NightmareModeGo
BACKER
2004
Big step down from the original in just about every way.
New playable characters are kinda cool, but not enough to make me go through again because the difficulty seems to mostly stem from the jankiness, and it's got it in spades. Some of those boss fights are criminal.
New playable characters are kinda cool, but not enough to make me go through again because the difficulty seems to mostly stem from the jankiness, and it's got it in spades. Some of those boss fights are criminal.
Elements of Boku no Natsuyasumi and Shin-chan combining to make something not quite as good as either.
I'm pretty gutted about how this turned out. The peaceful vacation vibe is marred by essentially having a huge checklist that needs to be done, and that very same peaceful vacation vibe doesn't allow Shin-chan to really be himself. He feels watered down and one-note, as do most of the other characters. Everyone's so saccharine and nice. Misae doesn't lose it and give him a wee bonk on the head. Hiroshi never gets in bother by not thinking before speaking. Shin-chan doesn't get to do anything more than crap puns. Shiro's basically welded to a fucking doghouse.
It feels like such a surface level understanding of why people like Shin-chan, and maybe Boku no Natsuyasumi to the same extent. I can't speak with authority on that as Attack of the Friday Monsters is my only exposure to the series beyond gameplay clips over the years. But a big list of tasks to perform to progress a barely there story does not feel like what these games are supposed to be about.
Just a strange one, because the looping nature of your week's vacation makes it seem like things might go on forever, but then after finishing a certain mission, the game kinda completes itself. It was like I was walked through maybe eight different scenarios that all just suddenly ended missions I had gotten weeks earlier. It might as well have been cutscenes. Didn't feel like I had done anything to earn them. Just played long enough for them to end. Why am I even holding the controller?
He doesn't get his dick out once.
I'm pretty gutted about how this turned out. The peaceful vacation vibe is marred by essentially having a huge checklist that needs to be done, and that very same peaceful vacation vibe doesn't allow Shin-chan to really be himself. He feels watered down and one-note, as do most of the other characters. Everyone's so saccharine and nice. Misae doesn't lose it and give him a wee bonk on the head. Hiroshi never gets in bother by not thinking before speaking. Shin-chan doesn't get to do anything more than crap puns. Shiro's basically welded to a fucking doghouse.
It feels like such a surface level understanding of why people like Shin-chan, and maybe Boku no Natsuyasumi to the same extent. I can't speak with authority on that as Attack of the Friday Monsters is my only exposure to the series beyond gameplay clips over the years. But a big list of tasks to perform to progress a barely there story does not feel like what these games are supposed to be about.
Just a strange one, because the looping nature of your week's vacation makes it seem like things might go on forever, but then after finishing a certain mission, the game kinda completes itself. It was like I was walked through maybe eight different scenarios that all just suddenly ended missions I had gotten weeks earlier. It might as well have been cutscenes. Didn't feel like I had done anything to earn them. Just played long enough for them to end. Why am I even holding the controller?
He doesn't get his dick out once.
Just dropping wee thoughts about these as I go.
Axis Mundi
A really nice Fatal Frame-like set in a small shopping mall that's under construction and you've been called in by the crew to hunt ghosts. There are evil ghosts to banish, but it's mainly finding trapped spirits, and diving into the past to find out what happened to them. Short and sweet. Just a nice wee thing to play.
Uktena 64
Very similar to the squirrel hunting game from a previous Dread X Collection. As I've said many times, I'm extremely done with the "Things seem nice but there's actually horror here and it's very obvious from the start" stuff. I know one of these games will always be someone's first expose to that concept, but fuck me is it ever tiring when you're on your twentieth.
Rose of Meat
A wonderfully bizarre horror(?) shooter set in a constantly shifting grotesque world. It's hard to convey this thing just with words. Look at it.
Seraphixial
Cool looking shotgun. Bad everything else.
Got that thing where every texture is shiny. Relies on sudden loud noises for scares in lieu of atmosphere. I'm not trying to be mean, but it's like babby's first asset flip shooter.
Black Relic
Man, I love Torple Dook's stuff. Always a real treat. He just makes cool wee interesting things. This time we're a mute monk fighting demons with a crossbow to try and save our monastery from the chaos of the escaped black relic. It's basic and slow, but something about it just works for me. Uses a really harsh pixel filter over block colours for a lovely style too.
The Fruit
I think this is my favourite of the bunch. Exploring a creepy village and fighting corrupted townsfolk, all in the name of love. Using a book to collect special words that open paths. Swapping to your axe because you missed and don't have time to manually reload the single-shot rifle before three farmers are upon you. Both brutally difficult at times, but also very fair in save points restoring your health. Definitely keeping my eye on this dev.
The House of Unrest
A small Resi-like in first-person about a priest called in to exorcise another priest. The house evokes a bit of the Spencer mansion. You know the way. You've got a crucifix to banish evil goo, and a pistol to shoot fleshy dudes. It's too straightforward and easy to be any real fun. Bullets are infinite, and enemies move at a snail's pace. Most can be spotted from miles away and unloaded into before they get close enough for you to hear. Nothing resembling a puzzle. It's just going places and picking up items that let you into another area. Tries a bit of comedy that just falls flat too. I don't hate this, it's just kinda meh.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Overall, I enjoyed the majority of these. Another mixed bag, which is standard for Dread X at this point. The hub world this time around started cool (haha arctic base), but quickly just felt empty, and not in the atmospheric way it was intending. It had some weepy story with MCU dialogue that was hard to follow. I don't know if that was because it failed to capture my interest, or was just poorly presented. But when you're sitting there blank-faced at the end while someone is saying stuff that feels like it's meant to be important, it's hard to do anything but chuckle.
For my money, Dread X 2 still has the best hub. Undefeated.
Axis Mundi
A really nice Fatal Frame-like set in a small shopping mall that's under construction and you've been called in by the crew to hunt ghosts. There are evil ghosts to banish, but it's mainly finding trapped spirits, and diving into the past to find out what happened to them. Short and sweet. Just a nice wee thing to play.
Uktena 64
Very similar to the squirrel hunting game from a previous Dread X Collection. As I've said many times, I'm extremely done with the "Things seem nice but there's actually horror here and it's very obvious from the start" stuff. I know one of these games will always be someone's first expose to that concept, but fuck me is it ever tiring when you're on your twentieth.
Rose of Meat
A wonderfully bizarre horror(?) shooter set in a constantly shifting grotesque world. It's hard to convey this thing just with words. Look at it.
Seraphixial
Cool looking shotgun. Bad everything else.
Got that thing where every texture is shiny. Relies on sudden loud noises for scares in lieu of atmosphere. I'm not trying to be mean, but it's like babby's first asset flip shooter.
Black Relic
Man, I love Torple Dook's stuff. Always a real treat. He just makes cool wee interesting things. This time we're a mute monk fighting demons with a crossbow to try and save our monastery from the chaos of the escaped black relic. It's basic and slow, but something about it just works for me. Uses a really harsh pixel filter over block colours for a lovely style too.
The Fruit
I think this is my favourite of the bunch. Exploring a creepy village and fighting corrupted townsfolk, all in the name of love. Using a book to collect special words that open paths. Swapping to your axe because you missed and don't have time to manually reload the single-shot rifle before three farmers are upon you. Both brutally difficult at times, but also very fair in save points restoring your health. Definitely keeping my eye on this dev.
The House of Unrest
A small Resi-like in first-person about a priest called in to exorcise another priest. The house evokes a bit of the Spencer mansion. You know the way. You've got a crucifix to banish evil goo, and a pistol to shoot fleshy dudes. It's too straightforward and easy to be any real fun. Bullets are infinite, and enemies move at a snail's pace. Most can be spotted from miles away and unloaded into before they get close enough for you to hear. Nothing resembling a puzzle. It's just going places and picking up items that let you into another area. Tries a bit of comedy that just falls flat too. I don't hate this, it's just kinda meh.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Overall, I enjoyed the majority of these. Another mixed bag, which is standard for Dread X at this point. The hub world this time around started cool (haha arctic base), but quickly just felt empty, and not in the atmospheric way it was intending. It had some weepy story with MCU dialogue that was hard to follow. I don't know if that was because it failed to capture my interest, or was just poorly presented. But when you're sitting there blank-faced at the end while someone is saying stuff that feels like it's meant to be important, it's hard to do anything but chuckle.
For my money, Dread X 2 still has the best hub. Undefeated.
First half is really cool and creepy, but it gradually descends into leaning far too much on quick cuts between scenarios to force vague confusion. This just became annoying instead of adding to the atmosphere, and the location change felt tacked on and unneccesary.
Game could have been an hour shorter.
Game could have been an hour shorter.
2001
Some real nonsense in here, but overall it's a pretty fun thing. The hammy voice acting is great, and there's a brilliant oppressive atmosphere through the whole house knowing that at any time a ghost can just come through a fucking wall.
Might be the hardest survival horror I've ever played simply due to the ghosts operating with their own set of rules, and having little regard for what you might consider "fair".
Might be the hardest survival horror I've ever played simply due to the ghosts operating with their own set of rules, and having little regard for what you might consider "fair".
That's a dad.
That's a fuckin' dad.
That's a fuckin' dad.
2021
All the weirdos proclaiming that "Survival horror is back" because they're doing Dead Space but shiny, RE4 but with lighting, and bafflingly gave Bloober Team permission to remake fucking Silent Hill 2 would do well to look past the latest AAA £70 prettied up offering and see the indies who've been keeping it going for years.
Alisa rules.
Alisa rules.
2012
Good fun jank nonsense.
Little Shit Simulator.
Little Shit Simulator.
The big war troll with an Australian accent is called "Brûz". Get it?
GET IT?!
The game is fine. More of the same, and I got RAPIDLY tired of the nemesis system this time. Story feels like nothing then suddenly ties into the films. I thought I had finished it when it told me to "Keep Mordor in a state of perpetual war. Only then can the Free People of Middle-earth prepare for the War of the Ring". Sounds like standard post-game shit to keep you playing. Thus, I went looking to see what folk thought of the ending, and discovered a final cutscene you get for holding the forces of Mordor back. You need to withstand 20 sieges in a row, and losing one of them sets you back to 0. You can fuck that sky-high.
!!!TRUE ENDING SPOILERS BELOW!!!
The cutscene shows that Talion held back the dark for decades before succumbing to it and joining the Nazgul, taking Isildur's place. Meaning he was there stabbing the empty beds, and chasing down Arwen. Then later when Mount Doom went nuclear he was riding a fellbeast and got clipped by a flying boulder, and for some reason in that cutscene he has his mask off and we can see his face. Cut to him looking normal again walking in a nice field, dropping his weapons, and no doubt going to rest with his family.
Wow, I care so much now that I know some jobber Nazgul who got murked by a rock was actually my good friend Talion.
Look at this.
GET IT?!
The game is fine. More of the same, and I got RAPIDLY tired of the nemesis system this time. Story feels like nothing then suddenly ties into the films. I thought I had finished it when it told me to "Keep Mordor in a state of perpetual war. Only then can the Free People of Middle-earth prepare for the War of the Ring". Sounds like standard post-game shit to keep you playing. Thus, I went looking to see what folk thought of the ending, and discovered a final cutscene you get for holding the forces of Mordor back. You need to withstand 20 sieges in a row, and losing one of them sets you back to 0. You can fuck that sky-high.
!!!TRUE ENDING SPOILERS BELOW!!!
The cutscene shows that Talion held back the dark for decades before succumbing to it and joining the Nazgul, taking Isildur's place. Meaning he was there stabbing the empty beds, and chasing down Arwen. Then later when Mount Doom went nuclear he was riding a fellbeast and got clipped by a flying boulder, and for some reason in that cutscene he has his mask off and we can see his face. Cut to him looking normal again walking in a nice field, dropping his weapons, and no doubt going to rest with his family.
Wow, I care so much now that I know some jobber Nazgul who got murked by a rock was actually my good friend Talion.
Look at this.
1995
Jennifer, you are terribly out of shape.
2022
A lovely wee survival horror tribute with nods to the greats that somehow didn't piss me off.
2022
UP
2022
It's so disappointing to have "Berserk style slapped onto DMC" be such a wet fart of a thing.
I'm not gonnae sit here and pretend to be some character action master, I'm decent at DMC/Bayo etc, but the combat is trying so hard and just not getting there. Fights feel messy. The lock-on is piss poor and will regularly have you looking at an enemy on the opposite side of the room to the one you're currently juggling. The entire UI is white, weapons cause white flashes on impact, and the prompt for a counter-attack is also white. It gets totally lost in itself. You end up trying to do combos but are expected to hit (O) every 2-3 seconds which just feels like more work.
The inconsistency of the counter-attack also fucks you up. Sometimes it blocks an enemy, other times it parries or throws a projectile to interrupt their animation, it can even freeze them mid-attack meaning they will still unfreeze a second later and continue that swing, usually hitting you with it. You have no control over which of these counters the button performs. Maybe some people like that this kinda keeps you on your toes, but I fuckin' hated it.
The story and characters are sadly about as deep as a puddle. Real generic stuff against an extremely samey backdrop. I was 7 chapters deep out of 25 and just didn't have it in me to trudge the same grey dark bridge again with burning houses nearby. I truly peaced out when it dropped me into the sewers.
Models look quite cool, and there's some sweet animations, particularly when you enter this game's equivalent of devil trigger, but some just ok combat with a clear Berserk tribute aesthetic simply isn't enough.
I'm not gonnae sit here and pretend to be some character action master, I'm decent at DMC/Bayo etc, but the combat is trying so hard and just not getting there. Fights feel messy. The lock-on is piss poor and will regularly have you looking at an enemy on the opposite side of the room to the one you're currently juggling. The entire UI is white, weapons cause white flashes on impact, and the prompt for a counter-attack is also white. It gets totally lost in itself. You end up trying to do combos but are expected to hit (O) every 2-3 seconds which just feels like more work.
The inconsistency of the counter-attack also fucks you up. Sometimes it blocks an enemy, other times it parries or throws a projectile to interrupt their animation, it can even freeze them mid-attack meaning they will still unfreeze a second later and continue that swing, usually hitting you with it. You have no control over which of these counters the button performs. Maybe some people like that this kinda keeps you on your toes, but I fuckin' hated it.
The story and characters are sadly about as deep as a puddle. Real generic stuff against an extremely samey backdrop. I was 7 chapters deep out of 25 and just didn't have it in me to trudge the same grey dark bridge again with burning houses nearby. I truly peaced out when it dropped me into the sewers.
Models look quite cool, and there's some sweet animations, particularly when you enter this game's equivalent of devil trigger, but some just ok combat with a clear Berserk tribute aesthetic simply isn't enough.
2014
Beautiful music, gorgeous visuals, a really interesting story setup, but combat that absolutely bored me to tears.
I'm more annoyed than anything else, because I've heard loads of people say how much this game touched them, but I just cannae bring myself to push through tedium to maybe feel that.
I'm more annoyed than anything else, because I've heard loads of people say how much this game touched them, but I just cannae bring myself to push through tedium to maybe feel that.
2022
woomy