TriforceGem

Amazing. All the triple A publishers wish they could make a game like this. Even compared to other big gachas, this game feels cohesive and well designed. The details of the clothing are insane, obvious, but less obvious is that the main story is completely voice acted and done well. The writing is a good balance of emotional and silly. The exploration is surprisingly excellent. It feels like a better Breath of the Wild /Tears of the Kingdom. It really almost feels like Horizon Zero Dawn because of the fidelity on the PS5. The game loop of quests and collecting merge together just like Horizon. I'm in the middle of Chapter 2 and I've enjoyed it so much.

Cute and fun! The art is gorgeous. They could just make all future 2D Kirby's in this engine. Plus little party games to have fun with friends.

The atmosphere and environment design are top notch. I loved spending time in each of the "town" areas. I really love the first town, The Slums. Extremely fun to just explore and find out about the world through exploration instead of exposition. The narrative that the story tells, at its core, is moving and well crafted. The part where I am not giving this game a perfect 10 is that I feel like the "zurk" are unnecessary to the story. The dystopia works really well without them. I think the strength is in the exploration and interaction the player-cat has with their companion. I highly recommend you take some time to let yourself get lost in the world of Stray.

This game has very strong gameplay loops. I was enthralled exploring the world and learning to engage the different enemy types. I think the world designers carry this game. It feels expansive and organic. Clearing out zones like bandit camps felt nice, affecting the world in a small way. I unlocked all the map and got all the collectibles before I engaged the 2nd part of the main story that starts in the hub town of Meridian. I think if I had tried to do all the side content before the main story, I wouldn't have been so engaged. The weakest point of Horizon Zero Dawn is how they handle the story. The concepts of the world and what happened to create it are fantastic. The reason the story is happening right now? Terrible. Woefully under explained, and a lot of the story choices felt forced and not organic. The opposite of the world that was built. For a Science Fiction game, I feel like they did not think through a lot of the reasoning and consequences of things that happen in the "present" day of the game. This game would be a 2 or 3 if it were not for the sheer brilliance of the world that was created by the environment and combat teams.

This remake was surprising. The story, the combat, the more in-depth characterization. I loved the original. I love turn based RPGs. I also loved this game, even though it was wildly different. Nostalgia glasses aside (because, yes, I teared up when seeing Midgar and all the characters rendered so beautifully), this is a solid game, especially for the Final Fantasy franchise which somehow has become a better MMO developer than single player RPG developer. I feel the FF franchise has just wanted to make movies, and a lot of the gameplay and cohesion suffer greatly because of that (since FFX). The Remake has a lot of that movie studio polish and a new battle engine, but I found it enjoyable and engaging for *most* of the run. I have played this game almost 4 times through now and it has been out for almost 1 year. Where the game shines is the battle system, and how you can configure each character to your liking (though they still have their areas of excellence). Unfortunately the depth of the combat with weapons, accessories, and materia cannot be fully realized until Hard Mode is unlocked. I wish that depth could happen in a single play through, but I am no game developer and I wouldn't know how to make that happen. Playing through again on Hard Mode is all about the battle system and getting the most out of your play style. The Normal mode (or Easy or Classic) is there to engross you in the story. If you look at it this way, I think it's rather nice. Story first, then putting nose to the grind stone with a stronger battle mode. This game is far from perfect. Fortunately, or unfortunately, games lately, especially in the FF franchise, have been less than good. So the parts that are not great are still better or the same as other FF title issues. Some issues are the padded quests. They can get a little annoying for sure. There are also the mandatory shuffle-through-tight-space events. Really unnecessary. The textures issue is egregious, but I am giving them the benefit of the doubt and hoping it is fixed for the PS5 release in June 2021. Another sad point is that one of the characters towards the end loses characterization and becomes the cryptic exposition machine that Square Enix loves. I want to give the game an 8.5, but since I cannot, I will give it a 9 for the magic it brought back to the characters and world of FF7. One stellar part of the Remake is how they treat and characterize Cloud. Much better job than the original. And their handling of Wall Market and the transformation was so well done and very socially aware. I know a lot were worried about this portion and I can't think of a better way of handling it than they did in the game. Bravo FF7R team. I am excited for the Yuffie DLC and the next installment.

I have been a Final Fantasy fan for a long time. I pointedly ignored the FF13 franchise when it was being touted as the "Fabula Nova Crystallis." It was obvious they were trying to find the same success as the FF7 franchise and all the games and media around that story. I decided, after returning to FF12 and completing it, to give FF13 a try. I gave it a good long try, 29 hours, and I finally realized what this game is: a multi-million dollar auto-battler. Hallway fights. Cool upgrades/leveling, but extremely grindy to get anywhere decent (especially with the items, holy crap). Story, unimportant and boring. I want to like this game, but I found myself, eyes glazing over, thinking "no one cares" while story dialog happened. I will not finish it. It is just so boring and the story is just monotonous exposition and data logs. What a terrible game.