heronpc
This review contains spoilers
Harry really went through all that just to hear he's gonna get the Goblin serum give my boy a break
This review contains spoilers
Miles Morales is an underdog story. Enemies in combat, people on the street, and all of Miles does refer to him as just a side grade spider. This story is about Miles developing the confidence to be Spiderman WITHOUT Peter. And it sets that up well. With Peter being gone with MJ in Symkaria (nice callback to the last game) it's left for Miles alone to patrol the city... the same city. It's now winter break and it's snowing but this game is basically just a beefed up standalone expansion.
The story of this game is a lot more personal than the last one. Miles still lives with his mom so it isn't like Aunt May giving you a call every so often. Miles and his mother bond over the loss of their dad/husband and Miles' best friend is staying over winter break with him. This is even expanded more with Miles' uncle being the Prowler and his childhood best friend being the Tinkerer (which I admit surprised me as much as it shouldn't have). So with this story being more personal and I always being someone rooting for the underdogs, why does it feel so done before? The Tinkerer vs Roxxon dynamic is almost identical to the Octo vs Osborn dynamic of the last game. Where one person is trying to stop an evil person for their own reasons but is doing it in a radically evil way. The last mission honestly saved the story for me with such a well done character building moment between Miles and Phin, along with Phin's regret as the fight going on and her sacrifice made me shed a tear. I'm a sucker for this kind and I felt horrible for Miles. The way Phin says "I'm sorry" and Miles says "It's okay" as they are falling after Phin has caused so much chaos felt so real and tugged at my heart strings. But Phin was also acting ridiculous! Even crazier than Otto was. Even the Roxxon guy says over the intercom how stupid this plan is, explaining that they will just rebuild after the insurance from a terrorist attack. For me to really enjoy this story I have to pretty out of character actions that can only happen from the need to drive the plot. There was stuff like that in the last game, it's almost a trope of superhero media. Letting emotions get in the way of critical thinking, but Phin's decision here to not trust Miles that the reactor has been modified even though he's clearly NOT working for Roxxon is just stupid. I still shed a tear cus again I'm a sucker for Miles and Phin's dynamic but it felt a little forced. I had to push that one out. Aunt May's passing in the ps4 game had me sobbing uncontrollably in comparison, and she's in the game about as much as Phin.
Miles' new "venom" abilities are nice but he has less gadgets overall so I found the combat rather impactful but not as interesting? In the first game I developed different strategies for different enemies as the game went on. Being able to prioritize target enemies I found bothersome and quickly dispatch groups. Miles Morales plays much more like a brawler. I almost NEVER switched off the spiderwebs. It's just racking combos until you can use a venom attack and that takes out everyone, no matter how big they are or if they're blocking, as well as making you invincible.
With Miles camouflage abilities the game is a lot more stealth heavy but I honestly prefer the first game stealth. This game still goes off the same either you are good to take down an enemy or you aren't type of stealth. The first game allowed you to bend these rules more with the trip mines and impact webs, allowing you to take out 2 people who were two close to separate. While here you just have camo to let you sneak around easier. You do have trip mines but they're electric so they can only be used on electrical panels or on 1 single target, making everyone raise their detection.
By the time I felt done I was just over 10 hours in and if I had focused the story a little more I would have been done a few hours quicker. I love Miles as a character and while he has some great arcs, I do feel that there isn't enough run time to flesh out some characters and the story overall played it a little too safe.
100%ing the last game lowered my enjoyment a little so this time I just got any extras I wanted (the bodega cat suit) and called it quits. This game is hard to put an ending note on because it has a lot of the charm as the first game but still oozes the feeling of "been there, done that". I only started using fast travel at the absolute end of the last game for the collectables. But here I was using it the second I unlocked it. For it being what it is (a game sized stand alone expansion basically) I think it's good. It's a good stepping stone in-between the first and second game.
Other things I liked and didn't mention:
-You get to pick a vinyl to play for dinner
-There were TWO separate missions about saving cats (the cats are very cute)
-Cat Bodega Suit (although they play a low mixed stock cat meow sound like every 10 seconds idk why)
-Prowler suit is a Prince reference and looks badass
-Robot Peter calls robot Vulture a racist
-Soundtrack has a nice blend of hip hop and sampling along with the more standard triumphant hero music
-Running into Peter and Doc into the past (I knew this was coming but still it was funny to see Peter and Miles bump into each other and also bittersweet to see Peter and Octo talk before everything went down)
-Miles has lesbian friends
-Prowler boss fight
-This game's color palette. Even the sewer has this charm and character to it
-The final boss fight reminded me of Revenge of the Sith (both location wise and theming, very dramatic and chilling)
-The big blizzard during the final mission increases stakes a lot
-Crimes are a lot less repetitive with you only needing to do a crime ONCE. Not doing that crime 5 times per area. Just once ever
-The mission system made me feel a lot more connected to the people of the city since your following special requests, meaning you get a mix of the serious and silly while all feeling real
-You get your swinging / movement abilities back FAST (all it takes it 3 short trials, which is good for this not being a full sequel)
-That one ign review clip
The story of this game is a lot more personal than the last one. Miles still lives with his mom so it isn't like Aunt May giving you a call every so often. Miles and his mother bond over the loss of their dad/husband and Miles' best friend is staying over winter break with him. This is even expanded more with Miles' uncle being the Prowler and his childhood best friend being the Tinkerer (which I admit surprised me as much as it shouldn't have). So with this story being more personal and I always being someone rooting for the underdogs, why does it feel so done before? The Tinkerer vs Roxxon dynamic is almost identical to the Octo vs Osborn dynamic of the last game. Where one person is trying to stop an evil person for their own reasons but is doing it in a radically evil way. The last mission honestly saved the story for me with such a well done character building moment between Miles and Phin, along with Phin's regret as the fight going on and her sacrifice made me shed a tear. I'm a sucker for this kind and I felt horrible for Miles. The way Phin says "I'm sorry" and Miles says "It's okay" as they are falling after Phin has caused so much chaos felt so real and tugged at my heart strings. But Phin was also acting ridiculous! Even crazier than Otto was. Even the Roxxon guy says over the intercom how stupid this plan is, explaining that they will just rebuild after the insurance from a terrorist attack. For me to really enjoy this story I have to pretty out of character actions that can only happen from the need to drive the plot. There was stuff like that in the last game, it's almost a trope of superhero media. Letting emotions get in the way of critical thinking, but Phin's decision here to not trust Miles that the reactor has been modified even though he's clearly NOT working for Roxxon is just stupid. I still shed a tear cus again I'm a sucker for Miles and Phin's dynamic but it felt a little forced. I had to push that one out. Aunt May's passing in the ps4 game had me sobbing uncontrollably in comparison, and she's in the game about as much as Phin.
Miles' new "venom" abilities are nice but he has less gadgets overall so I found the combat rather impactful but not as interesting? In the first game I developed different strategies for different enemies as the game went on. Being able to prioritize target enemies I found bothersome and quickly dispatch groups. Miles Morales plays much more like a brawler. I almost NEVER switched off the spiderwebs. It's just racking combos until you can use a venom attack and that takes out everyone, no matter how big they are or if they're blocking, as well as making you invincible.
With Miles camouflage abilities the game is a lot more stealth heavy but I honestly prefer the first game stealth. This game still goes off the same either you are good to take down an enemy or you aren't type of stealth. The first game allowed you to bend these rules more with the trip mines and impact webs, allowing you to take out 2 people who were two close to separate. While here you just have camo to let you sneak around easier. You do have trip mines but they're electric so they can only be used on electrical panels or on 1 single target, making everyone raise their detection.
By the time I felt done I was just over 10 hours in and if I had focused the story a little more I would have been done a few hours quicker. I love Miles as a character and while he has some great arcs, I do feel that there isn't enough run time to flesh out some characters and the story overall played it a little too safe.
100%ing the last game lowered my enjoyment a little so this time I just got any extras I wanted (the bodega cat suit) and called it quits. This game is hard to put an ending note on because it has a lot of the charm as the first game but still oozes the feeling of "been there, done that". I only started using fast travel at the absolute end of the last game for the collectables. But here I was using it the second I unlocked it. For it being what it is (a game sized stand alone expansion basically) I think it's good. It's a good stepping stone in-between the first and second game.
Other things I liked and didn't mention:
-You get to pick a vinyl to play for dinner
-There were TWO separate missions about saving cats (the cats are very cute)
-Cat Bodega Suit (although they play a low mixed stock cat meow sound like every 10 seconds idk why)
-Prowler suit is a Prince reference and looks badass
-Robot Peter calls robot Vulture a racist
-Soundtrack has a nice blend of hip hop and sampling along with the more standard triumphant hero music
-Running into Peter and Doc into the past (I knew this was coming but still it was funny to see Peter and Miles bump into each other and also bittersweet to see Peter and Octo talk before everything went down)
-Miles has lesbian friends
-Prowler boss fight
-This game's color palette. Even the sewer has this charm and character to it
-The final boss fight reminded me of Revenge of the Sith (both location wise and theming, very dramatic and chilling)
-The big blizzard during the final mission increases stakes a lot
-Crimes are a lot less repetitive with you only needing to do a crime ONCE. Not doing that crime 5 times per area. Just once ever
-The mission system made me feel a lot more connected to the people of the city since your following special requests, meaning you get a mix of the serious and silly while all feeling real
-You get your swinging / movement abilities back FAST (all it takes it 3 short trials, which is good for this not being a full sequel)
-That one ign review clip
2021
Something about this game made me seething fucking angry and I have a clip of me talking about breaking chairs while playing this game.
(Ignoring the whole lie about these people not making L4D, my opinion is based just off the gameplay itself)
The special zombie spawn rate is absolutely insane. I would open doors to 3 of the same special zombie standing right next to each other. Those special zombies that are attached to the wall are absolute EVERYWHERE. I'd see 2 on the same wall and turn a corner to 3 more. Using the character who auto marks specials made this VERY apparent.
My character never shut up and they speak whole paragraphs mid combat and I thought my friend was playing a random video over the mic.
Shooting is bland and doesn't feel good.
(Ignoring the whole lie about these people not making L4D, my opinion is based just off the gameplay itself)
The special zombie spawn rate is absolutely insane. I would open doors to 3 of the same special zombie standing right next to each other. Those special zombies that are attached to the wall are absolute EVERYWHERE. I'd see 2 on the same wall and turn a corner to 3 more. Using the character who auto marks specials made this VERY apparent.
My character never shut up and they speak whole paragraphs mid combat and I thought my friend was playing a random video over the mic.
Shooting is bland and doesn't feel good.
Only reason this isn't a half star is so league of legends can hold it's shit throne
2016
One of those games I was really excited for, but... just never played far into?
Me and my sibling would see who could blow up their ship first in the space battles and I like to think that's cannon in some way
2022
Blood water reminded me of Evangelion
2023
Backshot Roulette
2022
Such a thrill ride. The characters, dialogue, atmosphere, machine girl, and interesting way of mixing guns with movement and keeping up speed. I love this game.
Even with how fast this game is, it's still so readable. The cards have unique colors so you know what ability you have without even a viewmodel on screen. I was using abilities perfectly that I hadn't consciously even noticed I picked up.
There's no feeling of being "out of bounds". You can leap all across these beautiful landscapes with no invisible walls. It all gives the feeling of being crafted with care.
Like a lot of people my only issue with the game comes from later gift placement and ace solutions being too cryptic. It sucks having to pause the story you're so invested in to go have to hunt for gifts to make sure you don't miss dialogue or get the bad ending. Over half way through the game I started using guides for some gift locations and there are some I don't even want to know how long they would have taken me to find. But even with that, the levels are so short that if you used a walkthrough for the harder gifts it doesn't take up much time. So despite some slowdowns, Neon White is a game I'd recommend to anyone. This game is truly special.
Even with how fast this game is, it's still so readable. The cards have unique colors so you know what ability you have without even a viewmodel on screen. I was using abilities perfectly that I hadn't consciously even noticed I picked up.
There's no feeling of being "out of bounds". You can leap all across these beautiful landscapes with no invisible walls. It all gives the feeling of being crafted with care.
Like a lot of people my only issue with the game comes from later gift placement and ace solutions being too cryptic. It sucks having to pause the story you're so invested in to go have to hunt for gifts to make sure you don't miss dialogue or get the bad ending. Over half way through the game I started using guides for some gift locations and there are some I don't even want to know how long they would have taken me to find. But even with that, the levels are so short that if you used a walkthrough for the harder gifts it doesn't take up much time. So despite some slowdowns, Neon White is a game I'd recommend to anyone. This game is truly special.
2023
minus half a stare cus Leon and Luis didn't kiss
My boyfriend loves this game and it makes him really happy so that makes me really happy. Never played it.
2018
A very short and sweet example of how great video games can be at communicating a story. There's lots of subtle details that show emotions for a story that has no dialogue. The way the puzzle pieces grow into bigger parts making them easier to piece together, just as the two seem to be getting better at talking. The way those same pieces keep their size but seem to ridged and unusual as the couple starts to fall apart, still holding onto what they have. The way the world gets more and less saturated depending on the overall happiness of the characters. This game someone can show such an amazing recreation of how moments like the ones shown in game actually feel. The music is amazing as well.
I give it a lower score though because I find the way the game is able to convey emotions and story over it's gameplay a lot more impactful than the story itself. The story didn't do much for me, but I'm sure to others or in different parts of my life it would have touched me a lot closer to the heart. The game is still a great experience and worth a run through. There's lots of achievements too you could get easily but I felt replaying for those kind of defeated the purpose so I just stuck to the one playthrough.
I give it a lower score though because I find the way the game is able to convey emotions and story over it's gameplay a lot more impactful than the story itself. The story didn't do much for me, but I'm sure to others or in different parts of my life it would have touched me a lot closer to the heart. The game is still a great experience and worth a run through. There's lots of achievements too you could get easily but I felt replaying for those kind of defeated the purpose so I just stuck to the one playthrough.
2009
I have never played this game
2023
As a non-competitive player I can tell that this Cs2 update wasn't made for me. I feel very forced out of the game. While the game is prettier it killed all of the workshop maps made for cs:go. And while you the authors can port them to source 2. There's so many factors that get in the way of that. Like the author not having the time, will, or not even being online anymore. Accessing workshop maps or community servers requires messing with that console now. All that work has just been hidden away. They've also removed all the War games party modes like Arms race. (as of launch)
Counter-Strike has been moving further and further into the competitive scene as the years go on and this update entirley replacing cs:go just feels like officially being told to leave the party.
Counter-Strike has been moving further and further into the competitive scene as the years go on and this update entirley replacing cs:go just feels like officially being told to leave the party.
This review is coming from the perspective of someone going for 100%. On their own they are 3 nice short story dlcs. And I really do enjoy the story with Black Cat, Sable, and Hammerhead. Lots of great side quest interactions too like the David, Black Cat's dad, and Yuri with the therapist subplot. And a lot of amazing MJ and Miles dialogue which is always heartwarming. The ending where scene where Peter starts training Miles is really wholesome.
But for 100%ing it's the same semi slog affair of swinging around waiting for crimes and clearing lots and lots of waves of enemies. Thankfully the dlc content is restricted to only 4-5 sections of the map and they're rather compact in content. But it can still be draining at times. Especially later on when Hammerheads goons basically just turn into an even more annoying Sable army (which I never enjoyed fighting much in the base game). I much preferred the unique side quests they added like the Black Cat paintings and Yuri audio logs. Some of the new crimes can take a while too like the one in the 3rd dlc where you have to defend a truck and enemies spawn so far away and in really small numbers.
And screwball. God she is so annoying. Some of her challenges are kind of fun but she's insufferable. I get that's kinda the point but I am praying she doesn't return in Spiderman 2. You don't even get to beat the shit out of her. She suddenly has magical powers to run across rooftops but you just chase her and then it ends.
So overall I think the dlcs are good. It ends with a really fun boss fight too. Which I think was pretty close in cinematic value as the base game final fight. But the side content is really a slog at times. Screwball is honestly draining just engage with. Also I had 3 separate glitches that forced me restart from checkpoint, Alt F4, and restart a mission I was half way through respectively. Never had those issues with the base game so that was rather weird. The dlcs are all pretty short, even with the 100%. Worth a quick run through for the story if you want some more after that after beating the base game.
But for 100%ing it's the same semi slog affair of swinging around waiting for crimes and clearing lots and lots of waves of enemies. Thankfully the dlc content is restricted to only 4-5 sections of the map and they're rather compact in content. But it can still be draining at times. Especially later on when Hammerheads goons basically just turn into an even more annoying Sable army (which I never enjoyed fighting much in the base game). I much preferred the unique side quests they added like the Black Cat paintings and Yuri audio logs. Some of the new crimes can take a while too like the one in the 3rd dlc where you have to defend a truck and enemies spawn so far away and in really small numbers.
And screwball. God she is so annoying. Some of her challenges are kind of fun but she's insufferable. I get that's kinda the point but I am praying she doesn't return in Spiderman 2. You don't even get to beat the shit out of her. She suddenly has magical powers to run across rooftops but you just chase her and then it ends.
So overall I think the dlcs are good. It ends with a really fun boss fight too. Which I think was pretty close in cinematic value as the base game final fight. But the side content is really a slog at times. Screwball is honestly draining just engage with. Also I had 3 separate glitches that forced me restart from checkpoint, Alt F4, and restart a mission I was half way through respectively. Never had those issues with the base game so that was rather weird. The dlcs are all pretty short, even with the 100%. Worth a quick run through for the story if you want some more after that after beating the base game.