A Frogger game where you’re supposed to work out your destination. That’s insane. It’s Frogger, you’re supposed to know where to go! The retro levels are snappy and fun and look good, which is the problem, the segment of the game which is just a remaster of the 1981 edition is the only part that engenders any pleasure. Trial and error in a fucking Frogger game! Ps this game is now 9 years older than the original was when this was released, and the time between OG Frogger and “He’s Back!” is the same time between the release of the PS3 and now

I have a bleed build so I'm pretending the final boss doesn't exist. Only open world game I can think of that I felt like genuinely cared about my continued inspiration to play, super intuitive exploration incentives continued even into the final hours (I wanted the Haligdrake Talisman+2, so I needed the other half of the secret medallion, so I finally went back for Niall, beat him, and had a blast in Mohgwyn Palace, etc, just one late example of something that happened dozens of times throughout the playthrough). Recursive, rewarding, brilliantly paced, from hour zero to hour 80.

Honestly not that fun, but philosophically sturdy and kind of necessary? Gaming as power fantasy isn't as interesting to me as gaming as hobby, and getting good at skateboarding or any hobby worth pursing is mostly monotonous and frustrating and defined by the spiritual catharsis of 100 failures preparing us for that one success. As such, this game does everything it can to bind you -- the physics are grounded, the spots are realistically un-spectacular, and the controls are fucking weird (you press L1+Square+down to do a manual...?). It'll make you less immediately happy than Tony Hawk, but you'll feel a since of accomplishment when you kickflip over a set of stairs for the first time -- and Tony Hawk never binds you, and never gives you a sense of accomplishment.