StiffChicken40
14 reviews liked by StiffChicken40
Bastion
2011
Where do I even begin with Bastion. Bastion is my favorite game of all time. It's a game I played through countless times while growing up. It's a game I don't want to talk too much about because I honestly have so much to say. But to give the cliff notes: The music in this game is amazing. The vocal tracks from Darren Korb and Ashley Barrett are unparalleled. 'Mother, I'm here' means so much to me. It's a song that is so deeply nostalgic to me, and the scene in which is plays still makes me tear up. This game narratively is phenomenal and I think the best of the 3 SG games I've played (all but Pyre). The reactive narrator adds so much to the game where we have a silent protagonist, and Logan Cunningham does a phenomenal job with the voice acting. The gameplay is a tad dated but I honestly still enjoyed it on a recent playthrough. This game is one of the games that really got me into PC gaming and it will forever hold a spot in my heart for it. It may not be the best gameplay wise or most technical or complicated, but it means a lot to me. I truly recommend this game for anyone. Please play it. :)
Hades
2018
Hades is Supergiants biggest hit and what truly brought them into the limelight and showed the whole world just how talented the team at Supergiant Games is. This game is easily the best gameplay wise from SG, and is one of the best roguelikes I've ever played. Before I get into gameplay, I'll talk about the rest of the game. The music in this game is one of the best parts. While I think the vocal tracks don't hold as much weight as they do in Bastion or Transistor, they are still wonderful songs. But when it comes to battle tracks or otherwise, Hades is the best SG has ever done. The battle themes are almost akin to Bastion in terms of instruments, but also adds rock elements. Themes like The Hard Way and House of Hades and Through Asphodel, the game has no shortage of songs that get your heart going. As for narrative, Hades has brilliant characters through and through, and the voice acting for each one is superb. This game really benefits from being a roguelike as it allows for so many character interactions that flesh out the world and characters more. As for gameplay, putting it simply, it's great. I love the weapons and the different aspects for each one, and the abilities being built around the different gods is honestly brilliant. Would recommend to anyone. Can't wait for Hades 2.
Transistor
2014
Transistor is a phenomenal experience in every aspect. As per usual, Darren Korb and Ashley Barrett create and sing some of my favorite songs ever. The soundtrack as a whole is stellar, I truly love the futuristic theme, and the vocal tracks are some of the best Supergiant has put out. From Paper Boats to Signals to the Spine, the soundtrack has great range and masterfully sets the tone. As for Narrative, Supergiant once again hits home with a well written and constructed narrative and is bold by having our main character be mute, but still keeps the player clued in with the Transistor as our narrator. As for gameplay, I personally enjoyed it, but I understand it's not for everyone. It served it's purpose, but overall had some aspects that were a bit iffy, but I think it worked well regardless. To close, I love this game dearly. Supergiant games was a large part of my childhood and introduction to PC gaming, and Transistor is no exception. I highly recommend it to any type of gamer.
Kingdom Hearts 2 is arguably the best gameplay wise of the KH games, and I'm inclined to agree. Combat is awesome, drive forms still haven't been matched in levels of sauce since, and it feels super fluid once you are good at it. The story in this game is also amazing, that goes without question with the KH games. KH2 is where I feel like there is a large increase in scope, and it also fleshes out more characters and sets up future installments very well. I especially love Remix for adding the Roxas fight in TWTNW, it's honestly one of my favorite boss fights in gaming, from music to sheer cool factor. Overall, love this game dearly, and I'd recommend it to anyone who likes video games.
Persona 3 Reload
2024
P3R was one of my favorite experiences in gaming. Despite knowing the large story beats and ending, I was still sobbing for the last hour of the game. P3R's darker tone is in stark contrast to the more recent installments and it's refreshing. For a game so focused on the pain of death and loss and struggling it brilliantly showcases characters struggling through life BECAUSE they can and want to see tomorrow. It's a truly inspiring game and message. Narrative aside, the game as a game is brilliant as well. The balance between Tartarus and social links is honestly addicting, the links are some of the best I've seen as well. Gameplay and Tartarus is awesome, Theurgies are such a cool mechanic that is cool every time they're used. Lastly, the music. Some of the best I've heard in a game. The battle themes are great, the theme of rap/pop is also pulled off beautifully. The voice actors also did a phenomenal job. Especially Aleks Le and Zeno Robinson. Stand out performances. Overall, this game is easily one of my favorite games of all time, I highly recommend it to anyone who likes turn based RPGs. I can't wait for The Answer.
Yume Nikki
2004
A unique experience that just felt confusing the whole way through which I guess is the point. Enjoyed it.
Elden Ring
2022
This review contains spoilers
This was the first souls game that I decided to dedicate myself to and I'm very glad I did. I originally didn't want to play this due to me not being sure if I enjoyed souls games that much. I had tried before to play DS3 but it ended up with me quitting the game. I am happy to say Elden Ring gave me no feelings from DS3. When I tried the game out I was blown away by the nature of going around and doing what I wanted instead of a linear path even if I could do just that if I wanted. The goal was clear but I was really free to enjoy everything I wanted to do without worry. While I tried to look over mostly every nook and cranny I'm sure I didn't find probably over 50% of the game.
Another one of the biggest things for me going into this was the difficulty. My original thoughts from seeing others play and general opinions of souls games was that this game would break me in half. This expectation was wonderfully put down but not all the way to shatter my expectations. While I still had difficulty with some areas and bosses I never felt like an area was too difficult for my own good. It usually came down to it being my own fault and something I needed to learn and get better at. This same thought process was true for pretty much the entire game. Even when I would face the toughest bosses like Malenia or The Elden Beast I knew that if I just went in and learned the fight I would be able to win. It all felt like a learning process and that over the course of the whole game I was growing and becoming better with each passing battle.
One of the other biggest things to me that I appreciated was the presentation. The game looked absolutely stunning to go through with multiple areas I could stop and look out and the landscapes and see the choices that were made through this. I would always stop at points and think it looked like a painting and the fact this happened multiple times in my playthrough shows the range that the game goes to show off its different areas.
Overall, I enjoyed my time Elden Ring very much. The game was spectacular almost the whole way through and I am very pumped for the DLC now that I am finished with the main game. I'll probably go back around for ng+ sometime and I'll probably find a ton of things that I missed on the original time around. I don't know if I'll do long reviews like this for other games so we'll have to see but I'm glad I was able to get my thoughts out on this fantastic game that FromSoft has made
Another one of the biggest things for me going into this was the difficulty. My original thoughts from seeing others play and general opinions of souls games was that this game would break me in half. This expectation was wonderfully put down but not all the way to shatter my expectations. While I still had difficulty with some areas and bosses I never felt like an area was too difficult for my own good. It usually came down to it being my own fault and something I needed to learn and get better at. This same thought process was true for pretty much the entire game. Even when I would face the toughest bosses like Malenia or The Elden Beast I knew that if I just went in and learned the fight I would be able to win. It all felt like a learning process and that over the course of the whole game I was growing and becoming better with each passing battle.
One of the other biggest things to me that I appreciated was the presentation. The game looked absolutely stunning to go through with multiple areas I could stop and look out and the landscapes and see the choices that were made through this. I would always stop at points and think it looked like a painting and the fact this happened multiple times in my playthrough shows the range that the game goes to show off its different areas.
Overall, I enjoyed my time Elden Ring very much. The game was spectacular almost the whole way through and I am very pumped for the DLC now that I am finished with the main game. I'll probably go back around for ng+ sometime and I'll probably find a ton of things that I missed on the original time around. I don't know if I'll do long reviews like this for other games so we'll have to see but I'm glad I was able to get my thoughts out on this fantastic game that FromSoft has made
Lunacid
2022
Lunacid was a fantastic game and the first time I've ever played a game in the Kingsfield style. I really enjoyed the style of game, getting lost (literally) in the world and soaking in the atmosphere. The music was amazing, a lofi kind of feel but still matched the tone of the game. The exploration and the music were the shining parts of this game, I always felt rewarded when exploring every nook and cranny, looking for secrets. One thing I wish there was more of is boss fights, but honestly, some of the encounters alone were harder than the boss fights, so I can't complain too much. Overall a great experience and I highly recommend it if you like Dark Souls in any capacity!
Revenge is bad is shoved in your face 10 times fold.
The back tracking for Ellie and Abby got old really quick. It gets a 4.5/5 by its gameplay
The back tracking for Ellie and Abby got old really quick. It gets a 4.5/5 by its gameplay
Yakuza Kiwami
2016
Majima Everywhere makes this game perfect