SilentBandicoot
2007
It had some interesting concepts with the Carnal Rage vs. Heroic stance, however both options were under-utilized and had their fair share of annoyances.
It definitely shows its age and comes with that classic licensed game funk. I believe I only got as much enjoyment out of as I did (ignoring multiple parts that brought on some minor rage) because my brother and I both challenged each other to play it through to the end.
Go in openminded with low expectations and high patience and you may get some fun out of it.
It definitely shows its age and comes with that classic licensed game funk. I believe I only got as much enjoyment out of as I did (ignoring multiple parts that brought on some minor rage) because my brother and I both challenged each other to play it through to the end.
Go in openminded with low expectations and high patience and you may get some fun out of it.
A decent time but can be very frustrating. Some issues I had were in regards to the Remaster and others were issues that carried over from the original game, which it is more difficult to be hard on as it is a classic that changed gaming forever for the better.
Graphics weren't too bad. With quality of life improvements it feels like they did the bare minimum. For example: adding checkpoints when you die in a mission, but there are no mid-mission checkpoints. For the most part this wasn't too bad, it was only an annoyance for me in later missions that were longer and more frustrating. At least there are checkpoints at all. I remember dropping the original game on PC as soon as I stopped having fun with repeating missions I was failing (I know I know - skill issue).
The radio stations have also lost 21 tracks that were in the Xbox version. Towards the end I got so sick of hearing the same songs over and over that I would just drive with the radio turned off.
One thing from the classic that really bothered me as well was the hostile gangs. I don't want to say too much for spoiler reasons but if you know you know. Racing missions became near impossible for me if I attempted them after certain story missions. Some very poor gameplay decisions were made there by the original Rockstar team.
Towards the end I chose to use a walkthrough for one of the final missions where you have to drive around all 3 islands destroying certain objectives that don't appear on your minimap until you get really close (I really feel for the classic players that didn't have the minimap at all). I wish I didn't have to but after failing it once I already couldn't be bothered repeating it more than once.
Overall it's a classic game worth playing and experiencing but I believe it is not worth finishing.
Graphics weren't too bad. With quality of life improvements it feels like they did the bare minimum. For example: adding checkpoints when you die in a mission, but there are no mid-mission checkpoints. For the most part this wasn't too bad, it was only an annoyance for me in later missions that were longer and more frustrating. At least there are checkpoints at all. I remember dropping the original game on PC as soon as I stopped having fun with repeating missions I was failing (I know I know - skill issue).
The radio stations have also lost 21 tracks that were in the Xbox version. Towards the end I got so sick of hearing the same songs over and over that I would just drive with the radio turned off.
One thing from the classic that really bothered me as well was the hostile gangs. I don't want to say too much for spoiler reasons but if you know you know. Racing missions became near impossible for me if I attempted them after certain story missions. Some very poor gameplay decisions were made there by the original Rockstar team.
Towards the end I chose to use a walkthrough for one of the final missions where you have to drive around all 3 islands destroying certain objectives that don't appear on your minimap until you get really close (I really feel for the classic players that didn't have the minimap at all). I wish I didn't have to but after failing it once I already couldn't be bothered repeating it more than once.
Overall it's a classic game worth playing and experiencing but I believe it is not worth finishing.
2015
Best played on Legendary difficulty in Co-op, otherwise it is the weakest Halo experience with a forgettable campaign, and the second worst enemy designs (Halo 4 being the worst).
A beautiful looking game even in 2023 with some really fun on-foot (Assassin) combat mechanics.
Due to personal preference, I was not a fan of the Ship combat. I understand that some players really enjoy this mechanic however so that one is on me.
One thing that really dragged the game's score down for me though was the escort missions. A few here and there could be excused in my eyes, however they're were too many in this game and I found them really irritating and boring.
The story was engaging enough though so I rushed to the finish line to see how it ended.
Due to personal preference, I was not a fan of the Ship combat. I understand that some players really enjoy this mechanic however so that one is on me.
One thing that really dragged the game's score down for me though was the escort missions. A few here and there could be excused in my eyes, however they're were too many in this game and I found them really irritating and boring.
The story was engaging enough though so I rushed to the finish line to see how it ended.
2014
This review contains spoilers
It took a lot out of me forcing myself to finish this game. Bad voice acting with dialogue that can make you cringe. Gameplay is slow and frustrating. I completed all the side missions hoping to find some that were at least interesting but no luck unfortunately.
If you haven’t played this game and want a game to throw you a true curveball that makes you feel uneasy (in a good way), I honestly suggest playing only the main story quests skipping the side quests until you get to the hospital level. I recommend rushing to this level and then abandoning the game. The only accomplishment you will feel after finishing this game is the fact that you forced yourself to the end.
Below this is the spoiler.
In the middle of the game there is a level that really, truly surprised and delighted me. A level in a hospital that does horror really well that suits the slow gameplay. It actually got a jump scare out of me and because I wasn’t ready for it, the whole level had me on edge. The level was such a surprise that I wasn’t sure what they were going to throw at me.
If you haven’t played this game and want a game to throw you a true curveball that makes you feel uneasy (in a good way), I honestly suggest playing only the main story quests skipping the side quests until you get to the hospital level. I recommend rushing to this level and then abandoning the game. The only accomplishment you will feel after finishing this game is the fact that you forced yourself to the end.
Below this is the spoiler.
In the middle of the game there is a level that really, truly surprised and delighted me. A level in a hospital that does horror really well that suits the slow gameplay. It actually got a jump scare out of me and because I wasn’t ready for it, the whole level had me on edge. The level was such a surprise that I wasn’t sure what they were going to throw at me.
It's good if you want more of that Far Cry 3 goodness before shelving the game but overall it's only 4 missions and not too interesting.
I played this on an Xbox Series X and I have never played the Nintendo 64 version. This was my first time with the game so no nostalgia goggles.
For it’s time it has a great sense of speed and surprisingly the pods feel how you would expect them to.
My only real problem with the game is the length of some of the tracks. A few of them can end up being up to 9 minute races with their 3 laps! Also there is one track that I had to look up a guide for because without a certain character it was very frustrating. “Abyss”.. that’s all I’ll say.
Besides that though I enjoyed my time with this game and I really like the mechanic where you can go to the Junkyard, trade your high-end pod part for the same part but more damaged for a profit and then your pit droids repair the damaged part. I would actually really like to see this mechanic in another modern racer.
Overall I recommend completing this game and going for all the achievements.
For it’s time it has a great sense of speed and surprisingly the pods feel how you would expect them to.
My only real problem with the game is the length of some of the tracks. A few of them can end up being up to 9 minute races with their 3 laps! Also there is one track that I had to look up a guide for because without a certain character it was very frustrating. “Abyss”.. that’s all I’ll say.
Besides that though I enjoyed my time with this game and I really like the mechanic where you can go to the Junkyard, trade your high-end pod part for the same part but more damaged for a profit and then your pit droids repair the damaged part. I would actually really like to see this mechanic in another modern racer.
Overall I recommend completing this game and going for all the achievements.
2012
Very slow, boring, and repetitive gameplay with frustrating mechanics and an uninspired storyline. The only thing that got me to the end was the feeling of not wanting to let this game beat me.
This was the first game I've played in a long time that just felt so fun to control. For two thirds of the game I found myself using Force Grab and Force Push majority of the time as they were the most fun ways to fight enemies and even towards the end of the game the novelty didn't seem to wear off.
2010
I could not wait for this game to end. It has a cheesy story that expects you to have recently watched the movie, and god-awful parkour that had me wanting to pull my hair out.
At first the disc combat seems fun but becomes frustrating and monotonous very quickly. As soon as I found a way to somewhat cheese the combat to make it end faster, that's what I did.
I will give it this: the graphics and art direction really suit it, and it would have been hard for them to not have everything being blue get boring very quickly... It did, although I commend their efforts as they did get creative with the art limitations they would have been given.
At first the disc combat seems fun but becomes frustrating and monotonous very quickly. As soon as I found a way to somewhat cheese the combat to make it end faster, that's what I did.
I will give it this: the graphics and art direction really suit it, and it would have been hard for them to not have everything being blue get boring very quickly... It did, although I commend their efforts as they did get creative with the art limitations they would have been given.
A gorgeous, gory experience that ends before the formula gets too stale. It had a couple of jump scares that made me flinch slightly, however this game overall is not too scary. Most of the suspense comes from managing your ammo and inventory.
The start of the game really grips you, however it does drop off a bit in the middle and slows down a bit, but I found that the story was interesting enough that I had to know how it ended so I kept playing.
I'm glad I did as well as it picks up again in the last quarter when you have more upgrades and ammo to play with and you have the mechanics perfected.
I haven't played Dead Space so I can't compare and didn't feel the same disappointment that others felt, but on its own it is a fun game that I am really happy I played.
The start of the game really grips you, however it does drop off a bit in the middle and slows down a bit, but I found that the story was interesting enough that I had to know how it ended so I kept playing.
I'm glad I did as well as it picks up again in the last quarter when you have more upgrades and ammo to play with and you have the mechanics perfected.
I haven't played Dead Space so I can't compare and didn't feel the same disappointment that others felt, but on its own it is a fun game that I am really happy I played.
2020
Gameplay loop is boring and frustrating with little feeling of reward. I really tried to push through hoping it would improve as it had some good ideas and beautiful visuals, but I just couldn't go any further than the 3rd area.
2020
A very satisfying game with a fun concept. I was playing on an Xbox Series X and experienced a few frame rate drops but nothing game breaking.
This game also does collectables right. Each collectable helps speed up the evolution of your shark and the game comes with an ability you can upgrade that assists in finding them, no online guides needed. I stopped going for 100% achievements in games recently but this one was a joy to complete given I didn't have to look anything up and going for the 100% improved my experience with the game.
Only other criticism I have is that I wish they gave the ability to customize button layout on the controller as the presets didn't have what I wanted. I wanted to rebind the the thrash ability as furiously wiggling the right analog stick left and right can get tiring and annoying in longer play sessions.
Overall great game and I recommend going for the 100%.
This game also does collectables right. Each collectable helps speed up the evolution of your shark and the game comes with an ability you can upgrade that assists in finding them, no online guides needed. I stopped going for 100% achievements in games recently but this one was a joy to complete given I didn't have to look anything up and going for the 100% improved my experience with the game.
Only other criticism I have is that I wish they gave the ability to customize button layout on the controller as the presets didn't have what I wanted. I wanted to rebind the the thrash ability as furiously wiggling the right analog stick left and right can get tiring and annoying in longer play sessions.
Overall great game and I recommend going for the 100%.
I had no prior knowledge of the source material so going in I was expecting to play a children's platformer for a laugh. I was wrong.
For the first few levels I was still under the impression that I was playing a soulless kid's game but about half way through the first world I realized I was playing a somewhat janky, easy but fun platformer. I was flying through levels and time trials thinking I had an easy 100% ahead of me. Then came the 3rd world and DLC world.
This game had me conflicted. I was getting irritated by some of the janky mechanics like ping-ponging off ledges, attaching to floating rings when I didn't want to (or attaching to the wrong ones) and enemy hitboxes that sometimes don't make sense. At the same time though I couldn't put the game down and found it extremely rewarding to master a gold time trial that I had been stuck on for the last 30-60 minutes.
The game seems to really shine and show a culmination of all the developers' best ideas in the DLC world so I'm glad I finished with that and on the highest possible note (not having time trials in Cataclysm mode really helped!)
I'm very happy I gave the game the time I did and I came out feeling accomplished with my 100% completion, however I would not do it again.
For the first few levels I was still under the impression that I was playing a soulless kid's game but about half way through the first world I realized I was playing a somewhat janky, easy but fun platformer. I was flying through levels and time trials thinking I had an easy 100% ahead of me. Then came the 3rd world and DLC world.
This game had me conflicted. I was getting irritated by some of the janky mechanics like ping-ponging off ledges, attaching to floating rings when I didn't want to (or attaching to the wrong ones) and enemy hitboxes that sometimes don't make sense. At the same time though I couldn't put the game down and found it extremely rewarding to master a gold time trial that I had been stuck on for the last 30-60 minutes.
The game seems to really shine and show a culmination of all the developers' best ideas in the DLC world so I'm glad I finished with that and on the highest possible note (not having time trials in Cataclysm mode really helped!)
I'm very happy I gave the game the time I did and I came out feeling accomplished with my 100% completion, however I would not do it again.
I played this on an Xbox Series X in "Graphics" mode up until the final palace where I had to drop my settings down to "Performance" mode as it crashed twice. Because I started the game in "Graphics" mode I had no idea how much I hindered my overall experience. I felt like for the whole game up until that point I could not get my combat timings right so I was getting frustrated, only to change my settings to "Performance" and find that my skill in combat greatly improved!
While I did find the combat frustrating during my playthrough because of this, it forced me to rely more on stealth which took me back to the days of Assassin's Creed 2007 and Assassin's Creed 2 where you had to be more careful to avoid open combat.
Unfortunately the characters aren't memorable and are really hard to keep track of and the story gets boring at times. I found myself going for collectibles thinking to myself, "I wish I could just ignore these and go back to the story." However when going into the story I found myself thinking, "I think I preferred going for the collectables." So I was very torn and often questioned if I was having fun.
The world is pretty and dense, but no location left a mark in my mind besides the Bazaar and The Green Dome Palace. Not a bad game overall and I'm glad I can say I ticked it off my list.
I haven't played Assassin's Creed Valhalla and only learned after finishing Mirage that Basim (Mirage's protagonist) is the mentor for Valhalla's protagonist. So I'm glad I played them in this order as it didn't potentially spoil anything while playing Mirage and has given me more incentive to play Valhalla.
While I did find the combat frustrating during my playthrough because of this, it forced me to rely more on stealth which took me back to the days of Assassin's Creed 2007 and Assassin's Creed 2 where you had to be more careful to avoid open combat.
Unfortunately the characters aren't memorable and are really hard to keep track of and the story gets boring at times. I found myself going for collectibles thinking to myself, "I wish I could just ignore these and go back to the story." However when going into the story I found myself thinking, "I think I preferred going for the collectables." So I was very torn and often questioned if I was having fun.
The world is pretty and dense, but no location left a mark in my mind besides the Bazaar and The Green Dome Palace. Not a bad game overall and I'm glad I can say I ticked it off my list.
I haven't played Assassin's Creed Valhalla and only learned after finishing Mirage that Basim (Mirage's protagonist) is the mentor for Valhalla's protagonist. So I'm glad I played them in this order as it didn't potentially spoil anything while playing Mirage and has given me more incentive to play Valhalla.