detectiveken
This expansion has the same amount of content as the base game, so let's consider it standalone. Yeah, it's great. A fantastic final battle and I'm still not truly finished all these years later.
As a long time fan of the series, I see so much of the old games brought forward through this. There's a lot of good I can say for this but let's go with... This is a series determined to master itself, rather than completely reinvent, and it works.
2016
The first Tales game I've ever felt engrossed in, and also finished. That's gotta mean something. Don't play on Normal if you want any kind of challenge... I stuck with it to see how far Auto would take me and the answer is... all the way through.
2021
Sometimes I play games with friends and don't have to teach my cat how to use a controller. Honestly the best 3D cartoon platformer I've played in years. If you can find a partner, it's a great ride.
I was one of those who didn't like this on PS2, now I love it! The last real expansive FF. In a series known for character studies, this game has the balls to be a political drama. Not as much like Star Wars as I was led to believe.
One of my greatest game regrets was not having a 3DS at the release of New Leaf and I always felt I missed that boat by too much to buy it. Well I finally got that Animal Crossing experience, and I played it every day for three months after it came out.
I finished this game accidentally. Good, dungeon crawling fun, but I wish it had 2 save slots to play both versions of the game concurrently(I later learned the second one does this). I appreciated the limitation of party members preventing me from being underlevelled.
2016
Is it turn based? Is it FPS? Does it have puzzles? One thing is certain. It's the most innovative shooter I've played in years SUPERHOT SUPERHOT SUPERHOT
2019
Seems ambitious at first glance, but all too often returns to shooting everything in a room to progress. I wish they leaned heavier on the puzzles, bosses and platforming. That said, it feels so good to use the powers and just explore the Oldest House.
This isn't the first plague game I've played in the pandemic, but it is the only one I had to take a break from because of it. Really good though. Very well paced and while it tries to emulate its AAA contemporaries, it ain't half as bloated.
2014
I played the second game in this series first, and really I faced the same issues in this. The level design is weirdly both trying to be expansive, but also struggling against the all too similar looking set design being far too confusing for any kind of expansiveness to work. It would have just been better as a corridor shooter to help focus on the story.
Who would've thought they'd finally make that FFVII remake, and it would actually be great! The major beats of the Midgar arc are all still intact and in most cases, lovingly recreated. Cautiously optimistic about the sequel though.
2019
Sometimes you gotta learn that you can't put the past behind you so easily, but maybe you can change your political stance. I was very dissatisfied with the murder mystery, to be honest, but it was a fun ride getting through it.
2003
Specifically the XBLA port on its own. Terrible port, full of slowdown and pixel smoothing, which for a game like Metal Slug should be a crime. Fantastic game though, as long as you have unlimited continues.
This is a strange game to come out these days. licensed shovelware games have almost vanished, and now we have games that try to emulate the popular games of the time. In comes Terminator: Resistance, released close to the film Terminator: Dark Fate, but literally nothing to do with it. In fact it seems the only two Terminator films with any impact on this game were the first two. Anyway, none of that's important, because this game features ideas from 15 years ago. From a binary morality system, to mechanics lifted entirely from Fallout 3 (and on). Graphics on the lower end. All in all, this feels like a PS3/Xbox 360 era title, and honestly, that's what's so great about it. It feels weirdly nostalgic and just satisfying to play. It would be almost ambitious if it hadn't relied entirely on a cavalcade of old systems that were all pretty safe bets.
I know that description so far doesn't sound like it warrants a 4 star review, but as old as it looks and feels, it does it all well. The pacing is excellent, the world is already built so it's easy to engage with, it never gets too overwhelming and often treads into immersive sim territory. It's a good time I don't know what to tell you. It's never been necessary for a game to have great graphics or new ideas to be great. Execution is everything.
I know that description so far doesn't sound like it warrants a 4 star review, but as old as it looks and feels, it does it all well. The pacing is excellent, the world is already built so it's easy to engage with, it never gets too overwhelming and often treads into immersive sim territory. It's a good time I don't know what to tell you. It's never been necessary for a game to have great graphics or new ideas to be great. Execution is everything.