It is actually not hard to describe what Hylics is but it is hard to describe what it is exactly. Only interpretation of the facets of the game. To me Hylics was all about changing shapes. Morphing. Twisting, Distorting, Changing. The whole game feels like a post-world. Humans don't exist anymore only the objects and that which is human-esque but is not human. Hylics creates a kind of melancholic and solitude with its world and art and music. You have little sparks with the other characters of the game but it all feels a little estranged. By design. The gameplay is pretty average at best for an RPG but I think it's actually alright because I believe the main part of this game was its exploration facet rather than its fighting mechanics. The fights in themselves are set pieces too to be viewed and played with. Though I can't help but wonder if it would have been fun to be able to interract in the fights to a deeper extent rather than what is provided in the game. Maybe a kind of morphing mechanic where you use your mouse to fuse different parts of clay to create a spell or something. The whole world is a-move, twisting and turning. Little creatures explode when you touch them, some share esoteric words. The feeling of being there is so excellent in this sense that I still feel really positive over the fighting.


Thumper is...a missed opportunity.
An absolute droning game. I stopped enjoying it around level 5, but I pushed onwards. Now I drop the game right at the end boss of level 9.

It's an on the rail action music game, with visuals that remind me of the Metalheart aesthetic. It gives Thumper a very surreal and distinct look from other games.

The most positive part of thumper is some of its little gimmicks to make levels more interesting. In particular, the one unlocked in level 8.

Thumper is cohesive, but because of this, it is also incredibly boring. A lot of level patches end up being repeated. Feeling the same. It doesn't help that the same hitsounds are being used throughout the entire game, which honestly ends up boring the living hell out of you by the end of it. You could tell me certain levels from 7 were in 6 and I would believe you. It really isn't much of a difference.

This will of "holding together a cohesive style" ends up damaging every corner of the game. Whether in sound effects, level compositions or visual style.

The biggest crime Thumper has is making it more difficult by just speeding the gameplay up. I feel that is incredibly cheap for a "rhythm game". It would have been much better to tone down on the speed but make more complicated levels. (in general, some actual good music would be nice.)

I think Thumper is a very disappointing game where the original thrill of the first levels never comes back after they are completed.

Thumper lacks better levels, better music and better visual design. You have such a cool aesthetic to work with yet most of the levels end up feeling too similar. When the gameplay feels boring, you atleast want some dynamic visuals to enjoy. But alas.

In conclusion, the game and its gameplay mechanics have potential. But it falls very short of even reaching that potential.

Maybe this game is more fun on VR. I have no clue.

I'm coming back to this game after a very long time of being away from it. This is partially a replay as much as it is an original visit for me. Why? My first play of Super Mario 64 was actually when the DS remake of it was released.

Having that out of the way... I completed this one with 70 stars! Some courses I attained all the stars...others not so much. But I had a lot of fun revisiting this title. I ended up growing warm towards the camera angles. Why? I think certain areas are particularly designed to use this function for its platforming. (such as getting the red coins in tick tock, stage 15) Through that I felt warmth towards the function because it was inherent to the game overall design rather than a limitation.

Though why i choose to give this game a 3.5/5...? Well I just don't like certain things. I think the bowser fight is a mediocre feeling and pales in comparison to the actual level the fight is placed in. I know Mario games have never been particularly good at boss fights but man...I really disliked those fights lol. I did enjoy the fact that the third stage of final bowser ends up destroying a lot of the island space into a star shape. That was a proper difficulty increase strategy.

Also the flying... I just can't. I had a similar problem in skyward sword. This may be a skill issue problem but my god it gave me so much trouble. Tough to control. I did however like how the swimming felt! incredibly relaxing.

Even if I think the red coin placements/levels were cheap. I did think in general that every level within a stage is able to show the whole stage in a natural way. I ended up exploring much more through those specific quests. So through the different quests the whole level became more stronger embedded into my mind. My love for them grew. I especially loved unique dynamics such as stage 15 and stage 13.

Very fun game im just shit at it

I can't say I'v 'Completed' the game yet in a true sense. This is because R button in my 3ds is busted and I need to get it replaced. However, even though i havent been able to play the 'true final' of the game due to missing the toad starcoins I can say for sure this is a very fun 3D platformer.

With my expectations being in the absolute pits of hell for this game after experiencing NSMB2..I was completely shocked by how good this game turned out to be. Really fresh, interesting and fun level design. The worlds don't suffer from the tropey stretching games like NSMB2 and to an extent NSMB like to apply. Every level is its own self contained fun adventure that extends its ideas across the world and finally ends it off with a difficult challenge based on some of those ideas.

The difficulty curve is very well done, a slow increase in difficulty across 1-S8 that feels genuinely gratifying as you feel your skill in the game improve. Some of the more difficult sections like the rhythm game platformer bits, the turning twists of s7-5 and the like are some of the hardest in the game but its so damn good even so. The difficulty increase never feels to spite the player.

I still really don't agree with adding the golden tanuki leaf and the level skipper in the normal worlds. Thankfully these are removed in the Special levels. I understand why they are there. But I dont agree with them. Like last game im again having a bit of a headscratcher with these bosses. While the actual level is very enjoyable actually fighting the bosses feels very repetitive even when they start shifting their positions or combining the two in one singular ship. Really can't stand it. It's probably 3D Land's weakest point.

Though aside from some of its flaws I think the game is still really fun and can see myself returning to it in the future! Not often I feel like digging into newgame+ but this game really had me thrilled. One might say the controlled camera is annoying but I personally didn't mind it too much. Even the auto-scroll levels were really fun even if i usually hate those kinds of levels. Some of that enemy placement in the special levels is cruel but i gotta love it.


New Super Mario Bros. 2 is very weak.

The coin system, as many other users have noted is really one-note and undynamic with other systems of the game. It could have been integrated better. Like in a shop. Or that coin collecting unlocks levels.

The koopalings are mostly uninteresting and their boss stages as well as the actual boss fights. Iggy and chomp is fun though. They are shockingly bland bosses compared to the first New SMB.

There are some stages that really leave a sour taste in my mouth. The stage in star-4 is one of the worst auto-scroll levels in SMB. Or the snow level in world 4 is also pretty bad because unless you have the fire flower you are screwed.
There was one stage that stood out. 6-2. A very good auto-scroller.

The inclusion of the tanuki suit is one I dislike because the power-up ends up killing a lot of the levels in the game because unless you force yourself not too you can just skip over most of a level by jumping well, keeping stamina in check. The 'silver/golden tanuki suit' is also bad. It appears if you die often. It is an easy way out, level skipper. Tanuki just kills the core of the SMB game. The exploration.

When you hand an item like that to the player, of course their going to make use of it to the best of their abilities.

I want to note the really boring aesthetics. As a number 2 in the NEW SMB series I expected a shift in art direction. I expected that for the whole series. Time shows that...that didn't really happen. It's really frustrating.

I don't really enjoy this game.

P.S. Do not try to get 90 starcoins. It's not worth the effort.

Played one of the PC ports of the 1980's PAC-MAN. This isn't the first. nor the last time I'll be seeing it. That's for sure. Some unsorted thoughts...

It's PAC-MAN! It feels so distinct and interesting even quite some years later. Sure after it we'll see many games like it, many that try to copy or improve on how it feels...but nothing is quite like that original.

Having originally played a flash version of the title waaay back it's interesting to return to the game now many years later. Some things I notice now: The loud grainy sounds of the pacman such as that of eating the little dot and the 'sirens' were probably made that way to break through the walls of sound reverberating within an arcade setting. Even the music has that kind of high toned nature.

I also think the reason the game ends up working so well is that it is an amalgamation of great signals and indicators. The sirens are a great way to signify danger and pressure, it turns pacman into a kind of Cops and Robbers game. But of course it isn't exactly that. I mean PAC-MAN is eating after all. So this is the first contrast between elements, the loud sirens as though the ghosts were cops (they are not) the eating of pacman as though he were collecting gold to steal on the street (level/stage) (he is not stealing, merely eating) These contrasts are what makes the game so distinct feeling. There are a lot of signals we get from the machine and these signals are each clashing with eachother to create a unique experience.

There's also something neon to Pac-Man. It's loud primary colors in a mostly blacked out screen with blue borders give out this distinct look.

While the main core of the game is to 'capture point' and 'don't get caught' with the way it builds interesting signals around this point, distinct antagonists who go after you, each their own personality, it stands out among the rest and can still be enjoyed today. Sure you might not feel the will to put multiple hours in it but i'd imagine nobody in the arcade was constantly putting hours into the game.

I'm glad to own a digital version so I can open it up every so often, but a few 'coins' in and give it a go :)

Retiring it until I can play it on an actual machine one day instead of through a windows version. Seriously LOOK AT THAT THING! They are so colorful and the shape feels so futuristic. The feedback from the rocket thrusters make the game feel a little bit dynamic even if the enemies itself are pretty stale...

Put em' inbetween the eyes baby!!!

1972

I find the simplicity of the arcade games to be extremely cute and appealing. That simplicity in the design and appeal is what makes the good arcade games timeless and it shows off in the way later games will still use these kinds of systems. Pong's system is a simulation of table tennis and that push and pull between player 1 and 2 as though the core value of table tennis was grabbed and brought to its absolute essence. Super focused.

Mythical and tender, like the stars that hover above the campfire with friends.

This review contains spoilers

This bit of writing contains general spoilers about MOON. (1997) i recommend completing the game first before reading.

MOON. (1997) is a visual novel/text heavy adventure game by TACTICS. The game was made by a group of people who would later end up forming Visual Arts/Key. Original Game releasing on the 21st of november 1997.

I decided to read this game because I had the idea that it would be a fruitful experience to read the Visual Arts/Key games in order, to see a kind of progression of sorts. This isn’t my first project by them though. But you can expect more posts about the other titles too!

I had this kind of expectation of how Key games would be given my previous experiences such as Planetarian, Clannad’s anime, Kanon’s visual novel and its adaptations. Though I must say that MOON. Really blows away what you might have expected from what Key is in particular known for. Moon. is a very dark horror/ero game that ends up expressing some very meaningful themes and ideas while also being very thrilling and crushing to read.

On a thematic level MOON. is about uncovering and pulling apart our pasts and finding ways to deal with them so through that we can find peace and move forward with our lives. To come to terms with the things we’ve done. To accept the wholes of ourselves. Most elements of the game heavily feed into these thematic ideas and can be grasped by most readers. It’s also the kind of themeing I feel particularly emotionally resonating. So I could feel myself get really close to Ikumi, Yui, Haruka, Youko’s stories. Dealing with your own past and coming to terms with the wrong things you might have done is something very powerful. But it’s not easy, not easy at all. The game ends up being a very hollistic experience with how all the elements end up colliding with eachothers.

MOON.’s setting mostly takes place in the FARGO building which is completely cut off from any light or outside interference besides new members and supplies coming in through its singular entry/exit path. This setting ends up defining the tone very well. Its a kind of claustrophibic sensation. The same grayish walls everywhere, the same grunts with the exact same outfits. It’s a really sensation deprived place. The actual map and “movement” mechanic we move through ends up evoking this same kind of dreadful, claustrophobic feeling as we click through its many similar halls. I’v seen writers say that this “movement” mechanic is something that is just used for “time padding” which I think is quite wrong. I think the option to move around is really there to provoke this deeper immersion in the atmosphere. I am willing to admit however that the system could have used some more bite. Some more things to check out. But again maybe that would clash with the sensory deprevation element. The way the break-out from this enclosed space is handled at the end is super cool too. Because of the long time we spent inside the building, with just these gay walls and the memories we inspect, the actual end of the game feels so gratifying. To finally touch that beautiful air again..

Of course the atmosphere is not just defined by its art direction and movement mechanic… its also really heavily defined by its music. MOON. Features a mixed soundtrack that ranges from pure piano instrumentals to heavy electronical mixes with a kind of mechanical sound to it. I feel like I really enjoyed the music and it’s so good in fact that I like listening to it outside of the game as well. Its groovy and its incredibly tense and mysterious.

A lot of the scenes have really high quality direction. A staple of that high quality direction has to be the day 12 bad end, where Ikumi is mind broken into forever staying a young child. Forever locked to that memory. In this scene there is a switch over to a kind of pastel, color pencil like image. A cg that kind of has the feel of those old postcard memories. Its soft tender and painful in that way. Many really memorable VA performances such as the doppel ikumi scenes by Ruru or the final fight with Youko scene by Kodama Satomi..

Just a wonderful game all around. I’d definitely call it one of my favourite visual novels. I had a stellar time.

This was originally posted here on my blog: https://unlimitedblogwork.wordpress.com/2023/06/26/scattered-thought-on-moon-1997-by-tactics/

This review contains spoilers

The music in this remaster is so absolutely mythical and beautiful... I will say, as many others have already noted that the end boss of the game is ridiculous in this port of FF and you might just want to go out of your way to emulate an older version instead. Because the way it ends up screwing with the near-seamless upward gameplay progression of the game REALLY takes you out of it. I'v never minded grinding in a game before I actually think its pretty relaxing. In this case however I couldn't stand it cause it felt weirdly placed with the rest of the game. There is not a singular other time throughout where there is a sudden need to gain levels. It ends up contrasting in a way that pulled me out of the immersion. The end boss (Chaos) being completely RNG in this version of the game ends up stifling the enjoyment of a cool final boss a lot too. The game could also really use some general balancing on both money and XP because its a bit silly to be able to max out on money that easily...

Still its a really fun title..Its adventurous and heroic in the original way. Cast off the veil of darkness and bring the world into light! ill say the NPC are a bit one note but its able to feel so incredibly vast with all its different locations and creatures..


This review contains spoilers

The Penis (Eek!)
The controls being wet as a pair of fat wet nuts is too funny, I only recently played the story mode though I have dabbled in a little bit of multiplayer in the past.

I wonder if there are more games about dick and balls...? The art style of the game is quite humorous given...well you're literally a dick! It's a graphic subject displayed in a really cutesy way..It's a funny contrast. And I like funny contrasts like that.

The game is about letting go of material gainage and owning up to your own mistakes you made in the past. It also rejects toxic masculine traits in its story in a fairly simple way but a charming one I'd say.

Though im still not really sure what the incident actually was, why was he continuously expanding? I can throw a theory out there that it was in a sense visualizing lust. But I have no direct clue... But my assumption is lust and forceful male behavior that caused the incident.

Of course, it doesn't go into depth about the issues of material gain and how toxic masculinity screws with males psychologically. But I feel that it doesn't need to have all of that.

Its a short, cute contrastive game about all of the above.
The jank in the controls feels pretty right for what we are playing as. It's quite fun, i think more would have overstayed its welcome due to its quirky style.

Thats all I had to say, cya