RDP72
Drake’s Fortune shows its age in quite a few ways but there’s still some fun to be had. It’s quite average at everything it does and doesn’t stand out in any areas.
The narrative of Drake’s fortune is not deep, but it’s solid for what it sets out to do. It is a fun adventure with some cool action set pieces. The characters are quite shallow, but most action stories suffer from this. The only major issue I have with the narrative comes near the end when a new enemy type is introduced and it completely throws off the feel of the game. It went from a normal race for treasure action story into fighting monsters and it didn’t fit narratively in my opinion.
The gameplay isn’t particularly strong in any area. The gunplay is pretty basic but gets the job done, and the other sections, such as the vehicle levels, are fun but wear off quickly. Luckily, the design decision that ruined the narrative for me actually added a lot to the gameplay. Before this enemy variety in the game was severely lacking and it was hurting the experience, but having a new enemy type that reacted differently was a good mixup.
The games visuals definitely aren’t weak, but the jungle/ruins setting is very stagnant throughout the game and this lack of variety holds it back. All in all it looks pretty good for a 2007 game.
Drake’s Fortune has pretty solid voice acting for its main cast. The OST is also solid but never takes the forefront and stands out in any moments.
The game finds replay ability through its multiple difficulties and collectibles. The difficulties do affect gameplay but it seems like only in enemy health and damage dealt.
Drake’s Fortune set the foundation for what I’ve heard is an amazing series. It’s not outstanding at anything but it’s also not bad either. It all culminates into a decently fun experience but a pretty average game.
( 73 / 100 )
The narrative of Drake’s fortune is not deep, but it’s solid for what it sets out to do. It is a fun adventure with some cool action set pieces. The characters are quite shallow, but most action stories suffer from this. The only major issue I have with the narrative comes near the end when a new enemy type is introduced and it completely throws off the feel of the game. It went from a normal race for treasure action story into fighting monsters and it didn’t fit narratively in my opinion.
The gameplay isn’t particularly strong in any area. The gunplay is pretty basic but gets the job done, and the other sections, such as the vehicle levels, are fun but wear off quickly. Luckily, the design decision that ruined the narrative for me actually added a lot to the gameplay. Before this enemy variety in the game was severely lacking and it was hurting the experience, but having a new enemy type that reacted differently was a good mixup.
The games visuals definitely aren’t weak, but the jungle/ruins setting is very stagnant throughout the game and this lack of variety holds it back. All in all it looks pretty good for a 2007 game.
Drake’s Fortune has pretty solid voice acting for its main cast. The OST is also solid but never takes the forefront and stands out in any moments.
The game finds replay ability through its multiple difficulties and collectibles. The difficulties do affect gameplay but it seems like only in enemy health and damage dealt.
Drake’s Fortune set the foundation for what I’ve heard is an amazing series. It’s not outstanding at anything but it’s also not bad either. It all culminates into a decently fun experience but a pretty average game.
( 73 / 100 )
2007
Bioshock released and became an instant classic. It's excellent narrative and engaging gameplay leave it still feeling like a masterpiece despite its age.
It's hard to convey the greatness of Bioshock's narrative without spoilers. It covers the themes of power and capitalism in a great way. Andrew Ryan has some of the best quotes in video games and is an amazing character. The world of rapture is written very well and makes it one of the most unique game worlds I have experienced and its downfall is super interesting. This story getting added flavor through audio logs you find scattered about is a fun way to convey extra elements of the story. The big moment at the game's climax is unforgettable and unlike any other game I have played. The ending sequence of the game is very well done and the narrative decision you make isn't overly complex but it serves the themes well.
Bioshock's gameplay is probably its strongest design area. All of the different plasmids you can get offer a lot of gameplay options. There is also a good bit of weapon variety and you get to make your own build with the upgrade system. The boss fights in the game, besides the final one which was very well done, are a bit forgettable and feel like bullet sponges at times. Battling with big daddy's is an extremely fun optional experience that feel more noteworthy than any of the main bosses. The level design is also well executed and exploring areas never feels monotonous.
The art direction of Bioshock is also wonderful. I like all the glowing signs and the classic 1920's vibe they went for. When you look out of the glass tunnels and see the rest of rapture or just the sea in general it is stunning. The character design of big daddy's is also another fantastic addition to the art direction. The voice acting of the game is surprisingly good for its time and this enhances the game quite a bit since most of the story is told through dialogue or audio logs. The soundtrack doesn't jump out at you often but there are definitely times where it enhances the gameplay experience such as the classical music in the Sander Cohen section of the game.
Bioshock isn't a game with an extremely high level of replayability. There are standard difficulty options and the option to turn off vita-chambers. There is 1 major decision you can make that affects only the ending of the story and technically also affects the difficulty of the game. The rest of the replayability comes through large variety of weapons and plasmids. However, at higher difficulties some plasmids or weapons are so situational that there are dominant builds you will find yourself gravitating towards. Since the game is not very large, I would have appreciated a little bit more replayability.
Bioshock is a masterpiece that has aged quite well and is easily one of the best games released during its console generation. The story, gameplay, and visuals you experience when exploring rapture are one of a kind.
( 90/100 )
It's hard to convey the greatness of Bioshock's narrative without spoilers. It covers the themes of power and capitalism in a great way. Andrew Ryan has some of the best quotes in video games and is an amazing character. The world of rapture is written very well and makes it one of the most unique game worlds I have experienced and its downfall is super interesting. This story getting added flavor through audio logs you find scattered about is a fun way to convey extra elements of the story. The big moment at the game's climax is unforgettable and unlike any other game I have played. The ending sequence of the game is very well done and the narrative decision you make isn't overly complex but it serves the themes well.
Bioshock's gameplay is probably its strongest design area. All of the different plasmids you can get offer a lot of gameplay options. There is also a good bit of weapon variety and you get to make your own build with the upgrade system. The boss fights in the game, besides the final one which was very well done, are a bit forgettable and feel like bullet sponges at times. Battling with big daddy's is an extremely fun optional experience that feel more noteworthy than any of the main bosses. The level design is also well executed and exploring areas never feels monotonous.
The art direction of Bioshock is also wonderful. I like all the glowing signs and the classic 1920's vibe they went for. When you look out of the glass tunnels and see the rest of rapture or just the sea in general it is stunning. The character design of big daddy's is also another fantastic addition to the art direction. The voice acting of the game is surprisingly good for its time and this enhances the game quite a bit since most of the story is told through dialogue or audio logs. The soundtrack doesn't jump out at you often but there are definitely times where it enhances the gameplay experience such as the classical music in the Sander Cohen section of the game.
Bioshock isn't a game with an extremely high level of replayability. There are standard difficulty options and the option to turn off vita-chambers. There is 1 major decision you can make that affects only the ending of the story and technically also affects the difficulty of the game. The rest of the replayability comes through large variety of weapons and plasmids. However, at higher difficulties some plasmids or weapons are so situational that there are dominant builds you will find yourself gravitating towards. Since the game is not very large, I would have appreciated a little bit more replayability.
Bioshock is a masterpiece that has aged quite well and is easily one of the best games released during its console generation. The story, gameplay, and visuals you experience when exploring rapture are one of a kind.
( 90/100 )
2019
Persona 5 Royal was the first game from this beloved series that I played, and it lived up to they hype. Somehow I found myself anticipating getting out of class so that I could go home and attend school in game. P5R does everything very well but doesn't really go above and beyond at anything.
The narrative is pretty solid. Every side story is similar to your own, something happened that caused the character to get labeled a certain way and you spend time with them and help them overcome this. This mirrors how you were initially a criminal and everyone at the school thought of you that way. I think that since the game is all about peoples perceptions, going into the heart and seeing their distorted perception of the world is such a cool design. My only complaint about the story of the game is that there is a bit too much dialogue that is reiterating the same point. Also, I think that the original ending for the game felt better and having the game continue afterwards felt a little awkward. I enjoyed the new royal content, however, I think I would have preferred if the original ending was the full conclusion.
Persona is really two different games mashed together. It's an engaging social sim, that also gives benefits within a JRPG dungeon crawler. This blend fits it so well because I want to strengthen my bond with characters due to how engaging the social sim aspects are, and getting rewarded in the dungeons for doing so only makes it feel better. Near the end of the game, the combat does begin to get stale since it doesn't have the most depth. But this point didn't hit for me until I had already enjoyed it for about 85 hours.
The artistic direction of P5R is fun and simplistic. The anime style cutscenes look fantastic whenever they appear, but when cutscenes are done using the models they end up looking a little clunky and awkward. The best part of the game is it's soundtrack by far. So many songs are extremely catchy and I still listen to them months after I have beaten the game. Voice acting in the game is hit or miss. Sometimes a character says a line and you really feel the emotion, but other times it feels bland and forced.
The game offers a few different difficulty options and a new game + mode in terms of replayability. It could also be fun to replay just because you can use different personas and level up confidants in different orders which would make the gameplay experience at portions of the game vastly different. Since the game gives you a very generous amount of time to do everything you want in one playthrough, there isn't much new content to be found on future playthroughs.
P5R is an incredible game that doesn't have any areas where it is excessively weak. Its soundtrack is absolutely fantastic, but everything else about the game is just above average. I wish that there were more meaningful decisions to make throughout the story so that replaying the game had more differences from your initial playthrough.
( 90/100 )
The narrative is pretty solid. Every side story is similar to your own, something happened that caused the character to get labeled a certain way and you spend time with them and help them overcome this. This mirrors how you were initially a criminal and everyone at the school thought of you that way. I think that since the game is all about peoples perceptions, going into the heart and seeing their distorted perception of the world is such a cool design. My only complaint about the story of the game is that there is a bit too much dialogue that is reiterating the same point. Also, I think that the original ending for the game felt better and having the game continue afterwards felt a little awkward. I enjoyed the new royal content, however, I think I would have preferred if the original ending was the full conclusion.
Persona is really two different games mashed together. It's an engaging social sim, that also gives benefits within a JRPG dungeon crawler. This blend fits it so well because I want to strengthen my bond with characters due to how engaging the social sim aspects are, and getting rewarded in the dungeons for doing so only makes it feel better. Near the end of the game, the combat does begin to get stale since it doesn't have the most depth. But this point didn't hit for me until I had already enjoyed it for about 85 hours.
The artistic direction of P5R is fun and simplistic. The anime style cutscenes look fantastic whenever they appear, but when cutscenes are done using the models they end up looking a little clunky and awkward. The best part of the game is it's soundtrack by far. So many songs are extremely catchy and I still listen to them months after I have beaten the game. Voice acting in the game is hit or miss. Sometimes a character says a line and you really feel the emotion, but other times it feels bland and forced.
The game offers a few different difficulty options and a new game + mode in terms of replayability. It could also be fun to replay just because you can use different personas and level up confidants in different orders which would make the gameplay experience at portions of the game vastly different. Since the game gives you a very generous amount of time to do everything you want in one playthrough, there isn't much new content to be found on future playthroughs.
P5R is an incredible game that doesn't have any areas where it is excessively weak. Its soundtrack is absolutely fantastic, but everything else about the game is just above average. I wish that there were more meaningful decisions to make throughout the story so that replaying the game had more differences from your initial playthrough.
( 90/100 )
2018
Santa Monica Studios dropped a masterpiece in 2018. God of War somehow serves as a continuation of Kratos' story while also being a reboot of the series. You can definitely play the game without any prior knowledge of the previous ones, it only enhances the experience.
On the surface, God of War tells a basic story of trying to climb a mountain to spread Kratos' late wife's ashes. Of course, there are many challenges that stop them along the way and prolong the journey. However, the true story is told through the character development of Atreus and Kratos. It is a touching story about family and Kratos being scared that his son will grow up to be like him. It's beautiful to see Kratos struggling with whether or not he can be a good father after everything he has done. The theme of family is even portrayed through all of the side plots within the game such as Brock and Sindri, and Baldur and his mother. It is very rare to see a game that has a narrative theme rooted so deeply within itself and it is one of the strongest aspects of GoW.
The gameplay is not overly complex but very fun. The combat has enough variety to not feel overly boring, and it even gets added depth after Kratos gains his second weapon. Valkyrie fights are where the combat system shines the brightest. They feel fast paced and give a good challenge in order to keep players engaged. Some low points of the combat are the low diversity of enemies. Fighting so many of the same minibosses and enemies starts to weigh on the player, especially near the end of the game. When not in combat, the game has simplistic puzzles or climbing sections that keep the player slightly engaged while characters talk to each other and reveal more of the story. I think that this was a great design and works very well in place of cutscenes for dialogue. These sections get slightly obnoxious near the end of the game due to the heavy amount of backtracking.
The designs and animations of the characters in the game are very high quality. Whenever Kratos lands a killing blow you are in for a treat. Even when you watch the same one on a troll for the 15th time. The score is also very well designed in the game, but, none of the tracks really jump out and stick with you after completion.
The side quests in GoW are extremely well designed. Almost all of them are in line with the games themes and add extra content to the game. There is a good amount of postgame content for players such as the Valkyrie fights or finding collectibles throughout the realms. The game has replayability options in the form of changing stats for different builds, and difficulty options. The only issue with replaying the game is that the dialogue and walking sections are far more annoying once you've already completed the game once.
All things considered, GoW 2018 is an amazing continuation of the story and could also serve as a good introduction to new players. With fun reactive combat, beautiful animations, a solid OST, and one of the most well written narratives in a while, it is easily one of the best games I have played in recent times.
( 92/100 )
On the surface, God of War tells a basic story of trying to climb a mountain to spread Kratos' late wife's ashes. Of course, there are many challenges that stop them along the way and prolong the journey. However, the true story is told through the character development of Atreus and Kratos. It is a touching story about family and Kratos being scared that his son will grow up to be like him. It's beautiful to see Kratos struggling with whether or not he can be a good father after everything he has done. The theme of family is even portrayed through all of the side plots within the game such as Brock and Sindri, and Baldur and his mother. It is very rare to see a game that has a narrative theme rooted so deeply within itself and it is one of the strongest aspects of GoW.
The gameplay is not overly complex but very fun. The combat has enough variety to not feel overly boring, and it even gets added depth after Kratos gains his second weapon. Valkyrie fights are where the combat system shines the brightest. They feel fast paced and give a good challenge in order to keep players engaged. Some low points of the combat are the low diversity of enemies. Fighting so many of the same minibosses and enemies starts to weigh on the player, especially near the end of the game. When not in combat, the game has simplistic puzzles or climbing sections that keep the player slightly engaged while characters talk to each other and reveal more of the story. I think that this was a great design and works very well in place of cutscenes for dialogue. These sections get slightly obnoxious near the end of the game due to the heavy amount of backtracking.
The designs and animations of the characters in the game are very high quality. Whenever Kratos lands a killing blow you are in for a treat. Even when you watch the same one on a troll for the 15th time. The score is also very well designed in the game, but, none of the tracks really jump out and stick with you after completion.
The side quests in GoW are extremely well designed. Almost all of them are in line with the games themes and add extra content to the game. There is a good amount of postgame content for players such as the Valkyrie fights or finding collectibles throughout the realms. The game has replayability options in the form of changing stats for different builds, and difficulty options. The only issue with replaying the game is that the dialogue and walking sections are far more annoying once you've already completed the game once.
All things considered, GoW 2018 is an amazing continuation of the story and could also serve as a good introduction to new players. With fun reactive combat, beautiful animations, a solid OST, and one of the most well written narratives in a while, it is easily one of the best games I have played in recent times.
( 92/100 )
Sekiro is yet another masterpiece developed by FromSoftware. Its atmosphere and stellar combat make it well deserving of GOTY.
Sekiro tells possibly FromSoft's least ambiguous story to date. You are tasked with protecting the divine child and ending immortality. This leads into a beautfiul tale that features sacrifice, moral decisions, and portrays what one is willing to do for their homeland. Finding out more details about the lore through sharing drinks with NPC's is also a fantastic touch and a great way to add lore into the game.
Sekiro has combat that is unparalleled by any game I have played. The flow state you achieve when playing it is like no other. Almost every single boss is amazingly designed to feel like a rhythmic dance where one mistake can cost you your health bar. Outside of combat, however, traversal leaves me wanting more. Exploration isn't rewarded as much as other FromSoft games due to the lack of spells and weapons in the game. Enemies also don't pose much of a threat since almost all of them can be sneak killed, grappled around, or just ran past to the next idol. This makes the areas between bosses feel far worse than other games.
Sekiro has areas that are very distinct from eachother and beautifully designed. The look of the divine realm and final boss arena are just two examples of how incredible the art direction of this game is. The sound design is also great, but the tracks never take the forefront as much as they do in other games with such a big emphasis on boss battles.
Sekiro's replayability comes from you the player mastering it's combat system. You can get the new game + feeling of demolishing early bosses on a new save file since your skills as a player have improved so much and not necessarily your stats. Sekiro doesn't have build or weapon variety like other FromSoft games but it makes up for this by offering many different ways to increase the difficulty in subsequent playthroughs such as the demon bell or not accepting the charm. You can sadly only experience slowly mastering the combat and then replaying it to see how far you have came once.
Overall, Sekiro is a fantastic game with the best combat in any game I have played. It has a strong narrative and good options to obtain extra lore. It's art direction is incredible but it leaves a little to be desired in terms of replayability and rewards for exploration.
( 92/100 )
Sekiro tells possibly FromSoft's least ambiguous story to date. You are tasked with protecting the divine child and ending immortality. This leads into a beautfiul tale that features sacrifice, moral decisions, and portrays what one is willing to do for their homeland. Finding out more details about the lore through sharing drinks with NPC's is also a fantastic touch and a great way to add lore into the game.
Sekiro has combat that is unparalleled by any game I have played. The flow state you achieve when playing it is like no other. Almost every single boss is amazingly designed to feel like a rhythmic dance where one mistake can cost you your health bar. Outside of combat, however, traversal leaves me wanting more. Exploration isn't rewarded as much as other FromSoft games due to the lack of spells and weapons in the game. Enemies also don't pose much of a threat since almost all of them can be sneak killed, grappled around, or just ran past to the next idol. This makes the areas between bosses feel far worse than other games.
Sekiro has areas that are very distinct from eachother and beautifully designed. The look of the divine realm and final boss arena are just two examples of how incredible the art direction of this game is. The sound design is also great, but the tracks never take the forefront as much as they do in other games with such a big emphasis on boss battles.
Sekiro's replayability comes from you the player mastering it's combat system. You can get the new game + feeling of demolishing early bosses on a new save file since your skills as a player have improved so much and not necessarily your stats. Sekiro doesn't have build or weapon variety like other FromSoft games but it makes up for this by offering many different ways to increase the difficulty in subsequent playthroughs such as the demon bell or not accepting the charm. You can sadly only experience slowly mastering the combat and then replaying it to see how far you have came once.
Overall, Sekiro is a fantastic game with the best combat in any game I have played. It has a strong narrative and good options to obtain extra lore. It's art direction is incredible but it leaves a little to be desired in terms of replayability and rewards for exploration.
( 92/100 )
I decided to revisit Skyrim, and to what should be nobody's surprise, it is still a fantastic game. When a game blows up as big as Skyrim did its not surprising to see so many people calling it overrated or saying it wasn't good. Those people are absolutely wrong.
The story of Skyrim is definitely not its strong suit. It is a fairly basic chosen one story that has been told many times before. The moments of depth that come from it are located within its civil war storyline. This questline starts off by seeming very intriguing and philosophical, but it feels rushed and unfinished by the end of it. Luckily, there is plenty of elder scrolls lore to be discovered throughout the vast game world to make up for this.
The gameplay is initially very fun. Looting dungeons, leveling up skills, and crafting new armor and weapons is a fun gameplay loop for a majority of the game. Due to the enemy scaling and a slight lack of combat depth, this gets quite repetitive near the end of a playthrough. The enemy scaling also makes it difficult to drastically change your build without feeling underpowered, which only further adds to the repetitiveness. Even with these issues, exploring the world and fighting dragons is still some of the most fun you can find within an RPG from this era.
Skyrim's world is beautiful. The northern lights that can be seen and the way it looks from a mountain top is stunning. The soundtrack for the game is also a masterpiece. Every track feels so fitting for the game and is beautifully crafted.
Bethesda created one of the most replayed games ever with this one. It is not surprising to see people with a large number of playthroughs. This is due to the great build variety in the game and how packed with content it is. Even if you just wanted to do one playthrough it would take you many hours to complete all of the major quests, and even longer if you wanted to fight the ebony warrior.
Overall, Skyrim is a game with an average fantasy story and great gameplay that slightly shows its age. However, it is carried by its beautiful, content filled map, excellent soundtrack, and high replayability. It is far from the greatest game ever, but it by no means deserves the hate it currently gets.
( 92/100 )
The story of Skyrim is definitely not its strong suit. It is a fairly basic chosen one story that has been told many times before. The moments of depth that come from it are located within its civil war storyline. This questline starts off by seeming very intriguing and philosophical, but it feels rushed and unfinished by the end of it. Luckily, there is plenty of elder scrolls lore to be discovered throughout the vast game world to make up for this.
The gameplay is initially very fun. Looting dungeons, leveling up skills, and crafting new armor and weapons is a fun gameplay loop for a majority of the game. Due to the enemy scaling and a slight lack of combat depth, this gets quite repetitive near the end of a playthrough. The enemy scaling also makes it difficult to drastically change your build without feeling underpowered, which only further adds to the repetitiveness. Even with these issues, exploring the world and fighting dragons is still some of the most fun you can find within an RPG from this era.
Skyrim's world is beautiful. The northern lights that can be seen and the way it looks from a mountain top is stunning. The soundtrack for the game is also a masterpiece. Every track feels so fitting for the game and is beautifully crafted.
Bethesda created one of the most replayed games ever with this one. It is not surprising to see people with a large number of playthroughs. This is due to the great build variety in the game and how packed with content it is. Even if you just wanted to do one playthrough it would take you many hours to complete all of the major quests, and even longer if you wanted to fight the ebony warrior.
Overall, Skyrim is a game with an average fantasy story and great gameplay that slightly shows its age. However, it is carried by its beautiful, content filled map, excellent soundtrack, and high replayability. It is far from the greatest game ever, but it by no means deserves the hate it currently gets.
( 92/100 )
Red Dead Redemption 2 is a beautiful story told through the gaming medium. The attention to detail is almost unmatched by any other game.
Rockstar delivers another fantastic narrative for this game that focuses on whether or not a bad person can change their ways and be “redeemed” in a short period of time. The story is very emotional and touching. Its quality is rarely seen within the gaming industry. The story struggles with pacing at times and feels just a little bloated, but the overall quality far outweighs these small issues.
The gameplay of RDR2 has quite a bit of depth. Besides the main missions of riding a horse and shooting, there are a lot of side activities to do such as hunting and fishing. Rockstar really created a sandbox full of fun things to do. Sadly, the main gameplay of shooting the enemies didn’t click with me. I think the gunplay feels a little slow and both third and first person is slightly off. There are also long sections of riding your horse between areas which can get quite boring.
The game world is absolutely gorgeous. Everything is crafted so well that it makes the environment feel real and beautiful. This is paired with some of the best voice acting in gaming and a score that accents the games best moments perfectly.
The side content in the game offers some of the best dialogue that it has to offer. The online also has some fun to be had even though it seems to have died down now. There are also a few options of endings to be had depending on your choices throughout the game. The only thing that hurts replayability is the slower sections of the game. After you’ve anlready played through them once it becomes much harder a second time. All of this combines and makes RDR2 a very replayable game despite that.
RDR2 is an incredible game with a story that will go down in history as one of the best gaming has to offer. If you don’t mind the excessive horse riding and the gunplay fits your play style more then I can fully understand you seeing this as a perfect game.
( 93/100 )
Rockstar delivers another fantastic narrative for this game that focuses on whether or not a bad person can change their ways and be “redeemed” in a short period of time. The story is very emotional and touching. Its quality is rarely seen within the gaming industry. The story struggles with pacing at times and feels just a little bloated, but the overall quality far outweighs these small issues.
The gameplay of RDR2 has quite a bit of depth. Besides the main missions of riding a horse and shooting, there are a lot of side activities to do such as hunting and fishing. Rockstar really created a sandbox full of fun things to do. Sadly, the main gameplay of shooting the enemies didn’t click with me. I think the gunplay feels a little slow and both third and first person is slightly off. There are also long sections of riding your horse between areas which can get quite boring.
The game world is absolutely gorgeous. Everything is crafted so well that it makes the environment feel real and beautiful. This is paired with some of the best voice acting in gaming and a score that accents the games best moments perfectly.
The side content in the game offers some of the best dialogue that it has to offer. The online also has some fun to be had even though it seems to have died down now. There are also a few options of endings to be had depending on your choices throughout the game. The only thing that hurts replayability is the slower sections of the game. After you’ve anlready played through them once it becomes much harder a second time. All of this combines and makes RDR2 a very replayable game despite that.
RDR2 is an incredible game with a story that will go down in history as one of the best gaming has to offer. If you don’t mind the excessive horse riding and the gunplay fits your play style more then I can fully understand you seeing this as a perfect game.
( 93/100 )
2016
Dark Souls 3 is the perfect end to one of the best trilogies in gaming. Its atmosphere and gameplay make it stand out as one of the best of the 2010’s.
DS3 strikes the perfect blend of drawing inspiration from the first game while still doing its own thing. The game tells a beautiful tale of trying to protect the world through a process that also destroys it. Then, it ends by giving you the same choice players were faced with in the first game but this time with added nuance. I can’t think of a better way to end the trilogy’s story. This narrative is of course portrayed through ambiguous npcs and item descriptions.
DS3 achieves a great flow between trekking through a dungeon to get to the next boss and struggling against a boss to get to the next dungeon. With excellent level and boss design this back and forth never gets tiring. There is a very large roster of bosses so it isn’t too egregious, but there are a few too many gimmick fights for my taste.
The world and character design of the game is stunning, but pales in comparison to the soundtrack. Almost every boss has a track that will blow you away. Specifically the way they had throwbacks to previous games in the music from the final boss was incredible.
DS3 also offers a lot of replayability with its build variety. There are many different builds players can have but gameplay-wise it mostly boils down to martial or magical builds. When you add new game + and PVP there are a lot of things to keep you playing the game.
Dark Souls 3 has left a lasting impact on me and cemented the dark souls trilogy as one of the best in gaming.
( 97/100 )
DS3 strikes the perfect blend of drawing inspiration from the first game while still doing its own thing. The game tells a beautiful tale of trying to protect the world through a process that also destroys it. Then, it ends by giving you the same choice players were faced with in the first game but this time with added nuance. I can’t think of a better way to end the trilogy’s story. This narrative is of course portrayed through ambiguous npcs and item descriptions.
DS3 achieves a great flow between trekking through a dungeon to get to the next boss and struggling against a boss to get to the next dungeon. With excellent level and boss design this back and forth never gets tiring. There is a very large roster of bosses so it isn’t too egregious, but there are a few too many gimmick fights for my taste.
The world and character design of the game is stunning, but pales in comparison to the soundtrack. Almost every boss has a track that will blow you away. Specifically the way they had throwbacks to previous games in the music from the final boss was incredible.
DS3 also offers a lot of replayability with its build variety. There are many different builds players can have but gameplay-wise it mostly boils down to martial or magical builds. When you add new game + and PVP there are a lot of things to keep you playing the game.
Dark Souls 3 has left a lasting impact on me and cemented the dark souls trilogy as one of the best in gaming.
( 97/100 )
2020
This is quite possibly the highest quality game I have ever played. You can see the incredible attention to detail Larian put into it, and it paid off in a major way.
Baldur's Gate 3 has a story that, on its own, is paced well and has a decently strong narrative theme. When all of the side characters are added into the mix, it is taken to another level. Watching all of their stories intertwine with the main plot, all while the stakes continue to raise as each act concludes was breathtaking. Some excellent writing and a great narrative experience all the way through.
The D&D based gameplay is a great match for the game and Larian designed it well enough to allow for some good depth and tactical plays. Sometimes traversal can feel slow and companions can miss jumps and get left behind for seemingly no reason. But this is a minor complaint in an otherwise excellently designed system.
Graphically, BG3 is not the most impressive game upon release. However, the design of characters and sheer size / detail of some locations in the game make up for this fact. This, coupled with fantastic voice acting and a very strong OST make for a very pleasing game.
BG3 allows for a lot of roleplay possibilities and more meaningful in game decisions than probably any other game I've played. The amount of different ways to complete quests/encounters is truly mind-boggling. This leads to a highly replayable experience on top of an already extremely lengthy campaign.
I feel that BG3 shows the heights that are possible within the CRPG genre. It is easily one of the greatest games I have ever played and I find it hard to give it anything other than a perfect score. (100 / 100)
Baldur's Gate 3 has a story that, on its own, is paced well and has a decently strong narrative theme. When all of the side characters are added into the mix, it is taken to another level. Watching all of their stories intertwine with the main plot, all while the stakes continue to raise as each act concludes was breathtaking. Some excellent writing and a great narrative experience all the way through.
The D&D based gameplay is a great match for the game and Larian designed it well enough to allow for some good depth and tactical plays. Sometimes traversal can feel slow and companions can miss jumps and get left behind for seemingly no reason. But this is a minor complaint in an otherwise excellently designed system.
Graphically, BG3 is not the most impressive game upon release. However, the design of characters and sheer size / detail of some locations in the game make up for this fact. This, coupled with fantastic voice acting and a very strong OST make for a very pleasing game.
BG3 allows for a lot of roleplay possibilities and more meaningful in game decisions than probably any other game I've played. The amount of different ways to complete quests/encounters is truly mind-boggling. This leads to a highly replayable experience on top of an already extremely lengthy campaign.
I feel that BG3 shows the heights that are possible within the CRPG genre. It is easily one of the greatest games I have ever played and I find it hard to give it anything other than a perfect score. (100 / 100)
2022
Elden Ring is one of the greatest games ever made, the pinnacle of FromSoft's game design, and it will be a timeless classic for years to come.
You see the iconic FromSoftware ambiguous story with extremely deep lore for players to dive into if they are so inclined. Although the main story isn't as well written as some of the Souls games, it features some of the best quests the company has made. But as always, for people more focused on gameplay it can almost be completely ignored.
The gameplay is absolutely fantastic, with amazing boss design, great depth to combat, and absolutely stellar exploration. The wonder you feel when discovering a new area is unparalleled. Not only are the open areas a fun time to explore, but the more linear dungeon sections still have the great level design FromSoft has become known for.
The artistic style of Elden Ring is also a masterpiece. The game world looks like a watercolor painting and the OST makes for some extremely climactic boss fights. The intro music is so iconic that I won't forget it anytime soon.
Elden Ring is also a game that you can play for countless hours and never get tired of. Not only is the initial playthrough long enough to warrant the $60 price tag, but there is new game+, PVP, and many different builds and weapons within the builds for you to try out. All of this depth makes Elden Ring a highly replayable game.
Overall, Elden Ring is my current favorite game of all time and I find it hard to imagine anything dethroning it soon. I would recommend this to anyone as long as they can get past the high difficulty curve for new players. (100 / 100)
You see the iconic FromSoftware ambiguous story with extremely deep lore for players to dive into if they are so inclined. Although the main story isn't as well written as some of the Souls games, it features some of the best quests the company has made. But as always, for people more focused on gameplay it can almost be completely ignored.
The gameplay is absolutely fantastic, with amazing boss design, great depth to combat, and absolutely stellar exploration. The wonder you feel when discovering a new area is unparalleled. Not only are the open areas a fun time to explore, but the more linear dungeon sections still have the great level design FromSoft has become known for.
The artistic style of Elden Ring is also a masterpiece. The game world looks like a watercolor painting and the OST makes for some extremely climactic boss fights. The intro music is so iconic that I won't forget it anytime soon.
Elden Ring is also a game that you can play for countless hours and never get tired of. Not only is the initial playthrough long enough to warrant the $60 price tag, but there is new game+, PVP, and many different builds and weapons within the builds for you to try out. All of this depth makes Elden Ring a highly replayable game.
Overall, Elden Ring is my current favorite game of all time and I find it hard to imagine anything dethroning it soon. I would recommend this to anyone as long as they can get past the high difficulty curve for new players. (100 / 100)