AC Valhalla is a good game for those who enjoy long games. It's a great game to play to escape the modern world and wander around in the winter landscapes of Norway and England. There are many good things to say about the game: there's a lot to do in the open world, the action is smooth, exploring England is wonderful, and even the mini-games are fun. However, the game suffers from repetitive castle sieges, has lots of unnecessary items, and has some slow load times (for the PS4 version at least). And also, do we really need the dagger's POV for cultist kills? I didn't care for it. Either way, you get your bang for the buck with this one. I can't wait for AC Japan!

This is the first Yakuza series game I've ever played, and I loved it. It's their first JRPG, and it really served a refreshing take on the genre. The characters are likable, and the story is deep and full of humor. I especially liked Saeko and Namba's arcs. My favorite scenes were Ichigo defending Soapland, the mission to get Namba back, and the fight in Korea Town. The only misgiving is that some of the dialogue scenes are just too long, and the battles can get repetitive. But hey, they have a mahjong mini-game!

Fans waited 5 years for Gran Turismo Sport to get to Gran Turismo 7, and it was not worth the wait. I give this game 3 stars, and one star is for the photo mode. While the game has great graphics and lots of the best cars in the business, it just had too many problems at launch. I played 70 hours and finished all the menus. The grind for credits is miserable; the loot boxes are always unfavorable; and the always online requirement is unnecessary. Months after release, they are still promising better handling of reckless drivers. At one point, the game was the lowest-rated Sony game in Metacritic, with just cause. It's over a year since its release and I still don't think I'll revisit it.

Mass Effect introduces a world of aliens, spaceships, and special agents. I know BioWare was trying to do a lot, but there were limits at the time. The FPS was good enough, but most items were useless. The rover sequences were truly awful (sometimes it flips over, and you're just stuck there). With that being said, the game won me over with the story and characters. It's also a game of decisions and consequences. It reminds me of old choose-your-own-adventure books, which I really liked. All-in-all, it's a great start to a franchise and set the stage for some epic adventures.

Mass Effect 2 is heralded as one of the masterpieces of RPGs, and it truly delivers. I played in 2022, and the game still plays well. The FPS combat is smooth and the story is amazing. There are hundreds of videos just on the romance angles. I loved the characters, my favorites being Jack, Liara, Mordin, and Tali. It also has one of my favorite theme songs, the suicide mission. If I have to nitpick, the game lacks a variety of spells and items. Otherwise, this is a must-play, even 10 years later.

This is the first Fromsoft game that I completed, and it was definitely a journey. I played the easiest class, mage, but I still died a lot. Without any guide, the first 20 or so hours is just learning the basics. Then I started looking at guides on Youtube and IGN. The game opens up when you're about 60 hours in. I felt like I knew the basics, and it started getting fun. Sure, the music is lacking (the main theme is great though), there is no quest manager, and the story is there if you dig deep enough. But the open world is vast, epic battles are rewarding (if you win), and spells look great. I ended up beating the game in about 160 hours, but I took my sweet time exploring and even taking photos on the way. So stick with it if you're playing it. Just know that you can always skip a boss and go back to it.

Tales of Arise has been awarded best RPG of 2021 in the Game Awards, and I agree it's a good game. It follows the traditional town-dungeon-boss loop, but also has some open world elements as you progress. Here are some of my thoughts:

I liked the story, characters, quick fighting system, item and weapon building system, outfit skins, and theme songs. I didn't like the idle chatter (it's just too much) and the voice acting during battles (the Japanese voice is better for me).

All-in-all, there are more pluses than minuses. It is a game worthy of playing for the JRPG fan.