the second game, that's where the problems come in.
Missing assets on Naboo, like an entire wall is see through, Enemies and allies Even myself would spawn out of bounds on Naboo.
The new hero hunt mode for all maps completely breaks AI, on Kamino every enemy had no idea where to go, so they resorted to spinning in a circle then running off the edge.
Galactic conquest is broken if you play as the Empire and try to buy a new upgrade I was greeted with a crash every time, meaning I could not play that mode unless I was CIS, Rebels or Clones :(
Apart from that, the game is basically the same (if its not broke why fix it) In this case it was the company trying to add new things like the mode that broke it :(
Wait for Sale on this, or just buy the old ones on the xbox store. Much better.
I speedrun this, so I'm always happy for a buggy glitchy game, But the glitches in this are beyond me.
Achievements did not appear for the game on release week, one is currently unobtainable, and its mostly just grinding. How fun, lots of missed opportunities for some creative ones.
The loading sound was removed and changed for the 1st game, everything else worked fine on that, Now the second game, that's where the problems come in.
Missing assets on Naboo, like an entire wall is see through, Enemies and allies Even myself would spawn out of bounds on Naboo.
The new hero hunt mode for all maps completely breaks AI, on Kamino every enemy had no idea where to go, so they resorted to spinning in a circle then running off the edge.
Galactic conquest is broken if you play as the Empire and try to buy a new upgrade I was greeted with a crash every time, meaning I could not play that mode unless I was CIS, Rebels or Clones :(
Apart from that, the game is basically the same (if its not broke why fix it) In this case it was the company trying to add new things like the mode that broke it :(
Wait for Sale on this, or just buy the old ones on the xbox store. Much better.