Enjoyment - 10/10
Difficulty - 5/10

I first played Final Fantasy X from the Official PlayStation 2 Magazine (Issue 20, May 2002) demo disc. That experience was the first time a demo from a demo disc completely blew me away as a literal child.

Now, I am a grown man who fully completed his cherished childhood PS2 game on his PS4 with platinum trophy and all. No hesitation, 10/10 across the board.
🏆

Enjoyment - 10/10
Difficulty - 5/10

Death Stranding is the PlayStation 4. Death Stranding is a fine dining restaurant serving you a delicious fast food burger, but it turned out it wasn't a burger. You begin to question what you just ate, and you cannot place the taste. The only thing you do know is that it was familiar and the best thing you ever ate. Death Stranding touches souls, and cleanses them. Death Stranding is a video game.
🏆

Enjoyment - 5/10
Difficulty - 3/10

Horizon Zero Dawn is a painfully average video game.

The visual splendour of Horizon Zero Dawn's landscapes and vistas really carries the experience. Also, traversing on your robot horse and encountering imposing machines is cool. However, all of the game's positive aspects are undercut by its conflicting mechanics and genuinely awful story.

Combat is borderline atrocious. Not once did I have a good time with battling human or machine enemies. Dodging, slow-motion aiming, melee, stealth, it all seemed to run counter to the core of the game. Repetitive mission structures and forgettable side quests also paint the game badly. If I am being completely honest, if the game had a NO COMBAT PASSIVISM lean in its framework I think it would've been a much better game with a stronger identity it could build off.

The ecological, industrial, and tribal theming of Horizon Zero Dawn was very promising. Discovering titbits of the world's history that better informs you about this video game space gave me goose bumps. Stumbling across ruined buildings that were once bustling places now turned to moss infused steel henges as a result of nature's reclamation is truly immersive. However, the world building and the overarching stories are not happily married to each other which leaves a confusing energy for its players to divorce. By the end of the adventure, it left me massively disappointed as it only told a children's first human vs. earth conflict story.

Characterization is dreadful. Predictable character arcs. Pandering story beats. Annoying and unlikeable main character. Contradictory character actions within the plot. Bad ending. Very, very poorly directed.

"If the game was five hours long, maybe it would be good" -Girlfriend.

Don't really know how to end this. Horizon Zero Dawn is an annoying ginger girl who clumsily fights robot dinosaur in attempt to do something??
🏆

Enjoyment - 6/10
Difficulty - 4/10

My teenage co-op game of choice, until Borderlands 2 released lol. Very nice to revisit this game on PS4 and playing co-op with my girlfriend. The game did show rough points that clearly needed ironing out and it made me better appreciate Borderlands 2.
🏆

Enjoyment - 9/10
Difficulty - 4/10

Sifu is a knuckle sandwich. Sifu is a time machine. Sifu is a ticking time bomb. Sifu is a fighting game.

Sifu could possibly be the best single player fighting game ever made. I hold this game on such a pedestal because I truly believe we will regard this game as best-in-class in the not too distant future. If not Sifu, then the games directly inspired by it that improve its foundations.
🏆

Now that I am thinking about it, I will make a long-form review of Sifu because there is a lot to unpack here. I'll come back to this and give a timestamp for future reference. [18/04/2024]

Enjoyment - 8/10
Difficulty - 5/10

Resident Evil 7: Biohazard is a return to form.

Depending on who you ask, this is or isn't a Resident Evil game. While that debate and general mantra is exhausting, Resident Evil 7: Biohazard provides big spooks and a fun gameplay loop. If you have only started getting interested in the Resident Evil series, then this is a great springboard!
🏆

Enjoyment - 9/10
Difficulty - 7/10

Holy moly. Why haven't I played these games sooner?! Nights I could be vibing to this series... wasted. Instead, I was probably playing Fantastic 4 for PS2.
🏆

Enjoyment - 7/10
Difficulty - 3/10

Placing Far Cry 3 is tricky. COOL video gamey game moments are had, but there's too much busy work for my taste buds. I'll say this, Far Cry 3 is the cool uncle that drinks too much.
🏆

Enjoyment - 10/10
Difficulty - 2/10

Subverts expectations and challenges conventional video game storytelling, leaving an immeasurable impact.
🏆

Enjoyment - 6/10
Difficulty - 6/10

Rogue Legacy 2 wants to be loved, but during your committed relationship they become clingy and overbearing.

On top of this, the trophy list asks you to become the game's servant and makes you wish that your contract had an earlier end date.
🏆

Enjoyment - 9/10
Difficulty - 6/10

My first playthrough was in 2020, and returning two years later on HARD difficulty was a huge confidence check. Nevertheless, I managed to platinum Final Fantasy VII Remake. Along with the HARD playthrough, I had to do some miscellaneous trophies like getting praised by Jessie, ranking first on the darts leaderboard, obtaining all weapons abilities and music discs, and completing all quests (you need a second set of quests for a specific chapter to do this, the PSNProfiles guide is really helpful)! Dressed to the Nines was a bit annoying, but it was easy when consulting the guide.

After completing two full playthroughs, cutscenes and all, I would highly recommend this game! As someone who isn't an avid fan of FF, Final Fantasy VII Remake tempts me to become one.
🏆

Enjoyment - 9/10
Difficulty - 3/10

MORE PERSONA 5!

Since I already played Persona 5, I decided to play on HARD which was a nice challenge. Even on HARD, it was still fairly manageable.

Fantastic game. Persona 5 and Persona 5 Royal opened my eyes to a great series that I previously ignored. Must buy, must play!
🏆

Enjoyment - 7/10
Difficulty - 5/10

Very interesting anime fighting game. Played through PS Plus Extra and enjoyed learning all the different characters. The majority of the time I was playing single player to mess around and achieve the platinum trophy. Only played a bit of online. Maybe I would have a different opinion if I played more online and competed at offline events? Still, a solid game worth checking out.
🏆

Enjoyment - 6/10
Difficulty - 3/10

Carto likes to have hot bubble baths while listening to lo-fi. Short puzzle game with a lot of charm.
🏆

Enjoyment - 5/10
Difficulty - 3/10

Days Gone is a fever dream.

I completely forgot to review Days Gone when I was doing my review rounds for the games I completed. I think that should tell you everything you need to know.
🏆