The combat in this one doesn’t have much depth but man is it fun. Just messing around with blade mode and seeing how many things you can cut in half is way more fun than it should be, and being able to heal yourself by cutting enemies precisely is super satisfying. The bosses are where this combat system shines, each one makes you use the free blade system in different ways, and their designs and characters make them incredibly memorable, which is complemented by the phenomenal soundtrack that ramps up when you get to the final stage of the fight. The only thing about the general gameplay that I really dislike is when they try to get you to be stealthy, but there’s nothing stopping you from just fighting everyone most of the time. In regards to the story, I’ve never played a mainline Metal Gear game so I didn’t really care much about the connections to the world or the commentary, but it has such a fun level of campiness that you’d expect from a platinum game. It’s the definition of mindless fun, but it’s not the best platinum game.

An incredibly charming game with pretty mediocre gameplay. The story, characters, and world are nice and simple in a way that taps into a feeling of childlike adventure by combining the supernatural elements with the contemporary setting. While the game’s really charming, the gameplay is kinda mediocre. You equip 6 Yokai to your team and they attack randomly, and while you have control over battles by rotating which Yokai are active, purifying them, and charging their soultimates, there’s barely any strategy involved. The only strategy comes from choosing which Yokai to use, but you can get away without much planning (unless you’re doing the postgame challenges) for most of the game. The bosses are definitely a high point, though, as they all have a special gimmick that adds a bit more thought to combat, and their unique designs make them exciting to fight. An enjoyable time, but not something I’ll go back to anytime soon.

This game has an absolutely gorgeous art style but underneath it I feel that the game itself is kinda overrated. The story’s pacing is really bad, instead of feeling like one story, it feels like three different stories packed into one game since it’s divided between into “arcs” that don’t really connect to each other. The combat, while not bad at all, can get repetitive, and the dungeon design doesn’t have as many engaging puzzles as I would’ve liked. None of these elements are outright bad, but they aren’t good enough for me to understand why so many people consider this one of the best games. The art style is really the only exceptional thing about it.

Definitely the weakest of the remakes so far. Everything good about the originals applies here and it updates the mechanics to gen 6 standards which really smooths things out. My main problem is that it doesn't feel like it adds much to Hoenn, the updated Mauville city and the Delta Episode are neat, but it doesn't add enough flavor to most of the areas to make it feel like you're experiencing the region all over again like HG/SS did. The lack of Emerald's battle frontier is also a huge disappointment. One thing that this game did really well is that the new mega evolutions are a lot of fun to use, but for the most part they're only really relevant for competitive battles. It's a better experience than the originals, but it doesn't add much to them outside of 3d graphics and updated mechanics.

This game has a lot of potential but there's a lot about it that's just poorly designed. The level design is mostly a step back from X2, some collectibles are really annoying to find, and there's way too much backtracking for no reason if you want to get anything. The ride armor is a cool idea, but the stages don't make much use of it and you have to beat at least 2 stages before you can even unlock it. One thing that I like is the pink capsules that can upgrade a certain piece of armor and give you really fun perks, and the limitation that you can only have one at a time (unless you find the secret gold armor at the end) adds a bit of replay value. I got to the first sigma stage, but didn't feel compelled to play past that. Still a good time, but has a lot of annoying design choices and lots of missed potential.

Essentially it's the same game as the first one but with new levels. Pretty much everything that's good about X1 applies here, but it definitely feels like a step back in terms of level and boss design. It's not a huge deal but Overdrive Ostrich and Flame Stag are the only stages/bosses that I feel live up to the original, and some of the stages like Magna Centipede and Wire Sponge are just kinda mediocre. The X Hunters are a cool addition, but they can be a tad annoying to hunt down since the stages they appear in are random and they stop appearing after you've defeated a certain amount of mavericks. It's still one of the best games in the X series, just a step back from the first.

Definitely one of the best kart racers due to how fun the single player adventure mode is. The track design, while not as memorable as Mario Kart’s, is a lot of fun and has a lot of variety due to the 3 different vehicle types. Another unique thing about this game is how the power ups work, there aren’t a lot of them, but you collect different power ups from different colored balloons instead of getting them at random, and you can upgrade your power ups by collecting multiple of the same type, which adds a layer of strategy. The single player is also way more difficult than you’d expect, but it’s never unfair and really gives you an incentive to learn the tracks and make use of every power up. There’s not a lot of issues I have with this game, but it could definitely be better.

This is a huge step backward from X4, but it’s not a total mess like X6 is, it’s just mediocre. There’s only one stage I really like (Grizzly Slash), and the rest are either just ok (like Izzy Glow and Dark Dizzy) and others I can’t stand like how much of a boring slog Duff McWhalen’s stage is, how unfair The Skiver’s stage is, and how irritating Axel the Red’s is. For the most part, the bosses are alright, but they get really annoying towards the end due to the fact that the level up as you progress through the game. While this is a good idea in concept, the levels really only increase their health as far as I can tell, which just makes them take longer to beat. This is especially annoying when they’re all max level at the final boss rush and take ages to beat (part of the reason i didn’t finish this game). They also messed up the armor system by making it so you need all the pieces of armor in order to get their benefits, which just removes the satisfaction of finding the individual pieces. Also the fact that the ending you get is luck based is incredibly stupid. I got most of the way through the game, up to the Sigma fight, but the final bosses and stages were so frustrating that a I didn’t bother finishing it. Not the worst X game, but far from the best.

One of the best Pokémon games but has some major flaws weighing it down. The Sinnoh region is fun to explore due to the persisting theme of mythology, which is complemented by characters like Cyrus and Cynthia who are pretty great for Pokémon standards. Platinum fixes most of the issues with the originals, like adding more Pokémon to the regional dex, overhauling a couple gym puzzles, and fleshing out the story more. There’s also a lot to do after the Elite 4, with a large extra island to explore and lots of legendaries to hunt down. However, there are a few major issues I have with the game. The pacing of the gameplay is incredibly slow, which can make battles tedious at times, the region is riddled with unnecessary HM moves that either take up valuable moveslots on your team or force you to carry a Pokémon just for HMs, and a good few legendaries are locked behind events that have been discontinued for years. That said, it’s one of the better Pokémon games, but it’s unfortunately held back from being the best due to these issues.

I thought people were overhyping this game due to nostalgia but after replaying it recently I can say that it’s definitely earned its place as one of the best Pokémon games. The remakes breathe so much new life into Johto, with the updates graphics, refined mechanics, and occasional new story beats it really feels like a new region. I was surprised to see that exploring Johto and building my team filled me with a sense of adventure that a Pokémon game hadn’t given me since I first played Heart Gold, so it definitely withstands the test of time. The only problem a I have with this game is that the level curve is kind of rough, but that’s not enough to stop this from being an absolute joy to play.

I’ve always thought this game was overrated but it’s still a good time. The moment to moment gameplay has neat systems behind it, but it’s so easy that fighting enemies gets boring quick. While the gameplay is kinda mediocre, the game’s charm really carries it, the writing is a ton of fun and the characters, while obviously not very deep, are really funny and likeable. The areas you explore and the enemies fight are so creative that new areas are fun to explore despite the gameplay itself not really standing out.