Platinum Games had already begun to make a name for themselves after the critical success of titles like Bayonetta and Vanquish. When Kojima was making the rounds searching for people to help him create a new action game for the Metal Gear franchise, it only made sense for him to choose Platinum. What once started as a mix of action and traditional stealth mechanics, Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance instead got transformed into the type of game the studio is best known for: Ridiculous, high-energy combat. All the while, it tries to pay tribute to certain Metal Gear traditions with varying degrees of success. Revengeance takes place a few years after Guns of the Patriots. Raiden now works for a PMC called Maverick Security Consulting. One day while protecting an African Prime Minister, they are attacked by a rogue PMC called Desperado. Events transpire that end with Raiden gaining a new cybernetic body and now must thwart Desperado and their plans to keep the world in perpetual conflict. Compared to your average Metal Gear story, Rising is nowhere near their level of complexity. The villains are one-note and cartoonish (some more than others), but they are every bit as entertaining for it. It can be ridiculously over-the-top and it is fully self-aware of the type of story it is telling, and it’s all the better for it. That ridiculous, over-the-top nature perfectly applies to the gameplay. It’s Platinum’s branded linear, fast-paced action where you cut down every little thing that stands in your way. You are armed with your trusty katana, and as you defeat certain bosses you’ll gain secondary weapons with their own unique properties. Raiden controls wonderfully and I always felt like I was in complete control of my actions, which is vital for this style of game. You do have access to items like grenades and missile launchers, but you’re likely to forget they’re even there as Raiden is more than capable on his own, and even then the time it takes to pull them out to use them is more than enough time for enemies to retaliate so it’s not worth it. The game also presents a few opportunities for stealth, but it kind of feels more like paying lip service to the series’ roots rather than a crucial mechanic. As you defeat enemies and save the occasional hostage you’ll earn Battle Points that can be used to purchase new upgrades. Rising’s biggest features are in its parry system and blade mode. There’s no block, nor is there a traditional dodge mechanic. You’ll instead be parrying back enemy attacks at the right moment (or you can just spam the left stick and attack button to perpetually block most attacks). Even this simple action is rewarding in of itself. Blade mode allows you to slow down time to precisely cut individual glowing limbs, and when you slice at just the right spot you can absorb that enemy’s electrolytes that heal you and refuel your blade mode gauge. This is easily the most satisfying part of the game’s combat. You can also cut specific objects in the environment to knock down stubborn enemies with long range weapons. I would also be hard pressed to forget about this game’s incredible soundtrack that perfectly reflects your given combat scenario. The PS3 version, sadly does have some dips in performance, especially when the game stops the action to deliver conversations, but it’s not enough o be a deal-breaker. The game is also rather short, which does make for some great replayability. It should go without saying that if you are looking for more traditional Metal Gear, stay away from this game. Looking for a kick a** hack-and-slash? Here you go.
Alpha Protocol is a great example of missed potential. A game that was wildly ambitious, in a setting that not many have attempted up to that point, but that ambition couldn’t be fully realized for a variety of reasons, even with deadline extensions. Alpha Protocol had very steep competition to deal with the year of its release, with Mass Effect 2 being the most apt comparison as they are both 3rd Person RPG games with cover shooter mechanics. AP suffers from an uninteresting presentation, bugged mechanics and laughable AI. However, what helps separate AP apart from its peers is in its use of choice, and this was the most laudable feature that most can agree on. It’s a game that is unquestionably jank, and yet I can’t help but enjoy it, if only for its ambition. You play as Michael Thorton, an agent taken in by the mysterious Alpha Protocol organization in order to stop a terrorist plot in the Middle East. Events transpire that cast Michael as rogue, and now he must uncover a deeper global conspiracy and prevent it from turning into full scale war. If there was any one reason to play this game, it would be for its story and characters. It’s a surprisingly intriguing narrative, one that certainly echoes the feeling of Jason Bourne and, to a lesser extent, James Bond. Each character is uniquely defined and entertaining or some way, and the voice acting is solid across the board. For as many problems as AP has gone through, it manages to deliver one of the best uses of choice and consequence I have seen in a video game, arguably more effective than Mass Effect. For one, the dialogue system only lasts so long on screen, forcing you to make quick fire decisions for how you interact with certain characters and can even be the difference between life and death for them. You have a few personality types to select as Thorton, from Suave to Professional to Intimidating, and how you interact with characters will determine whether they are going to help you or become a thorn in your side. There’s no morality system, either. Not everything is as it seems, and there are various shades of gray at play. While some of the outcomes are purely contextual, a lot can lead to radically different scenarios that change up your experience, making for some incredibly strong replay value. That same level of quality, sadly, does not apply to the gameplay and presentation. It’s a mission based 3rd Person shooter with elements of stealth gameplay and RPG mechanics. You pick your specialized class (which can lead to unique dialogues) and set your points toward things like weapons, health, gadgets, stealth, etc. There’s a really good amount of variety in customization, so that checks out. Core gameplay and stealth, on the other hand, do not. The shooting is functional, but you will be faced with either dodgy hit detection, weapons not damaging enemies as much as they should, or both. Getting into cover works fine, but not being able to vault over cover is a little frustrating. Enemy AI is all over the place. One minute they’re mindlessly gunning at you out in the open, not even bothering to search for cover, while the next minute they’re so hyper aware that they can hear a pin drop from a mile away, and they will just immediately bomb rush you and ruin your stealth run. Even then, stealth isn’t really a requirement, nor is it any better than just going gun-ho. Boss fights on Normal or Hard difficulty range from annoying to outright frustrating in design. The game also just has this general lack of polish. There’s broken animations, clipping, visual blemishes like texture tearing. The game as a whole doesn’t look too stellar. Character models look fine, but the environments are remarkably bland. Some of the musical tracks are nice, but most are forgettable and blend into the background. AP is not grand, Espionage vision that Obsidian wanted to deliver, but nonetheless they still managed to impress me. Despite the troubled development, this could have ended up far worse. If you are a fan of games like Mass Effect, and you don’t mind the extra jank, this is an easy recommendation. Sadly, your only choice in playing this game nowadays is through consoles as the PC version was pulled from Steam some time ago, so just keep that in mind.
When Shadow of the Colossus first released on the PS2 in 2005, it was unlike anything people have played before. A sprawling, open world where your only objective is to defeat 16 mythical Colossi that roam the land for your own personal gain. It was lauded for its technical prowess, the bosses themselves, and served as a prime case of video games being seen as a form of art. The game had its fair share of issues, and it certainly wasn’t for everyone, but it’s just so wholly unique in its presentation and design that you can’t help but at least admire it. 13 years later, a ground-up remake of the game was released for the PS4, and for my money it is the definitive version of this classic. Of course, the most obvious improvements are found in the game’s presentation. The game looks positively gorgeous. Each environment in the game is pain-stakingly recreated with modern textures and graphics, and the Colossi look even better than before (and they already looked great on the PS2). It all helps to fully bring out the best of the original’s stellar art design. The main character Wander does look a tad off though, mostly in his face. The game also runs considerably smoother than originally, as the PS2 release was really pushing the hardware to its limits, and you have the option to sacrifice some visual fidelity for increased framerate. The orchestral soundtrack has always been one of the best parts of the original and remains pretty much untouched. Music isn’t always present though, as it only appears when it absolutely needs to. It can range from being haunting and beautiful to bold and grand, perfectly suiting each moment. The core gameplay remains the same as the original, but with some much needed tweaks. As mentioned, your goal is to kill each of the 16 colossi in this forbidden land in order to bring back the one you love. With the help of a mysterious voice, your sword and bow, and your trusty steed Agro, you set off to do just that. Aside from killing a few lizards and eating some fruit in the over world to increase your health and grip, killing the colossi are the only thing you’ll be doing in this game. You’ll be using Agro to travel around from one point to another, and using your sword to help you navigate. This is one of the reasons why a game like this would be a hard sell to your average player. You can easily view this as being barren and dull, but given the core themes of the game and the context of the type of land you have trespassed on, adding other people or things to do would be a detriment. The world itself is artistically beautiful, and it instinctively makes me want to explore and soak in my surroundings. Now let’s talk about the colossi themselves, as they are the real meat of the game. While some are considerably smaller than the others, most live up to their name exceptionally. These are not mere sword fodder for you to mindlessly slash at. Each colossi has a puzzle element to them, having weak points on different parts of their body, and half of the challenge comes from simply figuring out how to get on them and finding their weakness. If you take too long, though, the mysterious voice does offer hints. Once you do, it’s a literal struggle to hang on to them for dear life while they attempt to fling you off. Each colossi has a creative method of getting on them, and once you do and that glorious music kicks in it is absolutely thrilling. It does help that the controls in this version have improved a bit since the original, namely its control scheme. The original options are there for those who prefer it, but the revamped scheme feels so much more natural. Wander is easily prone to tripping and falling, though, so you’ll need to take that into account. Your horse Agro behaves rather realistically, and when traveling through narrow passages she usually does a good job of navigating through them automatically. The game also features a photo mode because every major Sony release needs to include one, so if you are interested in that it offers a good amount of features. Shadow of the Colossus was an incredible achievement on the PS2, and its staying power and legacy continue with the PS4 remake. If you have ever been curious about this game, or are just looking for something different, this version comes highly recommended.
At some point in the early 2000s, some people thought that Sonic had lost his classic edge by the time the Adventure series had begun making its rounds, perhaps due to Adventure elements of SA1, the multiple playstyles of each game or the heavier emphasis on story. I suppose Sega thought the same as after SA2 they decided to go back to basics so to speak. While not an outright return to the classic formula, Sonic Heroes was meant to be more akin to that era than the previous 3D games. From a presentation standpoint, it absolutely succeeds in that regard. Gameplay, however, is more of a mixed bag. To continue that thought with the presentation, the game looks positively stellar, and perfectly nails that classic look they were going for. For my money, the environmental design and vibrant color pallet make this a more visually impressive game compared to SA1 and 2. Character models, though, look too shiny and waxy for my liking, and the in-game cutscenes get the job done, but don't leave much of the impression (CG cutscenes still look solid, if a bit too compressed). In fact, story takes a massive backseat compared to the Adventure series. Sonic and company are off to either defeat Eggman, find their friends, or pay the rent. That's all there really is to it. So, if you were a big fan of how story-driven the previous games were, you'll be disappointed here. Voice acting varies in from solid to ear grating (Cream...), and the general writing is very childish much of the time. Sega were definitely trying to target a much younger audience this time around. The soundtrack, on the other hand, is really great stuff, bringing back a wider range of musical styles that fit the theme of a stage like in SA1. You control four teams of three, each acting as their own difficulty. Team Sonic is normal, Team Dark is hard, Team Rose is easy and Team Chaotix can be BS. Each team contains a speed character for, well, speed, a flight character and a power character for strength and gliding. Each character from each team function rather similarly to one another, but each can also have their own unique attributes or methods of attack. You'll need to periodically switch between characters to get passed different obstacles. When you get into the groove of the game's mechanics and start blasting through stages, that's when the game is at its most fun. It also helps that this is some of the best designed levels in a 3D Sonic game, with many of them very open-ended allowing for multiple paths to take. However, just as soon as you start to get into a groove, that's when things start to get rocky. Firstly, the control is not nearly as refined as the Adventure series. It feels a lot more loose in comparison, and you accelerate far too quickly which can lead to many instances of either running into enemies or falling off of stages. However, the controls in the main stages are nothing compared to the special stages. In order to reach the last story in the game, you'll need to do these special stages to nab a Chaos Emerald, and these are by far the worst parts of the game. The controls in these stages are far, far worse, ranging from either super loose or super stiff with no middle ground, which makes chasing down the emerald far more frustrating than it should. Physics also take a huge hit, specifically during the pinball stages where it becomes agonizing either just trying to get up a board or trying not to fall off into the abyss. Boss fights aren't anything special, either, as most boil down to a pathetic character battle, a mook rush, or facing one of Eggman's creations (Egg Emperor does put up the most fight, but also has its issues) Then there's the different teams themselves. Personally, Team Sonic and Team Rose are the best teams in the game. Team Sonic has just the right amount of challenge, while Team Rose has the right amount of stage length. Team Shadow, though, has stages lasting over 10 minutes and filling said stages with more spikes and awkward enemy placements. Oh, but they don't compare to Team Chaotix. What makes this team special is its different mission types, like collecting X amount of stuff or getting through a level undetected. Many of the things you are tasked to find/destroy can be very well hidden, and if you miss them, you gotta scour the entire stage over again, and at that point you might as well restart, because otherwise you'll be there for nearly 20+ minutes. Sonic Heroes is kind of all over the place in terms of quality. One minute I can be having a grand old time burning through the stages, soaking in the beautiful scenery and listening to great music, while other times I get so frustrated that I wanna stop playing. While certainly not a bad game by any stretch, it is not my first choice for 3D Sonic.
Well, since Contra Rogue Corps was all kinds of terrible, it’s nice to see at least one positive piece of Contra representation in the modern day. The Contra Anniversary Collection is a compilation of some of the most intense, difficult, and manly as hell 2D action games you can play. There are 10 games included, about half of which are the Japanese versions of these releases. It’s structured exactly the same as the Castlevania Anniversary Collection, layout and all. All the games run as well as you’d expect, though still keeping the same level of slowdown that each of the games have to endure. The addition of save states does help to alleviate a lot of the frustration that comes with Contra, especially if you plan on playing the North American and European releases of some of these games. Games like Contra III and Hard Corps are absolutely maddening in their English releases, but the Japanese versions still offer cheat codes to make the journey a whole lot more bearable. If you really want some hair on your chest, though, then go for English versions. There are also noticeable titles missing like Legacy of War, **** Soldier and Neo Contra. In spite of the quality of some of those games, it would have been nice to see them get included. Maybe in a second Anniversary Collection, I dunno. The default control settings are also incredibly awkward, and trying to figure out which buttons do what to activate cheat codes can be a huge pain. Once you get that settled and have a buddy to join you, though, it’s well worth it. These games are still fun and butt clenching to this very day. If you were ever thinking of getting into the series this is easily the most accessible way of playing these games on modern platforms.
You ever purchase a greatest hits compilation from a band or artist? A collection of some of the best songs written by an artist, not only as a way to bring back memories to long-time fans, but to also show people who have never heard of them a brief glimpse into their history and to give them an idea of what they are capable of. Now imagine that Greatest Hits release, but with remixed and remastered audio, and sometimes even re-recorded vocals, to help give it a refreshing, modernized sound. Changes like this don’t always work, but when put in the right hands and with enough passion and care put into, it can be something really special. Sonic Generations is like that remastered collection. Sonic Generations is broken up into two gameplay styles. We have Classic Sonic with the familiar 2D Genesis gameplay, and Modern Sonic with the established boost formula from Unleashed and Colors. You’ll be going through various stages presented throughout Sonic’s history, from Green Hill to Speed Highway to Planet Wisp. Classic Sonic is not 1-to-1 like the original Genesis titles, his weight and physics do feel off a bit, but he still works perfectly fine and you can used to his new physics pretty easily. Modern Sonic in this game is the best he’s ever been in this style. The control has received enough tweaks to make it more manageable compared to Unleashed and Colors. The level designs on both end are great, filled with different pathways and shortcuts to help you get the best time. This is most impressive with Modern Sonic as his levels are some of the most open-ended 3D levels in the series. The boss fights, while easy in some cases, are incredibly memorable and even major improvements from their original counterparts. The game looks fantastic and there are tons of great remixes of classic songs. For as short as the main story is, the game offers you plenty of additional content. Each area of the game contains side missions. While you’ll need to complete at least three per area to progress, everything else is just there to provide you with some variety. Some range from simple races, to more creative missions involving other Sonic characters like scavenger hunts or being aided by them to complete a level. Not all of the side missions are winners, though, as a few of them can be quite frustrating to beat, but given that they can be skipped it’s not a big deal. Completing side missions can also offer concept artwork or even music tracks that you can play in the stages themselves which is always a nice bonus. Same goes for the returning Star Rings from Sonic Colors which do the same thing. You can also purchase additional skills from Omochao’s item shop to give you an extra edge. Honestly, the real replay value comes from the fact that these levels are so fun to play through, the most fun I’ve had in a 3D Sonic game in a long time. This collection isn’t quite perfect though. It’s missing a few key components like fan-favorite songs and it kind of feels like they didn’t have the time to go far enough with certain details, either that or they only cared to do the bare minimum. The story for this game is easily the biggest missed opportunity. It had so much potential for character interactions, in-jokes and commentary on the series as a whole, but it is absolutely thread-bare in this game. I know that story isn’t what you would normally play a Sonic game for, but the extra effort would have been appreciated. The game could also have really benefited from additional levels as downloadable content. That’s not really too big of a deal though as the level selection is solid as is. This game is just a gigantic love letter to fans of the franchise, especially those that have been sticking with it since its inception. It’s not a perfect relationship, but when they get it right they absolutely nail it. This was the first game I ever pre-ordered, because I had that much confidence in the product and I was willing to pay Sega in advance for it. Still totally worth it.
The reaction to Sonic Unleashed is as polarizing as its gameplay gimmicks. What many saw as a step in the right direction just as many saw it as another garbage Sonic game. While I certainly can’t blame people for not enjoying the game, I happen to fall into the camp that does. The more I go back to play this game, the more things I find to appreciate. It ain’t flawless by any stretch, but I genuinely believe that Sonic Unleashed is a good game that doesn’t deserve nearly as much flack as it gets. Compared to the previous Sonic game released, Sonic 06, Unleashed’s story is considerably lighter in tone, while still treating its threats seriously. Eggman unleashes (heh) yet another ancient creature from its slumber. Sonic attempts to stop Eggman, he instead gets entrapped in a new machine that transforms sonic into this being known as a Werehog. Sonic gets thrown down to Earth and lands on this floating little creature he dubs Chip, who lost his memory thanks to the fall. Sonic decides to help Chip while also pursuing Eggman and stopping his latest schemes. In my personal opinion, Unleashed has the best attempt at a story out of any Sonic game. It’s not a convoluted nightmare like 06, but it’s not as silly as a game like Sonic Colors. It strikes a perfect balance, with likeable characters and genuinely solid voice acting and direction this time around. If there is one thing Unleashed absolutely nails is its presentation. To this day this is one of the best looking Sonic games out there. The model qualities look great, the new lighting engine works wonders and the environments are densely packed with colors and detail. It can come at the cost of sever frame drops, however, especially when lots of foliage is on screen. The art direction is also some of the best in the series, looking almost like a Pixar film. The human characters that normally clash with the Sonic characters now compliment them much better. To top it all off is an incredible orchestral score filled to the brim with a variety of musical styles. The game is broken up into two primary styles: Daytime stages as Sonic, and nighttime stages as the Werehog. This would be the first game to deliver Sonic Rush’s boost formula into 3D, and man can this game feel downright exhilarating. Blasting through these beautiful stages at blistering speeds is easily the best part of the game, even if Sonic himself can feel unwieldy at times (especially when you continue to upgrade him). Night stages are much slower, with a heavy emphasis on combat and platforming. The Werehog, while not bad, is just largely unnecessary. You can upgrade the Werehog’s attributes and give him more combos, but it doesn’t matter that much when the enemy selection is slim and the levels drag on forever. In between stages are hub areas which, thankfully, are nowhere is as intrusive as 06’s. The not only have hidden collectibles but they also have a couple of side missions to partake in. Speaking of which, your primary collectables are Sun and Moon medals. In order to access more stages, you’ll need to find a select number of them. While many do see these as a detriment, very rarely did I ever have to go back and replay stages for the sake of getting medals. I guess it also helps that I naturally want to explore the stages to begin with. Obviously, it’s more difficult to do so during the stages. In addition to the medals you’ll also find concept art and music tracks which are always a nice touch. So no, I don’t believe Unleashed is a bad game. In fact, it’s a pretty darn good one. The Werehog is bland and unnecessary, but the day stages and stellar presentation make up for the game’s shortcomings. I say it’s worth playing at least once.
It’s incredibly cliché nowadays to say that, “Sonic has had a rough history in 3D”. It’s certainly obvious, even to the most die-hard of Sonic fans. It’s not something that really bears repeating, but we do so anyway because for every high quality game that comes out, a Sonic Boom is sure to follow. It’s why it’s important that we savor and highlight the games that do work, to show that, yes, Sonic absolutely can work in 3D when given to the right people with the proper time and manpower. Sonic Colors was the game that Sega desperately needed to help clean up Sonic’s images. Sonic Unleashed, while a solid game in my opinion, was still bogged down elements that prevented it from being fully embraced. While Colors in hindsight can only loosely be called “3D”, that ultimately doesn’t matter. It was just a really good, fun Sonic game. That’s all we can ever ask for. After the past couple of games’ emphasis on storytelling, Sonic Colors takes things back considerably. Eggman builds a giant amusement park in space as an apology for all his evil-doing, but Sonic and Tails don’t buy that at all and decided to check it out themselves. Sure enough, Eggman is using these cute little alien creatures called the Wisps to power up his latest schemes. Colors’ story is incredibly simple, light-hearted, and a bit too childish at points. A lot of the jokes are downright groan-worthy, but there have been several occasions where it managed to get a good laugh. This would also be one of the first games to introduce a new voice cast, namely Roger Craig Smith as Sonic. While jarring at first after hearing Jason Griffith for so long, I think he suits the role well. The voice acting across the board is solid from each character, and are able to make the most out of the material given to them. The real meat of Sonic Colors is in its gameplay. It takes the core concept of the Unleashed Daytime Stages and makes it into an entire game. It’s not as blisteringly fast as that game, however, and instead focuses more on raw platforming. The 3D sections of this game are rather underwhelming as much of the time you are going forward in a straight fashion and not much else (it’s what I gave Sonic Forces crap for). Instead, the game heavily focuses on 2D platforming, and while the level designs feel rather rudimentary compared to other 2D Sonic games, it still provides a very heavy emphasis on exploration that make them fun to go through. That exploration comes in the form of the Wisps. They are essentially power-ups that provide you with a different ability, like turning into a drill, shooting upwards as a rocket or devouring everything in your path. The Wisps are honestly some of the best parts of the game, as unlocking more of them allows you to further explore previous stages to nab extra collectables, including Red Star Rings that unlock bonus stages to complete. I think that Sonic Colors’ biggest accomplishment, however, lies in its presentation. The game looks outstanding for the Wii, with lots of bright colors and uniquely themed words to traverse through. The worlds being so fun in their designs and looks are the primary reason why I can forgive how simple a lot of the core gameplay is. There is just much detail and fun little touches like Eggman’s Egg Pawn robots dressing up based on the theme of the level, or Eggman’s hilarious intercom interjections, or the positively outstanding soundtrack. No joke, Colors has one of the soundtracks in the franchise. Top 10, easily. While Sonic Colors has lost a bit of its luster since its initial release, it doesn’t take away the fact that I still think it’s a solid romp to blast through. The platforming is not particularly special, but the worlds, music and visual flare more than make up for the game’s shortcomings. It goes without saying that this is certainly one of the better 3D Sonic games you can play.
Sequels are a great opportunity to improve and expand upon what worked with the original game. Some of them offer rather subtle improvements, and others are Super Smash Bros. Melee. It’s remarkable how Masahiro Sakurai and his team at HAL Laboratories were able to make such a massive leap forward from the original to this one, and in such a short period of time at that. Melee was the reason for people to grab a GameCube, and it became the highest selling game for the console at over 7 Million units. In every single facet is this game an improvement from the original. The fighting mechanics, the visuals, the content. Melee’s got it all and then some. There’s a good reason why people still fondly look back on Melee and still play it to this very day. Melee’s presentation is the most obvious upgrade. It’s amazing how in just two short years the N64 original can look so dated in comparison. The character models look great, there are lots of neat little environmental details, and it all runs at a pristine 60 FPS with no hiccups. The game also supports a fantastic soundtrack full of great remixes and original compositions that remain staples to the series to this day. Sure, there are dated aspects to the character models and some parts of the game look kind of gross, but those are very minor issues compared to how much care went into this game. More importantly, though, gameplay has been upgraded considerably. It’s functionally the same as the original, where you pick a Nintendo icon and duke it out using a few buttons to pull off different maneuvers and knock opponents off the screen. The fighting feels much faster and smoother, demanding better responses from players. It’s a much more hectic experience, and in multiplayer it’s an absolute blast. Out of the entire Smash Bros. line-up, Melee is the most difficult to master. This is a much more competitive Smash Bros., and tournament players have been able to pull off many crazy exploits that even the developers never intended. The Character roster has more than doubled, ranging from weird, unexpected choices like Ice Climbers and Mr. Game and Watch, to characters that had been considered for the first game but couldn’t for various reasons like Bowser and Peach. It’s a really solid roster, even **** chunk of them are clones. Some also have pretty steep requirements just for you to obtain (Mewtwo), but half of the fun was being surprised by an approaching challenger and battling them in order to add them to the roster. Melee offers a wealth of content for you to soak in. For starters, there are more single player options. We have the returning classic mode, but this time the character battles are randomized to keep things fresh. There’s the ever popular Adventure Mode where you run through different stages based on various Nintendo properties. While the “adventure” concept of this mode teeters off halfway through, it’s still a fun, novel concept that really should be explored again in the future. We have the returning Break the Targets mini-game where each character has their own custom target stages that fully utilize their abilities. There’s Event Mode where you have different themed challenges to take on. All Star Mode pits you against every character in the game with limited health items. Melee also introduces the concept of trophies that you can collect from the different game modes or purchase with the coins you earn. Of course, multiplayer is back with a vengeance. Smash has always been best with friends and this is some of the best multiplayer action on the GameCube. There are more varieties of game modes to choose from like Coin Battles, Tiny Melee, Sudden Death, Stamina, a full fledge tournament mode. You name it. In case it wasn’t obvious, Melee is positively bursting with content, and is the kind of game that is meant to be played for years on end, not just because of all the things you can unlock, but because of how timeless and fun the core structure of the game is. Super Smash Bros. Melee is not just a great fighting/party game, but it’s just one of my favorites period. Even with other Smash Bros. games that come along it is still worth dusting off from time to time.
Yoshi’s Story is what happens when you take a bunch of candy and mold it into a video game. It’s sweet, colorful and gives you diabetes just looking at it. Originally, Yoshi’s Story was meant to be a continuation of the Yoshi’s Island formula and instead evolved into a game more centered on exploration and ease of play. There’s no time limit to complete a stage, no baby Mario to protect and not too much by the way of collectibles for completion. In some cases, this would be considered a detriment, but in this case I think it works. Yoshi’s Story is clearly aimed at a much younger demographic, but at the same time the game doesn’t insult their intelligence. The game is very simple, but there’s enough little nuances to make it a worthwhile Yoshi game. The premise is basic. Baby Bowser is a d***, steals the Yoshi’s happy tree, and now a handful of them have to get it back. There are six worlds to traverse through with four stages within them to choose from. Each stage has a number signifying their difficulty. Your goal in every stage is collect 30 pieces of fruit. Nothing more to it. If you just collect the first 30 fruit that you set your adorable little eyes on, a single playthrough would take you less than an hour. It’s incredibly basic at its core, making it easy for kids to pick up and just start playing, but there is more to it than that. The Yoshis themselves, for example, are color coded. Their color tells you what kind of fruit they prefer. If it’s a purple Yoshi, they prefer ****, yellow Yoshi likes bananas, etc. Having the Yoshis eat their favorite fruit not only has more health value, but it also earns you a higher score. However, the biggest challenge you can attempt in this game is to grab 30 Melons. Melons are universally loved by Yoshis, and they will give you the best score by the end. They are certainly much trickier to get, and some can only be obtained on a single go so if you are up for some exploration, try to nab them in each stage. The game can be as simple or as challenging as you want it to be. However, there are also a few boss battles sprinkled in, but they are very inconsequential and probably the most insultingly easy part of the game. Exploration is the biggest factor to Yoshi’s Story in place of raw platforming, and it’s certainly the most rewarding part of the game. You are not only on the hunt for those elusive melons, but there are a few other collectables to keep an eye out on. In each stage are two special hearts. You’ll need to collect these in order to unlock new stages in the game. There are also two hidden eggs in the game, a black egg and a white egg. Finishing the stage with them unlock both the black and white Yoshi, both of which love all fruit varieties. Even if there isn’t as much focus on platforming this time around, it’s still fun to explore these stages simply due to the game feel and the adorable aesthetics. The Yoshis control beautifully and the game’s visuals have held up incredibly well. It’s super bright and colorful, and I really dig the storybook concept they were going for. The music is surprisingly solid, using the general main theme of the game as a leitmotif for the soundtrack, remixing it into various musical styles. So no, Yoshi’s Story isn’t going to be for everyone, and if you were a big fan of Yoshi’s Island you may be disappointed. Personally, I think it’s a really solid kids game that does offers just enough substance to make it a worthwhile playthrough.
The original Sonic Adventure was the highest selling game on the Sega Dreamcast. It made for not only a strong first impression of the console, but successfully launched Sonic back into the spotlight after being largely gone from the 5th Generation. While it was unfortunate that the Dreamcast didn’t last long, at the very least it was able to go out with one last big Sonic game. Sonic Adventure 2 was a strong finish for the Dreamcast, as well as a good way to celebrate the franchise’s 10th anniversary. Close to 20 years after its initial release, however, has certainly showed off more and more of the game’s flaws much like SA1. In spite of that, though, it remains one of the most popular games in the franchise, and one that is still worth looking into. SA2 goes much deeper into its storytelling compared to SA1. Sonic has been framed for a crime he didn’t commit, all thanks to the new hedgehog in town Shadow, who has teamed up with Eggman and jewel thief Rouge the Bat to take over the world and, in Shadow’s case, get revenge on humanity. So it’s up to Sonic and friends to save the day. While I certainly applaud SA2 for striving towards a more ambitious story, the general storytelling itself is very clumsy, often mistranslated and filled with many holes and inconsistencies. The general presentation has definitely improved from last time, though, with actual cutscene choreography and more expressive performances. This would also be the first game to utilize motion capture, and while it’s certainly primitive it is a welcomed change from SA1’s canned animations. Visually the game looks great and the soundtrack once again delivers, this time using stage themes that reflect the character rather than the environment. SA2 is structured similarly to SA1, where you get to play as multiple characters each with their own gimmicks. Compared to SA1, though, the number of gameplay style has reduced to just three: High-speed platforming with Sonic and Shadow, Mech shooting with Tails and Eggman, and Treasure Hunting with Knuckles and Rouge. This, along with the lack of hub worlds, make this a more focused game compared to SA1, but it’s not without its faults. The Speed stages are easily the best parts of the game, but they feel significantly more straightforward and flat compared to how dynamic stages were previously. The mech stages are much clunkier and more frustrating than Gamma’s, with Tails’ stages being the worst offender. The treasure hunting stages, however, are the worst parts of the game. It greatly reduces the usefulness of the radar system and makes many of the late game stages unnecessarily large and spacious, making it an absolute chore to complete. While mech and treasure hunting stages certainly have their moments, I can really only fully enjoy about 1/5th of the overall experience. The chao garden makes a triumphant return from the original, and it’s been greatly expanded upon with the use of animals and chaos drives to increase your chao’s stats and physical characteristics, raising them to partake in mini games like races or karate matches. Unless you know how to exploit it, it’s easily the most time consuming, grinding part of the game. If that doesn’t appeal to you, you’re better off skipping it. The game also brings back emblems for you to earn which unlock Green Hill Zone when you collect them all. Much like SA1, this game is a very mixed bag. It’s able to make much needed improvements from the original, while simultaneously creating new ones. I’d say I enjoyed this game about as much as I did SA1, but I still prefer SA1 overall. It’s still one of the better 3D Sonic titles out there, and I would say get the updated re-releases instead.
It's the mid-90s. Sonic is not really in the greatest position at that moment. The Sega Saturn was failing and Sonic himself was starting to wane in popularity. Sega had to do something to not only win back their fans, but also revitilize Sonic's brand. After a couple of unsuccessful attempts at bringing Sonic into 3D, they were finally able to realize that goal with the release of Sonic Adventure on the Dreamcast. While Sonic wasn't enough to save the ill-fated system, both SA and SA2 helped to make people interested in the series again. That upturn in popularity would continue to rise once both Sonic Adventure games released on the Nintendo Gamecube, exposing Sonic to a whole new audience. While Sonic Adventure hasn't aged gracefully, it still lives on fondly in people's memories and, personally, it still holds some merit. Eggman is once again up to no good, this time summoning an ancient water god to lay waste to the city of Station Square. It's up to Sonic and Co. to put a stop to them...well, more accurately Sonic and Tails are going to. We have other characters in the story, but they go off and do their own thing and only occasionally clash with Eggman. Knuckles needs to rebuild his Master Emerald, Amy is protecting a bird, e-102 Gamma defects from Eggman's army and Big the Cat is just there. The storytelling is basic and to the point for each character, but most of them have no real significance to the overall narrative (no matter how much the game tries to give them significance). What doesn't help is the game's abysmal cutscene presentation. There canned animations galore, rough, basic camera work and the voice acting is sub-par at best and horribly misdirected at worst, coupled with terrible, awkward lip syncing. The general visual presentation is just fine, at least. The Gamecube version sports hire polygon models and a more vibrant color pallet, but I will say the original had better lighting. One thing that has aged well, though, is it's varied, phenomenal soundtrack (namely the stage themes). Gameplay is broken up into six different styles. Sonic is high speed platforming as you know it, but now sporting a few new moves that would become staples of the franchise like the light speed dash and homing attack. Tails has more abridged versions of Sonic's stages where you get to race against him. Knuckles goes on treasure hunts to find three Master Emerald pieces in each stage. Amy has slower, puzzle-focused platforming stages, uses a hammer for attack and maneuverability, and is constantly chased by this robot named Zero who is after her bird friend. Gamma is more arcade-like, having you shoot enemies in chains to gain combos and add to your ever decreasing time. Big the Cat is...fishing. Not very good fishing at that. There's an impressive variety of gameplay to choose from, but whether or not any of that works is up to your preference and what you consider appropriate for a Sonic game. Sonic's levels are easily the best part of the game, with silky smooth movements and explorative, fun level designs. Tails' stages, while shorter, still offer a sense of urgency due to the fact that you are racing somebody (though the AI can rubberband like nobody's business), so you'll need to utilize his flight abilities. Knuckles' treasure hunting is at least tolerable and a majority of stages don't overstay their welcome. Amy is ultimately uninteresting despite the threat of Zero constantly being on your tail. Gamma's arcade gameplay does make him fun compared to most of the other characters, making his stages good for replayability and building a higher score. Big is notorious for a reason, with pretty much everything to do with his dull, uninteresting fishing (thankfully his story is mercifully short). There's plenty more to do outside of the main story. There's the chao garden which lets you raise these adorable tear-drop creatures and have them compete in events. There are also emblems to earn in both the stages and in the hub worlds, and new to DX are missions within the hub-world and unlockable Game Gear titles. There's a decent amount of content on offer, but Sonic Adventure overall is very mixed. It's presentation is terrible and some of the gamplay variety disappoints, but I still had fun with it, and it's worth experiencing the game to see the early developments of Sonic in 3D, or, at the very least, for that sweet soundtrack.
You won't find a more anticipated remake in recent memory quite like Final Fantasy VII. The pressure of remaking such a beloved classic all the while still meeting fan expectations is daunting, to put it lightly. FF7's reputation precedes even the game itself, being one of the pioneers that put JRPGs on the map in the West, and making the series a household name. Ever since the PS3 Tech demo people were asking the same thing, "Where's the FF7 Remake?". 13 years later, they finally delivered...well, part of it at least. Even though the game only covers up to the first two hours of the original FF7, they somehow managed to stretch it out to a full 40+ hour experience. Did Square Enix succeed in their efforts? For my money, I'd certainly think so. The two most controversial changes that Square made to FF7 was in its story and combat. While the story follows many of the same beats as the original, certain sequences are told out of order, future plot details are given away early, and new story elements were added either to flesh out characters or turn things over its head. Some of the changes I felt were for the better, while others are definitely questionable (especially in regards to the endgame), and a lot of the new additions really helped to flesh out the characters more, especially ones we never got a chance to really get to know in the original. The main party characters like Cloud, Barrett, Tifa and Aerith are all wonderfully characterized in this game, and each are given many stand-out, hilarious and heartfelt moments. Combat is the other huge change. It's no longer traditional Active Turn-Based, but it's not straight up Kingdom Hearts like many feared. It's kind of a hybrid between the two. You'll use two attack buttons to build up your ATB meter, and then you can either slow time to a crawl to plan out actions or set actions to command shortcuts. The combat itself is fast-paced and satisfying. Each of the characters has their own unique playstyle, and you'll need to utilize their different quirks in order to successfully take down enemies. Party AI on their own won't do that much, so you'll need switch it up. Some will call it a detriment, I say it keeps things far more fresh and interesting. The materia system is still intact, with some additional upgrades you can make to all of your equipment to really maximize your potential. It also goes without saying that the game looks positively gorgeous, and FF7's already phenomenal soundtrack is given a great modern facelift. A majority of the boss fights are an absolute treat. Their climactic, challenging, and often towering foes that really test your abilities. The game is certainly not without its faults. Most of the sidequests offered throughout the game are, frankly, uninteresting. Most of them tend to boil down to, "find the thing, then another thing, and then come back". I ended up doing these side quests not because I wanted to, but because I knew I'd be at a disadvantage if I didn't. To be fair, things start to get a bit more interesting once you hit The Wall Market. Another issue would be the general dungeon length. I'd say the top of Sector plate onwards is when they start to seriously drag on. On more than one occasion I had to ask myself, "When is this gonna end?". Also, for as beautiful as the game is, there are still some gross parts like certain objects not loading textures properly or some the skylines being obvious 2-D images. I also mentioned how some of the later plot details and changes can be considered questionable and controversial. It all depends on how open you are to these changes and accepting the fact that this isn't going to be the same story as the original. FF7R is not substitute for the original, nor would I say it's outright better. It's simply another version the cozily sits along side the original and is there for those who want to be given a brand new experience, rather than just a simple retread. Personally, that is the mark of a really good remake. If you are not a fan of what FF7R has to offer, you still have the original to fall back on no problem. If you have yet to experience FF7 for what ever reason, I'd say go ahead and play both. They are both great games for different reasons, and which one you want to start with is up to you.
For many people my age, our experience with classic games stemed from compilation discs on modern systems. It was the most convenient way to either experience these games for the first time or to relive old memories. Often these collections were just packed with a lot of love and attention to detail that tells you that they cared about these games and they want to give you the very best impression possible. Sonic Mega Collection, originally released for the GameCube, was a prime example. Everything from the menus to the extras to even the music just filled your body with immense amounts of nostalgia, even if you have never grown up with a Sega Genesis. Mega Collection Plus on the PS2 here is largely the same as its GameCube counterpart, but with a few extra bells and wistles. This was the collection I grew up with, and one I have many fond memories of. I never had a Genesis growing up, but I was a huge fan of Sonic thanks to the cartoons and Sonic Adventure on the Dreamcast, so this would be my first time playing many of these games. The game selection itself is impressive. Pretty much every major Sonic game is available along with a few other obscure Genesis titles, and the emulation for each of the games is solid for the most part. Though not every game is a banger, it's just fun to browse through each one and see what they're all about. The only real detriment to this collection is the omission of certain titles like Sonic CD or Sonic R (both of which got reased in their own seperate collection). Like the original release you can also find all of the original manuals to these games, various covers to Archie's Sonic the Hedgehog comics and a WIP animatic to the then up and coming Sonic Heroes. If you have yet to experience the original classic Sonic games, or are looking to scratch your 90s nostalgic itch, Mega Collection Plus is absolutely a must have.
The PS2 series of Ace Combat games are often seen as the crown jewel of the entire franchise. Whether you prefer **** Skies, The Unsung War or the Belkan War, there was no real wrong answer. If people really had to choose, I often hear AC5 as their preferred choice, and it's absolutely understandable why. Ace Combat 5 was able to move the series forward in a lot of different ways, from storytelling to mission variety. While I still hold nostalgic value for AC04, AC5 is still a more than worthy addition. The game takes place in the fictional setting of Strangereal in the year 2010. The country of Yuktobonia has just declared war on the Osea Federation, and it's up to you and your ragtag team of wingmen to put a stop to it all. While having knowledge of a few AC games is helpful, The Unsung War works just fine as a stand-alone narrative with likable characters and an interesting narrative with some genuine surprises thrown in, as well as the usual AC staples. It is certainly much more story heavy compared to AC04, with moments of character development and much more personal stakes compared to previous games. The game also looks just as great as AC04 and the soundtrack is once again brilliant. Like previous games, the game is an arcade-style flight sim where you tackle a variety of missions ranging from destroying all indicated targets, to reconnaissance, to defeating large-scale machines. AC5 offers a lot more mission variety compared to its predecessor, which is perfect for those who would feel the previous games got too repetitive. Controls are once again silky smooth and, in fact, feel much more refined. You can also give basic command to your teammates, like having them cover you, spreading out and doing whatever they wish or being directed toward a specific target. The AI is surprisingly effective, able to help you take down enemy aircraft without weakened firepower. There's a solid variety of aircraft to choose from, and you'll need to pick and choose the best ones for you and your team to get the job done. Sadly, like in previous games, there are no mid-level check points, so if you die just before the end of a long mission, you're gonna have to start all over. As I've said, I still have more of an affinity to AC04 just simply on the basis of nostalgia, but there is no denying that AC5 is a fantastic game, and an absolute must-play for those getting into the series or those just looking for a fun arcade flight game with an engrossing story to accompany it.
One of the biggest contributors to the success of the PS2 was its stellar line-up of high quality games. That level of quality began very early on in the PS2's life, many of which were hotly anticipated sequels to games released back on the PS1. Games like Ace Combat 4, Metal Gear Solid 2, Gran Turismo 3 and, of course, Silent Hill 2. SH2 is often regarded as one the greatest games on the system, one of the best horror games of all time and is considered the fan favorite in the Silent Hill series, and I certainly second that emotion. SH2 does what all good sequels mean to accomplish: keep what made the original great while also expanding upon it and even fixing issues that the original may have. Silent Hill 2 was the first in the series to introduce the concept of Silent Hill as not just a town, but a mood. To have characters get drawn into this world based upon the personal demons of the people that enter it, and each one who does has a different experience. The story centers around James Sunderland, an everyday guy who travels to the desolate resort town in search of his wife. The problem, though, is that his wife has been dead for some time, but only just now was James given a letter written by her. So, James decides to go and get some answers. The game's story is incredibly dark, dealing with plenty of disturbing and mature themes, meeting characters that have their own issues and demons. Each of the monsters in the game is even specifically designed in a symbolic way that you wouldn't immediately get on a first playthrough. What makes the story particularly effective is the general uncanniness of the performances. Objectively, a lot of the voice acting would be considered bad, but in context of the surreal environment it helps add to the tone and atmosphere. Speaking of which, this game has a positively stellar presentation. The lighting and griminess of the game is pitch perfect, and it still stands as one of the best looking games on the system. On top of it all is its great sound design and stellar soundtrack. Like the first game, SH2 is a survival-horror game where you explore different environments, collecting key items, solving puzzles and fending off different creatures. It's structured like a Resident Evil game, but with much less emphasis on combat and more on puzzle solving. The combat was certainly never the series' strong suit. It's incredibly clunky and there's not much reward in defeating them besides getting them out of the way. Of course, James isn't a trained operative so he's not gonna have much combat prowess. Luckily, it's pretty easy to avoid most encounters, and if you are pretty explorative you'll find more than enough ammo and health pick ups. One of the best features of this game is that it has separate difficulty levels for both puzzles and combat, so the game can be as straight forward or obtuse as you'd like it to be. There are also multiple endings that you can obtain by meeting certain requirements on subsequent playthroughs that range from depressing to hilarious. SH2 is perhaps the definitive horror experience for the PS2. It's regarded as a classic for good reason. If you want to get into the series, you start here. A must have for horror buffs.
Heavy Rain is undoubtedly the game that David Cage is most famous for, for better or for worse. It takes many of the elements that defined Indigo Prophecy and makes very noticeable improvements for sure. It beefed up it's production values, carried a more grounded story and had real meaningful consequences. In every way it is a far better game than **** that doesn't mean it doesn't have its stupid moments. Heavy Rain is deeply flawed, but I think it is legitimately enjoyable and well worth playing at least once. Hell, fist time I played the game I finished it all in a single sitting. It was that engaging. The game follows multiple protagonist out on the hunt for the infamous Origami Killer, A serial killer that steals sons from their parents and drowns them in rain water. We have Ethan Mars, the unluckiest dad in the world, Madison Page, a reporter, Scott Shelby, the old school Private Eye, and Norman Jayden, the high tech FBI agent. Out of each of the characters, Norman and Scott were easily my favorites. Norman for how much of a smart ass he can be, and Scott for being gruff, yet having a bit of a soft spot. Hell, I think Scott has the most well defined character arc in the entire game, and even has the best attempt at a romance in any of Cage's work up to this point. Ethan is a sympathetic character for many reasons, but often flaccid in personality. Madison, though, contributes very little to the story outside of being a love interest for Ethan. You can honestly remove her all together and not much would really change. As I've mentioned, the game is not without its dumb moments or, worse, continuity errors and plot holes, but on the whole I found this game's story to be far more engaging for more of the right reasons than, say, Indigo Prophecy. There were genuine moments of intrigue, mystery, and even a few heartfelt moments sprinkled in. Far from perfect, but worth playing to completion. It's presentation, while certainly cutting-edge for its time, has aged considerably. Much of that age comes from the characters and how heavily they hit the uncanny valley. Often the facial expressions don't accurately portray the emotions that they are trying to go for and just look down right strange. The voice acting doesn't help matter either. Most of the cast consists of French actors trying to speak English, and hoo boy is it easy to tell. It can range from relatively solid to just downright laughable. Some characters like Ethan and Norman pull it off a bit better than others. Like much of Cage's work, your enjoyment is going to be determined by how much you can tolerate its gameplay. The controls take a lot of getting used to. Rather than traditional analog control, you move characters by holding down the R2 button like they're a vehicle and then influence their direction. Otherwise, you will simply just move their heads to look around the environment for contextual items. It's very unconventional, but you'll get used to it pretty quickly. Like in IP, you will engage in QTEs, but instead of Simon Says you will be activating button prompts, analog movements and motion control movements. It's a hell of a lot more engaging than IP, and not only that but many of them have a very strong risk of your characters dying permanently. There are no game overs. It simply continues from there. That's one of the best parts of the game. How well you perform, how much you explore the environments and what choices you make throughout the game actually hold real consequences that can greatly change the outcome (though some choices are more significant than others). It makes for some tough decision making and the action sequences have more weight to them, making for some truly tense moments. That's one of the reasons why you get so invested with your favorite characters. You don't want them to die, so you are going to try your damndest to make sure they live. Heavy Rain is one of the best examples of something that is jank, yet enjoyable. I seem to gravitate towards these types of games the most. The ones that have a laundry list of flaws, yet that doesn't matter since I'm having fun with it. If you haven't played any of David Cage's work up to this point...well, I'd say go play Detroit first, and then come to this. It's one of the most memorable games in his repertoire for a reason.
Metroid for the NES was a game that was incredibly immersive, dark, moody and innovative for its time, but very quickly time revealed its limitations and dated mechanics. It made the original a prime target for a full-blown remake, one that would adopt the modern sensibilities of games like Super Metroid and Metroid Fusion. That's exactly what Zero Mission is. It's basically this hybrid of the best elements from both of those games to make the definitive Metroid 1 experience. The most obvious upgrade would be in its presentation as it uses the same stellar engine from Metroid Fusion. The sprite quality and animations are superb, the color pallet is vibrant, and each of the environments now have a distinct look to them, making it far easier to discern where you are (and that's not even counting the solid map feature introduced in SM). While the GBA soundcard was never the greatest, there are still some great remixes of classic music and original ambient pieces that build on the isolating, dangerous atmosphere the game tries to convey. Not to mention some really great, crunchy sound effects that make it so satisfying to lay waste to the dangerous inhabitants of Planet Zebes. The game also sprinkles in a few cutscenes and even offers an exclusive new area that adds additional content to the Metroid 1 experience. Speaking of which, core gameplay is easily the best change made to the game. Samus controls just as fluidly as she did in Metroid Fusion, able to shoot in multiple directions and have more control over her jumps. Despite the smaller screen size the game is still able to give you a good enough look at your surroundings, ensuring that you aren't ambushed off-screen. As mentioned previously the game also carries over the map system from previous titles, making for much smoother exploration compared to the original. Map system also gives you a general idea of what your next major destination will be, but how you get there is up to you to figure out. It's not nearly as linear as a game like Metroid Fusion, but still gives you a good enough idea on where to go next while offering the same great sense of exploration from Super Metroid. You'll be collecting a variety of power ups which you'll use to explore deeper into the planet, some even coming from later games. Half the fun of Metroid games comes from just that feeling of discovery. The game is incredibly short for a Metroid title, too, which may be a detriment for some but makes it perfect for being a handheld experience. If there are any complaints to be levied against this game it would be that the it's pretty easy and the new exclusive area isn't too much fun to go through, but that's really minor in the grand scheme of things. Between the two GBA Metroid titles, this is easily my favorite one. Metroid Fusion is excellent, and I love that game for different reasons, but when it comes to a pure Metroid experience, Zero Mission scratches that itch a bit more. It's obviously a must for Metroid fans and those that are into the Metroid-Vania style of gameplay.
Greek Mythology has always been the perfect backdrop for video games. Going on epic quests, fighting loads of monsters, exploring vast backdrops and admiring the ancient architecture or being sexually attracted to anything and everything. While God of War was far from the first successful game based on Greek Myths, it no doubt popularized it for the modern age along with its core gameplay as it spawned countless imitators of both ends. It was brutal, it was grand in scope and scale and it was just an all around fun game. Now, 15 years after this game's initial release, it's certainly not the masterpiece it was once considered, but damn if it isn't still a blast. You are Kratos, a man on a quest to defeat Ares, the titular God of War. He's doing it not only to stop Ares' murderous rampage on the city of Athens, but primarily for the sake of redemption after being tricked into murdering his own wife and child. Kratos is not the most likable character out there, but I don't think we were necessarily meant to. He's compelling, and that's what's most important in the case of an anti-hero. He has very understandable motivations and for what he's doing and even if he's kind of an ****, I ultimately wanted to see him succeed. It's a basic, but very effective narrative that helps compel players to keep playing, and with some solid voice performances as well. Of course, the real meat of the game is what really makes GOW worth playing. The game is a hack-and-slash action/adventure where you kill everything in sight, find treasure and solve the occasional puzzle. The core combat is very simple on the surface, and early on it can feel rather "button-mashy", but as you continue to upgrade and find new weapons your move pool greatly expands, allowing for more engaging combat. You'll be faced with a solid variety of enemies throughout your journey, each requiring different methods of defeating, from Harryhausen-inspired skeleton soldiers, to gorgons and cyclops. It also helps that combat just feels so satisfying to do thanks to some tight controls, and the action is amplified further by an incredible soundtrack. This game was also one of the pioneers of utilizing Quick Time Events to perform special finishers in a very cinematic way, and while they can feel intrusive and unnecessary in other games of this style, I cut it some slack here as it is fun and rewarding to pull off. One of the more disappointing aspects of the game is the lack of boss fights as there are only three in the whole game, but these few fights are nonetheless entertaining. If there is one consistent issue I have with GOW it would be its pacing. There aren't very many locations that we go through in the game, and the one that absolutely overstays its welcome is Pandora's Temple. I love a lot about this temple, but Christ after a few hours I kept asking, "when is this gonna end?", whether it's because of frustrating puzzle elements or being stuck in the same environment for so long. There are also frustrating mechanics like walking steadily over wooden beams, or sections that have you climb rotating towers of spikes that force you all the way back down if one so much as **** your ankles. The game also lacks a manual camera system, and for the most part it works perfectly fine, but there can be moments where I can be overwhelmed with enemies or I'll have something shooting at me from off-screen that I won't notice until I get to its position. Despite those moments of frustration, I still like going back to this game on occasion. I'll certainly say that the sequels are much better in design and core gameplay, but I still feel there is merit to be had in the original GOW, and it's easy to see why it was such a big deal back when it released on the PS2. It's worth owning for your PS2 collection and also if you're just looking for a bloody good time.
I seriously question why it took me this long to finally finish playing Resident Evil 4. I have certainly known about the game pretty much since its initial run and I have attempted to play it multiple times, but for whatever reason I just now decided to hunker down and finish it. Better late than never, and I'm glad I did. It can be easy to go into a game like this thinking, "Oh, it can't be THAT good", because like, say, Ocarina of Time, everybody and their distant uncle has sung this game's praises over the moon for over 15 years, but no. RE4 really is an amazing achievement in modern gaming, and one whose influence is still clearly felt to this very day. Rookie cop turned government agent Leon S. Kennedy has been tasked with traveling to a remote European village in search of the President's missing daughter Ashley Graham. Immediately upon arrival, however, he is greeted by a hoard of blood-thirsty villagers, infected by a parasite known as Las Plagas. Now, in addition to rescuing Ashley, he'll need to put a stop to this virus and the people responsible for releasing it. If you thought that Resident Evil stories were campy and over-the-top before, RE4 full-out embraces its cheese. It is an incredibly dumb plot with lots of illogical, death-defying moments and cartoonish villains that, really, you can't help but enjoy. Even as schlock, there was a lot of love that went into making this work as evident by the solid, campy voice acting. The creators are fully aware of this, and thus you can appreciate this game for what it is. If you were ever worried about walking into this game without any prior RE experience, continuity isn't too big of an issue here and instead works well as a stand-alone horror action game. Speaking of action, this was one of the biggest changes made to RE's formula. The series had been leaning into this direction as early as RE2, but RE4 is the game that went full ham on the concept. While not the first game to utilize an over-the-shoulder 3rd Person perspective, this was the game that made it the standard. Structurally, it still is classic RE at its core. You still have tank controls, you explore the environment for items and ammo, solve the occasional puzzle and defeat a boss every so often. However, whereas you were encouraged to avoid enemies when necessary (and you are still encouraged to conserve ammo), RE4 wants you to obliterate everything and everyone. Most enemies you defeat drop valuable loot, like gold coins to purchase new weapons from the local merchant, ammo and other item pick-ups, and RE4's combat is immensely satisfying because of it. That, and it's always fun to stun your enemies, run up to them and give them a good old roundhouse kick to the face, and then follow up with slashes from your knife. You'll be squaring off against a good variety of enemies, from simple farmers, to machine gun-toting infected soldiers to whatever parasitic monstrosity you come across. While the bosses have a lot of spectacle, most are very simple to take down (and that's without using a rocket launcher on them). You'll be offered a wide variety of potent weapons that you can upgrade and just go to town with, and half of the fun was just seeing what new weapons will be available for you to try out. Once you are done with the main campaign there is still plenty more to do, like a couple of extra campaign modes and the Mercenaries mini-game. It would be an outright lie to say RE4 lacks value and content. While RE4 was certainly the most linear game in the series up to this point, exploration is still a key component. You'll be scavenging for not only ammo and healing items, but also for rare treasures to sell. Plus, it's just worth exploring just for the game's atmosphere. While not as handsome as the GameCube version, the PS2 version visually is no slouch. Puzzle solving, on the other hand, takes a massive backseat in favor of its action. If there are any real criticisms I have against this game, it would be the lax use of puzzles and the rather dated QTEs, but these are really minor marks against the game. The only other thing I can say about this game is that it really is as great as everyone says, and its no wonder this has been ported to darn near everything you can think of. This is an easy recommendation to anybody wanting to get into the series, and just for horror buffs and action junkies in general.
While Ace Combat 3 introduced features that would set the standards for the rest of the AC series, AC4 was the big game-changer. This was the series' big Sixth Generation debut, launching shortly after the release of the PS2, while also adding a few touch-ups. Not only was this my first AC game, It was one of the first games I ever played on the **** I was absolutely miserable at it. My closest experience with flight games up to that point was Star Fox 64, but that game certainly didn't require the level of skill and precision needed for Ace Combat, so sadly I wasn't able to fully appreciate it as a kid. When I got older, however, and decided it to give it another go, I immediately fell in love with the game, and it helped to kick-start my love for the series. While the series started providing a heavier emphasis on story back in AC3 (at least in the Japanese version), one of the biggest additions in AC4 was the creation of it's own alternate universe called Strangereal, a setting which would become the basis for future games in the series. The story is told from the perspective of a man recounting the days of a devastating war he gets caught up in, and reacting to not only the enemy forces (the Eruseans) that occupy his city, but also the actions and consequences caused by you, the player. It's a very well-told and interesting story, with characters that aren't just blatantly evil. Hell, the narrator even hangs out and befriends a few of the opposing forces. One of the enemy ace pilots in the game, codenamed Yellow 13, has a real sense of honor to him. He's not interested in showing off his incredible kill count or trying to impress anyone. He's just doing his job. He prides himself on never losing a wingman, and yearns to face an opponent in battle that is worth a damn (a.k.a you). As the up and coming pilot Mobius 1, you'll need to push back against the Erusean forces and basically save the world by the end of it. The core gameplay of AC4 is fundamentally the same as previous entries. It's an arcade-style flight sim where you pick your aircraft, set to the skies and complete the objectives of the given mission, whether it be destroying all primary targets or getting a high enough score before time runs out. For each scenario, you'll need to pick and choose which aircraft is right for the job. AC3 was the first in the series to make full 3D analog movement the standard, and that same great feeling of control is improved here thanks to the game running at a buttery smooth framerate. Regardless of what you choose, each of the planes feel immensely satisfying to control. One of the most rewarding parts about the game is just being able to master the levels; pulling off all kinds of advanced techniques and maneuvers to become a real ace of the skies. Of course, the biggest difference between this game and the previous three is its jump in visuals. The game looks absolutely gorgeous for its time, and even as an early release on the system, it's one of the best looking PS2 games around. Holding up just as well is it's stellar sound design. The roaring howls of jet engines, the crashing explosions caused by a missile, the authentic voice chatter, and the phenomenal soundtrack all help to make playing through this game even more satisfying. That isn't to say it doesn't have a couple of blemishes. The biggest issue being this game's lack of check points. This isn't so much of a problem for levels where the only requirement is to destroy all primary targets (the final mission being an exception), but when you get to score attack missions that can last nearly half an hour that can be frustrating. You can be at the very tail end of one of those missions, but the moment you screw up and either die or don't reach the score threshold, you gotta re-do those 20+ minutes all over again. it's very easy to see why AC4 is one of the most popular games in the franchise. It polished an already winning gameplay formula and helped to create a new universe that would give Ace Combat its defining characteristics. It's not simply on of the best games in the series. AC04 is one of my personal favorite games period. It's a must play.
Everything that can be said about Ocarina of Time has been echoed a million times over. Widely regarded as one of the greatest games ever conceived, and one of the most influential, even to this day. It's a game that, even if you don't like it, still commands a level of respect. However, OoT is not above criticism. It's not flawless, and like many games of its time has shown its age, but that doesn't mean the game still isn't great. Let's just get the issues out of the way as there aren't too many. A minor one is, despite being moved to (then) next-gen hardware, the story is not much more complicated (or different) from that of A link to the Past on the SNES. There's a decent amount of world-building, but not a lot of story occurs, and what does occur is repetitious (learn song, beat dungeon, save sage, repeat). While general story-telling was never the series' strong-suit, more certainly could have been done. Characters like Zelda and Ganondorf aren't the most fleshed out, but they get the job done. The NPCs you interact with carry a lot more personality than the main characters (and that's quite sad). A more prominent issue though, is the land of Hyrule itself, specifically just how overly spacious and empty it is. While a technical marvel for 1998, not much really happens in the field, and until you get a horse it becomes a bit of a slog to get through (even with side-stepping). Some aspects of the controls haven't aged too well, either, like aiming with a bow/slingshot/hookshot, and menu navigation and item management are pretty clunky. Most of the boss fights are nothing too special and are often incredibly simple to take down. Really, though, that's about all have for any major issues, because everything else about this game is what makes it legendary. For 1998, the game looks fantastic for the N64, and while not all of the soundtrack is that memorable, it still has its fair share of great tunes and some solid atmospheric pieces sprinkled in. Despite some issues with aiming, the controls hold up very well, and it's one of those games that is still best played with an original N64 controller. The manual lock-on system was revolutionary for its time and still works great. I love the dungeon designs in this game, and even the dreaded Water Temple is not quite as bad as the horror stories make it out to be (most of the issues simply come from switching to and from the Iron Boots). While I may have issues with the overworld, there is still this excellent sense of adventure and discovery throughout the game that make it worth-while to explore. I especially love the finale. While most of the bosses are serviceable, the final boss fight with Ganon is among one of the best in the series, especially from an atmospheric perspective. There are also tons of mini-games and sidequests along the way that will keep you busy. Some of them aren't really worth going out of the way of completing, but many give you worthwhile rewards for your efforts. I mean, I can never bring myself to dislike this game. It's a classic for a reason, and I still love going back to this one from time to time. It's a must own for N64 collectors, of course, and if you have never played a Zelda game before, I'd say this is a good start.
The humble beginning of what would become one of Nintendo's biggest flagship franchises. A fighting game curtesy of Kirby mastermind Masahiro Sakurai featuring an assortment of Nintendo characters. The concept alone was enough to ensure this would be a surefire hit. When compared to future games in the series, yeah there's not much reason to return to this game outside of nostalgia or wanting to see the roots of the series, but that doesn't mean the game still doesn't have worth. This is a fighting game featuring various Nintendo icons, both recognizable and more obscure. What set this game apart from other fighters (outside of the roster) was in its combat. Rather than traditionally pulling off a complicated string of button combos and directional inputs, the game focuses on two primary attack buttons, and hitting the analog stick in different directions in combination with the attack inputs to achieve different results. This set-up makes it very easy for beginners to ease into the mechanics, and even if you aren't very good at the game you can still stand a chance, and thus can make it more enjoyable than your average fighter. There are 12 characters total, each with their own strengths and weaknesses. Aside from a couple of clone fighters, it's a well-varied roster combined with equally healthy number of stages that are all fun to fight on. The game overall is pretty light on content, especially in single player. You've got the traditional training mode and a single player arcade mode where you fight through a set series of battles. There's also Target Practice and Board the Platforms which can test the platforming and movesets of each character. While the single player offerings are fine enough, they certainly aren't the reason you go back to this game. Obviously, multiplayer is where SSB shines. If you've got four controllers and four friends, your in for some of the best multiplayer battles the N64 has to offer. There are free-for-alls, team battles, special battles, item customization. It's a really healthy offering. So, while I'll certainly recommend any other Smash Bros. game over this one, the original here is still a great game in its own right. For N64 owners and Smash players, it's a must own. If you can get past its dated exterior, you'll be in for a good time.
Resident Evil with samurai. That basic idea alone is what sold me on playing Onimusha, and man am I ever glad that I got to experience it. Considering how many hit titles Capcom released on the PS2, I'm surprised I hadn't heard of this series until much later. Better late than ever, because this has instantly become one of my new favorites for the system. You play as Samanosuke Akechi, a wondering samurai that is on a quest to save princess Yuki from demons planning to use her for a sacrificial ritual. The plot is simple and to the point, with characters that get introduced only to never get closure in this game and are simply left as sequel bait, which honestly is disappointing. The English voice acting is deliciously B-Grade, giving it a campy, old-school samurai dub feel (complete with dialogue hardly every matching the lip-syncing). The soundtrack, though, is legitimately excellent with pieces that range from bombastic and triumphant to earie and atmospheric. Visually the game looks. Much like the first handful of Resident Evil games, it utilizes pre-rendered backgrounds with 3D models and it has aged very gracefully. Some of the humans look a bit weird, but the monster designs look excellent. If you have ever experienced an old-school Resident Evil game, you'll be immediately familiar with how Onimusha is structured. It's an action game where you fight various enemies, collecting key items, solving puzzles and defeating the occasional boss. The game utilizes tank controls which, while cumbersome at first, don't take much time to get used since the game was designed with those controls in mind, pairing well with the game's fixed camera angles. The game offers a good variety of enemies with different attack patterns and behaviors, and many of the late-game mooks can put up a good fight. The combat is rather simplistic, but can be very satisfying, whether its from striking down a powerful enemy, using magic to mow down a crowd of them, or just enjoying the juicy slicing of your sword through flesh (I swear I don't have problems). The game is very short too. If you know what you're doing you get beat the game in a few hours, which makes it very replayable to go through as you'll want to see if you can beat the game in a faster time and get the highest grade possible. As you defeat enemies you can absorb different colored souls. Red souls are currency, allowing you to upgrade your weapons attack power as well as being able to break certain sealed doors. Red souls can also be used to upgrade items, like turning herbs into medicine or regular arrows into fire arrows. Yellow souls are for health and can become a precious commodity in the late game and blue souls refill your magic meter. You can often get these souls by utilizing the magical properties of your weapons. One neat detail that I like is that each elemental sword you obtain has their own separate magic meter, making it ideal for bosses and crowds of enemies. While most of the main puzzles you experience in the game are very light, you will come across the occasional trick box that only allow you a certain number of moves to unlock it, and a couple of them can leave very stumped. The game is not without its blemishes. For starters, I really don't like how each weapon has two separate upgrades for general weapon strength and seal strength. In order to access certain doors in the compound you'll need to have the seal strength up to a certain level depending on how many there are on the door, forcing you to prioritize that over upgrading your weapon strength, which will cause you to have to grind a bit in order to fully upgrade everything, and you'll need those stronger weapons for some of the late game challenges. It can also be very easy to be overwhelmed by enemies, which can lead to you getting stun-locked or in a position where it's difficult to gather the souls left behind by enemies. The enemies can also knock you back and end up turning you around, causing you to forget your position and moving or swiping the wrong way. You are also given several different maps in the game, but I found them to be ultimately useless. Not just because I thought it was rather simple to memorize the general layout of each area since the compound itself isn't too big, but because the map doesn't offer a legend for any of them that tells you what each color-coded item represents. Onimusha can have its moments of frustration, but that ultimately doesn't change the fact that I think this is an excellent game, one where not only RE fans get a kick out of but also for people that absolutely dig the feudal Japanese setting and lore.
How incredibly lucky of Microsoft to have one of their launch titles for the OG Xbox be not only a massive critical success, but also capable of launching a whole new franchise and with Bungie even setting the standard for console shooters to come, much like RareWare before them. Halo is one of the most important and influential FPS games of all time, creating a whole new generation of players, eventually giving way to sequels that would popularize the use of Xbox Live and becoming a big name in pop culture at large. I, myself, have very little experience with this series, only playing scattered bits of multiplayer every so often. I was curious to see not only if the original game in the series is able to hold up close to 20 years after its release, but also to see if it can make me into a fan. In many respects, Halo: CE does hold up remarkably well, and I'm glad I finally had the chance to experience it, but there is definitely a lot of room for improvement here. After a run-in with alien forces called the Covenant, you take control of super soldier Master Chief, whom, along with an AI companion named Cortana, land on a giant ring world aptly named Halo. You're charged with not only rescuing survivors on Halo, but also to stop the Covenant from using it as a possible weapon against Earth. The plot itself is rather bog-standard in the grand scheme of things, with loads of contrivances and use of technology that, bafflingly, never gets brought up or used before it is most convenient to the plot. I do enjoy some of the characters like Cortana and Major Johnson, but most everyone else, including the Master Chief, are pretty bare in comparison. For its time, the story was certainly far more ambitious compared to the average FPS, but it certainly feels like the first game in the series. The same can also be said for the game's visuals. While many of the environments are beautifully rendered and dripping with atmosphere, some of the character models do look pretty ugly, with even worse lip syncing. The soundtrack, though, is fantastic and has held up considerably well (even if it can feel out of place a lot of the time). Of course, the real meat of what made Halo an industry standard is in its gameplay. The game is divided into six chapters, and you travel various locations mowing down enemies and getting to the end destination. Since Halo was initially a console exclusive at the time, it was important for Bungie to nail down the controls with the Xbox controller, and man did they nail it. Halo is one of those games where you can still comfortably play with a gamepad to this day, perfect for those that aren't used to mouse and keyboard. The movement is silky smooth and each of the weapons feel just as gratifying. You are only allowed two primary weapons at a time, but it's not difficult to find ones you are more comfortable using as enemies and allies alike drop them frequently. The enemy AI can range from tactical and effective, to blindly charging standing out in the open like fools. Some of them, like the grunts, even react to different circumstances, like Covenant leaders being taken out or being handed a grenade. Ally AI is actually surprisingly effective here. If you are riding around in a vehicle, one can easily take shotgun or man the turret and help you mow down enemies, even performing victory fist bumps after a kill. They're are many little attentions to detail that are always greatly appreciated. Speaking of which, on occasion you'll even be given different vehicles to pilot, like an all terrain Warthog, a gliding Ghost or a flying Banshee. The Warthog takes a bit of getting used to, but the Ghost and Banshee are a blast to control. While Halo works great as a single-player experience, it is at its best in Co-op with a friend. There are so many more laughs and memorable moments you can create with a friend, and it can make going through some of the more arduous sections a lot more comfortable. Which leads me to the level design. The more open-ended environments aren't an **** fact, those levels are where the game shines best. It's when you get to the more claustrophobic temples that it starts to falter. Much of the layout and design of these more linear stages blend in with one another, making it easy to get lost if you don't know what you're doing, especially since the game doesn't point you in the right direction a lot of the time. The game also has you backtracking halfway through, with only a bit of variation to the stages, so it ends up being visually dull after a point. So, no, I don't think Halo is the masterpiece that many consider it to be. However, I did enjoy my time with the game and it managed to peak my interest in the rest of the series. It's a product of its time, but it's absolutely worth looking back on if you have never experienced the original or if it's been a good while since you first landed on that ring world.
Wario is a character and a series that doesn't get quite as much love as he deserves. From Wario Land to WarioWare, his games are some of the most creative and out-there experiences in gaming, perfectly befitting for a company like Nintendo. Up to this point, just about every Wario experience has been quality. Wario World, on the other hand, doesn't quite hit that same level. This is not a bad game, far from it. In fact, it can be loads of fun. However, Wario World can very quickly fall into a repetitive trap that may make it difficult for you to want to keep playing to the end. Wario World is a 3D Beat-'em Up platformer with puzzle elements. You travel through various stages, beating the crap out of enemies, collecting treasure and defeating bosses. Wario has a few combat maneuvers at his disposal such as basic punches, his classic dash ability, tried and true pile driver, and he can even spin enemies around like a tornado. The treasure you collect is not merely for show, as they can be used to purchase items like garlic which can heal you (the price of garlic increases each time you purchase one, though). Each stage also has other important items to collect, like the golden statue pieces that increase your health and Spritelings, little forest creatures that can aid Wario on his quest. While exploring levels, you'll come across puzzle rooms and platforming challenges. Puzzle rooms usually involve finding a way to get access to a collectable by either maneuvering through blacks or utilizing glue globes to either float on or climb up. The platforming challenges are, well, challenging. It's very similar in concept to Super Mario Sunshine's F.L.U.D.D-less courses. Some of these can also be real brain teasers, too, having you get creative with the platforming in order to reach the end. These areas are some of the best parts of the game as not only do they do a good job of breaking up the action, but are able to retain the Wario Land-level challenge that we've come to expect from the series. The combat, in true beat-'em up fashion, is simultaneously satisfying and repetitive. Wario controls great, and performing combos and pile driving enemies can be super satisfying, but the moveset you start out with is all you have for the rest of the game. That lack of variety can make it difficult to stay invested if you aren't already into this genre. There's a decent amount of enemy variety, but most don't put up much of a fight. The level themes aren't anything too special, though, as most are basic tropes that we have seen in platformers time and time again, but a few of them like the haunted house are more varied than others. The boss fights, while not terribly difficult, are some of the most fun parts of the game and offer some pretty creative ways of defeating them. The music is also surprisingly fantastic. Lots of the stages have some real bangers and toe-tappers. While I certainly had a blast playing through this game, it's not one I really come back to very often. It has really solid combat, excellent platforming challenges and some fun bosses and levels, but You'll have experienced everything the game has to offer by the end of the first world. If you aren't a fan of this style of game then it's not really gonna change your mind. If you are a Wario fan than this certainly comes recommended. If you do find yourself interested in this game, don't spend too terribly much on it.
If you were to ask what people's favorite Final Fantasy game would be, more often than not it would be the first one you've played due to the nostalgic and emotional attachment they may have with it. You can play other games in the series before or since that one, and yet you will still hold that first game in highest regard. FFX is that Final Fantasy for me. When I first saw this game back in the early 2000s, I was blown away. I had never seen any game like it up to that point, RPG or otherwise. Sure, it's begun to show cracks and feels dated in a few spots, but none of those issue take away the fact that I believe this to be one of the best RPGs ever made. FFX chronicles the tale of a big shot sports player named Tidus, who winds up over 1000 years past his time after coming into contact with a humongous creature called Sin. He gets wrapped up with a summoner named Yuna, along with her bodyguards, who are on a pilgrimage to defeat the creature. I found the storytelling and world building to be immensely engaging. All the different races you come across, the religion and culture, and of course the different characters. I enjoy every member of the party in some form or fashion, including Auron, Yuna, Wakka, and, yes, even Tidus. Each of the characters have their own stand-out moments and watching each of them grow throughout the game is satisfying. Even the romance between Yuna and Tidus I found to be believable and even pretty heart-breaking. While some of the character motivations are incredibly flawed, and certain plot elements can feel downright stupid, the game never loses my interest. This was also the first FF game at the time to feature fully voiced cutscenes with full-fledge cinematography. While certainly dated in many respects (some of the animations, weird shot transitions and odd voice direction), for a first go this is remarkably impressive. The game still looks and sounds stellar for an early PS2 title as well, with colorful cutting-edge visuals, terrific soundtrack, and voice acting that still holds up for the most part. The game is a mix of linear exploration and traditional turn-based gameplay. This is the first game since FFIII to return back to a turn-based formula, and for my money it's some of the best combat the series has to offer. It's fast and strategic, allowing you to swap party members on the fly to account for any situation. There's strong, flashy finishers you can pull off, tons of weapon and armor upgrades and abilities, and the series' tried and true summons that now you can control manually. Leveling up this time around is done via this massive sphere grid, where as long as you have the appropriate spheres you'll have the opportunity to customize your party to your specifications (even being able to fill out the grid in its entirety and bleeding off into other characters' sections). The exploration, while linear, still offers enough deviation to make it worth exploring. You'll also come across the occasional mini-games, which are pretty hit-and-miss. For every great one like the Monster Arena, there's Blitzball, Chocobo Races and Lightning Dodges, and many are required to achieve characters' ultimate weapons. Unless you are very patient, most of them are not really worth going after. FFX ain't perfect. Not by a long shot. It feels dated in many respects, many of the mini-games are a chore and some of the story is flat out dumb. That being said, I don't care. I consider it a flawed masterpiece. Whenever I give a game a 10, it's not because I think a game is perfect, but because not only do I think it emotionally connects with me, what it does right, it vastly outweighs any shortcomings. I consider it to be a gold standard. FFX is a game I have loved for close to 20 years, and I'm certain I'll continue loving it for many more.
I'll go ahead and say this right off the bat: This is the worst Sonic game I have ever played. Oh sure, Sonic 06 comes in a close second (and I have yet to play Sonic Boom to form an actual opinion on the game), but I was far more frustrated and bored with this game compared to 06. What few good ideas that are here are not even close to making this worthwhile to sit through. From its structure, to the edginess, to its awful story, Shadow the Hedgehog is an absolute failure. This game came out during a time where Japanese developers were struggling to keep console gaming profitable in their own country, so many decided to focus on the Western market. Sonic has historically always been popular with Western countries, so it made sense to want to appeal to them. Their idea of appealing to the West (specifically the U.S.), however, was to turn this game into the bedroom of the edgiest pre-teen you can imagine. It's got everything: awkwardly placed, forced swearing, the use of weaponry that feels so incredibly out of place for any character in the series to use, heavy metal and excessive amounts of wangst. The best part is that there is not an ounce of irony to be had. Not even a wink to let you know that, yes, even the developers think this is ridiculous and we're gonna have fun with it. There's no fun, though. You better wear protective gear, because the edge here hurts. How about that story? Well, Shadow still has amnesia from Sonic Heroes, and all the characters that know him STILL REFUSE TO TELL HIM ABOUT HIS PAST. While in the middle of some reflecting, aliens pop in out of nowhere and start wrecking the city. Shadow only begins to care when the alien leader, Black Doom, tells Shadow to nab the Chaos Emerald because he owes him a solid. Shadow foolishly agrees, and is off on a treasure hunt to try and learn something (the rest of the characters sure as he** won't tell him squat). So over the course of the game, you are given multiple missions that align with being good, evil or neutral. What missions you perform determines the path you take, leading to multiple endings that allow you to shape Shadow into either a good guy, an evil **** or confused emo robot. Sounds great on paper. Bad news: none of those endings matter. Once you complete all the necessary missions, you unlock a final story segment that leads to what Sega considers cannon, rendering any choices you have made throughout the game (and the game's entire marketing tagline) completely moot. It's not like it matters too much, though, as every part of the story in this game either doesn't make sense or is just awful to sit through, not helped by the game's terrible voice direction. Core gameplay falls in line with that of previous 3D Sonic games. You run and platform through the level and either get to a goal, or complete specific objectives like defeating a certain number of enemies or funding a few key items. Almost every mission in the game falls into the latter two, which means at many points you'll be slowing down to scour through the levels to make sure you don't miss anything, making some missions agonizingly long. One decent inclusion they added is that you can warp between checkpoints in case you miss anything, but it doesn't make exploring these boring and bleak levels less frustrating. Not even the music, which is usually the saving grace of a bad Sonic game, isn't particularly memorable save for a few pieces. You know what else makes them frustrating? Shadow's god awful, slippery controls and the frustrating camera. It feels like butter melting around a moving frying pan. You have to just barely nudge Shadow through many of the levels just to make sure he doesn't slip off like a dunce. Ironically, I found the gunplay in this game to be the best part as it is the most functional aspect of the game. It allows you to mow down enemies a lot easier instead of using the gimped homing attack or useless punches. You also have access to two Chaos powers: Chaos Control and Chaos Blast. Both are filled by killing certain enemies. Chaos Control allows you to zoom through the level, but is only useful in instances where you just have to get to a goal. It's more useful against bosses as you can slow down time. Chaos Blast is a bit better as it's just a giant explosion and is, again, good for bosses. Actually, the best part about these powers isn't the powers themselves, but the fact that simply filling the meter gives you unlimited ammo for your weapon. I understand that this game does have its defenders, and if you enjoy it, that is perfectly okay. I'm glad you got something out of it. For me, though, oh god no. I will happily defend my stance as this being the worst game in the series that I've experienced. I only hang onto it for my collection. For anybody else remotely curious, do not bother giving it the time of day.
It feels like not too long ago every game company an their grandma wanted to create their own platforming mascot. While most faded into obscurity there were a select few that managed to break the mold and stand out, staying within the hearts of many gamers. Sly Cooper is one of those characters. His appealing design, coupled with his unique blend of stealth and platforming, helped to making a lasting impression in people, myself included. I grew up with the series and have replayed the game dozens of times, and after nearly 20 years it still holds up exceptionally well. The plot is simple. Sly is a thief. He and his friends Bentley and Murray are off to different corners of the world to stop The Fiendish Five, a group of villains that not only murdered Sly's family, but also hold the pages of his ancestors' handbook The Thievius Raccoonus. The cutscenes that play out have aged pretty badly, not gonna lie. From the stilted animation to the weird lip syncing, it's pretty comical to look at nowadays. Thankfully, the voice acting is still pretty solid and the unique, all the characters are still thoroughly engrained within my memory and the graphical style still looks great to this day. The soundtrack, while not amazing, still has a few solid stand-outs. The game is a level-based 3D platformer combined with elements of stealth. You traverse through many varied areas and platforming challenges all while avoiding enemy detection. Your goal is to collect seven treasure keys to get to the boss. Getting caught doesn't always spell defeat, but Sly is incredibly fragile in this game. All it takes is one hit to put him down. However, you can collect up to too lucky charms to give you a couple of extra hit points (even works with water). You shouldn't worry too much about dying though as the game is remarkably easy. Even the bosses, while fun and memorable in their own right, are hardly an issue (save for maybe the final boss). Despite that, however, these levels are just plain fun to traverse through, partly because of how smooth Sly controls in this game. On the occasion, the game breaks up the platforming with different gameplay styles such as turret sequences defending a character, racing mini-games and timed challenges. While most of the challenges are a nice change of pace, the races, on the other hand, are terrible. It's two things: The controls for your van are too loose and the AI rubber bands like nobody's business. They are easily the worst parts of the game. Scattered throughout most levels are clue bottles. If you break every bottle in a level, you'll unlock a safe that will give you either a new move or passive upgrade like enemy information. These are not needed to complete the game, and most of them aren't too terribly useful to begin with. While I'll certainly say that the other two Sly games on the PS2 are better overall games, Sly 1 still has plenty of merit and is still fun to breeze through to this day. Definitely recommended for platforming enthusiasts and PS2 collectors alike.
Majora's Mask is a prime example of something that wasn't fully appreciated at the time of its initial release, but has since developed a massive following, gaining the love and recognition it deserves. There are even debates as to which game between this and OoT is the better Zelda title. Which one you prefer will ultimately be determined by your preference. Majora's Mask, while carrying similar mechanics from OoT, has its own unique flavor and is much less traditional. The world is more strange, mysterious and often grim, and much less focus on traditional dungeon crawling compared to its predecessor. Really, though, both games are great for their own reasons. If you force me to choose between the two games, I'm going to choose Majora's Mask. Hands down, the best aspect about this game, and the reason I would prefer this to OoT, is the world in which the game takes place. Termina is such a stark contrast to Hyrule, and in my opinion more interesting. The world building is some of the best the series has seen, and it's filled to the brim with interesting characters, each with their own unique stories to tell. MM also absolutely nails its atmosphere. It's easily one of the darkest games in the series, with many moments that completely caught me off guard, both big and subtle, that I didn't think would ever be put into a Nintendo game, let alone a Zelda game. Of course, it's not just the story and the world that are different. Core gameplay is about the same as it was in OoT. You explore dungeons, beat the boss, collect the thing and move one. However, this time around the game is under a time limit. Thanks to the mischievous Skull Kid, in 3 in-game days, a giant moon with a evil face will drop down on Termina and kill everyone. You will need to collect masks and ancient summon giants to help you stop the moon from falling and stop Skull Kid. Luckily, time is on your side as you can use your ocarina from the previous game to go forward, back and slow down time as you need to. You'll be given three primary masks that will transform you into a Deku Scrub, a Goron Warrior, or a Zora, each with their own unique abilities that get put to great use very often. Dungeons are also not given as much focus this time around as there are only four main dungeons as opposed to roughly nine. What dungeons there are, though, are some of the most inventive and challenging in the series (looking at you, Great Bay). Instead, side quests are going to be the primary focus. While technically optional, they are one of the only ways you'll be able to gain new equipment and heart pieces, and even then you'll want to go out of your way to do these anyway since the characters you interact with are enjoyable and the stories are so interesting. They range from hilarious to heartwarming to heartbreaking. It's through these side quests that you will earn a majority of the game's masks. Most of the masks are primarily used to complete other side quests, but a few of them do have useful properties outside of them. The time travel mechanics are put to use the most with the side quests as everyone's routines happen at different times, and many of them require you to fulfill a prerequisite to either complete or even start. Traveling through time is limited, though, as you can only jump forward halfway through a day, and some of them take place at specific points that you will have no choice but to just wait on, and that can be pretty cumbersome. Majora's Mask is not the most accessible Zelda game out there, so I would be hard-pressed to recommend this as someone's first Zelda experience. However, it is absolutely worth playing at some point. If you are looking for something more dark and unconventional in your Zelda games, this is the one for you.
Mass Effect 3 is the concluding chapter in the Commander Shepard trilogy and one of the most controversial games of the past decade. The amount of disappointment and anger that this game managed to generate is immeasurable. This, along with the disappointing Dragon Age 2, **** away every ounce of good will that Bioware generated. Almost a decade has passed since ME3's release, and its sting can still be felt today. ME3 is a game that has sadly gotten worse over time. However, I do not believe this is a bad game. Far from it. The Reapers have successfully invaded the galaxy, and now Shepard has to do their part to unite the different races together in an effort to stop the Reapers, all the while building the ultimate Deus Ex Machina known as The Crucible that could possibly be used to stop them for good. The quality of the storytelling is very sporadic. One moment I'm face-palming at how moronic and out-of-character someone is, or how contrived, awkward or force another moment can be, but then be greeted with moments of pure awesomeness, spectacle, or just plain heart-warming. However, what this game is most infamous for lies within its conclusion. In its original state, the endings truly are awful. No question about it. All of the choices you've made, the characters you've grown to love, the alliances you have built. All of that gets practically wasted by the final ""decisions"" Shepard is forced to choose from. If you invested your time and energy into this series for the five years it had been going on up to that point, absolutely you would feel demoralized by this moment. Bioware did attempt to remedy this a bit with the release of an Extended Cut that was meant to add further closure and explanations for certain details (all the while creating new questions that shouldn't be there). It certainly was a much needed patch job, but that's all it was. It still didn't fully fix the issues that the game's conclusion suffered from, and it will forever be remembered for that. While there are still plenty of big choices to be made throughout the game, most of them are within the context of the previous two games, rather than ones made for this game exclusively. Gameplay has received both improvements and detriments. Out of the original trilogy, I definitely think that this has the best combat. The movement options feel more refined, the levels are a little more open-ended, organic and less "video-gamey", the gunplay feels ultra satisfying and the weapon upgrade system adds an extra layer of depth. They also managed to find a strong compromise with the level up system. It's not as in-depth as ME1, but not nearly as stripped down as ME2. The probing mini-game is now just a simple "find dot on the map and poke it" and snag the item. The game also benefits from some great looking environments and some of the best voice acting in the series. The gameplay detriments, though, are pretty egregious. Firstly, the sidequest structure in this game is terrible. You get most of your sidequests by just eavesdropping on peoples' incredibly private conversations, then you go out on the galaxy map, find the thing and bring it back. If that sounds tedious to you, you'll be *happy* to know that the codex does NOT keep track of mission completion! If you get sidetracked in the middle of a mission, or just put the game down for a while and forget about it, you are not going to know how far along you are unless you retrace your steps to make sure you got everything. You would need to do a sidequest on its own to completion with no distractions just to make sure you do it right. Hell, a few of the quests don't even bother telling you the location of a planet, and unless you look up a guide you're gonna have to scour the entire galaxy just to find the damn thing. That is bad game design. The dialogue wheel also reduces your choices between paragon and renegade, with no in-between. The war asset system, while neat in concept, is poorly executed and, unless you have the EC and story DLCs, all but force you to engage in multiplayer if you want to achieve the best possible outcome. The best way to describe ME3 would be "sporadic". It shifts back and forth between stupidity and brilliance, fun and tedium. I still honestly believe it's a solid game, in spite of its faults, but I don't blame anyone for being soured by it.
The grand daddy of all 3D Platformers. The OG. One of the most revolutionary games ever created. A true trend-setter. Super Mario 64 is unquestionably worthy of respect and admiration for how much it moved the industry forward and for just being a kick a** game. Close to 25 years after its initial release, SM64's DNA is still felt within modern day platformers. However, 25 years is enough time for other games to come along, refine its formula and in some ways even surpass it. SM64 may be the king, but it's not immune to criticism. More and more of its age has shown itself over time, but that doesn't mean its not still worth experiencing. Most of SM64's age come from its overall design. Obviously, the game visually could be considered ugly, but really it's unfair to compare the game to standards set even a console generation after this so it's a moot point to make. Besides, I still really dig the blocky, simplistic style this game goes for. It's what helps add a lot to this game's charm and memorable presentation. When it comes to design, I'm not talking simply about the general design of the courses themselves, but rather the game's structure. The general goal is to collect power stars in each stage. Upon collecting one, you are immediately booted from the level and you'll have to start back at the beginning to start the next task. In more open-ended stages like Bob-Omb Battlefield, Shifting Sand Land or Dire, Dire Docks this isn't an issue. It's when you get to more linear stages like Womp's Fortress, Tick Tock Clock and Tall, Tall Mountain where this starts to become more of an issue and a majority of the missions simply require to climb to the top at a certain point and collect the star. It can feel tedious having to climb all the way back just to go a little further, finish the mission and repeat the process. Thankfully, a majority of the levels do not follow this philosophy so this is not at all a game-breaker. However, the one consistent problem that every stage has is the 100 coin star missions. Early in the game, it's not that big of a deal, but once you start reaching higher floors in the castle it can become an absolute chore as coins become more and more spread out, and you struggle to find those last handful that you need. God forbid you get that last coin in a spot that is either dangerous or damn near impossible to reach. General controls have also started to show their age, particularly with the camera. For a first crack at it, they did a darn good job. Unfortunately, there will be times where the camera either doesn't give you a proper view of your surroundings or gets stuck in a position to where you can't turn it around any further to try and improve your view. That's really about it as far as personal gripes, because for everything wrong with this game, everything else more than makes up for it. For starters, Mario is an absolute dream to control. He's got such an incredible amount of moves at your disposal for you to take full advantage of and to finish missions in a multitude of ways. There few things as satisfying in life as getting good at playing this game. While I may have an issue with the general mission structure, SM64 gives players an insane amount of wiggle room when it comes to unlocking new areas of the castle. Every star in the game is of equal value. As long as you collect enough to reach new areas, you grab whichever ones you feel like getting. You can avoid entire levels you don't like this way if you're thorough. Personally, SM64 just isn't the same unless I collect everything, but I'm glad that Nintendo gives you the option regardless. You'll also find scattered about a few power ups that, while situational, are enjoyable to use. I also love most of the levels themselves. Many are the standard Mario flare, but obviously they would want to keep things a little safe to ease people into it. They are simply fun to explore about, and a majority of the star collecting is very satisfying. This game also houses some of the most memorable and fun secrets in gaming, some you'll discover on you own while others take a bit of know-how. If for whatever reason you have yet to experience SM64, it is a definite must. Make no mistake, it's aged a fair bit, and there are just some things that are hard to forgive when you've played other games similar to this that came afterwards and refined it, but really there's a charm to this game that can never be matched.
Mass Effect was a strong, yet ultimately flawed start to Bioware's next big franchise. It introduced players to it's new characters and universe, leaving fans salivating for its much anticipated sequel. Upon its release, ME2 received widespread critical and commercial success, and for damn good reason. ME2 is a much leaner, more refined experience compared to its predecessor (but not without its own issues). It's storytelling was going into darker territory, there's a whole new cast of characters in addition to old faces and the combat received a significant overhaul. In pretty much every respect, I consider ME2 the pinnacle of the series. The game takes place a couple of years after ME1. After an unexpected encounter with a new threat, Shepard finds himself working with the morally questionable Cerberus, led by the aptly named Illusive Man. He provides Shepard with a new ship, resources and dossiers on people best suited to help them launch a suicide mission against a race of beings known as the collectors. Much like the first game, the general storytelling, while solid in its own right (though with moments that feel contrived), takes a huge backseat to the individual characters and your relationships with them. The new characters you recruit are some of the very best in the series. There was not a single one that I did not root for or wanted to learn more about, especially when they are given their own individual loyalty missions to further flesh them out. The presentation also received a massive overhaul. General graphical fidelity and has certainly increased, but it's the art design, lighting and cinematography that really sells the experience. The bold colors and dark shadows perfectly add to the darker atmosphere that the game creates, and character interactions are far more dynamic and interesting. Despite the darker tone, the game manages to be surprisingly funny at points as well. The fantastic music and voice acting further sells the experience. Bioware was finally able to develop and refine their own style with ME2. Combat is another huge improvement. They were able to refine the shooting mechanics and even make a few improvements to character and enemy AI compared to the first game. The game is structured a lot more linear this time around, feeling more like level-to-level progression. The game streamlines a lot, from the exploration to the level up system, and in some respects I do feel that's a step back from ME1. It feels far less like an RPG and more like a traditional 3rd-Person shooter with RPG elements. That being said, ME2's refinements to gameplay more than make up for that shortcoming. The game also introduces resource collecting, where you would travel to different planets on the galaxy map and launch probes at select spots to collect resources for upgrades that are needed to improve you and your party, but also ones that are vital to your mission. On a fresh playthrough, this is easily the most tedious, boring part of the game. If you want to get the best outcome, however, you're gonna have to do some farming. If you are doing an imported playthrough or have multiple save files on hand, you'll have enough resources from the get-go for this not to be an issue. ME2 continues ME1's emphasis on choices. You can import your save data from that game into ME2, which not only provide subtle and big changes to game world, but you'll also get additional bonuses in resources and credits to make your job a bit easier. The game also retains the traditional paragon/renegade system, but this time adds an interrupt system to spice up your choices, some with significance and others just for humor. The decisions you make in this game feel like they have a lot more weight this time around, and have some of the most dire consequences for the series. If you have more of an affinity for ME1's more traditional RPG elements, you may be disappointed with how more stripped down it can feel. If you can look past that, however, you'll find a more interesting world, plenty of memorable characters and refined combat to keep you invested in. Not only do I think this is the best game in the series, but ME2 is one of my all time favorite game period.
The period between 2007 and 2010 is what I would consider to be the Golden Age of Bioware. They had a string of straight back to back hits with the first two Mass Effect games and Dragon Age: Origins. While Dragon Age was more of Bioware's traditional bread and butter, Mass Effect was whole new territory, and thankfully, they succeeded. Mass Effect was the beginning of a new era for Bioware, and a beloved new world for people to get lost in. Well over a decade after its initial release, however, it's flaws have become more pronounced, but the fact that I still love going back to play through it to completion speaks volumes to its overall staying power. You take on the role of Commander Shepard (male or female). You are a career soldier turned Spectre (super cops basically) tasked with stopping rogue agent Saren and an army of synthetics known as the Geth from bringing destruction to the galaxy. You'll recruit various characters to your mission and make difficult decisions that not only affect you personally, but the galaxy as a whole. While the general story telling itself is solid enough, what the game does best lies within the world building and characters. Mass Effect may take cues from many well-known Sci-Fi properties, but they were also able to put their own spin on them, with various races with their own distinct style, personality and culture. More importantly, your party members are interesting and fun to talk to. While some are certainly better than others (Ashley...), people like Garrus and Wrex became instant favorites, and almost always remained in my party. The villain Saren may seem pretty one-note bad at first, but over the course of the game more is revealed about him and his layers begin to peel back to give us someone surprisingly more tragic than you would realize. The more I play ME, the more I appreciate certain details about this game that I never did the first time around. At its core, Mass Effect is an RPG with elements of a 3rd-Person Shooter. You explore various planets, engaging in quests and earning experience to level up and get stronger. The general shooting mechanics, on their own, are functional but not nearly as smooth as their contemporaries. The AI ranges from ruthless and tactful, to as dumb as gravel, standing out in the open just begging for you to kill them. At the start of the game you can choose from a variety of classes that have their own abilities and weapon and armor types. You can be either a soldier with access to every available weapon and armor, biotics with magic-like force abilities but with a limited load out, or Engineers that can break hard-to-crack safes and mess with synthetics. Depending on your class you'll need to choose a team that best suits your needs. One of the defining characteristics of Mass Effect is its emphasis on choice. Right out of the gate you can choose a basic background for Shepard, which can effect how characters interact with you and what side missions would be available. You are given a dialogue tree with three decision branches (Paragon, Renegade and Neutral) as well as opportunities for investigation. While some of it is there mostly for flavor and developing your Shepard's personality, other times it can greatly change how a person interacts with you and even force you to make decisions that affect peoples' lives in big and small ways. How you interact with people fills up either a Paragon or Renegade meter that further unlocks additional choices you can make. This system isn't perfect, but still gets the job done. As I've said, ME has definitely begun to show its age. While the game for its time looked incredible, some of the environments come off rather dull and uninspired. Conversations with characters are also pretty static, going through lots of shot-reverse shot with little movement involved (thankfully the solid voice acting carries them through). General sound editing is all over the place (LOTS of repeat banter from enemies) and much of the music is repetitive and rather forgettable. Exploration in your ground rover the Mako is simultaneously floaty and stiff, making traveling on more rugged terrain a nightmare. There are a good variety of planets to explore, but most don't contain much to do. Much of the sidequests take place in like four locations that are laid out exactly the same and it is visually dull, and yet I still go out of my way to do each of them because there is still an addicting quality to the exploration and side missions. While far from perfect, I still believe Mass Effect is worth looking into, especially since you can import your save data into ME2 and see where things progress. I'd say you can probably get away with calling the original Mass Effect a "flawed masterpiece". Dated in many respects, but a classic nonetheless.
If you ever look up a list of, "Most Disappointing Game Sequels", Devil May Cry 2 is bound to be featured on there. For good reason. DMC2 is undoubtedly the worst game in the franchise. One that I would find difficult for even the most hardcore fans to defend or even say that it's their favorite. Everything that made the original fun and memorable has been completely stripped away. It's obvious that whoever was originally put in charge of development had absolutely no clue what made the original great, and despite Hideaki Itsuno coming in at the tail end of development in an attempt to make it salvageable, it ultimately didn't save the game and it damn near killed the series. The story functions about the same as it did in the original. Dante, along with newcomer Lucia, are tasked with defeating the super bad evil guy and save the world. However, there is one big change added that sets it apart from the original: it's not fun. For as schmaltzy as DMC1 got, there's a level of loveable camp to it that made it so enjoyable. Dante was a bit of a smart ass, cracking jokes at the bosses and just looking like he was having fun with it all. Dante in this game is as flaccid as soggy cardboard. He says so little, and what little he does say is not the least bit memorable. Lucia isn't much better, and the villain Arius? Such a cliché, inconsequential, forgettable villain. What's worse than a more boring story? Boring gameplay. Structurally, it's identical to the first game. You go level-to-level, fight enemies and beat the boss. However, gone is the challenge and complexity of DMC1, and what we are left with is an absurdly easy, watered down imitator. The enemies are basic to the point of being brain dead, and boss fights are downright pathetic. These enemies are so boring, that you'd be tempted to just run through entire levels without ever fighting them (unless you are required to). You no longer get higher ranks by performing more stylishly in combat, but rather just keep wailing on the enemies/dodging long enough to raise it, leaving so little incentive to want to very up your moveset (what little there is) beyond just trying to stay awake. Oh, sure, you do have a bit more by the way of acrobatics like wall running and shooting your pistols straight down while in the air, but not once do these new abilities ever get utilized in any meaningful way. Speaking of pistols, those alone are gonna help you win the game. They are incredibly overpowered. I'd say almost every enemy and boss you encounter can be beaten with just your pistols alone. If you wanna get through the game much quicker, upgrade those as early as possible. What about the levels themselves? Bland and overly spacious. The sick gothic architecture and atmosphere of the original is replaced with mostly dirty browns. Many of the levels are also way too dark to properly see in (even worse if you are playing an original PS2 copy on a modern TV), and far too big with little to show for it. Is there anything the game does get right? Well, I mean it's at least functional. Nothing is absolutely broken or game-breaking. The game was also the first to introduce the concept of Bloody Palace, which would be refined and more fun in later entries. The music, while not as memorable as the original, still has some really solid tracks and is certainly the best part of the whole game. Otherwise, Devil May Cry 2 is just an absolute bore. You are far better off skipping this one.
Devil May Cry, the grand daddy of modern action games as we know it. While Devil May Cry may not be as prominent as it once was back in the mid 2000s, its influence is still felt to this very day in many modern action titles like Bayonetta and Metal Gear Rising. Games all about kicking a** and looking cool and stylish in the process. Close to two decades after its initial release, DMC1's age has definitely started to show more and more. What was once new and cutting edge (ha) is now seen as antiquated. In spite of that, however, I feel there is still plenty of good reason for one to go back and play through this game, even if only to see the roots of the franchise. You play as Dante, a demon slayer with a **** trench coat and two pistols with unlimited ammo. A woman named Trish enlists Dante's help to travel to Mallet Island to defeat the demon king Mundus. The mission holds personal significance to Dante as Mundus was responsible for the death of his parents, so he instantly agrees to the task. You traverse through the castle, fighting off various monsters in an attempt to reach Mundus and put a stop to him. Story isn't particularly important for a game like this, nor is there much in the game to begin with. There are a few cutscenes sprinkled throughout the game, but the story takes a back seat for a good chunk of it, with only the environments and bits of flavor text really giving you any sort of context. What story is there is both 2000s level awesome sauce and incredibly schmaltzy. This is definitely the first game in the series alright. Dante had glimmers of his future character, but they were still trying to figure things out with him. The core gameplay has you going from stage-to stage, fighting enemies, doing light puzzle solving and platforming. What set DMC1 apart from other action games at the time was its emphasis on style. Every time you fight an enemy you start to build up a style meter that goes from D to S. The more variety of moves you successfully pull off with more enemies, the higher the rank. At the end of each mission, you are graded based on your overall style rank, red orbs collected, damage taken and time spent in the level. It can be really difficult to achieve these higher rankings, and it's gonna take quite a bit of practice and multiple playthroughs to get there. It absolutely pays to switch up your play style whenever possible, not just for the sake of variety, but just because it's fun and cool to do. The combat in this game holds up surprisingly well. It's incredibly satisfying to go to town on a mob of enemies, whether it be with your trusty sword, hurling them in the air and keeping them up with your pistols, pounding them with fiery gauntlets, or using your own demon powers. There are over 20 missions in the game, but a good majority of them take less than a few minutes if you know what you are doing. You can easily finish the game in an afternoon, so it's perfect if you are just looking for some quick fun. If you know anything about DMC1's development, its roots as a Resident Evil game are pretty obvious. The game carries over the fixed camera movements of the classic RE games, and the light puzzle elements in this game are just glimpses into the bigger emphasis it once contained. Whether or not it's original RE design also included the gothic architecture I'm not sure about, but man does it look great. Visually, sure the game has aged a fair bit, but the art direction, atmosphere, enemy designs and attention to detail is still top notch, and the satisfying sound effects and electro-rock soundtrack are just icing on the cake. As I've said, though, the game has definitely shown its age, and nowhere is that more obvious than with the controls. Firstly is the platforming. It look and feels ancient. Dante's jumps feel way to heavy and you have no control over jumps once you take the leap, making a few sections of the game tedious. The control scheme in the original PS2 release didn't help with my muscle memory either, and Dante's overall movement feels stiff by today's standards. Despite it's clunkiness, I still love going back to this game on the occasion. If you have ever been curious about the series' roots, or are just looking for tough, old-school action, this still comes recommended.
Detroit: Become Human is the latest cinematic romp from David Cage. This is the fourth stab at this style of game since Beyond: Two Souls back in 2013. I will freely admit that, while there were elements about Beyond: Two Souls that I found enjoyable, it ultimately fell short in my opinion in regards to its gameplay and narrative. However, much of my issues that Beyond suffered from were greatly improved here in Detroit. It's gameplay was more engaging, there were more interesting and likeable characters, and your choices actually mattered again like in Heavy Rain. It basically takes Heavy Rain's gameplay and Beyond's high production values and combines them into, what I believe to be, Cage's best work thus far. The game takes place in the not so distant future, where androids are common place and heavily impact the lives of the humans that created them for better and for worst. A revolution slowly starts to develop amongst the androids, demanding for equal rights as a (not very subtle) allegory for racial justice. The game chronicles three androids in particular. Connor, a detective investigating the cause of these rebelling androids (deviants); Kara, a house maid that rescues a child from her abusive father and the two travel north to Canada for refuge; and finally Marcus, a former elderly attendant that ends up as the "Chosen One", destined to lead this new android revolution. To get this out of the way immediately, Connor is easily the best part of the game. His actor Bryan Dechart perfectly portrays him as clearly being non-human, but without coming off as robotic. He also has the most interesting character arcs in the game, whether you decided to change him for the better, or to make him a ruthless, unfeeling android. There are tons of great moments with him, especially when interacting with his hard-boiled partner Hank (excellently portrayed by Clancy Brown). Kara is a sympathetic character in her own right, but doesn't quite hit the same emotional notes for me as Connor. Marcus, on the other hand, does very little for me. He's easily the driest of the three, but does make that up a bit with some of the most significant story elements in the game. The story can be as subtle with its themes as blood in a white room. The heavy-handed symbolism, racial allegories, corniness, and just general "Cage-isms" can turn a lot of people away. As someone who is no stranger to Cage's work and can get around his eccentricities, I found myself thoroughly enjoying the story for what it was. I haven't been this invested in a Cage game since Heavy Rain. The game also sports an absolutely stellar presentation. While some of the character models still walk into the Uncanny Valley, the game on the whole looks gorgeous, with an incredible attention to detail. Most impressive to me was in the lighting and cinematography. There is a very heavy emphasis on rich, dark colors and mood lighting, especially enhancing some of the more tense moments. The voice acting on the whole is just as solid as it was in Beyond (once again giving special mention to Bryan and Clancy), and the soundtrack is fantastic, varied and perfectly fitting each of the main characters. Gameplay goes back to a style that more closely resembles Heavy Rain, and certainly for the better. You explore your environment for contextual prompts, engage in QTE sequences and occasionally make decisions from multiple choices. This time around, though, your choices matter more than any other Cage game up to this point. You make decisions that have significant consequences to not only the story, but in how individual characters and the world at large view you. At the end of each chapter, you are given a summary of the choices you made in a branching fashion. Some are very linear, while many others branch of into several trees that really show off just how much different a route can be, both in subtle and big ways. While I personally tend to go back and play through my preferred route, there is a lot of replayability to had here. It also helps that you can go back to specific chapters rather than having to start a fresh playthrough. Detroit, while still carrying all of the faults of a typical David Cage game, is easily his best work to date. It's story can be kind of dumb, but it's engaging. Not all the characters work for me, but the ones that did really kept me going. If you haven't played a David Cage game yet and just want to know what all the fuss is about, this is the first one I will recommend.
Indigo Prophecy is really, really **** I love it. David Cage has always been known for his interactive dramas, especially for Heavy Rain, but some people often forget that this little nugget of insanity exists. You really shouldn't, because this game is an absolute beast of an experience. Oh, as a game, it is not very good at all. It does a really poor job of explaining things, much of its mechanics are frustrating, and the story is bonkers. However, I still highly recommend IP because of how ridiculous and stupid it all is. The game starts with our dry as toast protagonist Lucas Kane getting possessed by an unknown figure and murders some random guy in a bathroom diner. Now Lucas needs to uncover the mystery of what happened, all the while avoiding the pursuit of detectives Carla and Tyler. The game's story starts out simple enough, but very quickly does it take a massive turn to being remarkably stupid. Granted, all of Cage's games have stupid moments, but here it is the most egregious. There's supernatural powers, conspiracies, Matrix garbage, forced romance, world ending stakes, the whole shebang. Often it will even rip-off whatever movie Cage watched that week, from the Matrix to Silence of the Lambs. It's almost comical considering how it's executed. While I will give praise to the game for being pretty impressive looking for its time, the motion capture and facial expressions make all the moments of seriousness or intense action look so damn goofy. Add to that the fact that some of the characters are some form of over-the-top stereotype (especially Tyler). I dare not spoil too much about the story as it's something you just have to experience for yourself. Needless to say, I damn near died of laughter multiple times. Well, is the game itself worth sitting through just to get to all the juicy story bits? That depends on your tolerance for jank. If you are familiar with Cage's other "Film Games", it's pretty similar in concept here. You'll take control of multiple characters, interacting with your environment and partake in the occasional QTE that plays out like a game of Simon. It's pretty basic in theory, but the game often introduces new mechanics that are either frustrating, poorly explained, or both. One of the most prominent mechanics is your state of mind. Depending on what choices you make or what you interact with in your environment, your "depression meter" (for lack of a better word), either goes up or down. It acts like a glorified health bar. If it gets down to zero, it's a game over. The problem? The game never explains what will raise or lower that bar. Pick up a photo? Instantly depressed. Politely refuse someone wanting to swing by your place? Sadness. Yawning? Existence is meaningless. You have to know ahead of time what will raise your depression, otherwise you could be in a scenario where you will just die quickly without realizing it. Other problematic mechanics include balancing, adjusting your breathing, and the worst stealth mechanics I have ever played. Make no mistake, IP is not a good game to play. I would not blame anyone for wanting to put the game down after the first couple of hours. However, if you got a few friends over and some drinks, I promise you it will be well worth it. Out of all the games David Cage has directed, this is easily the worst for a multitude of reasons (some of which is due to rushed production). That said, I still want people to play this game. It is so worth seeing fresh new reactions, especially those unfamiliar with Cage's work. I'm aware that some people legitimately enjoy this game, including it's story, and I'm happy that got that much out of it. For my money, though, It's one of the dumbest, most glorious games I have ever experienced.
Star Fox 64 is the game that I have replayed and completed more than any other game I have ever played. It's one of the most fun and addicting games I have ever experienced that is damn near close to perfection (it may get a 10, but that doesn't automatically the game doesn't have any blemishes). To this day, this is peak Star Fox, and I am still surprised they haven't been able to come close to achieving a similar level of quality since then. SF64 is, for all intents and purposes, a remake of the SNES original. Fox McCloud and gang of furries set off to liberate the Lylat System from the evil Andross. The most noticeable difference between this game and the original is in its presentation. Of course, the graphics are an obvious boost (and still look great for the time), but now each character in the game is fully voiced. This game is endlessly quotable and memorable for a good reason. Each of the characters are wholly unique from each other and have the perfect level of camp. The sound design is excellent, with incredibly satisfying, crunchy explosions, laser fire and roaring engine of the Arwing. The soundtrack, while not quite as good as the SNES game, is still solid in its own right. Another factor that differentiates this game from the original is in its progression. Like the original, there are multiple paths to take that lead you to different planets that vary in difficulty. However, you can now mix up that path depending what mission you accomplish within the stage. It can range from finding an alternate path, shooting down a certain number of enemies, altering the route of a cargo train, etc. How you set your path up can lead you to one of two endings, and only one of them is the true one. Much of this game's replayability comes from exploring all of the different pathways available. While not all of the stages are winners, each one is unique in its own way, preventing things from getting stale. The game also offers multiple vehicle types (first used in Star Fox 2): The Land Master and Blue Marine. You only get to use these in a few stages, however. The Land Master takes a bit of getting used to, but is still really fun. The Blue Marine, though, is too slow for my liking. The Arwing, though, is still the king, and man does it control like a dream. The N64's controller was tailor made for this game and it just isn't quite the same when playing it on other systems. Each level has a score requirement that you can achieve that reward you with a medal, and getting the medals in some of these stages can be pretty tricky. Getting all the medals in each stage will reward you with an Expert Mode (also with its own set of medals). If you thought the base game was too easy, this one will definitely put up more of a fight (it also comes with a **** pair of shades for Fox). This is easily one of the best games you can ever own on the N64. If you are even remotely interested in the series, you need to pick this up in some form, whether it's an original copy or the 3DS Remake (which is stellar).
Behold, the most patriotic game ever conceived by **** it took a Japanese developer to create it. Metal Wolf Chaos has constantly been on my radar ever since I first heard about the game several years ago. It was always that illusive Xbox title that never got released outside of Japan (which is funny considering that the Xbox brand always performs poorly over there). After fifteen years, Devolver Digital finally graced us with this unsung From Software masterpiece...well, okay, masterpiece is not the right word. It's jank, it's repetitive and it's stupid. I don't care though. This game is just too awesome to pass up. You play as the 47th President of the United States Michael Wilson. Vice President Richard Hawk has just launched a coup and is looking to completely takeover the US. Armed with your Metal Wolf mech, it's up to you to liberate America from Hawk's tyranny. The story is every bit as ridiculous, stupid and cheesy as I could have ever hoped for. The voice acting is a delicious honey baked ham, and the music is generic butt rock flare that suits this affectionate parody. The gameplay is rather similar to that of From Software's other premier mech series Armored Core. You load up with a variety of weapons that you can dual wield and switch on the fly, mowing down anything and everything standing in the way of sweet burning American freedom. Aside from slight variations like getting to a destination in a certain time of facing off against the occasional boss, each of the missions play out exactly the same: destroy all primary targets and rescue the occasional hostage. The game is very repetitive, and if you are not really a fan of that sort of loop, or the bombastic patriotic concept that this game delivers, you are bound to get bored of this game really fast. The game can also suffer from a serious case of the chug whenever there's too much going on at once. For as jank as the game can be, the combat and silliness was just fun enough to keep me going to the very end. While MWC's core gameplay isn't anything special, the sheer concept and fun that this game has had me keeping a big old stupid grin on my face the entire time. If you can catch it on sale, do get it, if only for the novelty of it all.
Mass Effect: Andromeda is one of the most disappointing games I have ever played. This was the last thing Bioware needed after the divisive reception of Mass Effect 3. It was a game that was looking to make good on the original vision of the first Mass Effect game, running on cutting-edge new technology, and featuring a whole new cast of characters for players to potentially fall in love with. Despite having some genuinely good ideas and moments, it does not live up to the standards set by the original trilogy. A lot of this game's issues can be explained by its hellish development cycle, but it doesn't help make the game rise any further than average. ME: A's biggest problem lies within its story and characters. A large scale number of humans travel all the way to the Andromeda galaxy, only to discover that their potential new homes are under the threat of a race of beings called the Kett. As Ryder, you set out to explore the galaxy with a rag-tag group of misfits to create habitable new worlds for people to colonize while also dealing with this new threat. It's story overall feels like a retread of the original Mass Effect, complete with similar plot points, cast of characters and a heavily predictable twist ripped straight out of Mass Effect 2. It makes the game lack its own real identity and just feels like a far less interesting version of the first game. The cinematography takes a considerable nose dive as well, whether it be from the uninteresting way standard conversations are shot to the general technical issues. Of course, there were the infamous character animations which caused this game to get memed into oblivion, and while those moments were hilarious, once they were patched they didn't fix the issues with its overall presentation. The new characters you come across don't leave much of a lasting impression either, save for a select few. Add to that the fact that the game often forgets about technology and lore set in place by the previous games and that your overall choices do not have any greater effect on the narrative (there sure as hell will never be a sequel to this). Even Mass Effect 3 was more impacted by your choices than this. To be completely fair, though, There are a few genuinely fun moments sprinkled throughout the game and a few of the characters like Drack, Jaal and Liam did win me over. The environments in this game can also look downright beautiful. Sadly, they don't make up for an underwhelming narrative. How about the gameplay itself? Well, I can certainly say that it is the best part of the game, but not without its own issues. The core shooting mechanics are, quite honestly, the best feeling in the franchise. Clearly the most amount of attention went into the movement and gunplay. It feels and sounds great, and there's a solid selection of weapons to be had. You also have access to every character class and their special abilities right from the get-go, and you can also save these classes and abilities as shortcuts. However, I personally never utilized these shortcuts since I tended to stick with a winning combination that can absolutely decimate everything in my path. It's like getting the Crissaegrim in Symphony of the Night. As soon as you are given the best possible means of winning, there is absolutely no more reason to experiment. Unfortunately, the side missions found on each of the planets are not nearly as interesting, and many of them suffer from the same problem as most Ubisoft titles: a bunch of the same busy work scattered about to fill out the map make it seem like there is a substantial amount of content. This game also sees the return of vehicle exploration since ME1 (Hammerhead from ME2 doesn't count). Thankfully, unlike the Mako from ME1, the Nomad here is very fun to maneuver around in. You can also mine for resources on the ground like in ME2 and 3, but its far less important this time around. As a Mass Effect game, it is by far the weakest of the series. On its own merits, its decent open world game with some solid shooting and a mediocre story. It's a massive disappointment to many long time fans such as myself, and it doesn't leave me with much hope for a future game (should there ever be one). I only have this game for the sake of owning it as a Mass Effect fan. Everyone else would do best to ignore it and just play the original trilogy instead.
Let me start off by saying this: this game is no 3/10 or anything like that. Far from it. Nor is it this stellar 8 or 9 or 10. Not even close. That just tells me that is nostalgia talking. I say this as a guy that has grown up and played the original countless times. When this game was first announced I was stoked to see a ground-up remake of such a niche little platformer. Now that it's finally in my possession, I did end up having mixed feelings about the whole thing. Where the game was able to make improvements in some areas, it failed to do so with others. It's a shame, because had this game been given more time we would have had something on par with that of the Crash and Spyro remakes. To get some negative points out of the way, and this is honestly a personal gripe of mine, but it honestly is a bummer that the game did not get re-recorded dialogue and revamped music. I understand the mentality of not wanting to change what people fondly remember, but obviously Crash and Spyro did not have to adhere to that. Much of the game's original voice cast is still with the show to this very day so it wouldn't have been that difficult to re-record the script with them (we could have even had Clancy Brown come back as Mr. Krabs). And while the music itself is perfectly serviceable, it could have definitely benefited from some snazzy remixes to really make it feel that much special. You can even just toggle between the originals and the remixes and that would have been great too. Some of the physics are noticeably different as well, ranging from more subtle things like Sandy's lasso swinging to more blatant examples like a teetering rock in Jellyfish Fields that just refuses to let me jump off of. That's really only a minor problem since that isn't a constant issue, but it's still noticeable. It's also weird how the game is missing certain animations from the original, has far more frequent and lengthy load times and texture pop-in. This game lacks much needed polish, and it feels like it ended up this way just so it could have coincided with the new SpongeBob Movie's original release date before getting pushed back. Really, most of my gripes primarily stem from a technical level. I have no doubt that a few of these issues can be easily patched out, but I'm going to review the product as was originally sold to me. What this game improves upon is more aesthetics than anything else. Aside from the aforementioned texture pop-in, the game looks super colorful and bouncy, and the redone cutscenes do enough to play like a proper 3-D episode of the show. Areas like Jellyfish Fields and SpongeBob's Dream really benefit the most from the graphical facelift. They even managed to throw in some SpongeBob memes while they were at it because of course they would. While I'm disappointed that the dialogue wasn't re-recorded, it's still solid stuff with plenty of memorable quotes to this day. At its core, BfBB is a collect-a-thon platformer in the same vein as Mario and Banjo. You collect the macguffins to progress through each area. The controls are still solid, there's some pretty fun and creative platforming challenges with enough variety to keep things from getting stale. Combat isn't all that fun and the boss fights are pathetic, but you're not really playing the game for that. While there is certainly not much special about it from a gameplay perspective, what made the original so beloved was the fact that it was a licensed video game that gave a damn. Finding a solid licensed game at all is a rarity, so for BfBB to reach this level of cult status is a testament to how much the original developers cared about what they were making. You're level of enjoyment with this game is going to be primarily determined by your attachment to the original. If you have never experienced BfBB before, I recommend waiting for this to go on sale and for some of the extra kinks to get ironed out. If you are a fan of the original, as long as you aren't expecting real overhauls to the core game, then this will be right up your alley. Me, I was certainly expecting much more from this. It feels much more like a clumsy "remaster" than a "remake". It has a nice facelift, but not much else. A solid enough game, but if you still have your original copy lying around I wouldn't trade it in.
When Persona 5 first launched back in 2017, it instantly became one of my new favorite games of all time, and it's certainly still my favorite game in the Persona series thus far. Everything from the characters, the style, the music and the combat instantly clicked with me. Certainly not a flawless masterpiece, but its issues are pretty easy to ignore when everything else is of such high quality. Hearing the announcement of an updated re-release of the game with new content, characters and quality of life changes made excited all over again. I'm happy to say that Persona 5 Royal is still well worth the purchase, especially if you haven't played the original up to this point. The core story of P5R is essentially the same as last time. You play as a ragtag team of misfits that gain incredible abilities and use them to change the hearts of corrupted adults. You explore various dungeons within an allotted time period, while also juggling your school work and social life. There are many unique additions made to the story, however. There's a new girl in town named Kasumi, a gymnastics prodigy, and Dr. Maruki, the newly hired school councilor. While not going into spoilers, the two slowly begin to play an integral role in the story. There are also new places to explore around the city with new hangout spots for you and your friends, and a few of the characters even have updated arcs that you can engage with. There were even improvements made to the localization and additional dialogue was recorded where needed. Following the completion of vanilla, you will also be treated to an additional month and dungeon, adding on another 10+ hours of gameplay. The same story issues that were present in the original (excessive repetition, forced drama, overly explaining things) are sadly still present in Royal, but they don't ruin what is ultimately an engaging, character-driven narrative filled with some of the most likeable and fun characters in an RPG. Voice acting continues to remain top notch and the incredible soundtrack is still a joy to listen to. The changes also extend to the gameplay as well. As far as dungeons are concerned, they aren't too heavily modified outside of the addition of grappling hooks (which honestly don't add to much but does aid in sneaking up on enemies), and hidden Will Seeds that you can collect and exchange later for items. Battles, on the other hand, have received a noticeable upgrade. The baton pass mechanic that allows you to switch to other party members after exploiting a weakness is now unlocked from the get-go rather than building up confidants with each party member to unlock them. There are also several new stylish showtime attacks where two party members can pull of a powerful, often ridiculous finisher that can deal serious damage to enemies. The combat was already great before, but these additions make it all that much sweeter. The Velvet Room has also received a few new upgrades. There's a new Alarm fusion mechanic where, every time an alarm goes off, you have the chance to fuse together more powerful personas. The catch here is that you can only perform each type of fusion once before things start to get unpredictable. There are also additional challenges you can complete in the Velvet Room that offer additional rewards. The procedurally generated dungeon Mementos introduces Jose, a kid that will offer you items and buffs in exchange for flowers and stamps scattered about (as well as the aforementioned Will Seeds). He's not really integral to the story, he's simply there to make exploration and leveling up much easier while you're down there. Max out EXP percentage gain as early as possible. It will make level grinding so much easier. Sad to say, however, that you can no longer cheese the Reaper (boo). Persona 5 Royal is everything that made the original great made even better. It is by far the best version of the game, and anybody who hasn't already experienced it should definitely do so, especially if this is your first time experiencing the game. It remains as one of the best RPGs of its generation, and high bar for other JRPGs to meet.
Two of the most satisfying accomplishments you can achieve in a game are overcoming a difficult challenge and getting progressively stronger. Sure, that can describe any number of games, but often that is the main drive behind people continuing to play a game that they enjoy. For as difficult as a game may be, they want to keep playing because of the gut feeling that tells them, "Okay, this time I got this". Rogue Legacy is one of these games. Rogue Legacy is a rogue-like platformer where you traverse through four sections of a procedurally generated castle, slicing through enemies, defeating bosses and gaining loot. What helps set this game apart from other games of its kind is in its progression. Each time you die (which is constantly), the next family member in your lineage takes over for the previous one, each with their own class and quirks, and attempts to succeed where their ancestor has failed. Unlike most traditional rogue-like games you also don't start from scratch each time you die. You will continuously level up and use the gold that you have collected (your inheritance, basically) to add and upgrade your weapons and abilities, class types, and just building up your estate. The more that you upgrade, the easier it will be to traverse the castle. Some classes will be better than others depending on your circumstances. If you are more comfortable with high defense, choose a barbarian class. Looking for a glass cannon? Get the Shogun/Hokage. Need the extra gold? Then spelunkers are your best bet. The classes get randomized each time you die, as well as the various traits that come with them, so you'll need to adjust accordingly. One of the things I love the most about this game is just how charming and silly the whole thing is. I've already mentioned that, in addition to each character having specific classes, they also have unique traits and quirks about them. Some of them can directly effect gameplay like having random muscle spasms, being giant, glaucoma, blurry vision and ADHD. Others are cosmetic like The One and monochrome, while others are just there to be humorous like IBS, balding or gay. The simple, yet affective graphical style also perfectly reflects the non-serious nature of this game. The core gameplay itself, while rather simplistic, is solid. Like in a Castlevania game, you have a primary weapon and sub weapons that you can use to defeat the various denizens of the castle. No matter which class you play, the control will still remain wickedly smooth, making any platforming or dodging a breeze to pull off. While there are many repeating and familiar layouts, what order they appear in and what enemies occupy it are different (unless you lock down the layout). The enemies themselves pose a threat because of not only your frail nature, but often one of the biggest challenges comes from just avoiding projectiles as recognizing enemy attack patterns is pretty simple to do. Aside from encountering a few new enemies, you'll pretty much have seen everything the game has to offer in the first few hours, so it can feel monotonous. However, the drive to inch further into the castle, getting close to beating that boss and getting stronger characters is this game's biggest driving force to keep going. The mark of any good rogue-like game. I've poured dozens of hours into Rogue Legacy. Not just because of me constantly dying and retrying, but simply because how addictive the game is. It's never just playing for a few minutes, it was always playing for close to an entire day. If you are even slightly interested in these types of games or just want a hearty challenge, this comes highly recommended.
If ever one were to ask me what I would consider to be an underrated gem, my mind almost immediately thinks about this game. What was meant to be a hard-hitting, gruesome reboot of the classic Splatterhouse franchise ending up battered and scarred through a tumultuous development cycle, and raked through the coals by most major publications. Make no mistake, Splatterhouse 2010 is as jank as they come. Most criticisms that are levied against the game are completely justifiable. However, purely from my own experience with the game, I still had a blast playing it, and given the hell the developers went through to try and finish it, I'm surprised it released as well as it did. Much of my critiques are levied against the game's technical issues. The first thing you will likely notice is the game's performance. It's just barely able to squeeze out 30 fps on a good day, but the second large amounts of blood and particle effects show up, that's when it starts to chug along. The general graphics themselves are also pretty rough. As far as the general presentation is concerned, often it does a poor job of conveying to players exactly what can and cannot be interactive, leading to a few cheap deaths. This specifically applies to sections where Rick is meant to interact with white-highlighted objects that he can climb on. The highlight is not nearly strong enough for players to immediately notice, and this especially applies to the rooftop areas where it is far too bright and saturated, making it far more frustrating than it realistically should have been. The overall graphical presentation itself is just as rough. While I certainly dig the cel-shaded approach, it certainly has its fair share of graphical pop-ins and just general muddy textures (though one could easily argue that adds to the grimy, bloody atmosphere). The audio design also takes a hit with either delayed or missing sound effects. There's also the infamous load times which, while not quite as egregious as, say, Sonic '06, does start to get irritating since the game is quite difficult in a few areas (a lot of it stemming from the aforementioned environmental cues). Stepping a way from technical issues, the game simply leaves people with a bad first impression. The game does a terrible job of teaching players the mechanics of the game, whether it be because tutorial text faintly appears on screen for a few seconds, or an incredibly helpful healing mechanic is not immediately made known and you end up dying continuously in just the first couple of areas. It's also very easy for Rick to get stuck in a stun lock and within a few hits you're already a pile on the floor. A hearty challenge is one thing. Shoddy programming is another. The game also throws in these 2-D segments once in a while as throwbacks to the classics. While neat and concept (and actually pretty fun for the most part), the game's physics and controls do not compensate for the change in perspective, making the platforming in these moments incredibly stiff, once again leading to unfair deaths. With all that said, why do I still enjoy this game? Well, because once you start to get into a groove and working around all the quirks, it's a solid beat-'em up at its core. Your moveset is incredibly basic starting out, but as you progress you'll gain access to bigger, more devastating special attacks, longer streams of combos and much needed improvements to health regeneration. Once you make your way past the first couple of levels, the combat starts to become legitimately satisfying. Adding to your devastating moveset are the occasional weapons you find lying around, ranging from nail-crusted 2X4s to pipes to shotguns. Fragile as they are, they can pack a punch and really help you out in a pinch. While some of the early levels don't leave you with the best impression, levels like the meat factory and carnival are some of the best parts of the game being equal parts creative and fun. And while the 2-D sections have their control issues, most of the time I found them to be fun switch-ups from the regular gameplay loop. There are also a couple of collectables you can discover in the base game, most notably the first three classic Splatterhouse games and some very...personal photos of Rick's girlfriend Jennifer. By far, though, the biggest surprise I got from this game was its emphasis on story. Not only that, but there was real, genuine effort put into it. It helps to flesh out the universe of the series and adds an interesting dynamic between Rick and the terror mask. The voice acting is also incredibly solid, with Jim Cummings and Josh Keaton being the highlights. Really, the best way to describe this game is simply, "rough around the edges". If you are willing to look past the game's technical shortcomings, you'll find a damn solid action game underneath. If your a fan of this style of game, or are just a **** for gore and metal, I'd say this is worth a look.
It was a good thing that Sonic Mania came out in 2017, because I'd rather we didn't settle with something as painfully mediocre and forgettable as Sonic Forces. Oh, sure, I can easily say, "At least it isn't like '06 or Boom, right?", but I don't want to. Sure, Forces is perfectly functional. It's a finished product, but I'm tired of just settling for mediocrity when it comes to Sonic. What few good ideas this game has gets buried under a sea of wasted potential. The story, by far, is the biggest waste of potential that I've seen since Sonic Generations. Eggman takes over the world, and Sonic, along with Classic Sonic and your original character, are off to stop him like any other game. There's some other classic villains like Chaos, Metal Sonic and...Zavok, for some reason, but they are so horribly under utilized. Zavok and Metal Sonic get sub par boss fights while Chaos just gets crushed in a single hit during a cutscene and is never seen again. Classic Sonic is only in this game because of how it loosely ties with Sonic Mania. Otherwise, CS has absolutely nothing to do in this game. Even your original character has little interaction with the rest of the cast. And the new villain, Infinite? One of the most inconsequential villains in the entire franchise. He pisses off as quickly as he came, leaving no lasting impact outside of admittingly dope edgelord theme song. Speaking of which, not even the music can salvage much of the experience. It's normally the one big saving grace for even the worst Sonic game, but here it's filled with largely forgettable EDM anthems. So how about that gameplay? Well, it's divided up into three gameplay styles. Modern Sonic works similarly to that of Unleashed/Colors/Generations where you boost at high speeds in both 3-D and 2-D fashion. Unfortunately, it is nowhere near the level of enjoyment of either of those games. Sonic feels so much more loose and floaty compared to Generations. While the control for the previous boost entries was never perfect, Generations was a solid step in the right direction. This game supposedly comes from the same people who made Colors and Generations, so why does this gameplay not reflect that? Not to mention just how flat and short most of these stages are. There are quite a handful of stages in the game, but most barely last for over a minute and a half, and much of Modern Sonic's gameplay boils down to just boosting forward. You'll get occasional fun romps like escaping from the Death Egg, but there's not enough of that. Classic Sonic is even worse. It's bad enough that he has nothing to do with the story, but he controls worse than he did in Generations (and it's certainly not comparable to Mania). General movement with him feels much more stiff and sluggish than what it should be. I'd say, at the very least, his levels were a bit more interesting to go through than Modern Sonic's, but that's not saying much. New to this game, of course, is being able to create your own Original the Character. This is by far the best part of the game. You have several animal types to choose from, each with their own unique attributes. You get to customize them to your hearts content using the various gear that you collect throughout the game. Your avatar's main method of attack is using Wispons (Wisps from Sonic Colors used as weapons), each with their own strengths and weaknesses that your character can utilize in the stages, whether it be gaining access to certain areas that require a certain Wispon or just simply there to make plowing through enemies easier. Some Wispons are clearly better than others, but they are the most interesting gameplay mechanics in Forces and do offer a bit of replay value. Plus, there's just something so charming about being able to create your own OC that you can either take seriously, or just be as dumb as possible. On the occasion you'll play as both your avatar and Modern Sonic, and while it doesn't fix all the problems with their design, it's at least more interesting than MS on his own. Even though this game is *technically* finished, this still feels undercooked. It's the equivalent of turning in a C- book report. You did exactly the bare minimum you needed to do to pass, but you sure as hell aren't impressing anybody. Unless you really are the most die hard of Sonic fans, this is a hard pass. Just go play Sonic Generations.
I would be hard-pressed to find a more enjoyable survival horror game in recent memory than the Resident Evil 2 Remake. I personally don't have any sort of nostalgic attachment for the original game, but I do have a tremendous amount of respect for it. Considering how great RE7 turned out, I was more than eager to want to give this game a shot, and man oh man this game just blew it out of the water. At this point in time, RE2R is now my favorite game in the series. The story follows much of the same beats as the original RE2, but with a retooled script and additions thrown in to help add to the experience, all the while retaining the personalities and quirks of the characters. Leon is still a loveable dork, Claire is still caring and badass, and Ada is still a mysterious fem fatal. All these characters are voiced incredibly well and are some of the best performances in the series so far. While the situations themselves are still incredibly serious, there's still a level of classic RE camp to help alleviate some of the more dramatic moments, while not feeling to out of place. There are even some genuine emotional moments that personally got to me like with Kendo the gun shop owner. However, I do feel that they could have done a bit more to flesh out Leon and Claire's friendship as they very rarely have any interactions with each other, and very quickly they start to act buddy-buddy with one another. If you are a fan of the original than you may be disappointed to know that the scenario system from the original doesn't work the way it used to. You can still choose Claire A/Leon B and vice versa, but the changes to the layout and item placement from the original is no longer present. Honestly, though, that's really it as far as the negatives I have with the game, because everything else about it is just so damn good. If you've played Resident Evil Revelations 2, you'll be familiar with how this game controls. Movement feels just right, the gunplay is tricky, but satisfying to pull off. Ammo is limited early on and the zombies do not go down easy, making them a real threat in this game. The game carries over the traditional item management of the classics, having you choose between important key items, additional ammo or healing items. Knowing the layout of your surroundings is important for you to fully manage your inventory and knowing which paths to take and which zombies to kill or run past. It's survival horror gameplay at its finest. That's not even getting into the horror that is Mr. X. This lumbering brick wall will stalk you everywhere you go. Unless you are in a safe room or are extremely quiet, he will find you and lay the smackdown. It's one of the most intense gameplay elements I have experienced in some time. All of this is backed up by pitch perfect sound design. Everything from the moans of the zombies, to the pounding footsteps of Mr. X, and the well-placed musical cues. The soundtrack for this game overall is great, but a really cool thing that you can do is add the original RE2 98 soundtrack to this game and it fits just as perfectly (though its a shame it's locked behind a paywall). If you are even remotely interested in horror games, you need to play this game point blank period. It's not simply one of the best games series has to offer, it's one of the best in its class.
I'm a **** for a good Metroid-Vania game. It's one of the easiest ways to win me over. Strider has always been one of those games that I've known about for so long but just never had the chance to play it until recently. After finally playing it, I gotta say I found it to be pretty damn satisfying. While I'll certainly play other Metroid-Vanias well before this one, this is worth at least a single playthrough. What really helped to set this game apart compared to other games of its genre is how the game plays. It's very fast-paced, with plenty of wall climbing and platforming acrobatics. Very befitting for Strider's skills as a ninja. The game is all about just mowing down everything in your path as quickly as possible, made even better with the buttery smooth controls and rock-solid 60fps. While some of the character models are a little less than handsome, the environmental design overall is very pleasing on the eyes. Like any good Metroid-Vania worth its salt, there's tons of collectables and new skills for Strider to discover to uncover more of the game and to explore already visited locations to find things previously unobtainable. As far as any real complaints are concerned, the game's music is just sort of there and the game also just kind of ends abruptly after the final boss. Not a very climactic finish, but thankfully that didn't take away from my experience. If you are ever in the market for a fun, fast-paced Metroid-Vania game, I'd say this is well worth it.
Nobody. Not a single. Solitary. Soul. Seriously wanted Bubsy to come back from the dead. However, by the power of memes alone, we were graced with a new Bubsy game in 2017, coming out around the same time as both Super Mario Odyssey and even Sonic Forces. Yeah, I'm fairly certain most people were paying attention to either the portly plumber's globetrotting or Original the Character creator. Bubsy only continues to exist today because our jokes and memes have gotten to the point where it was able to revive one of the most reviled platforming mascots of the '90s. I will give Woolies Strikes Back this much credit. It certainly is the best Bubsy game ever made. That is not really saying a whole lot since this game is just so painfully average and by-the-numbers. It controls perfectly fine, with some nifty quality-of-life improvements that make it a thousand times more bearable than the original games. It looks nice and colorful. The soundtrack is just sort of...there, and you can still have Bubsy shut up just like you can in Bubsy 3D (how many of you even knew that was possible). The problem, though, is that being functional, yet boring is always going to be far worse than being bad, but interesting. This game gives very little to talk about. Much of the level designs are your basic platforming fare. You can collect tons of yarn balls throughout the stages, but collecting them all is there purely for completionists sake as they are not necessary for progression. Most of the boss fights are decent, toward the end of the game they really start to drag through mud. Oh, and the entire game can be beaten in about 2 hours. The fact that it's so short is not the bad part. The fact that it was released for $40 in 2017 is what makes it egregious. I mean, there really isn't a whole lot to say about this game other than, "It's a functional Bubsy game". If you desperately wanted one, here you go, but I would not spend more than maybe $5 at most for this game. Its normal asking price is asking for far, far too much. The Woolies Strike Back is ultimately a game that doesn't need to exist, and frankly, at this point, I think even most people have quickly forgotten about it. I don't think memes are the best form of marketing, Acclaim.
Symphony of the Night is one of those rare timeless classics in gaming that most people consistently love and enjoy, and for good reason. You could still release a game like this today, exactly as it is, and it would still work. It's a game that I can go back to over and over again and never get sick of it. It's one of the most influential and important games in not just the Castelvania series, but in all of gaming. Its presentation is pitch perfect. The sprite quality and animations are some of the very best of its generation. Each area of the castle has its own unique flare and memorable design quirks, from the bold colors to the general designs of the areas themselves. After a while, you start to instinctively remember the layout of the castle in its entirety, making you much less inclined to pull up the map every three seconds to know where you are going. Even after coming back to this game after a lengthy period, I was still able to remember most of the layout of the main castle, including its more hidden areas. That is simply the mark of good game design. Adding to the stellar presentation is the incredible soundtrack and endearing, cornball voice acting. Of course, what truly helps make this game legendary is its general game feel and progression. Seeing as this game most closely resembles that of Super Metroid, SotN carries over that game's immensely satisfying progression system of gradually gaining new abilities to gain access to brand new areas of the castle and reaching areas in previously explored locations for extra goodies, all backed by this game's buttery smooth controls. The game also incorporates RPG elements. Defeating enemies and equipping various weapons, armor and accessories will turn Alucard into a near unstoppable force. What's really great is that it is absolutely unnecessary to grind in this game (save for a couple of select bosses), because depending on what weapon and item combinations you pick up, it is absurdly easy to break this game in half. As soon as you gain access to the Alucard shield and shield rod, or grind out schmoos for the crissaegrim, you basically already won the game. All of that, coupled with the tight movement options, makes Symphony of the Night one of the most satisfying games to get good at. The game doesn't simply end after that, though. The game also includes both Richter Belmont and Maria Renard as playable characters, each with their own unique play styles that make it worth going back and playing through it all again. If there is any criticism I can levy against the game, it's going to be the second half of the game with the inverted castle. You can easily tell that this layout was not meant to be played upside down. Areas that were simple to go through in the first half are now far more cumbersome to deal with, and areas that were already a mess (The Clock Tower) are made even worse. What's also disappointing is that the music selection in the inverted castle is severely limited. While still good pieces, you end up hearing them just a little too often. That aside, there really isn't a whole lot for me to dislike about SotN. It's a true classic and monumental trendsetter, leading the way for more great Metroid-Vanias. If for whatever reason you have never experienced this game already, please fix that. It's still an absolute masterpiece.
