This is the height of what I was imagining for the concept of an FF7 Remake. While the first game's Midgar had been shown off multiple other times in other compilation works, many other locations had yet to be given new life from the pre-rendered background art they originated from. In that respect, this game 100% delivers in the presentation department.

To be honest, the original Remake's combat did not vibe with me when I first played it. Perhaps it was an unfamiliarity with a new system, because once I jumped into this game's combat everything seemed to flow like butter. Every character's toolkit feels much more essential to the greater framework of the party since you can now switch them around more frequently.

The main thing that this game revels in is its side content. Silly side adventures and minigames are abound, and it's what I think makes Final Fantasy games so charming. This remake fully embraces the goofier parts of the original, and I think it comes out feeling like one of the best in the series since FF10.

As the third installment in the To the Moon series (which I feel needs a better name), this continues the hallmarks of earnest characters and dialogue, moving music, and making you cry. While this is pitched as a departure for a more surreal and comedic tone, those tear-jerkers are still present. However, I spent the latter half of this game wondering what exactly this game was trying to say that the other two games had not already explored. By the time the credits had rolled, I still had nothing other than the memory of themes the previous two games tackled better.

In many ways, this game heavily improves upon what made Jedi: Fallen Order such a surprise hit. Additions to player options and depth of combat and improved enemy variety already put it a step above its predecessor. Boss design has also had a significant increase while still feeling authentically Star Wars-esque. The amount of character animation work that went into the way each lightsaber-wielder carried and used their blade also impressed me quite a bit this go around. I'm not sure how I feel about the level design, however, as the levels themselves can sometimes feel off-balance with each other, especially in terms of scale. With 2 of the 6 available planets in the game taking on an enormous hub-level size, it means you'll be seeing much less varied environments when the remaining four are a fraction the size of the other two. Maybe I'm just a fan of more planet-hopping, but I did start getting a little tired of the Koboh grasslands and Jedha desert by the end of the game. Another thing that brings this game down is unfortunately just how buggy it is even one year after its release when compared to the first game. It is worth recommending if you liked Fallen Order, just so long as you have patience for some jank and iffy performance.

One of the first of the non-classically styled Lego games, this game introduces plenty of good ideas, but is brought down with some odd choices and lots of bugs. Having the hub area be all of Middle Earth which you physically travel across makes the game feel more engaging while still having the classic level structure within that. On the other hand, the ability spread between characters is very slim, with certain characters taking a lions share of puzzle abilities. This means most of extra characters feel pretty useless compared to other Lego titles. This is partially solved by the item trove you unlock through the course of the game, but ends up feeling clunky with how many items you end up sifting through. This game also has one of the more tedious 100%-ing processes I've experienced in the series, along with a boatload of bugs that almost softlocked completion for me in the process. I would ultimately just recommend a normal playthrough for those who do still enjoy Lego games or Lord of the Rings.

Following up on Doom 2016 is a mighty task, and this game in part lives up to that with great level design and improvements to the combat sandbox that make encounters feel more frantic. However, I have to agree with the (from my view) majority opinion that the marauder knight enemies being far too over-tuned for what the rest of the game is encouraging. On top of that, the game suffers from bloat in the upgrade department; some runes/suit upgrades feel far too middling for there to be much decision-making on the player's part. Otherwise, while this game does not always hit the highs of its predecessor, I think it's got enough of its own flair to be worth recommending.