residentdisaster
Played the DS version recently, not a game that I have a significant amount of opinions on but enough to log for myself. It's quite different from the console version in a lot of ways, the level design is altered I assume to fit the DS' limitations? I don't know anything about technical stuff for consoles so just a guess. They compensate for this with far more characters than the main console versions, including some that wouldn't even appear in the follow up to this on console either, like Azrael and Zsasz. As one of the earlier Lego games of its kind (along with Complete Saga and Indiana Jones), the hub world is just kind of there in both versions rather than the interesting stuff that would show up later (originally on the sequel to this one), and as such once you've beaten the main games you will get caught on a fair whack of grinding if you don't have the cash to pick up the keys which are required for a lot of free play stuff. Essentially it's a fun mindless playthrough but once you've beaten the story it isn't the most engaging to 100%. Though i'm sure I did it on console as a child, and I also used to know some of the cheats off by heart. Good game and a fun reminisce.
This review contains spoilers
Took me a little while to finish because the last few levels were frustratingly difficult to me. That said it's more of the same great gimmick with a few additions that all seem to be improvements. Runs a little long, gets a little tough at points, and honestly the whole ending and then 2.5 hour wait time is very silly, but whatever. Still a lot of fun even though it lost a little of the charm of the original by running over and perhaps lost a little goodwill by the end.
2008
This review contains spoilers
So first of all the Steam version sucks and crashes every time you tab out, but that's by the by. As a game there's a lot to love here, but there's also some significant stuff (mostly one big thing) holding it back somewhat. Obviously the main big points here are the look and gameplay. Lookwise, it's absolutely gorgeous. I'm not really a believer in good graphics being a necessity, but when a game looks this great its hard to deny, both graphically and stylistically very strong stuff. In terms of the gameplay, specifically the freerunning, it's really easy to get to grips with and very fun to get right. When things go well it just flows in a very satisfying way, which is definitely one of the best parts of the game. However, there is an element of gameplay that definitely holds things back, that being the combat. Anytime there's a section with people with guns where you can't just run away it really stunts the game's momentum. I much prefer the freerunner enemies (especially in their initial introduction where you are chased by them through basically a training ground to escape) than just being suddenly ambushed by a bunch of big gun henchmen and forced to fight back. The story is pretty basic, it wasn't really one I invested in at all but it didn't take away from things for me. In fact I think I remembered most of the story beats from watching videos of it about 10 years ago, so none of it came as a big surprise unfortunately. Overall a good, sometimes great game. Disappointing thinking about what happened with this later on, then again, better to just not think about.
Probably the first game I ever loved along with some spongebob movie game. I remember playing it on PS2 back in the day, and remember my family obsessing over beating each other's scores over and over until my dad broke the controller doing a million point combo. At least that's what I was told happened. I never beat the game back then, but beating it now finally it's still one of the best games ever, gets a bit annoying in challenge in places but I guess all good games do, and I was compelled to pull through that anyway because I just wanted the satisfaction of saying I finally beat it. I love the way it plays to be honest, nothing quite as satisfying as getting a great combo down (which I finally figured out right towards the end of my playthrough, hitting mid-hundred-thousand ones) and landing it properly. The story is not insane but good enough, satisfying to beat certainly though I feel that was more down to my history with the game and the challenge factor than the sweet rewards of victory or how the story wrapped up. Now I guess I have to beat the spongebob game finally, or Shark Tale.
2009
This review contains spoilers
I would have played this for the first time in either 2009 or 2010, which makes it the first PC game I ever played. Pretty happy with that fact as returning to it here some 15 years later, it still rules. It's a very satisfying strategy game to actually have a successful strategy in, in pretty much every level where it's up to you to pick your system and run with it, and with a final boss that is quite tough but similarly rewarding (as the only one of the last levels in each "world" that wasn't just plant everything to win). Both the art style and sense of humour are really charming, things like having a little almanac to give silly personalities to each plant and zombie you encounter is a really great touch that just adds to that charm so much. It's just such a comfortable game, I think I could put it on at any time and play a few levels or some survival waves and be utterly at zen with it. Really great stuff.
1994
I'm pretty partial to this style of game anyway, so this being yet another of the very early Doom-style of shooter with a memorable, enjoyable aesthetic to it and a decently breezy playthrough meant it was hardly going to settle lower than "this is pretty great" in my estimation. It's decently short too, only three episodes (with a couple more with the version I have that were part of a DLC), and each one has decently fun locations, interesting enemies and cool weapons. Really not much else to be said than that. Simple, very fun, and that's what i'm looking for with this stuff. Definitely playing the two expansion episodes next.
This review contains spoilers
More of the same of the main game, which is a good thing, but there are a few things that bring it down somewhat. Obviously the two episodes here don't end with boss fights in the way the main game's three episodes do, instead you end with a fight against multiple prior bosses instead. That, to be fair, is an issue i've had in a lot of games of this type (looking at Doom 64 in particular) but while I get it it's still a bit disappointing. I think the second episode here is the only proper trouble I had finding my way around levels in the whole game too, which is definitely more a thing of my inability than the game being at fault, but it did diminish my experience a tiny bit. Either way, it's a Doom style retro shooter and I like those a lot, and it took about a few hours to beat in total so it wasn't anything I regret. Worth the play if you like Heretic's first three episodes or just like Doom in general.
1992
This review contains spoilers
Not counting the Nocturnal Missions (which I will eventually also play), I beat this one in a couple hours. Early on I was a little less than impressed, perhaps going from Doom and Doomclones to a predecessor was destined to initially disappoint, at least in technicality, but by the end i'd come away liking this one. The levels feel cramped and the enemies hit a bit too hard, but honestly those felt like positives the more I played. As much as playing this sort of game can be fun as a mindless powering through several hundred enemies, there's something just as satisfying about being more careful, and beating a level with minimal damage taken after sneaking your way around. It just fit the atmosphere of the game. Graphically it's obviously very primitive compared to a lot of the later retro FPS styles that i'd prefer aesthetically, but it was fine enough and I can't say I look to these kinds of games for stunning visual experiences. This did exactly what I needed it to do, and that was let me shoot my way through roughly thirty entertaining maps of enemies with boss fights that are mostly underwhelming. That's the Retro FPS way.
Personally, I prefer the slightly more open nature, incredibly cheesy but nostalgic and charming story, and additional tricks such as the acid drop in Underground, but this game is damn fantastic too. That said, the slightly smaller maps with fun and memorable little objectives to complete, particularly from childhood remembering dumping all the snow on the guy or knocking the big bucket into the lava on Foundry (with much less nostalgia for the later levels, because I was absolutely rubbish at video games as a child). There's really not much else to say. It's a great Tony Hawk's game, it has a mostly great soundtrack (Ace of Spades especially) and it's just pure fun to play.
2011
This review contains spoilers
Only beat the singleplayer, not the multiplayer. There really isn't much to say about such a well-known oft-discussed beloved game like this that hasn't been said a million times already, but i'll go ahead and make a few points that are already overdone anyway. This game's characters have so much personality, much more than its predecessor in which Glados was already an extremely funny and well-done character. In this one she has a whole arc, and we also have more fantastic characters however important (Wheatley) or tertiary (Cave Johnson (I think he was called)) they were to the story, they all felt extremely well written. Also total sidenote, as a big fan of British comedy it's still weird to hear Stephen Merchant trying to be evil, but he's great in this. The puzzles are great stuff too, a lot of very creative additions to how the test chambers worked, loved all the gel stuff as it was both creatively challenging and extremely fun to fuck about with. It's just a really great game, as you'd expect. Portal 3 when
While playing through the Phantom Menace, I was worried that this entire experience was going to be a miserable, near-gameplayless husk of a game where every single objective was to walk from one place to another or drive a vehicle. Luckily, it didn't all turn out to just be that. Unluckily, it did turn out to be a major step down from the Lego games of old that I liked much more. Firstly, I understand some will say that as it's mostly a kid's game, you maybe can't expect to love the humour or goofy nature of the characters as an adult. This is still a Lego game however, and compared to the silent humour of the earlier games such as the first Batman or even the Complete Saga, the humour here is just grating. That said I guess the main thing i'm coming to in a Lego game is not the story or anything like that, so it's worth talking about the gameplay which I also felt was flat. As mentioned, the first episode is extremely boring and empty, and while later episodes are slightly more entertaining there are still a lot of completely blank areas and "missions" inbetween levels where you just run from point A to point B with nothing worth doing or seeing. There are next to no puzzle elements like early Lego games where you'd be building little contraptions to get through the level, and I guess a lot of that was the simple and engaging element I was going back for. It's just not here, and ultimately that takes a lot away from the game for me. Unlike when I played the Batman games, where I'd at least given replaying and post-game a little go before realising it wasn't for me anymore, here i'm just not going to bother. Even the character select being different was worse in my opinion, I was pretty disappointed by it. Also it made me remember that I didn't even like a majority of Star Wars films. So thanks for that Skywalker Saga.
I really tried harder to do the 100% stuff this time but after you've actually finished the story, even with the quests there is absolutely nothing to do. Nothing to explore beyond empty shells of "open" worlds that could have been so much more. The story is very similar to prior but this time the goofiness is turned right up, so the Joker is a lot more Cesar Romero silver age than he was in the previous installment. The actual missions were still engaging to play in a mindless way but I get the feeling that I'm done with Lego games again for now, because the reminder that everything past the story is totally meaningless has put me off a bit. Still had decent fun for the time I spent on it.