I bought Alpha Protocol on Steam in 2011 for $2. I attempted to play it in 2016, but it didn't click with me. I only finished the Saudi Arabia section. Now, finally decided to give it another chance (coincidentally, I started the same day the game was relisted on GOG after being unavailable for nearly 5 years).

I am glad I did because this game is pretty good. The dialog mechanic is fantastic and slightly stress inducing. The characters are all compelling. The story is okay. The best part though is how everything matters in this game.

Nearly every decision (active and passive) gets referenced later on and affects relationships. I almost played it again just to make different decisions with a different play style. The conversation and characters are that great. Unfortunately, that would require playing the game again.

The combat (which is the bulk of the gameplay) at the best of times is repetitive. At the worst of times is a broken, buggy mess. Nearly every door requires the same annoying puzzle which makes replaying missions a bigger chore. My suggestion is to play on the easiest difficulty because the combat is not great.

Alpha Protocol reacts to nearly every player decision. The dialog and characters are top notch. The story is intriguing. These are reasons that make it a must play. However, it is held back by buggy, boring combat. I found it worthy of the $2 I spent on it thirteen years ago.

Persona 3 Reload is a great version of the PS2 classic. Definitely the best way to play on current hardware. Persona and turn based RPGs should definitely check it out.

Now some minor things I prefer about FES, which makes it my preferred version. I miss the exhaustion mechanic. It was a nice measure to keep from grinding too long in Tartarus. Though other mechanics exist in Reload, I still like exhaustion because it played more into normal life. I felt some cut scenes were more impactful in FES. Mainly the opening. On the other hand, the ending was masterfully done in Reload. That's about it. Very minor things.

Reload is great and worthy of its praise.

I went into Saints Row expecting it be the worst of the series - an unpolished, unfocused mess with poor writing and annoying characters. Through the first act, that is what Saints Row is. This game does not put its best foot forward. The game has a slow start, the writing is at its worst, which leads to the unlikable characters. However, once the Saints start becoming Saints, things get better and better. By the end, I was loving my time with Saints Row's last hurrah.

Not to say it was a great game by the end. The business venture side missions (which honestly felt like the bulk of the game) became tired and repetitive fairly quickly. Each business has its own unique side mission, which are mostly fun. The problem is I do the side mission, had fun, and the game says do it ten more times. Its those last ten times that are no fun.

Most criticism I heard about the writing and characters were one hundred percent accurate based on the first cut scene with the companions. It was a bad scene. Fortunately, the characters got better. They don't compare to the original Saints; the new Saints have plenty to like about them. The story focused more on the companions and less on the rival gangs. I would have liked more story to flesh out the other gangs; maybe focus less on the business ventures.

Additionally, the game's story was oddly paced. It felt like it took forever for the Saints to form. Then before I knew it, all the rivals gangs were defeated (in a span of three consecutive missions) and I was on the last mission. It could be because during act two, I was mostly focused on the business venture side missions, but thinking about the story, it definitely felt the first act was the longest, which each successive act being shorter. Which is a shame since the first act is definitely the weakest.

Stand alone, Saints Row is a decent game with writing and pacing issues. As an entry in the Saints Row franchise, it definitely falls beneath the heights of 2 and 3. Volition and Saints Row deserved another go around to get things right (I say the same thing about Agents of Mayhem). Unfortunately, the volatility of the video game industry means neither Volition or Saints Row will get to return to glory. While it wasn't the studio's or franchise's best, Saints Row was worth a playthrough, and I had plenty of good times with it.

Deadly Premonition is a broken, buggy mess. It has clunky controls and combat. It looks like a blurry, brown mess. Despite all of that, it is such a charming game, I cannot hate it.

The characters are all memorable. Everyone has their own personalities and talking style; it really stands out. The town is quaint, and I began enjoying the long drives from one end to the other (though this did increase the chance of clipping through the ground or the game crashing).

The dialog is awkward. The voice performances are on another level. Yet it all works together. The story is surprisingly solid. The oddness of this works in the game's favor. Everything is so weird, it makes it charming. Definitely worth checking out if you have the patience to get pass the badness of it all.

Cute character design? Check. Breath of the Wild style exploration? Check. Funny writing with silly objectives? Check. Emotional story about growing up and the melancholy of leaving childhood behind? Check.

There is always something to find while exploring and traversal is always fun. The characters are hilarious and charming. It is easy to get lost, but the island is so small it is easy to find one self. It's not the deepest game. However, it does everything it sets out to do so well that it doesn't matter.

Even knowing what Lil Gator Game was before playing, I was not prepared for the nostalgic gut punch it delivered. I am not a nostalgic person, so that is high praise.

Surprise game of the year and possibly game of the year for me. I had never heard of this game until about a week before it came out. A Chrono Trigger inspired turn based RPG? I was all in.

Starting with the cons, the beginning is very, very slow. I imagine a lot of people will get turned off by how slow it is. Second, the story (and ending) is a little underwhelming. That's it. My only nitpicks are right there.

While the story is underwhelming, the storytelling is really well done. It's well paced and complements the good characters. However, the best thing about Sea of Stars is the combat. On the surface, it is basic turn based combat like all SNES RPGs. The big difference is the game keeps encounters fresh and no two boss fights feel the same. Each one is challenging and fun. The game has relics that can make the combat more challenging or easier. Even without relics activated, the combat is fairly easy.

Sea of Stars is also a beautiful game with fun music. The attention to detail is quite impressive. The title screen reflects which characters are in your party and where you are in the world. There is a level where the trees have faces, and when the vocals start in the music, the trees will sing along. There are too many small, wonderful details to notice during the 30-40 hour playthrough.

I cannot recommend Sea of Stars enough. One of the best RPGs I have played in years. Play it today.

Syberia: The World Before is the best of a great series. Instead of a globetrotting adventure with fantastical beasts and quirky characters, this entry tells a grounded, personal story. It's so grounded that when fantastical things do happen, I had to remind myself that this was a Syberia game, and fantastical is to be expected.

Kate Walker has always been a compelling character. For once, the full set of supporting characters are equally engaging. Obviously, Dana Roze is the up there with Kate, given her importance to the story.

It may be a let down to some die hard Syberia purists, but it is a one of the best narrative adventure games out there.

Redfall has some issues but overall was a fun time. Starting with the negatives, I absolutely hate that the game cannot be paused. This is the worst thing the game does. If I need to take a break, but am in the middle of a mission, better hope no one finds me crouched in a corner. Redfall keeps the modern open world philosophy of having bland, repetitive side missions. Luckily there are not that many but every safehouse has two side missions. The first repeats four or five mission types; the second is always go kill a vampire. Repeating open world tasks that usually can be ignored permeate the second half of the game. Vampire nests and rooks are annoying and usually not worth doing. Unfortunately, you cannot skip rooks, but at least you know when they are coming. Finally, traversing the world got old quick, but again I have this issue with most open world games. Mostly my complaints can be leveled against most open world games. Redfall would have been better as a linear story.

I actually enjoyed when the game delved into Arkane storytelling. This mostly happened when finding ways to kill the vampire gods where I would explore areas finding out about their backstories. The combat was usually light or nonexistent, but the atmosphere was on point. I actually enjoyed the variety of vampires and guns. Granted a good stake launcher got me through most missions, including boss fights (the game is pretty easy). I like the idea of the safehouses and hubs, but they were definitely underutilized.

As for middling things, the side characters were mostly forgettable, but that's on par for most Arkane games. The combat was repetitive and not too challenging. Keeping up with Arkane tradition, the AI was also not too great, but it did its job.

I know most people bring up the bugs, but I was lucky and did not encounter too many. The big ones for me was that a side quest was not accessible because the NPC would never give it to me; the exclamation point was over his head, but he kept giving generic lines. In another instance, my buttons stopped working, except for movement and shooting; unfortunately, I was trying to collect stuff. The last big bug was a mission required environment was pitch black, like it was colored black; I had to fumble around until I found the key item I was looking for. Other bugs I encountered were mostly animation quirks (arms bending backward, T-posing NPCs), so overall, I guess I was lucky.

Overall, Redfall's biggest issues come from being a paint by number open world shooter. Every once in a while, Arkane's masterful atmosphere and environments would show up, but those moments were too few. Redfall is an average game that is still fun to play. When the combat hits right and everything works, it can even be a blast.