sometime in the past i wanted to check out ghost trick for ds because everybody told me it was so good it was so great it was so special it will make you cry and whatever the fuck

i tried to play it and i definitely didnt vibe with the puzzle gameplay even though the premise of the story was pretty interesting

now after some time they decided to give it some remaster treatment and im glad they did because this really made me decide to finally get into the groove and complete this game once and for all and i can say that im really glad they did

obvious stuff out of the way theres no more 2 screens to play the game but only one and this translates into a fairly trickier experience BUT i can say that 90% of the time i didnt have any issues with it unless i needed to take the ghost line in between 2 objects or shit like that but i mean not a huge problem if you ask me then the art direction got an entire HD overhaul realistically the art style of the game is already fucking amazing the portraits with those thicc ass lines and amazing character designs to boot really drive this goofy and emotional experience home an when you get them into HD glory it really shines of a new light im not entirely contrary to the original ds pixel style even though the character models do just look like a bunch of random flashy pixels that move but still good and then the ost is probably one of its strongest suit but was really damaged by the fact that the sound power of the nintendo ds was the same of a nokia in 2006 so you know its pretty bad and thats why they made an ENTIRELY ARRANGED OST and guys it slaps dear fucking god they really did an amazing job on this one its absurd how good this can get when technology isnt the one of 2010

so all in all really good remaster i wished they had done some more stuff for the game itself such as stretching it to fit 16:9 and incorporate the hourglass into that screen instead of just giving some black bars on the side and putting the stuff there but i guess its fine its really a great remaster they even put some more stuff like concept art and illustrations and music and some challenges i didnt play because i hate the gameplay

as for that i cannot say im the biggest fan of the gameplay granted im a huge hater of puzzle games because they make me feel stupid im not a really patient person and im too adhd to keep my attention on the little details here and there in the game BUT before someone comments that i should die i can say this is a very elite time for the puzzle genre it has a lot of different places with different objects to use the main gimmick of possessing stuff and using it do defy death against a time limit is really fun if you ask me and i can see how they put some good thought into this and as soon as i was starting to be overwhelmed by the complexity of levels and overall kind of tired they introduced a banger new way of playing and thats very clevel

still ! not my favorite aspect of the game at one chapter (you know the one i will give you an hint egg statue) i completely lost it and opened a walkthrough im sorry shu takumi i know you tried to make me enjoy this gameplay but i just couldnt

where this really shine is the narrative and interactions between characters throughout the game with some funny moments (i havent laughed a single time not my humor but i guess they should be addressed as funny moments) and great exchanges and an overarching plot that spans for a decade

the main intrigue of the story is what pushes you till the end of the game you are a dead guy who doesnt remember anything of his past and all of the sudden he begins to use some ghost powers to manipulate stuff and save a detective cute redhead girl called lynne and oh this is not the only time youre gonna save her shes gonna die a lot in this fucking game rest assured

still the plot twists really hit and the story gets some more into the paranormal aspect of things which i thought was kinda weird at first even though this game is already kind of bizarre but at the same time it gets so fucking emotional if you ask me and its really cool to go from house to house from place to place to resolve murders and getting to know each of the different characters and their quirks

lynne the sweetest little cupcake in the entirety of the universe i love her shes so brave and cute i enjoyed her as a side heroine throughout i swear to fucking god also kamila is pretty great and i enjoy her sisterly relationship with lynne and she has one of my favourite character designs of the game and also UGHHHHHHHHHHHHH MISSILE MY SON I LOVE HIM SO DEARLY I WANT TO HOLD HIM AND PET HIM FORREAL then daddy jowd is also kind of interesting i didnt particularly vibe with his martyr vibe but hes incredibly hot and goofy so i think hes gonna get a pass for that and special thanks to the woman with the red hair being pretty funny if you ask me i enjoy the drunk sexy mom trope too much if you ask me then the 2 gay guards in the prison i know youre in love dont hide it and then the blue dominatrix woman with the whip i want her to peg me

the end basically i love all of them

i dont like cabanela his personality is ass hes not funny and hes not even hot can i say this here

umh i mean how the story unraveled is pretty cool and the main plot twist at the end of the game made me both gasp for air and scream my lungs out and cry for a quarter of a hour and thats pretty fucked up if you ask me after giving me the sweetest ending ive seen since basically every single ace attorney game shu takumi knows what hes doing if you ask me

so thats it im glad i could finally play this fucking game and missile you will always be in my heart im not joking bitch

sorry i could not get myself to like the gameplay i guess i deserve jail

FFXVI is an absolute heartbreaker, but like all good heartbreakers, it hurts because it's beautiful. Final Fantasy XVI hits you like a thunderbolt with its first impression and then leaves you sick and wanting. It is a game with a miraculous first third, a worrisome middle, and an empty, frustrating end. It is phenomenally localized (in English at least, I can't speak for languages I don't... speak) and marvelously voice acted at all times. Graphically it is a drop-dead gorgeous work of software, even if it is occasionally stuttered by the understandable frame drops that accompany such visuals. Masayoshi Soken continues to prove himself as Uematsu's truest successor as his scores sell these grand feasts of spectacle in ways that so few others ever could. The thrills of FFXVI's combat are enough to place it above many games in the franchise all by itself, and yet despite all of these many marvels, the halls of FFXVI discourse quake tremorously with the darkest of vibes, and I myself am far from untouched.

FFXVI's actual PLOT, more than its characters, more than its dialogue, and more than any other aspect of its writing, is ultimately its kiss of death. Naturally I will refrain from running down my long list of specific missed opportunities, fumbled setups, and outright refusals to explore interesting and important subjects, as this is a spoiler free review. I will however, make sweeping generalized statements about how the script seemingly finds the least interesting possible way to resolve almost every thread the early game so beautifully sets up. Almost every easy lay-up manages to miss the net, and it leaves me genuinely stunned. Its themes are so rote, so mechanically ham-handedly shallow that I spent most of the finale in audible groans. When I say this I am not drawing comparisons to Game of Thrones, Neon Genesis Evangelion, Kaiju films, or any of FFXVI's other legendary inspirations. I'm comparing it to other Final Fantasy games. Truthfully this franchise has some of the best endings in the business. Final Fantasies VI, IX, X, XV, and even many of XI and XIV's expansions by this same team nail their deeply emotional landings so gracefully and flawlessly that they make the end of XVI look like something hastily scrawled in the back of a middle schooler's notebook. It is so trite and inelegant that I fail to enjoy it even on a schlock level. Truly, Final Fantasy XVI is the Fast 8 of the franchise. It is big and dumb and loud and... fun, and awesome.

Much internet text has already been spilled over whether or not FFXVI's combat is Devil May Cry Enough. Devil May Cry is of course renowned for its intrinsically exhilarating combo-based, incredibly flexible combat and its sky-high skill ceiling. To master Devil May Cry V is to study an art. FFXVI's naked imports of Nero's grabby hand, enemy step, helm splitter, stinger, devil trigger and more has led some to declare it as "literally Devil May Cry" and others to bristle at any comparison between the two at all, considering the perceived shallowness to be an insult to or lack of understanding of Devil May Cry. This is much ado about nothing. No, FFXVI is not "literally" Devil May Cry, but it has so much shared DNA that to chastise those making comparisons to it is definite hair-splitting. No, FFXVI does not have "only one combo." It has one basic, bread and butter, build-agnostic combo with tiny variations and a lot of equipable cooldown-based abilities that can be used to extend combos according to the situation at hand. Yes, the skill ceiling is lower because you can't have like ten different weapons with completely different combo sets available on your character at all times. You have to tailor a loadout specific to what you're trying to do. That's the RPG part. After some 50 hours that bread and butter combo definitely starts to feel like not quite enough butter spread over just a little too much bread, but FFXVI is not TRYING to be "literally Devil May Cry", and it's succeeding pretty damned well at exactly what its trying to be. Unfortunately that's not RPG enough for people who didn't get over this stuff back in FFXIII and it's not action enough for DMC mavens... but then again neither is Kingdom Hearts 2, another great action RPG.

Personally, I just wish there was something else to do besides fighting. After also being Full of Shit on The Diversity Issue instead of just owning up to it, Yoshi-P infamously joked (and it was a joke, please chill the fuck out) about the main character of FFXVI having more important things to do than play Blitzball. There has since been a great deal of fixation on a perceived insult to specifically Blitzball (which he only used because it's the example the interviewer cited in the question) rather than the underlying bullshit excuse about Clive being too busy for minigame induced variety. Countless sidequests in this game involve Clive collecting literal dirt, picking literal flowers, traveling halfway across the world to get a bone for his dog to chew on, or just picking up deliveries for his supporting cast when sending anyone else would do just fine. There are extremely obvious times and an extremely obvious place wherein Clive could SO EASILY sit down for a game of setting-appropriate cards with ANY of these characters. Triple Triad would have fit here about a thousand times more gracefully than it does in Final Fantasy VIII. One of the chief reasons that I consider FFXIV to be a better game is because it DOES include these kinds of diversions, even if the quest design of both games is functionally identical. Every quest enters formally into the player's log and involves either talking to a few people, gathering some objects off the ground, fighting some enemies, or some combination of the three. Main quests alternate between show-stopper FFXIV dungeon setpieces (linear environments with bespoke, well designed boss encounters preceded and followed by lavish cutscenes) and the same low-rent filler stuff as the sidequests. I tend not to complain much about sidequests in games, as they are in fact designed to be optional. If you love the game and want an excuse to play more of it, that's what they're there for, just like trophies and/or achievements. Once it becomes a baseline part of any main playthrough however, this becomes a very different conversation. FFXIV gets away with this for multiple reasons. It's an MMO, and the sheer volume of content, the cooperative online novelty, and frankly a lower bar of expectation in the genre makes people far more accepting of that filler. MMOs are marathons, and most players approach them with this understanding. However even as a Final Fantasy XIV player TRYING to convince themselves that they're playing an FFXIV expansion, there are some very important details that render this "one of the bad ones." In modern FFXIV, those kinds of MSQ sections almost always either take place in areas that are new to the player or precipitate some kind of big and interesting development in the story, whether that's an emotional character moment or a climactic plot turn. FFXVI by contrast often sends the player pinging back and forth through tired, familiar locales for the sake of uninteresting drudgery that is not worth the trip. So many of these sections add almost nothing to the overarching story and are only mandatory because some detail must (in the writer's eyes) be laboriously established before it can play into the main plot in some minor way. This is exhausting, and contrasts immensely with the game's grand-slam opening chapters and its occasional over-the-top spectacle setpieces. The sandwich makes the valleys deeper and places greater burdens on the peaks, which often fail to pay off the debt they've been handed, even if they'd be welcomed in isolation.

These story troughs and their matching sidequests are absurdly overwritten. This has come to be a creative signature of Creative Business Unit 3. It is an issue shared by both FFXI and FFXIV. While the dialogue is perfectly competent and does deliver its emotional punches when it needs to, there's simply way the fuck too much of it. Situations that require at most five good lines instead revel in a grossly unnecessary twenty or thirty. It makes SKIPPING that dialogue a near necessity, because listening in full to each fully voiced line is certain to wear the player down to the point that they just skip the sidequests entirely and stop paying attention. This would be a tremendous shame, as the sidequest chains contain essential characterization and tender moments with a supporting cast that otherwise feels bland, lifeless, and underdeveloped. In FFXIV players have the luxury of knowing when to pay attention because any such conversation will be voiced, while anything they don't need to care about is not. In Final Fantasy XVI, almost every single line is voiced, and it frankly feels rude to skip through such expert voicework. Those who always let these experts finish their business however might be claimed by old age before they finish the game.

One such supporting cast member exists to facilitate the crafting system, because Square Enix is definitely not above the pernicious misunderstanding that every single AAA video game REQUIRES some sort of tacked on crafting bullshit in order to succeed. The crafting in FFXVI certainly does not get in the player's way, but that's because it's barely there at all. Crafting materials are the main resource that is found from treasure chests and enemy drops out in the world, and thus should theoretically be used as an incentive for thorough exploration. Unfortunately almost all of these materials are functionally worthless, and accumulating mountains of them will avail the player nothing. There is almost nothing to craft, the recipes don't use many materials, and the game drops free equipment upgrades in your lap so frequently that any boosts earned from crafted gear feel completely trivial... until one gets further down the hunt board. Specific, unique, one-time materials from clearing hunts do combine into worthwhile equipment, but the hunts are clearly arranged into tiers based on when they become available anyway, so the reward could just as easily have been given for clearing each tier. The hunt rewards are just funneled through the crafting system to give it a reason for existing. Does this bother me? In a superficial, petty way, yes. Is it anywhere near as detrimental to the game as its plot or its pacing? Definitely not... but it speaks to a broader issue.

Final Fantasy XVI wears the trappings of many things. It's a Kaiju Mecha Game of Thrones Devil May Cry that revolves around crystals, has crafting, swears a lot, and does the big graphics. Those are some extremely cool things... but FFXVI just feels like a fan of each of them, not a creator in its own right. It's a celebration of those things but it doesn't seem to fully understand any of them, and doesn't have anything insightful to say. In what may very well have been a bid to appear more adult, FFXVI accidentally reveals its shallow childishness in front of the whole school... and yet I can think of at least five less competent Final Fantasies just off the top of my head.

I respect this game for knowing when to end on a proper final boss after the collection of all the dragon balls it outlines at the start, but the core concept of collecting treasures is simply not rewarding enough to keep you engaged.

To it's credit, it's called Dragon Quest Treasures not Monsters, so the lackluster enemy and by extension tamable monster variety can't be too responsible for its average quality. There are plenty of treasures to collect, beyond statues of series protagonists & weapons, there are gags that hardcore fans will chuckle at their inclusion. However reiterating my main point, you'll be watching the "digging up treasure animation" 200 times too many in a single playthrough, when what's inside the chest is just a numerical representation of your progress to the next story objective being easier to reach.

The story starts off charming enough, but in my opinion doesn't lean into its world and characters both original and returning to warrant any amount of emotional investment, if you're into that sort of thing. Maybe my sights are set a little too high for a series that spins the European Accent Roulette Wheel at every opportunity, but this game presented concepts that if properly explored, would've been welcomed to incite the player to keep progressing.

Combat once you understand it's shallow depth boils down to playing support for the toughest team of monsters you can muster, using your wellspring of wealth to purchase buffing bullets to assist your allies (see, I can write for these games). Then when the moment is right, burn special meter to bomb the entire arena, leaving you wondering exactly who thought the combat was a good idea.

This game is a fanservice title in everything but name and branding, but where the service lies is just not engaging enough even for hardcore fans to want to wade through to appreciate. I can't recommend this game to anyone but those inflicted with the most severely affected with Dragon Quest 11 brainrot. I enjoyed playing it, but was gradually worn down by the end that I was glad it was over.

No sense at all in acting performative and presentable about this, MediEvil stands as a crowning representation of everything I found to be appealing about video games in my youth, and is a welcome reminder of why I still spend most of my precious free time with this embarrassing hobby of mine. This goes beyond just strumming the chords of nostalgia in my old greasy heart though (this isn’t a title I grew up with), there’s simply a childlike-playfulness on display here that you don’t see much of these days. Yeah yeah I know, new game bad old game good, take a shot - this is just one of those things you just can’t really recapture in modern day man.

“But Luke!” you may be exclaiming, “This game is so outdated by today’s standards! It’s clunky and hard to go back to.” In an attempt to be charitable in response to this hypothetical (yet distressingly common) sentiment, I will say that you aren’t exactly wrong about your assessment of the game, but is that really much of a problem? I suppose most people are used to friction in games stemming from stat grinds and seemingly endless pool of meaningless dribble disguised as content to sift through, but I think there's room in the industry for games as bumbling and occasionally cumbersome as this. Say what you will about Dan “The Man” Fortesque; “clunky” this, “slippery” that, your foul words have no ill-effect on him. It’s no skin off his back, for he is literally a pile of bones.

In retrospect, It’s no wonder why my capacity for critical thought was shut off so long ago: I was smitten by this game from the very moment I laid an eye on it’s harrowing field of mindless zombies and a wall constructed from some of the most impressively poor draw distance I’ve seen on the system, but can you blame me? Many people hold up the PS1 as the system where razor sharp aesthetical visions come to life, as a canvas for gorgeous technical flexes of the highest possible calibur of the time, and as an excuse for a bunch of nerds to showcase intelligent teardowns of system OS and architecture to really make Sonic’s ass sing. But how often do you hear the praises of a game like MediEvil? I don’t want to diminish the value of the art itself, the land of Gallowmere is truly inspired and seeing the cartoonish depictions of common Medieval tropes and caricatures delights me, but there’s something to be said for how the crust layered over the vision really amplifies the whole thing. I mean this with complete sincerity, a game like this works so much better when presented with all the grace of corpses tumbling down a hill while draped in the cold moonlight.

That’s to say nothing of the actual structure of the game itself though , creatively nudging you towards cleaning out every polygon of the game’s 20 odd levels lest you miss an important item in the pumpkin patch that won’t be needed until you reach the dragon’s nest. I think it’s this scatterbrained approach to puzzle solving that really brings it all together for me, rarely being as obtuse as to necessitate a walkthrough, and only occasionally being as linear as to promote blind runs through levels. You never know exactly what's expected of you or when certain items will be needed, so I occasionally found myself stumbling over simple problems in pursuit of an answer less complex than was actually required of me. Generally speaking the game is never more complicated than “use this item on that thing” but it just makes the whole thing feel very adventurous, I adore how it feels like there’s an endless treasure trove of shit to find while being so small and compact so as to not feel overbearing.

I’m guessing that this is exactly the type of game that FELT insurmountable as a kid, sharing secrets with friends on the playground in an effort to learn all of it’s secrets and finally make it to the end, but as an adult it still holds up just as much in my mind as a quaint adventure with exceptionally low ambitions and a sharp knack for tickling all the pleasure centers in my brain. I dunno, I just love everything about this lol. I’m sure someone out there far smarter than me can piece together the little sprinkles of worldbuilding that make the world feel more alive, or write a captivating college thesis about how Zarok is an intensely compelling villain with his lofty goals of checks notes ruling Gallowmere(?) but I have no pretensions about this. I’m a simple man of simple needs. I like when the funny British skeleton with bad teeth tries to talk when he doesn’t have a jaw after a lifetime and beyond of spreading falsehoods about his name, only for him to be the one who has to put a stop to the mustache twirling villain and his dubious schemes. Truly the hero the United Kingdom needs, but not the one they deserve. Maybe in MediEvil 3 he can take down the late Queen of England once and for all, I’m sure not even Dan could resist an adventure as treacherous and deadly as that. My DM’s are open Sony if you wanna discuss this further

okay gonna be honest this game just rules. its honestly my favorite vn of all time now, overtaking fata morgana. which i did not expect going in after only picking this game up simply because a friend was hyped.

the only faults are: typos and grammar issues in the translation, especially in the second half. otherwise this is literally perfect.

also this made me cry numerous times. i even had to stop playing in the final chapter as my switch was blurry.

im very tempted to try and write a review better than this at some point but i definitely have to let myself process this game for a little while longer.

The iconic rats are back, in a sequel that feels mostly like an extension of the first game’s plot and gameplay, albeit bigger, scarier and even more emotionally charged.

In much the same way that A Plague Tale: Innocence goes for that Last of Us movie-game drama feel, Requiem also favours the sparky sense of adventure of Uncharted, particularly in its mid-section. The game’s warmer moments and those of utter despair are better balanced, with each character given more defined emotions and inner conflicts, particularly the main heroes Amicia and Hugo. The writing of the characters has also improved: Hugo is somehow less annoying than before; there’s a real sense that the siblings are going through their own personal hell in finding peace amidst apocalyptic rat-riddled cities under control of imperial tyrants.

Innocence’s strengths are improved even further here. The puzzles of navigating hordes of rats manage to evoke similar feelings of dread and disgust while also being fun and constantly inventive - not only are they different enough from the first game, but adapt in interesting ways over the course of this one. The player is also given different possible methods of getting past rats and enemy soldiers alike, allowing a great deal of freedom, although some stealth sequences can be frustratingly tricky, leading to a simple rush through the map. Still, the level design is as beautiful as ever, encouraging the player to explore impressively vast stretches of land one minute, then struggle their way out of a nightmarishly endless cavern of those gooey rodent bastards the next.

Whilst the plot is engaging throughout, I’m unfortunately one of those people who found the ending, which I won’t spoil, to be underwhelming. The third act in general, while indeed fun to play, feels muddled and rushed in comparison to almost expert build up in the first two thirds. After hours of character development, the ending ultimately feels unjustified and… abrupt! Perhaps it’s the intention of the game to have that effect on the player, but I’d argue it doesn’t work in the same way as something like The Last of Us Part II.

That said, and it may not be too dissimilar from its predecessor and other games in its genre, but A Plague Tale: Requiem ranks as one of the most polished horror adventure titles in recent years, with moments both chilling and moving. It’s also quite an achievement to make something so incredibly bleak so fun and engaging to play.

Felt overly familiar at the outset--an austere, borderline-minimalist exploratory indie platformer/adventure game of the sort that vacuums up critical acclaim and awards. Thankfully that's not actually the case; there's much more depth to its world than I expected, and it's often refreshingly irreverent about it too. It has personality and heart, which can go a very long way for me. The matching of this environment and these characters with a cute, realistically rendered cat is more inspired than I could have hoped for.

My roommate's cat Ellie is barely smart enough to function on a basic level, so I tried to show her the game to shame her into being less of a dipshit but she didn't even notice. Do better Ellie

Cute. But I'm more of a dog person.

Personal preference aside, Stray is a short and sweet experience. I didn't find it to be too short as I think there's only so much to tell about a humanless robot world that Wall-E hasn't.
The gameplay is the usual sparkly and simple puzzle-solving affair you'd expect from an Annapuuurrrna Interactive title. Although the freaky bug ridden 'eye' zones were a terrifying addition I didn't expect.
The music, whilst occasionally distracting, was unique enough to add flavour to the otherwise predictably hipster dystopian aesthetic and the kind of visuals that evoke 'lo-fi hip hop beats to chill and relax to'!