Remember games before "games-as-a-service" was a thing? Same.

-THE- iconic next-gen over-the-top action game IMO. The action overcompensates for the decent enough level design and subpar problem solving that seems to really exist generally to gatekeep my next fight.

Too bad I only feel like I can competently play and keep up with the action using only two of the four playable characters.

Playing solo - fine enough Souls-related experience.

Playing co-op for the first run - Exploring the prison level(s) with a friend for the first time was one of the coolest experiences I've had in gaming in a long time.

Incredible level design (most of the time) with mostly decent boss fights. If my first experience wasn't alongside a friend, I do not think I would have enjoyed the gameplay experience nearly half as much as I ultimately did.

A perfectly concise and engaging Spider-Man spin-off that reflects and differentiates Miles as his own character and own kind of "super hero" without putting aside the elements of Spider-Man (2018) that made it so great.

Be greater. Be yourself.

This is the super hero game I always wanted growing up.

Incredible story, open-world, traversal mechanics, combat, etc. - my only gripe is the lack of engaging side quest lines that included any other iconic characters within the Spiderverse (though the story pretty much compensates for this!).

2018

This game made me care about a roguelite.

A fun 6 hr. romp around with Mario in a fun and unique open world environment where you collect the game's equivalent of classic 3D Mario "stars".

Though it's a fun new take on the iconic 3D series, the lack of a mechanic to aid jumping and traversal (e.g. Cappy, F.L.U.D.D., Luma spin, etc.) makes reaching some platforms and overcoming obstacles a bit more frustrating for me than in other Mario specific 3D platformers.

Coming back to the series after a several year hiatus, Cold War has been a fun mainstay on my PS5 with quick online matches and simple online play with friends.

Real talk: the adaptive triggers on the DualSense controller genuinely immersed and engaged me with the game far more than I anticipated from yet another yearly CoD title.

This review contains spoilers

The first video game specifically that made me emotionally invested in its story:

Roxas: "Looks like my summer vacation is . . . over."

Goofy dies

This is a -terrible- game.

BUT . . . it's a terrible and unbalanced 3D platformer with the ability to go -very- and I mean -VERY- fast, including one of the most iconic videogame soundtracks I have ever personally encountered.

Super Sonic go brrr

The Hoenn region is one of the closest things I can call a fictional "homeland". With the introduction of double battles, excellent new Pokemon designs (including epic legendaries), and a post-game like no other (the Battle Frontier); Pokemon Emerald is the series damn near its finest and I will never not want to start another run through the Hoenn region.

My "mains" are at least half of the roster.

Pure, un-adulterated, Disney-less Star Wars bliss and perfection.

I've never fallen more in love with a cast of characters. The dichotomy between the player's relationships with confidants and the game's mechanics in and out of its incredible turn-based combat system constantly tempt me to replay this for another 100 hours.

Shockingly, I never got sick of the soundtrack after all that time and to this day still go out of my way to queue up some of this game's banger tracks.