SalarymanDaishi

Theoretically a proficient third person shooter with some racing sections as well. It has a decent balance between sneaking and shooting, and it plays as hectic or as calm as the player wants it to. Yet, despite dozens of explosions and massive destruction the whoa factor is badly missing, the controls sway between clumsy and floaty, the weapons don't pack enough oomph, and it lacks soul. It has simply been thrown together without any particular passion and while the end result isn't shockingly bad, it definitely sinks into the swamp of mediocrity. Also the fact that it takes less than five hours to complete doesn't help either.

A grand journey like any Final Fantasy should be, sadly trimmed down to just bare essentials: flashy cutscenes and combat. As fine as both of them are, quite a bit of what makes an enthralling JRPG has been culled as well and the result is a linear and vapid ordeal of preciously little else than running and fighting for 50 hours. Sure, the story and the characters weren't bad at all but overall, the game is worthy of just one gigantic, heartfelt meh. Not because it wasn't what some of us stubborn FF purists wanted it to be but because it's not even a particularly memorable representative of its genre. Not exactly bad or good. Just... Meh.

As my first Etrian experience ever, this is a tough one. As a dungeon crawler, a mere playthrough offers closer to 80 whopping hours of unadulterated niche audience entertainment at its finest. It's unforgiving yet fair, intense yet funny, and the journey on which one excels by meticulously mapping his way through multiple cunning floors can get scarily addictive. The eventual conclusion to all this awesomeness, however, felt more like a lazy kthxbye afterthought, especially considering the time it took to get there. One utterly brilliant roadtrip, one heck of a lousy destination.

A worthy sequel to an excellent action-JRPG that wraps up the loose ends of the first game in a most satisfying manner. The story is weaker and more convoluted, and there are countless little cutscenes that badly break up actual gameplay but more fluent combat and better camera controls make up for those shortcomings. The unorthodox alliance between Disney and Square Enix still works wonders and even if some of the worlds have been recycled from the first game, the overall 30-something-hour experience is a decidedly positive one.

A highly polished, first-rate platformer with plenty of creative insanity and a wonderful orchestral score to back up the action. Mario's star hunt through dozens of mini-planets is a wild and diverse journey full of color, clever level design, and more than enough challenge, should the player go for everything the game has to offer. Simple boss fights, fairly short and linear stages, and Mario's traditionally slippery movement coupled with slightly awkward motion controls somewhat detract from the overall enjoyment but the experience is still overwhelmingly positive. Excellent effort from a plumber with 25 years of career under his belt already!

A delightfully colorful and ambient third-person action-adventure featuring some of the best characters and character interaction ever! The journey of a violent brute and a young hacker girl across a desolate, war-torn land is really something quite magical and the game holds excellent tension for all of its eight-or-so hours. A bit on the short side and beset by clunky combat and poor frame rate, yet a distinctly positive experience!

Visual novels simply don't get better than this! Incredibly well-written, creepy horror adventure with paranormal overtones, starring nine hapless people forced to play a deadly game in a ship rigged to sink in nine hours. Over a dozen routes, six endings, and potentially over 20 hours of spine-chilling terror. Granted, it's more about reading than playing, the puzzle sections aren't terribly challenging, and there's fair bit of restarting and fast-forwarding already played content in order to get to the bottom of it all but still, for me this one turned out to be the Game of the Year!

A puzzle-crusted, dialogue-heavy visual novel that delivers a lengthy, serenely paced detective story with plenty of stylish film noir undertones. The game takes places in a seedy roadside hotel at the end of 1979 and, during the span of a single night, tells the captivating tale of a ragged, bourbon-loving ex-cop haunted by his past that has unexpected ties to quite a few others spending the night in the same hotel. It features minimalistic, yet vivid and nicely drawn character animations, a good variety of moody background tunes, and a script that is a fine piece of eloquent detective prose. Its realistic, down-to-earth approach is refreshingly original and its characters feel remarkably alive. The puzzles are simple and there's certainly more to read than there is to play but an exceptionally good story is always worth experiencing!

An intriguing story and the visual flair are still there but the usual Cing problem of mundane, glued-on gameplay still stands. Again is an excellent murder mystery but one that would work better as a novel rather than an interactive novel.

Has the makings of an excellent third person shooter but it's way too short and the only challenge stems from trying to get a better high score. Probably great, lightweight, silly fun on co-op with a good buddy after a few beers, but as a single player experience, most average.

Too linear, predictable, and condescending compared to the previous games in the series but despite these shortcomings, it's still an entertaining Ace Attorney experience. Too bad it tried to fix something that wasn't broken to begin with.

The camera is a bit wonky and the dub coupled with a westernized script is so full of F-bombs that the cool and collected yakuza sound more like foulmouthed, drunken suburban teens. Other than that, though, the game delivers an excellent story, memorable characters, and plenty of optional stuff to discover in a sandbox of Tokyo's seedier district.

A dream come true for any Japanophile and quite a proficient sandbox game featuring an intriguing story and the most charismatic cast of characters ever. The game dares to be different and apart from cut content, plenty of invisible walls, and repetitive random encounters, succeeds at that. Not perfect but loads of fun just the same.

Third person shooter that does a stellar job mimicking 70's trash movies and featuring one of the coolest heroines ever. Armed with dual revolvers, a katana, and bullet time whenever she performs acrobatic moves, Rubi Malone shoots and slices thugs like none other. Too bad she only does it for about seven hours and suffers from countless sudden deaths due to failed jumps, slides, or quicktime events.

An ambitious action RPG mixing cyberpunk and Norse mythology (of all things!) that suffers from a very short campaign ending in a cliffhanger, simple and monotonous combat, and enough cyberbabble and testosterone to cause a headache. Not entirely hopeless, as grinding and looting over multiple playthroughs might get fun but on whole, mostly a below average big budget disappointment.

Basically a very proficient graphic adventure that does a good job keeping the heritage of an almost extinct genre alive. Sadly, it's a little too streamlined for its own good and the near total lack of music and sound effects robs it of all atmosphere.

A traditional fantasy JRPG that starts off a bit confusing, looks rather blocky, and has an unbalanced battle system. Yet, the story, characters, and humor are there so it ends up being a proper, delightful, old school adventure that lasts a respectable 20 hours or so.

An endearing little JRPG where characters often break into hilarious musical performances complete with original Japanese audio and all. It might be too simple, easy, and childish for most people but it has plenty of character, humor, and even a sentimental little story hiding behind all the wackiness.

A lovably old school JRPG that mostly suffers from a rushed story and a broken combat system. Fun for a playthrough but hardly leaving a memorable impression.

A highly original action-RPG that adds all sorts of wild ideas into the mix, from 2D platforming to bullet hell shooters. Dreamy musics, good characters, and an interesting story but on the other hand, it's a bit short, looks bland, has monotonous combat, and is lacking in compelling side content. Still well worth a playthrough or two, though.

Very entertaining crossbreed of an arcade and a simulation racer, featuring lovingly recreated cabin views for each car, excellent sound effects, and plenty of addictive little challenges to spice up the otherwise mundane campaign mode.

An enjoyable old school adventure that has aged surprisingly well. The story might not be anything groundbreaking or memorable, and the respawning enemies can be a bit of a chore but for anyone after ~30 hours of traditional JRPG gaming, Lunar most certainly delivers.

Easily the best, most proper "old school" JRPG of this generation. An epic story, excellent emotional drama, memorable characters, good cinematics, and enough side quests to last for 100+ hours. Hopefully not just a homage to the golden age of JRPGs as this is exactly what there needs to be more!

Yet another enjoyable, puzzle-filled Layton adventure which only suffers from a bit too wild and massive story, and the fact that the series is becoming a little too familiar and predictable for its own good.

An initially charming sandbox action game that features a gigantic game world and a hero equipped with a slingshot and a parachute, allowing him to reach any imaginable place on the map. Plays well but the story is practically non-existent and more dumb than camp, and the side activities are seriously limited and horribly repetitive. Great fun at first but in the long run, way too big with way too much of the same.

A surprisingly deep and addictive take on sandbox gaming. Plays well, tells a genuinely good story, and entices for a second playthrough. A bit glum and repetitious for its own good but overall, quite an enjoyable experience.

What this one lacks in technical prowess, it more than makes up in addictivity. Impromptu racing on Tokyo highways has never been this fast, fluent, and fun. Not necessarily a classic but an entertaining racer nonetheless!

A hauntingly beautiful adventure of a boy who could very well be the last living human on Earth. Gorgeous looks and sounds, and a touching take on concepts of death, solitude, and memories. It's just that the gameplay isn't there. Clunky combat and, towards the end, some truly horrible and mundane level designs. Brilliant story but shame about the game.

A decent third-person action adventure of good length that unabashedly mimicks Zelda, God of War, and Portal but fails to establish a personality of its own. Too busy trying to be cool and violent when a bit of humor might have made a world of difference. Not bad per se, just forgettable.

A totally unsurprising little adventure. Five murder cases, ten hours of entertainment stripped of any challenge whatsoever, and somehow even easier than the previous CSI game. Not exactly bad or disappointing (when picked up cheap from a bargain bin and knowing what to expect) but it's certainly more of a simple interactive experience than a genuine game.

Pretty entertaining third person survival horror in the style of Resident Evil. A bit short, sluggish, and it's easy to get lost but investigating the narrow corridors and steep staircases of a foreboding whaling ship in the middle of a fierce winter storm packs plenty of atmosphere. Besides, headshotting zombies with a pump-action shotgun never gets old :)

A highly enjoyable FPS/RPG hybrid full of addictive looting of weaponry. It wouldn't be a remarkable FPS or a memorable RPG but as a combination of both, it turns into something quite fresh and unique, its identity further bolstered by a pleasing, distinctive art style and great humor. With a deeper story and less linear missions, it'd be an instant classic but even as-is, it's definitely worth experiencing!

An unimpressive sequel to a decent-ish game. Mere five hours worth of shooting people under the pretense of one of the shoddiest stories in a long time. Plays OK and is probably a lot more fun on genuine co-op but as a single player experience, a forgettable one night rental at best.

An excellent action JRPG that clicks in almost every respect. Sure, it's just another world that needs saving and it lacks proper cinematics but it looks good, sounds great, plays like a dream, features awesome bosses, and rolls like a breeze for all of its 30-or-so hours.

A proper, full-blown, no gimmicks sequel to the Golden Sun series that rocked big time on GBA over half a decade ago. Just as good as the games back then and a stellar example of an old bag of recipes still being good enough for a first-rate JRPG experience. Misses perfection due to being a bit short, easy, and heavier on text than boss battles. Yet, turn-based battles and Zelda-esque puzzles don't get much more entertaining than this!