This is my second time completing the game, only this time it’s meant to be played in co-op and with a mage instead of a warrior class. My first time playing this solo was more positive. The main reason is the game’s balance feeling terrible with 2 players. The enemies are far more challenging with more health and the hits are more deadly. It feels like the game is balanced for 4 players when you play online. It was so bad, that we beat certain bosses in solo in order to advance. This includes beating the last boss. The lag makes things worse. The game also has certain bugs/glitches regardless of the mode you play. Especially the last area. Don’t get the game if you bought it for online play. If you’re planning on playing solo just to get a Diablo game on the vita, then it might be worth it if you keep your expectations low. You can add a star more in that case.

Bloo Kid 2 is a very good game for the price you’re paying (€4 or less). The platforming is precise and feels right, the style is inoffensive and charming, the 3D is good on the 3DS, the soundtrack is pretty catchy and there is a lot to do if you try to collect all the stars. Every level has objectives where you can collect up to 6 stars. Objectives include beating all the enemies, collecting everything, speed run and full health. You don’t have to do everything in a single run, so you can focus on one aspect to make things more manageable. This is needed because the game can be pretty tough. I managed to collect all the stars except for one with a completed level. I could also not finish the special level 5-3. This is the very last level that was added later through a patch. With this level, you’re literally not allowed to make a mistake because you have to keep jumping on objects to advance. There is no ground you can stand on for the most part. It’s a shame that I could not finish this level. The game could have scored higher if it wasn’t for this last level. Still though, it’s 100% worth playing if you like platformers.

This is a love story that is usually very typical. It’s made more interesting because of the gods and the land involved. The story keeps reminding you that despite the gods acting like humans sometimes, they’re still unpredictable and can make harsh decisions because they just look at things differently. There is also a bit of Japanese culture that can make this game stand out. By that, I mean the fact that traditional objects or behaviours are mentioned and it’s explained when you click on the terms. It also helps that the characters are interesting and I did get involved with the story. It has a heart despite one fault that I am not a fan of but this depends on the reader whether it’s a flaw or not. This game’s story is, to put it best, the anime type that only seems to come from a male author. By that I mean almost every single women falling for the main character including gods, somehow impregnating women without doing the deed, women mostly thinking and fighting over guys, being a male pervert is somehow a normal personality trait etc. I’m totally not about that but it still won me over for the other things that I mentioned. Also the fact that many of the characters do grow and they learn some harsh lessons. Masaki (the main character) would always say reality is merciless and it’s quite fitting. Other faults are mainly typo and there could have probably been more budget since the game is mostly reading with some beautiful art that gets reused sometimes. 3D on the 3DS would have also been welcome. Another surprise is the game’s soundtrack. It’s quite catchy and enjoyable. Anyway, you probably know what you’re getting yourself into and you probably know whether it’s the right game for you or not. You can be rest assured that it’s not bad at least. It can surprise you in a good way.

PoP tSoT is a classic. There’s no doubt about that. However, I feel that I’ve enjoyed it less than I could have because of the PC version. The game doesn’t natively support Xbox controllers. I had to force it through a program. You can tell the controls are off or even cause trouble. It made the game needlessly frustrating with the platforming and fights. But I’m not sure if I should hold this against the game itself since it never supported it. Other than that everything else is A+ for its time. Even though the story is not the focus, it’s beautifully told through dialogues that feel natural. The Persian atmosphere is very nice to see, it reminds me a bit of Arabic. The puzzles are good. The fights can be cheap but I’m not sure if it’s the controls that made it feel this way. Either way, it’s worth experiencing.

I’ve had a good time playing this but it’s a bit flawed. Not being able to save is already mentioned with TheQuietGamer’s review. Whilst I’d have preferred to save, I do think that you can get by for the most part because the many items scattered is a way of the developers balancing the challenge. You will get many big medkits and definitely more ammo near the end. So you shouldn’t feel you’re at a big disadvantage. I’d feel you can cheese most fights if you keep all the consumables that you collected throughout. I have more issues with the game’s platforming. There have been a few times where I died because it was hard to judge where you land when you jump. And when that happens, it’s instant death. It is this that makes the lack of save apparent because you’ll have to do the level again. Granted most of the levels are short and it didn’t happen constantly but it can still be annoying. Whilst the game is not big on puzzles, the focus lies more on platforming and staying alive since some of the traps are instant death too. Still though, I’m impressed with the game on the GBA. It kept my attention the entire time and it didn’t overstay its welcome. If it was a full priced game at the time of release, then it wouldn’t be worth it because it’s too short and not impressive enough for what you pay. As a curiosity for a TR fan and keeping retro gaming in mind, then it’s worth checking out for cheap.

Trine 2 was a frustrating experience when played with a partner who just wants to have fun. Trine 3 fixes the annoyances that I had with 2 but it creates new problems of its own. The main 2 being the platforming and the game’s length/story. Unlike the previous games, here you can move freely in 3D, including solving the puzzles. I normally like this addition but it’s very hard to judge where you’re jumping in this game. And while I don’t mind games being short, it felt like things were starting to get interesting and then it suddenly ends. The story is also left unfinished. I did enjoy the story more in this. Hopefully Trine 4 continues where 3 left. The game is also quite buggy but nothing game breaking. I’m not sure if the previous Trine games were this buggy. You can think of weird sound effects and physics. There was also one time where player 2 kept running in the world map and it wasn’t possible to turn the controller off. We had to restart the PS4 slim. I love that your progress is saved through the checkpoints you encounter. This means that you don’t even have to finish a level even when you play it for the first time. When you reach a checkpoint, you can exit the level and continue from that point. You can even select any checkpoint you want within a level. The menu also shows you all the collectibles you’re missing. You can easily select a checkpoint with a missing collectible, get it and exit right away. You don’t have to finish the level or reach a different checkpoint to save your progress with the collectibles. The challenge is also considerably less punishing. You can now select any of the 3 playable characters even when player 2 already has the same character. This is a big deal because some characters are better for certain sections/puzzles. I also liked the bite sized challenges between the big levels. Overall, I enjoyed my time with Trine 3. More than the previous games despite the issues it has. I’m hopeful that Trine 4 will be the best of all the previous games.

Mega Man Legends is a bit hard to review. It’s definitely one of the classics that you need to play, but it’s not without its faults or things that could have been done better. Especially if you play this on the PSP like I did. Still though, it’s probably asking too much from a PS1 game. In many respects, it’s ahead of its time. You can go to a save point, fast travel and skip cutscenes for instance. It’s like a mini open world game where you can explore to your heart’s content, do valuable side quests or completely ignore getting items that can be game changing. The amount of freedom is pretty crazy. It’s also a very charming game with many little details that make you appreciate what the devs did. The island is very impressive. You can visit most buildings and it’s pretty huge. The story is presented in a cute way with a good performance by the voice cast. Still, there could have been a better map that is less confusing, I’d have like to save everywhere instead of going to Roll and the fast travel option is also limited. It’s needed because the game has huge areas. Sometimes it’s annoying to return to the surface just to save. The reason I brought up the PSP is because of the controls. You’re going to need all the buttons from the DualShock controller that the PSP is missing. It makes for very awkward controls when you need to use the special weapons and need to aim properly. Customising the controls is not going to fix this because you need pretty much all the buttons that the PSP lacks. What I did is creating custom controls for 2 different situations. The default one when I’m playing normally and the other for boss fights when I need precise controls. MML1 has been an exciting journey that makes me look forward to MML2 even more.

I haven’t played many kart racing games except for the Mario Kart ones and Sonic and Sega All-Stars Racing. This game holds up really well when compared to them and this should tell you something about the quality of CTR. It has all the ingredients of being fantastic. The gameplay is good with some decent depth to get you engaged, the challenge is just right for the most part, the graphics are great for the time and and I love the adventure mode. It has good collectibles and varied races. If I compare it directly to Mario Kart 8 (one of my favourite games), then Mario Kart 8 is more polished (controls), the characters are more recognisable (though this is very subjective) and the quality is higher (graphics) but CTR has a better thought out single player mode and while the other points are less, they’re still very good. If there is one flaw, then perhaps an auto save would have been welcome. Or at least being asked to save instead of driving to the save tv every time you need it. Either way, you can’t go wrong with it. If you enjoy kart racing games, then this is definitely worth playing.

A very decent game and it’s crazy what you’re getting for €1. It looks like a horizontal shmup shooter but it plays a little bit differently. There are only 10 stages that could be completed within minutes each but you can aim for high ranks and there is an in-game achievement. The graphics are charming, the soundtrack is pretty catchy, the 3D is good and I enjoyed my time with this. I felt compelled enough to get A rank on all stages and leave it at that. It’s very challenging if you want to go for S and I wanted to leave the game on a high note.

I played the GoG version.

Kao 1 is a typical old school platformer. Sometimes you want to collect things, explore themed levels and enjoy colourful graphics. However, the game is showing its age. The controls are not the best even with a controller, the enemies often hit you before you do while you have a hard time getting close, the camera is stuck sometimes where you can’t see where you’re supposed to jump and there are some other situations that cause you to die. Expect to die a lot in the game. And yet I completed the game and unlocked the bonus level. There is a great sense of satisfaction when you concentrate in order to not lose a precious life. The game let’s you decide where to place a checkpoint. You always start with 1 and can find more while you play. When you exit a level, the count resets to 1 again, encouraging you to use what you have. It’s a great idea and super handy. I’m surprised I haven’t seen this with other platformers. If you’re a huge fan of old school platformers, then this is worth playing as long as you know what you’re getting yourself into.

The game was literally unplayable without dgVoodoo2. I have windows 10 with a 2012 laptop. At first I played the game with keyboard and it felt awful. I thought the game didn’t accept my Xbox One controller but that’s not the case! You just need to go to the options first, select an action and then select the button that goes with it. You can play the levels but you can’t use the controller in the menu or selecting a level. I’ve read a few reviews mentioning that they can’t use their controllers but I’m worried they just got confused. I know I was.