Kago
Easily the strongest game of the Ezio trilogy, I believe it has been made underrated due to everyone experiencing series fatigue at the time of release. This game is, in my opinion, clearly better than AC2 and Brotherhood.
Firstly Istanbul is awesome. Some great atmosphere and a city that is perfect for parkour. Combine this with a big ass hook blade, ziplines, lamps, and you've created what is honestly the best parkour in the series up to this point. Parkour in this game has the potential to be faster and more fluid than ever before, a stark contrast from brotherhoods boring reliance on horses for movement. Istanbul is the best city so far.
Onto the story, Altair is finally brought back and his story is actually continued in a meaningful way, every bit relating to Altair in this game is engaging to me. Ezio also gets a nice conclusion to his story, and I think he is at his most likable in this game. His goal in this game is also much more interesting than his previous two revenge stories. The side characters are also well written though a bit forgettable in the grand scheme of things, Yusuf should've gotten more to do.
In other game play aspects, most stuff stays the same. The assassin brotherhood mechanic is mostly the same but a little more involved, the renovation system is the same but a little less tedious, and combat is also mostly the same. I would've liked to see more advancement in these departments but it is what it is. The bomb crafting mechanic is pretty dumb and I almost entirely ignored it, as I did with most side content.
The side content is a lil more engaging than previous games but it is still completely skippable and not really worth the time sink.
Revelations is a very strong conclusion to an overall middling trilogy, I think it is clearly the high point of the trilogy. With finally bringing back ideology into the story and having satisfying character arcs, and the best map combined with the best parkour the series has seen up to this point, it's an easy recommendation.
If you wanna see my rankings as I go through the series, click here.
Firstly Istanbul is awesome. Some great atmosphere and a city that is perfect for parkour. Combine this with a big ass hook blade, ziplines, lamps, and you've created what is honestly the best parkour in the series up to this point. Parkour in this game has the potential to be faster and more fluid than ever before, a stark contrast from brotherhoods boring reliance on horses for movement. Istanbul is the best city so far.
Onto the story, Altair is finally brought back and his story is actually continued in a meaningful way, every bit relating to Altair in this game is engaging to me. Ezio also gets a nice conclusion to his story, and I think he is at his most likable in this game. His goal in this game is also much more interesting than his previous two revenge stories. The side characters are also well written though a bit forgettable in the grand scheme of things, Yusuf should've gotten more to do.
In other game play aspects, most stuff stays the same. The assassin brotherhood mechanic is mostly the same but a little more involved, the renovation system is the same but a little less tedious, and combat is also mostly the same. I would've liked to see more advancement in these departments but it is what it is. The bomb crafting mechanic is pretty dumb and I almost entirely ignored it, as I did with most side content.
The side content is a lil more engaging than previous games but it is still completely skippable and not really worth the time sink.
Revelations is a very strong conclusion to an overall middling trilogy, I think it is clearly the high point of the trilogy. With finally bringing back ideology into the story and having satisfying character arcs, and the best map combined with the best parkour the series has seen up to this point, it's an easy recommendation.
If you wanna see my rankings as I go through the series, click here.
Personally, I really do love this katamari thing
Katamari Damacy was, in my humblest opinion, a straight 5/5, shit rocked. How do you follow-up perfection? You can't reinvent the wheel, you can't vastly change the gameplay, all you can do is expand on the perfection, and that's what they did.
(Note: I chose this version over the original release because I wanted to see the Royal Reverie content, and there's enough quality of life improvements to justify it.)
Now, this game takes the formula of the original and puts it in various new lights, with unique and engaging scenarios that really shake things up for the player. Both games are excellent at continuously delighting me with new and fun ideas. I personally don't like some types of levels where you have to guess or only pick up specific things, I'm more of a roll up literally everything kinda guy, but the variety is what was needed, and it goes down nice and easy.
As for any downsides, I kinda wanted more maps to be honest? Or some maps are just not used to their full potential, like there's some really awesome levels you only see maybe twice. Give me more of that please? Also, I was kinda hoping the story was more expanded on, but really we just get some king lore, which is neat I guess.
One of the biggest detractors is the soundtrack. There are some good tunes in this game but man, the first games soundtrack absolutely SMOKES this one.
The ending also felt very abrupt, the final levels didn't really feel like you were getting close to the end like in the first game.
also on gameplay fronts, there's a lot of in-game loading and object pop-in, which can kinda break that flow state you get in. I'm obviously nit-picking here but y'know, I'm trying to explain why this is a slightly inferior sequel.
This game really just functions as an expansion to the first game rather than a full-on second game imo. Still though, we really do love Katamari, and this is an easy recommendation for anyone.
Katamari Damacy was, in my humblest opinion, a straight 5/5, shit rocked. How do you follow-up perfection? You can't reinvent the wheel, you can't vastly change the gameplay, all you can do is expand on the perfection, and that's what they did.
(Note: I chose this version over the original release because I wanted to see the Royal Reverie content, and there's enough quality of life improvements to justify it.)
Now, this game takes the formula of the original and puts it in various new lights, with unique and engaging scenarios that really shake things up for the player. Both games are excellent at continuously delighting me with new and fun ideas. I personally don't like some types of levels where you have to guess or only pick up specific things, I'm more of a roll up literally everything kinda guy, but the variety is what was needed, and it goes down nice and easy.
As for any downsides, I kinda wanted more maps to be honest? Or some maps are just not used to their full potential, like there's some really awesome levels you only see maybe twice. Give me more of that please? Also, I was kinda hoping the story was more expanded on, but really we just get some king lore, which is neat I guess.
One of the biggest detractors is the soundtrack. There are some good tunes in this game but man, the first games soundtrack absolutely SMOKES this one.
The ending also felt very abrupt, the final levels didn't really feel like you were getting close to the end like in the first game.
also on gameplay fronts, there's a lot of in-game loading and object pop-in, which can kinda break that flow state you get in. I'm obviously nit-picking here but y'know, I'm trying to explain why this is a slightly inferior sequel.
This game really just functions as an expansion to the first game rather than a full-on second game imo. Still though, we really do love Katamari, and this is an easy recommendation for anyone.
2003
All you people giving this a negative score are insane, if you don't think this is a good game you just don't like classic FPS games.
I'm amazed on how much they nailed on their first entry into the series. Granted Medal of Honor already set the framework for what to do, but Call of Duty just nails everything immediately. The American campaign feels like you're in a war movie, the British Campaign feels like Medal of Honor in the sense you're doing WW2 James Bond shit, but this time you're actually British, and the Russian Campaign is Immersive, captivating, and chaotic.
Gun play feels tight and satisfying, set-pieces all hit, missions are filled with variety, it's just a great time. Only lasting about 8 hours it doesn't overstay its welcome. There is some old game jank but it can be dealt with pretty easily tbh.
They got the WW2 formula down to a science. If you enjoy classic FPS games ignore these other reviews and give this game a shot.
I'm amazed on how much they nailed on their first entry into the series. Granted Medal of Honor already set the framework for what to do, but Call of Duty just nails everything immediately. The American campaign feels like you're in a war movie, the British Campaign feels like Medal of Honor in the sense you're doing WW2 James Bond shit, but this time you're actually British, and the Russian Campaign is Immersive, captivating, and chaotic.
Gun play feels tight and satisfying, set-pieces all hit, missions are filled with variety, it's just a great time. Only lasting about 8 hours it doesn't overstay its welcome. There is some old game jank but it can be dealt with pretty easily tbh.
They got the WW2 formula down to a science. If you enjoy classic FPS games ignore these other reviews and give this game a shot.
That was a grueling 8 hours, I'd rather watch the Phantom Menace 4 times straight than play this again.
There is actually a lot of fairly ambitious ideas here, such as massive levels, a huge number of unique NPCs that can dynamically be interacted with, and some neat albiet silly looking CGI recreations of Episode 1 scenes. Unfortunately, this game blows!
The combat is janky and unsatisfying, the camera angle is asinine, and the platforming is in the shit hall-of-fame. I believe the devs were aware of how horrible the combat was, as they try to supply you with health packs pretty often, even the FINAL BATTLE with Darth Maul gives you two FULL health packs, and I doubt I'd have been able to win without them.
A large majority of the levels tends to be filler, for example, in the grand finale, most of Obi-Wans play-time on the level is spent doing obnoxious platforming and killing generic battle droids, another level involves captain panaka and the fake queen just trying to get to the senate. It vaguely goes through Episode 1 but also attempts to waste as much time as possible.
The worst level for me personally was Mos Espa, which is actually a GIANT Tatooine town that is technically very impressive, but a nightmare to traverse. It took me legitimately an hour and a half on this one god damn level to complete, a true nightmare.
It's quite possibly the worst way to experience Episode 1, and that says a lot. It really is not worth playing for anyone and I personally regret actually going through and finishing this one, onto the next Phantom Menace game!
(See all my Star Wars Rankings and reviews on my profile here, the list is titled "Star Wars Ranked.")
There is actually a lot of fairly ambitious ideas here, such as massive levels, a huge number of unique NPCs that can dynamically be interacted with, and some neat albiet silly looking CGI recreations of Episode 1 scenes. Unfortunately, this game blows!
The combat is janky and unsatisfying, the camera angle is asinine, and the platforming is in the shit hall-of-fame. I believe the devs were aware of how horrible the combat was, as they try to supply you with health packs pretty often, even the FINAL BATTLE with Darth Maul gives you two FULL health packs, and I doubt I'd have been able to win without them.
A large majority of the levels tends to be filler, for example, in the grand finale, most of Obi-Wans play-time on the level is spent doing obnoxious platforming and killing generic battle droids, another level involves captain panaka and the fake queen just trying to get to the senate. It vaguely goes through Episode 1 but also attempts to waste as much time as possible.
The worst level for me personally was Mos Espa, which is actually a GIANT Tatooine town that is technically very impressive, but a nightmare to traverse. It took me legitimately an hour and a half on this one god damn level to complete, a true nightmare.
It's quite possibly the worst way to experience Episode 1, and that says a lot. It really is not worth playing for anyone and I personally regret actually going through and finishing this one, onto the next Phantom Menace game!
(See all my Star Wars Rankings and reviews on my profile here, the list is titled "Star Wars Ranked.")
2001
While a humungous leap from its predecessors, this one is still not worth playing.
This game has tremendous atmosphere, great radios albeit with more songs needed, and an actually comprehensible city. It is actually pretty fun to drive around in this game, with the good tunes and wacky car physics, though I could do without my car blowing up from 2 bumps. The problems lie within the actual missions, and the gameplay outside of driving.
The missions are structured similarly to the first two games, where you just go and do random jobs, though of course they become increasingly higher-profile and dangerous, but most notably they become annoyingly difficult. I am 95% certain a lot of these missions were never play-tested, with some being nearly impossible unless you already have guns or something going into the mission.
The flat-out bad mission design isn't helped by the lackluster story either, you get cut-scenes now but they tell hardly any story, and as a silent protagonist, it really feels like you're just doing missions for the fun of it, not because of a developing plot.
The shooting sucks, driving boats isn't fun, there's no mission checkpoints which can be quite frustrating, there's no overall map so if you don't remember where something is, tough shit. There's just too many things getting in the way of actually having fun, which is unfortunate, cause I was really loving this world, and really getting attuned to the driving. Hopefully Vice City improves.
This game has tremendous atmosphere, great radios albeit with more songs needed, and an actually comprehensible city. It is actually pretty fun to drive around in this game, with the good tunes and wacky car physics, though I could do without my car blowing up from 2 bumps. The problems lie within the actual missions, and the gameplay outside of driving.
The missions are structured similarly to the first two games, where you just go and do random jobs, though of course they become increasingly higher-profile and dangerous, but most notably they become annoyingly difficult. I am 95% certain a lot of these missions were never play-tested, with some being nearly impossible unless you already have guns or something going into the mission.
The flat-out bad mission design isn't helped by the lackluster story either, you get cut-scenes now but they tell hardly any story, and as a silent protagonist, it really feels like you're just doing missions for the fun of it, not because of a developing plot.
The shooting sucks, driving boats isn't fun, there's no mission checkpoints which can be quite frustrating, there's no overall map so if you don't remember where something is, tough shit. There's just too many things getting in the way of actually having fun, which is unfortunate, cause I was really loving this world, and really getting attuned to the driving. Hopefully Vice City improves.
2007
Chess is lowkey goated like just in it's own lane just a real W just on the sauce no lie. Much respect
If anyone tells you this is a good game they are a certified contrarian and should be avoided at all costs.
Alright, I've always said that DKC1 is better, but I was wrong. This game is on the same level or even better in some ways.
The music is insanely good just as 1, love it.
The platforming is pretty much the exact same as 1, except Dixie has some new abilities so that's pretty fun. Plus the ability to lift up and throw the second Kong is cool.
Level design is really good though towards the end there's some pretty bullshit enemy placements and some leap of faith jumps, but it's not enough to ruin anything. The only level in this game I'd genuinely say is bad is Toxic Tower, everything else is good. Seriously Toxic Tower just blows.
There's way more secrets in this one, but honestly I can't be bothered to find them all, neat to have them though.
The boss fights in this game are awesome and a major step up from the first game, really enjoyed all of them.
This game also has much more diverse biomes than DKC1, and has more animals to use, which is always welcome, though tbh I didn't like the spider.
This game is more of DKC1 yet it expands on it in many ways and makes its own thing, and while I still prefer DKC1, which one is better could go either way. Both masterpieces in my opinion. Play them!
The music is insanely good just as 1, love it.
The platforming is pretty much the exact same as 1, except Dixie has some new abilities so that's pretty fun. Plus the ability to lift up and throw the second Kong is cool.
Level design is really good though towards the end there's some pretty bullshit enemy placements and some leap of faith jumps, but it's not enough to ruin anything. The only level in this game I'd genuinely say is bad is Toxic Tower, everything else is good. Seriously Toxic Tower just blows.
There's way more secrets in this one, but honestly I can't be bothered to find them all, neat to have them though.
The boss fights in this game are awesome and a major step up from the first game, really enjoyed all of them.
This game also has much more diverse biomes than DKC1, and has more animals to use, which is always welcome, though tbh I didn't like the spider.
This game is more of DKC1 yet it expands on it in many ways and makes its own thing, and while I still prefer DKC1, which one is better could go either way. Both masterpieces in my opinion. Play them!
Unfortunately a bit of a downgrade here.
Doom II is of course just more Doom, but there's enough changes here to warrant a second game, I wouldn't really call this a "glorified expansion" though it is very samey. We've got new enemies, new weapons, a lot more verticality, and generally much larger levels. Despite these new additions, I think Doom 1 is a far superior game, and this mainly comes down to the level design.
Simply put, this game just doesn't have the same flow as 1. In 1 you're generally ripping through levels, just having a blast with the odd puzzle and level scouting that generally doesn't take that long. Doom II on the other hand is ridiculous with this stuff. There were like 5 or more puzzles in this game that were just straight up nonsense, the solution to progress on some of these is to just shoot at a random wall or something along those lines, it's just typical old game being cryptic stuff. It is seriously a flow killer to have to scour the map for 10-20 minutes, find literally no way to progress, then upon looking up a Youtube video the solution is something completely random that the player wouldn't naturally find. John Romero just had quite a bit too many annoying levels on this one for my liking.
As for enemies, they're a welcome edition, there is a MUCH larger enemy count though you the player are stronger, so it all evens out and feels like a fine next-step from Doom 1. Personally I would've liked to see more new weapons, the super shotgun doesn't provide enough variety from Doom 1.
I will also say I prefer the chapter setup from 1, it makes each portion of the game more memorable and stick out. Here all the levels are just put in continuously, sometimes broken up by a wall of text, it all just meshes together as samey. It's only towards the last 5 or so levels where the feeling of dread really ramps up that makes them stand out from the other levels.
I will also say, for a game that takes place on Earth, it definitely does not resemble anything human whatsoever lol.
Doom II is just a tad disappointing as I thought id learned from their level design issues in Wolfenstein 3D and mastered it in Doom 1, only to miss the mark again. With far worse level design, bloat, and not innovating on Doom much at all, I cannot see how anyone can say this is the superior game. Luckily the core Doom systems are still superb, and the aesthetics/music of the game is a joy, pretty much carrying the experience. I would recommend this game, but take your time with it and don't be afraid to look stuff up, chances are you'll need to at least once. Oh also, the Doom 1 soundtrack is far superior :)
Doom II is of course just more Doom, but there's enough changes here to warrant a second game, I wouldn't really call this a "glorified expansion" though it is very samey. We've got new enemies, new weapons, a lot more verticality, and generally much larger levels. Despite these new additions, I think Doom 1 is a far superior game, and this mainly comes down to the level design.
Simply put, this game just doesn't have the same flow as 1. In 1 you're generally ripping through levels, just having a blast with the odd puzzle and level scouting that generally doesn't take that long. Doom II on the other hand is ridiculous with this stuff. There were like 5 or more puzzles in this game that were just straight up nonsense, the solution to progress on some of these is to just shoot at a random wall or something along those lines, it's just typical old game being cryptic stuff. It is seriously a flow killer to have to scour the map for 10-20 minutes, find literally no way to progress, then upon looking up a Youtube video the solution is something completely random that the player wouldn't naturally find. John Romero just had quite a bit too many annoying levels on this one for my liking.
As for enemies, they're a welcome edition, there is a MUCH larger enemy count though you the player are stronger, so it all evens out and feels like a fine next-step from Doom 1. Personally I would've liked to see more new weapons, the super shotgun doesn't provide enough variety from Doom 1.
I will also say I prefer the chapter setup from 1, it makes each portion of the game more memorable and stick out. Here all the levels are just put in continuously, sometimes broken up by a wall of text, it all just meshes together as samey. It's only towards the last 5 or so levels where the feeling of dread really ramps up that makes them stand out from the other levels.
I will also say, for a game that takes place on Earth, it definitely does not resemble anything human whatsoever lol.
Doom II is just a tad disappointing as I thought id learned from their level design issues in Wolfenstein 3D and mastered it in Doom 1, only to miss the mark again. With far worse level design, bloat, and not innovating on Doom much at all, I cannot see how anyone can say this is the superior game. Luckily the core Doom systems are still superb, and the aesthetics/music of the game is a joy, pretty much carrying the experience. I would recommend this game, but take your time with it and don't be afraid to look stuff up, chances are you'll need to at least once. Oh also, the Doom 1 soundtrack is far superior :)
This games vibes are immaculate.
SO I don't really consider myself a superhero fan, much less a batman fan, but I was instantly digging this game and enjoyed it the whole way through. The aesthetics, the voice acting, the character interpretations, it's some of the best batman media I've ever seen. This game is also EXCELLENTLY paced and kept me engaged at all times, there are a handful of game-play systems and none of them overstay their welcome. If it weren't for a couple of issues which I'll list shortly, this game would be a bona-fide 5/5 masterpiece.
The things that keep this from being a 4.5 or a 5 for me are as follows: Combat is a little sloppy and I've been spoiled by games like sifu/sleeping dogs to let it pass, stealth feels very half-baked and honestly I think the game would just be better without it (this is the biggest flaw of the game), batman sometimes just takes up like 1/3rd of the screen and honestly not a fan of that, and finally, I thought the ending was anticlimactic, the final boss was a bit of a "meh" one.
All four of the issues I listed are REALLY not that big of a deal, this game offers a truly awesome experience in the batman universe, with some of the best versions of characters to date. Batman: Arkham Asylum is a legitimately enthralling time and I'd highly suggest it, even if you don't like superheroes.
SO I don't really consider myself a superhero fan, much less a batman fan, but I was instantly digging this game and enjoyed it the whole way through. The aesthetics, the voice acting, the character interpretations, it's some of the best batman media I've ever seen. This game is also EXCELLENTLY paced and kept me engaged at all times, there are a handful of game-play systems and none of them overstay their welcome. If it weren't for a couple of issues which I'll list shortly, this game would be a bona-fide 5/5 masterpiece.
The things that keep this from being a 4.5 or a 5 for me are as follows: Combat is a little sloppy and I've been spoiled by games like sifu/sleeping dogs to let it pass, stealth feels very half-baked and honestly I think the game would just be better without it (this is the biggest flaw of the game), batman sometimes just takes up like 1/3rd of the screen and honestly not a fan of that, and finally, I thought the ending was anticlimactic, the final boss was a bit of a "meh" one.
All four of the issues I listed are REALLY not that big of a deal, this game offers a truly awesome experience in the batman universe, with some of the best versions of characters to date. Batman: Arkham Asylum is a legitimately enthralling time and I'd highly suggest it, even if you don't like superheroes.
2017
I am a cuphead fr
This game is pretty damn excellent, it's got one of the greatest art styles you'll ever see in a video game and some very well-crafted boss-fights, I recommend this for anyone well-versed in 2D platformers.
Truthfully this stuff is not as hard as people say, sure there were some difficult and annoying bosses, but it's all manageable and easy to figure out. With pretty basic pattern recognition and some quickness you'll be able to beat it.
Now, the reason for this being a 4 star is that the run & gun levels are honestly just not that good! They lack flow, feel tedious, and aren't satisfying to beat the same way a boss fight is. Enemy placement is also random which is lame. Personally, I would've just had solely boss fights than these filler levels, cause they just aren't that fun!
As for the Boss fights, some got on my nerves but the only one that really annoyed me was the Dicehead guy right before you fight the Devil. It's like they tried to design the most time-wasting boss imaginable, just more repetitive than anything because you have to go through a gauntlet over and over and over, this repetition reminds me of some NES games, but it's simply not my bag baby yeah.
Abilities are also kinda off, I literally just stuck with the same handful of abilities I got at the beginning of the game because nothing else in the store was better, just unsure what the design idea was there.
Other than these three complaints though, this is a very very good platformer, with beautiful art, tight controls, and engaging fights, Cuphead is an easy recommendation, and hopefully so is the DLC, we shall see soon.
This game is pretty damn excellent, it's got one of the greatest art styles you'll ever see in a video game and some very well-crafted boss-fights, I recommend this for anyone well-versed in 2D platformers.
Truthfully this stuff is not as hard as people say, sure there were some difficult and annoying bosses, but it's all manageable and easy to figure out. With pretty basic pattern recognition and some quickness you'll be able to beat it.
Now, the reason for this being a 4 star is that the run & gun levels are honestly just not that good! They lack flow, feel tedious, and aren't satisfying to beat the same way a boss fight is. Enemy placement is also random which is lame. Personally, I would've just had solely boss fights than these filler levels, cause they just aren't that fun!
As for the Boss fights, some got on my nerves but the only one that really annoyed me was the Dicehead guy right before you fight the Devil. It's like they tried to design the most time-wasting boss imaginable, just more repetitive than anything because you have to go through a gauntlet over and over and over, this repetition reminds me of some NES games, but it's simply not my bag baby yeah.
Abilities are also kinda off, I literally just stuck with the same handful of abilities I got at the beginning of the game because nothing else in the store was better, just unsure what the design idea was there.
Other than these three complaints though, this is a very very good platformer, with beautiful art, tight controls, and engaging fights, Cuphead is an easy recommendation, and hopefully so is the DLC, we shall see soon.
2016
Now, I fully understand that in 2016 this was a big deal, but my god this game is such a snoozer.
This game was highly regarded and became a household VR title likely because it was one of the first that actually felt like a full game. It's got a full on campaign where stuff works and (big emphasis on kinda) kinda a story. BUT, with all the hype of VR gone, this game really doesn't offer much. In-fact, this game could have easily been made in flatscreen instead of VR, there's such little interactivity with the world.
Lemme run down what you do in this game: You use idk, maybe 4 weapons or so to shoot zombies, some zombies run, some zombies have helmets on, and some have some weird crystals on them or something. That's the entire collection of both weapons and enemies, the absolute lifeblood of an FPS. To progress in the levels, you must find a key or some piece to unlock the next part of the map, something that's been around since like Wolfenstein 3D, which isn't necessarily a bad gameplay loop, but it must be held up by everything around it. This game doesn't do that, there's very little set-pieces, extremely boring and linear map design, and as mentioned earlier, a lack of variety in weapons and enemies. In what is essentially an FPS, this game doesn't take the exploration approach of many boomer-shooters, nor does it take the linear-set-piece approach of modern shooters. It chooses to do the bare-minimum.
I got through like 7 levels that were basically all the exact same thing, though some were in darkness so yk, that's something. I legitimately got so bored I just wanted to stop playing, and here we are! Take away the VR aspect here, this game offers literally nothing that you can't find better anywhere else, with the VR, this game offers a middling shooting gallery.
I hate to rag on games so hard like this but honestly man, this is just such a whatever time. Oh also, the deadpool-esque protagonist is annoying.
This game was highly regarded and became a household VR title likely because it was one of the first that actually felt like a full game. It's got a full on campaign where stuff works and (big emphasis on kinda) kinda a story. BUT, with all the hype of VR gone, this game really doesn't offer much. In-fact, this game could have easily been made in flatscreen instead of VR, there's such little interactivity with the world.
Lemme run down what you do in this game: You use idk, maybe 4 weapons or so to shoot zombies, some zombies run, some zombies have helmets on, and some have some weird crystals on them or something. That's the entire collection of both weapons and enemies, the absolute lifeblood of an FPS. To progress in the levels, you must find a key or some piece to unlock the next part of the map, something that's been around since like Wolfenstein 3D, which isn't necessarily a bad gameplay loop, but it must be held up by everything around it. This game doesn't do that, there's very little set-pieces, extremely boring and linear map design, and as mentioned earlier, a lack of variety in weapons and enemies. In what is essentially an FPS, this game doesn't take the exploration approach of many boomer-shooters, nor does it take the linear-set-piece approach of modern shooters. It chooses to do the bare-minimum.
I got through like 7 levels that were basically all the exact same thing, though some were in darkness so yk, that's something. I legitimately got so bored I just wanted to stop playing, and here we are! Take away the VR aspect here, this game offers literally nothing that you can't find better anywhere else, with the VR, this game offers a middling shooting gallery.
I hate to rag on games so hard like this but honestly man, this is just such a whatever time. Oh also, the deadpool-esque protagonist is annoying.
I mean yeah, it's angry birds in VR. Idk what else they could've done, I think more music was needed. It just gets repetitive quickly, but again idk how they could fix that.
1992
Played using the ecwolf sourceport
So I saw Warhammer 40k: Boltgun and thought "that looks like a lot of fun, but I still haven't played many of the FPS classics, so I'll do that first" So I'm about to play Shadow Warrior then I'm like "man I haven't even played Doom II yet, I should do that first" So I'm about to play Doom II then I'm like "y'know I haven't even played Wolfenstein 3D, let's just go back to the beginning" and alas here we are.
It's gonna be hard to say anything that hasn't been said about this game, so I'm just gonna give my own thoughts, which have probably already been thought by everyone else.
While Wolfenstein 3D technically isn't even CLOSE to being the first FPS game, in my heart it's the first FPS game, Maze War, tank sims, clunky RPGs, all came first, but this was the first game that truly felt like the FPS genre we know today.
It's hard to be critically fair to this game considering I've played through Doom like five times, and Doom does everything this game does 10x better, but I tried my best. Wolfenstein 3D still brings a good amount of fun and excitement today, something about these early shooters are just endlessly satisfying.
Levels are only hallways or slightly open rooms, but maps are MASSIVE sprawling labyrinths that are headache inducing. You WILL get lost, you WILL backtrack, and honestly it is not that fun! Level design is the biggest issue with this game, as it's more frustrating and confusing than it is engaging. Doom later remedied these level design woes so I guess ID learned from their mistakes.
Gun-play is tight enough, fast, and satisfying. It still holds up to this day, even though enemies can shoot you through doors and sometimes through walls, but you can get around it.
I'll briefly touch on the soundtrack, it's honestly pretty weak. There's a couple good songs, with the best being the main menu theme, but the music here just isn't noteworthy. I find myself listening to the Doom soundtrack from time to time, but I have no desire to listen to this one.
The game also suffers from tedium and repetitiveness. This game felt WAY longer than Doom, and I don't know if that's just because you get lost in levels so often or if there really is just that much more content. I personally would've preferred a little less, as you are basically walking down the same exact corridors shooting the same 3-5 enemy types with the same three weapons (only two are viable) and each boss fight is very simple. It gets kinda boring after so many hours, but it really isn't too bad, I just wished they'd switch things up with the level design to make it more interesting, but the level design arguably gets WORSE as the game progresses, with chapter 6, the final chapter, featuring some of the most obnoxious levels.
I want to also say, I think it was a bad decision to have the last 3 missions being prequels. After I killed Hitler, it was hard for me to give a shit about the story anymore, and it just wasn't interesting. Why would you have the ultimate bad guy beaten halfway through your game? Why not save him for the end? (EDIT: I've been informed chapters 4-6 were actually expansion missions as well, my bad!)
Anyways, I'll try to wrap this up.
Wolfenstein 3D unfortunately feels very dated, where games like Doom and Quake feel timeless, but there is still a lot of fun and endless charm here. If you can suck it up and get through some of the quirks of this game, you'll be having a good time blasting Nazis. "The grandfather of the FPS genre" is worth checking out.
So I saw Warhammer 40k: Boltgun and thought "that looks like a lot of fun, but I still haven't played many of the FPS classics, so I'll do that first" So I'm about to play Shadow Warrior then I'm like "man I haven't even played Doom II yet, I should do that first" So I'm about to play Doom II then I'm like "y'know I haven't even played Wolfenstein 3D, let's just go back to the beginning" and alas here we are.
It's gonna be hard to say anything that hasn't been said about this game, so I'm just gonna give my own thoughts, which have probably already been thought by everyone else.
While Wolfenstein 3D technically isn't even CLOSE to being the first FPS game, in my heart it's the first FPS game, Maze War, tank sims, clunky RPGs, all came first, but this was the first game that truly felt like the FPS genre we know today.
It's hard to be critically fair to this game considering I've played through Doom like five times, and Doom does everything this game does 10x better, but I tried my best. Wolfenstein 3D still brings a good amount of fun and excitement today, something about these early shooters are just endlessly satisfying.
Levels are only hallways or slightly open rooms, but maps are MASSIVE sprawling labyrinths that are headache inducing. You WILL get lost, you WILL backtrack, and honestly it is not that fun! Level design is the biggest issue with this game, as it's more frustrating and confusing than it is engaging. Doom later remedied these level design woes so I guess ID learned from their mistakes.
Gun-play is tight enough, fast, and satisfying. It still holds up to this day, even though enemies can shoot you through doors and sometimes through walls, but you can get around it.
I'll briefly touch on the soundtrack, it's honestly pretty weak. There's a couple good songs, with the best being the main menu theme, but the music here just isn't noteworthy. I find myself listening to the Doom soundtrack from time to time, but I have no desire to listen to this one.
The game also suffers from tedium and repetitiveness. This game felt WAY longer than Doom, and I don't know if that's just because you get lost in levels so often or if there really is just that much more content. I personally would've preferred a little less, as you are basically walking down the same exact corridors shooting the same 3-5 enemy types with the same three weapons (only two are viable) and each boss fight is very simple. It gets kinda boring after so many hours, but it really isn't too bad, I just wished they'd switch things up with the level design to make it more interesting, but the level design arguably gets WORSE as the game progresses, with chapter 6, the final chapter, featuring some of the most obnoxious levels.
I want to also say, I think it was a bad decision to have the last 3 missions being prequels. After I killed Hitler, it was hard for me to give a shit about the story anymore, and it just wasn't interesting. Why would you have the ultimate bad guy beaten halfway through your game? Why not save him for the end? (EDIT: I've been informed chapters 4-6 were actually expansion missions as well, my bad!)
Anyways, I'll try to wrap this up.
Wolfenstein 3D unfortunately feels very dated, where games like Doom and Quake feel timeless, but there is still a lot of fun and endless charm here. If you can suck it up and get through some of the quirks of this game, you'll be having a good time blasting Nazis. "The grandfather of the FPS genre" is worth checking out.
1993
I originally gave this game a 4 out of 5, but after fully indulging myself into it by doing multiple playthroughs, watching hours and hours of review (check out ActionButton on youtube) and listening to the soundtrack for about a week straight, this game is genius.
You already know this is one of the most important games ever made, inspiring countless others to make FPS games, make WAD levels, make a level of adrenaline and speed not felt before. You cannot go over the history of video games without Doom.
Doom has such a level of speed that even backtracking is fun, I would go as far to say that this game has some of the best movement "feel" out of any FPS game. It just feels so good.
Every gun minus the pistol is legendary and needs to be experienced first hand to know how good it is. Once you shoot that shotgun everything just clicks in your brain and you're off.
The game is split into three chapters which basically go like this: Mars base, corrupted demonic Mars base, and Hell. All three of these chapters have exceptionally good and creative level design throughout. There are some levels that are really genius, especially considering how early the FPS genre was at this point. Carmack and Romero (the main developers) just nailed absolutely everything about the level design.
This is a top three video game soundtrack for me. Up there with Donkey Kong Country and Hotline Miami. Though they may have made some songs that are extremely similar to actual metal songs, I've never heard another soundtrack like Dooms. It sets the atmosphere perfectly for the game.
I could probably just keep talking about Doom forever so I'll end here, but trust me that this is one of the most important games ever. Every game made after Doom was influenced by Doom directly or indirectly.
I find it incredible that a game from 1993 made in a very new and somewhat primitive genre is far more fun than many games of today. I truly believe this game excels in every aspect.
You already know this is one of the most important games ever made, inspiring countless others to make FPS games, make WAD levels, make a level of adrenaline and speed not felt before. You cannot go over the history of video games without Doom.
Doom has such a level of speed that even backtracking is fun, I would go as far to say that this game has some of the best movement "feel" out of any FPS game. It just feels so good.
Every gun minus the pistol is legendary and needs to be experienced first hand to know how good it is. Once you shoot that shotgun everything just clicks in your brain and you're off.
The game is split into three chapters which basically go like this: Mars base, corrupted demonic Mars base, and Hell. All three of these chapters have exceptionally good and creative level design throughout. There are some levels that are really genius, especially considering how early the FPS genre was at this point. Carmack and Romero (the main developers) just nailed absolutely everything about the level design.
This is a top three video game soundtrack for me. Up there with Donkey Kong Country and Hotline Miami. Though they may have made some songs that are extremely similar to actual metal songs, I've never heard another soundtrack like Dooms. It sets the atmosphere perfectly for the game.
I could probably just keep talking about Doom forever so I'll end here, but trust me that this is one of the most important games ever. Every game made after Doom was influenced by Doom directly or indirectly.
I find it incredible that a game from 1993 made in a very new and somewhat primitive genre is far more fun than many games of today. I truly believe this game excels in every aspect.