Kago
2023
One of the best in it's genre
Many tycoon games are quite samey, repetitive, and lacking in QoL features. While Let's school isn't a complete exception to this, it stands above many of its peers.
Firstly, this game nails its themes. There is a clear passion behind the dev-team that can be felt, as anything school-related you could think of is here. You can really make your school feel lived-in and genuine. All of the things you can add to your school keep it's game-play loops interesting, as I looked forward to adding the next expansions to my school. I didn't feel any burn-out until about 15 hours in, which is huge for me.
After so many hours and upon perfecting all of the games mechanics, it can get dull and repetitive, but that's really just the end-game, and this is a thing with every tycoon game IMO. Still, there is so much content that has been lovingly crafted and there are many very sound game-play systems that make this game is a no -brainer.
If you're into management tycoon games, I'd highly recommend Let's School.
Many tycoon games are quite samey, repetitive, and lacking in QoL features. While Let's school isn't a complete exception to this, it stands above many of its peers.
Firstly, this game nails its themes. There is a clear passion behind the dev-team that can be felt, as anything school-related you could think of is here. You can really make your school feel lived-in and genuine. All of the things you can add to your school keep it's game-play loops interesting, as I looked forward to adding the next expansions to my school. I didn't feel any burn-out until about 15 hours in, which is huge for me.
After so many hours and upon perfecting all of the games mechanics, it can get dull and repetitive, but that's really just the end-game, and this is a thing with every tycoon game IMO. Still, there is so much content that has been lovingly crafted and there are many very sound game-play systems that make this game is a no -brainer.
If you're into management tycoon games, I'd highly recommend Let's School.
2022
Giving this a super low rating because it's basically pay to win.
Such a shame too cause the game itself is actually pretty fun, I really like everything about it and would love to really play it more but the problem is the game is terribly unbalanced. Unbalanced how? Well, the locked mechs or characters or whatever are really fucking OP, so basically, if you spend money and buy a better mech you'll be able to win. Straight up game killer.
Also fuck off with the battle passes man I hate this trend.
Such a shame too cause the game itself is actually pretty fun, I really like everything about it and would love to really play it more but the problem is the game is terribly unbalanced. Unbalanced how? Well, the locked mechs or characters or whatever are really fucking OP, so basically, if you spend money and buy a better mech you'll be able to win. Straight up game killer.
Also fuck off with the battle passes man I hate this trend.
More like DroidDon'tWorks am I right guys.
This game is kinda broken and when it does work it isn't fun, just a boring chore. Unfortunate cause it's a very creative idea.
(See all my Star Wars Rankings and reviews on my profile here, the list is titled "Star Wars Ranked.")
This game is kinda broken and when it does work it isn't fun, just a boring chore. Unfortunate cause it's a very creative idea.
(See all my Star Wars Rankings and reviews on my profile here, the list is titled "Star Wars Ranked.")
I dub the DLC with a 4, same as base game, but I was teetering on a 3 or 3.5. The beautiful music, character designs, and animations carry this DLC.
So you now play as Ms Chalice, and there are just a handful of levels, luckily all boss fights and no filler, which is nice to see. I am honestly not a fan of how Ms Chalice controls. The double jump feels bad, just flat out, this is because the Xbox controller buttons are too mushy for the precision the double jump demands at times, plus if you press it too fast you do a really small double jump which'll get you hit, and this is all made even more difficult when you are already holding down the shoot button. I think they should've stuck with one jump.
The bosses are generally more difficult than base game, to compensate you're given 1 more hit point, which is fine I guess, I'm unsure on how I feel about this balancing. Out of all the bosses, the one with the bugs and the anteater was the hardest, my thumbs were aching from it. I guess this was Because I was using the wrong weapon, after I switched weapons I beat it first try. Every other boss was quite easy, especially the final boss, similar to how the devil is overly-easy in the base game. There are also quite a few projectiles in these fights that are very difficult to see at times, as they blend into the background and are very small, just a small annoyance.
Overall, it's more Cuphead, I think it does some things worse than the base game but wanting to see what awesome art comes next is good enough.
So you now play as Ms Chalice, and there are just a handful of levels, luckily all boss fights and no filler, which is nice to see. I am honestly not a fan of how Ms Chalice controls. The double jump feels bad, just flat out, this is because the Xbox controller buttons are too mushy for the precision the double jump demands at times, plus if you press it too fast you do a really small double jump which'll get you hit, and this is all made even more difficult when you are already holding down the shoot button. I think they should've stuck with one jump.
The bosses are generally more difficult than base game, to compensate you're given 1 more hit point, which is fine I guess, I'm unsure on how I feel about this balancing. Out of all the bosses, the one with the bugs and the anteater was the hardest, my thumbs were aching from it. I guess this was Because I was using the wrong weapon, after I switched weapons I beat it first try. Every other boss was quite easy, especially the final boss, similar to how the devil is overly-easy in the base game. There are also quite a few projectiles in these fights that are very difficult to see at times, as they blend into the background and are very small, just a small annoyance.
Overall, it's more Cuphead, I think it does some things worse than the base game but wanting to see what awesome art comes next is good enough.
Speaking mainly on the single player campaign, this is a really good game, though it felt short.
While not as good as Cod4 (the best in the series) MW2 ups the ante and has absolutely wild set pieces and missions. It has a lot of memorable moments and is just a blast.
Though I will say, it is not as varied in game play as Cod4 is, it's a lot more consistent with just chaotic gunfights throughout the whole thing. But that's fine, this game makes you feel like you're at worlds end, it wouldn't be fitting to do different segments like Cod4 does.
This one just felt really fast, like much faster than Cod4 or WaW, this one blew by, which is fine as everything here is really good.
Definitely worth playing.
While not as good as Cod4 (the best in the series) MW2 ups the ante and has absolutely wild set pieces and missions. It has a lot of memorable moments and is just a blast.
Though I will say, it is not as varied in game play as Cod4 is, it's a lot more consistent with just chaotic gunfights throughout the whole thing. But that's fine, this game makes you feel like you're at worlds end, it wouldn't be fitting to do different segments like Cod4 does.
This one just felt really fast, like much faster than Cod4 or WaW, this one blew by, which is fine as everything here is really good.
Definitely worth playing.
1994
Idk what play-through this would even be, maybe the fourth?
Game is still a classic, 5/5er. Beat it all in one sitting on a thursday afternoon.
the graphics and aesthetics are timeless and always pleasing on the eyes. The music is an all time great soundtrack, David Wise is a genius.
Platforming feels tight and precise, when you mess up it's your fault. There are some cheap enemy placements that can be trial and error on the second half of the game, but still, it's mostly all skill issues.
Every level feels unique, with many having their own gimmick, levels rarely overstay their welcome, with excellent pacing to never feel like a drag.
Game is just a masterpiece man, play it.
Game is still a classic, 5/5er. Beat it all in one sitting on a thursday afternoon.
the graphics and aesthetics are timeless and always pleasing on the eyes. The music is an all time great soundtrack, David Wise is a genius.
Platforming feels tight and precise, when you mess up it's your fault. There are some cheap enemy placements that can be trial and error on the second half of the game, but still, it's mostly all skill issues.
Every level feels unique, with many having their own gimmick, levels rarely overstay their welcome, with excellent pacing to never feel like a drag.
Game is just a masterpiece man, play it.
2005
I used to hold this game as my favorite Call of Duty in the series, then I got more experience with the series and decided COD4 was the best one. Now, after playing 1 I revisit 2 after not playing it for years and years.
To be honest, I am disappointed, as my memory hailed this a straight up masterpiece. COD 2 is not a masterpiece lol. I actually prefer 1 as it features much more clever and interesting levels, despite them being confined and small-scale. This will be a campaign focused review, though I recall the multiplayer was really fun.
So, I see a lot of people saying this is a fully realized version of 1, but I heavily disagree. This game simply operates and feels far different. Where 1 felt like Medal of Honor but you're a regular soldier, 2 feels like its own thing. It is pure war, the way this games sandbox is able to create intense firefights is something to behold, as the sound design and graphics are on point. It really feels like you are deep in the shit, truly in a grueling war where every inch of ground must be fought over. The best way I could describe gunfights is "visceral." While this design of "fighting for every inch" has its own place, I feel like something was lost in this change.
Levels are much more open ended and expansive as to allow these chaotic firefights to function, but from what I experienced level design is much more sloppy and less meticulous compared to 1. Enemy Ai also seemingly can shoot you from any range, so as these levels are larger, it just puts the player at a disadvantage.
Speaking on Enemy Ai, they're OK at best. I played this game on hardened difficulty, and they're just ridiculous on this. Nary missing a shot, they will shoot you almost immediately upon you entering their line of sight, they know where you are about 80% of the time, and are all equipped with a literal infinite amount of grenades, that they will spam throw at you nonstop. Seriously what is up with the grenade spam, it's absurd. Enemies are also able to tank many hits, so you have to shoot everyone quite a bit to put them down for good, which can feel unsatisfying at times.
Friendly Ai is bad. They will constantly get in your way, making it difficult to shoot at enemies, or difficult to move as you desire. They're able to kill enemies, but RARELY ever do it. This is unfortunately notable when enemies will literally stand right next to your friendlies, ignore them and shoot at you, while the friendly also ignores the enemy. Countless times I was shot in the back or side despite my teammates being right there.
This game also lacks a bit of the variety that I believe is so crucial to the COD campaigns. Almost the entire campaign consist of attacking/clearing areas with gun, defending areas with gun, and pressing f to place a bomb on things. The tank levels are the only source of variety I can honestly think of, lmk if I'm forgetting something.
There is, however, great variety in the looks of the game. Going from the snowbound lands of the eastern front, to the rocky lands of Africa, and the familiar green fields of Normandy. These locations all feel uniquely different, and each mission has their own aesthetics to them. This is one of the main highlights in the game. Despite almost all of the missions playing the same, they look vastly different and are varied in concept.
I still think this is a classic and should be played, it's a good game no doubt, I'm just being very harsh on it. I believe it's just too repetitive at times and is lacking in clever level ideas, but it is still a great WW2 shooter and is worth playing.
To be honest, I am disappointed, as my memory hailed this a straight up masterpiece. COD 2 is not a masterpiece lol. I actually prefer 1 as it features much more clever and interesting levels, despite them being confined and small-scale. This will be a campaign focused review, though I recall the multiplayer was really fun.
So, I see a lot of people saying this is a fully realized version of 1, but I heavily disagree. This game simply operates and feels far different. Where 1 felt like Medal of Honor but you're a regular soldier, 2 feels like its own thing. It is pure war, the way this games sandbox is able to create intense firefights is something to behold, as the sound design and graphics are on point. It really feels like you are deep in the shit, truly in a grueling war where every inch of ground must be fought over. The best way I could describe gunfights is "visceral." While this design of "fighting for every inch" has its own place, I feel like something was lost in this change.
Levels are much more open ended and expansive as to allow these chaotic firefights to function, but from what I experienced level design is much more sloppy and less meticulous compared to 1. Enemy Ai also seemingly can shoot you from any range, so as these levels are larger, it just puts the player at a disadvantage.
Speaking on Enemy Ai, they're OK at best. I played this game on hardened difficulty, and they're just ridiculous on this. Nary missing a shot, they will shoot you almost immediately upon you entering their line of sight, they know where you are about 80% of the time, and are all equipped with a literal infinite amount of grenades, that they will spam throw at you nonstop. Seriously what is up with the grenade spam, it's absurd. Enemies are also able to tank many hits, so you have to shoot everyone quite a bit to put them down for good, which can feel unsatisfying at times.
Friendly Ai is bad. They will constantly get in your way, making it difficult to shoot at enemies, or difficult to move as you desire. They're able to kill enemies, but RARELY ever do it. This is unfortunately notable when enemies will literally stand right next to your friendlies, ignore them and shoot at you, while the friendly also ignores the enemy. Countless times I was shot in the back or side despite my teammates being right there.
This game also lacks a bit of the variety that I believe is so crucial to the COD campaigns. Almost the entire campaign consist of attacking/clearing areas with gun, defending areas with gun, and pressing f to place a bomb on things. The tank levels are the only source of variety I can honestly think of, lmk if I'm forgetting something.
There is, however, great variety in the looks of the game. Going from the snowbound lands of the eastern front, to the rocky lands of Africa, and the familiar green fields of Normandy. These locations all feel uniquely different, and each mission has their own aesthetics to them. This is one of the main highlights in the game. Despite almost all of the missions playing the same, they look vastly different and are varied in concept.
I still think this is a classic and should be played, it's a good game no doubt, I'm just being very harsh on it. I believe it's just too repetitive at times and is lacking in clever level ideas, but it is still a great WW2 shooter and is worth playing.
This is Rockstars magnum opus.
It has one of the most detailed and filled open worlds, likely ever. Like this may well be the greatest open world we've seen.
And this is one of the most gripping and engaging stories ever told through a video game. It has some of the most fleshed out characters I've ever seen. A truly heart wrenching western tale.
The soundtrack is fucking masterful, when you climb your way up the mountain as American venom plays, it is pure dopamine.
Arthur Morgan is one of the best protagonists in video game history, definitely Rockstars best protagonist ever.
Hands down the best open world game I've ever played.
It has one of the most detailed and filled open worlds, likely ever. Like this may well be the greatest open world we've seen.
And this is one of the most gripping and engaging stories ever told through a video game. It has some of the most fleshed out characters I've ever seen. A truly heart wrenching western tale.
The soundtrack is fucking masterful, when you climb your way up the mountain as American venom plays, it is pure dopamine.
Arthur Morgan is one of the best protagonists in video game history, definitely Rockstars best protagonist ever.
Hands down the best open world game I've ever played.
2001
More like Max Plain am I right fellas XD
In all seriousness Max Payne is still a good time, but I don't know if it wholly holds up.
This game took me about 9-10 hours to complete, the gun-play is fairly basic and the killer feature is bullet-time/diving. Unfortunately diving kinda sucks as it leaves you extremely vulnerable for large amounts of time, so general gameplay involves constantly pressing bullet-time, headshotting bad guy, repeat. It's not the worst thing in the world I just feel like there's so much more to do with these systems, as future games later do. I will also add, some enemies feel overly spongy, like why do I have to blast a guy with a shotgun point-blank more than 3 times to kill him?
Max Payne is also hindered by constantly cheap gotcha moments where enemies will catch you off guard by popping around a corner, behind you, some awkward angle, or just randomly throwing a grenade that blows up almost instantly, all combined with a very quick time-to-die, you are certain to be dying and loading non-stop. Levels can also be quite long so you'll honestly just be forced into constantly save-scumming, lest you wanna play the same sections over and over until you remember all the traps that lay ahead. It's honestly not the funnest loop, I felt really forced into save-scumming even when I didn't want to, it's like levels were built with it in mind, as there is a cheap trap you'd have no way of reacting to first try every minute or so. In a game where I want to be a badass flying around smoking dudes I am forced to play it extremely tactical and slow, which is a bummer. This isn't completely true in the first half of the game but it is definitely true in the second.
The other chunk of gameplay is the platforming, which is frankly clunky and just not that fun either. It feels very slippery, which is unfortunate because everything surrounding the platforming sections is incredible atmosphere.
Though I'm complaining about gameplay woes, gunfights can still be fun and intense enough, moving through levels is a good feeling, there's a cathartic vibe to it where you just begin to get into the zone of it all and just keep pushing forward, which is a nice natural feeling that I always enjoy in games.
The story however is excellent and kinda carries. Pretty awesome voice work, beautiful visuals, and a rich noir style. The story and characters themselves have a sense of self-awareness yet play it overly-serious, it's some perfect shlock and you can just tell they had a fun time making this.
A heavily influential title that despite having some poorly executed gameplay ideas still manages to be an engaging time with a very fun story.
In all seriousness Max Payne is still a good time, but I don't know if it wholly holds up.
This game took me about 9-10 hours to complete, the gun-play is fairly basic and the killer feature is bullet-time/diving. Unfortunately diving kinda sucks as it leaves you extremely vulnerable for large amounts of time, so general gameplay involves constantly pressing bullet-time, headshotting bad guy, repeat. It's not the worst thing in the world I just feel like there's so much more to do with these systems, as future games later do. I will also add, some enemies feel overly spongy, like why do I have to blast a guy with a shotgun point-blank more than 3 times to kill him?
Max Payne is also hindered by constantly cheap gotcha moments where enemies will catch you off guard by popping around a corner, behind you, some awkward angle, or just randomly throwing a grenade that blows up almost instantly, all combined with a very quick time-to-die, you are certain to be dying and loading non-stop. Levels can also be quite long so you'll honestly just be forced into constantly save-scumming, lest you wanna play the same sections over and over until you remember all the traps that lay ahead. It's honestly not the funnest loop, I felt really forced into save-scumming even when I didn't want to, it's like levels were built with it in mind, as there is a cheap trap you'd have no way of reacting to first try every minute or so. In a game where I want to be a badass flying around smoking dudes I am forced to play it extremely tactical and slow, which is a bummer. This isn't completely true in the first half of the game but it is definitely true in the second.
The other chunk of gameplay is the platforming, which is frankly clunky and just not that fun either. It feels very slippery, which is unfortunate because everything surrounding the platforming sections is incredible atmosphere.
Though I'm complaining about gameplay woes, gunfights can still be fun and intense enough, moving through levels is a good feeling, there's a cathartic vibe to it where you just begin to get into the zone of it all and just keep pushing forward, which is a nice natural feeling that I always enjoy in games.
The story however is excellent and kinda carries. Pretty awesome voice work, beautiful visuals, and a rich noir style. The story and characters themselves have a sense of self-awareness yet play it overly-serious, it's some perfect shlock and you can just tell they had a fun time making this.
A heavily influential title that despite having some poorly executed gameplay ideas still manages to be an engaging time with a very fun story.
2004
Call of Duty Vietnam on a budget
I actually am in this games corner. I love Vietnam and the Vietnam War setting, and I wish there were more games like this. The characters are fun enough and the gun play is actually quite satisfying, but there's too many flaws to ignore.
I want to get it out of the way right now that I did not finish this game. I played about 5 hours of this game, then didn't play for about two weeks. Upon returning, there is an unbearable stuttering in the game that I can't fix. This along with fatigue of doing the exact same thing over and over has led me to call it quits and end the game.
SO, stuttering, launch issues, and screen-tear galore, likely cause this is a 2004 game running on Windows 10, but it must be noted.
The game itself is actually not so bad, it's fairly competent.
For 2004, this game is beautiful. Really great looking game, though its scale is quite small. Despite being in a large jungle, you are basically walking down a hallway the entire game, it's just a very well disguised hallway. Missions involve shooting people, shooting people, and shooting people. You will clear villages, you will clear bunkers, you will clear zones, that's basically it. There are some fun vehicle sections that bring much needed variety, but they too are just shooting people endlessly.
The story isn't anything of note. There's not really any interesting plots though the game puts you in interesting situations often.
Honestly I may have finished this game if it weren't for all the technical problems, but without that this game is simply a 2004 FPS game that has average mechanics, an average story, and is set in the Vietnam war, and that's really all there is to it.
I actually am in this games corner. I love Vietnam and the Vietnam War setting, and I wish there were more games like this. The characters are fun enough and the gun play is actually quite satisfying, but there's too many flaws to ignore.
I want to get it out of the way right now that I did not finish this game. I played about 5 hours of this game, then didn't play for about two weeks. Upon returning, there is an unbearable stuttering in the game that I can't fix. This along with fatigue of doing the exact same thing over and over has led me to call it quits and end the game.
SO, stuttering, launch issues, and screen-tear galore, likely cause this is a 2004 game running on Windows 10, but it must be noted.
The game itself is actually not so bad, it's fairly competent.
For 2004, this game is beautiful. Really great looking game, though its scale is quite small. Despite being in a large jungle, you are basically walking down a hallway the entire game, it's just a very well disguised hallway. Missions involve shooting people, shooting people, and shooting people. You will clear villages, you will clear bunkers, you will clear zones, that's basically it. There are some fun vehicle sections that bring much needed variety, but they too are just shooting people endlessly.
The story isn't anything of note. There's not really any interesting plots though the game puts you in interesting situations often.
Honestly I may have finished this game if it weren't for all the technical problems, but without that this game is simply a 2004 FPS game that has average mechanics, an average story, and is set in the Vietnam war, and that's really all there is to it.
I have about 500 hours on this one on Steam. Currently realizing I've never written a review or talked about it in my nearly 6 years of playing it.
This is THE best "realistic shooter" ever. And it is because it hits that perfect amount of arcadey fun and grounded realism.
The gunplay is pure sex, seriously some of the most satisfying shit ever. To see a man running like 100 meters away and just dinking that fucker in the head is pure unfiltered dopamine.
The classes, the customization, the voice acting, the maps, the teamplay, the different factions, the VOIP, the community mods. It is simply just the best.
Seriously, the maps are some of my favorite ever. I recently took a trip to Vietnam, and I was amazed at how some maps were modeled 1x1 with real life.
Insurgency, Squad, Hell Let Loose, etc. does not even come CLOSE to the amount of fun this game brings. Those games focus too hard on realism or too hard on arcadey nonsense, Rising Storm 2 is the perfect medium.
As it is 5-6 years old, player counts are lowering, if you haven't played this game yet, times running out and you'll miss out.
Through my 500 something hours I've gotten my fill and I'm satisfied, though I always play some matches here and there, as nothing scratches that itch quite like Rising Storm 2: Vietnam.
This is THE best "realistic shooter" ever. And it is because it hits that perfect amount of arcadey fun and grounded realism.
The gunplay is pure sex, seriously some of the most satisfying shit ever. To see a man running like 100 meters away and just dinking that fucker in the head is pure unfiltered dopamine.
The classes, the customization, the voice acting, the maps, the teamplay, the different factions, the VOIP, the community mods. It is simply just the best.
Seriously, the maps are some of my favorite ever. I recently took a trip to Vietnam, and I was amazed at how some maps were modeled 1x1 with real life.
Insurgency, Squad, Hell Let Loose, etc. does not even come CLOSE to the amount of fun this game brings. Those games focus too hard on realism or too hard on arcadey nonsense, Rising Storm 2 is the perfect medium.
As it is 5-6 years old, player counts are lowering, if you haven't played this game yet, times running out and you'll miss out.
Through my 500 something hours I've gotten my fill and I'm satisfied, though I always play some matches here and there, as nothing scratches that itch quite like Rising Storm 2: Vietnam.
I deeply regret wasting my time and actually fully playing through this game. It does not have a SINGULAR good thing going for it, there is nothing redeemable about this game, it is pure, utter garbage.
The platforming is garbage, extremely imprecise, controls horribly, it is actually so frustrating. This platforming makes up the majority of the game, and it's just the worst. The game punishes you for going fast, so you have to slowly finagle around, somehow it manages to be frustrating and boring at the same time.
Combat is also terrible, you mind numbingly mash one button over and over the entire game, only on some enemies where you do the exact same QTE sequence on them, such as the main boss, which you fight like 4 or 5 times, and every time it is the exact same. Combat is so fucking boring in this game.
I decided to play this game mainly cause of the story, I really liked Altair in the first game and figured I wanted more. Unfortunately this game doesn't provide that. I don't know if the creators of this game never played AC1, or just didn't care, but Altair does not act like Altair AT ALL in this game, which is just jarring. He quips like a marvel character or something, and all the enemies talk like batman goons. This and the ugly graphics create a tone that doesn't fit AC at all.
This story is also completely irrelevant to anything else in the entire franchise, and you are missing out on nothing if you skip it. It is a prequel that is completely and utterly meaningless. To make it even worse, it ends on a fucking cliffhanger! They had the audacity to end this on a cliffhanger, just absurd.
Honest to God this may be one of, if not the worst games I've played from the 2000s. It is irredeemably worthless and a waste of time. Stay away at all cost.
If you wanna see my rankings as I go through the series, click here.
The platforming is garbage, extremely imprecise, controls horribly, it is actually so frustrating. This platforming makes up the majority of the game, and it's just the worst. The game punishes you for going fast, so you have to slowly finagle around, somehow it manages to be frustrating and boring at the same time.
Combat is also terrible, you mind numbingly mash one button over and over the entire game, only on some enemies where you do the exact same QTE sequence on them, such as the main boss, which you fight like 4 or 5 times, and every time it is the exact same. Combat is so fucking boring in this game.
I decided to play this game mainly cause of the story, I really liked Altair in the first game and figured I wanted more. Unfortunately this game doesn't provide that. I don't know if the creators of this game never played AC1, or just didn't care, but Altair does not act like Altair AT ALL in this game, which is just jarring. He quips like a marvel character or something, and all the enemies talk like batman goons. This and the ugly graphics create a tone that doesn't fit AC at all.
This story is also completely irrelevant to anything else in the entire franchise, and you are missing out on nothing if you skip it. It is a prequel that is completely and utterly meaningless. To make it even worse, it ends on a fucking cliffhanger! They had the audacity to end this on a cliffhanger, just absurd.
Honest to God this may be one of, if not the worst games I've played from the 2000s. It is irredeemably worthless and a waste of time. Stay away at all cost.
If you wanna see my rankings as I go through the series, click here.
Bomber Crew in Africa!
So, I thought the original Bomber Crew was quite fun but repetitive, a year or so later I decide to play its expansion campaign, the USAAF, and it's just more of the same, thus I dropped it halfway through the campaign.
Switching from Europe to Africa, it's a decent pallet swap, but nothing more. The real game changer is this new plane. It's layout is different and it is far larger, so it is accompanied by a larger crew. There also seems to be a much larger focus on bombing naval targets than in the base game, which is a negative in my opinion.
The new plane is pretty sick, I made it all shiny metal and put "BADASS" on the side in bright red, but it simply doesn't change up gameplay from the base game enough. It just feels like I'm playing the exact same thing again, just a slightly alternative version, and the base game already takes a very long time to complete!
You must also grind upgrades for your ship and crew again, which would be fine but fucking hell it is such a nasty grind. This grind is especially amplified by having more crew members, it's the EXACT same grind from the base game, but slightly longer. I'd reckon a good expansion would've either shrunken the grind considerably or change up the upgrades.
The missions is what really kicked me off this. There's a lot of missions where you must bomb moving boats, which is a major pain in the ass because your pilot doesn't line up with the boats in the way that you'd need to actually land your shot, so the resulting effect is just swarming around a boat forever and just hoping your pilot will actually line you up. It is simply frustrating, they should have focused on other aspects of the base game more.
All in all, this is just a disappointing alternative version of the base game. You get a nice color swap, a larger plane, a longer grind, and more frustrating missions. Not worth checking out unless you absolutely loved the base game.
So, I thought the original Bomber Crew was quite fun but repetitive, a year or so later I decide to play its expansion campaign, the USAAF, and it's just more of the same, thus I dropped it halfway through the campaign.
Switching from Europe to Africa, it's a decent pallet swap, but nothing more. The real game changer is this new plane. It's layout is different and it is far larger, so it is accompanied by a larger crew. There also seems to be a much larger focus on bombing naval targets than in the base game, which is a negative in my opinion.
The new plane is pretty sick, I made it all shiny metal and put "BADASS" on the side in bright red, but it simply doesn't change up gameplay from the base game enough. It just feels like I'm playing the exact same thing again, just a slightly alternative version, and the base game already takes a very long time to complete!
You must also grind upgrades for your ship and crew again, which would be fine but fucking hell it is such a nasty grind. This grind is especially amplified by having more crew members, it's the EXACT same grind from the base game, but slightly longer. I'd reckon a good expansion would've either shrunken the grind considerably or change up the upgrades.
The missions is what really kicked me off this. There's a lot of missions where you must bomb moving boats, which is a major pain in the ass because your pilot doesn't line up with the boats in the way that you'd need to actually land your shot, so the resulting effect is just swarming around a boat forever and just hoping your pilot will actually line you up. It is simply frustrating, they should have focused on other aspects of the base game more.
All in all, this is just a disappointing alternative version of the base game. You get a nice color swap, a larger plane, a longer grind, and more frustrating missions. Not worth checking out unless you absolutely loved the base game.
2018
Platinumed between PS4 and PS5.
This game suffers from the same problem Rift Apart has but much more extreme, It's simply just too dull to keep me engaged. This game is so insanely polished, everything looks beautiful and everything feels tight and fluid. The game includes every reference and suit and whatever, it's a fans dream in that aspect.
You've heard everyone tell you about why this game is so great, and I agree with a handful of their praises, so since you already know why this game is good, this review is just gonna be about my issues with this game, and a lot of Insomniacs games. They're just too dull and repetitive.
First off, the web-swinging, It's great and all, but it's just boring honestly, you know why? There is zero consequences for messing up. No fall damage, no collision damage, nothing. There's hardly any physics at play, just the handful of clean animations. It's simply just not that fun to swing around if I'm being honest, there's no thrill when there's no consequences, it makes me feel disconnected from the world.
The combat is stupidly easy. Just really easy. Huge indicators on when to dodge, literally a slow down to allow a giant window to dodge, you can just infinitely dodge with zero repercussions, it really just isn't fun. It looks flashy but it just isn't fun. You can change up combat by using your gadgets, which means opening up a weapon wheel, spamming all your gadgets by pressing the trigger, and gg you win.
It is seriously one of the easiest games I've ever played. Insomniacs solution for harder game play? just boost the stats on enemies, which solves nothing. The AI is brain-dead and you can still do the dodge spam and gadget spam on higher difficulties, it just makes enemies spongier. I understand that this is a Spider-Man game, so it's going to be for a casual audience, but holy fuck dude, this is so fucking easy it is mind-numbingly boring.
(side note: the stealth fucking sucks in this game, completely half-baked and not fun to utilize)
Now a section where I stop complaining about mechanics: the sections where you don't play as Spider-Man. Why are they in the game? Who at Insomniac thought this was fun? It certainly wasn't necessary for the story, we could've just watched a cut scene or something. These sections are so boring and not fun, while playing through them I just want to get back to being Spider-Man. No one on this fucking planet bought this game to sneak around a little museum as MJ.
I got platinum for this game and it honestly wasn't worth it. It felt like a chore. for the open-world content, it's mostly all just boring collectables or repeating the same thing over and over. The side missions are ok cause they have you doing some unique things but everything else is just boring as hell. doing all the crime calls took forever and was just exhausting, all the task master challenges and the Osborn stuff, it was just repetitive man.
Again, I've just only complained and have ignored everything good about this game. I want to clarify that this is a good game, but this is probably the most overrated game I've ever fucking played. I cannot fathom how anyone could give this a 5 star or something.
This game is extremely flashy and polished, but goddamn is it dull. A game tailored for the most casual gamer and no one else.
This game suffers from the same problem Rift Apart has but much more extreme, It's simply just too dull to keep me engaged. This game is so insanely polished, everything looks beautiful and everything feels tight and fluid. The game includes every reference and suit and whatever, it's a fans dream in that aspect.
You've heard everyone tell you about why this game is so great, and I agree with a handful of their praises, so since you already know why this game is good, this review is just gonna be about my issues with this game, and a lot of Insomniacs games. They're just too dull and repetitive.
First off, the web-swinging, It's great and all, but it's just boring honestly, you know why? There is zero consequences for messing up. No fall damage, no collision damage, nothing. There's hardly any physics at play, just the handful of clean animations. It's simply just not that fun to swing around if I'm being honest, there's no thrill when there's no consequences, it makes me feel disconnected from the world.
The combat is stupidly easy. Just really easy. Huge indicators on when to dodge, literally a slow down to allow a giant window to dodge, you can just infinitely dodge with zero repercussions, it really just isn't fun. It looks flashy but it just isn't fun. You can change up combat by using your gadgets, which means opening up a weapon wheel, spamming all your gadgets by pressing the trigger, and gg you win.
It is seriously one of the easiest games I've ever played. Insomniacs solution for harder game play? just boost the stats on enemies, which solves nothing. The AI is brain-dead and you can still do the dodge spam and gadget spam on higher difficulties, it just makes enemies spongier. I understand that this is a Spider-Man game, so it's going to be for a casual audience, but holy fuck dude, this is so fucking easy it is mind-numbingly boring.
(side note: the stealth fucking sucks in this game, completely half-baked and not fun to utilize)
Now a section where I stop complaining about mechanics: the sections where you don't play as Spider-Man. Why are they in the game? Who at Insomniac thought this was fun? It certainly wasn't necessary for the story, we could've just watched a cut scene or something. These sections are so boring and not fun, while playing through them I just want to get back to being Spider-Man. No one on this fucking planet bought this game to sneak around a little museum as MJ.
I got platinum for this game and it honestly wasn't worth it. It felt like a chore. for the open-world content, it's mostly all just boring collectables or repeating the same thing over and over. The side missions are ok cause they have you doing some unique things but everything else is just boring as hell. doing all the crime calls took forever and was just exhausting, all the task master challenges and the Osborn stuff, it was just repetitive man.
Again, I've just only complained and have ignored everything good about this game. I want to clarify that this is a good game, but this is probably the most overrated game I've ever fucking played. I cannot fathom how anyone could give this a 5 star or something.
This game is extremely flashy and polished, but goddamn is it dull. A game tailored for the most casual gamer and no one else.
1984
Extremely basic little Tennis game. AI is hard as fuck to beat. IDK what else to say here.
There are 5 difficulties, the higher the difficulty the faster the ball is. AI is pretty much the same on all levels though.
Graphics are pretty nice for NES, everything works. It is as solid as an NES tennis game could be.
Worth a try ig but Super Tennis on SNES is better.
There are 5 difficulties, the higher the difficulty the faster the ball is. AI is pretty much the same on all levels though.
Graphics are pretty nice for NES, everything works. It is as solid as an NES tennis game could be.
Worth a try ig but Super Tennis on SNES is better.