JuliaSperfeldt
41 reviews liked by JuliaSperfeldt
Luigi's Mansion 3
2019
Luigi's Mansion 3 is not the original Luigi's Mansion. More importantly, it is also not Luigi's Mansion 2.
As a statement on it's own, that couldn't be any less obvious. Like, come on, duh Spike, the brain brigade must have been working overtime on that one. As obvious as it may be, on an emotional level, it's a statement I didn't know I needed to acknowledge. It wasn't until I've finally played Luigi's Mansion 3 with my own two hands that the realization occurred.
For context, as hinted with in my Super Mario Bros: Wonder review, Luigi's Mansion: Dark Moon was a game I felt immensely disappointed by. Gone was the arcade-y set up of the original, the breezy and focused gameplay now replaced by a mission based structure with content that felt as if it's sole purpose was to extend the game's length. The terrifying chills and larger-than-life character given to the ghouls within the titular mansion were replaced with copy-pasted enemy fodder with zero charm, with your run-of-the-mill spooks and specters serving as your boss battles. Even the music was butchered from it's ghostly synths and harmonic whomps setting the ambience of the mansion perfectly. From the haunting Mansion theme to the silly and off putting funk beat made to emphasize Dr. E. Gadd's zaniness, it fit the mood like a glove. With Dark Moon, all it's soundtrack provided was a vapid, boring, safe score that never instilled anything into you. Maybe light-hearted whimsy at the most, the opposite of how I felt I should be feeling.
This is how I felt at the time, and given that I haven't replayed Luigi's Mansion 2 since my teens, it's easy to see why I was so apathetic to Luigi's Mansion 3 when it was first announced. I felt no desire to give the game a try, not after the immense disappointment I had experienced. The series had left me behind and was attempting a style I didn't really care for, so I figured, why bother with this one?
Fast forward to now. 5 years have passed since Luigi's Mansion 3, and a decade since I touched Luigi's Mansion: Dark Moon. The disappointment and bitterness from my teen years have been shedded away by years of self reflection and personal growth. I've reflected on a lot of my personal life and my gaming life as I've grown, and re-evaluating the Luigi's Mansion series has been on my to-do list. Gratefully, I received this game as a gift for my birthday, and playing the game now in 2023 has left me with a number of thoughts that needed to be revalued.
The very first thought that came across my mind was exactly the first sentence of this review: Luigi's Mansion 3 is not Luigi's Mansion.
Luigi's Mansion 3 feels tonally off from the original game. In the original Luigi's Mansion, the ghosts as a collective had their quirks, but they were offset by ones that were more unnerving. Something about Chauncey the baby makes me uncomfortable. This pampered child shrinks you down to a pea's size, places you into a portal dimension, and tries to make you his play thing as he throws a temper tantrum, screeching demonically at you for giving him an owie. Bogmire is another great example. He's faceless in a sea of colorful faces, and he behaves so differently from everything else in the game. He's unsettling and gives the game a strong sense of mystery just from his presence alone. In Luigi's Mansion 3, there's a distinct lack of edge.
Alongside the characters of the ghosts themselves, there are design decisions within Luigi's Mansion 3 that stick out from being lost in translation from converting the original game's gameplay sensibilities to their new format. In Luigi's Mansion, the game would let you wander into a room and discover for yourself that something wasn't right. There were exceptions, of course, but this was a constant. Typically, you'd walk into a darkened room, and an object would appear to move or float before you. You wouldn't see the ghost right away, which lead into a puzzle solving phase of finding the right way to expose it's heart. This is very subtle, but this structure added a layer of uncertainty to these paranormal encounters. They're unknown until they're seen. You watch their actions to determine what their personalities are like. You're within the process of discovery yourself. With Luigi's Mansion 3, these boss ghosts are set up with a cutscene, taking the time to introduce themselves up front and personal, which loses a lot of the mystic and agency given to the player.
These critiques are based on a purposely faulty premise, however. All of these criticisms would be valid of Luigi's Mansion 3 if the game was attempting to contain the same tone as the original.
But again, Luigi's Mansion 3 is not Luigi's Mansion.
Instead, Luigi's Mansion 3 goes for a more light hearted tone with it's horror. The kind of tone that might startle you, but will make you smile after it's done. Ghosts jump scare you from time to time, but they're usually doing something goofy to deflate your fear and convert it to a smile. There's only one really mean jump scare, and that would be on Floor 8, Paranormal Productions. The entire game has been lulling you in for a false sense of security up until a bear statue just decides to violently grab you. Even then, the designers felt so bad for this that they give you plenty of money as an apology. It's the perfect example of this game's MO.
Much like Resident Evil 4 was to the original Resident Evil, Luigi's Mansion 3 puts the focus on action rather than scares. The gameplay uses the same design keys of capturing ghosts and performing small puzzles to figure out how to capture said ghosts, but it's recontextualized into a more gameified feel. The tools at your disposal have expanded, your list of actions increasing from a mere suck and blow.
Don't, don't mind that phrasing—
Sucking up the environment is a strong part of the gameplay loop now. The added physics to every object within the hotel creates an addicting kleptomanic drive to vaccum out anything and everything valuable from this shady hotel. The game feel to this reminds me of Paper Mario: Origami King and it's ability to make the simple act of hitting things feel immensely satisfying. The noises, the chaotic clutter of objects flying about, it's simply joyful.
Unlike Origami King though, it's main gameplay loop is also satisfying. The hotel is structured with each floor acting as a level to explore, setting up gags, ghosts to gobble up, and ghoulish bosses to grapple with. Flinging ghosts by slamming their ectoplasmic bodies sharply to the ground makes combat feel crunchy, which is something I neglected when I played Dark Moon many years ago. There indeed IS substance to this gameplay style that appeals to me, it was just hidden through a distinct lack of soul given to the direction.
The hotel is structured similar to the mission like structure of Dark Moon, creating bite sized chunks with tasks set out for you to accomplish. Yet, Luigi's Mansion 3 is not Luigi's Mansion 2. The game doesn't cause you to go back in and out of E. Gadd's lab to complete an objective, and if it does, you can quickly teleport there and back to where you last left off. Each floor builds upon gimmicks culminating in a boss fight. These bosses typically use mechanics already established through the floor you've spend the last 30 minutes on, finding clever ways to plunger enemies and drag them down, using your pal Gooigi to double team them in elaborate methods, along with an assortment of other tricks up it's sleeve. It's all fairly enjoyable. I almost wish there were more tools to expand your equipment in more interesting ways, but with what they accomplished here felt like they had enough to work with.
There's more I could say about the bosses not quite meeting my expectations in terms of personalities, the music not quite hitting the highs of the original game's, the overall structure causing me to put the game down more than feeling a strong urge to keep trucking forward. But these are all aspects that come down to personal preference. The structure plays well to the game's strengths. There's more to do and explore from this concept. The bosses and music are bit too light-hearted, but again, the tone of the game is different by design. You can't capture the same magic if your goal was never to do so. What's there is still charming. My teenage self wouldn't have understood that.
I'm no longer the bitter sad sap I once was, and my reaction towards Luigi's Mansion 3 has been a reflection of that change to me. 5 years ago me and teenage me were wrong, both for different reasons. This gameplay style does suite me — it just took another entry with refinements to prove that it did. Just because it's not the same tonally from what I loved in the past doesn't mean I can't still enjoy the game.
Are there aspects lost from this direction? Sure. Do I prefer Luigi's Mansion over 3? Of course I do. It's my childhood favorite, it's hard not to. But this does not make Luigi's Mansion 3 any less valid in existing like I once so stubbornly believed. Luigi's Mansion 3 executes ideas pulled off within it so superbly well, it's hard not to love it. And that feels good to say.
As a statement on it's own, that couldn't be any less obvious. Like, come on, duh Spike, the brain brigade must have been working overtime on that one. As obvious as it may be, on an emotional level, it's a statement I didn't know I needed to acknowledge. It wasn't until I've finally played Luigi's Mansion 3 with my own two hands that the realization occurred.
For context, as hinted with in my Super Mario Bros: Wonder review, Luigi's Mansion: Dark Moon was a game I felt immensely disappointed by. Gone was the arcade-y set up of the original, the breezy and focused gameplay now replaced by a mission based structure with content that felt as if it's sole purpose was to extend the game's length. The terrifying chills and larger-than-life character given to the ghouls within the titular mansion were replaced with copy-pasted enemy fodder with zero charm, with your run-of-the-mill spooks and specters serving as your boss battles. Even the music was butchered from it's ghostly synths and harmonic whomps setting the ambience of the mansion perfectly. From the haunting Mansion theme to the silly and off putting funk beat made to emphasize Dr. E. Gadd's zaniness, it fit the mood like a glove. With Dark Moon, all it's soundtrack provided was a vapid, boring, safe score that never instilled anything into you. Maybe light-hearted whimsy at the most, the opposite of how I felt I should be feeling.
This is how I felt at the time, and given that I haven't replayed Luigi's Mansion 2 since my teens, it's easy to see why I was so apathetic to Luigi's Mansion 3 when it was first announced. I felt no desire to give the game a try, not after the immense disappointment I had experienced. The series had left me behind and was attempting a style I didn't really care for, so I figured, why bother with this one?
Fast forward to now. 5 years have passed since Luigi's Mansion 3, and a decade since I touched Luigi's Mansion: Dark Moon. The disappointment and bitterness from my teen years have been shedded away by years of self reflection and personal growth. I've reflected on a lot of my personal life and my gaming life as I've grown, and re-evaluating the Luigi's Mansion series has been on my to-do list. Gratefully, I received this game as a gift for my birthday, and playing the game now in 2023 has left me with a number of thoughts that needed to be revalued.
The very first thought that came across my mind was exactly the first sentence of this review: Luigi's Mansion 3 is not Luigi's Mansion.
Luigi's Mansion 3 feels tonally off from the original game. In the original Luigi's Mansion, the ghosts as a collective had their quirks, but they were offset by ones that were more unnerving. Something about Chauncey the baby makes me uncomfortable. This pampered child shrinks you down to a pea's size, places you into a portal dimension, and tries to make you his play thing as he throws a temper tantrum, screeching demonically at you for giving him an owie. Bogmire is another great example. He's faceless in a sea of colorful faces, and he behaves so differently from everything else in the game. He's unsettling and gives the game a strong sense of mystery just from his presence alone. In Luigi's Mansion 3, there's a distinct lack of edge.
Alongside the characters of the ghosts themselves, there are design decisions within Luigi's Mansion 3 that stick out from being lost in translation from converting the original game's gameplay sensibilities to their new format. In Luigi's Mansion, the game would let you wander into a room and discover for yourself that something wasn't right. There were exceptions, of course, but this was a constant. Typically, you'd walk into a darkened room, and an object would appear to move or float before you. You wouldn't see the ghost right away, which lead into a puzzle solving phase of finding the right way to expose it's heart. This is very subtle, but this structure added a layer of uncertainty to these paranormal encounters. They're unknown until they're seen. You watch their actions to determine what their personalities are like. You're within the process of discovery yourself. With Luigi's Mansion 3, these boss ghosts are set up with a cutscene, taking the time to introduce themselves up front and personal, which loses a lot of the mystic and agency given to the player.
These critiques are based on a purposely faulty premise, however. All of these criticisms would be valid of Luigi's Mansion 3 if the game was attempting to contain the same tone as the original.
But again, Luigi's Mansion 3 is not Luigi's Mansion.
Instead, Luigi's Mansion 3 goes for a more light hearted tone with it's horror. The kind of tone that might startle you, but will make you smile after it's done. Ghosts jump scare you from time to time, but they're usually doing something goofy to deflate your fear and convert it to a smile. There's only one really mean jump scare, and that would be on Floor 8, Paranormal Productions. The entire game has been lulling you in for a false sense of security up until a bear statue just decides to violently grab you. Even then, the designers felt so bad for this that they give you plenty of money as an apology. It's the perfect example of this game's MO.
Much like Resident Evil 4 was to the original Resident Evil, Luigi's Mansion 3 puts the focus on action rather than scares. The gameplay uses the same design keys of capturing ghosts and performing small puzzles to figure out how to capture said ghosts, but it's recontextualized into a more gameified feel. The tools at your disposal have expanded, your list of actions increasing from a mere suck and blow.
Don't, don't mind that phrasing—
Sucking up the environment is a strong part of the gameplay loop now. The added physics to every object within the hotel creates an addicting kleptomanic drive to vaccum out anything and everything valuable from this shady hotel. The game feel to this reminds me of Paper Mario: Origami King and it's ability to make the simple act of hitting things feel immensely satisfying. The noises, the chaotic clutter of objects flying about, it's simply joyful.
Unlike Origami King though, it's main gameplay loop is also satisfying. The hotel is structured with each floor acting as a level to explore, setting up gags, ghosts to gobble up, and ghoulish bosses to grapple with. Flinging ghosts by slamming their ectoplasmic bodies sharply to the ground makes combat feel crunchy, which is something I neglected when I played Dark Moon many years ago. There indeed IS substance to this gameplay style that appeals to me, it was just hidden through a distinct lack of soul given to the direction.
The hotel is structured similar to the mission like structure of Dark Moon, creating bite sized chunks with tasks set out for you to accomplish. Yet, Luigi's Mansion 3 is not Luigi's Mansion 2. The game doesn't cause you to go back in and out of E. Gadd's lab to complete an objective, and if it does, you can quickly teleport there and back to where you last left off. Each floor builds upon gimmicks culminating in a boss fight. These bosses typically use mechanics already established through the floor you've spend the last 30 minutes on, finding clever ways to plunger enemies and drag them down, using your pal Gooigi to double team them in elaborate methods, along with an assortment of other tricks up it's sleeve. It's all fairly enjoyable. I almost wish there were more tools to expand your equipment in more interesting ways, but with what they accomplished here felt like they had enough to work with.
There's more I could say about the bosses not quite meeting my expectations in terms of personalities, the music not quite hitting the highs of the original game's, the overall structure causing me to put the game down more than feeling a strong urge to keep trucking forward. But these are all aspects that come down to personal preference. The structure plays well to the game's strengths. There's more to do and explore from this concept. The bosses and music are bit too light-hearted, but again, the tone of the game is different by design. You can't capture the same magic if your goal was never to do so. What's there is still charming. My teenage self wouldn't have understood that.
I'm no longer the bitter sad sap I once was, and my reaction towards Luigi's Mansion 3 has been a reflection of that change to me. 5 years ago me and teenage me were wrong, both for different reasons. This gameplay style does suite me — it just took another entry with refinements to prove that it did. Just because it's not the same tonally from what I loved in the past doesn't mean I can't still enjoy the game.
Are there aspects lost from this direction? Sure. Do I prefer Luigi's Mansion over 3? Of course I do. It's my childhood favorite, it's hard not to. But this does not make Luigi's Mansion 3 any less valid in existing like I once so stubbornly believed. Luigi's Mansion 3 executes ideas pulled off within it so superbly well, it's hard not to love it. And that feels good to say.
La façon dont le jeu permet un team building extrêmement diversifié est cool mais le multi force les joueurs à jouer les 10 mêmes joueurs pour pouvoir espérer gagner dans les hauts rangs
Mega Man 7
1995
Mega Man 7 had the potential to be the best entry in the whole franchise, by borrowing the best parts of X's formula, and combining them with the more simple structure of the classic gameplay. The more secret-oriented nature of 7 is by far the most obvious X influence, encouraging use of weapons to discover lots of new routes that'll lead you to optional upgrades. It also borrows a little from the Gameboy games, by carrying over the shop, where you can use your acquired currency for more goodies.
The visual aesthetic is wonderfully colorful - far more interesting to look at than what X has been doing imo - the music is on point, and every stage packs its own memorable setpieces, alongside bosses I really enjoyed fighting even without their weaknesses. The localization is the sort of charmingly put together trainwreck that you would expect out of a 90's SNES localization, turning the otherwise whatever dialogue into something a lot more incidentally funny and memorable. The ending also may be one of the rawest moments in this series's history, even if it's totally uncharacteristic in hindsight. All in all, the recipe for an all-time classic is all here, and more or less proves itself as one throughout.
Until you get to the final set of stages. Many things have already been said about this game's finale, so I doubt I have anything original to contribute here. But, when you read the wiki page and find out that they deliberately wanted to make the final boss unbeatable without an Energy Tank, it speaks volumes to the level of balancing that went on here, where they wanted you to tank through it rather than show any use of skill. It may be one of the worst bosses in Mega Man history, and I would honestly recommend at least placing a save state at the beginning of it, so you don't end up using up your E-tanks and weapon energy only to die 80% of the way through.
Mega Man 7 fucks with me, and it seems to fuck with a lot of others. You'd think it's one of the best games in the classic series, but all it takes is that one boss to suddenly convince you it's one of the worst. That's how bad 7's difficulty can be, but it's doubtful you'll see that at first. You'll have a really good time with this one. And then it'll sneak up on you. That one fuckin' bit.
The visual aesthetic is wonderfully colorful - far more interesting to look at than what X has been doing imo - the music is on point, and every stage packs its own memorable setpieces, alongside bosses I really enjoyed fighting even without their weaknesses. The localization is the sort of charmingly put together trainwreck that you would expect out of a 90's SNES localization, turning the otherwise whatever dialogue into something a lot more incidentally funny and memorable. The ending also may be one of the rawest moments in this series's history, even if it's totally uncharacteristic in hindsight. All in all, the recipe for an all-time classic is all here, and more or less proves itself as one throughout.
Until you get to the final set of stages. Many things have already been said about this game's finale, so I doubt I have anything original to contribute here. But, when you read the wiki page and find out that they deliberately wanted to make the final boss unbeatable without an Energy Tank, it speaks volumes to the level of balancing that went on here, where they wanted you to tank through it rather than show any use of skill. It may be one of the worst bosses in Mega Man history, and I would honestly recommend at least placing a save state at the beginning of it, so you don't end up using up your E-tanks and weapon energy only to die 80% of the way through.
Mega Man 7 fucks with me, and it seems to fuck with a lot of others. You'd think it's one of the best games in the classic series, but all it takes is that one boss to suddenly convince you it's one of the worst. That's how bad 7's difficulty can be, but it's doubtful you'll see that at first. You'll have a really good time with this one. And then it'll sneak up on you. That one fuckin' bit.
Esse jogo é CHATO
A ambientação desse jogo é uma das coisas mais belas que já vi, junto com seu gráfico. Os cenários e atmosfera são lindíssimos e muito imersivos, bastante sinistro e sombrio.
A história ela só cumpre o papel, não tem tanta profundidade, inovação e nem mesmo plot twists, algumas coisas são bastante absurdas (?) E outras um tanto previsíveis. Os personagens não tem tanto carisma e parecem ter uma relação um pouco forçada e apressada, não dá tempo e nem motivo se se apegar a eles portanto não tive nenhuma sensação de tensão que o jogo tenta passar o tempo todo e não fiquei aflito em parte alguma.
A trilha sonora é bem bacana, apesar de não ser A MELHOR, ela é bastante agradável e encaixa bem com o jogo.
A temática de um jogo medieval sempre me atrai muito e em relação a isso a ideia é bem boa, eu nunca joguei um jogo TÃO medieval quanto este.
O grande problema desse jogo são as inúmeras questões com a gameplay.
O sistema de melhorias não demonstra NENHUMA diferença em gameplay, não há progressão aqui.
O menu de itens cheio de coisas são bastante opcionais e até dispensáveis, bastante ocasionais usando somente no determinado capítulo que você desbloqueou aquilo, ou para passar pequenos trechos.
A câmera é bastante lenta e as mecânicas de gameplay um pouco travadas e sem graça, o combate é praticamente inexistente.
É um jogo de Stealth que não te dá nenhuma liberdade pra fazer algo do seu jeito, nem ao menos fazer um pouco diferente. Você precisa seguir um script e passar somente na hora certa, distrair um inimigo daquele jeito, matar inimigos naquela ordem coisa que se fosse até um filme com quick time events seria mais divertido e mais tenso.
Os inimigos mais leves e fracos do jogo e os inimigos mais pesados e fortes não diferem em nada uma vez que você morre somente com um golpe numa cutscene já montada, sempre do mesmo jeito.
Se um inimigo viu você, pode largar o controle, você não vai escapar dele correndo, e talvez com muita sorte se escondendo ou entrando em algum lugar, mas isso é quase impossível.
O jogo é mais sobre fazer puzzle do que sobre combate, narrativa e até stealth. Dito isso, foi uma experiência bastante ruim pra mim, que detesta jogos de puzzle.
No fim das contas o que salva esse jogo é somente sua atmosfera, de resto ele se propõe a fazer mais coisa do que pode, e se torna chato, lento e maçante, mesmo sendo um jogo curto.
A ambientação desse jogo é uma das coisas mais belas que já vi, junto com seu gráfico. Os cenários e atmosfera são lindíssimos e muito imersivos, bastante sinistro e sombrio.
A história ela só cumpre o papel, não tem tanta profundidade, inovação e nem mesmo plot twists, algumas coisas são bastante absurdas (?) E outras um tanto previsíveis. Os personagens não tem tanto carisma e parecem ter uma relação um pouco forçada e apressada, não dá tempo e nem motivo se se apegar a eles portanto não tive nenhuma sensação de tensão que o jogo tenta passar o tempo todo e não fiquei aflito em parte alguma.
A trilha sonora é bem bacana, apesar de não ser A MELHOR, ela é bastante agradável e encaixa bem com o jogo.
A temática de um jogo medieval sempre me atrai muito e em relação a isso a ideia é bem boa, eu nunca joguei um jogo TÃO medieval quanto este.
O grande problema desse jogo são as inúmeras questões com a gameplay.
O sistema de melhorias não demonstra NENHUMA diferença em gameplay, não há progressão aqui.
O menu de itens cheio de coisas são bastante opcionais e até dispensáveis, bastante ocasionais usando somente no determinado capítulo que você desbloqueou aquilo, ou para passar pequenos trechos.
A câmera é bastante lenta e as mecânicas de gameplay um pouco travadas e sem graça, o combate é praticamente inexistente.
É um jogo de Stealth que não te dá nenhuma liberdade pra fazer algo do seu jeito, nem ao menos fazer um pouco diferente. Você precisa seguir um script e passar somente na hora certa, distrair um inimigo daquele jeito, matar inimigos naquela ordem coisa que se fosse até um filme com quick time events seria mais divertido e mais tenso.
Os inimigos mais leves e fracos do jogo e os inimigos mais pesados e fortes não diferem em nada uma vez que você morre somente com um golpe numa cutscene já montada, sempre do mesmo jeito.
Se um inimigo viu você, pode largar o controle, você não vai escapar dele correndo, e talvez com muita sorte se escondendo ou entrando em algum lugar, mas isso é quase impossível.
O jogo é mais sobre fazer puzzle do que sobre combate, narrativa e até stealth. Dito isso, foi uma experiência bastante ruim pra mim, que detesta jogos de puzzle.
No fim das contas o que salva esse jogo é somente sua atmosfera, de resto ele se propõe a fazer mais coisa do que pode, e se torna chato, lento e maçante, mesmo sendo um jogo curto.
Assassin's Creed
2007
Controls are not the best, seems like they had to adapt them for the consoles, and it shows. Activities are very repetitive, got very tired of the same voicelines over and over again for 9 districts that I had to clear. The crazy people that push you for no reason and undisguise you is a really questionable thing to add to the game, it didn't make the game more fun or interesting. Combat is not the most interesting, and forcing you to fight hordes of enemies is not what I expected from the game.
However, given its time and that it's the first game, all of that could be forgiven. The plot was interesting for me, and I liked the concept of regaining your abilities as you progress in the game.
However, given its time and that it's the first game, all of that could be forgiven. The plot was interesting for me, and I liked the concept of regaining your abilities as you progress in the game.
Dark Souls III
2016
This was my first souls game and I had quite a nice time. Only thing that bothers me about these games is how cryptic they can be sometimes. I never would have found the dragon city had my friend not told me to do that specific emote in that specific spot. How is anyone supposed to figure that out on their own?
This review contains spoilers
great game, but doesn't really feel like a resident evil. i got into RE games late & at first, i hated the over-the-shoulder cameras. but once i got into it.. i missed it terribly in this one. don't get me wrong, it was fantastically done & really well made (except mia's hair), but i feel like it got too close to every other horror game out there instead of a RE game. RE6 had the same kind of problem where it felt more like a "2013 game" instead of RE. but they brought back the scaries (literally had to stop playing it when it became 3 am at the beginning parts) & puzzles so i was happy.
ok now here's where i'm going on a little tangent. when you have to choose between giving the vaccine to mia or zoe.. who would you pick. you've given a shot to jack, he turned into a crystal, then dust, as have other enemies. the bits of lore given to you also tell you that if they're too far gone, they'll also turn into crystal & dust. now, you have the option to give a vaccine to your wife, who has tried to kill you multiple times, or the woman who has been calmly helping you on the phone. who do you think is "more far gone" ..? i literally gave the syringe to zoe & she turned into stone. don't give me the "but eveline wouldn't let that happen to mia she loves her" or something. you end up killing eveline anyways, why doesn't she take control of the mold in mia as punishment for killing her?!? it's a stinky plothole.. actually plot armor.. that you have give the vaccine to your wife for a good ending. by the way, giving your wife literally gives her the "strength" to not turn for about 5 more seconds & shoves you through a door.. give it to zoe & the door is locked? what in the butterfly effect does giving syringe = door in rusted ass ship unlocked.
anyways, great game, took a star off for whoever they tried to convince me was chris at the end.
ok now here's where i'm going on a little tangent. when you have to choose between giving the vaccine to mia or zoe.. who would you pick. you've given a shot to jack, he turned into a crystal, then dust, as have other enemies. the bits of lore given to you also tell you that if they're too far gone, they'll also turn into crystal & dust. now, you have the option to give a vaccine to your wife, who has tried to kill you multiple times, or the woman who has been calmly helping you on the phone. who do you think is "more far gone" ..? i literally gave the syringe to zoe & she turned into stone. don't give me the "but eveline wouldn't let that happen to mia she loves her" or something. you end up killing eveline anyways, why doesn't she take control of the mold in mia as punishment for killing her?!? it's a stinky plothole.. actually plot armor.. that you have give the vaccine to your wife for a good ending. by the way, giving your wife literally gives her the "strength" to not turn for about 5 more seconds & shoves you through a door.. give it to zoe & the door is locked? what in the butterfly effect does giving syringe = door in rusted ass ship unlocked.
anyways, great game, took a star off for whoever they tried to convince me was chris at the end.
Hellfire
1989
This one I could see being really good and I almost gave it a 7/10 but there are some issues. Also I will admit I only did one round so maybe I didn't beat it for real so yeah. I feel like the difficulty is all over the place especially with the bosses. I'm also not sure if I like how many times the enemy patterns are two formations forward, two formations back, now they come from both ways wow so innovative! If this has been happening in other shmups then I must not be paying attention well enough. At least this game has some cool weapon direction changing you can do and it's done pretty well.
One very odd thing about this game I learned online is apparently the music only works properly on earlier models of the console. It'll play slower if used on later models. I heard it was due to how they programmed it but I don't remember exactly why. Just thought that be a cool fun fact.
I don't know if it's really worth playing. I liked it more then Zero wing if it means anything. This has a version on the PC Engine I think so maybe I'll check that out sometime.
One very odd thing about this game I learned online is apparently the music only works properly on earlier models of the console. It'll play slower if used on later models. I heard it was due to how they programmed it but I don't remember exactly why. Just thought that be a cool fun fact.
I don't know if it's really worth playing. I liked it more then Zero wing if it means anything. This has a version on the PC Engine I think so maybe I'll check that out sometime.
9/10 experience, especially for its time. The camera angles and action made for an intense cinematic experience that kept me on edge and wanting to play. Another thing this entry does well is balancing the action and downtime. I never felt bogged down in the shootouts or when traversing as both were given just the right amount of screen time.
My only complaint is that the story wasn't anything special, there was no twist as things turn out just as you'd expect, the only good thing about the story was Laura's crewmates/friends and guessing who would die next.
Overall a good game that does video gaming right without trying to be special. ( I have never played the original so I can't compare.)
My only complaint is that the story wasn't anything special, there was no twist as things turn out just as you'd expect, the only good thing about the story was Laura's crewmates/friends and guessing who would die next.
Overall a good game that does video gaming right without trying to be special. ( I have never played the original so I can't compare.)
It REEKS of 7th gen era game design, but it's filled with just as much soul as the original. The fact we might never see the third game come to life is a tragic.