WegerBeger
2022
This game is all about revenge. Not just the revenge of the mc after their father is killed, but SloClap's after the failure that was Absolver. Which is the real base of Sifu, using many similar moves and a similar art style. Despite this however the end result couldn't have been more different, considering the huge success of Sifu and how it makes up for the weaknesses that Absolver had. The real issues with Absolver lie not with it's gameplay but it's lack of an identity and the mass appeal it had as a pvp deck based fighting game. Which Sifu elegantly remedies in a pretty simple manner. Rather than being a vehicle for the gameplay with no personality to speak of, it has an identity of ruthlessness with an Asian martial arts setting. Nothing complicated, but it gets the job done. Something I could similarly say about the story; which like I specified before, is all about revenge. It doesn't really do anything that interesting. Just the same old story about the cycle of vengence and how the mc is no better than those who wronged him. You know the drill that's how these things go, the best parts of the story are the ones that the game has you figure out by yourself when looking around each level, which I appreciated. But these were sidelined for a reason, the game knows what everyone is really here for, the gameplay. It's a very satisfying defense oriented system that is extremely easy to get into with a lot to improve on. Exactly what you want from your combat system. The thing I found the most interesting about it however is the fact that rather then having it's depth and focus on offense as do most 3D beat em ups, such as DMC, Arkham, or Bayonetta, the most prideful I felt in Sifu was through a mastery of parries and dodges.
Your offensive options in this game just aren't as integral to your gameplan due to how it sets up both the bosses and the elite enemies. As you only get a certain amount of hits every time you dodge or open them up, meaning that against the hardest enemies offense is sort of a binary. Did you do as much damage as you could in the brief amount of time? If yes then you repeat that sequence as there is not one other reason to do anything else. And it's not as if doing optimal damage is very hard or interesting either, as the different combos in this game are just pressing one button until you have to press another, almost Dynasty Warrior style. When I say this it seems as if I'm really ragging on it, and while I do believe that there is a lot of unused potential in this aspect I want to make it clear that it still feels great execution and presentation wise. Everything is incredibly responsive and the finisher animations are amazing, they never get tiring. They have so many different variations, sometimes using the environment and sometimes your weapon, and it goes by extremely fast too, unlike something like Spiderman PS4. So even if it isn't the deepest or most complex system in the world it's responsive, has many frames where you can cancel to parry, and most importantly makes you feel cool, so it's still fun overall. Now time for me to stop stalling and talk about the defensive mechanics, parrying and dodging. The real genius behind these is how equally important they are and how they work together. Your perception of how to use both of these systems also changes frequently throughout the playthrough, at first you just parry cause you only fight normal enemies which get stopped by parries easily. Since the first boss also is easier to parry you lean harder into that, but then second level things change up a bit. Both the elites (which are everywhere in this level) and the boss are not so easily beaten by parries.
You also learn that by parrying and blocking certain attacks it does a lot of damage to your "structure" or basically your guard. And then you learn the utility of dodging, how the window to dodge is actually much easier than parrying, and that most attacks in the game are easily dodged in one direction. Then the further you get into the game you start running into more enemies capable of high low mixups, which can be extremely hard to react to. Which is when your final realization happens. Parrying doesn't matter regardless of high low, and also adds damage to the opponents structure, meaning even if you can't completely deflect an attack, it will still have a lasting impact. At this point it becomes a really captivating balance between parrying offensively to chip away at your opponents, and dodging in order to regain your structure. All this while you have to learn and adapt to new movesets from bosses or enemies. This also compliments the death system extremely well, as a ton of the replay value in this game is to finish the game with lower and lower ages. It intrinsically motivates the player to keep playing so that they can improve and achieve the end goal of being virtually perfect. Unfortunately however that's kind of all the good I have to say for the aging system in this game. Getting older whenever you die and it growing exponentially based upon how many times you die in a fight is a great idea, and one of the most interesting fail states I've ever seen; but besides visually I barely felt any difference. It's supposed to make your health lower and your damage higher but from 20 to 75 the health has 1/4th depleted and frankly I couldn't really notice the difference in damage. I would have liked more changes besides these values such as damage, like maybe the dodge window is lower, or your structure gets reduced.
These would lead to the gameplay experience being massively different from 20 to 75; who knows, though it's possible I didn't notice due to going from 20 to 30 to 40 to 50 and being introduced to the change gradually rather than immediately. The only other change that being old brings is limiting the abilities that you can upgrade, which brings me to an issue that I'm honestly iffy about. I believe that most of the upgrades aren't substantial enough and don't feel that good to get, and the fact that you have to waste a million exp in order to unlock one permanently. They sort of have to make upgrades feel bad because it is extremely easy to lose all your upgrades. If you game over once you lose literally everything, so they didn't want to punish you that badly for game over-ing, or at least didn't want it to feel too different. But of course this just serves to make the game feel worse, and you don't feel as rewarded as you should for surviving as long as possible and keeping all your upgrades. It works both ways, and personally I'd like it more if you could get more then just techniques or moves, like your focus bar or other random perks. Because the way it is now it doesn't feel like the upgrades matter past a small few, and the upgrades you can get at the statues are extremely limited and broken. Since it's so limited though you don't have nearly enough time to get everything you want, though that part is likely intentional and a non-issue. The last thing I want to talk about is some of the surprisingly surreal visuals in the game. It starts of quite normal but when your character starts seeing things it's always a visual treat. Absolutely peaking with level 3 which has both beautiful and trippy visuals at the same time. I was thinking about how this reflected the main character's mental state a ton but honestly I've deemed that most of the time it means absolutely nothing and they put it in there to look cool, which it achieves successfully.
To wrap up this review which frankly is getting a little out of hand I'll say that this was a really fun single player experience that I would recommend if you think that you would replay it. If you are going to pick up the game once and then never play again after you will barely get $20 of value out of this $40 game. I've reached the point where it feels like I've seen it all, there isn't enough variation between runs to keep things fresh like other games of the rougelite genre, and if it wasn't for the fact that I wanted to improve then I would probably have just moved on to a different game. If you don't find yourself intrinsically motivated by things similar to this then I would recommend waiting for a big price drop. It may not be well rounded, but it has a fantastic combat system that I could return to 10 years from now and still have a blast.
7/10
also I forgot to say but the camera sucks sometimes
Your offensive options in this game just aren't as integral to your gameplan due to how it sets up both the bosses and the elite enemies. As you only get a certain amount of hits every time you dodge or open them up, meaning that against the hardest enemies offense is sort of a binary. Did you do as much damage as you could in the brief amount of time? If yes then you repeat that sequence as there is not one other reason to do anything else. And it's not as if doing optimal damage is very hard or interesting either, as the different combos in this game are just pressing one button until you have to press another, almost Dynasty Warrior style. When I say this it seems as if I'm really ragging on it, and while I do believe that there is a lot of unused potential in this aspect I want to make it clear that it still feels great execution and presentation wise. Everything is incredibly responsive and the finisher animations are amazing, they never get tiring. They have so many different variations, sometimes using the environment and sometimes your weapon, and it goes by extremely fast too, unlike something like Spiderman PS4. So even if it isn't the deepest or most complex system in the world it's responsive, has many frames where you can cancel to parry, and most importantly makes you feel cool, so it's still fun overall. Now time for me to stop stalling and talk about the defensive mechanics, parrying and dodging. The real genius behind these is how equally important they are and how they work together. Your perception of how to use both of these systems also changes frequently throughout the playthrough, at first you just parry cause you only fight normal enemies which get stopped by parries easily. Since the first boss also is easier to parry you lean harder into that, but then second level things change up a bit. Both the elites (which are everywhere in this level) and the boss are not so easily beaten by parries.
You also learn that by parrying and blocking certain attacks it does a lot of damage to your "structure" or basically your guard. And then you learn the utility of dodging, how the window to dodge is actually much easier than parrying, and that most attacks in the game are easily dodged in one direction. Then the further you get into the game you start running into more enemies capable of high low mixups, which can be extremely hard to react to. Which is when your final realization happens. Parrying doesn't matter regardless of high low, and also adds damage to the opponents structure, meaning even if you can't completely deflect an attack, it will still have a lasting impact. At this point it becomes a really captivating balance between parrying offensively to chip away at your opponents, and dodging in order to regain your structure. All this while you have to learn and adapt to new movesets from bosses or enemies. This also compliments the death system extremely well, as a ton of the replay value in this game is to finish the game with lower and lower ages. It intrinsically motivates the player to keep playing so that they can improve and achieve the end goal of being virtually perfect. Unfortunately however that's kind of all the good I have to say for the aging system in this game. Getting older whenever you die and it growing exponentially based upon how many times you die in a fight is a great idea, and one of the most interesting fail states I've ever seen; but besides visually I barely felt any difference. It's supposed to make your health lower and your damage higher but from 20 to 75 the health has 1/4th depleted and frankly I couldn't really notice the difference in damage. I would have liked more changes besides these values such as damage, like maybe the dodge window is lower, or your structure gets reduced.
These would lead to the gameplay experience being massively different from 20 to 75; who knows, though it's possible I didn't notice due to going from 20 to 30 to 40 to 50 and being introduced to the change gradually rather than immediately. The only other change that being old brings is limiting the abilities that you can upgrade, which brings me to an issue that I'm honestly iffy about. I believe that most of the upgrades aren't substantial enough and don't feel that good to get, and the fact that you have to waste a million exp in order to unlock one permanently. They sort of have to make upgrades feel bad because it is extremely easy to lose all your upgrades. If you game over once you lose literally everything, so they didn't want to punish you that badly for game over-ing, or at least didn't want it to feel too different. But of course this just serves to make the game feel worse, and you don't feel as rewarded as you should for surviving as long as possible and keeping all your upgrades. It works both ways, and personally I'd like it more if you could get more then just techniques or moves, like your focus bar or other random perks. Because the way it is now it doesn't feel like the upgrades matter past a small few, and the upgrades you can get at the statues are extremely limited and broken. Since it's so limited though you don't have nearly enough time to get everything you want, though that part is likely intentional and a non-issue. The last thing I want to talk about is some of the surprisingly surreal visuals in the game. It starts of quite normal but when your character starts seeing things it's always a visual treat. Absolutely peaking with level 3 which has both beautiful and trippy visuals at the same time. I was thinking about how this reflected the main character's mental state a ton but honestly I've deemed that most of the time it means absolutely nothing and they put it in there to look cool, which it achieves successfully.
To wrap up this review which frankly is getting a little out of hand I'll say that this was a really fun single player experience that I would recommend if you think that you would replay it. If you are going to pick up the game once and then never play again after you will barely get $20 of value out of this $40 game. I've reached the point where it feels like I've seen it all, there isn't enough variation between runs to keep things fresh like other games of the rougelite genre, and if it wasn't for the fact that I wanted to improve then I would probably have just moved on to a different game. If you don't find yourself intrinsically motivated by things similar to this then I would recommend waiting for a big price drop. It may not be well rounded, but it has a fantastic combat system that I could return to 10 years from now and still have a blast.
7/10
also I forgot to say but the camera sucks sometimes
2021
Everhood Review:
Euthanasia Coaster
"Riding the coaster’s track, the rider is subjected to a series of intensive motion elements that induce various unique experiences: from euphoria to thrill, and from tunnel vision to loss of consciousness, and, eventually, death. [...]the fatal journey is made elegant, pleasing, and meaningful."
I think this helps explain more about the game then I could with 30 minutes. The game isn't the most polished, hell it doesn't even have a song select as a rhythm game, it's not the prettiest, and it's not the best story ever told. But it truly is a coaster that you ride from start to finish. Every new song they introduce you to a new genre or idea, and the game just keeps building on this. Every encounter a new experience, that is always so uniquely itself. The game is a true fever dream, with the visuals being just as important to the experience as the music. Some songs are truly an experience that no other game is able to provide. Controls are precise and all the maps were fun to play through. Dodging to the wonderful music is always a pleasure, so much so that I even replayed the game cause I wanted to play some of the songs again. It's hard to get into the story without ruining some of the surprises along the way but beyond all the trippy visuals and crazy Absolute Truths the games themes are actually quite simple. It's all about what it means to be alive, and not being so afraid of losing your life that you don't get to live it. The thing I really love about it though is how over the top the game is when presenting this idea, it goes as far as you can possibly imagine, and the nonsensical visuals paired with the fantastic soundtrack amplify this feeling ten times over. I think the best thing I can say about this game is there is nothing like it and most likely will never be. There are good things and bad things that come with this of course, but I have to appreciate any game which can provide such a unique and fresh experience.
Cause of this it ain't for everyone, but if you have a passing interest it's an easy recommendation. Even more so considering it's only 10 dollars, which is absolutely a steal. Also has some cool workshop content if that's your thing!
Euthanasia Coaster
"Riding the coaster’s track, the rider is subjected to a series of intensive motion elements that induce various unique experiences: from euphoria to thrill, and from tunnel vision to loss of consciousness, and, eventually, death. [...]the fatal journey is made elegant, pleasing, and meaningful."
I think this helps explain more about the game then I could with 30 minutes. The game isn't the most polished, hell it doesn't even have a song select as a rhythm game, it's not the prettiest, and it's not the best story ever told. But it truly is a coaster that you ride from start to finish. Every new song they introduce you to a new genre or idea, and the game just keeps building on this. Every encounter a new experience, that is always so uniquely itself. The game is a true fever dream, with the visuals being just as important to the experience as the music. Some songs are truly an experience that no other game is able to provide. Controls are precise and all the maps were fun to play through. Dodging to the wonderful music is always a pleasure, so much so that I even replayed the game cause I wanted to play some of the songs again. It's hard to get into the story without ruining some of the surprises along the way but beyond all the trippy visuals and crazy Absolute Truths the games themes are actually quite simple. It's all about what it means to be alive, and not being so afraid of losing your life that you don't get to live it. The thing I really love about it though is how over the top the game is when presenting this idea, it goes as far as you can possibly imagine, and the nonsensical visuals paired with the fantastic soundtrack amplify this feeling ten times over. I think the best thing I can say about this game is there is nothing like it and most likely will never be. There are good things and bad things that come with this of course, but I have to appreciate any game which can provide such a unique and fresh experience.
Cause of this it ain't for everyone, but if you have a passing interest it's an easy recommendation. Even more so considering it's only 10 dollars, which is absolutely a steal. Also has some cool workshop content if that's your thing!
2021
Psychonauts 2 Review:
This game really lived up to my expectations and it's a fantastic sequel to the original Psychonauts. It expands and improves almost everything about the first game, making it feel like a very natural progression of the series. Which is honestly a miracle considering that it took around 16 years for it to happen. They really tightened up the gameplay this time, everything feels a lot nice to use cause they removed a lot of the lag from actions that probably didn't need it, making things feel a lot snappier. Thankfully along with the gameplay they also cleaned up the visuals to an overwhelming amount. The game can still be a bit gross, but the new character designs are all pleasant to look at, something I couldn't really say about the first game. It isn't just the characters though, the game looks really nice and helps really flesh out all these cool and interesting new worlds. The color palate got a massive improvement, making sure not to repeat the mistakes of Psychonauts 1. Speaking of the new worlds they are overall way better than Psychonauts 1, which only had a few standouts. In this game each and every single level has not only an interesting idea that it plays with but are fun to platform in. Something that they really messed up in the original game. The story is also everything I had been hoping for and more. In the first game they make it very clear that the world is much larger then the scope of the game. This time it's fully realized, and you get to take on an operation of a much larger scale, with a better plot to match. Can't say much but I actually got some Oldboy vibes from the story, which I was really impressed by. Did not expect them to go for the twist they did, that's for sure. While the overall story is a lot better than the original game I think they messed up one of the things that made the first game so good, which is the characters. Due to the much larger story there are a lot more characters, though they weren't able to give them all the screentime they deserve. Psychonauts 1 had a much smaller cast in comparison, and even if they weren't really important to the overall plot they all got a ton of dialogue after every level. Psychonauts 2 has just as much dialogue if not more, but it's way more spread out across side characters and different levels then before. This isn't objectively worse or anything, but the main issue is that characters who are integral to the plot now don't get as much dialogue as they probably deserve. Hell the people who save the whole world with you are relevant an entire one time throughout the game. Don't get me wrong though the game is just as funny, with some great voice acting throughout, just think there were some missed opportunities with the characters in this game. I think a very interesting difference between the two games is that this one is no doubt in my mind a linear 3d platformer, while Psychonauts 1 blended the line between adventure game and platformer. I think this shift in focus definitely helps the game feel more concentrated, another issue that was present in the first game. I don't really have much else to say, the side quests and pins are nice additions, and the new and old powers all feel great. Only things I can say is that the movement is a little less interesting due to the removal of the physics engine from the first game, and the combat is pretty mediocre, and they force you to do it a lot. Especially as a follow up to the first game Psychonauts 2 is super fun and no doubt one of the most creative platformers out there.
This game really lived up to my expectations and it's a fantastic sequel to the original Psychonauts. It expands and improves almost everything about the first game, making it feel like a very natural progression of the series. Which is honestly a miracle considering that it took around 16 years for it to happen. They really tightened up the gameplay this time, everything feels a lot nice to use cause they removed a lot of the lag from actions that probably didn't need it, making things feel a lot snappier. Thankfully along with the gameplay they also cleaned up the visuals to an overwhelming amount. The game can still be a bit gross, but the new character designs are all pleasant to look at, something I couldn't really say about the first game. It isn't just the characters though, the game looks really nice and helps really flesh out all these cool and interesting new worlds. The color palate got a massive improvement, making sure not to repeat the mistakes of Psychonauts 1. Speaking of the new worlds they are overall way better than Psychonauts 1, which only had a few standouts. In this game each and every single level has not only an interesting idea that it plays with but are fun to platform in. Something that they really messed up in the original game. The story is also everything I had been hoping for and more. In the first game they make it very clear that the world is much larger then the scope of the game. This time it's fully realized, and you get to take on an operation of a much larger scale, with a better plot to match. Can't say much but I actually got some Oldboy vibes from the story, which I was really impressed by. Did not expect them to go for the twist they did, that's for sure. While the overall story is a lot better than the original game I think they messed up one of the things that made the first game so good, which is the characters. Due to the much larger story there are a lot more characters, though they weren't able to give them all the screentime they deserve. Psychonauts 1 had a much smaller cast in comparison, and even if they weren't really important to the overall plot they all got a ton of dialogue after every level. Psychonauts 2 has just as much dialogue if not more, but it's way more spread out across side characters and different levels then before. This isn't objectively worse or anything, but the main issue is that characters who are integral to the plot now don't get as much dialogue as they probably deserve. Hell the people who save the whole world with you are relevant an entire one time throughout the game. Don't get me wrong though the game is just as funny, with some great voice acting throughout, just think there were some missed opportunities with the characters in this game. I think a very interesting difference between the two games is that this one is no doubt in my mind a linear 3d platformer, while Psychonauts 1 blended the line between adventure game and platformer. I think this shift in focus definitely helps the game feel more concentrated, another issue that was present in the first game. I don't really have much else to say, the side quests and pins are nice additions, and the new and old powers all feel great. Only things I can say is that the movement is a little less interesting due to the removal of the physics engine from the first game, and the combat is pretty mediocre, and they force you to do it a lot. Especially as a follow up to the first game Psychonauts 2 is super fun and no doubt one of the most creative platformers out there.
2021
Twelve Minutes Review (spoilers btw):
I'm just gonna get straight to it and say that whether you like or dislike this game pretty much entirely depends on the ending. Cause the game is very solid up until then, despite the very minimalist approach where you only have one room and 4 voice actors to tell a story it's fun to explore the possibilities. The way your perspective of whats happening in this contained area flipping every time you uncover new information was super interesting. I think it has a really good grasp of some of the smaller details as well, it being a time loop your character goes through a few changes which provide new animations each time you do them. Stuff like fighting the cop or killing your wife slowly becoming more and more efficient is a nice touch. Having a variation of your big reveal song turn into a quaint piano rendition when you find out your wife is innocent is actually a nice little example of adaptive music, helping those moments feel more special when you see them. The feeling I got solving puzzles was also great, there's only 1 point in there game where it was unreasonable. Having those gotcha moments after running the same simulation for so long also made it feel more rewarding. Something that is a bit disappointing though I didn't notice it in my playthrough was how linear the game is. Despite there being so many options at your disposal there is only one path to success for each puzzle. Also believe it or not the time loop game is repetitive. Grass is also green. I understand why people got mad at the game for being too repetitive but it gives you tools to save time, though not being able to fast forward through other peoples dialogue is sort of annoying. There is a good reason for it though, I mean it is a time loop game. It's meant to help you get into a similar mindset of the main character, which I think it does successfully. Voice acting was also great, they shelled out some money for it and it feels like it payed off. Now we get to the end of the game, where things start to get really divisive. First off, I don't think the incest reveal was really that bad. Yeah it's messed up but it being so disgusting is what makes it impactful as a reveal. It's not as if it came out of nowhere either, I mean we only see 3 people in this game so of course when we are looking for the mysterious brother it can only be one of those 3. The game doesn't glorify it either, main character knows he's fucked up as soon as he realizes. Finally connecting those dots at the end only to come to the conclusion yourself was super crazy, cause at least I know I never expected the game to go there. Then the ending hits and you're left wondering what the hell happened. It all being a dream/trance caused by your dad/therapist meaning everything was in your head besides impregnating your sister is certainly a bold ending. Honestly it does come off as a bit pretentious, like what did it all mean, what's real and what's not. While the idea of the timeloops being a defense mechanism by the mc in result of learning about the true nature of his relationship with his spouse isn't necessarily the worst idea I've ever heard. It really just doesn't make that much sense and frankly seems poorly executed. Even if it isn't that well written I can't deny the fact that I was entertained by it. Watching it happen was sort of like a car crash, I just couldn't look away; it was just too ridiculous. So while this game is obviously not made for everyone, I'm glad it had the balls to do what it did, even if what it did wasn't great. Fun time.
I'm just gonna get straight to it and say that whether you like or dislike this game pretty much entirely depends on the ending. Cause the game is very solid up until then, despite the very minimalist approach where you only have one room and 4 voice actors to tell a story it's fun to explore the possibilities. The way your perspective of whats happening in this contained area flipping every time you uncover new information was super interesting. I think it has a really good grasp of some of the smaller details as well, it being a time loop your character goes through a few changes which provide new animations each time you do them. Stuff like fighting the cop or killing your wife slowly becoming more and more efficient is a nice touch. Having a variation of your big reveal song turn into a quaint piano rendition when you find out your wife is innocent is actually a nice little example of adaptive music, helping those moments feel more special when you see them. The feeling I got solving puzzles was also great, there's only 1 point in there game where it was unreasonable. Having those gotcha moments after running the same simulation for so long also made it feel more rewarding. Something that is a bit disappointing though I didn't notice it in my playthrough was how linear the game is. Despite there being so many options at your disposal there is only one path to success for each puzzle. Also believe it or not the time loop game is repetitive. Grass is also green. I understand why people got mad at the game for being too repetitive but it gives you tools to save time, though not being able to fast forward through other peoples dialogue is sort of annoying. There is a good reason for it though, I mean it is a time loop game. It's meant to help you get into a similar mindset of the main character, which I think it does successfully. Voice acting was also great, they shelled out some money for it and it feels like it payed off. Now we get to the end of the game, where things start to get really divisive. First off, I don't think the incest reveal was really that bad. Yeah it's messed up but it being so disgusting is what makes it impactful as a reveal. It's not as if it came out of nowhere either, I mean we only see 3 people in this game so of course when we are looking for the mysterious brother it can only be one of those 3. The game doesn't glorify it either, main character knows he's fucked up as soon as he realizes. Finally connecting those dots at the end only to come to the conclusion yourself was super crazy, cause at least I know I never expected the game to go there. Then the ending hits and you're left wondering what the hell happened. It all being a dream/trance caused by your dad/therapist meaning everything was in your head besides impregnating your sister is certainly a bold ending. Honestly it does come off as a bit pretentious, like what did it all mean, what's real and what's not. While the idea of the timeloops being a defense mechanism by the mc in result of learning about the true nature of his relationship with his spouse isn't necessarily the worst idea I've ever heard. It really just doesn't make that much sense and frankly seems poorly executed. Even if it isn't that well written I can't deny the fact that I was entertained by it. Watching it happen was sort of like a car crash, I just couldn't look away; it was just too ridiculous. So while this game is obviously not made for everyone, I'm glad it had the balls to do what it did, even if what it did wasn't great. Fun time.
2004
This game really is timeless, from the gameplay to the visuals, even the music still works so well today. The only thing that didn't age well are some game design decisions which I'll talk about later. Everything else though is extremely well done; which is incredible considering that only one person worked on it. Its truly inspiring, though obviously you aren't reading this to hear that story. The game is basically a linear metriodvania. It has the power ups and back tracking for secrets, while also having a story which guides you along the disconnected levels. The gameplay itself is simple, though it's precise and honestly feels great to play. Sound effects are great, popping a bunch of enemies with your various guns and seeing all the exp pop up never gets old. Speaking of exp, the level system is really unique and helps make sure the game doesn't get boring. Each weapon has 3 different levels with them getting increasingly better each time, however exp isn't shared and what weapon gets exp is determined by what you have equipped when you pick it up. Since you also decrease in levels whenever you get hit, you are encouraged to switch weapons a lot which doesn't feel like a chore cause they all have their own purpose. Even if some are more niche than others. Makes you feel good having super strong weapons but also keeping you on your toes cause you could lose it if you go a bit too schtupid. Just a well designed system all around. The world is also fun to move around in, even when backtracking cause you gets some really fun movement later into the game. I think an interesting aspect of the game that I didn't really get to experience was all the various weapons that you can get if you choose to. Cause you can't get every weapon in a single playthrough, meaning all your playthroughs can be different experiences every time. This is especially true considering the game was absolutely not made for you to get the true ending on your first run. This is where the age seeps in a little. In order to get the true ending you have to do a bunch of things that you would absolutely not think about ever on your first playthrough. If I played the game how it was released originally in a time without guides or easy access info I don't think I would have ever gotten the true ending. Which may be a blessing in disguise cause oh baby does the game hit you with a steep difficulty curve for the true ending. It truly does mean it when it says "Welcome to Hell." I don't think it's bad to have the game be difficult, I just sort of take issue with the fact that a good amount of the difficulty comes in thanks to rng and no saves despite there being a point where there could obviously be one. It's annoying, but it isn't really the end of the world. It might have left a slight sour taste in my mouth but the resolution of the game was nice enough for me to forget it. Reminds me that I haven't talked about the story yet. It's a welcome contrast to the cute and bubbly pixel art of the game. It ain't afraid to hit you with stuff like having to put Toroko out of her misery cause she was forced into a violent rampage against her will. Or the Doctor planning to take over Earth with innocent citizens that have no clue that their humanity will be removed so they can be turned into mindless monsters. It's still a pretty simple story, but there is substance and not everyone gets a happy ending. It's just so easy to see the passion that the singular dev put into this game, and the fact that he made it completely free just goes to show his intentions while making it. I have no idea how one person managed to make such great pixel art, a really crunchy but memorable OST, and just a straight up fun game. Honestly the game isn't for everyone, but I would definitely recommend it to anyone who has even a passing interest. It's not that long, and it's completely free.
Classic
Classic
Travis Strikes Again Complete Edition:
I think a lot of your enjoyment hinges on one very important thing, how much you care about Suda51's work. There are so many things you just wouldn't know if you hadn't looked into him or already played his past games previously. There's a reference to his kinect game where you play as a baseball star who has to fend off evil carnival forces even if it was just for a single line. The way Suda weaves all of his games into this one is honestly a sight to behold. All of this would have slipped my mind if it wasn't for my friend who did know a ton about Suda, and there was still stuff that he missed that I got to find out after I played. As someone who hasn't played any Suda games before I was really brought in by the dialogue/story which is mostly done through visual novel format. They were absolutely my favorite parts of the game. They had pretty funny writing, a ton of entertaining scenes, and an interesting story to boot. Maybe it's just cause I've been playing Kingdom Hearts but the dialogue was such a breath of fresh air cause it felt like it was written by humans. This also carries over for the bosses, who are all interesting characters in their own rights and share interesting interactions with Travis. The bosses were by far the best part of the gameplay, with pretty interesting phases and actually got you thinking a little. Sadly not something I can really say about the regular gameplay, which definitely gets dragged out a bit longer then it should. You only have two attacks along with your super and they don't feel fantastic to use. Having your supers get stronger the more you use them without getting hit sounds like a pretty good idea on paper but a few enemies don't get flinched and you can't really act out of your attacks so a lot of the time you have to get hit if you wanna deal any damage. Or at the very least that's how it felt.
Not that it matters much since the game is pretty easy with 2 players, as dying doesn't really have a consequence. The only thing saving the combat are the chips (all gundam references cause why not) which are abilities that you can mix and match as you like. Definitely not a game that I could play in one sitting, though in multiple it's fine. The level settings were interesting enough until the last one where it's the same blocky location the entire way through. Even despite the middling gameplay the charm of the game absolutely won me over, as almost everything else is great. The music is really amazing, along with the sound effects, the presentation changes with each level representing different genres and styles, hell even the save spots are cool looking. The story seems really weird and only about Travis' journey through the past and how he confronts it but a little digging will show a lot more behind the scenes, like a massive government conspiracy to only name one. Similarly to how the game on the surface has a lot of random characters that appear for one textbox then disappear never to be seen again, but with a little digging you'll see how these characters have their own stories and games that they come from. This game is absolutely not for everyone, but like all of Suda's games they aren't exactly meant to be. If you have any interest in his work this game serves as a hub to explore a ton of his past properties, if you don't really care that much all you'll find is a mediocre hack and slash with some good writing here and there. For me personally the passion that the game has for past properties made me sure that I will absolutely by coming back for more Suda sooner rather than later.
7/10
I think a lot of your enjoyment hinges on one very important thing, how much you care about Suda51's work. There are so many things you just wouldn't know if you hadn't looked into him or already played his past games previously. There's a reference to his kinect game where you play as a baseball star who has to fend off evil carnival forces even if it was just for a single line. The way Suda weaves all of his games into this one is honestly a sight to behold. All of this would have slipped my mind if it wasn't for my friend who did know a ton about Suda, and there was still stuff that he missed that I got to find out after I played. As someone who hasn't played any Suda games before I was really brought in by the dialogue/story which is mostly done through visual novel format. They were absolutely my favorite parts of the game. They had pretty funny writing, a ton of entertaining scenes, and an interesting story to boot. Maybe it's just cause I've been playing Kingdom Hearts but the dialogue was such a breath of fresh air cause it felt like it was written by humans. This also carries over for the bosses, who are all interesting characters in their own rights and share interesting interactions with Travis. The bosses were by far the best part of the gameplay, with pretty interesting phases and actually got you thinking a little. Sadly not something I can really say about the regular gameplay, which definitely gets dragged out a bit longer then it should. You only have two attacks along with your super and they don't feel fantastic to use. Having your supers get stronger the more you use them without getting hit sounds like a pretty good idea on paper but a few enemies don't get flinched and you can't really act out of your attacks so a lot of the time you have to get hit if you wanna deal any damage. Or at the very least that's how it felt.
Not that it matters much since the game is pretty easy with 2 players, as dying doesn't really have a consequence. The only thing saving the combat are the chips (all gundam references cause why not) which are abilities that you can mix and match as you like. Definitely not a game that I could play in one sitting, though in multiple it's fine. The level settings were interesting enough until the last one where it's the same blocky location the entire way through. Even despite the middling gameplay the charm of the game absolutely won me over, as almost everything else is great. The music is really amazing, along with the sound effects, the presentation changes with each level representing different genres and styles, hell even the save spots are cool looking. The story seems really weird and only about Travis' journey through the past and how he confronts it but a little digging will show a lot more behind the scenes, like a massive government conspiracy to only name one. Similarly to how the game on the surface has a lot of random characters that appear for one textbox then disappear never to be seen again, but with a little digging you'll see how these characters have their own stories and games that they come from. This game is absolutely not for everyone, but like all of Suda's games they aren't exactly meant to be. If you have any interest in his work this game serves as a hub to explore a ton of his past properties, if you don't really care that much all you'll find is a mediocre hack and slash with some good writing here and there. For me personally the passion that the game has for past properties made me sure that I will absolutely by coming back for more Suda sooner rather than later.
7/10
2021
Ok it took me some time to sort my feelings on this one and write this because 1. I'm lazy and 2. I felt that I was possibly underrating the game and I wanted to make sure I was confident in my rating. After a bit of review I've concluded that it really is a great game but definitely no masterpiece. Gameplay wise I couldn't point any real faults even if I wanted to, everything controls really nicely and they even give you some fun movement to mess around with. If it was just the ok base mechanics the game wouldn't bear anywhere near as good, the real reason this game shines is because it presents you with a new idea every minute, and every idea lasts the perfect amount of time. I can't think of a time where a mechanic really outstayed its welcome because the games is just that fast paced. Not only that these mechanics are usually pretty fun and make good use of the fact that the game is a cooperative experience. The game actually uses the fact that it's a co op experience as best as possible, with all facets of gameplay and story revolving around both players. It even has little minigames that you can compete in with another player, that yet again add a lot of variety and were always fun to find. Another interesting thing I noticed while playing is that despite how linear the game was, it also had a good amount of exploration. There are little sandboxes the game puts you in from time to time where you have to complete objectives but almost every time this happens there is a bunch of stuff you can do just for fun. Making snowballs, eating candy, etch-a-sketch, trains, are just a few of the things you can do, but the game never forces these side events down your throat and you can just walk past them if you wish.
That brings me to the presentation which is honestly incredible, the game looks beautiful and the places you go are super interesting. This game uses the fact that it's characters are tiny to it's advantage and makes you explore a ton of fun settings. Even the characters animations are both extremely different and are based on the respective character's personality traits. I've been singing the praises of this game non-stop so you're probably wondering why I specified it's no masterpiece if it's so great. That or you're wondering why I'm even bothering taking the time to talk to the reader when I could just say what I'm thinking. The answer for both of these is that me and this game share something in common, bad pacing. Now don't get me wrong it's not horrible, but it is bad enough for me to leave with a sour taste in my mouth. It's honestly alright up until the very last level where it feels like they dropped the ball for whatever reason. Not only do they sort of reuse a concept we already saw in the last level, they don't have any sort of proper send off. It just makes me a bit sad when the very last thing you do in this game is slowly walk down a hallway and press a button, especially when levels prior always had some sort of interesting last event. Even the relationship between the two main characters feels rushed. A few levels ago they agree they still want to divorce but all of a sudden turning into a potato and talking to a living embodiment of your first flower solves any and all relationship troubles they have I guess. It's not like they agree they have a lot to work on or that they have to work at being what they once were but as soon as the game ends it's "We'll always be together don't worry!". I understand criticizing the relationship of the two main characters of It Takes Two is one of the sadder things I've ever done but I felt it was important to include it so my issues would be clear.
Now this is more personal but I kinda wish the game was a bit harder, or maybe had a bit more depth. While the game does throw a lot of ideas at you, because of it's fast paced nature it doesn't get to expand on them too much which is a shame cause I personally enjoy a bit more challenge. Music was forgettable, just blends into the background most of the time, and the story as a whole is pretty eh. It's not trying to be Shakespeare or anything so it gets a solid C in my book. Despite these small criticisms I did really enjoy this game and highly recommend if you have anybody to play it with, especially since despite being online the game looked and felt almost the same as if I was playing with someone right next to me.
8.5/10
That brings me to the presentation which is honestly incredible, the game looks beautiful and the places you go are super interesting. This game uses the fact that it's characters are tiny to it's advantage and makes you explore a ton of fun settings. Even the characters animations are both extremely different and are based on the respective character's personality traits. I've been singing the praises of this game non-stop so you're probably wondering why I specified it's no masterpiece if it's so great. That or you're wondering why I'm even bothering taking the time to talk to the reader when I could just say what I'm thinking. The answer for both of these is that me and this game share something in common, bad pacing. Now don't get me wrong it's not horrible, but it is bad enough for me to leave with a sour taste in my mouth. It's honestly alright up until the very last level where it feels like they dropped the ball for whatever reason. Not only do they sort of reuse a concept we already saw in the last level, they don't have any sort of proper send off. It just makes me a bit sad when the very last thing you do in this game is slowly walk down a hallway and press a button, especially when levels prior always had some sort of interesting last event. Even the relationship between the two main characters feels rushed. A few levels ago they agree they still want to divorce but all of a sudden turning into a potato and talking to a living embodiment of your first flower solves any and all relationship troubles they have I guess. It's not like they agree they have a lot to work on or that they have to work at being what they once were but as soon as the game ends it's "We'll always be together don't worry!". I understand criticizing the relationship of the two main characters of It Takes Two is one of the sadder things I've ever done but I felt it was important to include it so my issues would be clear.
Now this is more personal but I kinda wish the game was a bit harder, or maybe had a bit more depth. While the game does throw a lot of ideas at you, because of it's fast paced nature it doesn't get to expand on them too much which is a shame cause I personally enjoy a bit more challenge. Music was forgettable, just blends into the background most of the time, and the story as a whole is pretty eh. It's not trying to be Shakespeare or anything so it gets a solid C in my book. Despite these small criticisms I did really enjoy this game and highly recommend if you have anybody to play it with, especially since despite being online the game looked and felt almost the same as if I was playing with someone right next to me.
8.5/10
The fourth game in the series and the 3rd game and thankfully final game which reuses a bunch of stuff from kh1. Despite being a spinoff ds game which doesn't have much bearing on the overall plot it actually has some well thought out mechanics which make it worth playing if you enjoy kh. It has a cool version of birth by sleep's command deck system where you can fuse different moves together to make one stronger, though getting new moves can be a bit finicky. I also thought that the motherboard where you upgrade your character by putting down chips like levels, strength, and resists was a really good idea. It even has a bunch of setting which let you control how strong enemies are for certain rewards like more money or exp. It fit the aesthetic of the game really well and actually functions as well as it sounds on paper. Though the graphics and sound are completely fine they obviously don't match up to the other games, which makes the repetitive killing of heartless and bugs not the same as the satisfying kh1, kh2, or even CoM. It makes up for it's gameplay not being able to rival it's brethren by adding a lot of variety into the gameplay. There's even a turn based rpg resembling super mario rpg which is actually pretty fun, though a bit easy even on crit. Even despite these breaks from the gameplay I still found myself a little bored of the repetition of not only the worlds being the same as kh1, but the mini dungeons you have to do in order to proceed which all look the same and have one boss which appears sometimes. I think the boss battles are actually surprisingly fun though, all very well designed with very punishing attacks that are very feasible to dodge. Even though I felt underleveled I never felt that any boss was impossible. The game even has a lot of extra content to do after the final boss which is not something I could even say for CoM.
The story isn't really worth talking about, though I did actually like the dialogue a bit more then I did in 1 and 2. Plot doesn't really make that much sense and is used as a way to revisit worlds from kh1 and CoM. If this game were put on a console, and was a bit longer I could easily see it being a great game. I think that a lot of decisions made in this game show that a lot of thought was put into how to make it interesting with what they had to work with. However due to limitations of the console and it being pretty irrelevant storywise it's just a bit better than average in my opinion.
The story isn't really worth talking about, though I did actually like the dialogue a bit more then I did in 1 and 2. Plot doesn't really make that much sense and is used as a way to revisit worlds from kh1 and CoM. If this game were put on a console, and was a bit longer I could easily see it being a great game. I think that a lot of decisions made in this game show that a lot of thought was put into how to make it interesting with what they had to work with. However due to limitations of the console and it being pretty irrelevant storywise it's just a bit better than average in my opinion.
2007
The worst game ever made and the best game ever made
Kingdom Hearts 2 is one of those games that I've always worshiped in my mind thanks to a lot of memories I have attached to it of happier times, and while I don't think it lives up to what I had hoped at the end of the day it's still a great game. First and foremost I have to talk about the combat which is a huge step up kh1 and still holds up to all the others in the series. So many things to talk about that make the combat system so great, but I'll only talk about two in particular. The sense of progression from the beginning to the end is so well done and does a fantastic job at making kh1 Sora feel like a peon. This isn't only just cause you level up and get more stats but unlocking new moves, limits, summons, and most importantly drive forms make the difference between the beginning and end game astronomical. The difference isn't just the amount of damage you can take or dish but the moves Sora uses are sick and almost always feel good to pull off. The sense of progression even extends outside of combat thanks to leveling up of drive forms which gives you insane movement which is both useful in fights and for convenience. I always felt like leveling up gave my stuff that was really worth it. The other factor which makes the combat more varied and interesting are reaction commands, which make fighting different enemies feel more interesting cause almost each one has a different reaction command which feels great to use.
Thankfully the creators knew the strength of their game and for final mix included a bunch of extra end game content all centered around combat and bosses, which are almost all good. The strengths of this game shine bright, but unfortunately a lot of the game either leaves a bit to be desired or doesn't reach it's full potential. The Disney worlds though okay, are just that most of the time, okay. Most of the time Sora and crew don't fit into the plot of the world and just exist without feeling like a part of the plot. Since the worlds don't tie into the story at large unlike kh1, most of the time you just watch whatever Disney film with Sora in the background. If the characters interacted more with the characters and the world in a more natural way then I think you would feel much more involved rather than what we got which is bland and boring. Even a lot of the regular story suffers from a lack of emotion and interaction that doesn't feel robotic, like this scene https://youtu.be/vCqScLMQUQ8 which while not terrible or anything feels really off and doesn't make much sense. I don't think that the story in and of itself isn't that bad honestly, it actually has some pretty interesting ideas and the prologue is an example of that. The execution of the entire plot is just a bit lacking, making all the scenes feel less or more emotional then they probably should be. Despite me saying all this not all cutscenes or Disney Worlds are as bad as I've described, there are exceptions such as Olympus or some of Roxas' scenes. At the end of the day these complaints aren't nearly enough to offset the good in this game. There are just too many memorable moments for me to ever hate this game, and it's still the only series where you can fight the embodiment of darkness with Donald and Goofy so it will always have a place in my heart.
8.5/10
Thankfully the creators knew the strength of their game and for final mix included a bunch of extra end game content all centered around combat and bosses, which are almost all good. The strengths of this game shine bright, but unfortunately a lot of the game either leaves a bit to be desired or doesn't reach it's full potential. The Disney worlds though okay, are just that most of the time, okay. Most of the time Sora and crew don't fit into the plot of the world and just exist without feeling like a part of the plot. Since the worlds don't tie into the story at large unlike kh1, most of the time you just watch whatever Disney film with Sora in the background. If the characters interacted more with the characters and the world in a more natural way then I think you would feel much more involved rather than what we got which is bland and boring. Even a lot of the regular story suffers from a lack of emotion and interaction that doesn't feel robotic, like this scene https://youtu.be/vCqScLMQUQ8 which while not terrible or anything feels really off and doesn't make much sense. I don't think that the story in and of itself isn't that bad honestly, it actually has some pretty interesting ideas and the prologue is an example of that. The execution of the entire plot is just a bit lacking, making all the scenes feel less or more emotional then they probably should be. Despite me saying all this not all cutscenes or Disney Worlds are as bad as I've described, there are exceptions such as Olympus or some of Roxas' scenes. At the end of the day these complaints aren't nearly enough to offset the good in this game. There are just too many memorable moments for me to ever hate this game, and it's still the only series where you can fight the embodiment of darkness with Donald and Goofy so it will always have a place in my heart.
8.5/10
2004
This is the absolute apex of the Sonic Advance series, just like with the original Sonic series it feels like they slowly and slowly improved and in the third installment made a truly great game. Both the music and visuals are a step ahead the first two games with the levels actually being interesting rather than the blander levels found in the past two games. Not to even mention the tag team mechanic which leads to a pretty cool mechanic where each character has a different tag team move. They even have a hub world that does a good job of guiding you and doesn't detract from the gameplay too much. Only bad thing I can say is that the last levels as always are bottomless pit abundant as Dimps does. Also that the trick system feels much worse due to the delay whenever you want to do one, but in the face of the many improved things about this game I don't mind.
2002
It is easily a step up over one with much better movement and also an extra character for good measure. The trick system alone makes this game feel much more fluid and fun, however the level design is still filled with classic Dimps bottomless pits in the later levels that are just as fun as in Sonic Advance . Still a fun and well made 2d sonic though.
2001
Compared to it's older brother on the PS1 Parappa 2 does everything Parappa 1 does except better. More levels, more replayability, and the game actually functions how it's supposed to. The story in 2 is also more charming than in 1 in my opinion. Everything about the game is just so clean, the hub world where each level has a little theme and you walk between them is super clean, the gameplay is fixed so that it can now be played by human beings, and it features a more focused plot. I can't even say much, it's just a great game, and the only negative I can think of is that it's still pretty short all things considered. Easy recommendation though.
1996
I'll say what's obvious, this game has an incredible soundtrack where I can't think of a single bad song. For a ps1 game it also looks quite nice do it's unique style. It's also a pretty funny game, they did not have to make the game over for the bathroom level but did it anyways. It's a truly charming game with 2 big downsides. It feels awful to play, and is extremely short. The most random of inputs can be successful, and they can also be failures. It feels as if there is no rhyme or reason to so many things in this game. The worst part is that you can't even see if your input was good, close, or a failure, so you have no clue what you did wrong when you play. The game also doesn't actually tell you when you are going so sometimes it just randomly cuts to your turn out of nowhere. Add that with the fact that the hit detection is dodgy at best, and the game can be a hellscape sometimes. Thankfully the music and charm make it so you don't mind repeating levels but man it can be painful sometimes. This game is also pitifully short, which makes sense for the time but still makes me wish there was more of the amazing soundtrack. If the game was just a bit more polished it would easily be a much better game.
2017
Not smart enough to get it, maybe another day