painava

Obtained platinum trophy in ~170 hours at lvl 192. Not interested in co-op/PvP, played offline. The wondrous and massive world of the Lands Between is literally awesome, the lore intriguing and captivating. Exploring the castles and wilderness, caves and catacombs quickly became an addiction. There are some performance issues but I'm not that bothered by them. Still, the performance isn't anything to write home about. There also aren't any DualSense features on PS5. Since Elden Ring has been widely praised, my review focuses on criticism. My biggest complaint is that many of the enemies and bosses feel disappointingly unbalanced, which is a big issue when a game centers around combat. A band of towering giants with flaming swords? Who cares, bring it on! But see those rats sniffing about? You better run or die in a ditch. Many basic enemies, like dogs, deal more damage than the bosses. How is that intentional? There are bosses that offer a fair and fun challenge, but many (or even the majority) of them are just ridiculous. Either they're too strong, tanky and fast or total pushovers. Who's going to die in two hits, me or the boss? When the hard ones aren't already hard enough they come in pairs (yay...) and the weak ones die to a couple of swings (that's it?). When so many of the bosses fall into these two extremities, it means that many of the fights aren't particularly fun nor memorable. They feel repetitive or anticlimactic. The hard bosses are prone to extremely delayed attacks, likely to throw off souls veterans. Their AoE attacks and combos deal massive damage. Even if you survive one with a sliver of HP left, the bosses are often scripted to attack when you heal, so a lot of the challenge boils down to making zero mistakes. Add spirit summons, one of the major additions to the series, to the mix and many of the fights feel like they have almost random odds of victory. Many boss fights have clearly been designed with spirit summons (what the gatekeepers refer to as "easy mode") in mind so they're definitely part of the intended gameplay. I still wish more bosses had been designed solely for single-player (no spirit/NPC summons) like in the previous games. I shudder to wonder how big a pain in the ass a spiritless run would be. FromSoftware had already perfected the "souls-like boss" in their previous games. Elden Ring proves that these games work better in a more focused and linear setting. Don't get me wrong, I'm absolutely enjoying the game (plenty of bosses included), but it doesn't strike me as FromSoft's greatest work yet. The gameplay feels oddly dissatisfying during certain fights. A handful of other complaints: Considering how vast Elden Ring is, it's baffling how vague and directionless the NPC quests are, to say the least. Trying to figure out where an NPC has moved requires more blind luck than anything else. I don't need the exact location on the map, but I'd prefer a few hints to Fextralife. Item/magic quick select feels quite old-fashioned. They should've implemented something more modern (similar to e.g. TLOU or Dishonored). L3 as the sneak/dismount button is frustrating, to put it mildly, but I haven't suffered accidental dismounts since switching L3 and ↓, allowing me to change items easily while walking. The map markers feel lacking, there should be more options or different colors. Can't compare the equipment in the shop menu. Fall damage feels inconsistent. Most items seem almost redundant. The best content in Elden Ring are the legacy dungeons, like the Stormveil Castle or the Volcano Manor. The peerless level design makes the exploration so damn satisfying and fun. Character design and art direction are thoroughly superb, even breathtaking at times. Elden Ring has improved many aspects of the "soulsborne experience", but for me, it doesn't reach the heights of Bloodborne, Dark Souls or Sekiro. I would still recommend it to anyone interested in challenging action RPGs and open-world games, however, if the next FromSoft game turns out to be yet another Dark Souls, I'll pass.

Otherwise a great free demo, lacks only a little bit of guidance. A nice little chapter to experience between the main games.

Visage is a great first-person horror game heavily inspired by Amnesia, P.T. and Silent Hill. There's no combat, just avoiding ghosts and darkness. The game takes place in a massive house and there are three main chapters that each twist the house into a maze of memories and nightmarish landscapes. That's not all, but I won't say a thing... I found Visage highly atmospheric, extremely creepy and terrifying. It was great to experience a horror game not riddled with jumpscares but actual riddles and psychological horror. For an indie game, Visage looks stunning, both graphically and aesthetically. Sure, there's a psychiatric ward and other horror clichés, but they still felt quite unique or at least inspired. The controls and the item menu aren't always very intuitive so I ended up dropping quite a few items on the floor. The item menu isn't very practical. The game can also be really vague regarding its goals, so at times it started to feel more frustrating than scary. There are also bugs and glitches, nothing game-breaking, but they might prevent you from getting some trophies. Nevertheless I'd absolutely recommend Visage.

I was pretty excited to revisit Alan Wake after a decade. I really liked it when it first came out on Xbox 360. Excellent story, characters and atmosphere. Actors are mostly great. The game still looks quite impressive, especially the dark forests. The collection includes both DLCs, but since I didn't enjoy The Signal, I couldn't bother with The Writer at all. Maybe later. Combat, gameplay and locations all get repetitive halfway through. There's very little enemy variety and the "puzzles" are too easy. The game also forces you to fight the enemies in a certain way and to me it honestly feels like there's almost no wiggle room. Alan Wake is a very linear experience. Sprint and dodge are both assigned to L1 which is terrible, since you can't sprint when the enemies are close to Wake. There are collectibles, like the coffee thermoses, that do nothing; they could've added some concept art or other rewards for the remaster. Checkpoints are occasionally frustrating as well. I played Alan Wake Remastered on normal difficulty. The renamed difficulty options are a bit confusing as normal was definitely quite challenging. What used to be called 'normal' and 'hard' are now 'easy' and 'normal'. To add to the confusion, the completion trophies haven't been renamed. I'm glad I can finally play Alan Wake on a PlayStation, but it's one of those games that was definitely better in 2010 than in 2022.

Not bad, not great. Too much backtracking and the gameplay feels old. Aesthetically impressive. Controls are a little clunky/unreliable, and the game gets too repetitive after 10 hours. Vague NPC quests. Relics should be permanent upgrades. There are so many questionable game design choices I have to give a bit lower score than I otherwise would.

Surprised how boring this is compared to Machinarium and Samorost 3. Easy to get platinum. Looks nice, but the gameplay is lacking.

I've always loved the creativity of Radiohead. KID A MNESIA is an interactive music video/ art exhibition, so it isn't exactly a game. Cool idea, great (and creepy) execution. Fans of the band will likely get more out of this one, I sure did. What a nice little (and free) surprise.

Pros: Storytelling, art direction, atmosphere, music and time control physics. Overall it's a good indie game. Cons: Somewhat clunky and frustrating controls, annoying checkpoints, slow character (I get it he's an old man but still).

I liked the soundtrack, some characters (Max, Chloe, Jefferson) and of course the final chapter. There were some game-breaking bugs, inconsistent voice actors and visual glitches in cutscenes. Not a fan of the edgy characters or the unrealistic melodrama. Overall it's a good game if maybe a little over-hyped.

One of the hardest games I've finished. Kickass soundtrack. Really tests your skills and patience.

Cute little indie game with good puzzles and nice soundtrack. It's very short and it desperately needs a faster rewind option.

Cheesy yet entertaining action co-op. A Way Out is a very over the top cinematic experience with some light minigames scattered throughout. There's walking and talking, simple puzzles, QTEs, shooting and driving. It's a fun bromance, but just like with It Takes Two (2021) and Brothers (2013) I have issues with director/writer Fares's writing. Neither I nor my wife felt satisfied with the conclusion. With a game as cinematic as A Way Out the story and plot needs to be bullet-proof. The last chapter feels like another story entirely.

I really had high expectations for this game. Several game of the year awards, well-known Finnish developer, a roguelike shooter with a sci-fi horror setting. Returnal is challenging, but never unfair. It pays off to take risks, but advance cautiously. A unique weapon arsenal, tough enemies and sprawling alien ruins. Very addictive, smooth gameplay, intriguing story. Needs something to make it feel a little less repetitive. A must-play, but not for everyone.

An amazing sequel that suffers a bit from pacing issues and some repetitiveness. Great actors, gripping story and mind-blowing graphics. A must-play.

Charming indie game I played co-op with my SO. It's kind of fun, but definitely NOT worth the 10 euros I paid for it. The game is really short. The controls are clunky and heavy, and the AI of the NPCs is frustratingly slow.

Fine relaxing puzzle-platformer. The puzzles are extremely easy and the platforming super forgiving. Gameplay isn't very engaging or interesting, but the Ghibli-esque graphics and score are beautiful. Hoa can get a bit frustrating so it's not the perfect ambient game. A cautious recommendation.

Great remake that should be reviewed as a PS3 not a PS5 game. Old and frustrating mechanics, vast maps with only a few shortcuts and no checkpoints. Awesome boss and environmental designs, however boss fights are mostly easy. Challenging experience, would recommend.

I've never played the original Dark Souls which, I imagine, would by now have some not-so-well-aged mechanics, graphics etc. I expected this remaster to be much more modern, but it really felt like playing a PS3 game. Dark Souls is of course a trilogy of high quality so I could enjoy the game regardless of my slight disappointment with this remaster.

FF7 was the first RPG I ever played (20 years ago), still one of the best Final Fantasy games and one of my all-time favourites I've completed several times. I still remember watching that remake teaser years ago and now finally I got to experience the remake on PS5. There's good and there's bad. The graphics are great, everything looks pretty damn beautiful. No complaints there. Midgar feels lively and the different areas are very detailed and visually interesting. The music's amazing and very nostalgic. I really liked most of the new orchestral versions. Combat has never felt this good in a JRPG. The long boss fights are especially awesome and the changes to weapons and materia are welcome. However, gameplay can be frustrating too as the remake's just as linear as the original but somehow ends up feeling more confined and restricted. Outside of combat the game often feels kind of bland, and that brings me to the story. Almost everything that worked in the original game works in this one too, but I absolutely disliked the huge plot changes. I didn't mind how they expanded on some side characters, but all the new characters are so cringe-worthy or boring. Voice actors are good, but the dialogue is so-so. It's definitely good at times, but atrociously bad throughout the game. So many weird "sex noises", anime grunts and gasps. Just terrible. The story is stretched out and filled with meaningless side quests nobody cares about. The pacing is all over the place and the story lacks urgency. The stakes should be high, but they feel almost irrelevant. The ending is utter nonsense and I didn't like it. Thanks to its excellent combat and beautiful graphics, I mostly enjoyed the remake. It's very nostalgic and the long boss fights are really awesome and worth experiencing. It **** how big a disappointment the plot changes were. However, it's only a game. No one plays Pacman for the plot, and I actually really like the combat in FF7R so I'll live with the changes and enjoy playing the best Final Fantasy game in ages. The DLC was also great if way too short. The hard mode wasn't that hard and "ng+" feels more like an afterthought. It also has the most challenging bosses (damn you Weiss). 100% both game and DLC.

Fun, straightforward single-player adventure shooter. Emphasis on story and characters. Combat is simple but effective. At some point, it starts to feel like the game repeats itself, but overall it doesn't overstay its welcome. There are some minor bugs too, nothing game-breaking. Performance mode is disappointing so I ended up playing with quality mode as it looks considerably better.

Great atmosphere and music, fun and very challenging gameplay. Sort of like Mirror's Edge and Dishonored. Levels and enemies vary nicely. However the game is really buggy. I mean one of the buggiest games in recent years. Music/audio stops suddenly, controller vibrates like crazy. Quitting is the only thing that helps with these bugs. Maybe give it a go if it gets on sale, but definitely don't pay the full price, not worth it. You also can't save in the middle of a level.

Pros: Controls, gameplay and level design. Quite challenging and online co-op is fun too. Cons: Very boring and uninteresting story that's overly cartoonish. Also too many recycled enemies and levels. Some very unfair 2-on-1 boss fights.

Fun single play campaign. Not too long, maybe a little too short. Good FPS with some unique gameplay elements. Not interested in online matches. Would recommend solely for the single-player campaign.

Pretty good platformer, but a little too simple for my taste. Chill and nostalgic. Nice graphics and solid gameplay.

Pros: Pretty good and entertaining co-op souls-like 3rd person shooter, not too many co-ops like this, fun weapons, balanced challenge. Would recommend, especially with friends. Cons: Some very frustrating boss fights, enemy variety.

Pretty good little indie soulslike/boss rush with nice graphics. There are 8 bosses and 2 hidden bosses and the level-down mechanic is quite clever and original. Some of the bosses were good and provided a decent challenge, but mostly the game felt a little bland and heartless. Many of the bosses were also way too easy. The vague story failed to grasp my attention. Got this on sale for like 4 euros which I consider a fair price for this game.

Great graphics, atmosphere and actors. Annoying characters, a nonsense plot, stupid plotholes and way too many cliches.

The pros: Everything not related to gameplay. Atmosphere, story, sound design and music. (All of which are "borrowed" from Play Dead. Their game Inside remains the best game in this genre.) The cons: Shares the same fundamental shortcomings as the first game. The amazing atmosphere gets ruined/interrupted time after time by cheap surprise kills or "do exactly this or die" action sequences. 3D platforming doesn't work with a "2D" perspective. Trial and error the video game. Controls feel clunky and dated. Frustrating checkpoints.

Good little indie puzzle game. Chill atmosphere, good soundtrack. Puzzles are too easy (except maybe for little kids) and there's only one voice actor, the narrator.

Extremely polished in (almost) every regard, great story, actors and graphics. Runs great on PS5. The cons: The fast travel could be better and menu management takes a lot of time. Also, the violence gets too silly towards the end (but I guess that's to be expected from this franchise).

Great boss fights with awesome artwork and score. Finished all levels, but won't likely play again on expert mode. After beating that dragon, you know you can beat the game.

A great ambient game that doesn't quite reach the height of Journey. Very relaxing and atmospheric (and short).

Good demo, could've been just a little longer. The game looks amazing and Maiden made me think whether I'm actually brave enough to play The Village.

A fun platformer that also shows what the Dualshock 5 is capable of. Came free with the PS5 so can't complain. Easy to plat too.

Bastion is fun if a little simple game with nice graphics and story. Nothing mindblowing, but still a solid shooter game that I'd recommend.

Another great DLC for Overcooked 2. Would recommend. (There seems to be some kind of bug with trophies.)

Another great DLC for Overcooked 2. Would recommend. (There seems to be some kind of bug with trophies.)

Such an addictive and challenging game with a kickass soundtrack. Amazing puzzles and challenging platforming. The B-Sides are tough and really test your patience.

I've always considered the Tomb Raider series superior to Uncharted. Great action-adventure game, with good puzzles and exploration. Some "RPG" elements too, like skills, weapon upgrades and side missions (something that Uncharted is completely void of).

Completed in Jedi Master difficulty (hard, offers enough challenge). Good story and score. Really nails the Star Wars atmosphere. When it works, it works pretty well. But there are tons of major issues. The game lacks originality. Almost everything has been "stolen" from other games (like Dark Souls, Sekiro, Uncharted and Tomb Raider), but this game doesn't reach the quality of the games it's copying. The combat is not half as smooth or precise as in Sekiro. The puzzles aren't as engaging as the puzzles in Tomb Raider and so on. There's no fast travel (only shortcuts), the load times are too long, the game rewards exploration mainly with news PONCHOS (are you kidding me) and story memories, plus there are tons of bugs and glitches. Enemy AI is particularly bad. No one would speak highly of this game if it weren't Star Wars. It's not a bad game, but it certainly lacks any kind of polish it deserves.

The good: Story and atmosphere, art direction and score. The bad: Terrible load times, multiple crashes and freezes. The story could've been more compact. I'd remove one of the areas or make their population smaller. Now there are too many people whose lame stories take away from the main plot. The end game also feels like a different story. Why not start with the epic stuff instead of cramming it all in the end?

Did anyone else try this with two players? So many glitches and bugs the game is, at times, almost unplayable. Graphics stutter and flash (especially around Stella's cabin) colour distortion, freezes (even froze my console entirely once which has never happened before), NPCs getting stuck etc. Most of these problems occur with two players, but there are many bugs when playing solo too. Without these problems, Spiritfarer could easily be amazing. But for now, I have to leave it a lower rating.

Got the platinum trophy for this one. The game becomes a lot easier in subsequent play-throughs and acquiring all skills required too much mindless grinding. Super fun to play if not as memorable as Bloodborne or Dark Souls III.

One of the best DLCs out there. Bloodborne's best content, hands down. Unforgettable boss fights, unbearable challenges. Love it!

This was free PS+ "game". Erica is an interactive movie, there's no game here. The story was alright if somewhat jumpy. Watched it once, not sure if I'll try to get the other endings at some point.

Good but compared to the main game a little underwhelming DLC. Also too easy.

Played this DLC after completing the main game. It felt a little unnecessary. Probably better if played between the main chapters.

It's still the same PlayStation 2 game just with better graphics. That's it. Compared to an excellent RE2 remake, this is closer to a remaster than an actual remake. Not sure if this is even the best way to experience the game. Obviously, it's the best-looking version, but I felt that some of the original appeal was missing. I still enjoyed it for what it is. The original game is one of the best PS2 games ever.

Big improvement from Layers of Fear! Engaging story, good gameplay mechanics and cool visuals. At some point I felt like there was too much going on and felt there were too many nightmare sequences.

For me Journey and Inside are like the two sides of a coin. They have similar gameplay mechanics, great atmosphere, easy puzzles, a little platforming and they both focus on story.