stradiwhovius
Full disclosure that I have not finished the game. I am renting and at time of writing have played half of the third 'world'.
And what really jumped out at me is how many other reviews have said that the game is charming but loses its appeal and becomes repetitive and tiresome over time. And I have already felt that over 8-12 levels. I dread how much worse it must get. A bunch of half-baked ideas for other games.
Brutally, it is reminding me of Balan Wonderworld.
And what really jumped out at me is how many other reviews have said that the game is charming but loses its appeal and becomes repetitive and tiresome over time. And I have already felt that over 8-12 levels. I dread how much worse it must get. A bunch of half-baked ideas for other games.
Brutally, it is reminding me of Balan Wonderworld.
2024
Don't support plagiarism.
An excellent game that won't be for everyone.
I have just beat the main story of the game. Still need to do optional puzzles and haven't even touched the gold gate ones yet. This is an extremely compelling puzzle game which encourages lateral thinking to the extent I think it has genuine educational utility. I had to work my brain hard for some of the later puzzles but only found myself finding them too obtuse and unfair maybe once or twice.
The story is secondary but also delivers. The limited cast, including the interactions you have on the games 'social media', are well used to explore a number of perspectives on philosophy and meaning. Every character, even the most minor, has a consistent personality and I felt rewarded for remembering them. Your own character is well served also: notably there was never a case where I felt none of the dialogue options suited me.
I found this experience enjoyable but I can understand why people would find it frustrating. It demands a certain tolerance, an enjoyment of being toyed with. Which is valid, I wish the game were a bit more flexible about how its hint system worked. But worst case scenario if you were to find yourself disagreeing firmly on the game's difficulty I would recommend playing anyway and looking up a guide. Its thematic exploration is worth it, I think.
I have just beat the main story of the game. Still need to do optional puzzles and haven't even touched the gold gate ones yet. This is an extremely compelling puzzle game which encourages lateral thinking to the extent I think it has genuine educational utility. I had to work my brain hard for some of the later puzzles but only found myself finding them too obtuse and unfair maybe once or twice.
The story is secondary but also delivers. The limited cast, including the interactions you have on the games 'social media', are well used to explore a number of perspectives on philosophy and meaning. Every character, even the most minor, has a consistent personality and I felt rewarded for remembering them. Your own character is well served also: notably there was never a case where I felt none of the dialogue options suited me.
I found this experience enjoyable but I can understand why people would find it frustrating. It demands a certain tolerance, an enjoyment of being toyed with. Which is valid, I wish the game were a bit more flexible about how its hint system worked. But worst case scenario if you were to find yourself disagreeing firmly on the game's difficulty I would recommend playing anyway and looking up a guide. Its thematic exploration is worth it, I think.
2014
Doesn't quite get its difficulty curve right in my opinion and it can sometimes be a bit frustrating when you feel like you have the correct solution to the puzzle... and you do! But one object wasn't quite in the right place. All the same, it has left me very excited to play the second game, which looks like a step up in every possible way.
This review contains spoilers
A great game but I have notes...
Gameplay wise, a mostly direct improvement on the first game. There's a few things I've missed - some of the old web gadgets lack functional replacements and some of the new ones feel rather naff - but that pales to... actually being able to complete a stealth challenge without being forced into combat! What a concept!
The side content is also way more focused. You will not be spending hours post-story mopping up every inciting group's 20 crimes or whatever. Mechanically, we're looking at surge modes for both spideys which are entertainingly broken once you master them, and the web wings are fun after they're upgraded and inessential before. Some of the puzzle elements like determining chemicals etc. felt either simplified or relegated more to side quests. Your mileage might vary on whether that's good or not.
The story is... a mixed bag. The most important one is the relationships between Peter and MJ, Harry, and Miles. And they're all done justice. Peter's arc of realising his responsibility isn't just to New York but to himself and the people around him, and toxic obsession towards the former enabled by the symbiote is well realised. Harry becoming Venom is similarly a genius move: taking that same single-mindedness and warping it with an obession with Spider-Man was an excellent way to keep the conflict personal. Unfortunately there are significant pacing issues here. The story hinges on Kraven the Hunter shouldering main villain status for well over half of the game and he is - frankly - neither interesting nor credible as an ultimate enemy. The black suit simply enters the fray too late, and delays the act 3 shift with it.
Some final stray positives: The side missions are very sweet and capture the heart of Spider-Man even if they are lacking in bringing in the iconic rogues gallery, Miles continues to be a very rich and well-realised character, and when the character beats do final hit in the final act I cried several times.
Gameplay wise, a mostly direct improvement on the first game. There's a few things I've missed - some of the old web gadgets lack functional replacements and some of the new ones feel rather naff - but that pales to... actually being able to complete a stealth challenge without being forced into combat! What a concept!
The side content is also way more focused. You will not be spending hours post-story mopping up every inciting group's 20 crimes or whatever. Mechanically, we're looking at surge modes for both spideys which are entertainingly broken once you master them, and the web wings are fun after they're upgraded and inessential before. Some of the puzzle elements like determining chemicals etc. felt either simplified or relegated more to side quests. Your mileage might vary on whether that's good or not.
The story is... a mixed bag. The most important one is the relationships between Peter and MJ, Harry, and Miles. And they're all done justice. Peter's arc of realising his responsibility isn't just to New York but to himself and the people around him, and toxic obsession towards the former enabled by the symbiote is well realised. Harry becoming Venom is similarly a genius move: taking that same single-mindedness and warping it with an obession with Spider-Man was an excellent way to keep the conflict personal. Unfortunately there are significant pacing issues here. The story hinges on Kraven the Hunter shouldering main villain status for well over half of the game and he is - frankly - neither interesting nor credible as an ultimate enemy. The black suit simply enters the fray too late, and delays the act 3 shift with it.
Some final stray positives: The side missions are very sweet and capture the heart of Spider-Man even if they are lacking in bringing in the iconic rogues gallery, Miles continues to be a very rich and well-realised character, and when the character beats do final hit in the final act I cried several times.
A good but overrated game.
Super Mario Bros Wonder has the ambition I have been hungry for from 2D Mario for the past 15 years. However. while the quality is never sub-par, the creativity shown in the trailers which I was sold on rarely hits expectations. The way the game was advertised, as having no deadline, having countless ideas fed into it... this is the same game they've been relitigating since 2006 but mostly good and with a dozen or so good ideas and a couple of lazy ones. Wonder felt sold to me as a way of reinventing a stage. In practice it means a lot of the time an extra act to it. Or everything moves fast. Or slow.
I'm writing this review now because I've just beaten Bowser for the first time and, while I've enjoyed the game plenty, from the 95/100 reviews I was honestly expecting a rug pull. Maybe I'm Zelda-style only HALFWAY through! Maybe there's so much more content.
There isn't.
This is a good game. It's a 7, maybe 8, out of 10. Not a 10.
Super Mario Bros Wonder has the ambition I have been hungry for from 2D Mario for the past 15 years. However. while the quality is never sub-par, the creativity shown in the trailers which I was sold on rarely hits expectations. The way the game was advertised, as having no deadline, having countless ideas fed into it... this is the same game they've been relitigating since 2006 but mostly good and with a dozen or so good ideas and a couple of lazy ones. Wonder felt sold to me as a way of reinventing a stage. In practice it means a lot of the time an extra act to it. Or everything moves fast. Or slow.
I'm writing this review now because I've just beaten Bowser for the first time and, while I've enjoyed the game plenty, from the 95/100 reviews I was honestly expecting a rug pull. Maybe I'm Zelda-style only HALFWAY through! Maybe there's so much more content.
There isn't.
This is a good game. It's a 7, maybe 8, out of 10. Not a 10.
2023
Imagine if Sonic 4 was a good game but didn't understand Sonic like Mania did. That's this game. It's fine. Bosses in the back half suck. Like, last at least 3 minutes long with instant death attacks level suck.
2023
N.B.: 8 hours logged, just beat the 4th major (has big cutscenes) boss. I have been told it gets worse.
If, like me, you're a huge fan of From Software's soulslike games, this is by some distance the best attempt at recreating their energy. It broadly avoids most of their imitators pitfalls: It has its own aesthetic perspective, feels sincerely concerned about creating a coherent world, and a few exception aside it understands that the appeal of soulsborne was never "it's hard lol".
However, it is mechanically a bit rough around the edges. Certain builds and playstyles are a bit too objectively better than others. Some enemy attack animations are a bit too trolling for the parry system the game operates. And this might be muscle memory from other games talking but I don't think it really articulates when you should be guarding vs trying to perfect guard vs just dodging very well. This may not bother you, and it didn't necessarily bother me either I found it quite funny, but there are several set pieces and even entire areas which wear their influences a bit too on the sleeve.
I can see myself falling off this if what I've been told about a certain status effect is true, and I would recommend playing on game pass or renting if you have that service available to you, but I wouldn't play full retail price for this game. Having said that I'm glad I have played it and I'm very excited for what this team come out with next.
Edit: Ultimately shelved at the first major boss of the final area. Glad I persevered to the point I did.
If, like me, you're a huge fan of From Software's soulslike games, this is by some distance the best attempt at recreating their energy. It broadly avoids most of their imitators pitfalls: It has its own aesthetic perspective, feels sincerely concerned about creating a coherent world, and a few exception aside it understands that the appeal of soulsborne was never "it's hard lol".
However, it is mechanically a bit rough around the edges. Certain builds and playstyles are a bit too objectively better than others. Some enemy attack animations are a bit too trolling for the parry system the game operates. And this might be muscle memory from other games talking but I don't think it really articulates when you should be guarding vs trying to perfect guard vs just dodging very well. This may not bother you, and it didn't necessarily bother me either I found it quite funny, but there are several set pieces and even entire areas which wear their influences a bit too on the sleeve.
I can see myself falling off this if what I've been told about a certain status effect is true, and I would recommend playing on game pass or renting if you have that service available to you, but I wouldn't play full retail price for this game. Having said that I'm glad I have played it and I'm very excited for what this team come out with next.
Edit: Ultimately shelved at the first major boss of the final area. Glad I persevered to the point I did.
2023
I want to love this. I really do. But it's so pervasively mediocre. The reward for exploration is a weapon or armour upgrade you'll find in the next dungeon. And then be able to buy in the next village. And it falls into that trap where if you enable any of the 'easy mode' relics the game becomes mindless but if you're not using them it's tedious and unplayable. If you can access on gamepass/PS+ give it a look but DO NOT PAY for this game.
Not good.
This game is shit, don't bother with it.
Extremely charming, the cutscenes are beautiful and often actually quite funny. However once you're into the gameplay it unfortunately wares thin rather quickly.
2018
I do not like Roguelikes. I do not feel a sense of reward from them, it took a friend who also dislikes them to strongly recommend Hades for me to check it out (being on sale also helped). This game is a masterpiece.
It makes me feel very similar to Dark Souls. I should hate it but manages to take the feeling of frustration and failure and weaponise both in the game's narrative but also its metanarratives. Every trip through the underworld I pushed further, learned more and understood the games systems... discovered how essential certain boons are. Now I've started clearing the game with weapons I thought I wouldn't care much for. Truly addicting stuff. And not once have I felt particularly set up to fail. Forget "prepare to die", Hades in both its gameplay and its story seems to dare you to learn to live.
It makes me feel very similar to Dark Souls. I should hate it but manages to take the feeling of frustration and failure and weaponise both in the game's narrative but also its metanarratives. Every trip through the underworld I pushed further, learned more and understood the games systems... discovered how essential certain boons are. Now I've started clearing the game with weapons I thought I wouldn't care much for. Truly addicting stuff. And not once have I felt particularly set up to fail. Forget "prepare to die", Hades in both its gameplay and its story seems to dare you to learn to live.
While I enjoyed Breath of the Wild plenty, I never really fell in love with it the same way it seemed everyone else did. I have already spent nearly three times as long playing Tears of the Kingdom than I ever have Breath of the Wild.
The first thing I noted to be an improvement were the selection of rune abilities the game gives you. I found some of BotW's somewhat restrictive or situational. Instead, all of TotK's runes have extremely versatile use cases and excellent creative synergy. Ultrahand boldly asks: "what if magnesis, but you could control anything AND stick them together". Which is a goldmine of creativity in itself, especially with new Zonai Devices like fans, rockets, flamethrowers etc., but becomes truly bonkers when combined with other runes. To give a very simple example, if you need to climb a sheer cliff, you could build a simple T shape with wooden panels, and ascend through it. Higher still? Raise the structure with Ultrahand first, then use recall once you've ascended. It is truly astounding how flexible the system is, and I've really enjoyed finding 'unintended' solutions to the games shrines.
(The game also removes those dreadful motion control shrines BotW had thank god)
Traversal is also improved, in my view. BotW did a great job of zoning its landmarks such that there is always something to surprise you around a corner. But I often felt a bit limited to how high my stamina bar could carry me. In addition to the runes, TotKs Zonai devices let you easily create off-roaders, wind powered wings, hell you can strap a rocket to your shield and shoot into the sky. Even the game's equivalent of the towers send you soaring into the air. Getting to your destination is much easier, where I don't think I ever even visited Tarrey Town or Lurelin Village in BotW, there isn't a corner of TotK I haven't found myself in. It gives TotK a more expedition feeling where your time is spent less getting to point B and more time exploring caves, the skies, and the depths.
(Incidentally, realising the secrets and connections to the Depths... extremely satisfying)
Dungeon design is improved from the Divine Beasts, though none reach the franchise's peak and there is no real equivalent to BotW's Hyrule Castle. They also benefit from the versatility of the runes and devices. One dungeon I'm pretty sure I didn't complete a single puzzle the way I was supposed to. The bosses are all fun, build upon the dungeon's gimmicks well, and some fairly challenging. One recurring boss I went from dreading to looking forward to.
Fusion has radically changed and improved combat. No longer do you need to stock up on Fire Arrows, you can just stick a fire fruit or red jelly onto a normal arrow. Weapons do still degrade quickly, but you can fuse a monster horn on to increase the power of any old sword. Not only does this again open the game up in terms of versatility, it makes elements of the gameplay more meaningful. I found myself avoiding combat in BotW, because I was saving my good weapons for boss fights. I didn't make much use of elixirs and I didn't see much point in going out of my way to fight Lynels. In TotK, everything is useful yet almost nothing falls into the 'too good to use' trap.
Finally the story is exceptionally well done. It relies heavily on you already knowing and having some investment in the Hyrule and its people of BotW. The game's equivalent of the captured memories are easier to find and lay out breadcrumbs of story which colour events in the present in an interesting way and might even tip you off to some of its twists.
This game is a masterpiece. Simple as really.
The first thing I noted to be an improvement were the selection of rune abilities the game gives you. I found some of BotW's somewhat restrictive or situational. Instead, all of TotK's runes have extremely versatile use cases and excellent creative synergy. Ultrahand boldly asks: "what if magnesis, but you could control anything AND stick them together". Which is a goldmine of creativity in itself, especially with new Zonai Devices like fans, rockets, flamethrowers etc., but becomes truly bonkers when combined with other runes. To give a very simple example, if you need to climb a sheer cliff, you could build a simple T shape with wooden panels, and ascend through it. Higher still? Raise the structure with Ultrahand first, then use recall once you've ascended. It is truly astounding how flexible the system is, and I've really enjoyed finding 'unintended' solutions to the games shrines.
(The game also removes those dreadful motion control shrines BotW had thank god)
Traversal is also improved, in my view. BotW did a great job of zoning its landmarks such that there is always something to surprise you around a corner. But I often felt a bit limited to how high my stamina bar could carry me. In addition to the runes, TotKs Zonai devices let you easily create off-roaders, wind powered wings, hell you can strap a rocket to your shield and shoot into the sky. Even the game's equivalent of the towers send you soaring into the air. Getting to your destination is much easier, where I don't think I ever even visited Tarrey Town or Lurelin Village in BotW, there isn't a corner of TotK I haven't found myself in. It gives TotK a more expedition feeling where your time is spent less getting to point B and more time exploring caves, the skies, and the depths.
(Incidentally, realising the secrets and connections to the Depths... extremely satisfying)
Dungeon design is improved from the Divine Beasts, though none reach the franchise's peak and there is no real equivalent to BotW's Hyrule Castle. They also benefit from the versatility of the runes and devices. One dungeon I'm pretty sure I didn't complete a single puzzle the way I was supposed to. The bosses are all fun, build upon the dungeon's gimmicks well, and some fairly challenging. One recurring boss I went from dreading to looking forward to.
Fusion has radically changed and improved combat. No longer do you need to stock up on Fire Arrows, you can just stick a fire fruit or red jelly onto a normal arrow. Weapons do still degrade quickly, but you can fuse a monster horn on to increase the power of any old sword. Not only does this again open the game up in terms of versatility, it makes elements of the gameplay more meaningful. I found myself avoiding combat in BotW, because I was saving my good weapons for boss fights. I didn't make much use of elixirs and I didn't see much point in going out of my way to fight Lynels. In TotK, everything is useful yet almost nothing falls into the 'too good to use' trap.
Finally the story is exceptionally well done. It relies heavily on you already knowing and having some investment in the Hyrule and its people of BotW. The game's equivalent of the captured memories are easier to find and lay out breadcrumbs of story which colour events in the present in an interesting way and might even tip you off to some of its twists.
This game is a masterpiece. Simple as really.
When I reviewed Jedi: Fallen Order I said that it was okay but a solid foundation for a much more ambitious sequel, and Survivor certainly delivers that. I was pleased to see that no key jedi abilities were lost between games, and the additions to Cal's moveset throughout the game lend themselves well to exploration. You actually feel empowered as a Jedi from the start, none of the abilities you gain feel like they're specifically missing before you acquire them,
Combat is improved somewhat over Fallen Order, mainly through the addition of different stances, building on the double blade. All of the styles are viable and the strengths of limitations of each are clearly explained. Though the 'heavy' stance does feel a tad too sluggish for most use cases.
Perhaps controversially I think the story is an improvement on Fallen Order. The issue in my view with the period the game is set in is that any conflict focused exclusively on the Empire feels fundamentally futile, so exploring other options is a pleasing move. The cast are incredibly likeable, I enjoyed returning to the hub to catch up with them.
Cons: Performance is an issue. I've seen various accounts of crashes, softlocking if you try to remap certain controls, pop in, and frame dropping on performance mode to the extent it runs worse than in quality mode. This introduces major issues for the combat, given the focus on tight parry windows. Bad enough that I turned the difficulty down to Padawan to widen the window. It's disappointing that a game with such attention to detail runs like this.
A sequel could also have more meaningful rewards for exploration. I have enjoyed exploring throughout the game but having now beaten the main story I don't feel much incentive to as most rewards are cosmetic. I think I'll seek out any additional unique boss fights or interesting side stories but I feel no need to achieve 100%.
Overall, a very enjoyable game and a massive improvement over its predecessor. I imagine for someone who is a big fan of Star Wars this could be an easy 5 stars game of the year with improved performance. But even as someone with no real attachment to the series, this is a very strong action RPG.
Combat is improved somewhat over Fallen Order, mainly through the addition of different stances, building on the double blade. All of the styles are viable and the strengths of limitations of each are clearly explained. Though the 'heavy' stance does feel a tad too sluggish for most use cases.
Perhaps controversially I think the story is an improvement on Fallen Order. The issue in my view with the period the game is set in is that any conflict focused exclusively on the Empire feels fundamentally futile, so exploring other options is a pleasing move. The cast are incredibly likeable, I enjoyed returning to the hub to catch up with them.
Cons: Performance is an issue. I've seen various accounts of crashes, softlocking if you try to remap certain controls, pop in, and frame dropping on performance mode to the extent it runs worse than in quality mode. This introduces major issues for the combat, given the focus on tight parry windows. Bad enough that I turned the difficulty down to Padawan to widen the window. It's disappointing that a game with such attention to detail runs like this.
A sequel could also have more meaningful rewards for exploration. I have enjoyed exploring throughout the game but having now beaten the main story I don't feel much incentive to as most rewards are cosmetic. I think I'll seek out any additional unique boss fights or interesting side stories but I feel no need to achieve 100%.
Overall, a very enjoyable game and a massive improvement over its predecessor. I imagine for someone who is a big fan of Star Wars this could be an easy 5 stars game of the year with improved performance. But even as someone with no real attachment to the series, this is a very strong action RPG.