PinkCheese
2016
I sat down and beat it in one sitting for my first playthrough. So fucking good.
RE8 has the scariest segment to ever be in the series and that alone makes me rank it so highly. The Beneviento Estate is a highlight of the series as a whole and was genuinely terrifying for a first time play through.
Village also has my favorite story of the series as a whole and maybe the first genuinely great story in the series that isn't just a very basic A to B plot held up by its characters. This game cemented Ethan as one of the best protagonists in the series and really made me love its villains. Starting with the obvious, Lady Dimitrescu is great (horny not included). Her trying to keep her composure and keep up her "ladylike" facade while chasing you down is fantastic. Heisenberg is probably my favorite of the bunch just because his dialog is fantastically written and his VA pulls it off in stride. His boss fight is also my favorite in the game.
The gameplay is a more polished version of RE7 with some added touches that just make it the better game. The combat is more satisfying simply due to the increase in animation and sound quality while the exploration is more rewarding due to the amount of collectables and treasures to find and the larger amount of puzzles which RE7 sadly lacked in.
Village also has my favorite story of the series as a whole and maybe the first genuinely great story in the series that isn't just a very basic A to B plot held up by its characters. This game cemented Ethan as one of the best protagonists in the series and really made me love its villains. Starting with the obvious, Lady Dimitrescu is great (horny not included). Her trying to keep her composure and keep up her "ladylike" facade while chasing you down is fantastic. Heisenberg is probably my favorite of the bunch just because his dialog is fantastically written and his VA pulls it off in stride. His boss fight is also my favorite in the game.
The gameplay is a more polished version of RE7 with some added touches that just make it the better game. The combat is more satisfying simply due to the increase in animation and sound quality while the exploration is more rewarding due to the amount of collectables and treasures to find and the larger amount of puzzles which RE7 sadly lacked in.
I genuinely really enjoyed the story stuff they added and the limit cut bosses were some of the best content in the series along with the new secret boss.
2021
This review contains spoilers
I was really surprised how much I ended up loving this game. The first 80% is incredible and rarely misses a beat. Exploring Dahna and liberating the different sections of the world was incredible and it really hit some topics and followed through with some punches I really wasn’t expecting it to. My biggest problem was that each area ended with a dungeon that went on a little too long and was uninspired in their layouts. I really feel like the game could have ended at the halfway point and that would have been a great game on its own right, but to have the balls to go “alright now play season 2 fuckers” and throw you into the aftermath of that first half is incredible.
The point the game started to really stumble is when you can tell Bamco told them “no we can’t delay anymore ship it” because that’s when they really start to fumble the themes of the game up to that point and the dungeons get bad. What started as “unbridled hate begets more hate so learn to hold those responsible accountable while not turning that hatred back on the innocent” became “my friends are my power” and while I love these characters a lot and think they hold up the worst parts of the game that message didn’t really gel with the world they had created at this point, at least to me. The game as a whole really stumbles at the end though, the final dungeon is just horrible. If your idea of a difficult final dungeon is making almost every enemy encounter a mini boss that is probably about 5-10 levels higher than the average player at that point than you fucked up big time. The final dungeon alone took me as long as one of the main areas of the first half of the game. In the five hours I spent in the final dungeon, I could have started a fresh save and beat Balseph. That is unreasonable. The final boss rush was really cool at least and that final battle at the end was the best fight in the game. Even if the game stumbled the landed a bit, I teared up seeing all the art of everyone living their lives in the credits, with the shot of Alphen and Shionne in wedding garb hitting me like a truck and really making me realize how much I loved these characters. If nothing else, they really, REALLY nailed the party members.
I just wish Ray Chase could miss once.
The point the game started to really stumble is when you can tell Bamco told them “no we can’t delay anymore ship it” because that’s when they really start to fumble the themes of the game up to that point and the dungeons get bad. What started as “unbridled hate begets more hate so learn to hold those responsible accountable while not turning that hatred back on the innocent” became “my friends are my power” and while I love these characters a lot and think they hold up the worst parts of the game that message didn’t really gel with the world they had created at this point, at least to me. The game as a whole really stumbles at the end though, the final dungeon is just horrible. If your idea of a difficult final dungeon is making almost every enemy encounter a mini boss that is probably about 5-10 levels higher than the average player at that point than you fucked up big time. The final dungeon alone took me as long as one of the main areas of the first half of the game. In the five hours I spent in the final dungeon, I could have started a fresh save and beat Balseph. That is unreasonable. The final boss rush was really cool at least and that final battle at the end was the best fight in the game. Even if the game stumbled the landed a bit, I teared up seeing all the art of everyone living their lives in the credits, with the shot of Alphen and Shionne in wedding garb hitting me like a truck and really making me realize how much I loved these characters. If nothing else, they really, REALLY nailed the party members.
I just wish Ray Chase could miss once.
2012
A much improved sequel. They improved on the things that worked in SA1 while throwing out the things that didn't. I don't hate the radar change like most people seem to, and the mech stages can be pretty fun. The only real sore spots for me are the boss fights. Most can be beaten in 20 seconds and are inoffensive, but sadly the final two fights are the worst in the game. Both are definitely elevated by the music though. The music in SA2 is SUCH a step up its absurd.
This review contains spoilers
As a kid, I loved Spider-Man. My grandfather used to help me collect the comics as a kid, I loved the first Raimi movie and watched it more times than I could count, and I loved the games like the movie tie-in Spider-Man 2 and Web of Shadows. Sadly, at a certain point everything Spidey started to turn to shit. The Amazing movies weren’t great, the games were even worse, and I haven’t heard anything good about the comics in years. A lot of people like Tom Holland's Spidey but everything I’ve seen of him really rubs me the wrong way. In 2018, Insomniac released the first piece of Spider-Man media that made me feel happy in years. Miles Morales was also incredible, but Spider-Man 2 has reminded me why I love Spider-Man so much.
Something I really love about Spider-Man 2 is the humanity on display throughout. There is something incredibly heartwarming about the way Peter and Miles actually care about the villains they put away and actually want to see them turn things around. The way they handle Tombstone and Mysterio in this game is really great and seeing them actually care about Sandman and do everything they can for him even after he destroys part of the city was incredible. There are a few moments in the game that hit me in the gut, but two in particular really got to me, those being the Find Grandpa and Howard side missions. The grandpa mission was just a really sweet and human moment that games tend to gloss over. All it is is an old man wandering off and sitting on a park bench, but him talking about his late wife and being afraid of the end he knows is fastly approaching really got me. The Howard mission takes a character with a cute but ultimately inconsequential role in the first two games, and closes out his story in a more beautiful and touching way than some games can muster for main characters. It knocked me on my ass for a few minutes because despite him not having a big role before, he was a fun character that stuck with me. Part of what makes both of these missions work so well is they show just how much Spider-Man actually cares about the people in the city. He takes time out of his day just to stop and sit and talk with these people. He didn’t have to sit and listen to Grandpa talk about his wife, he didn’t have to stop and talk to Howard about his life and ultimately give his pigeons a new home, but he did because he genuinely cares about the people of the city.
The main story is expectedly amazing. Peter and Miles both come out the other end having grown a lot. Miles gets probably the best arc in the game with him learning how to deal with his hatred of Martin Li. Speaking of Li, the villains in general are really great. Kraven is incredibly menacing. He and his hunters truly feel like this unstoppable force. All that is great, but what I really want to talk about is Venom. Insomniac made one of the best versions of Doc Ock and then followed it up with one of my favorite interpretations of Venom. The tragedy of Harry succumbing to the symbiote and causing all this pain and suffering while thinking he is living out his dream of healing the world is a really good way to use it. Being able to play as him when the symbiote first takes over Harry made me fucking squeal I was so happy to be able to play as him again. The final fight with him is absolutely incredible.
Being able to come out of a Spider-Man game and feel this excited about this franchise again makes me feel so good. I love Spider-Man and I feel like I haven’t been able to feel that way in forever.
Thank you again Insomniac for Rio Morales.
Something I really love about Spider-Man 2 is the humanity on display throughout. There is something incredibly heartwarming about the way Peter and Miles actually care about the villains they put away and actually want to see them turn things around. The way they handle Tombstone and Mysterio in this game is really great and seeing them actually care about Sandman and do everything they can for him even after he destroys part of the city was incredible. There are a few moments in the game that hit me in the gut, but two in particular really got to me, those being the Find Grandpa and Howard side missions. The grandpa mission was just a really sweet and human moment that games tend to gloss over. All it is is an old man wandering off and sitting on a park bench, but him talking about his late wife and being afraid of the end he knows is fastly approaching really got me. The Howard mission takes a character with a cute but ultimately inconsequential role in the first two games, and closes out his story in a more beautiful and touching way than some games can muster for main characters. It knocked me on my ass for a few minutes because despite him not having a big role before, he was a fun character that stuck with me. Part of what makes both of these missions work so well is they show just how much Spider-Man actually cares about the people in the city. He takes time out of his day just to stop and sit and talk with these people. He didn’t have to sit and listen to Grandpa talk about his wife, he didn’t have to stop and talk to Howard about his life and ultimately give his pigeons a new home, but he did because he genuinely cares about the people of the city.
The main story is expectedly amazing. Peter and Miles both come out the other end having grown a lot. Miles gets probably the best arc in the game with him learning how to deal with his hatred of Martin Li. Speaking of Li, the villains in general are really great. Kraven is incredibly menacing. He and his hunters truly feel like this unstoppable force. All that is great, but what I really want to talk about is Venom. Insomniac made one of the best versions of Doc Ock and then followed it up with one of my favorite interpretations of Venom. The tragedy of Harry succumbing to the symbiote and causing all this pain and suffering while thinking he is living out his dream of healing the world is a really good way to use it. Being able to play as him when the symbiote first takes over Harry made me fucking squeal I was so happy to be able to play as him again. The final fight with him is absolutely incredible.
Being able to come out of a Spider-Man game and feel this excited about this franchise again makes me feel so good. I love Spider-Man and I feel like I haven’t been able to feel that way in forever.
Thank you again Insomniac for Rio Morales.
2017
I’m starting to think I was a little too harsh on this game before. Yes Classic Sonic is still terrible and yes it could stand to be a bit longer, but honestly going back to it, it’s just kinda delightful. The soundtrack is killer and the modern/avatar levels are actually pretty fun! This is the first time Sonic has actually acted like himself since Black Knight and despite not being the best written it’s a fairly competent Sonic story that actually makes Eggman seem threatening again.
Really fun racing game that kicked off a great series.
Alright shooter.
2002
I have a lot of fond memories of this game but I have no clue if it's any good or not.
A mostly pleasant experience. People who say Sonic had a rough transition to 3D just hate having fun. Also the Big hate is a little much guys, he just wants to fish and get his buddy back leave him alone :(
Egg Viper can eat my entire ass I clipped through the ground so many times in that fight and when it wasn't me it was my rings.
Egg Viper can eat my entire ass I clipped through the ground so many times in that fight and when it wasn't me it was my rings.
2009
A lot of seventh gen games don’t hold up at all visually and this isn’t an exception. It looks and runs like total ass. But its still really fun to play. It’s one of the better superhero games out there. This story is kinda rough though and the ending is just…? It just reveals its big twist and then credits they don’t do anything with it.
2002
Genuinely one of my favorite games ever. It has a vibe to it that few games have ever matched and is just a pleasure to play. The sharks can go fuck themselves tho.
This is the definition of a hot mess. It’s a gorgeous game with really fun gunplay, but is filled with just tons of jank and an overall lack of polish.
The story is honestly pretty boring, it’s not hard to follow or anything but there’s not much to it and is mostly there to just string together the levels. The only interesting characters were the ones outside of the story, like the artificer or the rogue doc. The rest are just boring and the conclusion is just dull and completely unsatisfying.
Now the star of the show is 100% the gameplay. The movement is fun and the guns all feel great. The only thing really lacking are the abilities. There’s plenty of them but I barely ever needed to use them. My main complaint with the gameplay overall is that it’s just too easy. Most of my deaths were to pits not enemies. I barely felt any challenge and when I did it felt unearned, like in the not so great boss fights.
Would I recommend it? Definitely. It’s a fun game with a killer presentation that is marred by a major lack of polish. Would I blame someone for dropping it after a couple hours? Probably not.
The story is honestly pretty boring, it’s not hard to follow or anything but there’s not much to it and is mostly there to just string together the levels. The only interesting characters were the ones outside of the story, like the artificer or the rogue doc. The rest are just boring and the conclusion is just dull and completely unsatisfying.
Now the star of the show is 100% the gameplay. The movement is fun and the guns all feel great. The only thing really lacking are the abilities. There’s plenty of them but I barely ever needed to use them. My main complaint with the gameplay overall is that it’s just too easy. Most of my deaths were to pits not enemies. I barely felt any challenge and when I did it felt unearned, like in the not so great boss fights.
Would I recommend it? Definitely. It’s a fun game with a killer presentation that is marred by a major lack of polish. Would I blame someone for dropping it after a couple hours? Probably not.
2020
This is a really gorgeous game that has a story that made me tear up a little bit. The gameplay is just doing really simple puzzles but somehow the platforming still manages to be a little unresponsive. It’s only maybe two hours long so it’s easy to recommend.