LilShpee
66 reviews liked by LilShpee
Spirit Hunter: NG
2018
nearly all evil ghosts in this game were women call that a #feminismwin
Iconoclasts
2018
really fun run’n’gun stuff and an actually unique take on the usual evil empire story. it’s a little unfocused, a little rambling, but the setting is so captivating and the narrative twists so dark that I didnt mind.
One big thing lets Iconoclasts down: the customization. It’s a metroidvania where you collect materials to unlock upgrades and new abilities. That’s all you can collect - no costumes, no lore stuff - and it’s mostly useless. The upgrades are minor and go away when you take damage fast, and you take damage very fast.
Halfway through the game I just decided to ignore them. But they’re everywhere, and collecting them is a big part of the game - such a big part that I continually felt stupid for not using them. And collecting them IS fun - until you open the chest.
It feels like a nit-pick, but for me it just threw me off the whole Metroidvania rhythm.
One big thing lets Iconoclasts down: the customization. It’s a metroidvania where you collect materials to unlock upgrades and new abilities. That’s all you can collect - no costumes, no lore stuff - and it’s mostly useless. The upgrades are minor and go away when you take damage fast, and you take damage very fast.
Halfway through the game I just decided to ignore them. But they’re everywhere, and collecting them is a big part of the game - such a big part that I continually felt stupid for not using them. And collecting them IS fun - until you open the chest.
It feels like a nit-pick, but for me it just threw me off the whole Metroidvania rhythm.
this game changed me as a person as in i spent my adolescent developmental milestones rottenly addicted to this game and that's why i am the way i am
Halo 2: Anniversary
2014
cortana could say some marvel quip shit like "uh oh... he's right behind me isn't he" and i would eat it up like chicken dinner yes queen you're so funny
A Juggler's Tale
2021
So torn on this. It's got a neat concept, some gorgeous background visuals and a lovely score, but the trial-and-error gameplay is absolutely excruciating. The visual signposting for what to do next is pretty lackluster and poor checkpointing means you're gonna hear the same narration over and over and over again.
holy moon logic it's easier to get laid in real life than in this game
like how tf is anyone supposed to know you're meant to join a Fleshlight with a broken clock and a wristband to steal some car keys
but I guess if this is your cup of tea it's alright especially if you like leisure-suit Larry type of games personally it didn't do it for me but I wouldn't mind trying other games with this art style
like how tf is anyone supposed to know you're meant to join a Fleshlight with a broken clock and a wristband to steal some car keys
but I guess if this is your cup of tea it's alright especially if you like leisure-suit Larry type of games personally it didn't do it for me but I wouldn't mind trying other games with this art style
Plants vs. Zombies
2009
(7-year-old's review, typed by her dad)
The music! It's so good! BOOOOMBS! Cherry Bombs! They will explode ANYTHING in their way. But it only goes about what's in front of them like one square. An enemy that I really don't like is those pogo ones and bucketheads. Cuz with the pogo one they can jump one plant over, and it's SO annoying. And with that buckethead, you need to hit it so much to hit the bucket off, and then you need to hit it a couple more times to kill it. Annoyed.
The music! It's so good! BOOOOMBS! Cherry Bombs! They will explode ANYTHING in their way. But it only goes about what's in front of them like one square. An enemy that I really don't like is those pogo ones and bucketheads. Cuz with the pogo one they can jump one plant over, and it's SO annoying. And with that buckethead, you need to hit it so much to hit the bucket off, and then you need to hit it a couple more times to kill it. Annoyed.
Foamstars
2024
I really wanted to enjoy Sony's vaguely lewdly titled spin on Splatoon. Was hoping all the negativity being spread around for it online was just the result of angry Nintendo fans getting peeved because there's now a cool new take on their once exclusive series out there for people with other consoles to enjoy, à la Palworld. Unfortunately, Foamstars is a genuinely baffling product with some seriously questionable design choices that I feel are going to make it hard for this to build an audience large enough to make its obvious inspiration even remotely nervous.
The game replaces the weird squid-children and ink with, well, foam and... influencers? The most unique thing it brings to the table is elements of your typical hero shooter, where instead of customizing loadouts to determine your playstyle you select from a group of characters at the start of each match with their own skills and abilities. Not a terrible idea. The problem is that it's difficult to fully relish using any of them when the core gunplay is so odd no matter who you go with. Most shoot in this bizarre arcing fashion usually used for throwing grenades pretty much everywhere else. This means you have to determine where your bubbly bullets are going to land in order to effectively hit someone, which can be tough to do in the heat of the moment causing the majority of firefights to devolve into everyone simply spraying and praying they land enough damage to open up opponents for the surfboard slide finishers. The ones who do shoot in a more traditional straight line tend to have significant range issues.
Slightly awkward gameplay isn't necessarily always a deal-breaker though. In fact, I'd say you're more likely to put this down over the general lack of content instead. There are only three match types right now. One of which, a twist on TDM with lives where the final kill has to be against the opposing team's top player, is constantly available while the other two cycle in and out on a confounding hourly rotation. Why the devs would choose to do this I have no idea, but it merely serves to make the offerings of an already fairly meager package feel even slimmer. There are single-player and co-op PvE missions where you defend generators from waves of pathetic enemies who strictly approach from a single direction and typically culminate in a marginally less pathetic boss battle. The latter does contain some value due to the fact that it can be pretty challenging on the hard difficulty setting, yet ultimately isn't enough to keep either inclusion from being altogether dull and entirely skippable.
It's also worth noting the former features super annoying writing to boot. All the dialogue is incredibly juvenile. I don't mean in a crass and crude sort of way, rather that it comes off as aimed at very young children. Quite at odds with the sexual designs of a few of its heroines. The voice acting delivering it might be the strangest part of this entire package. I'm not convinced about half of it isn't AI generated, because there can't seriously be a reality where they found this many individuals who read that unnaturally even on a first take.
Whether this being (currently) kind of, sort of, but not truly or always going to be "free" depends on how much you're bothered by the microtransactions. They are 100% optional and avoidable so there is NO pay-to-win bullcrap going on and therefore cause me to take zero issue with them. That being said, I will mention the price tags are ridiculous, with a lot of bundles costing nearly the same amount as a brand-new released game, and there's the usual irritating seasonal battle pass junk. The freemium mechanics don't stop there, however. In a downright borderline hilarious move, the perks-esque boost loadouts you can equip the roster with are inexplicably randomly generated by a gacha system, mercifully fueled by in-game currency rather than real-world cash. You can't make this stuff up and that may be the sole aspect more unbelievably peculiar than the voice-overs.
Despite everything I've talked about, the multiplayer can still be mindless fun in spurts thanks to the creative modes. At least when you're winning. My personal favorite sees teams split up into two groups, requiring both halves to coordinate while one is in the fight and the other provides support from outside of the arena. The designs of the current cast are also appropriately striking, eye-catching, and cool in spite of the storytelling portraying them as huge dorks. Originally, I was intending to stick around long enough to unlock the complete trophy list. With such a variety of better games out there these days, I simply can't justify wasting any more time on something this mediocre and flawed, or recommend it to anybody else. Certainly not when you have to start paying for it. Psssh, forget that! Square Enix needs to smarten up and backtrack on those plans IMMEDIATELY!
5/10
The game replaces the weird squid-children and ink with, well, foam and... influencers? The most unique thing it brings to the table is elements of your typical hero shooter, where instead of customizing loadouts to determine your playstyle you select from a group of characters at the start of each match with their own skills and abilities. Not a terrible idea. The problem is that it's difficult to fully relish using any of them when the core gunplay is so odd no matter who you go with. Most shoot in this bizarre arcing fashion usually used for throwing grenades pretty much everywhere else. This means you have to determine where your bubbly bullets are going to land in order to effectively hit someone, which can be tough to do in the heat of the moment causing the majority of firefights to devolve into everyone simply spraying and praying they land enough damage to open up opponents for the surfboard slide finishers. The ones who do shoot in a more traditional straight line tend to have significant range issues.
Slightly awkward gameplay isn't necessarily always a deal-breaker though. In fact, I'd say you're more likely to put this down over the general lack of content instead. There are only three match types right now. One of which, a twist on TDM with lives where the final kill has to be against the opposing team's top player, is constantly available while the other two cycle in and out on a confounding hourly rotation. Why the devs would choose to do this I have no idea, but it merely serves to make the offerings of an already fairly meager package feel even slimmer. There are single-player and co-op PvE missions where you defend generators from waves of pathetic enemies who strictly approach from a single direction and typically culminate in a marginally less pathetic boss battle. The latter does contain some value due to the fact that it can be pretty challenging on the hard difficulty setting, yet ultimately isn't enough to keep either inclusion from being altogether dull and entirely skippable.
It's also worth noting the former features super annoying writing to boot. All the dialogue is incredibly juvenile. I don't mean in a crass and crude sort of way, rather that it comes off as aimed at very young children. Quite at odds with the sexual designs of a few of its heroines. The voice acting delivering it might be the strangest part of this entire package. I'm not convinced about half of it isn't AI generated, because there can't seriously be a reality where they found this many individuals who read that unnaturally even on a first take.
Whether this being (currently) kind of, sort of, but not truly or always going to be "free" depends on how much you're bothered by the microtransactions. They are 100% optional and avoidable so there is NO pay-to-win bullcrap going on and therefore cause me to take zero issue with them. That being said, I will mention the price tags are ridiculous, with a lot of bundles costing nearly the same amount as a brand-new released game, and there's the usual irritating seasonal battle pass junk. The freemium mechanics don't stop there, however. In a downright borderline hilarious move, the perks-esque boost loadouts you can equip the roster with are inexplicably randomly generated by a gacha system, mercifully fueled by in-game currency rather than real-world cash. You can't make this stuff up and that may be the sole aspect more unbelievably peculiar than the voice-overs.
Despite everything I've talked about, the multiplayer can still be mindless fun in spurts thanks to the creative modes. At least when you're winning. My personal favorite sees teams split up into two groups, requiring both halves to coordinate while one is in the fight and the other provides support from outside of the arena. The designs of the current cast are also appropriately striking, eye-catching, and cool in spite of the storytelling portraying them as huge dorks. Originally, I was intending to stick around long enough to unlock the complete trophy list. With such a variety of better games out there these days, I simply can't justify wasting any more time on something this mediocre and flawed, or recommend it to anybody else. Certainly not when you have to start paying for it. Psssh, forget that! Square Enix needs to smarten up and backtrack on those plans IMMEDIATELY!
5/10
Alan Wake II
2023
This is a review exclusively about The Final Draft NG+ mode. There are full spoilers for both the base game and the NG+ ahead.
I'm not gonna beat around the bush, The Final Draft really disappointed me. The main game is a 5/5 for me, whereas this NG+ would at best be a 2/5.
First off, the new content: it's just not enough. Not enough to jusitfy an entire additional playthrough. Starting a new game with all your weapons and everything doesn't change as much about the game as you'd really want it to. I imagine there aren't a lot of people who love this game solely for its gameplay and at the very least I can say it isn't worse in NG+, but it certainly isn't improved. Of course I love the new Darling cutscenes as a massive Control fan - they are easily the best part of this. The new poems added to Saga's story are a joke in comparison.
Secondly, my major gripe with The Final Draft: the new story content. The changed dialogue in general is actually really interesting and just as well written as you'd expect from a Remedy game but the ending just ruins it. The Final Draft adds an extra cutscene taking place right after the main game's ending. That original ending is extremely ambiguous which suits the tone perfectly. Mystery is a huge part of why I love these games, this universe. This additional cutscene does its best to get rid of all ambiguity and just provide the most ideal outcome imaginable. Logan is fine, Saga is fine, Casey is fine, hell even Alan is fine. That one irks me. The last hours of the game are spent between Saga and Alan discussing how for the story to reach its conclusion, the hero must sacrifice themselves. Alan was to be that sacrifice and yet here he is, just fine, better than fine even. He says himself Scratch is gone. Excuse me but what the fuck does that mean? The "Wake is Scratch" twist is genius because it completely recontextualizes all of Scratch's actions - it makes you understand that the things he wanted to achieve don't stem from a place of pure evil. Scratch represents the dark in Alan. The things he doesn't want others to know about and hides even from himself. Scratch is a reflection in a mirror that is a lake that is really an ocean. So I ask again, what does "Scratch is gone" mean? To me it almost reads like Alan is "cured" which is just silly. I hope there is more to it than the literal reading of "the evil is defeated" but I really can't say, all I know is that it felt extremely deflating and underwhelming. The best comparison I could give is Nier: Automata, which also has a very ambiguous very good ending, only to later receive supplemental material that expands on it and by doing that lowers its impact.
I can't say there is an easy way to "fix" The Final Draft. More non story content would certainly be a start. But from a story perspective, I could totally see this being a sendoff to Saga, Alan, and the rest of the characters. If that was the intent, it might be unfair to critisize the new ending for being too positive. I do want these characters to get happy endings. But even then, I feel it should've been handled differently.
I'm not gonna beat around the bush, The Final Draft really disappointed me. The main game is a 5/5 for me, whereas this NG+ would at best be a 2/5.
First off, the new content: it's just not enough. Not enough to jusitfy an entire additional playthrough. Starting a new game with all your weapons and everything doesn't change as much about the game as you'd really want it to. I imagine there aren't a lot of people who love this game solely for its gameplay and at the very least I can say it isn't worse in NG+, but it certainly isn't improved. Of course I love the new Darling cutscenes as a massive Control fan - they are easily the best part of this. The new poems added to Saga's story are a joke in comparison.
Secondly, my major gripe with The Final Draft: the new story content. The changed dialogue in general is actually really interesting and just as well written as you'd expect from a Remedy game but the ending just ruins it. The Final Draft adds an extra cutscene taking place right after the main game's ending. That original ending is extremely ambiguous which suits the tone perfectly. Mystery is a huge part of why I love these games, this universe. This additional cutscene does its best to get rid of all ambiguity and just provide the most ideal outcome imaginable. Logan is fine, Saga is fine, Casey is fine, hell even Alan is fine. That one irks me. The last hours of the game are spent between Saga and Alan discussing how for the story to reach its conclusion, the hero must sacrifice themselves. Alan was to be that sacrifice and yet here he is, just fine, better than fine even. He says himself Scratch is gone. Excuse me but what the fuck does that mean? The "Wake is Scratch" twist is genius because it completely recontextualizes all of Scratch's actions - it makes you understand that the things he wanted to achieve don't stem from a place of pure evil. Scratch represents the dark in Alan. The things he doesn't want others to know about and hides even from himself. Scratch is a reflection in a mirror that is a lake that is really an ocean. So I ask again, what does "Scratch is gone" mean? To me it almost reads like Alan is "cured" which is just silly. I hope there is more to it than the literal reading of "the evil is defeated" but I really can't say, all I know is that it felt extremely deflating and underwhelming. The best comparison I could give is Nier: Automata, which also has a very ambiguous very good ending, only to later receive supplemental material that expands on it and by doing that lowers its impact.
I can't say there is an easy way to "fix" The Final Draft. More non story content would certainly be a start. But from a story perspective, I could totally see this being a sendoff to Saga, Alan, and the rest of the characters. If that was the intent, it might be unfair to critisize the new ending for being too positive. I do want these characters to get happy endings. But even then, I feel it should've been handled differently.
This review contains spoilers
This game is a masterpiece, clearly a hidden gem considering how little spotlight it had and how poorly it sold. Really a shame!
Phoenotopia looks amazing, I couldn't help myself but take dozens of screenshots while I was playing. Last time I did that was when I played Gris.
The gameplay is simply fantastic, there are tons of smart interactions in the game design, the puzzles really test your spatial perception: whether it's activating a switch by angling your slingshot the right way, using projectiles to knock moonstones off their platform, piling up boxes and bombs to gain barely enough height to reach a platform, or completing parkour sections full of arrow traps with well synchronized jumps.
The puzzles where you need to play the correct song with your flute gave me Zelda Ocarina of Time vibes. I liked how musical notes were often hidden in the background, and I had to spot them to know what I would need to play with the bandit's flute.
The GEO dungeons especially had really different kinds of puzzles. One time you'll have to solve a jigsaw puzzle, the next time it'll be a sliding picture puzzle, then it will involve switching lights in the correct order. There's even a puzzle similar to sudoku.
The game always managed to hold my attention with all its brainteasers.
Cooking mechanic is based on reaction time, it's simple and engaging. I noticed there was a frying pan on display in the Antique Shop near Daea city, but I never managed to obtain it during my playthrough. I suppose it would have modified the cooking minigame in a certain way?
Btw, I like how we immediatly drop cooked meat when we kill a mob/animal with an explosion (bomb or spear). Pretty cool that they thought about that!
The Gear Ring allows you to quickly switch up between 8 different items, it's always a good thing to have a weapon wheel in any game I play. It's very ergonomic and it saved me a lot of time from navigating through the menus.
And I'm thankful that we can use all our weapons as much as we want, without having to worry about ammo.
It's very satisfying when you struggle while exploring an area for the 1st time, having to use your gear in a clever way, dealing with all the enemies and barely surviving. And then when you revisit the same area later in the game with a new ability, you can make it through in a much simpler way. The abilities that you get for traversal exploration are really game-changing. I was so excited to backtrack everytime I got a new one.
Phoenotopia Awakening is very charming, and has a lot of light-hearted moments. I never got tired of listening to "Merry Fellowship" everytime Gail came back to her hometown after a mission, checking in with her brothers & sisters to see if they're okay. The game even manages to be funny sometimes. For example, when Gail and Fran use the teleporter for the 1st time, and Gail thinks Fran died during the teleportation as she watches the pile of dust on the ground, only for Fran to reappear out of nowhere with a big smile on her face.
The game also managed to do the exact opposite on several occasions. I was very anxious during that moment in EDEN's Lab, when you're quietly exploring the rooms and reading notes about those harpys in their stasis chamber. As you progress, you suddently hear glass breaking, and when you turn around, you notice all the harpys broke out.
Those moments, whether tense or joyful, are always accompanied by excellent music. My personal favorites are "Merry/Mellow Fellowship", "Boss battle", "The White Towers", "Katash's theme", "Wheat Road" and "Caves of Mul".
You can't put markers on a map to remember points of interest. So I had to write down informations on a notepad regularly to not get lost and not forget things like treasure chests, entrances to dungeons, or song stones. There are tons of stuff to do and optional content, so having a quest log and a map available at all times would have been useful, but it was definitely manageable without it.
I loved the last part of the game that consists of 3 Boss fights back-to-back. The first one against Mother Computer was the most challenging fight in the entire game. Then you have this amazing showdown with your own shadows, and finally the duel vs Katash.
I have to say this last battle felt a bit anticlimactic. I had encountered Adam earlier in the lab, and I thought I would have to fight this thing, but instead it was a second duel with Katash.
I'm pretty sure (and I hope) that I will have to fight Adam when I'll come back to this game to get the true ending, and I can't wait for it.
I unlocked the first ending after 60 hours with a completion of 62%. I played enough and I don't want to push myself, so I won't go for 100%. However, I will surely come back to this game in a few months to do some more things. Notably exploring Aurantia, beating Katash' 2nd encounter, and accessing the locked room at the top of Pristine City to fight Phalanx.
I don't know how they did it, but the game was never boring, never frustrating, never too hard, never too easy, never repetitive, never bad. There was the right amount of everything: fights, exploration, puzzles and platforming.
Really, as I said earlier, the only thing that people could have a problem with is that it can be difficult to keep track of everything. But it's really not that big of a deal if you pay attention, and of course if you write things down on a notepad or a piece of paper.
This is why I give this game a perfect score. This is one of the best games I've played this year! I'm still a bit salty that this game is so unknown...
----------Playtime & Completion----------
[Started on September 25th & finished on October 8th 2023]
Playtime: 60 hours
I stopped after getting the first ending, when Gail manages to free all the Phoenix so they can help Humans defend themselves against the alien invasion.
I got a 62% completion.
Phoenotopia looks amazing, I couldn't help myself but take dozens of screenshots while I was playing. Last time I did that was when I played Gris.
The gameplay is simply fantastic, there are tons of smart interactions in the game design, the puzzles really test your spatial perception: whether it's activating a switch by angling your slingshot the right way, using projectiles to knock moonstones off their platform, piling up boxes and bombs to gain barely enough height to reach a platform, or completing parkour sections full of arrow traps with well synchronized jumps.
The puzzles where you need to play the correct song with your flute gave me Zelda Ocarina of Time vibes. I liked how musical notes were often hidden in the background, and I had to spot them to know what I would need to play with the bandit's flute.
The GEO dungeons especially had really different kinds of puzzles. One time you'll have to solve a jigsaw puzzle, the next time it'll be a sliding picture puzzle, then it will involve switching lights in the correct order. There's even a puzzle similar to sudoku.
The game always managed to hold my attention with all its brainteasers.
Cooking mechanic is based on reaction time, it's simple and engaging. I noticed there was a frying pan on display in the Antique Shop near Daea city, but I never managed to obtain it during my playthrough. I suppose it would have modified the cooking minigame in a certain way?
Btw, I like how we immediatly drop cooked meat when we kill a mob/animal with an explosion (bomb or spear). Pretty cool that they thought about that!
The Gear Ring allows you to quickly switch up between 8 different items, it's always a good thing to have a weapon wheel in any game I play. It's very ergonomic and it saved me a lot of time from navigating through the menus.
And I'm thankful that we can use all our weapons as much as we want, without having to worry about ammo.
It's very satisfying when you struggle while exploring an area for the 1st time, having to use your gear in a clever way, dealing with all the enemies and barely surviving. And then when you revisit the same area later in the game with a new ability, you can make it through in a much simpler way. The abilities that you get for traversal exploration are really game-changing. I was so excited to backtrack everytime I got a new one.
Phoenotopia Awakening is very charming, and has a lot of light-hearted moments. I never got tired of listening to "Merry Fellowship" everytime Gail came back to her hometown after a mission, checking in with her brothers & sisters to see if they're okay. The game even manages to be funny sometimes. For example, when Gail and Fran use the teleporter for the 1st time, and Gail thinks Fran died during the teleportation as she watches the pile of dust on the ground, only for Fran to reappear out of nowhere with a big smile on her face.
The game also managed to do the exact opposite on several occasions. I was very anxious during that moment in EDEN's Lab, when you're quietly exploring the rooms and reading notes about those harpys in their stasis chamber. As you progress, you suddently hear glass breaking, and when you turn around, you notice all the harpys broke out.
Those moments, whether tense or joyful, are always accompanied by excellent music. My personal favorites are "Merry/Mellow Fellowship", "Boss battle", "The White Towers", "Katash's theme", "Wheat Road" and "Caves of Mul".
You can't put markers on a map to remember points of interest. So I had to write down informations on a notepad regularly to not get lost and not forget things like treasure chests, entrances to dungeons, or song stones. There are tons of stuff to do and optional content, so having a quest log and a map available at all times would have been useful, but it was definitely manageable without it.
I loved the last part of the game that consists of 3 Boss fights back-to-back. The first one against Mother Computer was the most challenging fight in the entire game. Then you have this amazing showdown with your own shadows, and finally the duel vs Katash.
I have to say this last battle felt a bit anticlimactic. I had encountered Adam earlier in the lab, and I thought I would have to fight this thing, but instead it was a second duel with Katash.
I'm pretty sure (and I hope) that I will have to fight Adam when I'll come back to this game to get the true ending, and I can't wait for it.
I unlocked the first ending after 60 hours with a completion of 62%. I played enough and I don't want to push myself, so I won't go for 100%. However, I will surely come back to this game in a few months to do some more things. Notably exploring Aurantia, beating Katash' 2nd encounter, and accessing the locked room at the top of Pristine City to fight Phalanx.
I don't know how they did it, but the game was never boring, never frustrating, never too hard, never too easy, never repetitive, never bad. There was the right amount of everything: fights, exploration, puzzles and platforming.
Really, as I said earlier, the only thing that people could have a problem with is that it can be difficult to keep track of everything. But it's really not that big of a deal if you pay attention, and of course if you write things down on a notepad or a piece of paper.
This is why I give this game a perfect score. This is one of the best games I've played this year! I'm still a bit salty that this game is so unknown...
----------Playtime & Completion----------
[Started on September 25th & finished on October 8th 2023]
Playtime: 60 hours
I stopped after getting the first ending, when Gail manages to free all the Phoenix so they can help Humans defend themselves against the alien invasion.
I got a 62% completion.
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