At this point in time, Rare didn’t necessarily have the best track record when it came to their releases. Sure, they did have the Battletoads franchise, which mostly managed to have pretty solid games, and they had developed several other games that hold up relatively well, but most of the rest of the games that they have developed were either uninteresting, forgotten, or just straight up terrible. It was enough for them to stay in the business for as long as they had been, but not to the point where they could reach the same level of success and notoriety as other developers, like Capcom, Squaresoft, or Konami. That is, until they were approached by Nintendo who, after seeing what they could pull off with games on the SNES using pre-rendered graphics, decided to give them a shot at developing a brand new game in a similar style so they could compete with what games like Aladdin were doing on the Genesis. They were given the reigns to make a new game in the DK franchise, which, aside from the Game Boy game that had been released earlier in the year, hadn’t really seen any major attention in nearly a decade, and thus, Rare went on to not only make a new game to reintroduce DK to modern audiences, but to also completely re-invent the character and his world, changing both DK and Rare's reputation forever. This would result in what would become the start of one of the best sub-series that DK would ever be a part of, Donkey Kong Country.

I have had quite the history with the DKC series over the years, with my first proper introduction to the series being with DKC Returns back in 2010, when I was still a dumb kid, and I had no clue as to what a Super Nintendo or a Rareware was. Eventually, I would discover the wonders of what we refer to as “retro gaming”, and it would lead to me getting my hands on a SNES for myself, with this being one of the first games that I had ever gotten with the system. I don’t think I had ever heard of the game beforehand, so needless to say, I was excited to try it out, and naturally, I ended up loving it. So now that I am playing it again after all this time, I can say that it holds up extremely well, being pretty basic for a platformer, but having some of the best design, personality, and fun challenges from any platformer of this era, and it successfully managed to reinvent DK into what he would be to this day.

The story is pretty simple, where the villainous King K. Rool steals Donkey Kong’s banana hoard with the help of his Kremlings, which makes DK very sad, so he then sets out with his nephew Diddy Kong to go beat them up and get his bananas back, which is a very silly premise, but one that fits perfectly for this series, and I am all here for it. The graphics are pretty good, not only having a pretty unique style for a SNES game at that point, but also holding up extremely well, with all of the different models for the characters, enemies, and bosses looking very charming, and the environments look just as great right alongside them, the music is fantastic, with there being plenty of different tracks that I still love to listen to to this day, such as the final boss theme, the theme for the first level, and my favorite track in the whole game, the underwater level theme (if I drowned IRL while this music played, I would be going out happy), the control is pretty great, with both DK and Diddy having the proper weight to them, and each action they can perform feels just right on a SNES controller, and the gameplay itself is pretty basic for the genre it takes on, but it still manages to be a solid experience all the way through, and I would rather a game be simple yet solid rather than experimental yet flawed.

The game is a 2D platformer, where you take control of either Donkey Kong or Diddy Kong, go through many different worlds, each one containing their own set of levels that will challenge you in plenty of different ways, defeat many different enemies and Kremlings along the way while gathering plenty of bananas, collectibles, and power-ups to assist you on your way, find many of the other members of the Kong family such as Funky Kong, the coolest motherfucker on the planet, Candy Kong, the Kong who made a lot of kids question themselves when they were younger, and Cranky Kong, the Kong who resembled everybody’s grandparents in one way or another, who will each help you out in their own way (except for Cranky, who just says you suck and makes you depressed), and take on plenty of bosses that will prove to be quite the “challenge” to overcome to get your precious bananas back. A lot of it is pretty standard for a platformer, and some who aren’t new to the genre may question why you would bother playing it with plenty of other options out there, but not only does the graphical and musical style help give this game its own unique identity that holds up extremely well to this day, but it also still manages to be a fun game all on its own, with many ways it changes up the formula and keep you going.

For every single level in the game that you go through, there is always something new and exciting waiting for you, even if the changes may not be as big as others. You start out going through a pretty typical platformer level, nothing too exciting for you to see or do, but then you get to levels where you will be going through ancient temples, fighting different foes, finding different animal buddies that can help you take out enemies and give you more momentum, and there are even extreme cases of changing up the gameplay, such as levels where you are riding minecarts, ones where you are grabbing fuel for a conveyor belt you are riding on, and ones where you are turning on the lights to keep the Satan crocodiles from waking up. While some of these gimmicks are definitely preferable over others, each one is very fun to go through and experience, all while the game makes you think more and more about what to do in each situation, even if the goal is obvious.

What also helps keep this game fun and fresh throughout the entire journey would be in terms of its difficulty. For those of you who have played this game, you know it isn’t easy in the slightest, and while I wouldn’t say it is as hard as other platformers out there like Castlevania or Ninja Gaiden, there are still plenty of the moments where the game will test your skills in pretty extreme ways, such as with precarious platforming in plenty of levels, adding gimmicks like wind and barrels you need to shoot out of, timing your jumps on minecart segments effectively, and so many more examples. However, despite how hard it can be, it never feels unfair. There is always a chance for you to figure out what to do, how to overcome these challenges, whether it be through simple trial and error, or just by taking your time, and even if you do manage to fuck up and get a game over, if you have been using save points properly, then you shouldn’t be sent too far back to where it discourages you from continuing forward. Not to mention, it feels immensely rewarding whenever you do conquer some of the challenges in this game, managing to make it to the next save point so that you can press on towards whatever challenge may lie ahead.

For those of you wanting a little more out of your platformers though, fear not, because this game isn’t just a simple “run to the end and you win” kinda deal… or at least, it doesn’t have to be, anyway. Throughout each of the level, there are plenty of different bonus areas that you can access, each one giving you some kind of bonus, whether it be with extra lives, or even by sending you to this bonus area where you can collect all of these golden tokens as one of your animal buddies for even more extra lives! Not only do they help you prepare for the journey ahead, but each one does add to your percentage total, and it can even change the ending that you get if you manage to find everything… which isn’t much different then the normal ending, but it will keep Cranky Kong from complaining too much, fucking old-ass prick. They are pretty fun to go for, not just for the sake of completion, but they can be pretty tricky to find to, making you really look around every corner to see what walls or floors are breakable, and where else you could look just in case you end up missing something along the way.

So yeah, most of this game is a blast from start to finish, but there are some gripes that I have with it that do keep it from being a perfect game in my eyes. For one thing, the boss fights FUCKING SUCK, not because they are too hard, but moreso because they are uncreative and boring. Most of them consist of just bigger versions of enemies that you fight in the regular levels, with some of these even being repeated as the game goes on, and while some of them try to mix things up a bit, it’s only methods of doing so is by either giving you a different weak spot to hit, or just by taking on an enemy gauntlet, which isn’t exactly fun to deal with. The only good boss in the entire game is the final one against K. Rool, because not only does the foe you fight actually put up a fight, but the ways in which he does and when you can hit him is pretty creative, and it keeps you on your toes.

Secondly, while most of the elements in this game are pretty fair, and you can get through a lot of the challenges easily, there are some things that were put into this game that I am just not a fan of. There’s one example of this that sticks out to me as clear as day, and that is with one of the bonus areas that you find in Oil Drum Alley. Whenever you go into one of the other bonus levels in the stage and clear it out, you have to take the barrel that you get and throw it ABOVE the wall that you would normally hit in order to clear it out, which will grant you access to another bonus area you need to go through. If you don’t know about this on your first go, and you end up missing it, you cannot go back and try getting it again, making it so that, if you are going for 101% completion, you are FUCKED. That’s not necessarily that bad for those who just wanna go through the game normally, and I myself have never had this happen to me, but the fact that it can happen at all is pretty shitty, and I’d imagine there is at least one person out there who didn’t know about it, figured out what they was missing, and had their day ruined because of it.

Overall, despite the terrible bosses and some secrets having strict punishments for not finding them, the original DKC is still a fantastic game after almost 30 years, having very fun platforming challenges, wonderful visuals and music, and plenty of things to do for those that wanna go the extra mile that you usually wouldn’t go for in a platformer like this. I would highly recommend it for those who are fans of Donkey Kong, as well as those who love 2D platformers in the first place, because while this certainly isn’t my favorite game in the series, it is still one of the best platformers you can play on the SNES, and one that would launch an equally fantastic series that would continue to get installments for years to come…………. at least, until 2014, that is. Seriously, Nintendo, bring back Donkey Kong in a brand new game already! And maybe also try to bring back the Kremlings while you’re at it, too. That would be nice.

Game #532

At the time of my review I have completed Tomb Raider 1 and 2 in their entirety and am about to start on III. So far I am incredibly satisfied with this collection, as it makes my favorite game series instantly playable without having to deal with the nasty ass PS1 load times or the incredible flimsiness of the PC Ports. Unfortunately, for as long as they made me wait for this thing I'm kind of stunned at how bare bones the whole thing really is.

I want to state first and foremost that the use of A.I artwork is deplorable. I understand this game was no doubt made with a woeful budget by an overworked team, so I'm going to direct my anger more towards the publisher for not giving these games the respect they deserve to have a proper art team remastering the visuals. As it stands, the remastered visuals largely clash with the original artistic intent, don't line up properly along the grids, and generally look cheaper than the original's, as the original game was textured by artists and not a piece of shit A.I.

I am also annoyed at the OG visuals having a frame cap on them, allegedly due to animations being locked to 30 for the old visuals. Even though there are PC Ports available right now that have those same visuals at 60 FPS. There is no reason these games should be stuck at 30 FPS, unless the Switch was having too much trouble running these games, which I would believe.

I also lament the loss of save crystals, which I hypothesized could have been a fun difficulty adjuster for long-time fans of the series, as the save crystals made Tomb Raider 1 and 3 very intense games when you can't save scum through them. Tomb Raider 2 is borderline impossible without save scumming so there no change there.

I think the asking price for some fantastic games is worth it, even though I resent the business practices being used within the package. I also don't anticipate all the terrible discussion we are in for about how these games aged by guys who are obsessed with fucking Pokemon or whatever. If you enjoy these types of games there is a nice handy package here to play them, which honestly, is what I've been dying for for years.

So, you’ve come hoping for a really in depth and detailed review? Unfortunately I’ve only ever played this game once and to be honest…it is a much MUCH more interesting story. In the future, I promise I will actually sit down and review this game. But for now: get a drink and a nice snack, sit back, and enjoy my glorious tale.

It was around about 8 years ago I’d say and me and a friend were in a random arcade. We were sort of browsing around, looking through all the different games they had to show. And that’s when…we saw it. Time crisis. For those that don’t know, time crisis is essentially a first person on rails shooter which were pretty popular in the arcades during the late-ish 90’s. The thing is here is that you have a small pedal which if pressed: will allow the player to duck down and reload their weapon. So when me and my friend saw this game, we decided to give it a go. How hard could it possibly be? We said to ourselves.

I’m sure this is the point where in your mind you’ll probably hear thinking ‘oh this is the part where he reveals how hard it actually is and then there is some funny moral to the story later’. Unfortunately, I’m gonna have to crush those expectations.

So my friend inserted 50p of British currency into the machine and started playing. We’d both agreed that he’d have the first go and later I’d have a go after he died. But after 10 minutes or so, we realised that he was better at time crisis than we thought. He was brilliant at it in fact. I just sat there watching him. He decimated every single enemy in his path. The villain laughed: thinking that he was some sort of joke. But, he was so, so wrong. My friend kept pushing the pedal like there was no tomorrow and landing every hit. After a while, I began to wonder if the machine was rigged. But those thoughts were soon put to sleep as finally: he beat the game.

So what is the moral to the story then? Just because you think a game is gonna be really hard doesn’t mean it always will.

Great gameplay, story happened, pedal was harmed, ACTION! RELOAD!

In a tweet by Yuri Stern, one of the developers of the two man team rose-engine along with Barbara Wittmann of Signalis. They remark how "I wish people would be more open to letting others figure out for themselves how their ending made them feel. Instead of telling a streamer "you got the best ending!", maybe you can ask "did you think this was an interesting conclusion?" And they can decide if they liked it or not" Their comment was in response to how some players classify conclusions as absolutes for true, bad, good, etc.

Stern’s answer caught my attention and I admit throughout my time playing games with multiple outcomes in the finale. I realize I am guilty of this too. And yet, this establishes a thought-provoking notion to provide clarification, evidence, and reasoning, beyond simple claims. Player interpretation differs for each individual. Classified as neither good, bad, or in between. It simply is. Consensus can say comparable beginnings, middle, and end. And yet, we conjure causes to describe something that can be difficult or perhaps easy to comprehend. In my attempt to understand everything throughout my playthrough, I’ve come to see it as a Lovecraftian Sci-Fi blended with Survival Horror. Reputable individuals have noted inspiration, references, and homages to King in Yellow by Robert W. Chambers. The Festival by H.P. Lovecraft. Evangelion by Hideaki Anno, Stanley Kubrick, Resident Evil & Silent Hill franchise Et al. To me, include Nier and Prey(2017). With a dash of Studio Shaft’s techniques. And while I haven’t read/watched/played some of those homages they harken too. A considerable amount of careful effort to not create a reference-filled fiesta akin to Ready Player One. Plenty of satisfying content and unique properties, enough to stand on its own.

You control Elster, a [Redacted] in search of someone important to her. This is her journey after her ship crashes onto an unknown planet. She doesn’t start with much, but a sufficient tutorial resides to grant a fighting chance. Make no mistake, this isn’t a game you run away from consistently. You. Can. Fight. Back. From a top-down 2.5D perspective. Lengthwise, the game took me over nine hours to complete and I didn’t have any major/minor bugs or crashes. Ran smoothly notwithstanding looking akin to a Playstation One game. An aesthetic remarkably familiar to our past of CRTs, floppy discs, and VCRs with unfamiliar technology. A retro-tech meets dystopian surrealism. An unforgiving world, which I became horrified to learn about and lost myself in admiring the art. The color red is used prominently, like in similar games: Scarlet Nexus and Astral Chain for blue, yet it doesn’t detract from the overall presentation. A pleasant strength tied to supplementary elements the game displays to the player. The retro style succeeds in its favor since you’ll be walking, running, and fighting through broken old corridors sometimes in derelict space stations and facilities. The soundtrack has some nice tunes, but you’re usually dealing with silence or at the very least oppressive atmosphere that can be ethereal. Some tracks lend to an ambiance with static to varying degrees of echoes of various sounds you wouldn’t expect like crashing waves, slow piano tracks, and even a tiny smidge of synth. Oddly enough, an inconsistent/consistent rhythm and tempo permeates; some may find grating to hear and will switch into the opposite range and become somehow ‘relaxing’ to listen. The dual nature of melancholic and comforting generates an intriguing dichotomy. Ultimately, the whole soundtrack is decent, though I wish for more variety to bring ‘life’ to the moment-to-moment scenes. Granted, I think this was a deliberate decision by the composers 1000 Eyes & Cicada Sirens to construct a suffocating pressure to incite ‘space hell.’ And I can’t help, but begrudgingly praise the decision to do so. It works!?

The combat felt very tight, responsive and didn’t suffocate me constantly. For several moments I would have despaired, but a handy walkthrough and some tips kept my spirits up! One could even take advantage of Steam’s new note-taking feature to remember critical material! Accessible during in-game and when you exit. So you don’t always have to keep the program on. Combat when shooting could’ve been tweaked a little to make it more accurate. Considering how the enemies' artificial intelligence acts and how we can’t be experts in hitting shots 100% of the time. I can forgive this slight. Certainly not a dealbreaker, but make sure to watch out for your ammo, aim well, and trust in your gut the bullets will fly through. Healing is painless and not complicated. Intermittent yet equitable drops of supplies to recuperate, so you're not left struggling if you carefully check your stock and surroundings. Heck, you can even combine components to make weapons use different ammo, healing, and key items to save slots since you only have six in your inventory to hold. Aiming isn’t even the main bread and butter. Melee weaponry serves as an acceptable tool to fight baddies. You can attain a stun rod to down enemies then kick them to unconsciousness, and push them freely when you need to gain some distance. Hell, you can even burn them when they fall. Cause boy oh boy these nightmarish creatures(I’ll spare you the imagery) can stand up once more! Thankfully, they don’t return to life or should I say unlife heh within a short time. Probably a decent length passes before you realize your foe is ready for round 2.

Outside of combat. I found worldbuilding to be richly rewarding and added substance to the environmental storytelling. I was craving to know more about the inhabitants, the government, the leaders, technology, etc. So much depth and breadth in going the full nine yards where I know about the whole history of nations, the background of citizens and military soldiers of a strict hierarchy during a tumultuous time. Missions and roles for each [R$%#%$#@] unit and even enemies are spared no expense in displaying how they came to be. Chekhov's Gun tickles nearly every reach imaginable and in effect shines so hard, even in the darkest moments. I constantly read countless lore notes in the form of classified documents, redacted information, diaries, and even propaganda posters! No shortage of information almost to the point of overload, however, Barbara and Yuri have emerged with a balanced tightrope to not overgorge the player while not slipping morsels of info. Proportionally, to induce a sense of curiosity to know more, nagging at the far reaches of your brain to check every room for more data to consume. One cool feature in the form of an archive in the menu, you can access anytime. No need to backtrack to the origin of papers. Thereby, making recollections of pertinent details at the press of a button, straightforward.

The puzzles are solid. Used to great effect to tie into the lore whenever possible. Some examples are lockpicking, numerical password combinations and structural obstacles that could hinder your progression. So retracing your steps for an important piece is advisable to progress. There are extras, but I'll refrain from listing them. Best as a surprise. I found the inclusion of them to be welcoming. Didn’t overstay, while having plentiful time for me to seek answers/clues. Some solutions are more obscure than the rest. Though, for the most part, all of them I felt were fitting, and the hints satisfactory to figure out the solution. Careful precision to not go rage-inducing while not making it too easy for newcomers and veterans. Remember it's okay to fail some puzzles and return with a clearer mind.

Likable NPCs. They're personable, relatable, and offer intriguing perspectives during my playthrough. They complement Elster, by acting as foils. With their objectives at large and didn’t detract at all from their sheer presence. I was content, I am not alone all the time knowing comrades are nearby, who are bravely keeping on despite the horrific nightmares, and even more where I’ll refrain from stating, but suffice it say I was sad to see. A dangerous atmosphere prevails and the mood can become bleak in the blink of an eye. Not to the extent that I became leery. While it may seem dangerous due to the unnatural air and presence. These NPCs 'helped' me on my journey and for that, I am grateful for their company but also their dialog. Conversations revealed vital pieces to tying what happened on the planet and what threads they could link to the plot.

The horror elements are not, at least to me, horrific to the point I was disgusted or vomitable. Didn’t see major jump scares to remove my soul from my body, and I am incredibly grateful this didn't occur. Constant jump scares can cheapen the experience if not done well in my opinion. Again balance is integral and the devs have managed to produce a nice gameplay loop of exploration, scavenging, combat, reading lore, drip-feeding you cutscenes, and solving puzzles to be as painless as possible while still creating enough difficulty for a challenge.

Speaking of the story. I’m a bit mixed on. And this isn’t to say it is a bad thing at all. Think of my mixed feelings as neither positive nor negative, but food for thought I'll outline. In aspects, the game tries to impart to the player. I felt the execution was fragmented. It’s not clear what is shown to be definitive or literal to assert a conclusion on which I can base my facts and evidence. This may sound confusing. And I apologize if I’m not making sense. To clarify, you have to build the ‘narrative’ so to speak. This is fine in theory and there is a thread to follow. But sometimes the writing can be somewhat obscure along with puzzling. This pains me greatly since I couldn’t get enough of the worldbuilding. In the end, I was left with a ‘hmmm’ on the execution. Certainly, games like the Souls series are similar in environmental storytelling. Not so much on the beats of the plot to bridge together, but the world itself you piece towards to understand in your eyes what the story could be.

I wish the inventory limit of six expanded as you progressed further. Like up to eight. I didn’t find it too troublesome to turn back to my storage chest to unload my stuff. Yet, this exhibits a constant chore since I want to collect everything in nooks and crannies only for me to check the nearest save room to remove them. This isn’t a big deal. I could just run past enemies, right? True. Elster does have the capability. The issue is when I am running, some enemies will come alive to attack. After I already defeated them. Making traversal to new areas a slightly tedious to do, since I must retreat and precious supplies may be utilized. This is exacerbated when I have to redo this method again when I need more space for key objects to progress. A solution I was ruminating; having separate slots for crucial items. Like, say a flashlight or gun. As accessories.

Lore papers could’ve been more definitive as vague as I could put it. In doing so, the given knowledge would become stronger to grasp. Some notes are clear-cut to comprehend, but these ties could've been linked to creating a tighter cohesion in interpreting the plot. We are given an ample amount of lore to draw our conclusions. This is fine in theory and I’ve seen examples amongst my peers that resonated more with them. So the execution worked. For me, however, I’m stuck in the middle of a hallway facing a door of “greatness” and behind me, a door says “Not greatness.” I wonder if the devs could’ve made some threads easier to digest and distinguish. An alternative drip to gently feed the player. Admittedly, this is my personal preference and should not be taken as a common critique of the game. Individuals aside from me have rated the game highly which is fair. And I have seen the inverse side too. So where do I land? Sweats nervously In between those spectrum's sadly enough. There is a solid vision the two-man development studio established and they walk a tightrope in balancing narrative ties through the gameplay and cutscenes with a red Chekov’s gun to use every tie imaginable to draw players and I can say it prevails with some stumbles. I’m not sure if this is a method of drawing everyone to understand completely what the developers try to impart by the time the end credits roll. Nonetheless, I am unsure if this is a title that could vibe with you until a session of play. And in that respect, makes this incredibly challenging to quantify against the entirety of what the game offers.

Speaking of the ending. And again, no spoiler territory. I think easier alternatives were possible to attempt other outcomes. I got one of them and after checking out the rest, I couldn’t help but conclude the requirements are obscure for players to know. I had to research guides and see how technical the wire can run. Won’t delve into the exact details, but suffice it to say, I surmise avenues are within reach making the process less burdensome if the devs were to patch it. Though I doubt they would. Whether or not, newcomers know multiple resolutions. Before I forget, please go on Youtube for the rest, if you were unsatisfied with the one you got. Just a gentle reminder. One of them is so convoluted the community cooperated to discover the hidden requirements. Sszz127 from the Signalis subreddit was the first to discover clues leading to it as far as I know.

I'm sad to report how strenuous it is to depict my proper feelings in describing how much the title appeals to me against the concerns I stated earlier. A variable slow-burn, that may catch those who don’t mind it. Others may find it not as resonating. Besides the regular praise, I see fellow reviewers and fellow peers of mine who call it “a masterpiece, a return to modern survival horror, one to watch out for and more.” Wonderful seeing high acclaim regarding the game in their manner and I find gratifying content is an enjoyable affair. Equally as those who offer a differing perspective from the norm with evidence. I am at a crossroads where I’m not sure. To discern if it’s a must-play for fans of the genre due to my lacking experience in the department. I’ve only played Metro 2033, The Evil Within series, Bloodborne, Omori, etc. So I’m not an expert. If this can appeal to a newcomer. One could even take advantage of Steam’s two-hour refund policy to see if it appeals to you. And if it doesn’t, no shame in refunding. For me, I was hooked after the first hour.

I believe Signalis may provide newcomers with a unique mileage that might vary experience and value. For horror fans and for those who are not used to it like me. I love the worldbuilding and how retro-tech merges wonderfully with the dystopian sci-fi era. The lifeless music at various points forge an almost oppressive atmosphere that is both melancholy and comforting. The combat is balanced to the extent that I wasn't quite a female Rambo, but someone like Ellen Ripley(Aliens) and Leeloo(Fifth Element). Elster perseveres despite adversity. Has no crazy powers nor impressive intellect to bedazzle us at every turn. She simply is a [redacted]. And I like that. Gameplay elements like puzzling solving were fun and tied nicely with the environmental storytelling. Terror aspects turned out to be not too scary or overdone in a manner I found tiresome to see. A genuine effort by rose-engine to keep them challenging and fair in such a way I still endeavored to keep going. Regardless of my struggles, and food for thought, a cool hidden gem exists. Moreover, I echo what Stern posits about not classifying endings as absolutes and asking yourself how the game made you feel and why? Whether at the end of your journey, you conceive some semblance to share beyond the scope of classifying it in categories. Then by all means, please do so. Your voice is appreciated. There is beauty to find out if Your experience left you something meaningful or not.

7.7/10

Additional Material I couldn’t fit in this review, but may prove useful for those who played the game already:
Source for twitter link by Yuri Stern
Signalis Index - Theory, Lore, Commentary, Symbolism, Reference, Music, Decipher, Data-mining, Unsolved questions and more
Steam Guide on endings with Authors Plot Interpretation - Major spoilers
A Literalist view of Signalis - Major spoilers
A Non-Literalist View of Signalis - Major Spoilers
A Youtuber’s take on Signalis - Warning major spoilers
Camera Perspective mod
Final stats of my playthrough
My thoughts on the ending/s of Signalis
^Major spoilers throughout. Only click if you finished the game.

Note: If any links are down please let me know and I’ll try and correct that.
7-30-23 - Note - Added a Non-Literalist View of Signalis and added further clarification on the Signalis Index link.
11-29-23 - Edited first opening paragraph with correct pronouns. 99% of text still intact and largely unchanged.

Silent Hill 2 and 3 happen to be two of the finest games ever masterfully created. Silent Hill 2 is going to be 20 years old this year, and Silent Hill 3 is approaching 18 years old.

I've actually played Silent Hill 1 and 3, and I know people are probably going to be triggered by this, but I have never played Silent Hill 2.

I got Silent Hill 3 as a Christmas gift in 2019, and I was lucky enough to get an original PS2 copy for around $45. And I consider it not just one of the best Survival Horror games I've ever played, but one of the best games I've ever played period. So I can now understand and fully appreciate just what all the fuss was about with this game.

So if I enjoyed the living hell out of Silent Hill 3, I can only imagine how good Silent Hill 2 is. I wish to write reviews for both games in the future.

I am desperate as shit to get my hands on Silent Hill 2, because I know everyone calls it the best game in the franchise, but it's literally impossible for me right now because I don't have a PC, which would be both the easiest and the best way to play it. And if I wanted an original PS2 copy, we're talking $80-150, even more than that, on Amazon and Ebay, which is just insane.

It's just not possible to grab a copy without spending an absolute fortune. And I bring this up because I absolutely refuse to play the HD version of Silent Hill 2.

The fact that we are in the year 2021, and the HD Collection is STILL the most accessible way to experience Silent Hill 2 and 3 really speaks volumes of just how much Konami has completely neglected them. Konami is basically the equivalent of that meme where that girl gets gorilla glue in her hair. They're just complete fuckin' brainlets.

Imagine the public's excitement when back in 2011, Konami announced that Silent Hill 2 and 3 would be returning in an HD Collection. But already there was a problem.

First of all, where was Silent Hill 1 and 4?

Tom Hullett, who was pretty much in charge of Silent Hill at the time, stated that Silent Hill 1 wasn't included in the collection because it's a PS1 game, and porting PS1 games to current generation hardware was "difficult."

Yeah, bullshit. You were just lazy just like with the rest of this collection but I'll get into that.

But then he states that Silent Hill 4 wasn't included because of how polarizing it was to fans. Which I don't see why that means that you can just leave it out entirely. It's a game that you either like or don't like, but me personally, I think it's a really good game and it deserves the attention.

This collection is without a doubt one of the most disappointing broken messes ever released that completely disgraces the legacy of these beloved games. I've never played Silent Hill 2 but while looking at footage for the HD version I did my best not to spoil myself from any story details.

{Everything Wrong With Silent Hill 2 HD}

So, one of the most obvious things: Why are the roads so clean and paved? They're not supposed to look like that. They're supposed to be all dirty and grungy. The paved roads actually makes it difficult to see the blood marks in the town, which is a visual clue on where you're supposed to go at first.

And another thing that's immediately fucked up is that the fact that there is barely any fog. In the original games, there's so much fog that you can barely see a couple feet ahead of you, but that's the whole point. It creates a feeling of tense claustrophobia.

But in the HD version, the fog has been utterly butchered. When you get to the town, there is no fog surrounding you. The only fog you see is in front of you, it's like a bubble of fog that you are infinitely chasing. And it's always got a straight line on the ground depending on where you're facing, it looks disgraceful.

But it's even worse in the cutscenes. There are scenes where the fog is supposed to cover up areas you aren't supposed to see. But guess what? The fog is completely gone. Know what that means? You can see where the game environment cuts off in some areas. Wow. Fuckin' wow.

There are two major issues that affects both games in this collection as well as the Maria Story Mode. Everything is way, WAY too dark. Even if you put the brightness setting all the way up, it doesn't help much. You literally can't see anything without the flashlight, and even then, it's still too dark when it's on. It's so fuckin' dark that you can barely see the character model turning to face items.

And some of these items you need to get to progress, and if you can't see them, you're gonna miss them. And it's even worse in Maria's scenario, because she doesn't ever get a flashlight. So you end up running around in rooms where you can't even see the doors that you're supposed to be going into because it's almost pitch fucking black.

And the other major issue is the slowdown. The majority of the time you are playing, there are freezes and slowdown, and this can make the experience even more unbearable than it already is.

There are also other huge issues like missing sound effects, misplaced sound effects, scratched out sound effects, music not playing where it's supposed to, major frame drops when getting achievements, it's just so so bad.

Before you start the game, you get the option to choose the voice overs. For the HD Collection, there are new actors for the characters. But since you get to use the original voices for Silent Hill 2, complaining about the new voices is pointless.

But Silent Hill 3 forces you to play with the new voices and oh ho ho ho I will get into it.

It's honestly disheartening to see this game reduced to such a state and has never been officially remedied.

But if you thought Silent Hill 2 was bad, good fucking God is it nothing compared to Silent Hill 3. Silent Hill 3 HD is without a doubt an absolute disaster by every definition of the word.

{Everything Wrong With Silent Hill 3 HD}

The first thing that you will absolutely notice is that there are a shitload of voice syncing problems in the cutscenes. Almost nothing is synced up properly. It is abysmal. And there are many instances where the subtitles do not match with the dialogue being spoken. They can also lag behind or skip forward. It is all so sloppily put together.

Also for some fucked up reason, there were changes done to the script, and now the cutscenes are fucked up even more than what they already were. There are lines of dialogue that were straight up changed merely for the fact that Tom Hullett wanted to change something to make it his own, which is straight up disrespectful to the people who fuckin' made that game.

But the funny thing is, they changed the dialogue, but they kept the subtitles the same. Which just shows how lazy these people were when it came to this port.

So about the voices, Silent Hill 3 does not give you the option to play with the old voices. So what do I think of the new voices? I do think they're pretty good, I like them.

Except for Heather and Claudia. They sound nothing like the characters they're supposed to represent. They sound way too old. Heather sounds like a middle-aged woman who is being heavily directed instead of a distressed 16 year old girl. It sounds fuckin' terrible.

And Claudia sounds 20-25 years older than what she actually is. It's just.. ugh, I fucking hate it.

There are also instances where textures don't load up properly, shadows are glitchy, there is a bad motion blur glitch going on, and the sound effects bug out as well. The SMG comes to mind. When you shoot it, it just makes the sound of static. I am not joking. And the fog can also glitch out as well. The game also crashes. A lot.

Silent Hill 2 HD is really bad, but it actually makes me sick that Silent Hill 3 HD was and still is in this bad of a state. I can't believe this was even put out in stores. I can only imagine the sheer disbelief of the people who actually bought this trainwreck.

{ Who is responsible? }

There are two major reasons why this collection is so botched.

When you boot up the game, you see a developer named Hijinx Studios in the intro. It turns out this studio were given the responsibility of porting these games. I've never heard of these guys before, but I think I know why after doing some research.

Wanna know what games these guys have made prior to Silent Hill HD Collection? Well we got...

- A series of Tony Hawk mobile games

- Two PS3 games called Frogger Returns and Vandal Hearts: Flames of Judgement

- A single Nintendo DS game called TouchMaster 3

- And THREE Karaoke Glee games for the Nintendo Wii

But you wanna know what these guys specialize in? Porting old video games to MOBILE platforms.

So now with a very important question: Why in the holy mother of shit was this studio given the task of bringing SILENT HILL 2 AND 3 to current generation consoles? See, this is one major issue, but here's the other problem:

It turns out that Konami fuckin' lost the original source code for their games years before the HD Collection was even a concept. But for some reason, they still had their BETA source codes. So they actually decided to take their incomplete Beta versions of each game and port those.

So it's no wonder why they're so fucking bad. What boggles my mind is the fact that you don't keep your original source codes safe somewhere for when your fans want you to bring them to modern platforms.

You could have also done what Square did with Final Fantasy VIII Remastered and just rebuild the game from the ground up if you lost the source code. But no, you had a developer studio whose only credibility is fucking mobile gaming take the broken Beta versions of each game, slap them onto a Blu-Ray disc, and then shove it out there for the world to see, with some unnecessary tweaks here and there.

Everything that could have possibly gone wrong with this collection has gone wrong.

If you thought for a moment that Konami can't be any more reckless and non-caring when it comes to the Silent Hill IP, this should be all you need. Metal Gear, Silent Hill, Castlevania, all of these franchises are in complete standstills now, and have been reduced to Panchinko machines. Konami are more worried about their god forsaken Pachinko machines than the good will of their most respected franchises.

Because that's all these games are to these fucking people now: money and cash grabs. And it's depressing.

This is the worst thing that Konami has ever done, yes I'd say even worse than Metal Gear Solid 5 and Metal Gear Survive, and at least all of the Metal Gear Solid games are still relatively easy to get your hands on these days, especially with the Metal Gear Legacy Collection, which is an awesome package. But I just can't say the same for Silent Hill. And that's just sad.

And yet they continue to be scummy and neglectful to this very day. Seriously, fuck Konami now and forever.

1/10

Alright, so, I hope you are satisfied at this point, Street Fighter II. You have had two updates already, each adding something new to the game or the basic formula, improving on yourself time and time again. There is NOTHING ELSE you wanna do or say from this point, and we can finally get Street Fighter III, right?............. ok then, glad that we got that settled. So anyway, what’s the next game that I am looking at here? reads the title...................... sigh, I knew it was too good to be true. So yes, less then a year after Street Fighter II Turbo, we would get yet ANOTHER update for Street Fighter II, because I guess there was just so much more to be done that hadn’t already been done at that point. But hey, the game was still pretty huge at that point, so I guess there can be no harm in keeping this train rolling, right? So let’s keep doing that with Super Street Fighter II: The New Challengers.

If you all remember Street Fighter II Turbo, you would probably remember that it was a very basic update, changing very little about the actual game rather then the speed at which the characters moved, and for all of the other changes, they didn’t really add too much to justify the new release. However, in comparison, this new update was HUGE, not only adding plenty that wasn’t already there, but also revamping the game completely to where many parts of the game now look much better and sound much better as well. As a result, we definitely get what was the definitive version of Street Fighter II at that point, and one that I definitely enjoyed checking out. Don’t get me wrong, it isn’t a perfect update, and there are obviously better versions of the game that surpass this, but for what we got here, it is still a great version of an already great game.

One of the biggest changes that one would notice right from the get go would be with, again, the game’s new improved visuals and sound. Unlike all of the other versions of the game, which were made using Capcom’s CP System arcade board, this would be the first game ever to be made using Capcom’s new CP System II, which allowed them to change plenty about the game’s visuals to make them look better, including an updated HUD for battles, updated profiles for all of the characters, updates for all the different stages, and even new stages that you could now fight in. You can even see the changes from the very beginning, where there is a brand new intro that involves Ryu firing a hadouken straight at your face, which is cool to see, even though we will now never see the two randos fighting on the street ever again, which does kinda suck. Obviously, most of the game looks and sounds very similar to the other versions, but for what we got here, this is the best looking version of Street Fighter II that we had gotten so far, and it has aged very well all the way up till now.

Aside from that, there were several changes that were made to some of the characters’ movesets, such as giving Ryu, Zangief, and others new techniques that they could pull off, along with the introduction of a brand new Tournament Battle mode. As you could guess by the name, this mode was made with tournaments in mind, where four separate arcade machines were meant to be linked together, and four separate matches could play out at once as part of a tournament, ultimately leading to the last round against the two best players that would come out on top. I myself am not typically one who participates in fighting game tournaments, nor am I one who cares about that whole scene, but it is cool that Capcom had already started adding ways to support that kind of scene this early on into the series. Obviously though, the biggest change made to the game would be with the new challengers, which consisted of Cammy, Dee Jay, T. Hawk, and Fei Long. All four of these newcomers would become recurring characters in the Street Fighter series, but in terms of how they are in their debut, they work pretty well, and I like using Cammy and Dee Jay in particular when I tried them out. I probably wouldn’t choose them over the other options already available, but it is cool to see more characters being added to the game after all the other updates.

However, with all of that being said, there is one big problem that holds this update back from being perfect: the fighting speed. Unlike with Street Fighter II Turbo, which made the speed of fights much faster compared to every other version beforehand, and made things much more intense as a result, the speed of the fights in this game was brought back to the normal speed of the first two versions of the game, which is honestly kind of a big letdown. Sure, I guess this is what more veteran players of Street Fighter II would’ve been used to, so it wouldn’t have affected them too much, but at the same time, those veterans had probably already adjusted to the faster speed of the Turbo version, so switching it back to the slower pace of the original versions just makes no sense for the most part. Thankfully, this would be fixed with the next update that would follow after this, so this wouldn’t be a problem for very long, but still, keep that in mind for those of you who come to this version after playing the Turbo version of this and the previous Street Fighter II versions.

Overall, despite the much slower speed that we got in this version, this is still definitely the best version of Street Fighter II that we had gotten up to that point, and it is still a fantastic version of the game to play for those who were fans of the base game, or any version of the game for that matter. I would recommend it for diehard fans of the game, as well as for those who are big fans of the genre, but once again, for newcomers or for Street Fighter II veterans, you would still be better left off playing the later versions instead. And… I can’t think of a joke to end off this review with. Uh… go try to throw a hadouken in real life, I dunno. I’ve heard it could be possible, if you just believe in yourself enough, and ignore the laws of physics altogether.

Update #3

AA-games are back! RoboCop is back! Teyon did it, they got Robo loaded up full of baby food and Oreo cookies and put him in a good video game!

It's hard to imagine what RoboCop would've looked like without director Paul Verhoeven, who famously threw his copy of the script in the trash and only dug it out at the insistence of his wife. It is even harder still to imagine Johnathan Kaplan turning down Project X to stay on for RoboCop, or how the film would sound without Basil Poledouris' excellent score, or what shape its themes and humor would take were it not for Michael Miner's thirst for corporate blood. I cannot envision a version of RoboCop absent of Peter Weller, Nancy Allen, Ronny Cox, or Kurtwood Smith bringing Edward Neumeier's characters and world to life. Making a sequel game intended to be accepted as part of the series canon is a tall task, and it's one Teyon managed to pull off about as well as Terminal Reality did with Ghostbusters: The Game. I don't know what's up with these movie franchises struggling to find their place in modern cinemas instead getting excellent games that actually understand the source material, but I'd buy that for [Sixty US Dollars.]

Obviously, RoboCop makes the most sense as a first-person shooter, and for the majority of Rogue City, that's exactly what you get. Stomping around in open environments, rarely taking cover as you blast junkies into hunks of meat with your Auto-9, because RoboCop can take it. Every firefight plays out like the factory shootout from the first film, homing in on scum while shots glance off your solid metal chassis, occasionally grabbing enemies to fling into concrete walls and through high-rise windows, or chucking cans of gas into crowds, or CRTs into skulls, you know, if you want to be a capital C Cop.

You can pick up a variety of other firearms, but outside of the opening few missions, there's very little practical reason to do so. The Auto-9 gets the job done, start to finish, and it can be upgraded with PCB boards that can increase penetration, damage, and add additional upgrades like bullet split. I ran through most of the game with a board that provided unlimited ammo, an auto-fed clip, and enhanced gore. The end result is, in a word, ridiculous. Teyon ought to be commended for making the Auto-9 feel every bit as good to use in the game as you'd expect it to from watching the movie.

These linear sets of shooting levels are interspersed with trips back to Rogue City's two hub areas: the police station and downtown Detroit. It's during these sections of the game that Rogue City more closely resembles an immersive sim, with dialog trees and skill checks influencing the outcomes of side stories. Blowing up chop shops and de-escalating stand-offs by promising the perp three hots and a cot (a veritable golden ticket out of the hellscape of Detroit) can be initiated at your leisure, usually between handing out tickets and dancing for children. I like to call that serving the public trust.

It's just a shame that skill checks and the number of available side quests dry up the further in you get. A lot of it feels front-loaded, though there's still a lot of joy in walking around downtown and seeing the residual effects of those early choices. Near the start of the game, I had the option to let a graffiti artist go or fine him an unreasonable amount of money. I decided to uphold the law and bankrupt his ass, giving me the prompt "RoboCop has made an enemy of the graffiti artist," and later causing a large anti-RoboCop mural to appear in retribution. Don't know how he afforded all that paint. Scumbag probably stole it.

The subversive humor of the movie is alive and well, though the writing is a little flat near the start of the game and some performances are a bit questionable, save for Peter Weller who reprises his role as Murphy/Robo and doesn't sound like he's skipped a day since RoboCop 2. Once things gets going, Rogue City keeps its momentum. Literal bratty children lecturing adults on not voting (who in turn threaten to punch them in the face), letters from prisoners upset that they're forced into a baking program that makes them look soft, and Robo reuniting an elderly woman with her lost cat before destroying all her personal property in a shootout and just leaving is so perfectly in tone with RoboCop. There's plenty of direct references to the movie as well, and they never feel out of place, like the Delta City model one of OCP's executives collapsed into being unceremoniously stored in a supply closet that you can explore, or Kaplan again calling for a police strike in every scene he's in (Cops don't strike!) In any other game these callbacks could feel pandering, but in Rogue City they provide a sense of continuity.

Unfortunately, Rogue City runs about as well as RoboCop does while trying to arrest Dick Jones. I frequently had visual effects stop working, including a screen that was meant to depict a key character during a climactic moment in the game which remained blank. Audio frequently desynced and became covered in a heavy whine that required me to reset the game more than once, and artifacting is noticeably present during camera cuts when characters are talking. Temporal anti-aliasing also rears its ugly head once again, caking Rogue City's visuals in a muddy filter.

If Rogue City were a bit more cleaned up and embraced the immersive sim model more fully, I'd say this is a 5/5, but even as-is, I had more fun with it than most AAA releases this year.

In an IGN interview conducted last year, when asked about Armored Core VI’s approach to difficulty Masaru Yamamura(director of AC6) replied “...What we wanted to focus on was really intense and tough mecha battles. We have generally tried to keep it on the challenging side, but it's not to say that it's a flat difficulty line throughout. We wanted to have some nice tempo changes and some nice mix to the difficulty and the level of challenge.” My dude. You did it! I can’t get enough of these clashes! Intense 1v1 duels. Where overwhelming forces meet nimble mercenaries evading missile barrages and bullets galore. Minibosses are spared no expense either. Feeling menacing and tough to beat. Without the right setup, I probably would’ve sweated buckets straining my body and mind to the very limit. I’m so engrossed to the extent, I am reminiscing the good old days from AC Last Raven(ACLR) and AC For Answer(ACFA). Already completed everything I could within three playthroughs. Now I’m soaring across Rubicon’s skies again in my fourth run. Armored Core is back! Blazing, burning, and brightly across nearly all points. If that’s not enough to get your engines running hot, remember Rainn Wilson from ‘Mechless Mutual’ has you covered. Dude seems familiar… probably from some Office tv show.

For those who don’t know AC in general. It is primarily a third-person mecha shooting game. You control a silent protagonist who pilots an Armored Core(AC). Accepting corporate contracts, building up funds, and in doing so, retool their mech when needed. The story is not the strongest you could entice anyone to dip in my opinion. And the IP isn’t renowned to resonate with everyone due to mediocre scores. Outside of outliers. Yet despite all odds the latest installment blasts beyond the mediocre to land among the highest of highs. Penetrating through the nicheness of a twenty-six year long legacy. And still retain the number 1 spot in the UK. Proving without a shadow of doubt, FromSoftware has clearly learned from their past mistakes.

ACVI is no different from its predecessors. But there’s a catch. For the second time in the series, we're not on Earth huh? We're on Rubicon 3. So a new playground awaits us. Coral, a substance found on the planet, is discovered to be both an energy source and a data conduit. Becoming a hot item to advance humanity further by leaps and bounds in the technology sector. Perfect! Our plans proceed on the transhum- until their research causes the Fires of Ibis to occur, combusting the surrounding systems to flames. Fifty years later Coral has been detected once again on Rubicon. And so begins the rush of corporations heading there. To utilize Coral and restart their selfish endeavors regardless of the planet's inhabitants' wishes. As Augmented human C4-621, callsign Raven. You follow orders from a handler named Walter, accepting contracts in the hope you will become free someday. That’s the gist you need to know to get started.

ACVI's story pulverizes its way to being one of the strongest I’ve witnessed in the franchise. And it means a lot compared to previous plot beats. Past games in the story department are usually presented in a simple manner. With hardly any cast to back the main character. Offering no connections, no relatability and no personal motive in conjunction to the protagonist. Recent entries try to break the mold, but more or less most missions are too short and disconnected offering no before or after action report to connect both main/side cast to the narrative. And main objectives all too basic and not noteworthy for a mecha story. For ACVI in comparison, they have all those opposite qualities in spades. Not so much to expect from other powerful games with enthralling story hooks to tell. Here, no hand gently feeds the player, instead we must piece it together from the text given. 621 is offered choices on what divergent missions to accomplish. Therefore, impacting the outcome of the narrative. Equating to three different endings. I find it hauntingly similar to how the Nier series implements them. But not the same. Beyond the corporate duties is a slice of trans humanism and more I won't say due to spoilers. The beats detail unfamiliar roads the first path did not tread. So its a good incentive to keep going past the end credits and see what the rest have to offer. Personally I found it a must to see the fights, new dialogue, new mission structures etc. I like witnessing all the endings and the progression is slightly altered via the storytelling. If I were to rate them. I’d say NG++ = NG+ > NG. The NG is still good in my books. I’ll talk further later since I feel it is an improvement, but there are a few things to be concerned about.

A satisfying gameplay loop emerges in a multitude of factors: the extensive customization in equipping light, medium, and heavy parts to outfit your robot killing machine. Think of it as post-apocalypse deadly legos. Except building a mech twenty to fifty times the size of humans. Become a bulky tank capable of withstanding the hardest of blows. Go for a tetrapod Think crab legs and hover in the air taunting peons below who can’t reach you. Go bold and embrace the small and nimble builds to become an ace. Ace Combat?? Close man. Except you can pilot it, and shoot any kind of weapons you can think of: plasma blades, shotguns, gatling guns, rifles, missiles, bazookas, shields, etc. Forget the robots of the past. Moving at a sloth’s as if you’re a Mechwarrior. No man. Front Mission? While I’m excited we're getting FM2 soon. No sir! Not turn-based! Well, how about Xeno mechs? Getting warmer my friend! What Armored Core excels beautifully is the sheer mobility you can outfit in nearly any direction. They’re the only franchise I’ve played thus far within the genre to go insane in movement. Whereas others take a different approach going for heavy mechs. AC has no qualms about letting you fly like a Gundam or Macross unit and I for one am here for it! Combat is frenetic, chaotic, and incredibly dangerous. Show no mercy against hordes of mechanized enemies, head into a facility to wipe out pesky spider units. Blast foolish laser bugs in the air. Fight epic duels versus other mercenaries to the point of being outgunned and outmatched. Not always though. Face off in epic David vs. Goliath meets Shadow of the Colossus robot-type battles. Yeah, I kid you not. Look up at the big machines dwarfing your size to the point that if they land on you, the aftermath will show nothing but bent, broken machine parts lying on the ground.

Building on the older blueprints in the series, there are so many callbacks. AC2 to Verdict Day. And probably more from AC PS1 games, but I still need to play those one day I'm quite astounded at the sheer effort FromSoftware crafted. Not so much to inject nostalgia bait, but carefully done so I'm not in a reference-filled theme park. Taking lessons in the Soulsborne aspects, Sekiro and heck Daemon X Machina(DXM) An anime-like AC game in all but name, is spared no expense! And the result is quite remarkable. Sekiro’s posture and stagger are reformed. Called ACS(Attitude Control System) Once any enemy craft accumulates enough damage they are left in a ‘staggered’ state. Becoming immobilized and any incoming damage transforms into critical hits. Effectively harming the unit a great deal. After a short period, they can regain their normal status and thus you must break their ACS again. A wonderful rule to abuse against foolish adversaries. Personally haven’t seen such a regulation in older titles. Fights escalate becoming strategic and wary. You are not exempt from the rule. So watch the ACS bar! Moving on. Felt DXM inspiration. Which is ironic since they look at AC for inspiration heh. Mainly the banter and colorful cast. Full of interesting personalities and a pleasant range of voices to keep them distinct. Hearing Michigan’s voice akin to a drill sergeant praising you while delivering lines of “Maggot!” Lives in my head rent-free. Rubbing steel arms with fellow mercs. Becoming buddies. However every so often certain individuals are slow to the point of snails and irritating, bringing all the arrogance to show their superiority to you. Yet this doesn't detract from the personable buddies, which is such a rare sight to see in an AC. I love it! A better attempt than past operators sounding your ears off in a monotonous voice.

Repair kits are awesome and something I never expected. But holy moly after using them, I’m 1000% onboard. Should be a mainstay in the franchise. Please, Hidetaka Miyazaki, I'm begging you. Granted pilots only hold three charges and no we can’t upgrade them like in the Souls IP. Like ten in our pouches to chug. Honestly I’m still in disbelief, we possess essentially mecha estus?! What?! A WD-40 mixed with an elixir of life?! But hey I’m not complaining. The inclusion of the feature works wonders to recover your extra armor points(AP) to live. Also, Human Plus is back, kinda. By defeating opponents in the Arena you gain operating system chips to buy and upgrade your mech. Granting passive skills you don’t need to equip except core expansions. Amplifying the damage done in various categories. Kinetics? Sure. Plasma? Sure. Explosions? Buddy… Sign. Me. Up! There’s more to unlock, but suffice it to say outside of these elements. All upgrades you buy are permanent. Meaning I see no reason not to undertake the Arena to finish off all opponents. And in turn, upgrade your body. Trust me. Increasing repair-kits recovery is a godsend. Moreover, missile superiority is packing heavy blows. Reminding me of AC2 missiles, fascinating villain presence makes a triumphant return. And solid variety in missions. Demonstrate consistent superb points across the board. To the extent objective parameters are given fair treatment: Defend against waves of enemies, stealth tasks, escaping a map, etc. My nostalgia is somehow stroked. Alongside certain themes cheekily reappears in another fashion. AC Nexus isn’t spared either, the soundtrack gives off the extremely high-quality tracks I'm already listening to outside of playing.

AC FA Primal Armor makes a wonderful return now called Assault Armor. Want to surprise attackers by making a 360 degree explosion around your AC? Boy oh boy are they in for one hell of a wake-up call. ACV and Verdict Day scan mode is by the gods gone. No longer a mandatory function, Instead serving as an optional scan mode to display details in your surrounding environment. Highlighting foes, caches for weaponry, data logs, etc. Last-generation games feature a resupply option called ‘Workshop sites’. Now reconfigured whenever a long operation occurs you can resupply and regain all ammo and AP. No cost is necessary.

Level design has changed to incorporate a denser, larger area to cover. Maps are wide and brimming with intricate detail. Broken machinery litter landscapes and factories in production continue to function even if a tourist is snooping where they shouldn’t. Complemented well by smooth transitions into small pathways, corridors instill a claustrophobic nature. Bringing spice to the environmental eye candy. And hell you might see a surprise or two when you see advanced setpieces. Ambushed by an AC duel outta nowhere!? Receive enemy reinforcements partway through a job or encounter divergent objectives throughout. Not all assignments are long to beat. A careful balance emerges to complete levels in less than five minutes or greater depending how many times you reload a checkpoint or comb every inch of a place. Simple objectives in the beginning, gradually increase in complexity as you delve further in a playthrough. Nudging the player to overcome challenges, testing them thoroughly to prove they have the skill and fortitude to go beyond. If one lacks in talent they can make up for it through different builds and playstyle. Of course, results may vary. Just because I had a fine time, isn’t the same for others. In addition to open zones, there are plenty of data logs to find. Detailing lore on individuals in the world, combat logs by defeating mobs of opponents. And I must say the opponent variety is plenty, so you won’t get bored seeing #1 then #2 then #3. No complaints about their design after fifty-nine assignments. I’m hungry to defeat anything in front of me.

The soundtrack composed by Kota Hoshino, Takashi Onodera, and Shoi Miyazawa is just as marvelous as their predecessors. Evoking senses of Bladerunner, Portal and The Division. Hearing Things and New Era convey robust unity and constantly reinforce the numerous allusions and references I found to excellent effect. Inserting Elden Ring vibes into the mix sneakily. I’m astounded at the level of quality. Post-punk, trance, monosynth, and dark synth waves combine in an unexpected product resulting in an eerie, yet soulful and tranquil sound. A consistent flow in haunting rhythms I found to be oddly mesmerizing. Luring me deeper to embrace not only the twisted sense of tension throughout, yet doesn’t detract at all by transforming the whole soundtrack into pleasant humming heavens. A small number of tracks are jazzy and uplifting to the beat. A wonderful surprise, providing a nice change of pace in the otherwise somber and atmospheric themes permeating. Overall, I believe the soundtrack largely succeeds in conveying a “sense of loneliness, nostalgia wrapped in a dark old sci-fi feel.” Well done!

Very satisfied with the console port on my PlayStation Four Pro. Had one crash in my 3rd playthrough, but the rest of my runs have been smooth. So maybe an outlier. Did not experience any bugs or glitches. Which I am super thankful for. And I am extremely impressed by how fast menus load. ACV and ACVD took their sweet time from the starting screen to the main menu and the following notifications popping up. Connecting to the internet and adding unnecessary filler. Thankfully none of that bull is here. Enter the menu and bam! We're in the garage! Sick!

Despite all the praise I've been endlessly pulling, I must talk about my mixed feelings. Not a positive or a negative, but for the sake of transparency I’ll state them below. First, the implementation of new game cycles could be better. Players need to take certain missions in a manner to achieve the NG/NG+ ending. Taking the opposite operations in the 2nd run for the others. Once these two requirements are met a new path will emerge to unlock NG++. It should be noted, starting a 2nd playthrough upon beating NG. Reinstates the protagonist right after the tutorial. Requiring them to complete old missions and adding more than a handful of unfamiliar assignments included. Finishing NG+ rewards extra exclusive missions to complete. I had to follow Powerpyx’s guides, for all endings and one to make sure I finished all the engagements correctly in a manner leaving no doubt for me to head to the final route. I highly recommend looking up a guide for both to not mess up. I feel the punishment for not going in the manner intended will cause possible frustration. To restart and play an unnecessary fourth operation. During my time playing, I was ruminating possible alternatives. Highlight completed ones, and include a warning or another tutorial to inform mercenaries of the unique quests. There are no multiple saves to rely on. You get one save, so make it count. Unless you like backing up your save constantly. Wish the method was easier to prevent accidents. Therefore, allowing anyone to start a fresh operation painlessly.

The illusion of safe ‘difficulty’ throughout is blown to bits upon encountering the 1st boss. The devs have little sympathy whatsoever for throwing you to the pits. In one of the hardest fights in the beginning and asked us to defeat them with starting equipment. Imagine an armed Megatron versus a no weapon Bumblebee. Such a decision seems to be deliberate to convey how future encounters can be, aligning with Yamamura’s decision earlier. And he does succeed. Since I’ve read countless rants, criticism, angry responses, and complaints ad nauseam. The developer team's intention doesn’t always pan out to the masses. So what's the solution? Another mode? Easy mode? Hmmm. Doubt it. Soulsborne + Sekiro and AC I’ve played don’t contain those options available. So what’s next? Well, they contain an in-depth tutorial archive alongside training quests to bring fresh pilots up to speed. And I found their inclusion to be extremely welcoming. Easy accessibility to refer to the archive and see mechanics I can take advantage of. They specifically mention changing your build, if you’re having trouble. Past entries had players accruing debt. Now it is not possible any longer. Retry errands to your heart's content to earn sufficient funds. The added checkpoints, assembly of parts, repair kits, and passive skills via ‘OS Tuning’ create a fair parameter to redo engagements. Lessening the tediousness and frustration by starting square one again. In effect, the quality of life features make the hard-as-nails bouts fairer than before. I still maintain Last Raven is the hardest entry in the franchise. ACVI by comparison hits the halfway point to the zenith of ACLR. Moving on, to remove any misconceptions I am not defending Yamamura’s decision, merely trying to explain there are avenues within to help consumers interested in buying or trying out the newest installment. I didn’t come out unscathed either. The 1st boss and each chapter's end baddie demonstrate a higher ceiling to break through. So I’m worried the latest title might be a little too hard. Nevertheless, I am not saying ‘git gud.’ I hate the phrase a lot when a person who needs help asks genuinely and is given a troll/meme response. Let us be better and lend a helping hand to those who wish to pilot an AC alongside us. Who continues to struggle. Responses such as I wish you luck! Keep on trying! Don’t lose hope! Change your builds. Sell equipment and try other weapons. Replaying operations is a great way to earn money and some can be done in less than two to three minutes. These are far better responses.

Arena I think could’ve had more substance. Felt it was lacking compared to previous ones. Push the AI to its limits to challenge us further. Expose us to similar adversaries like Z, N, K, J? or throw a big wrench and add 2v1, 3v1, or 4v1 conflicts to truly test a player's capabilities. A boss rush mode to practice against arduous enemies. Instead of having to restart from the beginning during a task before combatting the big baddy. Additionally, I wish multiplayer was expanded instead of 1v1 or 3v3 duels. Grant us co-op missions online/offline, and set up super bosses, and SOTC-like robots. In ACVD we faced off a version of Motherwill as a team. Why can’t we do the same in the latest title? I’d love to face our previous opponents beside my teammates. DXM had co-op super clashes to tackle and I thought they were incredibly eye-candy, altered elements and most of all were not present at all in the regular story. They push pilots to cooperate and in doing so defeat them. Makes me think much of the effort was in the single-player portion. A factor I deeply appreciate.

In the end all of these hurdles, doesn’t diminish the sheer strengths too much. AC6 takes all the best qualities since its inception and hones the edge of its moonlight blade so hard I am in awe of it. Bear witness and see how ravens fly above blood-red skies fearlessly. Embracing stronger than usual story, gratifying content in both gameplay options and combat, an excellent soundtrack, and worthwhile quality-of-life options, rides the fine line of integrating nostalgia, but has enough to stand on its own. Expansive levels to explore, fight, and discover hidden secrets. Memorable cast. Both likable and destable. Fair, but challenging difficulty next to an expansive number of customization options for your robot body. High replayability and little to no performance/bugs/glitches mishaps. All collide to a must-play for any newcomer or veteran. Easy recommendation to fans and enthusiasts within the niche genre to see all endings. Overcoming multiple tall walls to reach what I firmly believe is one of the best AC entries I've played thus far. A return to form by FromSoftware. Bravo Masaru Yamamura and his team. Looking forward to your future works as director! This title boldly demonstrates there is still a thriving market for the genre in the videogame industry and I for one am standing right beside them waving in my cheerleading outfit to ask other devs to achieve similar levels of greatness. And while there are plenty of mecha titles to watch out for. I for one highly anticipate a sequel since history has shown evidence to import our equipment and continue the storyline. Good chance to expect one. Excuse me, while I play Armored Core VI: Fires of Rubicon for a 4th bloody time!

9/10

Additional Material:
Z N K J - names & somewhat spoilers throughout the series. With final thoughts on the endings of AC6 - MAJOR spoilers on the endings.
Slight Gundam Witch from Mercury similarities
All Endings guide
All Missions List
VaatiVidya - Souls Lore Guru Makes an AC6 Beginner's Guide?!
Advance Tips from Vaati on AC6

Edited 9-9-23 & 10-20-23 - Adding a proper story section, cleaned up some text formatting, replaced a word.

When it comes to developing a video game, whether being a new property or part of an already existing IP, there are many different places that ideas and inspiration can come from. The developer(s) could make the game from an original idea that they have that they hope will become a mainstay within peoples’ minds and/or the industry. It could be a concept that has already been done before, but the developer(s) wanna try to shake up that concept in some way to create something familiar, yet new at the same time. Or maybe, in the most common case, there is a popular trend that is going around in the industry at the time, and the developer(s) wanna jump on that bandwagon and take complete advantage of it, even if it means completely copying from the product that started this trend. This has been done SO MANY times in the industry, even all the way up to nowadays, and in the case of today’s game, we have a game that tries to do exactly that, but manages to punch itself in the face: World Heroes.

What we have here is yet another fighting game to come from the early 90s trying to capitalize on the popularity of Street Fighter II, this time being developed by the dead company ADK, while also being published by SNK, adding this series to their catalog of fighting series. Although, based on what I have experienced with this game, I’m not sure why they would have wanted to associate themselves with this game. While I wouldn’t say that the game is bad, it really isn’t that good at all, being one of the most “it’s there” fighting games that I have ever played, not really leaving any kind of impact, and just coming off as being extremely mediocre. Not to mention, it is also blatantly uses a lot of elements from other fighters, such as character designs, motives, abilities, and layouts for the game, making it less desirable as a result.

The story is at least somewhat original, with this scientist taking many different figures from all across time to fight it out to see who is the strongest of them all, which is creative, so I will give the game credit for that, the graphics are good, having the look and feel that fighting games of the era usually have, even if it isn’t really that original, the music is pretty good, having some nice tracks to listen to while you beat the shit out of Rasputin, but some of the tracks definitely sound better then others, the controls are pretty much what you would expect from a fighter at this point, but it does lack one button in comparison to other SNK fighters, which does suck, and the gameplay is typical for a fighter of that era, but it does add several elements that other fighters at the time didn’t have.

The game is your typical 2D fighter, where you take control of one of eight fighters based on people from all throughout history, take on many opponents from all around the world, throw plenty of punches, kicks, and special moves onto your opponents to take them down, and climb your way up to becoming the greatest World Hero of them all. So yeah, it is your usual fighting game affair, but again, much like other fighters, there are plenty of elements that make it feel somewhat unique, such as, again, the characters, with some being cyborgs with extending limbs, as well as Jeanne D’Arc, who wields a sword, where most other fighters at the time didn’t carry weapons, so that is neat to see.

In addition to this, for several characters in this game, they have specific abilities that other characters don’t have, such as with Hanzo and Fuuma, who can both double jump, and then there is Rasputin, who can shoot projectiles while they are in the air. While it doesn’t seem like much, using these abilities can be pretty fun to do, but at the same time, it does make these characters somewhat overpowered when compared to the others. Alongside this, this game also has two modes, those being Normal Game and Death Match. Normal Game plays pretty much exactly as you would expect, like your typical fighting mode, but with Death Match, it places you and your opponent inside of a ring with plenty of hazards that you have to avoid while leading your opponent to hit them. It isn’t really too different from standard mode, but if you wanted a change of pace, it is nice to have.

However, neither of these things save this game from its multiple problems, such as the biggest one it has: it is blatantly copying from multiple fighting games. For the most part, it is taking from Street Fighter II, not just in terms of the style, layout, and progression of fights, but also by straight up copying characters, like with Hanzo and Fuuma just being copies of Ryu and Ken, to the point where they are basically just copies of each other. Not only that, but the final boss of the game, Gee Gus, is basically just Shang Tsung, given how his main gimmick is just morphing into all of the other fighters in the game. Now, granted, there were plenty of other fighters at the time that did take heavy inspiration from these games, but at least they didn’t just blatantly steal these elements and characters to use (or at least, the ones I have played so far haven’t). Aside from that though, the other problem that this game has is that it is actually pretty damn easy. Sure, it could be hard if you aren’t prepared, but I played through the entire first round in about 20 minutes, not losing a single match to any of the opponents. This may not sound like that much of a big deal, but I played this game on the same difficulty setting that I used with every other fighting game I played on this website so far, and I did not have any trouble whatsoever, which says a lot. Or maybe I am just too good at this point. At least, I’d like to believe that.

Overall, despite having some unique features that other fighters didn’t have at the time, World Heroes is just another mediocre product that doesn’t deserve any of your time, being a blatant copy of plenty of other fighters while not providing the challenge that is needed so that people will be urged to come back over and over again. I guess I could recommend it for those who are fans of fighting games to check it out, but don’t be surprised if you are disappointed by what you get here. So, to end off this review, here’s a fun fact: the character Brocken was actually originally supposed to be Adolf Hitler, straight up, but they decided to change him into an original character to avoid controversy. Not gonna lie, I kinda wish they stuck with Hitler himself instead. It would’ve made the game way more entertaining, getting to beat up Hitler over and over and over again.

EDIT: It has come to my attention that Mortal Kombat came out a month after this game did, which means that Mortal Kombat technically stole from this... ah, who cares, nobody remembers this game anyway.

Game #350

Despite how basic and limited it may be, the original Splatterhouse still somewhat holds up in my eyes, primarily due to its presentation and style. It was quite possibly the most violent, bloody, and most “horror” like game at the time, certainly being one of most unique and interesting games to come from Namco’s classic lineup. However, in terms of gameplay, it was pretty basic, being a standard side-scrolling beat-’em-up that doesn’t do too much different from others at the time, which definitely doesn’t make it as appealing to players nowadays, even if I myself have a good time with it. Nevertheless, the game would get several followups, including a parody game for the NES that was actually pretty good, and a proper sequel, this time not developed by Namco, but instead by Now Production, who did develop said parody game, so they did have experience when it came to the Splatterhouse series. So, about four years after the original, they then continued this series with Splatterhouse 2.

Unfortunately, when it comes to the gameplay, this game pretty much introduces nothing too new when compared to the original Splatterhouse, which usually isn’t that big of a deal. After all, if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it, right? Well, in the case of Splatterhouse, I’m pretty sure most could agree that some elements of it could definitely use some tweaking, or maybe some big changes, and while I myself wasn’t initially bothered by this, I could definitely feel the repetitiveness as I kept playing. But, like with the original game, it is carried primarily by its presentation and gore, making it so that I can’t really hate it, or even dislike it. That being said, the game all in all is just simply ok, with no real reason to check it out if you had already played the original game, unless you wanna take on more abstract and grotesque horrors, which definitely pulled me in initially.

The story is all about the main character, Rick, being offered the chance to save his dead love from the pits of Hell once again by the Terror Mask… so it is just basically another “guy saves girl” plot, but it does have some more depth given to it, so I will give it that, the graphics are definitely not as good as the arcade original, but I feel for this series specifically, the more rough and darker graphics and artstyle works much more when compared to the original, so I consider it an improvement in that regard, the music is pretty good, where it does fit the spooky vibe that the game is going for, and I did find myself bobbing my head to some of the tracks, although some of the tracks aren’t really all that impressive compared to others, the control is pretty much the exact same as the original game, so no need to comment on that any further, and the gameplay is incredibly faithful to the original game, to the point where it ultimately lowers the game’s value.

The game is a side-scrolling beat-’em-up, where you take control of Definitely-Not-Jason-Voorhees (I know, the most original joke you’ve ever heard, I know), take on many different spooky and deadly environments, defeat plenty of disgusting and “terrifying” enemies that will do everything they can to tear you to shreds, use your fists, along with plenty of weapons like a plank of wood and a shotgun, to take out many of the vicious creatures that you will run into, and fight many grotesque and unique bosses that will put your skills to the limit. Yes, this is all pretty much the same as what you did in the original game, so, you may be asking, “Is there anything new that this game introduces?” Well, yes……… they introduce difficulty options and a password system. That is literally it, and that’s not even really that noteworthy, considering these weren’t new features at all when it came to video games, so basically, this could just be seen as Splatterhouse DLC before DLC was even a thing.

That being said, like the original game, the main selling point of the game is the violence, gore, and blood, and when compared to the original game, I would say this game is just as gory, if not more so. There were definitely many vicious and violent aspects of the original game that could be seen all throughout, and for this game, they made sure to up the ante on that, with plenty of bosses having very grotesque designs and animations, especially when they die, with bodies melting and parts of their bodies exploding in a bloody mess. Yes, this was all stuff in the original game as well, but I feel like it is ramped up moreso in this game then it was there, even though there was already plenty of gore to be found. Just like in the original, it does feel very satisfying to take out on these monstrous creatures, but for those who are wanting more from a sequel to Splatterhouse other then the presentation, then you will not be getting that here.

And since not that much has changed from the original, it also carries a lot of the same problems, such as with the difficulty. I found the bosses this time around to not be as bad as the original, but when I say “not as bad”, it’s like barely less difficult, as I still got my ass kicked plenty of times when playing through the game, and it feels much more like a punishment here, given how this isn’t another arcade game, where you can just pop a credit in and keep going. Secondly, once again, if you weren’t a fan of the original Splatterhouse, or similar games like Altered Beast, then this game really isn’t gonna do anything to change your mind. It is more of the same, which may slightly work for someone like me who loves this style, but for others, you will probably get bored and sick of it very quickly.

Overall, despite upping the gore and cathartic factor, Splatterhouse 2 is just simply Splatterhouse 1 again, except for the Sega Genesis, and while that may please some, for others, it is gonna do the exact opposite. I would recommend it for fans of the original game, and to an extent, the parody game, but for everyone else, just skip to Splatterhouse 3 instead, which actually does change things up from these two installments, which does make it more appealing. Nothing much more to say except that there is a jumpscare at the end of the game, and it looks goofy as hell, even if it probably would’ve scared kids back then… along with everything else.

Game #352